Hammer on Anvil '

A couple of weeks ago, I started looking at a few of today’s myths and the truth behind them. I’m continuing that this week by looking at the last myth:

4) If I believe in God, I will go to Heaven.

This is a difficult myth to touch on, because the Bible is very clear that we are saved by faith alone and in Christ alone. Just take a look at Galatians to see verses galore to that effect. In no way do I want to suggest anything different. Rather, I want to look at belief and what it means to really believe. Today’s society is full of people who “believe” in God, but how deep does that belief go? Does it affect their actions in any way? Probably not. The book of James is particularly blunt to these people.

“You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that – and shudder.” - James 2:19

Clearly, demons will not be invited into Heaven, so we know that it takes more than belief to get into Heaven.

At first glance, the Bible contradicts itself on this point. Consider Titus 3:5, which I shared on my first week of looking at myths, “he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” Now compare that with another blunt verse from James. “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” – James 2:26

Wait, what? These two verses seem to say completely opposite things. In reality, though, they aren’t saying different things, but rather they are emphasizing different parts of the same thing. The verse from Titus is saying that there is nothing we can DO to earn salvation; it is a free gift from God (see my first myth, The Myth of the Basically Good).

The verse from James doesn’t disagree with this point, but instead is saying that there is more to faith than belief. True faith demands action. Even though you can’t DO anything to earn salvation, true faith means that you will DO things differently. You will back up your words of belief with your actions of faith.

A common explanation for this is to imagine an airplane. You can look at an airplane and believe with all of your heart that it will take you to your destination, but until you actually step onto the airplane and let them shut the door and take off with you onboard, it’s not going to take you anywhere.

So now is the time for each of us to “examine [our]selves to see whether [we] are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5). Are you living a life of belief or a life of faith? Jesus is very clear when he says, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters” (Matthew 12:30). You may believe in Christ, but are you gathering with him? Be honest with yourself, because you are the one with the greatest to lose or the most to gain.

In summary, true faith (and so true salvation) is expressed through action.