I gave serious consideration to taking two weeks to treat this Lord's Day. But checking back I found that I did that last time through, so this time I'm going to take the Lord's Day as a whole. The reason I thought initially about taking two weeks to carefully treat the instruction here concerning faith is because there is much confusion in our day about this truth, as there is concerning many other cardinal truths of Scripture. From the time the Catechism was written, when the Reformation Church was still in her flourishing years, until now, there has been a tremendous departure from the truth. Ignorance abounds in the church today, even as it did in the church prior to the reformation. False doctrines also abound, even within churches that arose out of the Reformed heritage in which the Heidelberg Catechism was written. And therefore it often becomes necessary more fully to develop the truth of Scripture, (to use the words of Paul in Ephesians 4:14), "That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive."
We look today at Scripture's teaching concerning faith. The Catechism leads us to that truth in a rather striking way. It immediately shows the life and death importance of faith, of true faith. For it presents the question: "Are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ?" In considering the truth of our misery, we have often been led to Romans 5, where we are shown our legal connection with the first man. Adam is our legal head, the head of the whole human race. And therefore Adam's guilt was charged to us all. But in Romans 5 we also heard that "as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life." Or, to use the words of I Corinthians 15:22: "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Now, never mind that fact that in the same context of Romans 5, Paul writes of many being made righteous by Christ, and that in I Corinthians 15:23 he speaks of "they that are Christ's" being saved at His coming. The fact is, we heard the Scriptures, "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."
Are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ? The Catechism faces that question, answering it immediately with a very emphatic, "No." You must interpret Scripture in the light of Scripture. When you do so, it becomes very evident that while the "all" who are in Adam is the whole human race, the "all" who are in Christ is that which God has chosen out of that whole human race. It is, in other words, the reborn human race. So we read in John 3:3, where Jesus spoke to Nicodemus the powerful words, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." All men are not saved. So Scripture and our Confessions immediately brush aside the whole error of universalism that is on the rise in the church world of our day. All men are not saved. Therefore it ought to be clear, the love of God does not embrace all. For what kind of love would it be, with an all-powerful God, if He did not save the objects of His love?
So I say again, a proper understanding of Scripture and a humble submission to its truth brings us face to face with the critical importance of saving faith. We must be one with Christ. For in Him alone is the love of God revealed. In Him alone is salvation. "Are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ? No; only those who are ingrafted into Him, and receive all His benefits, by a true faith." So we need to consider saving faith. We will do so following the outline of the Catechism, in treating the essence and critical importance of faith and the source of that faith, as well as the activity and contents or object of that faith.
SAVING FAITH
I. ITS MEANING
II. ITS ACTIVITY
III. ITS OBJECT
SAVING FAITH HAS BEEN GIVEN US BY GOD HIMSELF.
THAT IS THE PERSONAL APPROACH OF THE CATECHISM THAT WE MUST TAKE, IN ORDER TO ENJOY OUR ONLY COMFORT IN LIFE AND DEATH.
If you would ask the question, "Who are saved," then you could well answer by saying, "Believers." It's as simple as that. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." So we read in John 3:14-16. Later, as we read in John 11, Jesus says to Martha, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." Later, when the Philippian jailer asks Paul and Silas, "What must I do to be saved," they answer him, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." Believers are saved. The same held true in the Old Testament. "Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." It is certainly biblical and proper to say, Believers are saved.
But there is still a question that lies behind that answer. It is a question that is largely forgotten today. It is a question, however, that must be faced and answered, in order to have a correct and biblical understanding of saving faith. That question is this: How can a dead man believe? You remember how we have shown from Scripture the truth that the natural man is born dead in trespasses and sins. From a spiritual point of view he is a rotting corpse. How then can such a man believe, lay hold of Christ and all His benefits?
To ignore that question is to make of faith an impossible work. To ignore that question is to leave man without hope in the world. To ignore that question is to present another gospel, a false gospel. In our day you would be hard pressed to find any one who understood faith as anything more than "believing." And so the gospel is presented as if God and Christ are standing in front of us, offering salvation to us and saying, "Now, it's up to you to take this salvation. It's all right here for you. All you have to do is act; take it for your own." And while many would indeed say, "It is only of grace that you can do this," they want at the same time to hold the view that salvation is left entirely to man's choice, to man's act of believing. According to them, man has a free will to make his choice either for Christ or against Him. The problem is, beloved, such a view denies the biblical truth of total depravity and the bondage of man's will to sin.
We don't offer Christ as a free gift for the taking. Oh yes, we may say that we offer Christ, if by offer we mean what was originally meant with that Latin term offero. Our Canons speak of Christ as offered in the gospel. That term offer or the Latin offero simply meant, to present or to hold forth. That we do. By the proclamation of the gospel we present Christ as the only name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. But we don't present Him as a gift to all for the taking. Rather, by the power of the gospel we call men everywhere to believe. And by that gospel, God speaking powerfully by His Spirit, calls to active faith in those whom He has given the spiritual rebirth. So we must be careful in our thinking when we define saving faith.
FAITH, AS TO ITS ESSENCE, IS DEFINED HERE IN LORD'S DAY 7 AS A LIVING BOND BY WHICH WE ARE UNITED TO CHRIST, A BOND NOT ESTABLISHED BY OUR OWN MAKING, BUT BY GOD HIMSELF.
The Catechism actually speaks of being grafted into Christ. That is faith. That is faith as to its deepest root—not merely the act of believing, but the bond which unites us to Christ. That is exactly what Scripture teaches. It is easy to get all caught up in the idea that faith is man's work, something that man has to do. And there certainly is an activity on man's part that belongs to faith, as we shall see. But we look here at the fundamentals. Faith is the graft which unites us to Christ and from which we receive life.
That there is something to faith before the act of believing is evident from John 3. Jesus said, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." There has to be a rebirth, a new life connection with Christ, before a man can see the kingdom of God. The Catechism speaks of a graft with Christ. That is a figure of speech that has to do with plant life. It comes from Scripture itself. Jesus Himself used the figure in John 15, which He said, "As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." You and I are not branches of that Vine of Christ by nature. We have to be grafted in. Out of that old, corrupt tree of Adam, where all we could ever produce was the fruits of death, God broke us off and grafted us into the Tree of life, Who is Christ. So that we become a living part of Jesus Christ. That occurs by regeneration. It is in that new birth that we are grafted into Christ. And through that bond I receive His life, His fellowship, His love, the love of God. Only through that bond. That is life eternal! Through faith, the life bond with Christ.
So you see, faith is not just a means that I use, or something that I do. Oh no. Faith, as to its essence, is that wonder of God's grace by which I receive the life of Christ. Through that connection which God Himself establishes, Jesus Christ fills me and becomes to me wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, all my salvation. Through faith. And as we read in Ephesians 2:8, that is not of me. It is the gift of God. It is entirely His work, a sovereign work, a wonder work of grace. But there is more. For the life of Christ, though it begins flowing in us apart from our consciousness, not unlike the baby in the womb receives his life's blood from his mother, must also come to conscious activity in us. Not only are we grafted into Him, but we also receive all His benefits by a true faith. And we receive those benefits not only passively—although they all become ours at the moment of regeneration. But we receive those benefits consciously by the power of the Holy Spirit in us as He calls us irresistibly to active faith by the preaching of the gospel.
ONCE THE TRUTH OF FAITH AS THE GOD-ESTABLISHED BOND IS CLEAR, THE CATECHISM PROCEEDS TO CONFESS ITS ACTIVITY. (I SAY CONFESS, NOT MERELY DISCUSS. THIS IS A CONFESSION OF PERSONAL SAVING FAITH.)
"WHAT IS TRUE FAITH?" (I.E., WHAT IS TRUE FAITH AS FAR AS ITS ACTIVITY IS CONCERNED, THE ACT OF RECEIVING CHRIST AND ALL HIS BENEFITS)? TRUE FAITH IS NOT ONLY A CERTAIN KNOWLEDGE, WHEREBY I HOLD FOR TRUTH ALL THAT GOD HAS REVEALED TO US IN HIS WORD, BUT ALSO AN ASSURED CONFIDENCE, WHICH THE HOLY SPIRIT WORKS BY THE GOSPEL IN MY HEART, THAT NOT ONLY TO OTHERS, BUT TO ME ALSO, REMISSION OF SIN, EVERLASTING RIGHTEOUSNESS AND SALVATION ARE FREELY GIVEN BY GOD, MERELY OF GRACE, ONLY FOR THE SAKE OF CHRIST'S MERITS." (Q & A 21).
I'm going to be brief concerning this question and answer, simply because I want to focus more in the remaining time this morning on the object of our faith, the revealed Word of God. But the activity of faith is seen first of all in a certain knowledge. That is not a mere head knowledge. There have been theologians, whose minds have grasped some of the intricate details of Bible doctrine, but who had not saving faith. The certain knowledge of saving faith is indeed an intellectual understanding—sometimes very limited—of the truth of Christ revealed in Scripture. But the knowledge of faith is the knowledge of an enlightened understanding, a spiritual knowledge. It is that knowledge of which Jesus says in John 17:3: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." It is that knowledge whereby we know God personally, intimately, with love, as our Savior in Christ Jesus.
This is the knowledge of which Paul spoke when he said in II Timothy 1:12: "for I know whom I have believed." Oh yes, to know that, Paul also had to know that which he also confessed, Christ came into the world to save sinners, of which I am chief. When saving faith is ours, beloved, we confess: I know. I know in the sense of holding for truth all that God has revealed in His Word. I reject none of it. I don't just know Jesus. I don't just know God as a Friend. Faith is a spiritual knowledge by which I spiritually know my self. I know how great my sins and miseries are. I know Christ. I know that I hunger and thirst after righteousness. And I know that salvation is mine. I know God as the One Who saved me in Christ Jesus. That is the knowledge of faith. It is possessed by even the simplest minds. Even our little children, and God's covenant children who are not capable of much knowledge, possess this knowledge of faith. They possess it as God's gift to them. And they express it with us in the most beautiful ways—in their sorrow for sin, in their confession of love for God, in their songs of praise.
SUCH KNOWLEDGE ALSO BRINGS THE ASSURED CONFIDENCE OF WHICH THE CATECHISM SPEAKS.
The two go hand in hand. Knowledge brings confidence. Oh, one may express a confidence without knowledge, to his own condemnation. There are multitudes that reveal nothing of the true knowledge of faith, who yet say, "I'm going to heaven when I die." But the confidence of faith is a confidence that flows out of true knowledge, and that the Spirit works in us together with our sanctification, our spiritual growth in grace.
This confidence is rooted in the fellowship that is ours with Christ.
It is that confidence by which I cling to Him, and trust that even though all my
righteousnesses are as filthy rages, Jesus Christ is my righteousness before God forever.
And even though there are often very dark times in my earthly sojourn, I am assured that
Jehovah is the Rock of my salvation. Oh, I know beloved, that faith isn't always so
strong. And that faith sometimes goes through storms and trials. And the torments of our
own sinful flesh often multiply those trials and even decrease the measure of our
confidence. That is sometimes the case. But, don't forget, because that faith is the work
of Holy Spirit, and because He surely finishes the work that He begins, we cannot lose
that faith. When this faith is ours and we nurture it by the means which God has given us,
chiefly the preaching of the Word, it will grow in our life, giving us ever increasing
measure of the fulness of Christ until we enjoy His fellowship perfectly in glory.
THE OBJECT OF THIS FAITH IS ALL THAT GOD HAS REVEALED TO US IN HIS WORD.
THAT TRUTH IS INTRODUCED ALREADY IN Q & A 21, WHERE THE KNOWLEDGE OF SAVING FAITH IS ALSO DEFINED BY THAT TO WHICH IT HOLDS.
Faith is that certain knowledge whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in His Word. You can summarize that truth, as is done in the so-called Apostles' Creed. These articles of our catholic undoubted Christian faith are simply the brief sum of what Scripture teaches. And the next few months, as we continue our study of the doctrines set forth in Lord's Days 8-22, these articles of the Christian faith will be the focus of our study. But understand, the Word of God is the substance of our faith. Even these articles can only be understood and must be interpreted in the light of the Scriptures. The church's unity is only based upon these articles as interpreted by Bible truth. Else you can confess all of them while at the same time corrupting what they express. And so as we study these articles of faith, we do so by considering their revelation in the Scriptures. What God has revealed to us in His Word is the substance and basis of all our faith.
I want to emphasize that especially for the sake of our youth. Wherever you turn today, you are going to face attacks upon the Word of God. And you must understand that the devil is always trying to sow doubts in our minds concerning the validity and authority of the Scriptures. That is always the nature of his attacks. He lies against God's truth. You must expect that. You must not think that you are alone when you find yourself under his attacks, and when you find him playing with your mind and moving you to question the Scriptures. But you must also realize the nature of his attacks. Satan may cause us to doubt many things. He can tell us at times that all our religion is in vain. He can point to the knowledge of the world, of the great scientists of the world, and make us out to be the most ignorant of all creatures. He can perhaps tell us that we are not the children of God, even as he did to Joshua, as we read about in Zechariah chapter 3. When you confess your sin and seek forgiveness with God, Satan may be there telling you that forgiveness is impossible for that sin that you committed. He tries to convince us sometimes that our prayers are not heard. But make no mistake, in every single one of his attacks all that devil is doing is trying to sow doubt in our minds concerning the Word of God. That's all. Because he understands that the Word of God is the substance of our faith. But you must understand that too.
Without the Word of God faith has no basis and no contents. Hebrews 11 speaks of faith as the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. But that can only be as faith clings to the Word of God. Without the Word, faith has absolutely nothing to support it. Without the Word faith is foolishness. That is why, to those who reject the Word, Christians are fools too. We are. To man's mind, blind to the Scriptures, faith is always foolish. That is why we can never appeal to reason in an effort to prove our faith. The question is simply this: Do you recognize the Bible as God's Word? Mind you, I do not say that faith is unreasonable or irrational. We have a reasonable faith. Faith doesn't lay hold of contradictions. Faith doesn't lay hold of nonsense. Faith does lay hold of the incomprehensible. That it does. But contradictions are impossible to faith. Our faith is indeed a reasonable faith. But the reason of the Christian is a reason governed by faith. That's the difference from that of the world. Faith declares unconditionally and clearly: "The things that are unseen and for which I hope are real to me because God has revealed them to me in His Word." God declares the reality! That is entirely sufficient for faith.
WHEN WE UNDERSTAND AND CONSIDER THIS, AND RECOGNIZE THAT THIS UNDERSTANDING IS A GIFT OF GOD, THEN WE CAN TAKE OUR STAND OVER AGAINST ALL KINDS OF OPPOSITION.
Then as you get older, and you face teachers who believe in evolution—though they call it "progressive creation"—who reject the teachings of Scripture, you can say with wholehearted conviction, Your thinking is faulty. You have not faith. Because faith lays hold of God's Word unconditionally, as the Word of truth. When God speaks He speaks clearly and with absolute authority. In six days He created the heavens and the earth. He did so for His own name's sake, to reveal the glory of His grace to the crown of His creation, the man of His making and choosing. Faith lays hold of God's Word.
You know, young people, God wants us to believe, not to see. He wants to see in us a wholehearted conviction and trust in His own Word of promise. Unbelief consists exactly in this, that it will not and cannot trust the Word of God, but rejects it. That was the very nature of sin as it came to manifestation in the first paradise. God had said to man, "The day that thou eatest of this tree thou shalt surely die." But at the instigation of the devil man doubted and finally rejected the Word of God. He acted upon the word of Satan rather than the Word of God, and became a slave to the lie rather than a servant to the truth. Now if man is to be saved, it will be by God leading him to believe the authority of His own Word. It must become sufficient for us to know that God has spoken. Whether we can see it or not with our natural eyes, we must simply believe the Word for one reason: because the unchangeable faithful God of truth has spoken it. That's all. So even though He could, if He wanted to, God doesn't show us as yet the things that are invisible. But He reveals them to us only in His Word. And faith is the power that clings to that Word of God. So that you say: The things invisible are real to me because God has said that they are, and God is truth."
Oh yes, you may also expect this, because Satan is a fierce adversary: That devil is going to trouble you sometimes. He does me. He approaches us directly through our own weakened minds or indirectly through the sinful world that is at his beck and call, and he tells us: "Oh, you're all right; the only trouble is that you still believe that old story book, the Bible." And with fierce attacks upon your faith he is going to try to convince you that the Word of God is all a myth, totally out of harmony with what we know in our enlightened society. Or you will have those who say, "Well, yes, the Bible is important and it is even more than any other book. It reveals salvation to us. But the Bible is only authoritative when it speaks about that salvation, nothing else. Everything else is all influenced and confined by the culture and knowledge of its day. So your life and your beliefs don't have to conform to the Bible. Just believe that Jesus saves you!" And in that way too the devil will attempt to take away the only ground of your faith.
Do you know how you must answer him? Do you know how you must confront those false teachers who would come to you in that way? Follow the example of Jesus, who always said to the devil, "It is written." And with the prayer of the disciples on your lips—"Lord, increase my faith"—you must tell Satan and all the world, "The Bible is God's Word. It is the revelation of all my salvation and of all my life in Christ Jesus. I believe it, despite all your temptations and plots against my soul." Let us be fools for God!
Such was the faith of the patriarchs, as we have seen in our study of the Book of Genesis. That was the faith of Jacob, who commanded that his body be taken to Canaan for burial. His faith was fixed upon the promise. That was Joseph, who spoke with conviction about the coming fulfillment of God's promise, as we hope to see this afternoon. Faith lays hold of God's Word, nothing less. And faith works in us that assurance that we belong to Jesus, our faithful Savior. It was that faith that moved Joseph to live to God's glory, even in the face of a multitude of temptations. And when he reached the end of his earthly sojourn, he could also face death in the same faith. But as I have emphasized—and that is the emphasis of the Catechism too—this must be your life and your personal confession. That is the whole approach of the Catechism. And that is the whole approach of the preaching of the gospel too, that you might face these things personally. Then, confessing this faith, you may say, "My only comfort both in life and death, is that I am not my own, but belong to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ." Amen.
Preached: 1) Randolph PRC 9/15/96 (am)
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