His Generation

Part 2. What It Means To Believe

October 18, 2007

Ron and Karen Schwartz

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John 3:16 KJV

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.

What Does It Mean To Believe?

John 3:16 is, without doubt, one of the most well-known scriptures in the Bible.  Yet for all the tens of thousands of times it is quoted each week, it seems to find no place in today’s Christian culture.  Who today evangelizes with the message of “believing?”  Why does the context of this scripture seem to have little meaning among Christians today?  Even a cursory study of the New Testament will reveal that this passage is far from being an anomaly.  “Believing” is the central theme of the New Testament.

Consider these scriptures:

Acts 16:27-31 KJV

27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.

28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,

30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Mark 9:23 KJV

23 Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

And these are just a few examples.  So why is this message missing from today’s Christianity?

If we were to paraphrase John 3:16 into today’s salvation lingo, the idea of believing completely disappears.  In its place, you would find something like this:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever… asks God to forgive them of their sins, asks Jesus into their hearts, turns away from their old life of sin, and then goes on to live his life in a pure manner according to the moral law defined in the Old Testament (providing they were first preordained to be saved)...”

But then there would be need to be an asterisk following this verse that would reference a footnote that would further stipulate the need for regular maintenance.  The footnote would go something like this:

“To maintain eternal life, it is necessary for regular Bible study, prayer, church attendance, and tithing.”

To this footnote, there would be another asterisk that referenced yet further stipulations that would go something like this:

“To watch over this eternal life, you must submit to church authorities, have accountability partners,” and perhaps even “speak in tongues.”

Or, depending on your particular dogma, it might read:

“Necessary requirements include keeping your women silent in church and having them wear head coverings,” or “attending church on Saturday,” or perhaps “observing communion,” “foot washing,” “making confession,” and/or “attending mass.”

The asterisks could be endless. 

The word “believeth” in John 3:16 is used 99 times in the gospel of John alone.  Believing used to be the expected result in all those who claimed to receive the gospel of Christ Jesus, but it has all but lost significance today.  Why?  Again we ask: what does it mean to “believe?”

The early Christians came from the ranks of Judaism.  They understood the law, and they understood that gospel was so much more.  To them Christianity had to be differentiated from the law.  It must never become another set of rules, laws, or procedures to follow.  In essence, Christianity was not to become a “bolt-on” set of laws to be added to the Mosaic laws (i.e. laws of love).  It was more than the law could ever be.  Laws and procedures could never encapsulate what they “experienced” in a living relationship with the Son of God, and then with the Spirit of God.  In contrast, contemporary Christianity has sought to boil down Christianity into just that: law and process.  Contemporary Christianity has sought to institutionalize salvation by turning it from a living experience into a process on a checklist to be done and then forgotten.

The word “believe” is the Greek verb “pisteuo.” The noun version, “pistis,” is translated as “faith” in scriptures like:

Matthew 17:20 KJV

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Luke 18:42 KJV

And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.

Acts 6:8 KJV

And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

Romans 5:1-2 KJV

1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Hebrews 11:33-34 KJV

33 Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

The use of “believing” and “faith” are thus interchangeable.  They are essentially the same word.  “Believing” and “faith” were never meant to be used to exclusively describe a process of salvation that was accomplished years ago.  It was meant to describe the everyday actions of believers as they lived their lives.  It was meant to describe how they handled adversity, sickness, and the lost souls they encountered.  It was meant to describe believing that Jesus is the Son of God and following what He taught.  It meant exercising His faith, believing in His active power in their lives, and doing His works.  It meant to be an overcomer, a conqueror, and kings among men.  To the first believers, Christianity was a transformation.  It was not only an inward experience but also an ongoing outward manifestation through their lives of their spiritual rebirth, the operation of the Spirit in their lives, and the realization of Christ’s teaching in them.  They were and strove their entire lives to become all that He was, all that He promised them, and all that He taught.  That is what it meant to “believe.”

When you consider the overwhelming abundance of scriptures that use or reference the words “believe” and “faith,” it becomes evident that Christianity CANNOT be reduced to a law or process.  It is alive!  It transformed lives, it wrought miracles, it “subdued nations,” it was revelatory.  It was NOT dogmatic, doctrinal, or institutionalized.  In fact, whenever people thought they had it figured out, Christianity seemed to break their rules and destroy their preconceived notions.

This is why revelation and miracles were so prevalent among the disciples of His generation.  They were taught that to be His (Christ’s) disciple, they had to “believe.”  So they stepped out and trusted Him.  They understood that their faith in the supernatural and belief in Christ were the same thing.  They were inseparable.  Consequently, when you consider that the words “faith” and “believe” in the New Testament are essentially the same word it is apparent that you cannot say that you believe as they believed unless you have the faith that they had.

Revelation Or Dogma

In Part 1, we referenced the story of Peter in Acts 10.  Three times Peter “…saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.  And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common (Acts 10:11-15).”

The scripture is clear.  Certain animals, as well as the Gentiles, were considered unclean.  That was an incontrovertible fact.  Yet here, Peter was able to let go of his doctrine (dogma) to follow the leading of the Spirit.  Peter had learned at the feet of Jesus to obey Him, not to question His instructions.  Therefore, when Jesus left, he continued his unquestioning obedience through the operation of the Holy Spirit.

The story continued:

“While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.  Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.  Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius; and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come (Acts 10:19-21)?”

“And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.  But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man. Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons. While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we (Acts 10:25-26, 34, 44-47)?”

Here we find an example of what His generation understood “believing” to be.  In this scripture, Peter did something extraordinary.  He did what many modern Christian leaders would condemn: he went against established doctrine and dogma to “believe.”  He set aside his theology to give way to the operation of the Holy Spirit.   He placed the sovereignty of the Holy Spirit above his own intellectual understanding of the scripture.  In doing so, Peter believed in God and demonstrated the respect that His generation had for the power and rule of God’s Spirit.

Most Christian leaders have deified their knowledge of the scripture.  There are areas of their imaginations that are off limits to the work of the Holy Spirit, and as a result, most churches and denominations have, like the Jews, become “locked” into their own special doctrines (dogma).  Many of today’s notable doctors of divinity and theology have concluded that their understanding of the scripture is what God intended.  It was men such as these who once concluded that Jesus was not the Christ and that the Gentiles could never be saved.  Why should we place our trust in the vanity of today’s theologians?  Is their intelligence superior to the Holy Spirit?  As a result of such vanity, the Spirit is unable to lead and “guide [them] into all truth (John 16:13).” In addition, there is no way to correct established churches, ministries, and denominations from their error.  They have locked out the only influence that can provide truth.

After seeing Jesus die a humiliating and agonizing death on the cross, Peter could have given in to the popular opinions of the scholars of his day, but he did not.  He believed!  He didn’t necessarily know what to do, but he knew that what was offered him by established religion was not the right way to go.  So he waited until the answer came… from the Spirit of God.

Missing from Christianity today is the action of believing.  It is not an event but a way of living.  It is not doctrine but revelation.  It is not something you have done, but that which is to be done, to be pursued, to be lived, to be worked, and to be said.  It is not a moral code, but the outward manifestation of rebirth.  It is alive, it is now, and it is transformational!

“Smeared” By God

Our son David shared something Sunday that is especially relevant to the subject at hand.

1 John 2:20, 27 KJV

20 But ye have an unction (Greek: chrisma) from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

27 But the anointing (Greek: chrisma) which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

The Greek word for both “unction” and “anointing” is “chrisma,” which means “an unguent (i.e., an ointment or salve) or smearing (i.e., rubbing).”

The idea here is that an anointing leaves residue on you.  It essentially rubs off on you.  You cannot be around God without Him rubbing off on you.  When He touches you, He leaves something behind on you.

This encapsulates the idea of believing.  The disciples of Christ were around Him all the time, and, as a result, He rubbed off on them.  To them, believing in Christ was to become like Him, to do what He did, and to live like He lived.

When believing is boiled down to a single act of repentance (which may have happened many years ago), the whole idea of “believing” is lost.  If the authors of the New Testament had meant for salvation to be simplified in such a way, they would have written so.  But they did not.

Salvation was never meant to become a checklist of items that could be achieved and then set aside. It was never meant to be something that we could consider finished years ago.  It was meant to be lived out daily and continually.  It was meant to be integrated into every action, word, and thought.  It was meant to be so transforming that it would eventually conform us into ”the image of his [God’s] Son (Rom 8:29).”

What it all comes down to is this: we cannot say that we believe unless we obey what Jesus said and follow Him.  Believing is not what we did in the past; it is what we are in the present.

Last year, Ron wrote concerning some of his experiences during the early years of his Christian life (i.e., http://members.triton.net/kmsrjs/Lead_Follow.htm).  Those experiences demonstrate this idea of believing. 

Relationship, NOT Titles

The first generation of Christians viewed Christianity as a sort of partnership with or dependency upon the Holy Spirit.  Contrast that with contemporary Christianity, where Christians have grown to be dependent upon their churches, pastors, Christian teachers, and Christian media.  Everything they need in order to make decisions can be found in some book or other form of media.  In His generation, there was no New Testament material.  Christianity had yet to begin amassing documents and writings to replace the need for the Holy Spirit.  As a result, without the Holy Spirit, they would have been lost.  Consider how far we have fallen.

Acts 5:27-29 KJV

27 And when they had brought them [the apostles], they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,

28 Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us.

29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.

In this passage, we find the extent to which the living presence of God was respected by the first generation of believers.  Here we find the apostles willing to go against the established doctrine and the leaders of their day to embrace the leading of the Holy Spirit.

The first generation of Christians understood that the New Testament was NOT a religion but a relationship with God.  When the veil of the temple was rent, it was God inviting man into a direct relationship with Him.  Sin no longer separated Man from God.  They no longer needed priests or sacrifices.  But unlike contemporary Christians who think they have it all figured out, the first generation of believers knew they did not have all the answers.  They were smart enough to know that what they thought to be true was probably wrong.  Therefore, they were always watching to see what God was doing, saying, and leading.

Religion replaces a relationship with God with doctrine (dogma).  When that happens, God is no longer free to challenge beliefs and institution.  It eventually replaces God as an idol, a false god.  “Things” like titles, buildings, (holy) days of the week, holy water, the bones of saints, the Bible, and men (leaders) themselves become deified.  Respect for these will eventually abolish our respect for the sovereignty of the Spirit of God.

In His generation, nothing could replace the leading and sovereignty of the one true God.  Men were acknowledged as leaders, not because of their titles, but because of the manifested approval of God in their lives.

Consider these verses:

Hebrews 2:3-4 KJV

3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Acts 6:3 KJV

Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

Acts 13:2 KJV

2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

Galatians 2:9 KJV

And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

Unlike His generation, our generation has replaced the approval of God with credentials and titles.  Among most contemporary churches, nothing can replace a pastor.  Men are valued.  Without a pastor, most churches are lost.  Contrast this to the first church and how they valued the Holy Spirit.  Without the Holy Spirit, they were lost.

Domestication Revisited

Genesis 1:26-28 KJV

26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, ^[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."

The word translated “subdue” in verse 28 is the word “kabash,” which means “to tread down, to conquer, subjugate, violate,” and is translated as “bring into bondage, force, keep under, subdue, and bring into subjection” in the King James Version.  Mankind, as both a physical and spiritual being, was ordained to subdue (conquer) his natural environment as well as his spiritual universe.  Though that word does describe the first generation of believers, it most certainly is NOT a description of its contemporary counterpart.

Christians have become domesticated.  Pastor-farmers have tamed contemporary Christians so that they will be compatible and live peacefully in the farming community of the institutional church.  God’s people are forced to choose: do they want their native environment of conquering and overcoming, or do they want “taming” down – dumbing down - into mindless church-farm livestock?  The answer is apparent, found in the Christian livestock that fill churches everywhere.

Christians have not forgotten who they are.  They have never known who they are.  They are taught that they are conquerors, overcomers, and the children of God, but those are just words to most Christians.  These words are like the word “believeth.”  They’ve simply lost their meaning.  Christians can no longer reconcile the reality of the Christianity they see with the words they are told.

Christian leaders have stripped Christians of their power and spiritual authority by convincing them that the first generation of Christians was an anomaly.  They do this to create pacifists who will sit in their churches and be quiet.   They do not want people who believe.  They want people who will fill their churches and finance their ministries.

Conclusion

Christian leaders have convinced other Christians that they are only sheep and, as such, do not have the authority or responsibility to be the disciples of Christ.  Christian leaders have convinced other Christians that NOT everyone is “called” into Christian ministry but that the only duties of the rank and file Christian are to fill pews and pay membership dues.

Believing is the expression of faith.  If you only serve and follow God in a capacity that is comfortable to you, then you do NOT believe.  If you were merely at par with contemporary Christianity, then you do not know what it is to believe.  Believing in Jesus Christ is to believe in what He taught and act upon it.  To act upon what Jesus taught requires you to step out in faith into things you never believed possible.

When the generation of Christ and His disciples wrote about believing, they were not simply describing the process of a salvation experience.  They were describing the reality of believing in the impossible here and now.

The declaration of John 3:16 to believe does not seem to find a place in the teaching of modern Christianity.  Therefore, when people are saved, they are often confused by the differences between what they were taught about salvation in their churches and what the New Testament actually teaches.  They are not the same.  John 3:16 has been rendered obsolete by our modern culture.

Today, what is taught about salvation has very little to do with “whosoever believeth in him” and more to do with a return to the Old Testament measure of productivity and performance.  In our modern culture, salvation and Christianity is not about believing.  It has been reduced to our actions and what we observe.  Therefore, when you consider how John 3:16 has been changed to fit in the domesticated environment of most churches, it is clear that, like the Old Testament, our modern interpretation of salvation is all about that which deals with the “outward man (2 Corinthians 4:16)” rather than the “inward man (2 Corinthians 4:16).”

Recently, someone sent this to us.  It probably sums up best what we are trying to say:

“I can't read the Book of Acts without feeling very much ashamed! The apostles lived and ministered in the realm of the miraculous. Even the laymen like Stephen and Philip, men who served tables, were mighty in the Holy Ghost, working miracles and stirring entire cities. Who can read the Book of Acts without awe and wonder at the miracles God worked for them and among them? Angels appeared to them, unlocked their chains, and walked them out of high security prisons. They had mighty visions, clear and detailed. Peter was so full of the Holy Ghost that the sick were brought into the streets on beds and couches so that his shadow would fall on them for healing (Acts 5:15). Cripples were healed and went leaping through the temple; and special miracles are recorded: ‘And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: so that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them (Acts 19:11-12).’

Why are we not living today in such a miraculous realm? Where is the apostolic power of Jesus Christ today? I'm not talking about deliverance meetings and star healing evangelists. I'm talking about a miraculous way of living for every true believer. God has not changed; we have. The same Lord is with us - we have the same promises and God is more than willing to do it again. But regrettably, there is an idea today that we don't need the miraculous. It is said, "This generation has a greater revelation; it's more educated, more knowledgeable. We are not to expect the Lord to work like that today, as that was only necessary to establish the church."  - David Wilkerson

Finally, let’s remember Mark 16:17-18.  “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”  Scripture like this make it apparent that believing is not exclusively an act of salvation.  It is the road of faith that our lives pursue.  Do you believe?