How Much Must We Believe?
I was reading a Christian book recently about Christian beliefs. The author, a Pastor, shared a question that someone asked him about Christian beliefs. The question was “how much of the Bible do I have to believe and still be a Christian?” What a sad question. You see, this person wanted to be a Christian. This person wanted eternal life.
Now imagine this: Someone has been out of work for some time and applied for a job. He wants a job. He needs a job. He does not want to continue to accept state unemployment. He wants to be a productive member of society. During an interview he asks the interviewer “what is the least amount of work I can do and still keep my job?”
In both my hypothetical and the person asking the question how much belief is necessary, they both want to know the least amount that is required. The job applicant will not secure employment with such a question. Neither will the person inquiring about beliefs secure salvation.
Is there a minimum belief required in order to be saved? Yes.
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Romans 10:9-10 (ESV)
The problem with asking how much of the Bible one must believe is that it states that the person does not want to believe all of it. In the case of the person asking the pastor, there were certain parts of scripture that she did not believe and did not want to believe were true. I am unsure what parts she had a problem with but in essence she wanted to place her faith in Jesus. Yet, how can she place her faith in Jesus who we know through the written word and yet decide what portions of God’s word is true and what is not.
I remember a conversation I had a few months ago. The person was involved in an activity that clearly is in violation of God’s Word. While I don’t really recall the whole conversation, his response to me was chilling. Not wanting to stop this activity, he stated “well, I guess I’m going to hell because I am not giving up (the particular activity).” The person did not really believe the scripture applied to him but was meant for another period of time, earlier days when life and morality were different from today. Much like the person asking the minimum one must believe, this person decided that certain portions of God’s Word were obsolete.
This is vastly different from having a true misunderstanding of God’s Word. For instance, within Christianity there are those who believe in pre-tribulation or post-tribulation. Both cannot be correct. Having a wrong understanding is not the same as choosing to not believe.
When coming to faith, one cannot pick and choose what is true in God’s Word and what is not. How can a person place their faith in the Son of God, Jesus, but choose to discount portions of God’s Word? One cannot confess He is Lord and declare that portions of His Word is untrue.
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This has a good point but you need to remember the Bible is a product of man and has been rewritten and revised thousands of times by the Catholic church, not to mention a lot of it is symbolic, NOT to be taken literally. There is truth in all religions, but none have absolute truth, just half truths. Remember real truth sets you free. If you want truth read this….. Contentment expresses Tenderness, Tenderness begets Humility, Humility creates Compassion, Compassion creates Tranquility. So without contentment you will never be Free in your spirit. So kill your TV for its fear spreading propaganda and meaningless entertainment, and abolish materialistic consciousness which is being brainwashed into our subconscious to create attachment, which causes suffering.
Who among us has not resisted God? Why is someone who admits doing so and openly says he/she is in rebellion to be viewed with less contempt than someone who does the same thing yet denies or attempts to hide that (s)he are in rebellion (or denies it?).
All have sinned…all have sinned deliberately. While we should encourage one another to be compliant to the will of God, we need to avoid illusions that suggest we keep all of God’s counsel…no matter who we are.
If my relationship with God is determined by my level of compliance with his word, then I am in some serious trouble. If my salvation is a matter of how complete my obedience, then Jesus died for nothing.
Or am I missing something…?
gh