more faith? what is it that saves us?
“more faith”
I want to make a distinction between our will and God‘s ability. A separation between our faith and God’s work. I want to explain grace and faith, best I can and I want us to look at the illustration that the Bible gives us the most when it comes to our salvation. The Apostle Paul uses the blood symbol given to us in the Old Testament in the majority of his teachings on salvation.
It’s really important that we distinguish the difference between the blood and faith you see it is by Grace through faith that we are saved. The book of Ephesians tells us and numerous times in Romans we are told that it is by the blood of the lamb that we are saved, it is simply through faith that we receive it so yes, faith is the receptacle the receiving, but there’s no power really in the faith the power is in the blood. It is God‘s work, not ours.
I want you to keep in mind this metaphor that God gave us through the Israeli people when they were delivered from the Egyptians at the voice of Moses. They are given pretty wild instructions to kill a lamb to eat it for dinner and then to place the blood on the door post the angel of death would show up in the middle of the night and pass over every door that has the blood of the lamb hence the name Passover (pass-over) hence the celebration of Passover and what we now called Good Friday and Easter.
The Israelites escaped the angel of death flee in the middle of the night and they’re in the wilderness and of course, as you know, they approached the Red Sea. They are actually taken through the Red Sea, which is a metaphor for a water baptism and Egypt and pharaoh and all the armies which represent evil armies that are chasing us down are coming after us, but we look back and we celebrate God‘s miraculous work that it is God and got along that defeats our enemies and then we are wandering through the wilderness looking for a promise land following the Holy Spirit until we get there. Did you catch that? We are following the Holy Spirit to the Promised Land just like the Israelites were following the cloud of smoke and pillar of fire on their way to their promised land.
We are following the cloud of the Holy Spirit after we are delivered from our sin participate in water baptism. We are prompted by and led by the cloud of the Holy Spirit until we enter heaven, our promised land. This is why is saddens me when so many versions of our faith relegate the Spirit to the margins of their doctrine. In some cases, the Spirit isn’t even mentioned until asked about. “Oh yeah we believe in that” is the response after a new believer or guest asks about the Spirit. How could someone attend a church for a year, finally attend newcomer class and have to ask “Do you believe in the Holy Spirit and His work in our lives?” Sadly, in some (but not all Catholic) churches and in many western churches, the Spirit is simply the part of the trinity that is left out. Yet Jesus spent what we call three “chapters” in John teaching on the importance of the Spirit’s work in uniting us with Himself! The Spirit teaches us about the power of the blood to save us. The Spirit reminds us of the Father’s love. The Spirit counsels us when we are considering being foolish. He says “Stop!” to our spirit-man and quite literally saves us from so many bad choices.
DA Carson, an incredible theologian gives us a great picture to distinguish the difference between the saving power of the blood and the saving power of our faith. Before I share the story, realize that the level of your faith is important, and Jesus does scold people for having such a little faith. Even his disciples are scolded when a raging storm is about to capsize their boat, Jesus tells him to simply have “more faith” So yes, faith matters, but not as much in a saving sense as it does that it is the blood that saves us. We must all strive to have more faith and believe that God is big enough, strong enough, etc. Yet we are not saved not by the size of our faith but by the amazing blood of Jesus!
So DA Carson gives us this great picture. Imagine two Jewish men are living in the bronze age and both are given the same instruction from Moses will call these two men Smith and Jones. DA Carson calls them not very Jewish names but says “Bear with me… Mr. Smith and Mr. Jones both get the same instruction to cook a lamb to put its blood over the door post to the house and that God is gonna miraculously deliver them from a death angel, and also from the slavery of Egypt that all they have to do is follow this instruction and then leave the house.
Imagine Mr. Jones confidently walks into his house and tells his wife honey this is incredible! We are about to be saved. God has fulfilled his word and he has given us a deliver. Moses is his name. I hear he has a bit of a temper, but he’s got chosen man and I am so excited that God is going to deliver us pack your bags kids. It’s onto Canaan and then Disney!”
No, imagine Mr. Smith, however, is very worried. He can’t believe his ears. He’s a little more of a critical thinker even in every day conversations. He notice his errors. He must speak of them because how he is so he walks and tells his wife "I can’t believe this we are supposed to cook a lamp, put his blood in the door post of the house and somehow we are supposedly going to escape a death angel. This this is gonna kill all the other first born children in Egypt, but all of us Jewish people are going to avoid this and then be delivered out of Egypt! What a crazy story! Sounds like a tall tale!” He tells his wife all this with a lot of fear and trepidation. In fact, he even says while they’re eating “I really don’t think this is gonna work guys. I just don’t know how I feel - the Egyptians are gonna kill us” But nonetheless, he is obedient and he does put the blood of a lamb over the door post. What happens when that death angel passes? Both Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith are saved. Now who had more faith?
Of course we would all say the first guy! Of course he had more faith and we all wanna be like the first guy, don’t we? We want to confidently walk into the plans of God no matter how surprising they sound. Yet both were saved, so is it good to have more faith - more faith than you did two years ago, but keep in mind that it is the blood that saved Israel Israelites. It was not the level of faith. It was the blood, and their willingness to obey the simple instructions to apply the blood, believe in the blood! The blood saved them. Their obeyed to apply the blood, no matter how fearful or full of faith they were in the moment)
That is the difference between faith and the blood of Jesus, or if I could even say faith in the grace of God, the grace of God is powerful enough to save the man who is full of faith and the man who is barely getting by, but still looking to Jesus. I know addicts who occasionally return to the bottle. Yet, truly love Jesus and are struggling in their own “wilderness” on their way to the promised land. They’re applying the blood daily. I know pastors who are applying the blood daily.
Aren’t you so thankful for that? Aren’t you so thankful for the blood of Jesus that even on your worst days and your worst months if you look to Jesus, He is still ready to make you clean and fill you with grace and power and “enough faith” to make it another day? Thank God for the blood!
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