Baptism
The Washing Away of Our Sins

    In this study, we have learned the enormous importance of making certain that we understand our salvation is altogether the work of God. We must know that we can not make even the slightest contribution to our salvation.
    Having learned this, we are still in a quandary. There is one emphasis of the Bible that appears to link an effort on our part to the work that Christ did in saving us. That is the language of the Bible that speaks of our faith.
    An outstanding example of this is given in Luke 7:36-50. The incident is Jesus' visit to the home of a Pharisee named Simon. While there, a very sinful woman washed Jesus' feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed them with ointment. Simon remonstrated with Jesus for allowing this. Jesus then said in Luke 7:47-48:

    His declaration that her sins were forgiven was a declaration that she had become saved. The result of having become saved is that her sins had been paid for and, therefore, they are forgiven. It is the next statement, however, that causes great trouble. In Luke 7:50 we read:

Faith Is a Work

    Thy faith has saved thee! How can this be? The problem we are facing is made very serious because as we continue our study we will discover that the Bible teaches that faith is a work. We might

be surprised at the truth that faith is a work but it is a most important truth. Only when we understand this can we come to an understanding concerning the subject of faith as it relates to salvation.
    The word "faith" or the word "believe" which simply means to "have faith" is understood in many different ways. In fact, to have faith or to believe is a very common characteristic of mankind. In the evening, we have faith that in a few hours we shall again see daylight. We may have faith that if we exercise or take vitamins our health will improve. We have faith that summertime will come after winter and spring. We have faith in those who teach that the gospel or the religion we are a part of is spiritually good for us. Every action we take involves an exercise of faith. We believe because past experience has shown that the things we believe in have held true in the past and, therefore, logically should hold true for the future.

    In this study, we are not interested in philosophizing about the nature or meaning of faith as it is constantly being demonstrated in our lives. Our interest is in the Biblical understanding of the word "faith" or "believing." We are immensely interested in these words for they are at the very heart of God's salvation plan. When the Bible uses such words as "faith" or "believe" we must know what God means by these words if we are to further understand the atonement and how that applies to those who have become saved.

Four Passages that Define Faith

    When we search the Bible, we find three very significant passages that help us define faith. The first is found in Hebrews 11:1, where we read:

    This is a startling verse for it tells us that faith has substance. Thus far in our study we have seen that there is a great difference between that which is substantive and that which is a sign or a shadow. A sign or a shadow points to and is a reflection of that which is substantive. In relation to our salvation the only activity that was substantive was the activity God performed through the Lord Jesus Christ. Any activity that we did such as being baptized in water had no substance. It was a shadow that pointed hopefully to the fact that the one baptized has already had his sins washed away or that at sometime in the future he might have his sins washed away.
    Therefore, when the Bible declares that faith is the substance of things hoped for, it means that it must be something that cannot be identified with any effort on our part to become saved.

    Secondly, this verse indicates that faith is evidence. That is, it is proof of something we cannot see.
    That which we cannot see is our salvation. We cannot see God the Holy Spirit who indwells us when we have become saved. We cannot see the work of God in drawing us to salvation. We cannot see our new resurrected souls. We cannot see the reality of the fact that all of our sins have been paid for. We cannot see the wonderful fact that we have eternal life.
    When faith shows up in our life, that faith is evidence or proof that these things are happening or have happened in our life. Thus, by means of Hebrews 11:1 we should begin to see that any faith

seen in our life is not in any way causing, or serving as a means or basis for, our salvation.
    Additionally, there is a second startling declaration concerning faith given in the Bible. In John 6:28-29, we read:

    The Pharisees were asking what work they can do to do the work of God. Jesus gives them an astounding answer which in turn further defines the meaning and nature of faith as God speaks of it in the Bible. Jesus declares that the work of God is to be believe (that is, have faith) in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, God is teaching that faith is a work. First of all, it is a work that God performs as He makes us come to faith in Him. Later we will develop this principle in some detail.
    It is also a work that we can do when we become a believer. A parallel verse that can help us understand this is Philippians 2:13:

    Please note the parallelism:

    We should also examine a third principle that helps us to understand the nature of faith. In James 2:17-18, we read:

    The phrase "faith, if it hath not works, is dead," is so important it is repeated in James 2:17, James 2:20, and in James 2:26. These verses indicate a remarkable intimacy between faith and works. They are so tightly bound together that faith cannot exist without works. Thus, we cannot separate faith from works. This agrees entirely with John 6:28-29 which indicates that having faith or believing is a work.
    In fact, James 2:22 makes it even more clear that faith is a work:

    The word "wrought" is the word "worketh." Thus, this verse is clearly stating the faith worketh. Thus, we know without question that we have correctly understood that the Bible defines faith as a work.
    A fourth statement that declares faith is a work is seen in the clear statement of I Thessalonians 1:3, where we read:

    Without question we must understand that faith is a work.

    This underscores the fact that any faith or belief in Christ that develops in our life cannot be a ground or basis or means or instrument by which or because of which or through which we are saved. In our study, we have seen repeatedly that we should never countenance the idea that any effort on our part made even the tiniest contribution to our salvation.

Those Who Believe in Christ Shall be Saved

    Having learned how God defines the word "faith" or the word "believe," which is the equivalent to "having faith," what are we to do with the multitude of verses which appear to teach that our belief in Christ is the means by which God works to save us? The following are some of the verses that seemingly support this idea.

    As we examine these verses, let us list again the principles we have learned which relate to God's salvation plan.

    1. The most important principle is the fact that under no circumstance are we to countenance even the tiniest idea that anything that we have done, however small and insignificant it appears to be, contributed in any way to our salvation. Even as the dead Lazarus of John 11 was raised from physical death to physical life without even the slightest contribution on his part, so we are raised from spiritual death to spiritual life without the slightest contribution on our part. There is absolutely no pre-conditions that must first exist in the life of someone God plans to save.

    2. Faith or believing in Christ somehow is intimately a part of our salvation.

    3. Our faith or believing in Christ is, by the Bible's definition, a work that we do and, therefore, can never in any sense be the grounds or means or instrument that helps to accomplish our salvation or through which our salvation is accomplished.

    4. When our heavenly Father begins to draw a person to Christ as

Savior, faith together with other good works will be produced in the life of the one being drawn.

    5. When a person has become saved, the Holy Spirit produces the work of faith together with other good works in the life of the one saved.

    Having set forth these principles, how can we understand John 3:16 "that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life"? We can readily understand this if we realize that God gives the desire to do good works, the fear of God, and trust in God to those whom He is planning to save as well as to those who have become saved.
    However, God utilizes none of these characteristics, which increasingly identify with salvation, was part of the action He requires in saving us. The action of God in saving us is entirely His action. When Jesus commanded, "Lazarus, come forth" (John 11:43), Lazarus did come forth. It is not possible that he made the slightest contribution in going from a dead stinking corpse to a live man obediently coming out of the tomb. When Jesus commanded Lazarus to come forth, Jesus had to do everything to enable him to obey that command. This included giving him physical life, ears to hear, and the will and ability to obey. There was absolutely no contribution that Lazarus could offer.
    Similarly, when the Bible declares that we are to believe so that we might be saved or so that we might be justified, four things must be realized. The first is that any believing that becomes present in a person's life is placed there entirely by God's action. Secondly, believing makes no contribution towards salvation. Thirdly, the act

of saving is entirely the work of God, completely apart from whatever believing may have been given by God. Thus, a baby can become saved at birth or a person with a mind of a baby can become saved. There are absolutely no pre-conditions which must be in evidence before God can save us. Fourthly, if a person has become saved, believing will be evident in his life if he has the mental and physical faculties to show his belief. The work of faith that can be seen in the life of the one saved is just as certain as all of the other good works that will be seen in his life.
    It might be noted that as the Bible speaks about works, it is speaking about any activity that is an attempt to do the will of God. This work may be an individual's attempt to obey God or get right with God strictly by his own efforts. Or, work can be the work that is produced and is present in a person's life by the action of God. When we use the phrase "good works," we are speaking about the activity of obedience produced in the life of an individual by the action of God as God works in him to will and to do of His good pleasure. Therefore, we can clearly understand that believing in Christ is never to be considered the basis, cause or means by which we become saved.
    Having said this, we are faced with an apparent great contradiction in the Bible. On the one hand, God insists that faith is a work, and on the other hand, He insists that our salvation is not of works (Ephesians 2:9). Yet in Luke 7:50, the Bible teaches that "thy faith has saved thee." How can this impasse be resolved?

Christ Is Our Faith

    A beautiful solution can be found, which we will now develop. Jesus gave Himself many names in the Bible. He calls Himself Jesus, Word of God, David, Jacob, Israel, Wonderful, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, etc. Each of these names helps us to understand something about the character and work of Christ. One name that Jesus has given Himself is the name Faithful. We read in Revelation 19:11:

    The word faithful, like the word true is an adjective. The word faith like the word truth are nouns. Whether a word is an adjective or a noun, it is the same word. Thus, Jesus called His name true (an adjective) and reinforced it by declaring "I am the Truth" (a noun) (John 14:6).
    While the Bible does not give us the statement, "I am the faith," it does give us His name as "faithful." This is seen in II Thessalonians 3:3 where we read "the Lord is faithful." The Bible gives us numerous examples that can be more fully understood only when we realize that Christ's name Faithful means that He is in view when faith is spoken of in connection with salvation.
    Hebrews 11:1 declares that "faith is the substance of things hoped for." It is Christ who is the substance, the reality, the evidence of everything we hope for in connection with salvation. He is the substance to which all the signs and shadows of the Old Testament pointed. Remember we learned that faith is a work that cannot be separated from any other work that was done. Christ by His faithfulness has done all of the work required to save us and therefore He is the evidence of the reality of our salvation for which we are hoping.

    It is Christ's faith, and He is the very essence of faith, that has provided for our salvation. That is why we read in Galatians 2:16 of the faith of Christ; that is, faith that is Christ's faith.

    In almost all of the translations, the prepositions in this verse have been modified so that the verse is no longer faithful to the original Greek. Wonderfully, in the King James translation the prepositions have been faithfully translated.
    The phrase "even we have believed in Jesus Christ," effectively states "even we have been saved." One who believes in Christ is one who has become saved. To have become saved means we have been justified. Therefore, this verse is teaching that we have been saved by the faith of Jesus Christ.
    The truth concerning the faith of Christ is also underscored in Galatians 2:20:

    Furthermore, in Habakkuk 2:4 we read:

    The faith we live by is Christ's faith. It is not our faith. It is His faith. When God quotes Habbakuk 2:4 in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:38, " the just shall live by faith" we can obtain more understanding if we realize the word faith is a synonym or name for Christ. It is a name for Christ even as the words truth or the Word of God are synonyms or names of Christ. Thus, by this phrase we can understand "the just shall live by" the faith of Christ or by Christ since He is the very essence of faith.
    Romans 1:17 more fully declares:

    The righteousness of God is revealed from faith (Christ and His faithfulness) into faith (our faith) which is produced by salvation. The evidence of our salvation is the work of faith together with the

other good works that are seen in our life. Remember faith is a work and good works (obedience to the commandments) are the evidence of salvation. Thus, faith or the fact that we have come to believe is expected to be a characteristic of the one who has been saved. It is a work together with all of the good works that will be seen in the life of anyone and everyone who has become saved, but it cannot be our faith that saves us. It can be only the faith of Christ.

    How are we to understand the phrase "the faith of Christ"? We readily speak of a believer's faith, but how does the Bible speak of the faith of Christ? In fact, this is a grand and wonderful teaching of the Bible. We can begin to understand this when we reflect on the enormous task Jesus had to perform in order to save us. From before the foundations of the world, God had determined to save a people for Himself. While God had created man as a perfect being in His likeness, God knew that man would rebel and become subject to eternal damnation. Thus, the only way God could have a people for His own required that the penalty for sin imposed upon mankind be paid. Unless that penalty had been fully paid no human could come into heaven.
    Therefore, God appointed Jesus to be the one who would pay for the sins of all those whom God desired to have for Himself. This meant that Jesus had to humiliate Himself by taking on a human nature, He had to be laden with the sins of all those He came to save, and He had to suffer the equivalent of eternal damnation on behalf of each one He had come to save.
    In some of the Messianic Psalms we see the faith of Christ as He relates to the awesome task assigned to Him as our Savior. We do not find the phrase "the faith of Christ," but we do discover Him crying to God that His trust was altogether in God. The Hebrew word that is translated "trust" in our English Bible is the word

chasah. That it is truly a synonym for the word "faith" is seen in its usage in Psalm 37:39-40, where we read:

    This passage, like many New Testament statements, is clearly speaking of salvation. Thus, the phrase "because they trust in him" can equally be written "because they had faith in Him."
    The same word, chasah, is used in the Messianic Psalm 31, which anticipates the suffering of Christ. It speaks of the agony of Christ as he endured the wrath of God for our sins. Verse 5 quotes the cry of Jesus on the cross, "Into thine hand I commit my spirit." In verse 1 of this psalm, Jesus declares, "In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust (chasah)." Surely the Bible is teaching that Christ had faith in God that the atonement would be accomplished.
    In similar fashion, we read in the Messianic Psalm 16:10:

    This psalm begins with the words, "Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust (chasah)." Again, the Bible teaches us that Christ has faith that He would not remain under the wrath of God once He had fully paid for our sins. He also had faith that His body would not see corruption. As we learned earlier in this study, the fact that His body did not corrupt is the evidence that the penalty had been fully paid.
    In this awesome task, Jesus was faithful. Because he is the very essence of faith, the quintessence of the one who is faithful to the assignment given him, salvation becomes a reality for all of those He came to save. Thus, the Bible reiterates repeatedly that the basis, the cause, the instrument, the everything of our salvation is Christ and His wonderful faith that the great task assigned to Him, that of being our Savior, would be successfully completed. It is no wonder, then, that in Revelation 19 He is given the name Faithful.

    With this in mind, we can now more fully understand many verses that speak of faith in connection with Christ and the salvation He would faithfully provide. As we continue our study let us briefly examine many of these verses.
    God's faith which is the basis of our salvation is expressed in Romans 3:3

    In Romans 3:22 we read:

    Those who believe, that is, who have faith, are saved by or because of the faith of Christ which in turn is evidenced by the good works which includes the faith seen in the life of the one who was saved.
    Romans 3:26 further addresses this subject by stating:

    This verse has been improperly translated in our King James Bible. More correctly it declares "that we might be just, and justifying out of the faith of Jesus." This verse is also clearly showing that the faith that saved us and, therefore, made us just is not our faith. It can be only Christ's faith.

    Thus, we can understand more clearly Romans 3:28 and 3:30

    The faith by which both Jews and Gentiles were saved or justified was the faith of Christ or, we could say, by Christ Himself.
    We now understand Romans 4:3:

    Abraham believed (he had faith because of God) but it was not his faith that was counted for righteousness. That would mean that he had performed a work to get himself saved. Instead, when it says "it was counted unto him (Abraham) for righteousness," we understand that God was counted for the faith of Christ was counted unto Abraham for righteousness.
    Romans 4:5 continues:

    This verse, therefore, is teaching that for the one who believes (has faith) on him (Christ) that justifies the ungodly, that is, who has become saved, his faith (Christ's faith) is counted for righteousness.

    We read in Romans 4:13:

    The righteousness of faith is the righteousness of Christ. That is why verse 16 goes on to say:

    Because Christ and His faith is completely identified as the faith that alone can produce salvation, we could paraphrase this verse to say, "Therefore it is of faith (Christ or the faith of Christ) that it might be of grace...but to have also which is of the faith (Christ) of Abraham."
    Romans 4:20 continues:

    Abraham was strong in faith. Literally this phrase is "but was made strong by the faith." The faith that made him strong was Christ's faith or Christ Himself. Verse 22 underscores this:

    As we have already learned, we must understand that the faith of Christ or Christ Himself was imputed to Abraham for righteousness. Verses 23 and 24 continue:

    We could paraphrase these verses as follows:

"Now the promises of God were not written for his (Abraham's) sake alone that the faith of Christ was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom the faith of Christ shall be imputed, if we have been given faith, (as a result of our salvation) to trust God who raised up Jesus from the dead."

    We can see more clearly the rich statement of Romans 5:1-2, which tells us:

    We are justified by the faith of Christ or by Christ Himself and by Him we have access through Christ or the faith of Christ into this grace wherein we stand.
    Moreover, Galatians 3:1-2 declares:

    The phrase "the hearing of faith" can be correctly understood when we substitute the word Christ for the word faith. Verse 1 teaches that Jesus Christ has been set before them. He, therefore, is in full view. He can be heard only by those who have been given spiritual ears. If someone has been given spiritual ears, then God works through their hearing to accomplish the salvation of that person.

    Thus, verse 2 indicates that we are saved by the hearing of Christ. That is, God has given spiritual ears to those he is saving so that they hear that Christ is the only way to salvation.
    Galatians 3:5 reinforces this principle:

    Does God save us by works of the law that we perform? That is impossible. Our salvation does not come by works of the law but by Christ whom we have heard because God has given us spiritual ears to hear Him. In other words, Christ whose name is Faithful because He is the very essence of faith is the only basis or cause of our salvation. Thus, Galatians 3:6 goes on to say:

    As we learned earlier, it was God or the faith of Christ that was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. Thus, we understand the accuracy of our understanding of Galatians 3:2 and 3:5. Only as we hear of Christ because we have been given spiritual ears by God can righteousness or salvation be accounted for us. Romans 10:17 declares that "faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God." Christ is the one who has come into our life resulting in our salvation, and we have heard of Him as He gave us spiritual ears to hear the declaration of Christ which is the Word of God.
    Galatians 3:7-9 continues to use faith as a synonym or name for Christ as it declares:

    When we are saved we are of faith, that is, we are of Christ. The heathen are justified by faith, that is, by Christ. Those who are blessed with faithful Abraham are those who are of faith; that is, they are of Christ. Abraham is called "faithful Abraham" because faith is a work produced in the life of anyone and everyone whom God has saved.
    Galatians 3:11-12 continues:

    Earlier in this study we learned that the just shall live by Christ or by the faith of Christ. It is true that after we are saved, faith will be a good work seen in the life of the one who has become saved. But Christ Jesus is "the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). Further, God declares in Philippians 2:13:

    Thus, we know that even the work of faith in the believer that is a result of his salvation is entirely a product of God's action in our lives. Thus, the phrase that the "just shall live by faith" is teaching that it is Christ who has saved us, thus giving us eternal life, and it is Christ who is to receive all the credit for the good works of faith that are manifested in the life of the one saved. That is so because He holds us fast and will never leave us or forsake us. We live out our Christian life (which has become eternal life) by the faithfulness of Christ.
    Galatians 3:12 declares:

    That is, if we try to become saved by keeping the law, we are not of Christ. This is so even as Galatians 5:4 warns that those who try to keep any part of the law, that is, try to make any contribution to their salvation, are not under the grace of God.

    Galatians 3:14:

    Notice that the focus in this verse is directly on Jesus Christ. It is through Christ, or through the faith of Christ, that we receive the promise.
    In Galatians 3:22 God describes the faith of Jesus Christ that provides the reality of the promises (which is salvation) to those who give evidence of that salvation because they have come to believe God. This verse states:

    Galatians 3:23 says:

    Before Christ came as a gift to the one who became saved, that person was still under the law. He was still subject to the judgment of God. Galatians 3:19 helps us understand verse 23. In Galatians 3:19, God declares:

    In this verse the seed who was to come was Christ. He was the beneficiary of all the promises inherent within salvation. Through Him we who become saved receive the promises. Galatians 3:16 assures us that the seed is Christ by the statement, "And to they seed, which is Christ."
    Thus, even as the law was present until the seed came (Galatians 3:16, 19), so verse 23 teaches the same principle by the language that we are "kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed." This passage can only apply to the elect because only the elect experience the revelation of Christ in their lives.
    Thus, we can understand Galatians 3:24:

    Please note again the substitution of the word Christ for the word faith. Verse 23 states we (who do become saved) are shut up unto the faith that would be revealed. In very parallel language verse 24 declares we were under the law as a schoolmaster unto Christ. It is Christ who justifies or saves us by His faith.
    Verse 25 reiterates this principle:

    When faith (Christ) has come and has saved us, we are no longer under the law. That is, the law can no longer condemn us for our sins because Christ has paid for all of them.
    Verses 26 and 27 go on to say:

    Again, we must remember whenever the word faith is used in connection with our salvation, the faith of Jesus or Jesus Himself (Who is the very essence of faith) is in view. Moreover, verse 27 teaches that the result of our salvation is that we have been baptized (washed) in Christ and have been completely identified with Him because we have put on Christ.

    Thus, verse 26 is teaching that the one saved is a child of God through faith (Christ) and is now in Christ. He has been baptized into Christ and has put on Christ. Remember that to be baptized into Christ means that when Christ was cleansed of our sins by being punished because of them, it was as if we were there with Him being cleansed of our sins. This same teaching is set forth in the language of II Timothy 3:15 which declares:

    We are wise unto salvation through the faith of Jesus which is found in Christ Jesus. The principle that every aspect of our salvation comes from Christ and Christ's faith is also emphasized in Philippians 3:9.

    This principle gives us further understanding of the succinct statement given in Ephesians 2:8:

    The work of faith that produced saving grace can be only the faith of Christ which is personified by Christ Himself. He Himself, His salvation, is a gift given to us because Christ was faithful. That agrees perfectly with the following two verses:
    Ephesians 2:9-10:

    Colossians 1:23 speaks of faith using the language:

    Again, we can understand this verse much more easily if we understand the word faith to be the faith of Christ or Christ Himself.
    This is also true of I Timothy 3:9 which speaks of "holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience." The "mystery of the faith" is the mystery of the Christ who is the very personification of all that the Gospel is; many aspects of the Gospel are a mystery to the unbelievers.
    On the other hand, I Timothy 3:13 speaks of having "great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus." This faith is the Gospel which is personified by Christ. Thus, effectively this verse can be saying "great boldness in the Gospel which is in Christ Jesus." Additionally, it can be a reference to the faith we receive as a result of having become saved.

    We have looked at all of these verses so that we are able to understand that any faith we possess cannot assist in any way in our salvation. Any faith that relates to our becoming saved must always be understood to be related to the faith of Christ or to Christ Himself. Any faith the believer possesses is always as a result or product of the fact that he has been saved because of the faith of Christ.

Whose Faith Is "Thy Faith"

    We will now return to the initial question raised at the beginning of this chapter. Do you remember the sinful woman of Luke 7 who anointed the feet of Jesus in the house of the Pharisee? In Luke 7:48 Jesus said to her, "Thy sins are forgiven." At that moment, Jesus saved her. Then immediately following this, Jesus said to her, "Thy faith hath saved thee."
    Since we have learned that the word faith completely identifies with the faith of Christ or with Christ Himself, we can understand this statement. When we become saved we are totally identified with Christ. We have become His body (I Corinthians 12:13) and He has come to indwell us in the person of the Holy Spirit. We are His and He is ours.
    Therefore, the words "thy faith" (literally, the faith of thee) can only be a reference to Christ. "The Christ of thee hast saved thee." Actually, the verb "hast saved" is in the past perfect tense so that even more correctly this phrase should be translated, "The faith (Christ) of thee having saved thee." Now we are in complete harmony with the principle that our efforts or work cannot make the slightest contribution to our salvation. It is altogether Christ and Christ alone who has done everything in saving us.
    While we are looking at the phrase "thy faith hath saved thee," it is significant that in each of the following references the exact same phrase, the faith (Christ) of thee having saved three, is used even though our English translation does not show this. These references are as follows:

    In all of these instances the phrase "the faith of thee having saved thee" is used because the healing of the woman with the issue of blood, the healing of the leper, and the blind man are all beautiful illustrations or portraits of salvation. Christ did all the work in healing the physical diseases of these individuals, and Christ has done all the work to heal us of the terrible spiritual disease of sin.
    Thus, we are absolutely secure with the principle that there exists no work or effort of any kind that a person can offer to contribute in any way to his salvation. Christ has done all the work.

Abraham Was Justified by Works

    Before we leave the matter of faith, we should take a moment and look briefly at a few verses in James that have been troublesome to some Bible students.

    In James 2:20-22 we read:

    Abraham was justified by works. How can this be when the Bible says clearly that our works cannot make the slightest contribution to our salvation? The answer is readily found if we understand that the works that made Abraham just was not his work. It was the work that Christ did in providing for his salvation. Christ was faithful so that His faith provided salvation, and the faith of Christ was work that He performed. Christ's faith wrought with Christ's works, and by His works was His faith made perfect. All of the action was that of the Lord Jesus as He endured the wrath of God to save Abraham.
    The proof of this is the faith and works demonstrated in the life of Abraham as he obeyed God by offering his son Isaac upon an altar. In other words, the faith of Abraham was a result, not in any way a cause, for his salvation. That is why verse 23 goes on to say:

    Remember, we learned that we are to read this "Abraham believed God (that is, Abraham became saved) and (God or the faith of Christ) was imputed unto him for righteousness."
    Verses 24-26 continue:

    We are justified by faith and work of Christ in saving us. Rahab was also justified by the work of Christ in saving her. The

proof that she had indeed become saved was seen in her action of receiving and protecting the two Israelite spies who shared the Gospel with her. This demonstration or evidence of her faith and good works is the result of the fact that God had saved her.
    Thus, we have learned that whenever the Bible speaks of faith in connection with becoming saved, we must realize that it is Christ Himself or the faith of Christ that is in view. When God commands the unbeliever to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, no unbeliever of himself can believe. The unbeliever is spiritually a corpse and he of himself will not and cannot believe. The only way he will manifest faith in Christ is if God gives him faith.
    This is directly parallel to the command, "Ye must be born again" (John 3:7). Nobody can make himself born again. God must do all the work in making us born again. Likewise, no one can of himself obey the command to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. God must do all the work through Jesus Christ and His faith in saving us. Thus, our having come to believe in Christ is entirely a result of having become saved.
    In similar fashion the unsaved were commanded in the Old Testament to "circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked" (Deuteronomy 10:16). Because of the total inability of man to obey this command, God declares in Deuteronomy 30:6:

    Indeed we can know we have come to truth as we clearly understand the principle that every aspect of the fact of becoming saved is the work of Christ. Therefore, gladly we give Him all the praise and glory.

What about Faith Before Salvation?

    There is still a problem that must be resolved. We have learned that the only faith that will save us is Christ's faith. We also have

come to understand that the faith that is found in the life of a believer is altogether a result of the fact that he has experienced salvation.
    What about the faith that is seen in the life of someone not yet saved. This is a very important question, and, therefore, as we continue this study we will examine it carefully.
    Salvation is a very mysterious and wonderful event. How can it be that at the moment of salvation God gives the one saved a brand new resurrected soul in which he is also given eternal life. At that moment the one saved has all his sins washed away so he will never again be threatened by hell. At that moment is guaranteed the resurrection of his body on the last day and the receiving of the inheritance as a joint-heir with Christ. It is also at that moment and forevermore he will have an earnest on-going desire to do the will of God and there will be an on-going trust in God that is spoken of as faith or believing in God.

    The fact that God gives the faith and the desire to obey God to the person before he is saved makes salvation even more mysterious. In fact, it makes the whole business of salvation very confusing. As we puzzle about this, two principles must be emphasized and re-emphasized. The first is that faith is a work. It has substance as Hebrews 11:1 teaches. The second principle flows from the first principle. That is, because faith is a work, any faith, whether faith before salvation or faith after salvation, makes absolutely no contribution to that person's salvation. As we have learned, the only faith that is operational in bringing us to salvation is the faith of Christ. Any faith that is seen in the life of either the unsaved person or the saved person is a gift of God but is never the cause for salvation.

No Man Can Come to Me Except the Father Draw Him

    What is going on when the Bible speaks of unsaved people having faith? Does the Bible give any clues as to what is happening when faith is seen in the life of an unsaved person? Two verses speak very impressively to these questions. The first is John 6:44, "No one can come to me except…the Father draw him." The second is Philippians 2:13, "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." Every person is spiritually dead before being born again, and therefore, he is subject to eternal damnation. Yet these verses teach us that God may have been working in the life of the one whom He will save long before He actually gives that person His new resurrected soul. This drawing by the Father may occur during a period of a few minutes ending with salvation or it may continue as long as weeks or many months before salvation actually occurs.
    God has given us an example of each situation.
    When Jesus was crucified, there were two thieves crucified with Him who reviled Him (Matthew 27:44). Shortly before the thieves died, one of them said to Jesus, in Luke 23:39-42:

    Jesus answered him with the comforting words, "Today thou shalt thou be with me in Paradise." Thus, in the space of a few hours we witness a man going from total unbelief, to a trust in Christ, and into the reality of salvation.
    On the other hand, God also tells us about Cornelius a Roman centurion. In Acts 10:2 God speaks of him as:

    As the account in Acts 10 continues, we see that when God commanded him to send for Peter he obeyed. In fact, his servant said of him that he was "a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nations of the Jews." Surely he gave every evidence of having become a saved man.
    But he was not saved. The proof of this is Acts 11:13-15. After Cornelius was saved, Peter reported to the church in Jerusalem concerning the salvation of Cornelius. Peter reported to Cornelius in Acts 11:13-15:

    The language "who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved," and the fact that all the time Peter spoke these words of Cornelius, the Holy Ghost fell on them, proves that he was not saved until he came into Peter's house. Romans 8:9 teaches, "if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his."
    From this account, we see Cornelius as a man who displayed a serious trust in the God of the Bible and who was ready to be obedient to the command of God. But he still was not saved. He could have been in this condition many months, or even years.
    This is not an unusual situation, as suggested by the words of Acts 10:34-35:

    Of course, the basis for God accepting a man who fears God and works righteousness cannot be that man's works of righteousness. The fear of God and the works of righteousness are in that person's life because God is drawing him and working within him to will and to do of His good pleasure. They are not in

any way the basis or the cause or instrument for his salvation. The only basis that exists is the fact that God has placed upon Jesus the sins of the individual God plans to save, and the faith of Christ has brought salvation to fruition.
    This means that an individual can display faith and good works in his life and still be unsaved. It also means that if he is not saved, he does not have eternal life. Does it also mean that he might not become saved? This appears to be taught by the parable of the sower. God tells us in Luke 8:13:

    We know that if a person displays faith but afterward falls away, the faith he displayed cannot be faith given to him by God. God is the "author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). In Philippians 1:6, we have the faithful promise:

    Perhaps now we have a better understanding of Hebrews 6:4-9:

    While these verses appear to be speaking of someone who has become saved and who has fallen away, the words of verse 9, "we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak," assure us they are not speaking of a saved person. We also know that they cannot be speaking of a saved person because a saved person has been given eternal life, so he could never lose his salvation.
    Thus, this account is speaking of those who appear to give much evidence of salvation but then they fall away. This indicates they had never become saved. It indicates that whatever faith or good works were seen in their life, they were not the work of God but the work of the individual who is trying to live like he had become saved.

These Principles Are Seen in the Salvation of the Samaritans

    When we read of the salvation of the Samaritans in Acts 8, we see faith in people's lives that illustrate both principles, God's work in their lives and man's faith developed without the action of God before they became saved. Acts 8:12 declares:

    In Acts 8:17, we read that after Peter and John ministered to them they received the Holy Spirit; that is, they became saved. This would indicate that the faith displayed in their life before salvation was in all likelihood faith given to them by God.
    Significantly, however, one of their number, Simon the sorcerer, also believed and was baptized (verse 13), but he did not become saved (verses 18-23). Therefore, we know that Simon's faith was not of God.

    Other Biblical illustrations could be cited. God has given ample evidence that it is not uncommon that for a period of time before the moment of salvation, faith and obedience can be seen the lives of those who became saved.
    We are learning that this activity of God in the life of one of God's elect can begin some time before he is saved.
    On the other hand, it should be very clear to us that God can save a newborn baby or a person who is completely mentally incapacitated without even a moment of faith having been seen in their lives.
    Also, we are given examples of those like Simon the sorcerer or like those on the rock of Luke 8:13 who display faith for a while but who do not become saved.
    As we have learned, the people who display faith for a while and then fall away have not received faith from God. Philippians 2:13 does not apply to them.
    All men by nature display faith. Mankind has faith that each night-time will be followed by day-time. He has faith that his expectant wife will in time give birth to a child. Almost everything man does exists in a matrix of faith.
    Even in religion, faith is very much seen. The Buddhist believes his god Buddha will bring certain blessings to him. This is true of all religions. Thus, the individual who is not being drawn to Christ by the Father, God is not working in him to will and to do of God's purpose, may still display faith. It is a faith that comes from within himself but definitely it is not of God. The proof that it is not of God is that eventually he will fall away from any identification he had with the true Gospel. He may end up with no Gospel or he may end up in a false gospel.
    Did not God through the Apostle Paul in Acts 16 instruct the jailor to believe, that is, have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to be saved? Indeed, this is so. But remember, any faith seen in the jailer's life could not in any way cause his salvation or be a means or instrument to save him. Only in faith of Christ can save. The faith in Christ that will be seen in his life will either be the evidence

that God is drawing him and working in him to will and to do of God's good pleasure, or it will be the evidence that God through Christ's faithfulness has saved him.
    Indeed, salvation becomes very complex. When an individual begins to trust in God and experiences an increasing desire to do the will of God, one of three things is happening in that person's life. It is impossible to easily know which is correct insofar as that person is concerned. The three possibilities are:

    1. The faith and obedience being displayed is altogether the action of a person trying, through his own effort, to do what he believes identifies with salvation. In actuality there is no action of God in his life.

    2. The faith and obedience being displayed is prompted by God working in that spiritually dead person and finally salvation does result.

    3. The faith and obedience being displayed is there because God has already saved that person.

    This underscores one immediate fact. It is almost impossible to know when the moment of salvation occurred in the life of the one who did become saved. This identifies with the teaching of John 3:7-8:

    Most of those who claim to know the day of their salvation are simply recalling the day they accepted Christ. When someone accepts Christ, that act has nothing to do with true salvation. Salvation requires that at the time he became saved, he experienced the resurrection, and he received his brand new resurrected soul.

    Indeed, if they are trusting in the act of accepting Christ as proof they have become saved, it may be an indication that they have altogether another salvation program than that of the Bible. Earlier in this study we learned the ominous truth that if we depend even the slightest bit upon our effort in become saved, then we are trusting in a grace-works gospel. Such a gospel will leave us, for certain, under the wrath of God.

    We can now understand why God tells us "to give diligence to making your calling and election sure" (II Peter 1:10). This agrees with the admonishment of II Corinthians 13:5:

How Then Can We Know that We Are Saved?

    This brings us to the all-important question: How then can anyone know he has truly become saved? How can he know that his interest and trust in the Bible is not of himself but is the evidence that God is working within him? The evidence that it is God working in him is that eventually, in God's own time table, he will know he has become saved. On the other hand, if it is faith that is produced by his own actions, eventually he will end up in a false gospel or he will turn away from any gospel.
    How can one know he is truly saved? No question is more important. Without a correct Biblical assurance of our salvation we

are risking eternity in hell. How dreadful would that be! Therefore, we should test ourselves very carefully and honestly concerning our salvation. There is absolutely no value in deceiving ourselves or others about this matter.
    The Bible teaches in Romans 8:16:

    How can we know that the Holy Spirit is witnessing with our spirit the glad news that indeed we are saved?
    The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17), that is, the Holy Spirit uses the Bible to bring about salvation. Therefore, one evidence of salvation is a delight in the teachings of the Bible so that there is a strong, on-going desire to the do the will of God, that is, to be obedient to the Bible both in doctrine and in practice. God repeatedly speaks of this through Psalm 119. Illustrative of the whole psalm (176 verses), are verses 10, 11, 15, 16 and 18.

    When we remember that a saved person has become a citizen of God's kingdom, has become indwelt by God the Holy Spirit, has

received a new resurrected soul in which he never wants to sin again, then we would expect that such a person would have a great preoccupation with the Bible, which tells of his salvation, of His Savior, and is the rule book of the kingdom he has entered. That is why the verses of Psalm 119 are so pertinent to the question of knowing whether we are saved.
    We read in I John 2:3-6:

    We surely should know that self-examination concerning salvation must never be a time of looking at ourselves with rose-colored glasses. It is the moment of truth wherein we look at ourselves absolutely honestly. If we do not find in our life an earnest ongoing desire to be obedient to the Word of God both in practice and in doctrine, then we are not saved. It is far better to discover this sad fact now, while we can still implore God to His mercy, than to wake up at the Judgment Throne when it will be too late for salvation.
    What must I do? Suppose I believe I am trusting God and have an ongoing desire to do the will of God so that I find increasing happiness as I do what the Bible tells me to do. And yet at times I am not sure I am saved. The wonderful fact is that at any time I can go to God and plead for His mercy. Wonderfully, if I am truly saved, nothing I can do can endanger my salvation. I have been given eternal life. We read in John 10:27-29:

    Moreover, God promises the true believer in Romans 8:38-39:

    Keeping these beautiful promises in view when we beseech God for His mercy, because our faith is weak, can never harm us. Actually, our weak faith may indicate we are not yet saved. It is always right to pray to God for His mercy when we have not yet become saved. It is also equally right to pray to God for His mercy even though we have already become saved.

Conclusion

    We began this study with a desire to look into the meaning of the work "baptism." As a consequence, we have been able to learn much about the wonderful salvation plan which God has provided for the peoples of the world.
    We learned the supreme importance of the fact that we must realize our salvation is totally the work of God. We were reminded that we cannot make the slightest contribution toward our salvation. In fact, we were solemnly warned that if we have even the slightest trust that an action of ours can provide or satisfy even the slightest requirement for our salvation, by that action we prove that we are not under the grace of God.
    We learned that the essence of the suffering of Christ was the fact that He took upon Himself every sin of each and every person He planned to save. Moreover, He stood before the Judgment Throne of God guilty with all of those sins. God poured out His wrath upon Him so that it was equivalent to all of us He came to save spending eternity in hell.
    It was as if each one of us He came to save stood there and received that terrible punishment. We learned that it was not the physical shedding of His blood that brought about salvation.

Rather the phrase, the shedding of blood, was a figure of speech that points to the enduring of the second death, eternal damnation.
    We learned that the physical death of Jesus was not payment for sin. Rather it was the evidence that He had experienced the equivalent of eternal damnation on behalf of those He came to save.
    So, too, His burial and above all His resurrection were evidence or proofs that He had completely paid the penalty for the sins he bore on our behalf.
    We learned that hell is in the first instance the condition of being under the wrath of God. After the end of the world it will also be the place where all of the unsaved must spend eternity under the wrath of God.
    We also learned that at the moment we become saved we are given a brand new resurrected soul. In this new soul we never again want to sin. Together with the fact that at the moment of salvation God Himself indwells us to seal or guarantee the completion of our salvation, this means that there will always exist in the life of the believer an earnest desire to do the will of God.
    We learned that the word baptism always means washing or cleansing or purifying. It is never to be understood as immersion. We also learned that whenever we see the word "baptism," unless the context clearly teaches water baptism is in view, we are to think of the washing that God does. That is the washing away of our sins which is also called baptism with the Holy Spirit.
    We also learned that water baptism, like physical circumcision, is a sign or a shadow, and there is no divine grace in the act itself. The grace is the washing that God performs when an individual becomes saved. Water baptism and physical circumcision are signs or shadows that point to the action of God as He saves him.
    We learned that there is one salvation program throughout the Bible. The Old Testament believers were saved exactly the same as New Testament believers. The only difference is the fact that at the moment of salvation, New Testament believers are qualified and mandated to bring the Gospel to the world. The use of the New Testament phrase "baptized with the Holy Spirit" thus not only

speaks of an individual having his sins washed away but also that he is to enter into the work of the Holy Spirit by being a witness to the world.
    We also learned that in the Old Testament, physical circumcision was a sign to be placed upon all the males of a family wherein a father appeared to have become saved, and the sign of water baptism was to be placed on all the members of a New Testament family when a parent appears to have become saved. The mode of baptism is sprinkling.
    Concluding our study, we learned that faith is a work. We learned that a name of Christ is Faithful, that is, He is the very essence of faith. Therefore, any reference in the Bible to faith having saved us always must be understood as a reference to the faith of Christ or to Christ Himself.
    Any faith that is found in our life before we are saved or after we have become saved must always be understood to be a result of or product of Christ's work in our life. Under no circumstance did that faith serve as a means or cause or instrument to bring about our salvation. We must understand that God absolutely requires no pre-conditions in our life before He can save us.
    Could it be that this study will help us to glorify God for His tremendous gift, a gift which not one person deserves. To Christ be given all the praise and the glory!