Subject: What is the difference between believing |
Bible Note: Not sure what the statement means, that Satan believes in Jesus. The first responder seems to be referring to the fact the devils believe there is one God (James 2:19). Though language may seem to equate “I believe in God” with “I believe that God exists”, it is doubtful that “I believe in Jesus” is ever spoken to mean “I believe that Jesus exists”. It seems to me that believing in Jesus and believing on Jesus are exactly the same thing. The words seem to be exactly the same in the original language, and they mean to trust in him, not to believe that he exists. I write this to encourage us to keep the message of the Gospel as simple as it is given us and not to complicate it unnecessarily. Not everyone that says “Lord, Lord” believes in or on the Lord. Those who do the will of the Father enter the kingdom of heaven. But what is the will of the Father? They said they unto him, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said unto them, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent”. Again he said, “This is the will of him that sent me, that every one who sees the Son, and believes on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6). And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ (in order to have everlasting life -- as in John 6 above, Acts 16:31, etc.) and love one another (after we are saved -- as in 1 John 3:16) as he gave us (believers, his disciples -- John 13, 15) commandment. We are saved when we believe in (Romans 10:14) or on (1 Timothy 1:16), or trust in (1 Timothy 4:10) the Lord Jesus Christ. Thereafter, we do good works, not in order to have salvation, but because we have it (Ephesians 2). The Holy Spirit guides us (Romans 8) and the love of Christ constrains us (2 Corinthians 5). |