Do you ever consider the difference in believing in Jesus as compared with other things you believe in but that don’t have much impact in your life? If not, you probably should. Consider the opening words of J.I. Packer’s classic book, Growing in Christ:
When people are asked what they believe in, they give, not merely different answers, but different sorts of answers. Someone might say, “I believe in UFOs”—that means, I think UFOs are real. “I believe in democracy”—that means, I think democratic principles are just and beneficial. But what does it mean when Christian congregations stand and say: “I believe in God”? Far more than when the object of belief is UFOs or democracy.
I can believe in UFOs without ever looking for one, and in democracy without ever voting. In cases like these, belief is a matter of the intellect only. But the [Apostle’s] Creed’s opening words, “I believe in God,” render a Greek phrase coined by the writers of the New Testament, meaning literally: “I am believing into God.” That is to say, over and above believing certain truths about God, I am living in a relation of commitment to God in trust and union. When I say “I believe in God,” I am professing my conviction that God has invited me to this commitment, and declaring that I have accepted his invitation.
I’m afraid many self-professing Christians are believing more about Christ than believing in Christ, or into Christ. The former generally leads to moralism (simply living a “good” life — “I try to do what’s right. I definitely do more good than bad, so I’m good 👍🏻”) and/or license (“Since I do more good than bad, the little bit of bad stuff I do is OK because I’m a Christian. Jesus is generally pleased with me, so I’m good 👍🏻”). Moralism and license seem an unlikely couple but can live side-by-side if we attempt to “baptize” *biblical sin and make it OK.
Believing into Jesus means that I understand that even the best of me is wicked beyond self-repair and so “being good” in the eyes of God is impossible. That’s why I need a Savior so that the gaze of God lands first on the righteousness of Jesus in place of my filth. It means that Jesus is never “OK” with sin. Though forgiven, I struggle with it through His power to eliminate it.
If we’re wise, we’ll spend some time asking whether we are believing into Christ or just believing about him. It makes an eternity of difference.
* I use the term “biblical sin” because there are beliefs or practices that the Bible doesn’t label sin that may be culturally taboo. These are not actually sinful in isolation but should be addressed within the counsel of Scripture (Romans 14 is particularly helpful).
