Unbelief–the Crowning Sin!

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (John 3:18 NKJV)

“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” (John 8:24 NKJV)

What is Belief?

Words like faith and trust are often given as synonyms of belief.  But belief is not easy, particularly in our day when we have so many people and things that we cannot believe (if we have any common sense).  We cannot or should not believe most political posts on social media.  I have a problem believing most advertising.  If I took all the remedies for pain and other medical issues advertised on TV and the internet, I would not have anything left in my budget for rent or groceries.  Biblical belief is more than knowledge about the Lord, it is being convinced that Biblical promises are true.

One thing I know, I have believed the Bible as best as I can understand and interpret it.  If you want to know how I interpret the Bible you can go to my web site and read my guidelines for Bible interpretation.  That can be found here:  http://bdcministries.faithweb.com/Tracts/overview_of_the_bible.htm

Repentance and Belief

The Lord says, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel (Mark 1:15 KJV).”

Repentance has to do with a change of mind.  So what do we need to change our mind about if we are to believe the gospel?  I would say that we need to change our mind about anything where we disagree with the proper interpretation of the Bible.  We often hear that we need to repent of our sins and many of us have sins about which we need to change our mind (and thus our actions).  Some of us simply cannot accept the truth that Jesus is the Messiah.  Some of us who never “sowed our wild oats” need to find out that we simply did not believe God when He said that believing in the Lord’s finished work on the cross would save us–and that is the crowning sin.  Peter says, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9 NKJV).”  Since it is faith that saves, repentance must be the thing that brings us to faith or trust or believing.  

So What About Works?

Since we cannot read hearts or motives as the Lord can, we who are Christians need to see evidence of “belief” before we put our confidence in one who claims to be a Christian.  This is important because a Christian is a “saint” or a “holy one” which really means that they are separated from the world and unto the Lord alone. This matter of separation is so important that Paul says, ‘Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.  I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 NKJV).'”

That means that Christians are to be separated from evil and from evil people.  The Lord cannot function as a father to us unless we are free from the lies and immorality and unbelief of unbelievers.  In order for that to be practical, we need to know who is real and who is a pretender. 

Ephesians 2:8 makes it clear that we are not saved by good works but we are saved in order to do good works.  Good works as defined Biblically are what proves that professing Christians are true believers.  That is why James says, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works (James 2:18 NKJV).'”  Works then are the evidence of our faith.

What About After we Trust Christ for Salvation?

Many of us have believed in the truth that Christ died for our sins and we have confidence that we are saved.  However, many things come up after we are saved that we may want to resist.  For example, God says we are to be baptized to show our faith.  Do we believe God and do it or do we find reasons why an infant baptism or no baptism at all will not offend God.  Do we believe that God means it when He says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33 NKJV).”  I personally have trouble with that one.  Do we believe that God will and can forgive sins committed after we are saved?  The Apostle John says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:8-9 NKJV).”  That is the promise of God.

The Honor Bestowed by Belief

Believing or trusting a person is a great honor to that person.  Not believing a person is calling them a liar.  I wish we all had the confidence of Paul when He said in a storm when the boat he was on was about to sink, “Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me (Acts 27:25 NKJV).”  The boat sank but the people were saved just as the Lord told Paul.

Let us be confident in ALL the promises of God.

Bruce Collins

Meditation for the week of November 23, 2025

If you would like further conversation about the issues in these meditations, contact me at collinsbd@yahoo.com and I will try to accommodate you with a virtual Bible Study.