Faith of God vs. Faith in God
This summary encapsulates the transformative message that Christian life is based entirely on the finished, perfect faith of Jesus Christ, urging believers to reject performance-based religion and embrace their identity, freedom, and access to all of God’s blessings through grace alone. The teaching centers on shifting from “faith in God” (human effort) to the “faith of God” (a completed gift).
The Finished Work of Jesus: All Blessings Are a Gift
The core principle articulated is that because God gave the ultimate gift—His Son, Jesus—He will freely and graciously give us all other things. This concept redefines how believers access spiritual benefits, moving away from obligation toward unconditional receiving.
The Undeserved Privilege
God did not withhold or spare even His own Son, giving Him up for all people. If God gave the most expensive thing heaven had to offer, Jesus, believers should understand that along with Him, God will freely and graciously give every other thing. This access to privilege is undeserved.
The message rejects the notion that people must perform duties to receive gifts from God. If one has to do something to earn a privilege, it ceases to be a gift. Much of the Christian world has been trained to believe they must perform tasks to get a gift, which fundamentally misunderstands the nature of a gift.
Forgiveness is Final and Free
A critical shift emphasized is the nature of forgiveness. Before Jesus was accepted, forgiveness was tied to human performance, such as forgiving others (“if you don’t forgive then God won’t forgive you”). However, now that Jesus has been accepted, forgiveness is given for free.
- Forgiveness is finished, completed, and done; it cannot be undone.
- You cannot be “more forgiven than you already are”.
- While forgiving others is beneficial to prevent a “poison heart,” it is not required to earn God’s forgiveness. Requiring forgiveness as a condition was an Old Testament, law-based situation, but believers are now under the New Testament where Jesus is the gift.
The gift of the Son is the “irrefutable evidence of God’s heart towards us,” proving He held nothing in reserve but freely and undeservedly gave everything we could ever wish to have.
Faith: The Faith of God vs. Faith in God
A central theological correction presented is the distinction between having “faith in God” and having the “faith of God”.
The Danger of Performance-Based Faith
Having “faith in God” often assumes the believer must perform an action to receive what God has promised. This view tempts believers to make themselves and their personal faith the origin and source of righteousness and justification, which they are not. If healing or a desired outcome doesn’t happen, the person is led to believe they lacked enough faith in Jesus, fostering an attitude of “work to do”.
The Triumph of Christ’s Completed Faith
The correct understanding, drawn from the Greek translation, is the “faith of the Son of God”.
- Paul declared, “The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the son of God”.
- This means the faith a believer possesses is His faith. It is not Jesus having His own faith and believers having separate, smaller faiths.
- God took His own flawless, perfect, completed, and done faith, embodied it in Jesus, and then Jesus gave that same faith to the believer.
- Therefore, the believer’s faith is simply a reflection of Jesus’s faith, which is a reflection of God’s faith.
This realization means believers should never question the strength of their faith by saying, “My faith wasn’t big enough”. If sickness or loss occurred, it was not due to small faith, but because the believer didn’t realize how big or powerful the faith they possess already is. The faith received is strong enough to move mountains.
The instruction “Why is it you have no faith?” to the disciples (Luke 8:25) is re-translated from the Greek word echo to mean: “Why do we not hear you echoing faith?”. The faith is present; it simply needs to be declared.
Stop Striving and Start Resting
The doctrine of grace allows believers to move out of perpetual effort and into rest.
Release from Guilt and Fear
Many people chase peace, approval, or God’s love, never quite catching them. This striving is fueled by religious teachings that complicate salvation with the threat of hell and the fear of death. God’s love, favor, and blessing were never meant to be earned; they are gifts.
The call to action is to let go of guilt, release the fear, and finally root faith in truth, not effort.
The Realm of the Finished
Believers have entered into the realm of the finish, the completed, the done. When troubles or battles arise, the believer’s response should be to stand in the finished victory, reminding themselves, “It’s done”.
- The victory over all battles is already done.
- The goal is to move from realizing the gift is available, to receiving it, and finally to resting in it.