Shortly after becoming a Christian, I heard a non-Christian claim that one needn’t be a Christian to lead a good life, and to do remarkable things for one’s neighbor. In fact, he said he knew many non-Christians who led better lives than some Christians he knew.
I reflected back on this event when I heard recently a song which went a long way to answer that challenge for me at the time, “Where There is Faith” by 4 Him. (hear)
Where There Is Faith
I believe in faithfulness
I believe in giving of myself for someone else
I believe in peace and love
I believe in honesty and trust but it’s not enough
For all that I believe may never change the way it is
Unless I believe Jesus lives
CHORUS:
Where there is faith
There is a voice calling, “Keep Walking”
You’re not alone in this world
Where there is faith
There is a peace like a child sleeping
Hope everlasting in He who is able to
Bear every Burden, to heal every hurt in my heart
It is a wonderful, powerful place
Where there is faith
There’s a man across the sea
Never heard the sound of freedom ring
Only in his dreams
There’s a lady dressed in black
In a motorcade of cadillacs
Daddy’s not coming back
Our hearts begin to fall
And our stability grows weak
But Jesus meets our needs if only we believe
The song points out that membership in the Kingdom of God does not depend on us doing anything to gain or maintain admission.
It is all about Him, and what He has already done.
All we are asked to do is believe that He did, and accept His gracious gift of membership in His Kingdom.
In Acts 16:30, the jailer asks Paul and Silas what he has to do to become a member of God’s Kingdom. The answer:
“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
That is the difference between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Good: faith, not goodness; God’s son, not my actions
Does that mean we can be as bad as we want, and get a pass as long as we have faith?
Real faith opens our hearts for God to transplant his heart for ours, and as we recover from the heart surgery, we gradually find ourselves wanting to do good as we follow the Great Physician on a wonderful and mysterious journey of faith.
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