Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ? Thou doest well, but the devils also believe and tremble. Do you believe that Jesus was born of a virgin named Mary? Then you believe something that Catholics believe. Do you believe that Jesus’ ethical teachings in the Sermon on the Mount ought to be obeyed? Then you believe what many liberal Bible-deniers believe. Do you believe that Jesus fulfilled dozens and dozens of prophecies? Do you believe that Jesus was the Old Testament Angel of God? Do you believe He was the Servant of God? Do you believe Christ came into the world to become our Saviour? Do you believe that He died on a Roman cross outside of Jerusalem? Do you believe He arose from the dead and ascended into Heaven? Again, the devils also believe such things and much more, and yet they are still devils. All these things are Biblical truths about Christ, but acceptance of them are not sufficient to save our souls.
Sadly these things, often believed, are only the tip of the iceberg. In addition to the truth, there are dozens of absolute falsehoods about Christ which people believe. For example, Mormons are told that Jesus and Lucifer (Satan) were spirit brothers in their original existence. Apparently Christ and Lucifer are both sons of God. And Muslims believe that Jesus was a prophet just as Mohammed was a prophet. Like millions of others, they believe that Jesus was an important man, but not God or the Son of God. Among other things, millions believe that Jesus wants to be their good buddy.
What I am trying to say is that WHAT we believe about Jesus is extremely important. But even to believe the truth about Christ may not be sufficient to satisfy Him at the final judgment. John will tell us: “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” But victory isn’t found in the act of believing something. Victory is received through the right kind of faith in the right things and the right Person.
As an example please return to Luke 4. Early in Jesus’ ministry, He went into the Capernaum synagogue. It was a place very familiar to Him. He had been there often throughout His youth. Most likely everyone knew Him, including the officiating ruler and the rabbi. But on this occasion something was very different. This time His presence provoked a Satanic spirit, indwelling one of the attendees. It cried out, “Let us alone… thou Jesus of Nazareth. Art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.” That demonic spirit didn’t simply BELIEVE that Jesus was the Holy One of God, he KNEW it. Later that night our Lord went to Peter’s house where He instantly healed Peter’s very sick mother-in-law. When that news spread, the house was inundated with sick people begging for help. “And he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.” Out of grace, Christ healed every single one of them; there were apparently no strings attached. “And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak; for they KNEW that he was Christ.” Once again, those demons didn’t just believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Holy One of God; they knew it to be a fact. But they were still demons; they remained ambassadors of Satan, and from what I understand, still are today. They left their human hosts, but went on to serve Satan in other ways or in other human beings.
I bring this to your attention to remind you that to believe Biblical truth about Christ doesn’t make you a Christian.
This takes us back to our text in I JOHN 5.
John makes a statement which can be misleading if not understood and if not kept in the original context. At first glance, the apostle seems to say: “If anyone believes Jesus is the Christ he will be saved.” “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” But those demons knew that and it did nothing for them. And there have been millions of people who believed that Jesus is the Christ, but who are now in hell. So why did John make this statement and what did he mean by it?
I have been trying hard over the last forty-plus messages not to get into this, but I can’t avoid it any longer. It is generally believed that John toward the end of his life, became the pastor of the church in Ephesus. There he wrote his three inspired epistles, but not the Book of the Revelation, which came after he was exiled to the Isle of Patmos. While in Ephesus he witnessed of Christ, discipled many new believers and warned of false doctrine.
Amid those false doctrines, toward the end of the first century there was a branch of Gnosticism called “Cerinthianism,” which derived its name from its primary teacher: an Ephesian named Cerinthus. I don’t need to give you all the gory details; you can look it up on the internet if you would like. Suffice it to say that Gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge: “gnosko…” Gnosticism taught that salvation was not through God’s grace, but by the acquisition of knowledge. Its adherents believed that through the intellect enlightened souls could know God. But ultimately, only really special people possessed that important knowledge and could share it. Those Gnostics could be found among the heathen religions and also among the liberal Jews. So these people explained the Old Testament intellectually, denying revelation, miracles and other things. The Jewish Sadducees were easy prey for these predators.
One such Gnostic was Cerinthus, who grew up a few leagues from the church which John pastored. Among many other horrible heresies, Cerinthus believed that Jesus was nothing more than a normal human being. When that son of Mary was immersed by John the Baptist, not only did the Holy Spirit descend upon him, but so did his Christness. Jesus BECAME the Christ when he was baptized. And before he was martyred, that Christness left him: it was only Jesus of Nazareth who died on the cross. Not only did the Apostle John have to overcome the heresies of the Jews who denied that Jesus was the Christ, he had to deal with these Gnostic errors, which still denied that Jesus was the Christ. And please understand that these heresies were sweeping through the Hellenistic society.
In that light, the first part of verse 1 makes complete sense: “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” In the midst of a society denying that Jesus is the Christ, there were those who had been born again. They knew the truth. The deity and special anointing of Christ were a part of the confession of the true believer.
Now, let’s consider more deeply what exactly John was saying.
“Whosoever believeth that JESUS is the Christ is born of God.” There is no doubt about the identity of the “Jesus” to whom John referred. We are talking about the son of Mary; the baby who was born in Bethlehem during the taxation. Ultimately, Jesus was taken back to Mary’s home town of Nazareth, whereby he he became known as “the Nazarene” (Matthew 2:23).
But let’s remember how and why He was given that name “Jesus.” Before His birth, God’s angel told Mary’s fiancé, Joseph, “Thou shalt call his name JESUS; for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). As we were reminded last week: the name “Jesus” means “Jehovah saves” or something along that line. God the Father demanded that Mary’s son be called “Jesus,” because her son was to be the Saviour. Then following that, Matthew tells us “they shall (also) call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Matthew 1:23). When He was born, a group of shepherds were invited to become witnesses. They were told: “Unto you is born his day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Lk. 2:11).
You should be able to do the theological math: Mary’s son must be called “Jesus” because, not only is He God among us, but He is the Saviour. Furthermore, Jesus, the Saviour, is “Christ the Lord,” with “Lord” bringing us back again to Jesus’ deity. Jesus did not BECOME Christ at His baptism, because He was born the Christ. In fact, the Son has always been the Christ – in eternity past before He created the universe.
But what about that title: “the CHRIST?” “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the CHRIST is born of God.” “CHRIST” is the New Testament’s equivalent for the Hebrew word “Messiah.” And even though “Messiah” is found in our English version of the Old Testament, the Hebrew word is far more often translated “anointed” or “the anointed one.” That is what Christ and Messiah mean: “the anointed one” – the anointed of God.
On the orders of Jehovah, when kings and priests were set into their offices, they were anointed with oil, which had great symbolical significance. But ultimately it declared that these people were given God’s authority for their particular office. And as for Jesus, the Christ: He is God’s anointed PROPHET, PRIEST and KING. He is the highest of all PROPHETS with the ability to personally reveal the Father in His unique way. Jesus said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” Often throughout the Old Testament, Christ was “the angel of God,” sharing with various men the message of the Lord. And as God’s special prophet He was also the “Servant of Jehovah,” but that has even more significance in His death on the cross. Also, Christ is God’s anointed PRIEST after the order of Melchizedek, to make an atonement for our sins. He alone could offer the final and perfect sacrifice for sin, bringing to an end the necessity for any other blood sacrifices. And the Lord Jesus very likely was the man, Melchizedek, who spoke with Abraham back in Genesis. Furthermore, Christ is that KING whom God has set over all things and whose laws are to be obeyed. As King, Christ will be the final judge of all things. He will be your judge, making verse 1 extremely important: “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” Jesus, the Son of God, is God the Father’s “Christ” His anointed one.
Now think back on those demons from Luke 4. The one in the synagogue cried out, “I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.” And some of the others at Peter’s house shouted: “Thou art Christ the Son of God.” Let’s add the testimony of the demon who possessed the man living among the tombs at Gadara. “When he saw Jesus he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not.” How did those demonic creatures know these things about Jesus?
Their knowledge came from direct observation, beginning at the almost the very installation of time. Likely, they were created first, and with their own eyes they witnessed the remaining week of creation. Perhaps they saw the Son of God form the first man and breathe into him the breath of life. And they were well aware of all the Old Testament prophecies about the Anointed One. They witnessed His birth and they were involved in Herod’s attempt to kill the child Jesus. They knew that He was Christ, the king, and that He was going to be their final judge. But again, their knowledge didn’t change who they were, delivering them from the judgment of their sins.
And with that we return, again, to our scripture from I JOHN 5.
“Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” It is easy for the fallen mind to say: “to believe that Jesus is the Christ will save me from my sin.” That is not what John says, but that is what so many want him to say. To believe that Jesus is the Christ is easy. But again, as we’ve already seen with those fallen angels, there is no salvation in that kind of faith. To believe that Jesus is the Christ is easy, but to believe on the “LORD Jesus Christ” is impossible without the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
Again, this is not what John is saying. I’ll prove this in a moment, but what John said was “Whoever believes Jesus is the Christ is ALREADY born again.” Turn back a page and take a look at I John 2:29. I know the subject is slightly different, but notice the words “is born of him.” “If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness IS born of him.” Clearly, John is saying that person who knows that God is righteous is already born of God. Chapter 3 verse 9: “Whosoever IS born of God doth not commit sin.” That “whosoever person” is not BEING born of God by his abstinence. He is ALREADY born of God and therefore has the strength, will and yearning to not commit sin. I John 4:7: “Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God; and every one that loveth IS born of God and knoweth God.” I John 5:4: “For whatsoever IS born of God overcometh the world…” I John 5:18: “We know that whosoever IS born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one touched him not.”
It may be different for those demons, because of their relationship to the original creation. But the truth is: sinful human beings are incapable of knowing these things about Christ until they are given spiritual life. If they do understand, and if they fully trust these truths about Christ, it is because they have been given spiritual life.
Conclusion:
If simply believing that Jesus is the Christ doesn’t save me from sin, then what must I believe? Clearly, we are commanded to believe certain things. What are they?
First, you must understand and believe that you are sinner. John has told us, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” David said in Psalm 53: “Every one of them is gone back; they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Paul takes that verse sharpens its point, adding, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” Those verses, along with dozens of others, make sure that we know we are all included. We are sinners.
But here is a problem: many people know they are bad; they KNOW intellectually that they are sinners. But they must also BELIEVE it to be so from the depths of their hearts. We are disgusting creatures in the sight of God, with not a single redeeming trait or work. We must understand and believe that there is nothing we can do to please God in ourselves. We must come to the end of ourselves, before we can become anything in Christ. YOU must believe that you are a destitute and disgusting sinner.
And yet, you must believe that God loves you to the point that He chose to take action on your behalf. “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on His should not perish but have ever lasting life.” Because you don’t even have two spiritual pennies to rub together, God took the initiative on your behalf. You must believe that “when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”
And you must believe that God’s Son, the Anointed One, died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins; specifically for your sins. You must believe that the blood which oozed from around those nails in Christ’s hands, was squeezed out to cover your sins and to cleanse you from your spiritual filth. You must believe that Christ was “wounded for your transgressions and that he was bruised for your iniquity.”
But here is the thing: you must not believe what the Bible says about these important facts. You must lay every part of your trust and hope on the Saviour. In order to be delivered from your sins, you must empty yourself of all hope, except your hope in Christ. Don’t just believe IN Christ, believe ON the Lord Jesus Christ; cast your entire dependance upon Him. He will give you life: eternal life, and life more abundant than the life you now possess. And being born of God, it could then be said of you that you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Saviour.
What kind of faith do you have? Do you possess genuine saving faith?