Read John 7-9. Genuine salvation is new birth (John 3). It is NOT acknowledgement of a fact, intellectual assent, or even simple believing. It IS the total surrender of the entire being -- mind, will, and emotions -- to the Lordship of Jesus. It is also just the beginning. Notice Jesus' words to those who professed belief. "If you continue in My word, you really are My disciples." (8:31) Saving faith is a belief that results in obedience. The Greek word used by John is "pisteuo," which can be translated "to rely on." The noun form of that word is "pistis," which is translated as "faith." This verb and noun encompass all the elements of salvation: conviction, repentance, and submission. It is relying on the Lord Jesus alone for salvation. Not works, not baptism, not church membership, not ancestry, and not culture. Only the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross can bring salvation and one can only come to Jesus if the Father draws them (6:65). When someone genuinely believes the Gospel, it will translate into a life of obedience. The Lord Jesus continued saying that if we continue in His word, we will "know the truth and the truth will set you free" (8:32). That truth is the truth revealed throughout God's word. If Jesus and the Father are One, if Jesus is the great "I Am," then every word of the Bible is His.
Rely on the truth that the Father sent the Lord Jesus to live a life of perfect obedience, suffer unjustly an atoning death as the once-for-all-time sacrifice for our sins, and be raised on the third day. BUT, if that belief or reliance does not result in a lifestyle of obedience to His word, then our shackles of sin have not been broken. Memorize John 8:31-32!
