The year was 1945. Billy Graham and Charles Templeton were preaching at Christian rallies in Europe drawing huge crowds. The duo seemed unstoppable as they drew people to Christ in a post World War II era that was desperate for change. But all was not well.
Templeton, who had converted to Christianity in miraculous fashion started having doubts -doubts which he shared with Graham. As time went by a young Billy Graham was faced with a choice. Should he continue to believe in God, despite the questions he had, or should he give up?
It all came to a head in 1949, when after searching the scriptures for the answers he sought and not finding them, Billy Graham fell to his knees and prayed: Father, I am going to accept this as Your Word by faith! Im going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts and I will believe that this is Your inspired Word.1
In the end, the difference between Templeton and Graham boiled down to faith. The faith that Billy Graham had, made it possible for him to remain a Christian and eventually become one of the most influential preachers in modern day Christianity. The lack of faith on the other hand, resigned Charles Templeton to becoming an agnostic who could not reconcile with God.
The BIG question
If faith is the only requirement for salvation (Romans 10:9) then how much of it do I need to be saved?
Have you ever read Hebrews 11, commonly called the faith chapter, about those stalwarts of the faith and asked yourself if you can measure up to them? I know I have and I have fallen desperately short every time.
In order to find the answer to the question, join me as we take a closer look at the example that Jesus left for us in Mathew 14:22 and John 6:16.
The boat that rocks
In Mathew 14 and John 6, we find Jesus and his disciples trying to find some solitude after learning the devastating news of the death of John the Baptist. John had been beheaded by king Herod as a birthday gift to his niece.
Jesus was probably very upset at the death of John the Baptist and wanted to mourn in private, but the crowds would not let him, and being Jesus, he took pity on them. He healed their sick and then proceeded to feed more than 5000 people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes.
We read that Jesus dismisses the crowds and gives the disciples the instruction to go to Capernaum, a small fishing town on the northern shores of the Sea of Galilee. After the disciples got into the boat, Jesus went up the mountain to pray.
Some time passes and it gets dark. A strong wind picks up over the Sea of Galilee, which at its widest point is about 20kms wide. The storm gets so bad that the disciples have to row with all their might to keep afloat. At about 3am in the morning, and after battling the entire night with the waves, the tired disciples see someone walking to them on the water. They thought that Jesus was a ghost. Needless to say they freaked out! They must have thought that this was the end and that soon they would be dining with the fishes, so to speak.
But Jesus calls out to them and assures them that it is him. Peter, not completely convinced, says to Christ that if he really is Jesus, he could tell Peter to come to him and Peter would then also be able to walk on water.
So Christ does exactly that. Peter decides that he can walk to Jesus on the water and has some measure of success until his surroundings, the fear and tiredness take their toll. All of a sudden he becomes unsure, and the confidence and faith that he had moments ago vanish and he begins to sink. In shear panic Peter cries out Lord, save me! and immediately Christ catches him and says, You of little faith, why did you doubt? (Matthew 14:31).
As they climb into the boat, the sea calms down, the disciples praise God, proclaim Jesus as the Son of God and the boat is miraculously transported the remainder of the way to the town of Gennesaret (which was a couple of kilometers from Capernaum).
How did the disciples fare in the faith test?
So how did the disciples fare in this test of faith?
All twelve apostles, who were hand-picked by Christ, were terrified of the circumstances they were in. None had faith that Jesus would save them.
The Bible only tells us that Peter had the courage to try and walk on water, the others clearly did not even have that.
Even Peter who thought he had enough faith, when faced with the reality of the moment buckled under the pressure and failed.
Jesus did not let Peter or the other disciples drown because of their lack of faith, but actually calmed the seas and then transported them the other side of the lake.
We are saved by the faith of Christ, not our own.
In the King James Version, Galatians 2:20 reads: I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
David Torrance a noted theologian writes: (emphasis added):
We are saved by Christs faith and obedience to the Father, not ours. My brother Tom [Torrance] often quoted Galatians 2:20 . Such is the wording of the KJV, which I believe is a correct translation .
Other translators, like those of the New International Version, apparently because they found it so difficult to believe we can live by Christs faith rather than our faith, have altered the text to make it read, I live by faith in the Son of God! something altogether different!
That translation takes away from the vicarious nature of Christs life of faith. It is by his faith [not ours] that we are saved and live! Our faith is a thankful response to his faith.
When we look back along our lives and ponder how disobedient we at times have been and continue to be, it is marvellously comforting to know that Christ gives us his life of obedience to the Father and that it is Christs obedience which counts. We are saved by his obedience, not ours.2
Conclusion
If we look at the story of Billy Graham and the disciples it is remarkable to see that in both cases the individuals were unsure, scared and did not know what to do. In both cases when they took a leap of faith, however fragile it was, God, through Jesus in the case of the disciples and through the Holy Spirit (the comforter) in the case of Billy Graham had enough faith to pull them all through.
Your conversion, faith and the transformation of your life has much less to do with you than you may think. Once you have made the decision to follow God and keep on choosing to let him work with you, he not only transforms your mind but also sustains you.
So to answer the question I began with: Is eternal life dependant on the amount of faith that I have? The answer is no it is dependant on how much faith God has in us .and our God is a awesome God with awesome faith.
1. The Case for Faith, Lee Strobel, Zondervan Publishers
2. An Introduction to Torrance Theology, pp. 7-8 emphasis added