Biblical Quotes on Faith
Biblical Quotes on Faith
The Bible says faith can —
— move mountains (Matt 17:20)
— bring salvation from sin’s guilt (Acts 16:31)
— extinguish Satan’s flaming darts (Eph 6:16)
But to experience these we must understand what faith really is.
What faith really is
If we think faith means looking on the bright side, or being positive — we might feel good for a little while.
But we won’t move mountains, be saved from sin’s guilt, or extinguish Satan’s flaming darts — because we won’t have true faith.
In the Bible — faith means trusting all that God promises to be to us in Christ Jesus.
So here I’m including biblical quotes which have helped me grow in faith. I hope you find them helpful.
Quotes showing that faith focuses on Jesus Christ
Faith is “being satisfied with all that God is for us in Jesus.” (John Piper, Future Grace, p.367.)
“This is the distinguishing property … of saving faith: it beholds the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (John Owen, Works, Vol 1, p.243.)
“Faith is that by which the soul comes to Christ, and receives him.” (Jonathan Edwards, Works, 2:625f.)
“The terms of reconciliation are … to believe in Jesus Christ with faith that purifies the heart, and enables thy soul to feed on him effectually, and be saved from this sad state.” (John Bunyan, Bunyan’s Complete Works, p.792.)
“For [Charles Simeon] Christ was the Gospel; and personal faith in Him, a living Person, was the Gospel secret.” (H. C. G. Moule, Charles Simeon, p.52.)
“The promise is but the cabinet, Christ is the jewel in it which faith embraces; the promise is but the dish, Christ is the food in it which faith feeds on.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.216)
Quotes showing that we always are trusting something to satisfy us
“You will always desire, love, trust, believe, fear, obey, long for, value, pursue, hope, and serve something.” (David Powlison, Journal of Biblical Counseling, Spring 2005, p.11.)
“That which a man trusts to he makes his god.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.106.)
“Man is a creature of faith … he does not and cannot live in a faith vacuum. The decisive question is not whether faith is a necessary condition of human life but rather in whom or in what that faith reposes.” (Carl Henry, God, Revelation, and Authority, Vol.1, p.156.)
“… man believed Satan above God — that is, placed his faith and confidence in him, as unto the way of attaining blessedness and true happiness.” (John Owen, Works, Vol 1, p.187.)
Quotes showing that faith focuses on God’s promises
“If we would have our hearts satisfied with the love and delight the Father and the Son have for each other, we should be careful to let the Spirit … keep us filled with all joy and peace as we trust God’s promises.” (Daniel Fuller, The Unity of the Bible, p.147)
“God-glorifying faith is a future-oriented confidence in God’s integrity and power and wisdom to follow through on all His promises.” (John Piper, Future Grace , p.190.)
“Faith believes the promise; but that which faith rests upon in the promise is the person of Christ.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.216.)
Faith is “that dependence of trust in God in the present, because of his acts in the past, that leads inevitably to banking our hope on his promises for the future.” (Scott Hafemann, 2 Corinthians, p.97.)
Quotes on faith and obedience
“It has often been observed that what people hope in for a happy future, that they worship; and what they worship, that they inevitably serve.” (Daniel Fuller, The Unity of the Bible, p.150.)
“And in whom we place our trust and confidence, them do we obey, whatever we profess.” (John Owen, Works, Vol.1, p.187.)
“God’s commands are all promises of God’s enablings.” (paraphrased from Charles Spurgeon, 12 Sermons on Prayer, p.9.)
“It is impossible to sin with lively thoughts and hopes of the glory of heaven. It’s when the thoughts of heaven are long out of the Christian’s sight that he begins to set up some idol. But let heaven come in sight, and the Christian’s heart will be well warmed with thoughts of it. It is easier to persuade a king to throw his crown into a gutter, than to persuade a heaven-focused saint to sin.” (William Gurnall, The Christian in Complete Armor)
“The joy of the Lord will arm us against the assaults of our spiritual enemies and put our mouths out of taste for those pleasures with which the tempter baits his hooks.” (Matthew Henry, quoted in John Piper’s Desiring God, p.13)
“Do any of us find decays of grace prevailing in us; deadness, coldness, lukewarmness, a kind of spiritual stupidity and senselessness coming upon us? There is no better way for our healing and deliverance, but this alone, namely, the obtaining a fresh view of the glory of Christ by faith, and a steady abiding therein. Constant contemplation of Christ and his glory putting forth its transforming power unto revival of all grace, is the only relief in this case.” (John Owen, Works, 12: 501-502.)
“This power [to conquer sin] is accessible in our experience through faith, not through simple striving of the will.” (Richard Lovelace, in Bryan Chapell’s Holiness by Grace, p.60.)
“Faith has influence upon all the graces, and sets them to work; not a grace stirs till faith sets it to work.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.217)
Quotes on fighting the fight of faith
“Let us above all things labour for faith.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.218)
“A weak faith can receive a strong Christ.” (Thomas Watson, A Body of Divinity, p.220)
The fight of faith “is at its root a fight for delight. It’s a fight to maintain satisfaction in God against all the enticements of the world and all the deceptions of the devil … Diminishing delight is a summons for war.” (John Piper, Future Grace, p.316).
Quotes showing that faith is not just agreeing to truth, it’s trusting Jesus Christ
“Faith is more than recognition that something is true. In the Bible, faith characteristically involves trust in God and his Word, trust in God’s Son.” (D. A. Carson, Christ and Culture , p.109.)
How did these biblical quotes on faith impact you?
I’d love to hear — let me know in the comments box below. Thanks.
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Steve,
Thanks for your steadfastness in sharing about the true nature of faith. It is a subject that is misunderstood in many churches today, or at the very least is overlooked, in that it’s thought not to hold young people’s interest.
I can relate to Meghan O’Gieblyn who writes about her experience growing up in the CCM culture of music and the church. A informative article about how the church culture at large has been influenced by the culture of the day. For years at my old church I don’t remember once hearing a sermon about the fight of faith, but I do remember seeing many clips from movies that were about making good moral choices. Here’s a snippet from her post below.
“This trend spreads beyond CCM into many areas of evangelical culture. The church is becoming increasingly consumer-friendly. Jacob Hill, director of “worship arts” at New Walk Church, describes the Sunday service music as “exciting, loud, powerful, and relevant,” and boasts that “a lot of people say they feel like they’ve just been at a rock concert.” Over the past ten years, I’ve visited churches that have Starbucks kiosks in the foyer and youth wings decked out with air hockey tables. I’ve witnessed a preacher stop his sermon to play a five-minute clip from Billy Madison. I’ve walked into a sanctuary that was blasting the Black Eyed Peas’s “Let’s Get it Started” to get the congregation pumped for the morning’s message, which was on joy. I have heard a pastor say, from a pulpit, “Hey, I’m not here to preach at anyone.” And yet, in spite of these efforts, churches are retaining only 4 percent of the young people raised in their congregations.
Despite all the affected teenage rebellion, I continued to call myself a Christian into my early twenties. When I finally stopped, it wasn’t because being a believer made me uncool or outdated or freakish. It was because being a Christian no longer meant anything. It was a label to slap on my Facebook page, next to my music preferences. The gospel became just another product someone was trying to sell me, and a paltry one at that because the church isn’t Viacom: it doesn’t have a Department of Brand Strategy and Planning. Staying relevant in late consumer capitalism requires highly sophisticated resources and the willingness to tailor your values to whatever your audience wants. In trying to compete in this market, the church has forfeited the one advantage it had in the game to attract disillusioned youth: authenticity. When it comes to intransigent values, the profit-driven world has zilch to offer. If Christian leaders weren’t so ashamed of those unvarnished values, they might have something more attractive than anything on today’s bleak moral market. In the meantime, they’ve lost one more kid to the competition.”
That’s a sobering quote, Paul. Thank you for sharing it.
There’s nothing more relevant than our desire for heart-satisfaction — and nothing more satisfying than Jesus Christ.
And it was fun playing softball with you yesterday!
Woah…… The fight of faith “is at its root a fight for delight. It’s a fight to maintain satisfaction in God against all the enticements of the world and all the deceptions of the devil … Diminishing delight is a summons for war.” (John Piper, Future Grace, p.316). I just stared at this quote for the longest time. God help me. I have so much weight to lose untill I am at my ideal healthy weight. I have so much school left until I get my degree, and I have so much transforming of my mind left until I can consistantly Live what Piper is describing. Oy Vey! Still my hope is in the author and finisher of my faith, in whom I place my trust in to will and to work for His good pleasure.
Hi Bill,
Yes — I love that quote from John Piper. Sums it up powerfully!
And you nailed it in saying that your hope is in the one who authored and who certainly will finish your faith.
The good work He started in you He WILL completely.
Keep fighting, brother. Jesus is worth it all.
Steve
Thanks Steve! I printed that quote out in huge faunt and its sitting on my desk 🙂 Great reminder! Thank you.
You are so welcome — and which quote did you print out?
Ive been struggling to find the answer on deliberately sinning after being saved bc I see Christians doing it, and when confronted say I’m covered by grace,I really appreciate your blog.
I’m so glad this blog is encouraging you — thanks for letting me know.