To believe is to pledge allegiance

The Last Supper, c.1678, by Jean Baptiste de Champaigne

There is a problem with the word believe as it relates to what it means to be a Christian. In many ways we would say the central element of Christianity is belief. To be a Christian is to believe certain things about God, about human beings, about the world, and particularly about Jesus. The problem is that the vast majority of the ways we use the word believe today have shades of meaning that can lead us in the wrong direction when it comes to believing in Jesus.  

Believe is on a register that sits somewhere between think and hold as important. If I believe something, I could think that it is true or it could just be something that is important to me as an individual. If you asked me a question, and my response was to say "I believe so," I’m basically saying "I think so" with a touch of doubt. A belief is also a value. Like saying you believe in the sanctity of marriage is to say that it is important to you that you value it. Believe also has a shade of hope. If I believe that my university can win the national championship in college football, then I think it is possible but I also am indicating a hope, a wish or a desire. All the same can be said about the word faith, because normally we use belief and faith relatively interchangeably. There is nothing wrong with these words per se. They serve important functions when it comes to what they are trying to express with biblical Christianity. However, the problem is that they have nuances of subjectivity and unreality. So that saying "I believe in God" to most people it sounds like we are expressing a thought or even a wish that God exists.

But there is a way that we use the words believe or faith that I think get closer to the heart of the biblical use of the words. This way is less common, which is why most of the time to believe lacks the force it should have. This stronger way of using the word believe mostly takes place in politics where we say we "believe in" a certain candidate, meaning we think this person is trustworthy and we think they can accomplish their plans. We want to see them accomplish their plans and when we say we "believe in" them we are, in essence, committing ourselves to their cause. We get behind them, follow them, work for them, and place our confidence in the sort of world they want to create, seeing them as capable of bringing it about. When we believe in this way we don’t just trust, we are putting something of our own at stake. We have a vested interest in the outcome and depending on how significant we think the project is, we actively work to see it brought about. We campaign, give money, make phone calls, pass out information, or anything to help the cause.

I think this is exactly what it means to believe in Jesus. When we believe in him we are seeing him as trustworthy and true. We are pledging our allegiance to him alone, placing our confidence in his ability to bring about what he promises. We submit ourselves to his agenda and work to see it brought about, not because we can accomplish it but because if he is the one guaranteeing it, we have solid assurance that our work isn’t in vain. To believe in Jesus then isn’t just to think he existed or even to think correct things about him, it is to pledge allegiance to him and join him in his mission. All human politicians in whom we put our trust will fail us, because they will either actively do evil, thus betraying our faith, or by weakness, stupidity, or whatever reason they will fail to achieve the good they promise, which makes their agenda a sham. We can place our full trust in Jesus because his plans are for good and he alone is strong enough, wise enough, and good enough to make them a reality. The Bible would have us believe in Jesus like this, not just to think about him or like him, but to jump in with both feet running after him on the road of discipleship.