Levels of Faith
Moving beyond mere belief to genuine, transformative faith
I've heard many people say, "I believe in God" or say "I believe in Jesus" – yet those people don't go to church or they don't exercise or practice their faith in any meaningful way. That is the lowest level of faith. My response to people who say things like that is to point them to the book of James in the Bible and explain to them what James was writing about.
"You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe that—and they tremble!"
– James 2:19
The point James is making is that mere belief or intellectual assent alone isn't enough—even demons and Satan believe the truth about God and Jesus, but they are not saved. There will not be any demons or Satan in heaven. True faith is shown through obedient action. Action exerts effort. James is addressing people who claim to have faith but whose lives show no evidence of obedience or transformation.
- James 2:17 – "Faith by itself, if it does NOT have works, is dead."
- James 2:26 – "Faith apart from works is dead."
James is NOT saying "works" save us. Rather, he is saying true faith reveals itself through action.
"Demons believe—and tremble"
Demons know and believe Jesus is real (see Mark 1:24, Luke 8:28).
Their belief is accurate, but it is not trusting, loving, or obedient.
Their response is fear, not repentance or surrender.
This shows that intellectual belief alone is insufficient.
James complements (not contradicts) what Apostle Paul wrote in the book of Romans. This shows harmony with the rest of Scripture.
- Paul wrote in Romans 10:9 – We are justified by faith.
- James wrote – Genuine faith is never alone; it should produce fruit.
Jesus taught the same idea:
- Matthew 7:21 – "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven…"
- John 14:15 – "If you love me, you will keep my commandments."
I've have heard other people say, "I don't go to church because a church pastor, priest or church leader did something wrong, or someone in church hurt me" or other people have said, "I don't go to church because people who go to church are hypocrites."
The truth is every single Christian church is flawed because every single Christian church is run and led by mortal, flawed human beings. At some point in our lives, everyone has been a hypocrite too. There has never been and there never will be anyone perfect, except for Jesus Christ.
The Bible teaches us to assemble with other Christian believers and not to isolate:
"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another"
– Hebrews 10:24-25
Faith must go to a higher level than just mere belief. Faith also must have hope and expectation along with action. At Billy Graham evangelical crusades all over the world during alter calls someone usually sang this song titled: "Just as I am"
The theological meaning of that song teaches the condition of every human and what one must do to have higher levels of faith, to surrender their lives to Jesus. Below is a recap of the meaning of that song:
Verse 1 – Salvation by grace, not merit
"Just as I am, without one plea…"
We come to Jesus with no excuses, no righteousness of our own.
Salvation rests solely on Christ's bloodshed, death on the cross and his resurrection.
"For by grace you have been saved through faith… NOT a result of works."
– Ephesians 2:8–9
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are saved by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."
– Romans 3:23–24
Verse 2 – No self-cleansing before coming to Christ
"Waiting not to rid my soul of one dark blot…"
You don't clean yourself up before coming to Jesus
Jesus does the cleansing
"Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like white wool."
– Isaiah 1:18
"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin."
– 1 John 1:7
Verse 3 – Honest confession of inner conflict
"With many a conflict, many a doubt…"
Faith does not mean the absence of struggles, problems and trials
Christ receives us in our weakness
"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
– Matthew 11:28
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
– 2 Corinthians 12:9
Verse 4 – Christ supplies what we lack
"Poor, wretched, blind…"
We admit spiritual poverty
Jesus provides new spiritual sight and spiritual riches
"For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and a naked soul."
– Revelation 3:17
Verse 5 – Assurance based on God's promise
"Thou wilt receive, wilt welcome, pardon…"
Salvation rests on God's promises and Jesus's sacrifice of blood on the cross and his resurrection, it's not based our feelings, emotions or ANY good works we do
"Whoever comes to Me I will never cast out"
– John 6:37
Verse 6 – Surrender and new ownership
"Now, to be Thine, yea, Thine alone"
Salvation and surrender leads to lordship by Christ
We belong to Christ and are one in Christ
"Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body."
– 1 Corinthians 6:19–20
"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship."
– Romans 12:1
Every human being enters this world naked with nothing, and every human being leaves it the same way. We are born with empty hands, and we take nothing with us when we die. Whether rich or poor, homeless or wealthy, powerful or forgotten, we all come to Jesus Christ on equal ground.
No amount of money, success, or status or lack thereof earns eternal salvation. We come only to Jesus by humility, repentance, and faith.
Are you willing to surrender your life to Jesus Christ?
Or do you believe you are in control of your life and the universe?
If you are willing to surrender your life to Jesus, follow and to apply Jesus' teachings to your life, please pray this simple prayer from your heart…
Prayer of Surrender
Dear Father in Heaven,
I confess that I am a sinner, and I need You. I want Jesus in my life, and today I surrender my life completely to You. I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, trusting in His sacrifice for my sins.
Jesus, please be my Shepherd—lead me, guide me, and walk with me throughout my life here on earth. Help me to follow You faithfully, to grow in Your truth, and to live according to Your will.
I pray this prayer in the precious name of Jesus.
Amen.
If you prayed that prayer, welcome to the Kingdom of Heaven!
If you have any doubts or reservations about Jesus' transforming power - please read this Time Magazine book of the year titled Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. Over my life I have read over a thousand of books, Unbroken is one of the very best books I've ever read. A brief summary of that book is below:
Louis Zamperini in his later years, holding his WWII portrait
Unbroken
Unbroken is a true-life biography of Louis "Louie" Zamperini, an American Olympic runner turned World War II bombardier. The book follows his extraordinary life from as a very troubled youth, to competing in the 1936 Berlin Olympics as a USA track runner in front of Adolf Hitler, to surviving a plane crash in the Pacific. After drifting at sea for 47 days, Louie and a crewmate were captured by the Japanese and endured more than two and a half years of the most brutal physical and mental torture in Japanese POW camps.
Post-War Struggles
After the war, Louie struggled deeply with PTSD, anger, hatred and alcoholism. His marriage to his beautiful, fashion model wife had fallen apart. Although he returned to the USA barely physically alive, he carried emotional and spiritual wounds that haunted him continuously night and day. He only lived for to go back to Japan to find and kill the POW Japanese prison guard who brutally tortured him.
Conversion to Christ
Louie's life took a major turn through Christian faith:
His wife Cynthia attended a Billy Graham crusade in Los Angeles and became a Christian, which deeply affected Louie and helped prevent their divorce which was schedule to happen.
Louie reluctantly went to the Billy Graham crusade himself and, after the second time attending, came forward and accepted Christ, humbled and asking for forgiveness for his past sins and broken life.
After his conversion, Louie experienced a profound inner change: his anger and hatred toward his former captor gave way to forgiveness, and his life became focused on his faith, sharing his testimony, and helping others by starting a Christian camp for troubled teenagers and he led many youths to Christ.
Themes of Faith and Redemption
In Hillenbrand's narrative, faith isn't just a side note — it becomes part of Louie's healing and redemption, showing how belief and spiritual transformation helped him move beyond anger, hatred, alcohol addiction and thoughts of murder to love, forgiveness and true inner peace and joy.
There is a Hollywood produced movie titled Unbroken. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 best I would rate that movie a 3 and I would rate the book Unbroken a 10.
Louie Zamperini lived to age 97. This is video of him below when he was in his nineties telling the remarkable story of his life and transformation by Jesus Christ.
Moving Beyond Belief
True faith is not passive intellectual agreement—it is active, transformative, and obedient. It moves us from merely believing facts about God to surrendering our lives to Him, assembling with other believers, and allowing our faith to produce visible fruit through our actions.
Ready to Deepen Your Faith?
Faith that transforms begins with surrender. Let's discuss how you can move to higher levels of faith in your spiritual journey.
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