Emphasis Preaching Journal

Passages such as this, in which Paul focuses upon what we believe in our hearts and say with our mouths, have become authoritative texts for quite different responses to the gospel. Initial confusion over language plus the subsequent interpretations within church history have produced conflicting messages regarding salvation. For example, in our inheritance of Greek culture, we think of the "heart" as the center of emotions. Hence, we may imagine that salvation is evidenced by joy or serenity or some other important feeling within us. But for Paul and other Jewish folk, the "heart" is the center of human will. Our relationship with God hinges on our willingness to repent, to seek God's kingdom and grace. In our inheritance of Greek philosophy, we have regarded "believing in" as a mental affirmation of certain theological propositions. But for Paul and other Jewish folk, to "believe in" was to trust in the faithfulness of another and act according to that trust. As one man put it, "There is a great deal of difference between saying, 'I believe I have a wife,' 'I believe my wife,' and 'I believe in my wife.' " The poet Hartley Coleridge understood the problem of faith language. He wrote,
Think not the faith by which the just shall live
Is a dead creed, a map correct of heaven,
Far less a feeling, fond, and fugitive,
A thoughtless gift, withdrawn as soon as given.
It is an affirmation and an act
That bids eternal truth be present fact. -- Bristow