Q&R with Brad Jersak “Is faith a requirement?”
Question:
Iโve been on a journey today trying to process.
Faith in Christ still requires me. There is something wrong with this wording or something wrong with my understanding. It canโt be dependent on me. How can it be that God has covered our side of the covenant, yet it is our faith that somehow magically leverages God into some action? โYour faith has healed you.โ Then I have to ask, โWho is God, us or him if our faith is the working component?
I get the need for participation. But what is the secret sauce to the inherent conflict of surrender and participation? How does one reconcile the two?
Response:
Before I respond, I think this is a teachable moment for readers. Do you see how important it is to risk asking questions? The question doesnโt just demand an answer; it creates a conversation and invites both parties to a creative dialogue where we collaborate to compare perspectives in our shared quest for insight. This was a wonderful example. Now to the questions:
Three statements are up for interrogation:
- 1. โFaith in Christ *requires* me.โ
- 2. โFaith magically *leverages* God into action.โ
- 3. โโฆif our faith is the *working component*.โ
Addressing my conversation partner now:
By wording your questions in these ways, you have helpfully exposed a problem typical of the underlying framework. Namely, seeing faith asย transactional (or mechanistic) rather thanย reciprocalย (as in a relationship). I do say more about thisย HERE,ย butย Iโll be more concise here: having exposed the cringe words (require, leverage, working component), we can dismiss them quickly byย reframing faith inside a spousal relationshipย (as God does by calling it a covenant).
I know your wife loves you dearly. What does thatย โrequireโย of you? That word may not be altogether false, but as you note, it also seemsย offย somehow and certainly insufficient. It misses the relational heart of the matter. So, letโs brainstorm for better words: her love isย offered,ย invitesย you,ย welcomesย you,ย inspiresย you.ย To what?ย Love opens the way for us toย consent, participate, receive, respond, reciprocate, and Love even calls us toย willing faithfulness.
And as her husband, in your love for her, your openness and receptivity to her love, your gratitude for and surrender to her loveโdoes that โleverageโ her? Again, wrong word. Your โfaithโ doesnโt cause her to offer something she has not already freely given you. It is simply that you enter the lived experience of her love, even deliberately, every time your heart turns to her. And yes, your โfaithโ in her love (your YES to her love) heals you, but ultimately, itโs her love that heals you, experienced as you turn to her and welcome it. Your consent and participation are โrequired,โ not to make her love you but because that is the nature of every loving relationship.