Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the one true God.

Christians believe that Jesus Christ was born of a woman and became man.

Christians believe that if you “believe” in the Lord Jesus Christ you will be saved. Why? In Acts 16:30-31, Saint Paul and his companion Silas respond to their jailer’s question, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” with “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you and your household will be saved.”

Do you really “believe” in our Lord Jesus Christ? If you do, then I ask you, “What does it mean “to believe?”

How many of you have watched enough sporting events on television to have seen the bushy-haired man holding the sign that reads “John 3:16?” (For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.)

To the non-Catholic, non-Eastern Orthodox Christian, taken at face value, salvation is simple and easy, “Believe in Jesus Christ and you will be saved: heaven will be guaranteed.”

Sounds too good to be true; and as Catholic Christians, we agree: being saved from hell by only believing in Jesus Christ with your head is too good to be true. Why? In Mt 7:21, Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” What is the will of God? The Bible tells us: we must keep the Commandments (Mt 19:16-17); we must strive for Holiness (Heb 12:14); we must use God’s grace to do His good works (Rom 2:6-7; Jam 2:24); we must repent of our sins (Acts 2:38; 2Pet 3:9); we must be baptized (Jn 3:5; Acts 2:38; Tit 3:5; 1 Pet 3:21); we must take up our cross and follow Jesus (Lk 9:23; 14:27); we must eat His Body and drink His Blood (Jn 6:53-56, 58); and we must persevere in our belief in Jesus Christ until the end (Mt 10:22; 24:13; Mk 13:13). Truly, if we have come to know Jesus Christ, we must believe in Him to be saved; but, as my earlier statements in this paragraph reveal, believing in Jesus is more than just a “head” thing. We must demonstrate our deep faith in God by using His grace to do His will.

As the Catholic convert, now Catholic Apologist Stephen Ray says, “The last time I checked, ‘to believe’ is a verb. It requires action on our part.” (Stephen Ray is the author of two informative books on our Catholic faith: Crossing the Tiber and Upon this Rock. Many of his talks on Catholic teaching have been recording and distributed. I recommend his books and recorded talks.) Stephen Ray says that “to believe” is shorthand (a figure of speech) for many actions that flow from God’s grace and comprise the full meaning of Christian belief in Jesus Christ.

Here are three “shorthand” analogies I heard Stephen Ray uses in one of his talks.

If the President were to say, “I have the best brains working for me.” Does he mean he just has a bunch of brains setting on his desk working for him; or, does he mean he has the best people with the best brains working for him?

If you say, “I have a ranch with 50 head of cattle.” Do you mean you just have 50 cow heads; or, do you mean you have 50 whole cows?

If you went into a restaurant and asked the waiter for a hot dog, you would be stunned if he only brought you a frozen hot dog and dropped it on your table. In reality, when you ask the waiter for a hot dog, he’ll bring you a cooked hot dog on a bun on a plate, with chips on the side, with a knife and fork, a napkin, salt and pepper, mustard, ketchup, and relish.

Earlier in this column, I quoted numerous New Testament (NT) passages. My purpose was to reveal the true meaning of “to believe.” The NT teaches that believing in Jesus Christ encompasses more than just acknowledging that He died on the cross for our salvation.

Let’s turn to a Stephen Ray story for help. A tightrope walker is going across a tightrope stretched across the Niagara Falls. It’s windy and there are crowds at both ends of the tightrope. He yells out, “How many of you believe I can walk across this tightrope across the Niagara Falls?” And everyone yells out, “We believe you can do it. We believe you can do it. Go for it.” So he goes for it, and it’s windy and he falls a couple of times and he catches himself; and finally, one hour later he makes it across to the other side, exhausted. And everybody cheers and shouts their approval. And he says, “How many of you believe I can blindfold myself and go back across?” And everybody says, “We believe you can do it. We believe you can do it.” Sure enough, he steps out on the tightrope and starts to cross the Niagara Falls; and an hour later he comes exhausted to the other side with the blindfold still on. Without taking it off, he yells out to the crowd again, “How many of you believe I can go back again with the blindfold on and carrying a man on my back?” Sure enough they all shout, “We believe you can do it. We believe you can do it.” And he yells, “I need a volunteer.” No one steps forward.

Did they really believe he could do it? No. Their belief in his ability had not consumed their entire being. Jesus doesn’t only ask us to believe in our heads that He is the Savior of the world. He asks us to believe in Him, totally, uninhibitedly, and unrestrictedly, with every part of our being. He calls us to believe in His saving grace in everything we think, see, do, and say.

How strong is your faith in the saving grace of Jesus Christ? Is it strong enough for you to commit your entire life to Him? This is the level of faith to which Jesus calls each one of us. Don’t short change Him.

For more insight read CCC paragraphs 154-155, 161-164. Also, pull out your “Catholic” Bible and reference 1 Cor 13:2 & 13; Gal 5:4-6; Eph 2:8-10.