Is the nature of faith in Jesus more like a light switch or a percentage? Let’s discuss this important question.
Defining Terms
Those who hold the ‘light switch’ view believe faith is either on or off. Either you believe something is true, or not. Therefore, God can only save those certain of their eternal destiny.
Some think they can express belief as a percentage, such as 75%.
Which is Correct?
The ‘light switch’ perspective suggests that believing something at less than 100% is disbelieving, while the percentage group argues the 100% viewpoint is too extreme. So, which is correct?
I don’t think either of these positions capture the issue.
No Certainty
Regarding percentages, I don’t know anything that’s 100% certain this side of heaven. Since it’s not, why would anyone tell people that saving faith means they must be 100% sure that believing in Jesus is all one must do to get to heaven? What happens if someone has even a 1% doubt that their faith isn’t true saving faith?
Reasonable Doubt
In one of Dr. Steven R. Cook’s weekly lessons, he recalled a conversation with a lawyer friend who stated that nothing is ever 100% certain in courtroom convictions. This lawyer and others attempted to quantify what “beyond a reasonable doubt” truly means. They suggested a threshold of 93% certainty. If the prosecution reached that level of conviction, then they judged the person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. However, for individuals who view faith like a “light switch,” this level of certainty is insufficient because they do not see it as saving faith. That’s an impossible standard that will leave every believer wondering if they ‘truly’ believed and God has saved them.
In Season 3, Episode 6 of Star Trek: The Original Series, titled “Spectre of the Gun,” the crew faced a dilemma. Their enemies armed themselves with guns and bullets, intending to kill them. However, their bullets weren’t real. Yet they were just as deadly as real bullets if the actors had any doubts about their reality. The crew realized that, as humans, it was impossible to eliminate all doubts. Fortunately, one of their team members was Spock, a Vulcan. Vulcans can remove doubts from their minds, and Spock shared this ability with the rest of the crew by performing a mind-meld with each member. Problem solved, but not for us if we need 100% conviction for salvation!
A Poker Metaphor for Trusting Jesus
So, I can’t agree that faith in Jesus is like a ‘light switch’ as previously defined. However, I believe there is a ‘light switch’ moment. We can illustrate this moment using a poker metaphor.
Going ‘All In’
Poker is a card game where players use chips that represent money. In professional poker, multiple players compete, and a player loses their position at the table when they run out of chips. At a certain point, a player may “go all in,” betting every chip, believing their cards will outperform their opponents. To go “all in,” a player pushes all their chips to the center of the table. If they lose this bet, the rules eliminate them from the game. The other players must match the amount of chips bet or go all in to continue competing. Anyone who goes all in is risking everything they have (their poker life) based on the strength of their cards.
The “light switch” moment occurs not when we have answered every question or resolved all doubts, but when we commit ourselves to Jesus for salvation. We go ‘all in’, metaphorically, on Jesus’ finished work on our behalf. This means recognizing that you cannot save yourself through good works and understanding that Jesus is the only way to salvation, the only path to the Father, and the only route to heaven. There is no other God; therefore, you rest in His salvation (completed work), receiving Jesus by believing in Him and Him alone.
Jesus Achieved Eternal Redemption
I’ve chosen to believe God’s promise and the Biblical evidence that Jesus is my Savior. The Bible tells me that Jesus has achieved eternal redemption:
“He (Jesus) entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12).
I must take God’s word for that. I don’t know everything it took to ‘achieve eternal redemption.’ Jesus had to satisfy God that He had cleansed us from all our sins. The Bible tells us that Jesus accomplished this:
“The next day John (the Baptist) saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
Undeniable (Primary) Proof
While Jesus was still on Earth, He showed His disciples undeniable proof that He had risen from the dead by allowing them to place their hands in His wounded side:
“He (Jesus) showed them His hands and His side. The disciples were then glad when they saw the Lord” (John 20:20).
However, Thomas, one of Jesus’ disciples, was absent during Jesus’ first appearance after his resurrection. He refused to believe unless he could touch Jesus’ wounded side. It was important for Jesus that every original disciple believed so they could serve as credible witnesses to those who would later believe:
“Then He (Jesus) said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at My hands. Put your hand here and place it in My side. Do not be faithless, but believing. Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:27-28).
Thomas believed after Jesus gave him irrefutable tactile proof, and Jesus honored Thomas’s certainty:
“Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed” (John 20:29).
Secondary Proof
But what about those of us who believe based on lesser proof? Those who may have some percentage of doubt? For us who haven’t touched Jesus, He gives us a special blessing, saying,
“Blessed are those who have not seen, and have yet believed” (John 20:29).
Jesus, the Best Option
Before Jesus died and resurrected, His twelve disciples faced a crisis. Jesus delivered a speech declaring that He was the bread of life. Many of His other followers rejected this testimony and chose to stop following Him.
“From that time many of His disciples went back and walked no more with Him” (John 6:66).
“So Jesus said to the twelve, ‘Do you also want to go away?” (John 6:67).
Jesus metaphorically asked, “Where will you place your chips?” Peter responded not by saying he didn’t have any doubts anymore:
“Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have believed and have come to know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:68-69).
Doubts and Gaps
Faith is not simply a light switch of pure belief or simple persuasion that something is true. The faith that Jesus seeks to bless often contains gaps in evidence:
“Blessed are those who have not seen yet believe” (John 20:29).
I disagree if having a ‘light switch’ faith means that a person cannot have doubts. However, if it means fully committing and completely trusting in Jesus’ finished work as your only hope for heaven, then I agree.
Whom will you trust with your eternal destiny? Please watch the Great News video on this page to find out more about trusting in Jesus.
