Our human make up is such that everyone on the face of the planet longs to believe in something. Freud called it the "God-hole" that each of us have in our psyche. Many people say they believe in something, but their actions seem to say otherwise. So how does someone go about really believing with their heart?

I Believe God by Paul T. Holliday

I believe God -
Though angry breakers
Cast their spray
Upon the shore,
I know that through the storm
He’ll keep me safe
Forevermore.

I believe God -
Though neither sun
Nor stars appear
For many days,
I trust Him in the darkest,
Wildest hours.
He knows my ways.

I believe God -
Though this frail ship
Be swept along
By tempest force,
I am assured at last
Of Harbor Home.
He charts my course.

In this section of scripture we will examine what it means to believe with the heart.

Have you ever done something and immediately afterward said to yourself, "I knew better than to do or say that"? Or have you ever been discussing a point with someone and then suddenly you realize the discussion has turned into an argument, and you think, "I should stop this now before it gets nasty," but you continue arguing anyway? There are a lot of times when we know what we should be doing, but we don’t do it. That’s because we understand it intellectually, but we don’t truly believe it with our heart.

It is the same with our faith in God. Sometimes we understand God’s word intellectually, but we have never allowed it to really enter our heart. In order to believe with our heart, this verse tells us we need to receive God’s word. We can receive God’s word from a sermon, from a song, from the testimony of a friend, from reading the Bible. I watched the television presentation last week, Mary, Mother of Jesus, which portrayed Christ from the view of his mother. As I watched that dramatic presentation, I realized how some could see and receive the words of faith even from a television show.

In our American society, God’s word is always near us. We must be willing to hear it, receive it, and allow it to enter our heart.

There are two things that this verse tells us we must do in order to be saved. First, we must confess with our mouth. We must be willing to publicly declare, "Jesus is Lord of my life."

At the Civil War battle of Williamsburg a soldier had his arm slashed by a fragment of a shell and was fast bleeding to death. Suddenly, he saw a surgeon galloping on his horse toward the front. He lifted his bleeding arm and cried out, "Doctor, please!" The surgeon dismounted and stopped the bleeding and bound the wound. As the doctor returned to his horse to go on his way, the soldier asked, "Doctor, what is your name?" He replied, "It doesn’t matter." But the soldier insisted, "Doctor, I want to tell my wife and children who saved me." Because of what Christ has done for us, we should want to confess with our mouth and tell everyone who has saved us.

The second thing we must do is believe in our heart. Many believe in Christ, but they only believe in their mind. They believe that there is a God, and they believe that Jesus was a good man. They might find the wisdom of the Bible helpful and even affirm the Christian moral code. But their belief is limited only to intellectual affirmation. James 2:19 tells us, "You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe - and tremble!" Obviously there’s more to faith than simple intellectual assent. We must not only believe in our mind, but we must also believe in our heart. Allow God’s Spirit to speak to your inner self, to touch your soul, to warm your heart, to touch your emotions, to fill your life.

When we allow faith to reach all the way down to our heart, only then can we truly believe and be saved. We must make an emotional commitment to God. We must be willing to give him all of our dreams, desires, longings, pride. Notice that after we believe in our heart, we will want to confess that we are saved.

The Handbook of Christian Doctrine tells this story, "Look at that drowning man, hurried down the stream by the furious torrent with which he is convulsively struggling. His looks and cries bespeak the agony he feels. By and by his attention is directed to a life preserver, which his friends are placing in the most favourable position possible. He at once sees that if he is saved at all, it must be by that instrument; and here is the exercise of his understanding. But it is very questionable whether he shall be able to reach it. The current seems to carry him in another direction; yet there is hope; it is taking another turn. He is gradually approaching the instrument of his safety; and now there is hope, mingled with his agony; he comes nearer and nearer: his friends cry ‘courage,’ and see with what energy he seizes the preserver of his life. There was heart in that grasp. But not more so than when the poor trembling sinner lays hold of Christ. He is pointed to the Cross, and prays; his friends reason and encourage; the spirit operates; hope springs up; immediately the direction of the stream is changed; he gets nearer every moment; he looks, weeps, cries, ‘Save, for Thy name’s sake’; and in an agony - with all his heart - and with all the affections and powers of his soul, he grasps the Saviour."

Have you grasped the Savior as this downing man grasped his life preserver? Allow your whole being to be engulfed by God’s love. Allow your whole heart to be sold out to God. Allow your heart and mind to be so focused on Christ, that you will never waver in your commitment to him.

This is a wonderful promise that God gives us in this verse. If we place our trust in Christ, we will never be put to shame. We will never be disappointed. God will always be there for us. Even if it seems like we are giving up everything to serve him, we will discover that we receive far more blessings than anything we have ever sacrificed to serve him.

God is our protector and our comforter. God will never leave us and will always be with us. A relationship with God is never a one-way venture. If we give him our heart, he will fill it with his love, his mercy, and his grace. We will never regret having chosen to serve God.

This verse tells us that God is no respector of persons. We are all equal in God’s sight.

Hargreaves writes, "The gospel is admirably adapted to meet the wants of man. ... At whatever time, in whatever place, and under whatever circumstances, it satisfies his inquiries respecting salvation and a future world. It recognises no differences - I. Of a national kind. The Jew and the Greek are on perfect equality as regards the gospel. ...the gospel cuts at the root of all national selfishness and animosity, and extends its blessings to all.... II. Of a social kind. Great as are the differences of social condition amongst men, the gospel recognises none. ... The rich and the poor, the master and the servant, must partake of salvation by the same faith in the Son of God. III. Of a denominational kind. The Independent and the Baptist, the Churchman and the Dissenter, each and all through Christ can be saved. ... The Lord Jesus Christ knocks down all such barriers, and standing on their ruins, proclaims salvation to each and to all who believe in His name. IV. Of a mental kind. The refined scholar, and the untutored boor; the man of acute intellect, and the one of dull apprehension, each and all through Jesus Christ can be saved. ... Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, nor let the uninstructed despair. Christ offers the riches of His grace to all. V. Of a moral kind. None are shut out from the blessings of the gospel on account of their bad character."

When I was coaching youth soccer, we would always have an awards banquet at the end of the year. Most soccer teams would give each team member a trophy if the team did well and perhaps honor a few of the better players. But each year, we had a team statistician who recorded specific elements from each position. So at the end of the year, it was not difficult for me to have a trophy for each player for some overall accomplishment or leading a statistical category for their position. I am not sure the players ever realized it, but every player received a trophy with their name on it and their award. That’s the way God is. He is calling all of us to come to him. He wants to give us our eternal trophy. Are we willing to be saved?

This verse teaches us that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Do you realize what a wonderful promise this is? It doesn’t matter what you have done in your past nor what you are facing in the future. It doesn’t say that you have to be rich or smart or decent or wise or good-looking. Everyone who calls out to God will be heard, and everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Let us be willing to confess with our mouth and believe in our heart and accept Christ’s forgiveness in our life.

Have you believed yet with all of your heart? Or have you held back some areas of your life from God? If you sense the Lord speaking to your heart this morning, then don’t fight it and don’t be quiet. Call out to the Lord, believe in your heart, and confess with your mouth. Allow God to have all of you. Allow God to fill your heart and your life with his love.

This study on Romans 8:10-13 © 1999 by David Humpal, all rights reserved.
All scriptures unless otherwise noted are from the New International Version © 1971, Zondervan Bible Publishers

I Believe God from the Complete Speaker’s Sourcebook pg. 41 © 1996, Zondervan Publishing House

The Battle of Williamsburg from The Biblical Illustrator, vol. 17, pg. 354, Baker Book House

Handbook of Christian Doctrine from The Biblical Illustrator, vol. 17, pg. 362, Baker Book House