08/18/2026
Today we look at the Apology as it asks an important question: “What does it actually mean to have faith?” If justification is received through faith, then we must understand what the Lutheran Reformers meant by that word.
Faith is more than knowing facts about Jesus. The devil knows that Jesus is the Son of God. A person can know the Creed, understand Christian doctrine, and even acknowledge that Christ died and rose again without actually trusting His promise. The Apology therefore distinguishes purely historical knowledge from the faith that receives the Gospel. Saving faith trusts that what Christ accomplished is for you. It hears that Christ died for sinners and says, “Then He died for me.” It hears the absolution and trusts, “My sins are forgiven.” It receives God’s promises in Baptism and the Lord’s Supper and believes that Christ truly gives what He says He gives. This is why Lutheran theology speaks so personally about the Gospel. Christianity isn’t just believing that forgiveness exists somewhere out in the abstract. Faith receives the promise that God is gracious toward me for Christ’s sake.
But even here, faith mustn’t become another work of ours. We aren’t saved because our faith is especially strong, sincere, or unwavering. Faith doesn’t earn God’s favor by believing hard enough. Its value comes entirely from the One it receives. Weak faith that clings to Christ possesses the same Savior as strong faith.
This distinction brings us tremendous comfort when doubts come. Our assurance isn’t found by examining ourselves to determine whether our faith feels strong enough. We look instead to the object of faith: Jesus Christ and His promises. When God says Christ has borne your sins, faith says, “Amen.” When God says that you are forgiven for Christ’s sake, faith says, “Amen.”
That’s why the Apology treats faith as trust in a promise rather than a spiritual achievement. Faith contributes nothing to Christ’s work. It simply receives what He has already accomplished and freely gives. Our confidence, then, is never faith in our faith. It is faith in Christ alone.
