“Now, when Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man” (John 2:23-25).

They believed in Jesus, but He did not believe in them.

Think on that for a moment.

Is it possible that for a person to believe in Jesus and still not be saved?

Doesn’t Scripture make belief in Him the essence of salvation?

Look at the incident above, from John 2.  I’m thinking there is nothing else like it in the Word.  The Greek words are one and the same there.  They believed in Jesus but He did not believe in them.

Immediately after that encounter, we have the Lord’s encounter with Nicodemus.  That’s where we have John 3:16 promising that “whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”  Earlier, in John 1:12 we read “…to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”

And yet, the passage in John 2 makes it clear that some who “believed” in Jesus were not born again.  The reason given is a fascinating one:  Jesus did not believe in them.

Please do not rush past this.  Let’s consider it.

Have you ever wondered whether Jesus believes in you?

You will remember the thief on the cross who called to our Lord, “Remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”   Our Lord responded, “Today, you will be with Me in paradise.” (Luke 23)

Clearly, the Lord Jesus believed in him.

So, looking at the above text in John 2, here are some thoughts that occur to me…

–ONE. The faith of these people was clearly faulty, being based on “signs” they had seen.

We recall the Lord saying in Matthew 16:4 that “a wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign.”  In this case, “sign” would mean a miraculous event that would overwhelm them so that no faith was required.  (And who wouldn’t like that!)  The problem, Jesus said, is twofold:  a) a wicked people want it; meaning people with no faith, and b) even when they get it, they do not last. If it takes miracles to give you faith, more miracles would be required to prop up your faith.

Faith may produce miracles, but miracles do not produce faith. Even if they did, such faith is basically worthless since it requires more and more miracles to keep it operating.

So, even though they believed in Jesus, He knew their faith wasn’t worth much.

–TWO. The faith of these people was faulty for a second reason, perhaps even more important: They knew so little.  The Lord’s ministry was still young and they had not “heard Him out.”  They were blown away by the miracles, for good reason.  No prophet had been on the scene for centuries and miracles were only a rumor.  Now, One stood in their midst with Heaven’s authority and God’s power.  The people stood in line to sign up for this!

But they knew so little of what they were doing, so little of Whom they were believing.  In time, they would hear that those coming to Jesus must “take up your cross and follow Me,” and “I send you forth like sheep in the midst of wolves.”  They would see the Savior hanging on a cross and learn that His followers would be hounded, arrested, persecuted, and frequently executed.

The faith of the uninformed is worthless.

–THREE. So, while the Lord Jesus welcomed the crowds and taught the crowds, He Himself was not swayed by their adulation.  He did not believe in them.

Three years later, from the cross our Lord would say His executioners “know not what they are doing.” Likewise, on this day His worshipers were ignorant of the meaning of their devotion.

Salvation is a two-way operation. It involves the sinner believing in Jesus and Jesus believing in that one coming to Him.

Put another way, in salvation we come to know Jesus, but He also comes to know us.  Jesus said that at Judgment He will say to some, “Depart from me; I never knew you.”

Many people witness to their faith by asking, “Do you know Jesus?”  as though that were the beginning and the end.  But we might just as well ask, “Does Jesus know you?”

Paul said, “The solid foundation of God stands, having this seal, The Lord knows those who are His.” (2 Timothy 2:19).

I believe in Jesus and He believes in me; that is salvation.

I know Jesus as mine and He knows me as His; that is salvation.

Before we leave this subject, note that this Scripture says Jesus needed no endorsements about those people.

He needed no testimonials for these who said they believed in Him.  He required no co-signors or letters of reference.

Jesus knew what was in man.

Jesus was under no false impressions about humanity, not then and not now.

He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust (Psalm 103:14).

He is under no illusion about any of us.  He knew He was getting no bargain when He saved us. When we sin, the only one surprised is us.

So, we must always be wary of trying to make Him think we are more than we are.  The One who made us knows us intimately.

That’s good. And it’s bad. Terrible, even.

We say to ourselves, “He knows me,” and we shiver from dread.

Then, the reality of this sinks in and we think, “He knows me and still He loves me.”  And we wonder how such a thing could be!

That is the exact point when we start believing in Grace.

Wonderful grace of Jesus.  Greater than all my sin. How shall my tongue declare it? Where shall my praise begin? Taking away my burdens. Setting my spirit free.  For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me. 

Oh Lord Jesus, find us faithful.  Dwell within us.  Accept our faith, pitiful thing that it is, and believe in us, we pray.