What does "belief" really mean according to the apostle John?

This is an awesome article by one of my professors on what "belief" means in John (and the New Testament), and how the apostles used and understood that word. This article gets at what it means to have belief and saving faith in Jesus. 

BELIEF IN GOSPEL OF JOHN

John is the Gospel of belief. The word "believe" (pisteuo) occurs 98 times in the Gospel and essentially means "to trust."

Definition of Belief

Several texts in John provide insight into what it means to believe. Belief is seen to be the equivalent of "receiving" Him (1:12), "obeying" the Son (Jn. 3:36), and "abiding" in Christ (Jn. 15:1-10, 1 Jn. 4:15). Belief never refers to a mere intellectual ascent to a proposition. Pisteuo always involves a personal response and commitment. Believing in Christ means that we acknowledge Him as God's Son and Messiah and trust His Person and work in securing our personal salvation. Believing in Christ means that we rely upon Jesus alone to bring us safely through life to heaven.

Progress of Belief

There is clear evidence of the progressive nature of belief in John's Gospel. This is seen in the nobleman of Capernaum who appealed for his son's healing on the basis of what he had heard about Christ's miracles. He believed the word of Jesus (4:50) and that belief was confirmed and strengthened by the miracle which led him to put faith in Christ's Person (4:53). The progress of belief is seen in the healed blind man who believed Jesus to be a "prophet" (9:17), "from God" (9:33), and finally that Jesus was the "Son of Man" (9:35-38).

The most clear evidence of the progress of belief is seen in the disciples. Nathanael believed in Jesus as Son of God and King of Israel when Christ revealed His omniscience before him (1:50). The disciples are said to have believed in Christ following the miracle at Cana (2:11). It was after the resurrection that the disciples believed the Scripture and Christ's words concerning His death (2:22). Their believe, conditioned on particular circumstances, is seen in 6:69, 16:30, and 17:8. Christ allowed Lazarus to die that the disciples might "believe" (11:15). After the resurrection John saw the empty tomb and "believed" (20:8).

Belief among the disciples was initiated by the testimony of John (1:35-41). That belief was confirmed as they saw the miracles--the insignia of His deity (2:11, 6:69). The belief of the disciples was consummated by the resurrection and resurrection appearances of Christ (2:22, 20:8, 20:25-29). Merrill C. Tenny summarizes well the concept of the progress of belief in John:

The growth of belief depicted in the Gospel of John thus moves from an initial acceptance of the testimony of another to a personal knowledge marked by loyalty, service, and worship; from assumption of the historicity and integrity of Jesus to a personal trust in Him; from an outward profession to an inward reality; from attending to His teachings to acknowledging His lordship over life. Full belief may not be attained instantly; yet the incipient and tentative belief is not to be despised. The groping inquiry of Nicodemus, the wistful outreach of the woman of Samaria, the untaught earnestness of the blind man, the erratic commitments of Peter, the blunt incredulity yet outspoken loyalty of Thomas, were reshaped by Christ into a living faith that conducted the power of God" (Bibliotheca Sacra, 1975, p. 357).

The concept of progressive faith finds support from the research of Emory University theologian, James Fowler, in his book, Stages of Faith (1982). He has carefully studied the predictable stages through which faith develops. The result is a description of six stages of faith--beginning with an intuitive fantasy filled childish faith and ending with a universalized faith characterized by an absolute living out of the imperatives of love and justice. The idea of faith developing in stages is not new. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) wrote of three stages of spiritual life. But Fowler argues that the development of human faith is a universal phenomenon. The stages of faith include: Intuitive-Projective Faith (early childhood), Mythical-Literal Faith (ages 6-12), Synthetic-Conventional Faith (ages 12 and beyond) Individuative-Reflective Faith (early adulthood and beyond), Conjunctive Faith (midlife and beyond), and Universalizing Faith (midlife and beyond).

Belief of Unbelief

The Gospel of John presents the reader with an enigma of belief which is not belief. In the progress of belief there is a stage which falls short of genuine belief resulting in salvation. This is first seen in 2:23 where many at Passover "believed" as a result of Christ's signs, yet He did not "believe" (trust) them (2:23-25). Jesus discerned that their faith was superficial, based only on the miracles they ah seen. Later in 7:31 during the Feast of Tabernacles many of the people "believed in Him" but apparently not as Messiah (7:31). In 8:31 Jesus speaks to the Jews "who had believed Him" and accuses them of seeking to kill Him (8:40). He later accuses the same Jews of unbelief (8:45,46). Evidence of this belief of unbelief may also be seen in 12:11,37.

Tenny refers to this belief which falls short of genuine faith as "superficial" (BibSac, 1975, p. 351). Morris calls it "transitory belief" which is not saving faith (The Gospel According to John, p. 603). It is based merely on outward profession. The problem with this belief is its object. It appears to have been based primarily on miracles and was not rooted in a clear understanding of the Person of Christ as Messiah and Son of God. Many were inclined to believe something about Jesus but were unwilling to yield their allegiance to Him, trusting Him as their personal Sin-bearer.

Belief and Abiding

The progress of belief and the belief of unbelief help us to see the relationship between believing and abiding. In light of these teachings, how do you know if belief is genuine? John shows us that genuine belief abides and bears fruit.

There is a clear relationship in John's Gospel between believing and abiding. The one who believes in Christ ("eats My flesh and drinks My blood" = "believes in Him," 6:40,54) abides in Christ (6:56). Everyone who believes in Christ does not abide in "darkness" (12:6), a clear symbol of unbelief (12:35-36). In First John the author equates confessing Jesus to be the Son of God with abiding in God (1 Jn. 4:15). He equates the commandment of belief with abiding in Him (1 Jn. 3:23-24). One who allows the gospel message to abide in his heart "will abide in the Son and in the Father" (1 Jn. 2:24). Kent comments:

The passages show that confessing Jesus as the Son of God (ie., believing in Jesus) establishes the relation of abiding. Thus to abide in Christ is equivalent to believing on Christ (Homer Kent, Light in the Darkness, pp. 183).

The concept of abiding in Christ is most fully developed in John 15:1-11. There, abiding in Christ is practically equivalent to believing. This explains the otherwise strange absence of the word "believe" from the passage (Morris, p. 336). To "abide" is to maintain a vital (life-giving) contact with the vine--Christ--the source of life. Belief is the connection which unites the vine and branches. Without belief there is no abiding. The absence of abiding indicates deficient (transitory or superficial) belief.

The teaching on "abiding" in John 15:1-11 has implications for fellowship. A believer may sin and experience broken fellowship with God, but a genuine believer will not remain in that state. Jesus teaches clearly that fruit-bearing results from abiding in Christ. The one who fails to bear fruit demonstrates that he or she is not abiding and is outside of Christ (15:6).