I believe… that’s a word that we throw about pretty easily in Christian circles, but do we?
What does it mean to believe?
In John’s gospel, he uses the verb “believe” about one hundred times and never uses the noun. This shows that John viewed believing as an active demonstration of faith and not merely an intellectual assertion. Here are a few examples.
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. John 14:1 ESV
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. John 14:10-12 ESV
I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. John 13:19 ESV
The reformers had a defining formula for this type of belief or faith: “Notitia, Assensus, Fiducia.”
Notitia (knowledge)
The content of faith — understanding what is being believed. This is the cognitive element: knowing the facts of the gospel, the person and work of Christ, the doctrines of Scripture. Faith isn’t blind; it has an object and content that must be grasped. Without notitia, there’s nothing to believe.
Assensus (assent)
Intellectual agreement that the content is true. This goes beyond merely knowing the facts to affirming them as true — a conviction of the mind that what Scripture teaches is accurate and trustworthy. Even demons have this kind of assent (James 2:19), which is why the Reformers insisted it isn’t sufficient on its own.
Fiducia (trust)
Personal trust and reliance — the heart’s confidence resting on Christ himself, not merely agreeing that certain propositions about him are true. This is the volitional/relational element: a personal, saving embrace of Christ, trusting him for salvation rather than just affirming facts about him. The Reformers argued this is what distinguishes living faith from a merely intellectual or “historical” faith.\
True belief, true faith, is neither mere head-knowledge nor mere feeling, but knowledge, conviction, and trust held together.
Do you believe Jesus? Or is what you have something less?
My prayer is that you truly believe in the sense John uses the Word and the reformers spoke of it.
May God richly bless you today
SUMMARY
John never once uses “believe” as a noun in his gospel, only ever as a verb, and that tells us something we tend to forget: believing isn’t just something we think; it’s something we do. Does our faith hold together the knowledge, the agreement, and the trust the reformers called notitia, assensus, fiducia, or have we settled for something less?
TAKEAWAY
John’s exclusive use of “believe” as a verb, never a noun, reveals that faith in Scripture is inherently active.
The reformers’ formula, notitia, assensus, fiducia, distinguishes true saving faith from mere intellectual agreement, the kind even demons possess.
True belief holds knowledge, conviction, and trust together, calling us to examine whether our faith in Christ is genuine or merely surface-level.
