MAIN IDEA
Faith in Christ requires a decision, not a proof. 

FAITH IS NOT BELIEVING IN RELIGION
There is nothing wrong with religion.  Religion is an expression of worship. But the devil has tricked the world into thinking that  religion is bad. The devil has always been on a mission to destroy churches in order to  undermine our worship of Jesus Christ. In fact, religion, done right, is good. But religion done  wrong is bad religion. On the other hand, faith does not come from religion, nor from religious  traditions. Religion does not lead us to faith. Religion is not what saves us. Also, we should reflect on how bad religion can and does get in the way of faith in Jesus Christ. Bad religion is  what Jesus came to overturn. The religion of the people had become meaningless, because it was  missing a relationship with God. They turned to their religion as the source of their salvation.  The sign of turning water to wine, disrupting the commerce in the temple at the Passover  Festival, Jesus’s schooling Nicodemus—all of that pointed to Jesus replacing bad religion with  relationship and salvation in Him. 

FAITH IS NOT BELIEVING IN MIRACLES
There is nothing wrong with experiencing  miracles, either. In fact, having faith leads to witnessing more miracles. That is because faith  gives us a perspective of this world so that we begin to see God’s hand at work in our lives and  all around us. Miracles do happen. But believing in miracles is not the same thing as believing in  Jesus. Believing in miracles does not save anyone, either. The people of Galilee, the people  where Jesus Himself came from, welcomed Him, not because He was one of their own, not  because they wanted to know Him, but simply because they saw Him as a miracle-worker. The  most important thing in this world and in your life is not experiencing miracles—no matter how  dramatic and powerful they may be. The most important thing is believing in Jesus Christ. And  again, believing in Jesus—really believing in Jesus and following Him as Lord of your life—will  unlock a world of signs and wonders, too. Because first, Jesus knows how much we need His  help. And even when He doesn’t come to our immediate help, we can be certain that He knows  what is best. And second, Jesus does want us to believe in Him, after all. And a miracle just  might help, but not necessarily so. It’s still a decision we have to make. 

FAITH IS BELIEVING IN JESUS
In the passage immediately before this one, the  Samaritans, the enemy of the Jews, provided a positive example of faith. On the other hand, the  Jews—the supposed chosen people of God—give us a negative example of faith. That account of  Jesus’s ministry in Samaria is about missions—seeking and saving the lost. The Samaritans  believed in Jesus, not because of religious traditions, not because of miracles, but because of the  woman’s testimony, and also because of Jesus’s words directly. But we do see a positive  example of faith in the father, because he “took Jesus at His word” (verse 50). There is a reason  that Jesus Christ is called the Word of God. It is not faith in religion that saves us. It is not faith  in miracles that saves us. It is faith in the Word of God that saves us, and the Word of God is  Jesus Christ! It is primarily through God’s revealed word that we come to have a relationship  with Jesus Christ. And when we start to have a relationship with the Living Word of God, that’s  when our religion becomes true and good, and that’s when we start to see God’s hand at work in  our lives and all around us. In the final analysis of life and existence, as in all things, faith in  Christ requires a decision, not proof. But our faith is not blind either. 

DISCUSSION QUESTION:
What is one miracle you want to experience in your life?