Is Faith Needed for Salvation?

Well, it depends on which salvation and whose faith we are referring to?

Let's sort out the salvation question first.
As you know, one of our theme texts is 1 Timothy 4 : 10, which sits under the search box beside every post on this BLOG.

We have placed our hope in the living God, who is the Saviour of all, and especially of those who believe. {GNB]

So all humanity will be saved eventually, but there is something special in store for believers.

Previous posts have explored the universality of the world's eventual salvation using texts such as ...

God made known to us the secret of his will according to his good pleasure, which he himself had previously decided, to be put into effect when the times reach their completion - to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. [Ephesians 1 : 9 - 10 BV]
After everything is under the power of God's Son, he will put himself under the power of God, who put everything under his Son's power. Then God will mean everything to everyone. [1 Cor 15 : 28 CEV]

However, not everyone will need to wait for the ages to be completed to receive their salvation. The "especiallies" are those who have become believers - have believed that Jesus died for the sins of the world - during their lifetime on earth, and will enjoy their salvation and inclusion in the Body of Christ during the remaining ages, which includes the Millennium and the New Heavens and Earth.

So there are two salvations - one for believers during the ages and continuing  beyond them, and one for the remainder of humanity at the completion of the ages - another illustration of the first fruits and the main harvest in Hebrew agricultural terminology.

What about the faith question?
Long time readers of this BLOG will know that many of our popular English translations of the Bible have translation errors which have been used to mislead people regarding several aspects of God's plan for us.
The ownership of the faith needed for both the salvation of the main harvest and the first fruits is another victim of these errors. 

Because of the age-old tradition in many Church circles that we are saved by making a decision for Christ or by inviting Jesus into our hearts or by some other initiative taken by us, most modern translators have read such a position into the texts.

In those translations, the Greek "faith OF Jesus" is translated as "faith IN Jesus". It was the faith or faithfulness of Jesus, Jesus Christ's faith in his Father's purpose for him, that took him to the cross to secure our salvation.
(I have a fuller discussion of this in the post "The Faithfulness of Jesus" published on May 2nd, 2017 for those interested.)
 
We had (then) and still have (now) absolutely no input into it. Jesus did it all! With no assistance from us everyone will eventually be reconciled to God without lifting a finger. Yes, Jesus was successful in dying on the cross for the sins of the world.

However, to be in the Body of Christ, to be among the first fruits, to have life during the ages, we need to believe in the finished work of Christ for mankind and to be available as a co-worker with Christ in His kingdom work.

We need to have faith in the finished work of Jesus.
And that faith is also a gift from God for those He has selected for that role during the ages.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God [Ephesians 2 : 8 NIV]

Consequently, to be among the first fruits, to be in the Body of Christ, to be saved during the realm of time (the ages), to have age-ian life, we need to have received the faith to believe in the faithfulness of Jesus in dying for our sins.

So, is faith needed for salvation?
For the eventual salvation of the world, the faith of Jesus was needed.
For the prior salvation of those chosen to be in the Body of Christ, the faith to believe in the finished work of Jesus will be given.

(And when the last of these have been been born, and heard the gospel, and been given the faith to believe it, the Body of Christ will be complete and this current age will be completed.)

Blessings, Barry