What Does It Mean That Christ Is the Author and Perfecter of Our Faith?

NATHAN W. BINGHAM: This week on the Ask Ligonier podcast we are joined by Dr.
Burk Parsons. He serves as Ligonier's Chief Editorial Officer and is also the
senior pastor at Saint Andrew's Chapel in Sanford, Florida. Dr. Parsons, what
does it mean when Scripture speaks of Christ being the author and perfecter of
our faith?

DR. BURK PARSONS: The language of Jesus’ being the author and perfecter of our faith comes from Hebrews 12:2. And I think a lot of Christians really don’t understand what those words mean because they’ve been translated variously in different Bible translations. Sometimes we hear the word “author,” sometimes we hear the word “pioneer,” sometimes it’s even translated as “founder,” so that Jesus is the founder and perfecter, or the author and finisher, or the pioneer and finisher of our faith. And so, I think a lot of Christians are confused about “What do those words mean?” and, just as importantly, “How do we understand those words and how do they apply to our lives?” Especially as we look to Jesus as the author and perfecter of our faith, which is what the author of Hebrews is telling us to do in our fight against sin in all of our struggles, what does it mean that He is the author and perfecter of our faith?

Well, let’s look at those words individually. First of all, we have the word “author” or “founder,” or as it’s translated elsewhere, “pioneer.” And that word in the original language is comprised of two words. The first part of the word is the word arch. And of course, we have cognate to that word in English, we have archeology and archetype. And essentially that word means “early,” or “first,” or “beginning,” or “from the outset.” The second word in that compound Greek word, is the word agō, which means “I lead.” And so, if you put those two words together, it means “to lead from the beginning” or “to lead from the outset.” And so, as it is applied to Christ, Jesus is the “author” or the “pioneer”—and that’s really probably the better translation because as the pioneer, He is the One who has led from the beginning. He is the One who went from the beginning. He went from the outset. He was the One who went early on and led.

And the second word in Hebrews 12:2—Jesus is both the “author” or “pioneer” and “finisher” or “perfecter” of our faith. The word there is very helpful because it is related to the same word that Jesus used when He said on the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). And so it speaks to Christ’s perfect life, law-keeping life, fulfilling each and every aspect of the law of God, fulfilling the righteous demands of the law of God, so that when He died, His life that was perfect and sinless, even though He was tempted in every way as we are yet without sin, that Christ’s life is the basis of our righteousness. He earned it for us. And so, we are saved by His works, His righteousness, His perfect life, so that when He died, His death would be a sacrificial atonement, a substitutionary, and a vicarious atonement that was finished for us.

So, when Hebrews speaks of Jesus being the author or founder or pioneer of our faith and the finisher of our faith, it’s not only saying that He’s gone before us, that He’s gone from the outset, but also that He has finished it for us, He has completed it for us, that we are secure. That’s why the author of Hebrews tells us to look to Him—and not just to look to Him but to fix our eyes on Him because He is our hope. He is the One who’s gone before us. He has won the victory, and we have nothing else ultimately to fear.