Why is faith in Jesus Christ essential for salvation?

Faith in Jesus Christ is the only means by which we can access God's grace and receive justification. Hebrews 11 illustrates that all the elders obtained a good report by faith, and that faith placed them in a right standing before God. The sermon emphasizes that it is not our faith that saves us, but rather the object of our faith, which is Christ and His sacrificial blood. Without faith, we cannot please God or enter into a relationship with Him; it is through faith that we see ourselves as wretched sinners in need of Christ's righteousness.