On Christ, the Solid Rock I Stand - Part 4

In recent posts, I have been discussing the security we (meaning, those who have been born again) have in Christ. Our security in Christ is great. I am rejoicing and resting in the fact that Jesus Christ, the Redeemer of all mankind, is the Saviour of all men, as well as the Keeper of those who have come to Him.

There are those, however, who preach a shaky salvation; a salvation ready to tumble over with just one wrong step of the man who possesses it. There are man-made buildings stronger than that! I have heard it all. Some say that if you think one bad thought, you are lost. Others preach that if you shake gasoline out of the nozzle and into your tank, you have stolen gas and are on your way to hell. What a shaky salvation! If our salvation really is that insecure, I must say:

1) We have a shabby Saviour.
2) We have a cheap plan of salvation.
3) Mankind is really the Saviour of himself, because his good works strengthen his salvation, and his evil works nullify it.

However, you will be ready to note that I do not believe we have a shabby Saviour, or a cheap plan of salvation. I believe in and preach a solid salvation, built upon the only work that pleases the Father - the work of Jesus Christ upon the old, rugged cross.

Those who preach this shaky salvation have some traits about them that I hope never become part of my character. Notice some of them.

They Have No Assurance
Assurance is a word foreign to them. Assurance is a word simply defined this way - "Firm persuasion; full confidence or trust; freedom from doubt; certain expectation; the utmost certainty." It is KNOWING POSITIVELY, BEYOND ANY CRUMB OF DOUBT, THAT YOU ARE SAVED BY THE GRACE OF GOD! Those whose salvation is constantly in jeopardy, ready to crash like the stock market at any time, have no confidence in their salvation. They cannot say with a sincere heart, that God is positively pleased with them; that God accepts them at that very moment. Their whole experience with God depends on whether they have walked close enough; whether they have met all the requirements; whether they have kept the list of rules and regulations; whether they are pure enough, righteous enough, holy enough, prayerful enough, and pious enough. Their state with their Creator rests mostly, if not solely, on them, and little or nothing on Jesus Christ. Because they are so shaky (all men are unstable to some degree), their salvation is shaky. When a man is resting on his own works to keep him saved, he has no assurance of salvation; for such assurance is not even possible. But this type of salvation is not Biblical in any sense. Notice the following:

1) I Thessalonians 1:5 - "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake."

2) Hebrews 6:11 - "And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end."

3) Hebrews 10:22 - "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water."

4) I John 5:13 - "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."

Clearly, these verses, along with other verses in previous posts, give the believer assurance of their salvation in Jesus Christ.

They Do Not Know What it Takes to Get to Heaven
I heard a man preach some time ago. This minister was a Pentecostal, Holiness minister. Having obtained the CD, I was listening to the message going down the road. The man's message astounded me. This minister, having already stated many statements that shocked me, finally came to the end of his message. He made this exact statement: "Folks, I don't know what it takes to go heaven. I know that being saved has something to do with it. But if I read my Bible right, it's going to take a lot more than that." Those words are an exact quotation; not a paraphrase. When I heard that goofy statement, I remember my exact thought. I immediately thought, "Sir, if you don't know what it takes to get to heaven, you need to sit down and let someone up there that does know!" It's sad, but it's true that this man is not alone. Once you start down the path of adding to what Jesus did on the cross for your salvation, you never know when you have added enough, and you really don't know how much you have to add to go to heaven. This man had made salvation so difficult, he didn't know what needed to be done to be saved. This man is in bondage, along with many who teach and follow this silly doctrine. Friend, there's only one way to heaven. Jesus Christ did the work, and we just trust solely in what He did. You cannot go to hell resting fully in the finished work of Jesus Christ.

They Seldom Emphasize Soul-Winning
This crowd with the shaky salvation seldom, if ever, emphasize soul-winning. Understanding what has already been stated, it is not hard to understand why this is the case. They have no assurance of their own salvation. They have added so much to Christ and the cross that they do not know how much extra needs to be done to go to heaven. Frankly, they have no good news to give! To them, salvation is not "gospel." It is not "good news." Salvation, in their minds, is a vast responsiblity of man - a burden, a list of rules, a compilation of standards, a dress code, and whatever else they think it is! They win few souls in the course of their life (some of them win no souls at all) because they don't know for sure that they possess salvation; and, even if they had a hint of assurance, they cannot give a clear presentation of the gospel because they do not know what it is! When we understand that the Father demanded an extremely high price to be paid for anyone to be saved, and Jesus Christ paid the price IN FULL, then we can grasp the good news! Once we can grasp the good news, we can do nothing with it but tell it!

On Christ, the Solid Rock I Stand - Part 3

Having written recently concerning the believer's security in Christ, I am compelled to continue the thought. If you feel that my thoughts on this subject are in error, I welcome you to contact me. I have written, carefully intending not to depart from the scripture on this subject. I am now presenting some more reasons why I spend no time worrying about my salvation.

Jesus Christ Prays That I Be Kept
I have heard people say, "If I ever become deathly sick, I'll call Bro. 'So-and-So' because that man knows how to pray." When a believer makes a statement like this one, it is evident that the believer has CONFIDENCE in the man they of whom they desire prayers. I continue to be amazed how we have vast amounts of confidence in a man's prayer, but we seem to have little or no confidence in Christ's prayer. Dear friend, when you are wearing yourself out trying to be saved, and are of the opinion that if you make it to heaven at all, it will be barely, you have very little confidence in the prayers of Jesus Christ. If you have been born again by the Spirit of God, Jesus Christ prays that you will be kept! Friend, if Jesus is praying for me, I have utmost confidence in His prayers. If anyone can get a prayer through to the Father, it is Jesus Christ. Notice the following verse:

John 17:11 - "And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are."

This is recorded in John 17, as a prayer that Jesus is praying for those who believe on Him. He is praying that we be kept! I will note here two other facts concerning this request of our Lord:

1) It is God's will to keep those who believe on Christ - John 6:38, 39 - "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day."

2) When the Father gave men to Jesus for Him to keep, He kept every one of them, except for the son of perdition, that the scriptures might be fulfilled. This is portrayed in Christ's prayer in John 17:12 - "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled." Jesus has a great record of keeping souls saved. I believe I'll just not worry about my salvation, and turn it all over to Him.

STILL NOT DONE...

On Christ, the Solid Rock I Stand - Part 2

At times, I lie awake at night. Not worrying, but overwhelmed. Overwhelmed by the absolute best plan I have ever witnessed. Thinking on God's great plan of salvation. As stated in my previous post, I do not worry about the salvation God has richly bestowed upon me. Here's more reasons why:

Salvation Is God's Work; Not Mine
Ephesians 2:8, 9 - "For by grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God, Not of works, lest any man should boast."

Titus 3:5 - "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost."

Romans 3:20 - "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin."

Galatians 2:16 - "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."

These verses make it clear that salvation is not achieved by works of man. A prominent ideology that I have encountered the past several years states that Jesus will save us, but if we're going to "stay saved," we have to...do this...do that...meet this requirement...meet that requirement...and so on. To put it simply, they preach that salvation is by God's grace at the altar, it is His doing initially, but it is our own doings that keep us saved. This is faulty, as presented by the Apostle Paul in Romans 11:5, 6, where he speaks of our election (God Almighty choosing us to be saved) - "Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work."

Here, Paul makes it very clear that our election to salvation is either God's doing by His grace, or our doing by our works - IT IS NOT BY BOTH. Your salvation is either by grace or by works - it is NEVER by both. It is not by grace at the altar and by works when you get up. No, sir! Now, I made up my mind a long time ago that if I am saved, God will have to do the saving! I have turned the saving of my soul, as well as the keeping of my soul over to Him! Now, if salvation were my doing, I would lose much sleep wondering if I had done enough to keep myself saved. But since it is Christ's doing, I know positively that Christ's sacrifice is sufficient to save and to keep me. The Father is well pleased with the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for our salvation.

I am Kept by the Power of God
I Peter 1:3-5 - "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."

"Kept by the power of God!" I understand that there are many things about God that I do not know. I am not the sharpest tool in the shed, by any means. But if there's anything about God about which I am positive, I am sure that God has power. God spoke this world into existence. He tells the oceans where to stop. He controls the winds and waves. He created the earth with such order and design. He never becomes weak or tired. He was here before anything of this world existed, and He'll be here when the world passes away! God has power! And this power is the force that is keeping me saved! You tell me how much power God has, and I'll tell you how "kept" I am! In I Peter 4:19, Peters admonishes those who suffer according to the will of God to "commit the keeping of their souls to him!" That is exactly what I have done. As for this business of "staying saved," I have turned it completely to Him. If He can keep me, I'll be just fine. If He fails to keep me, I'm lost eternally.

I'll lose no sleep tonight worrying about my salvation! Paul said in II Timothy 1:12 - "I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." If I'll commit it, He'll keep it. And, long ago, I committed my soul into the hands of Jesus Christ. He is my Saviour and Keeper!

MORE TO COME...

On Christ, the Solid Rock I Stand

In a world full of worry and fears, people tend to worry most about the people in their lives, and the possessions in their lives. As far as possessions are concerned, people worry about keeping them, maintaining them, improving them, insuring them, and protecting them. There is, however, one valuable possession of mine, about which I spend no time worrying. That possession is the most important of all possessions. I speak of my salvation.

Here are a few reasons I need not worry about the condition of my soul:

I Believe "In Jesus," "On Jesus," "In the Name of Jesus," and "On the Lord Jesus Christ"
Of course, when I say, "I believe," I am not merely referring to an acceptance of the historical fact of His life, death, burial, or resurrection. By "believing," I am not referring to an affirmation of the existence of God, or of His Son, Jesus Christ. Every devil in hell believes in God's existence. Every devil in hell believes that Jesus died on the cross. When I say, "I believe," I am saying "I am relying," "I am trusting," "I am confiding," "I am resting" on Jesus Christ and His work on Calvary solely for my salvation. I am not trusting in my works, my prayers, my good works, my righteousness, my outward appearance, my talent, or anything else of mine for my salvation. I am relying completely on Jesus Christ and His work on Calvary for my salvation. I called upon the name of the Lord, believing that God would keep His promise (this is faith), and He does the saving. I am not sitting in a parked car, looking at a bridge in front of me, saying, "I believe that if I were to try to cross, the bridge would hold me up." I prove that I believe in the bridge by driving on it! I have confidence that the bridge will hold me up, even over the depths of death! Many look at the cross of Jesus Christ, and say, "I believe Jesus died on the cross." They may even say, "I believe Jesus died on the cross for me." But they need to ahead, make Jesus Christ Lord of their entire life. Believe! Put your weight upon Him! Trust Him! Rest solely on His work for your salvation. I can put my whole life in His hands, and I know He is the Saviour and Keeper of my soul! I rest on Him! There are literally dozens of verses in the New Testament that state plainly that, to have eternal life, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ!" I believe every one of them!

The Father is Pleased with Christ's Work on the Cross
Isaiah 53:10 - "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand."

Matthew 3:17 - "And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

In the above verses, Isaiah 53 deals specifically with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross. "It pleased the Father to bruise Him." The Father is pleased with Christ's work upon the cross. At Christ's baptism, Matthew records that the Father spoke out of heaven, declaring, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!" Not "barely" pleased, but "well" pleased! When I stand before God, I will be clinging to Jesus Christ and His work on Calvary, because it is the absolute only work with which the Father is pleased.

Promises to Believers
John 5:24 - "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."

John 10:27, 28 - "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand."

John 11:25, 26 - "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"

Now, dear reader, you may not agree with the content of these verses, but know this: both the content and the context of these verses are clear. These verses are NOT AT ALL taken out of context. I am using them to bring forth promises to believers regarding eternal life. The first promise listed states clearly that those hear the word and believe on Him "shall not come into condemnation."

The next promise listed states that Christ's sheep hear His voice, are known of Him, and follow Him. They are given eternal life, and "they shall never perish." Never is a strong word. You tell me when "never" will get here, and I'll tell you when my eternal life will expire.

The next promise listed states Christ's conversation with Martha. Jesus tells her explicitly that whosoever lives and believes in Him will "never die." Then, He asks her a question He is still asking today: "Do you believe this?"

It is Finished
When on the cross, Christ bowed His head, and declared to all humanity - "It is finished!" There's no other work to complete it! Nothing else will validate it! Nothing else will make it any more worthy of our trust. According to Galatians 2:21, if righteousness comes by the law, Christ is dead in vain. When you add the best works you have to His finished work on the cross, the entire work of Christ is nullified! No works of any law can be added to it! It is finished! All you need to do is believe it! Cling to it! Trust in it! He is our propitiation through FAITH IN HIS BLOOD (Romans 3:25).

I hear some say, "I am striving to make heaven my home." Don't be offended, but "I'm NOT!" I am not working my way to heaven. I am not striving to earn a place in heaven. Jesus said in Matthew 11 - "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I WILL GIVE YOU REST." How do we enter into this "rest?" Hebrews 4:10 gives us the answer - "For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his." When you enter into His rest, you cease from your own works! I am not working to go heaven. Christ did the work necessary for this, and I am RESTING completely in what He did!

Christ did the saving work, and while we simply trust, rest, confide - BELIEVE - we can't do anything but BE SAVED! When it comes time for you to draw your last breath, if your soul is trusting in Christ alone, you can't go anywhere except to God's heaven!

TO BE CONTINUED...

Make It as Sure as Ye Can

Matthew 27:65 - "Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.

In the above text, Jesus has died. He has been taken off the cross and has been buried. His enemies remember what He said while He was living (though His own disciples did not) - "After three days I will rise again." His enemies, bearing this in mind, went to Pilate, the governor, to ask for a band of soldiers to guard the tomb. "This man's disciples may come and steal his body away," they claimed. So, Pilate gave them a band of soldiers with this admonition - "Make it as sure as ye can." It seems that Pilate knew that the band of soldiers sent to guard the corpse of Christ was pathetic and pitiful. But, he granted the request of Christ's enemies and told them, "Do the best you can."

Unbelievers today are still trying to deny the resurrection of Jesus Christ, discredit the Bible, and hinder the work of God Almighty Himself. Although their attempts are skimpy, they are "making it as sure as they can." It's not very sure. It won't hold up on the Day of Judgment. It won't stop God from doing what He will do. Yet, they continue to get their best forces together to destroy faith in Jesus Christ. However, when any man fights against God, this man's forces look like Iraqi's skimpy army going against the massive United States military. Let's look at a few attempts of the wicked to destroy Christ and all that pertains to Him, and we'll see how pathetic they are.

Stephen Hawking's Recent Stupidity
British Professor Stephen Hawking, one of Britain's most noted professor, was quoted recently giving his explanations on the origins of the universe. Let me give an EXACT QUOTE - "Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing." FROM NOTHING! This man believes that the universe was created BY ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! I don't who you are - that's STUPID! Don't laugh, though. This is a quote from the atheists' best! This is a prominent professor of theirs! This is not one of their uneducated paupers on the streets of downtown Detroit; this is the VERY BEST THEY HAVE TO OFFER! And, rather than believing in a Creator who created the universe with nothing, for a specific purpose, they would rather believe that the massive amount of matter and order in the universe came from nothing! How pitiful!

Evolution
NPR (National Public Radio) has been trying to figure out recently how humans became the dominant species. Again, instead of believing in an intelligent Being who created the world with a divine plan, they believe that over a period of BILLIONS OF YEARS, the human race evolved from primates. That is the most laughable theory I have ever heard. Evolution is philosophy, not science. It is not science because it has NEVER BEEN OBSERVED. No species has even been witnessed to evolve into another. No organism has ever been witnessed to reproduce another organism of a different species. IF IT HAS NOT BEEN OBSERVED, IT IS NOT SCIENCE. As laughable as it is, they are "making it as sure as they can." It's weak, but it's the best they have.

Their Pitiful Defenses Won't Change a Thing!
In Romans 3:3, 4 - "For what if some did not believe? Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid. Yea, let God be true, and every man a liar."

Here, Paul asks the question, "What if some did not believe?" Then he asks, "Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?" His answer - God forbid! Absolutely not! Friend, you may choose to reject everything the Bible proclaims - but know this - your unbelief won't change a thing! You don't believe in God? It won't pull Him off the throne! You don't believe in hell? Not believing in hell won't put out the flames. You don't believe in a Day of Judgment? You'll reject it until you stand before God. You don't believe that Jesus Christ is coming again? It won't keep Him from coming. Go ahead - make it as sure as you can! Give it your best shot! That's what the band of soldiers did. They tried to keep Christ from coming out of the tomb. But out He came, and on the ground as dead men is where they were! Your stupid anti-God reasoning won't keep God from doing what God is going to do!

Thoughts on the Will of God

This post is directed mainly to ministers; more specifically, ministers who are young in terms of age. I suppose that the will of God is the subject of many prayers of young preachers today, and rightly so. However, I also believe that many young ministers worry too much about the will of God.

The Will of God in the Minds of Many
People are often perplexed about, not what the will of God, but rather what they perceive it to be. People think the will of God is location. They worry themselves sick over whether or not to go here, or there. And yes, location is important. If God wants you in Ninevah, you better not go to Tarshish. But, there is really no need to sweat the will of God regarding location. To others, their greatest concern regarding the will of God is which job to take, or which decision to make, or something of that nature. These things surely need our attention, and oftentimes our prayers. However, these things often take care of themselves when we take care of God's will in our lives.

Some Things I Know About the Will of God
1) It is God's will for all mankind to be saved. II Peter 3:9 - "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." So, if you are not saved, you are definitely out of God's will.

2) It is God's will for the church to be sanctified. I Thessalonians 4:3 - "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification."

3) It is God's will for each one to be thankful, giving God the glory. I Thessalonians 5:18 - "In every thing give thanks, for this is the will of God concerning you."

4) It is the will of God that we live a life that is a great witness to the lost, putting to silence their foolishness. I Peter 2:15 - "For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men."

5) It is the will of God that we suffer for well doing rather than evil doing. I Peter 3:17 - "For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing."

6) It is the will of God that Jesus Christ die to deliver us from this present, evil world. Galatians 1:4 - "Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father."

What God Promises Concerning His Will
I worry very little about things such as, "Am I in the exact location the Lord wants me to be in?" The reason for my lack of worry is simply this: God Almighty has promised me that if I'll do the things that I KNOW are the will of God (the things listed above), He absolutely will lead me into the location in which He wants me to be. Consider:

1) Proverbs 3:5, 6 - "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he SHALL direct thy paths." Notice - When I acknowledge Him in all things by doing the things I KNOW are His will, HE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE LEADING! Getting me in the location where I should be is God's work, not mine! Yes, if God speaks to me to go here or there, I must obey. We learn this from the story of Jonah. But, in the Bible, God very seldom lays out the entire course to the man of God; He just leads them. Consider Joseph of the Old Testament. The only thing that Joseph knew from what God showed him was that his brothers and father would one day bow to him. That was it! Then, God did the rest. Joseph did not have to pull one string to make it happen! He was cast into the pit, sold to Potiphar, falsely accused, thrown in jail, and eventually elevated to second-in-command. God did it all! All Joseph did was be faithful to God! The Bible says that "God was with Joseph," and we see clearly that God led Joseph every step of the way. Young ministers think they have to have their whole ministry laid out before they start! Not so! I do not need to fast forty days to figure out what the big picture is for my ministry. All I need to do is be obedient to God, be faithful to Him, and with no help of mine, God will lead me.

I don't worry about my salvation because Jesus is the Saviour; not me. I don't worry about current events because I am not in charge of them; God is. I don't worry about when the Lord will come because it is the Father's hand; not mine.

And, I don't worry about what location I should be in. I just strive to live in obedience to what God says, doing what I know is His will, and He is the one doing the leading!