There are three requirements for a curse; a stipulation, an evocation, and an executor: an event that is spelt out, an occurrence that acts as a trigger, and someone to ensure the fulfillment of said curse. Lacking any of these three, you simply have water cooler conversation.
When a curse is mentioned, usually a pharaoh or a voodoo priest is thought of. Whether we believe in curses or not, there are a lot of coincidences that seem to happen to those that ignore them.
Sometimes these curses are just traps set up to protect a burial site, but as well there are times something supernatural appears to be involved.
A curse is many times interpreted as something evil because no one has ever been cursed with riches, unless you ask some foolish lottery winners who didn’t realize their money wasn’t limitless.
The purpose of a curse is to prevent someone from doing something; a particular something. If that something isn’t done, that curse doesn’t go into effect. To the person making the curse it is a method of protection, a good thing.
1
Sin’s Curse
Only those who violate the conditions of the curse see it as inherently evil.
With that in mind, let us take a look at the defiance that started it all: the curse of sin. It began with a stipulation: Don’t eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It also contained an evocation, that you shall surely die, and an Executor, the Lord God Himself.
Let us examine the results of what transpired when this curse was activated.
2
Sin’s Curse
The Pronouncement of the Curse
In cinema, a curse can lie dormant for thousands of years before it is triggered, and it still goes off without a hitch; a lot of the remainder of the movie is spent trying to rid those cursed of its chronic effects if they aren’t killed instantly.
Genesis 2
16 ¶ And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of
every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not
eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die.
We don’t know if Genesis 3:1 is the first temptation that the devil tested mankind with; it was at least the first time he was successful; the devil always has a backup plan.
He would have to use an animal, the serpent, because he lacked a body, and it lacked a spirit.
The events recorded here didn’t seem out of the ordinary to the woman later called Eve. Were a serpent to 3
Sin’s Curse
come to me and ask me anything, an answer would not be the first thing out of my mouth. I’d probably do a mental inventory of everything I’d consumed in the last few hours, and plan to revisit them later.
She didn’t question the fact that she was conversing with an animal; it is possible that a perfect creation would be able to talk with each other, but we don’t know this.
The serpent is described here as םוּ ֔רָﬠ (‘ā·rūm) or crafty, sneaky, and more cunning than the rest of creation. I grew up in a family paranoid of snakes, so it seems surreal to me that Eve didn’t have any sense of concern with this encounter. Replace Eve with my father or younger brother and we’d still be in that garden.
The serpent asked a question that seemed benign at the time: “hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?”
The world was new; innocence and trust abounded at this point. Eve’s innocence allowed her to see the question the serpent asked as genuine, as if she were being asked what the food stipulations were.
If this were a third or fourth generation serpent, it might be asking as one new to Eden. But for whatever 4
Sin’s Curse
reason, Eve thought this was a legitimate question, and simply answered it.
Some would say Eve lied here; she didn’t: she simply expanded on what God had said. Her response was “We can’t eat it; we can’t even touch it.”
Just as Jesus said that lusting after a woman is the same as adultery; as James said hating your brother is the same as murder, Eve knew that touching the fruit was the first part of consuming it.
The devil responded by introducing doubt: “Ye shall not surely die”. Eve had never heard a lie before and had probably never been confused before. This was in direct opposition to what she had heard, so she began to try reasoning this out in her mind.
When her forehead scrunched as she tried to process this contradiction, the devil went into an information overload mode.
Sin can be broken down into three categories: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. The serpent gave her all three prongs on this assault of mankind.
He began by giving what appeared to be a reasonable explanation as to why God would supposedly lie to them.
5
Sin’s Curse
“If you eat the fruit, you’ll be like Him, and know good and evil.” This actually wasn’t a lie because evil only existed in the fallen angels at this point, and good was all she knew.
The potential for evil existed simply because God had created free will, and the only way to exercise free will is to be given a choice.
Both Adam and Eve had been exercising free will of course, which fruit for dinner, which part of the garden to dress today, and what to do with these orange peels.
But when God said, “Don’t eat”, this was free will at a completely different level. And Eve was being exposed to that level; from what she now considered blind obedience to a very tempting choice.
She saw that the fruit was good for food; this is the lust of the flesh. It’s possible that she had previously never gotten too close to the tree before, but it was now the center of her attention.
It was pleasant to look on (the lust of the eyes); at this point she might have picked the fruit, turning it around in her hand. She possessed it, and the thought of what she was doing possessed her as well.
6
Sin’s Curse
By this point the devil knew he had won: she was holding the fruit, perhaps the dew of the morning was still on it, and she was considering her pride of life issue, being like God by knowing good and evil.
And this was fulfilled when she ate that fruit and offered it to Adam who ate also. She now fully understood good and evil; her disobedience of God’s command had rendered her evil, and the innocent state that she had lost was its opposite: good.
Eve had been tempted by the devil himself; she had been introduced to doubt and uncertainty, deceived by being told she would be like God Himself, and encouraged and indoctrinated by a force she had never encountered before.
Adam just ate what Eve offered him: no temptation.
Romans 5:12
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and
death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all
have sinned:
7
Sin’s Curse
The Performing of the Curse
Not only was the stipulation concise and clear, but the Executor is also revealed, having the power to follow through with the enacting of the curse: “thou shalt surely die.”
Not to beat a dead horse, but Adam did die that day because death is simply separation, not just of body and soul.
Adam’s death was actually two-fold; his spirit died, and his relationship with God died as well. His physical life went on for hundreds of years more, but inside, he was a dead man.
And we inherit this death sentence from Adam: this curse is still in effect, and the larger the population grows, the wider its impact is visible. No one under this curse has ever slipped through its cracks because there are no cracks.
For those who believe in the immaculate conception, we have to bust your bubble here; Mary was a sinner just as we all are. The curse of sin is passed on, not from our mothers but from our fathers. If embarrassment were possible in heaven, Mary, Peter, and Jude would be in a contest to see who could turn the deepest shade of red.
8
Sin’s Curse
Jesus was never under the curse, and if He hadn’t given up the Ghost on the cross, He’d still be hanging there.
The knowledge that we will die controls a great deal of our lives. We are either trying to delay it, avoid thinking about it, or fixate on it.
Those that believe we’ve evolved see death as just a part of life; a natural occurrence that either just ends everything or sends us to that great recycle bin in the sky, waiting for our next chance to get it right: whatever they think that means.
These same people don’t see death as a curse.
Instead, they have a corrupt idea of God (or no belief in Him at all) as well as not believing the Bible in its entirety if at all. Because it isn’t a curse to them, they don’t seek a way to escape its consequence. It is a singular event to them: they die and accept whatever happens after that, because we don’t (they believe) have any say in what happens after death.
Hebrews 9:27
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this
the judgment:
9
Sin’s Curse
The Panorama of the Curse
Every generation always says that the younger generation is going to be the end of us. We are constantly finding new ways to break old commandments, complicate life by trying to simplify it, and now we introduce medicines with more side effects than it cures.
The first time God did a ‘great reset’ was the Great Deluge, a worldwide flood that covered the entire planet, wiping out all but eight souls and every land animal and avian that boarded God’s ark of safety.
Matthew 24:37
But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the
Son of man be.
When we think of the “days of Noah”, what exactly is being mentioned? When Jesus spoke of ‘eating and drinking’ this wasn’t the cause of the flood, it was simply what was going on at the time: life was continuing normally.
But the ‘normal’ of Noah’s day was very different from the standard of Adam’s day.
10
Sin’s Curse
We see that reflected in these times as well. Let’s examine the environment that our grandparents grew up in compared to what we are going through now. Our culture is a direct result of our entertainment, and society proves this fact.
The lust of the flesh. Adultery and fornication used to be secret sins. A man and a woman would rendezvous at a motel and do everything they could to prevent anyone from finding this out, including using false names and alibis.
On television the parents’ bedroom was set up with twin beds, eliminating the concept of sexual situations and suggestions. Television executives left it up to the family to work around that topic. If a couple did kiss, there was usually a camera pan to an open window with a fade-out.
Sexual perversions of any sort were even more hidden; a counterculture existed that was denied. These travesties were recognized as what they were: psychological disorders. Those involved knew that if what they were doing was found out, life as they knew it would be over; they would have to relocate and possibly get a new identity; something that was much easier to do back then.
As time passed, our morals eroded. When I was in high school, a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old classmate of mine 11
Sin’s Curse
became pregnant. Long before she needed to, she quit attending school (or at least our school) and never returned.
We never questioned this; as this was so taboo back then, it was only spoken of in whispers. Her reputation was ruined, because those that knew why she left now saw her as a ‘sure thing’, so how could she ever have normal social interactions in that framework?
Having an affair was now something that was becoming a status symbol; a measure of a man’s success but damage to the woman involved; because of this, men would brag among themselves, but with unnamed women.
Television had given married couples a single bed to sleep in, but conversations were never sexual at the start of this; it was slowly working its way in. Talk of sex wasn’t done in the bedroom and was accomplished as double-entendres.
Perversions began creeping into television, but not in a positive light, and certainly not acted out. If someone were mistaken for one of those deviants, they went to great length to prove they weren’t.
The cinema was always years ahead of television.
Sexual escapades were becoming more of the norm, and as 12
Sin’s Curse
television saw that people actually would pay to see some of this stuff, they thought to slowly offer it for free.
An unmarried couple living together was starting to become socially acceptable, using the phrase “We don’t need a piece of paper …” as their reasoning.
This was brought on via the blossoming of divorces by the acceptance of “irreconcilable differences” as a reason to end a union that God Himself had created. The concept of marriage would never be seen as a solemn commitment by everyone again.
Acceptable sexual behavior was evolving for those practicing homosexuality as well as other perverse acts.
They ‘stayed in the closet’ and what they did didn’t identify who they were. Homosexualism was tolerated but not accepted.
Television brought on their first gay character, but his sexuality was never a plot point, his love life wasn’t displayed, and he never tried to use his sexuality as an excuse for anything he did or didn’t do.
As more and more gay characters came on, what was acceptable behavior was slowly being pushed. Their 13
Sin’s Curse
relationships began creeping into the shows, and ‘what they were’ began to define them as ‘who they are’.
Just as a flu begins with a single germ, so does intolerance become acceptance.
Brainwashing done over the course of a month is easy to define, but over the course of generations isn’t even noticed by many.
Nowadays to think homosexuality is wrong is in itself wrong as far as we are made to believe.
Women having multiple children with multiple men is seen as “signs of the times”. The lust of the flesh is proudly on display for everyone to see.
The lust of the eyes. When I was growing up, locking our front door wasn’t done until the wind from a hurricane would blow it open, and them we just attached a hook and eye latch; not the best security feature: we weren’t trying to keep anyone out because that concept never dawned on us.
My father had an old Packard in our yard from the forties; an old six-volt battery, a motor with a generator, and a push button ignition system.
14
Sin’s Curse
Typically, we knew our neighbors because we played with them, worked with them, had neighborhood gatherings, and kept our eyes out for each other. If someone was going out of town, we’d collect the mail for them, water their plants, and whatever else was needed.
If a babysitter was needed, it wasn’t difficult to find a teenager who, for a few dollars, would follow those simple instructions posted on the refrigerator, and get the kids to bed on time.
Now even our cars have alarms installed, we know very few of our neighbors, and fear walking the streets at night. Muggings had only happened in big cities, and usually only on the ‘wrong side’ of town, wherever that was.
If someone needed money back then, they never asked for it; instead, they asked if there was something they could do to earn it. In fact, if our school had a fund-raiser, a carwash was usually involved, or something similar.
Nowadays, kids sit in front of a retail store and ask if you’d like to donate. The desire to earn money has been replaced with the idea that having money or goods is an entitlement.
15
Sin’s Curse
Crime runs rampant these days; people want things they haven’t earned, and the fact that you’ve spent the time and effort to attain something doesn’t slow them down.
Some even believe that if they can get an object from you than they deserve it more than you do.
Unfortunately, these physical objects are not where the line is drawn. Sometimes lives are taken also because that is not respected anymore either.
The pride of life. There are many people who now see themselves as enlightened. They see the afterlife as a state of mind; that the soul lives on without the body. This it does, but they either leave out the spirit, confuse the two, or think they are the same thing.
It is not fair to think they would understand what a spirit is any more than we would understand what a doohickey is. Sure, we can use it in a sentence, but that does not mean we know what is being talked about unless we are given enough context to grasp what is being discussed.
I have a friend who’s a Taoist, and he told me that we make multiple trips here (reincarnation) until we’ve learned all of life’s lessons. He can’t give me a list of what these lessons are, of who determines when we’ve completed 16
Sin’s Curse
them, or exactly what happens to us when we do. But all these things he tells me are self-contained, there is no outside help we can call upon when we need it.
Most eastern religions, if not all, say much the same thing. Whatever we are to achieve for a successful afterlife is within ourselves; we just have to figure it out based on what the founders of each religion has revealed to us.
No one can explain where Gautama Buddha (Buddhism), Lao Tzu (Taoism), Indra (Hinduism), Kong Zi (Confucianism), or any of the other founders of these eastern religions based their teachings on. Yet many societies based their religions on these philosophies.
Much of their popularity in the western world comes from the realization that these are religions void of condemnation or judgment; God is not properly defined or revealed in them, and if you get everything wrong while you are alive, you get a great reset when you die, and get another try with another life.
These religions think they remove the sting of death; they certainly remove the fear of it, and the followers of these religions number in the billions.
17
Sin’s Curse
These fall under pride of life because they teach that we don’t need a deity; we only need ourselves.
Matthew 10:28
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to
kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy
both soul and body in hell.
Hebrews 9:27
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this
the judgment:
18
Sin’s Curse
The Product of the Curse
On the day the flood began, the death toll was one hundred percent of the population (save the eight souls on the ark); In over 1500 years the earth has been estimated to have a population of upwards of a million people. Even were this number high, it was the greatest mass death event in world history.
Mass deaths still occur, usually in one of a few ways.
The first is war, a product that can be attributed to the post-deluge rebellion against God. No wars were recorded before the flood, and afterwards what wars Israel had been religious wars; the enactment of God’s judgment on heathen nations.
We are now in the fifth generation of warfare. The first generation was melee combat; hand-to-hand. Under Cyrus the Great, historians recorded over 100,000 deaths of soldiers, deaths of civilians might make this number larger.
Second generation warfare involved gunpowder; you no longer had to stand next to someone to kill them. In the American Civil War, at least 650,000 were killed in a roughly four-year period.
Third generation included strategy and speed, World War II and the invasion of Normandy is the greatest example 19
Sin’s Curse
of this, with over 85 million people dying as a result of this war that lasted but six years.
Terrorism is the fourth generation, and at least the numbers go down here, but this is something we’ve all witnessed; its birth was a result of the 1972 Munich Olympics and include the events of 9/11.
The latest generation is information warfare; one of the results of the popularity of social media; instead of killing someone, brainwashing them onto your side doesn’t produce a death toll, but it does provide a way to victory.
This is an attack on society by engineers, not soldiers.
Another event that causes mass deaths are plagues and diseases. Between 1968 and 1969, upwards of .1% of the earth’s entire population (1 to 4 million victims) were wiped out by what we now call the Hong Kong Flu.
The worst plague was the Black Death, the bubonic Plague of 1346 that lasted seven years, wiping out anywhere between 75 to 200 million, potentially ½ of the population of the planet.
Death has been around a long time; with modern technology, a warning can sometimes be given. But most of the time, we don’t see it coming.
20
Sin’s Curse
Amos 4
9 I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your
gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and your
olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet
have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 10 I have
sent among you the pestilence after the manner of Egypt:
your young men have I slain with the sword, and have
taken away your horses; and I have made the stink of your
camps to come up unto your nostrils: yet have ye not
returned unto me, saith the LORD. 11 I have overthrown
some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and
ye were as a firebrand plucked out of the burning: yet have
ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD. 12 Therefore
thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this
unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.
Data for the war victims and the plague numbers were pulled from Wikipedia.
21
Sin’s Curse
The Parabola of the Curse
Sin’s curse is more than just something that affects everyone as a whole. More importantly, it affects all of us as individuals. As descendants of Adam, we each have this curse upon us. We are born with an expiration date.
Were we able to know the timing, we could prepare accordingly. Many times, when a disease is ending someone’s life, and they have contemplated their existence, they become very somber.
Many who lived agnostically develop a theist viewpoint, and seek something out; it is not always the God of the Bible: many times, it’s dependent on the culture they grew up in.
If they get it wrong even then, they have an eternity to regret what they could have done so easily in life.
2 Corinthians 6:2
(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in
the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is
the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
22
Sin’s Corruption
The secular world has two prevalent views of mankind and our nature as a whole.
Some see people as basically good. To these people, our spirits are just fine as is, and the default eternal resting place is heaven. This hypocrisy is sometimes referred to as the “eternal Fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man”.
Then there are those who see mankind as sick. To heal ourselves, we simply must endure what life gives us and better ourselves in the process, thus allowing us to go to heaven when we die.
From this hypocrisy, we get the false doctrine of
“salvation by works”.
Neither of these doctrines will get anyone into heaven, and will in fact, prevent many people from entering the pearly gates.
Let us examine mankind for what we really are and show the biblical remedy for this condition.
23
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks Inherent Goodness
Have you ever been hiking, trail-blazing through some woods, or just walking along the highway when you came up on a dead animal? After two or three days in the sun, it is not anything you want to be around, for a few reasons.
The first of your senses that alerts you to the presence of something rotting is usually your sense of smell unless the carcass is in the middle of an open field. The scent will let you know if it’s a recent death or not. You try to limit your breathing; not because of the bacteria and germs trying to consume the body, but because of the smell.
This will lead you to finding it; you will see that swollen corpse imbedded with scavengers that depend on death to live. When the remnants are more than a few hours old, you see the larvae festering and feeding on those remains: the true circle of life some of us sang about when we were younger, while not knowing what we were crooning over.
This leads to noting the swelling of the body due to the gasses being formed because of decomposition. The parlor of the skin has faded somewhat, and you might notice that not all eyes close in death. If scavengers have been 24
Sin’s Corruption
feeding, some internal organs might now be on showcase for all to see. This can lead, with the help of the smell, to anything from a dry heave to a very wet one.
Despite the dogmatic attempts to avoid touching those rotting remains, accidents happen; if this carcass needs to be moved for whatever reason; latex gloves still allow you to feel what you are gripping, and limp muscles with all that’s feeding on it as well as leaking out of it doesn’t have the same texture as prime rib.
Gravity is a constant, the body is unbalanced, and shovels don’t always stay self-centered. It is a very different sensation from petting your warm, semi-groomed living pet.
Any remaining fur is stiff and disheveled, the body is colder to the touch, and rigor (or worse) makes movements awkward at best.
Sometimes the smell is so overpowering that you think you might be tasting it, which leads to more retching or worse. None of these experiences, even in hindsight, are positive unless you learn how to do it more properly should you encounter something like this again.
25
Sin’s Corruption
Ephesians 2:1
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses
and sins;
Genesis 2
16 ¶ And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of
every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17 But of
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not
eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die.
The fleshly nature of man is in the state it is because of our human spirit; that rotting decrepit corpse of a spirit caused because of the fall. And in anything that’s been dead so long, there is nothing good or desirable about it.
Romans 7:18
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no
good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to
perform that which is good I find not.
26
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks Sacrificial Love
Love can be found at many different levels: there are at least five Greek words for the one English term, and each has a different level and meaning.
The first is simply a preference, and that word is θελω (the·lo). When my wife has a choice of cheeses for a sandwich, she thelo s cheddar cheese over any other type.
This doesn’t mean she won’t eat it if she gets Swiss cheese instead; she just prefers cheddar.
The next on the scale is ερως (e·ros) or physical love, infatuation, or ‘love at first sight’. It is where we get the word erotic from and covers anything from thinking someone is pretty to something that actuates our hormones.
The natural, family love that a child has for the parents (before they were taught to hate them) is στοργος
(stor·gos), by definition natural affection. One of the ‘signs of the times’ recorded in scripture is when storgos begins to fail; this we see happening now.
The highest level of human love is ψιλεω (phil·e·o), when you have enough affection for someone that they are treated as family. This is called brotherly love; a term coined 27
Sin’s Corruption
by someone without brothers, unless my situation was unique.
Godly love, or αγάπη (a·gap·e) is very different. In a nutshell, your needs take a back burner to the needs of those you love. This is selfless, sacrificial love. While the natural man can do that to a very limited level, it’s the depth of that love that is lacking.
The natural man is too self-centered to have anything close to Godly love in his or her life.
John 5:42
But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you.
28
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks a Relationship with God By nature, mankind hates God. God expects obedience, and mankind returns rebellion. There was a single rule in the Garden of Eden; one tree to avoid eating the fruit of.
Eve was tempted, but Adam was not. God’s ten commandments have now been turned into 300,000 federal regulations, and our jails are overcrowded.
Mankind doesn’t want to obey God. Mankind desires to remove the concept of the afterlife from our way of living and claim it’s just a fable used to make sure we are good.
One lie is that when we die, everything ends, and we just cease to exist. Another is that we come back again as someone else, to learn the things we didn’t learn in this life.
Mankind wants to deny hell. Both of these lies are needed to belittle what Jesus did for us on Calvary.
The need for Calvary says that we need God, that there is a right and a wrong, that we answer to God for our lives, and that heaven and hell are real. However, mankind does not want to need Jesus.
29
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind wants to deny the existence of God, so the false science of evolution was introduced to show we did not need Him to be here, and if He is not real, we obviously do not have to answer to Him.
Mankind tries to deny God exists, because natural man has been at war with God since the fall.
Romans 8:7
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
30
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks Deep Understanding
The story is told of two gentlemen watching a sunset.
Both describe the beauty unfolding around them: the wonderful colors, the artistic panorama, and the happiness of witnessing this event at the time.
However, one of the two men is blind. He can only describe it by what he has heard others describe. Knowing what words to say does not mean that those words apply.
People and religions speak of spirit animals, spirit guides, that everything together makes up God, and that doing something and then feeling good about it is proof that
“God” approves.
Lost people are spiritually dead and have no idea what they are talking about whenever they speak of anything spiritual; it’s just words that we use, and they feel qualified to use them as well.
How does someone blind at birth describe the color red? They might hear us define it, they might be able to repeat those words, but they really do not comprehend it because of a lack of a frame-of-reference.
It’s the same thing with the spiritually lost, but they usually have a more vivid imagination. Because of this, they 31
Sin’s Corruption
can recite enough truth to make what they are telling you seem feasible.
1 John 4:1
Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether
they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out
into the world.
They will think they are right, and can be relentless in trying to convince us, but we need to stand true with God.
Their lack of knowledge is because their understanding has been darkened because of their dead spiritual state.
Ephesians 4:18
Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from
the life of God through the ignorance that is in them,
because of the blindness of their heart:
32
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks a Pure Conscience
The conscience of the young child is much more dependable than when they get older. They also trust more at a young age. Jesus references this when He says we must become as little children. But as they get older, their childlike innocence is corrupted.
Sometimes those who achieve success in matters that are vain and profane will go as far as to say that it is because God is blessing them. They think this is proof that they are more in the will of God than we are, or that God is not pure good, and that therefore the Bible must be wrong.
1 Timothy 6:5
Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute
of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such
withdraw thyself.
Because of the darkness of their spiritual blindness and the fact that even a sinner wants validation from someone or some “thing” for the deeds they do, they seek for justification in some way or the other.
33
Sin’s Corruption
It is only because of the defilement of their minds and consciences that they think they achieve it.
Titus 1:15
Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are
defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their
mind and conscience is defiled.
34
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Has an Evil Heart
There is a movement to redefine four words most of us use every day, and to baby boomers and some members of Generation X, these words need no definition; they are seen as objective or absolute.
To those younger, we’ll provide a simple definition to these terms:
Right: proper, correct, or fair Wrong: illegal, erroneous, or criminal Good: beneficial, moral, or righteous Evil: destructive, harmful, or wicked This movement, moral relativism or moral subjection is the belief that we can redefine these words, and that what one word means to someone doesn't mean it applies to everyone.
Isaiah 5:20
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put
darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter
for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
35
Sin’s Corruption
Natural man wants nothing to do with God, but why?
God tells us what is right and what is wrong, that we are answerable for our actions to Him, and that He is to be our Master.
Ted Turner, the owner of TBS and TNT, has said that instead of referring to "the 10 commandments", we should think of them more as "the 10 suggestions".
Natural man is not good. Trying to rewrite the rules in the middle of a game is not good. Redefining a word because you don't like its definition isn't good.
By distancing himself from God, natural man removes himself from the only moral compass that matters.
He does this on purpose to hide the truth. He needs no reminders of how evil he really is.
Hebrews 3:12
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil
heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
36
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Has an Absolute Need
Why is Christianity the most hated religion in the world? All religions show that we have a need to be met.
Tribal type religions believe that we need to appease someone or something to guarantee our needs are met; a rain
“god” for a good harvest; wards for our protection; sacrifices to keep whatever they are worshipping happy.
Eastern religions believe we are here to better ourselves, but this betterment comes through lessons we gain through life. And what we do not learn this trip, our next trip here will continue this quest.
Occult religions teach that what we do in this life moves us up some mythical hierarchy in the afterlife, and stepping on or sacrificing others is how that is done. It allows for demonic influence and real black magic. Some of Islam falls here.
Cults can define themselves as Christian when they simply are not. They deny the Trinity, some deny Creation, and redefine "God" to the needs of their religion. Most are salvation-by-works heretics. Some well-established religions actually fall into this category.
37
Sin’s Corruption
On the other hand, Christianity is the realization that we are evil, vile, worthless, and we can do nothing about this by ourselves. For that reason, we are so hated because we prove all other religions wrong. And we do not try to hide it.
John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life:
no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
We as a world, a nation, a society, and a community need help. We need to be saved from eternal damnation. God provided that help to us through His Son, Jesus the Christ.
Those needs were met once and for all time at Calvary. All anyone has to do is ask Jesus into their heart when they repent of their sins.
Anyone means … anyone.
John 1:13
Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man, but of God.
38
Sin’s Corruption
Romans 7
24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from
the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus
Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the
law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
39
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Needs a New Birth
Death is, by definition, separation. Usually, we think of the separation of the body and the soul; physical death.
Also, by definition, the antonym of death is life.
Are we dead before we are ever alive? Yes, we are.
The mother’s egg and the father’s seed are indeed separated, which is the real definition of death. Conception begins physical life, the joining of the seed with the egg. The physical gestation period for us is 280 days; the spiritual gestation is instantaneous.
At conception, we have a living physical body and a living soul. Our spirit is created dead because of the fall. The second birth, or spiritual birth, is the joining of God’s living Spirit with our dead one, bringing our spirit to life.
The new birth is needed, because without a spiritual birth, we will remain spiritually dead.
1 Corinthians 2:14
But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit
of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he
know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
40
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind Lacks a Need for Good Works Jesus had seven cries from the cross recorded in scripture. One of them was “Τετέλεσται ” (te·te·les·tai), meaning “It has been finished” . He did not say “Αρχίζει
τώρα” (Ar·ki·zei to·ra) meaning “It has begun. ” What was He speaking of? It wasn't His suffering, His ministry, anything like that.
He was saying that the sin debt was completely paid, in full, forever, for everyone who accepts it. As Paul said, we are saved by grace through faith. And then, to clear up any doubts, he added “Not of works”.
For those uncertain, baptism is “works”. Taking part of the Lord’s Supper is “works”. Both of these are the only two ordinances in the New Testament church. Neither has any saving value, for they are done “in remembrance of Me”.
Good works are produced because of salvation, not to attain it. An upset stomach doesn’t cause a meal to be bad, but a bad meal can cause an upset stomach. We do not confuse the latter, but many confuse the former.
No amount of good works on our part will cause a new birth.
41
Sin’s Corruption
Ephesians 2
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any
man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them.
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;
42
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind is the Devil’s Child
We want to look at the term “father” for a few moments from the legal perspective, not just the biological one. After all, becoming a biological father is easy, but being a full-time father is much more difficult.
What do children get from their father? Biologically, they get some traits, such as their facial features, hair color, and even their future hairline.
The sin nature is passed through the father as well.
Legally, they also receive their inheritance from their father, whether they are natural or adopted children. Fathers can only legally pass on possessions that are theirs.
What do the unsaved receive as an inheritance? Luke 16:22 and 23 tells us that hell is part of their birthright. Mark 9:46 tells of a worm or a σκωληξ (sko·lex) or maggot as an inheritance. Revelation 20:15 says that the lake of fire is their final legacy.
Where does this inheritance come from? Matthew 25:41 tells us that hell is the inheritance of the devil.
Revelation 20:10 tells us the devil will also spend eternity in the lake of fire.
43
Sin’s Corruption
There will be no contesting of these heirlooms, even if, as the jokes go, they get all the lawyers. The unsaved have their part of the inheritance of their father, Satan.
John 8:44
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father
ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and
abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.
When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a
liar, and the father of it.
44
Sin’s Corruption
The New Birth Provides a New Father The saved receive their inheritance from their Father as well. As such, what do the saved inherit?
According to John 3:16, they inherit everlasting life instead of the second death. They inherit a new heaven and a new earth, untouched by sin. We find this in Revelation 21:1. They inherit a mansion not made with hands (John 14:2, 3).
Most importantly, they receive unlimited access to God for all eternity (Revelation 21:3). All this they receive from their Abba, God.
Galatians 3:26
For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Our religion is a bloody religion. One source of blood is the millions of martyrs who were killed over nearly 2000
years by those who attempted to hijack Christianity, but these martyr’s blood kept God’s Word and the New Testament Church pure and unchanged.
45
Sin’s Corruption
Then there is the sum total of the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament, in the hundreds of thousands if not more, which served as a “type”, not a cleansing of sin but a covering of it.
When Hebrews 9:22 tells us “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission”, what blood is being spoken of?
The most precious thing to ever touch the ground of this sin ruined world was the blood of Jesus Christ, voluntarily poured out to cleanse our sins.
He didn’t do it for any particular group of people, this one-time action was so that whoever wanted could ask God to let Jesus’ blood pay the price for their sin. It covers the sin of both the rich and poor, the elite and commoner.
Hebrews 9:22
And almost all things are by the law purged with blood;
and without shedding of blood is no remission.
2 Corinthians 5:21
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin;
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
46
Sin’s Corruption
1 John 1
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have
fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ
his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8 ¶ If we say that we have
no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
47
Sin’s Corruption
Mankind’s Call to Repentance
Romans 3:23 tells us “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” Just as one who farms is a farmer, one who mines is a miner, and one who works is a worker, it’s apparent that one who sins is a sinner.
So, we are all, by definition, sinners. Are also all depraved? We typically think of the depraved as those who are “below our station” or “beneath us”.
Where we were born, or any of the advantages we have had is but by the Grace of God. Those who have fallen on hard times and suffered because of it are no less precious than we are. Jesus Himself spent a lot more time with the poor and needy than He ever did with the Pharisees.
We must remember that God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). So, whom exactly is depraved?
We are all under the curse of sin, we have been born with a dead putrid spirit. We are, as Isaiah said, all unclean things, all as filthy rags.
When we look around us, and even when we look in the mirror, we are looking at someone who is a depraved sinner. Some are just saved by the blood. The “whosoever will” of the gospel is a call for all depraved sinners to repent.
48
Sin’s Corruption
Thomas once asked Jesus a legitimate question: if we do not know where Jesus was going, how can we find the way? Jesus’ answer is the cornerstone of our faith.
“I Am the Way”. The word “the” here is more than just a definitive article, it tells of a singular and unique
“way”. Simon Peter confirmed this before the question was even asked in John 6:68. “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.”
What we read in John 3:36 confirms this truth.
He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he
that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath
of God abideth on him.
Then what of these other religious leaders? They point to our answers being found inside ourselves, given the time and the discipline.
Confucius died without Christ. He has been dead since then and is now paying for his sins because he taught that we don’t need someone else to save us.
49
Sin’s Corruption
Laotze is considered one of the founders of Taoism.
The word 道 (tao) is actually Chinese for “way”, and is partially based on “effortless action”. Laotze died without Christ, and whether or not he ever achieved 德, he is also now paying for his sins.
The Dalai Lama is a title given to the current leader of Tibetan Buddhism. They believe that meditation is the answer to what ails us, and that by learning to do it properly, you attain enlightenment. This current Dalai Lama will, when he dies, join all his predecessors in a place prepared for the devil and his angels.
We as humans do not like having to depend on someone else for our survival. We like to think that we have the capability of taking care of ourselves without outside help. But when it comes to our immortal soul, neither our decrepit spirit nor our physical body can do anything. We need a living spirit, and there is one way to get it. Only one.
The Creator and author of life: Jesus.
50
Sin’s Corruption
Conclusion
Humanity is not spiritually well. Some, if not most, think that we are. Humanity is not spiritually sick. There are those that will agree to this if they think it’s the only other option. This is not where the truth lies.
Humanity is spiritually dead. Because some of us can obey the law a lot of the time, we cannot be all that bad, right? None of us can obey the law of God in its entirety.
And this is the law that matters.
We all have told a lie. We’ve all taken God’s name in vain, even when we do not realize it. We all suffer from the curse placed on one man we can all call “dad”: Adam.
There was a penalty for his transgression, passed on to all of us: depravity and death. And it did not take long for the depravity to flourish.
Genesis 6
4 ¶ There were giants in the earth in those days; and also
after that, when the sons of God came in unto the
daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same
became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. 5
51
Sin’s Corruption
And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the
earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his
heart was only evil continually.
6 ¶ And it repented the LORD that he had made man on
the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD
said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face
of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing,
and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have
made them. 8 ¶ But Noah found grace in the eyes of the
LORD.
Luke 17:26 tells us “And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.” At a time when gender, family, patriotism, and New Testament teachings are all being attacked in an effort to be redefined, repealed, or replaced, mankind’s depraved state is being displayed with bells and whistles.
And that is nothing to be proud of.
52
Salvation By Works
The perspective we have concerning good works is very important because anything that changes the definition of salvation is heresy. Those that follow this false belief are not in danger of hellfire, they are in preparation of it.
And those that teach this false doctrine suffer even more in hell than most.
Matthew 23
13 ¶ But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye
neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are
entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a
pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the
greater damnation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make
one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold
more the child of hell than yourselves.
We will examine two different perspectives, one shared by some protestants, the other by all Catholics adherent to papal teaching.
53
Salvation By Works
Some Protestants Say …
The viewpoints of the Protestants and Catholics will be italicized to differentiate their views from doctrinal teachings.
Human good works play a tremendously important role. There can be no salvation whatsoever without good works, and your good works are crucial to your salvation.
Now, how can a protestant make a statement like that?
First of all, good works are absolutely crucial and are, indeed, necessary for salvation because God requires good works to save anybody.
Never on any occasion did Jesus mention good works other than the fact that’s what we ought to be doing: kindness to others, feeding the hungry among us, and leading a life that would bring others to the cross by the testimony that we live; certainly not to attain heaven.
Those good works are supplied and provided by Christ, who in His perfect humanity earned the infinite merit of God—the reward of which is the very basis of my salvation. Without Christ’s righteousness, I am in very big trouble. My salvation, initially, is grounded upon good works—Jesus’ good works.
54
Salvation By Works
The most dangerous deceit is the one with a kernel of truth contained with it. It was His sinless nature and perfect standing with God that allowed Him to be our substitute in death for our sins; otherwise, He was dying for His own.
What about my own good works? Do they have a role? Most Protestants would say no. Justification is only one part of salvation. Salvation is the big word. Salvation is the word that covers all of the process by which God fully brings us to total redemption. Justification is that point in the process when God declares me a person who is in a state of redemption.
The fact is that you are already justified, and you are in a state of salvation to a degree, but there's still more of your salvation yet to come. You still haven’t gone to heaven.
You still haven't been perfectly sanctified. You haven't been glorified. None of those things will happen to you until you die and go to heaven.
Salvation is an instantaneous event, not a process completed in time. The very micro-second you repent of your sin and ask Jesus to save you, you are sealed for all eternity.
Sanctification is the life-long process of learning to be like Jesus. It isn’t a part of salvation; it is a result of it.
55
Salvation By Works
We are not perfect, and never shall be, but we are to strive for it.
When you die and go to heaven, God will give you a reward for whatever degree of obedience you have rendered to Him in your Christian life. The reward that God bestows upon you in heaven will be given according to your works but not because your works are so righteous and meritorious that they impose an obligation upon God to reward them.
God has graciously given us the promise that He will reward whatever obedience we give Him. He doesn't have to, but out of His goodness and grace, as Augustine said, 'He crowns His own gifts.' Our entrance into heaven is strictly by the righteousness of Christ. Our reward in heaven will be granted according to the works of obedience that we render.
There seems to be a grey area here. The rewards we receive in heaven are not a part of our salvation; they are a part of our glorification, new rewards with our new glorified body. Rewards that will never rust, rot, or be taken from us.
Our justification is instantaneous; sanctification follows and is life-long. Glorification begins when our sanctification ends as we pass on to our final reward. Yes, heaven is a reward in itself; this is what God intended Eden to be.
56
Salvation By Works
It is the confusion of these three terms that confuses some into believing salvation is a process we never complete while we live, and why we can never be certain where we’ll end up when this life is over.
57
Salvation By Works
Most Catholics Say …
The life we live
How can Catholics claim “works” are necessary for salvation for Christians who have reached the age of accountability when Romans 3:28 says: Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.
When Romans 4:5 says:
But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that
justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness.
And Ephesians 2:8-9 says:
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.
On the surface, these texts may sound problematic, but once we examine their respective contexts, the problems go away rather quickly. First, let’s take a look at the context surrounding Romans 3:28. St. Paul had already made very 58
Salvation By Works
clear in Romans 2:6-7 that good works are necessary for eternal life, at least in one sense: Romans 2
6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7
To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for
glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
One of the problems in Rome St. Paul was dealing with was a very prominent heresy known to us today as the
“Judaizer” heresy. Those attached to this sect taught belief in Christ and obedience to the New Covenant was not enough to be saved. One had to keep the Law of Moses, especially circumcision, in order to merit heaven.
The problem with this teaching, of course, is, among other things, according to Hebrews 7:11-12, the old law has passed away in Christ:
Hebrews 7
11 ¶ If therefore perfection were by the Levitical
priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what
further need was there that another priest should rise after
the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order
59
Salvation By Works
of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, there is
made of necessity a change also of the law.
According to this text, the law of Moses had passed away with the advent of Christ. Moreover, according to St.
Paul, Christians are under the new law, or “the law of Christ,” not the old.
1 Corinthians 9:21
To them that are without law, as without law, (being not
without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I
might gain them that are without law.
Romans 8:2
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made
me free from the law of sin and death.
This is the basis for the Catholic belief of salvation by works. They accept, as sacred scripture those first three scriptures, but try to say this is only part of salvation because of misinterpretation of other scripture. What exactly is being spoken of in Romans 2:6 and 7?
In Romans chapter 1, Paul was addressing the heathen; in chapter 2, he was addressing the hypocrite.
60
Salvation By Works
Notice he isn’t calling them brethren, children, or saints, as he does elsewhere: he addresses then as “men”, a rather generic term.
Rome was the secular seat of government for much of the known world; the church there had both Jews and Gentiles in it, and some of the Jews would condemn the gentiles for their carnal actions.
There is nothing wrong in this, except that the Jews were doing the same thing, yet they were excusing themselves because of their heritage. Nobody gets
‘grandfathered’ into salvation. Paul addresses them here as
‘men’ because there were certainly some unsaved mixed in with this church and he used the first three chapters to correct this.
Who is it that are judged according to their deeds?
For that we will look at
Revelation 20
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God;
and the books were opened: and another book was opened,
which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of
those things which were written in the books, according to
their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were
61
Salvation By Works
in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were
in them: and they were judged every man according to their
works. 14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.
This is the second death.
We commonly refer to this as the Great White Throne judgment. No born-again believer is present at this judging, also some who claim to follow Jesus will, unfortunately, be numbered here.
When are the true believers judged then?
2 Corinthians 5:10
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ;
that every one may receive the things done in his body,
according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
This was written to the members of the church at Corinth; saved believers. The Judgment Seat is not to determine who goes to heaven or hell: the fact that one is there means they are going to heaven.
62
Salvation By Works
The purpose is to determine the rewards we receive for what we did with our life after salvation. God doesn’t give out participation trophies. He expects us to be a soldier and a worker: a witness for Him. We are His ambassadors.
This comes with a price that some aren’t willing to pay.
John 15
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is
not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they
will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they
will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do
unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him
that sent me.
We will suffer for Christ’s sake when the world knows we are one of His. Sure, we can blend in with the world and be safe, but that is not what we are called to do.
Those who are truly saved and yet don’t show this by the life that they lead are living a lie, and at the Judgment Seat the rewards or lack thereof will show this.
63
Salvation By Works
Now let’s look at what is spoken of in Hebrews 7.
When Paul speaks of the changing of the law, it has been changed from ‘in progress’ to ‘fulfilled’.
The purpose of the law was to show that mankind cannot live up to God’s standard, and we can do nothing about that. This law was so much more than the ten commandments.
Jesus was the fulfillment of the law because He DID
live up to God’s standards, doing what we could never do.
He lived a sinless life, followed the plan his God and Father set out for Him, and fulfilled His purpose in its entirety.
This new level of the Law required a new Priesthood.
The Aaronic priesthood had to purify themselves before approaching the Holy of Holies. Jesus didn’t have to do that.
The High Priest, on Yom Kippur, would place seven drops of blood on the mercy seat first for his own sins: Christ didn’t have to do that either.
The Hight Priest was limited on when and how he entered this Holy of Holies. Jesus has no such limitations.
The High Priest was a descendant of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi. The King was a descendant of David of the tribe of Judah. Those two paths could never cross. Yet when 64
Salvation By Works
God created the nation of Israel, it was a theocracy, and God was King, literally Jesus as God the Son.
Jesus, as both our King and our High Priest, is represented by the only other king who was a high priest of the most high God, Melchizedek. This marked the fulfillment of the law as well as this marked a return to the government of Moses’ day when the law was established.
The law was not tossed out, it was simply fulfilled.
The law never saved, it only condemned. Obeying the law is impossible, it only proved we needed Jesus to reach the otherwise impossible task of keeping it.
Sacraments
Next, we will discuss the sacraments that the Catholics and some Protestants feel is part of salvation.
What of the need of the sacrament? For the most part, there are seven sacraments required in at least some part to enter heaven. Let’s first establish a ‘control group’; someone we know without a doubt id in heaven under the New Testament teachings.
Luke 23
65
Salvation By Works
39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed
on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. 40
But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not
thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of
our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. 42 And
he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest
into thy kingdom. 43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say
unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
Here we see the entirety of the act of salvation. This thief confessed he was a sinner when he said it was just that they were dying. This same confession was repentance as well. He acknowledged Jesus as sinless when he said “he hath done nothing amiss”. He knew Jesus as God when he called Him Lord and acknowledged His kingdom, not if He got there but when He did. This kingdom was the kingdom of heaven, and if he was calling it “thy kingdom”. The only way heaven is Jesus’ kingdom is if He is God Himself.
This is the control group we can compare anyone’s beliefs against. The litmus is this: Did the thief on the cross have to do this before Jesus said these words to him? We 66
Salvation By Works
have previously discussed this in a prior book, Scriptural Apologetics 101, but we will go a little deeper into that here, The first sacrament is called baptism, defined by Catholic.org as the first and fundamental sacrament and the gate to the other sacraments, is the purifying and sanctifying sacrament of rebirth. It is the means by which its recipients are incorporated into the church in a sacramental bond of unity.
What it represents here as a sacrament is the actual washing away of sin. Some think this is what Jesus is speaking about in His conversation with Nicodemus when He said you must be born of water and of the spirit.
Being born of water has nothing to do with baptism, it has to do with natural childbirth. What we now know as amnionic fluid was just called water then; even today the actual birthing process begins when a woman’s water breaks.
This being born of water is the first birth just as born of the spirit is the second. Was the thief on the cross ever baptized? Some will say yes, when the storm broke out as the sun darkened it must have rained, and that was his baptism.
67
Salvation By Works
In response to that, scripture never says it rained during the crucifixion; and if it did, and if somehow this was a baptism, then a lot of people were baptized that day, including those who crucified Him. The correct answer is no, the thief was never baptized.
The second sacrament is confirmation; defined by Catholic.org (as all sacraments will be defined by here) as a signing with the gift of the Spirit, confirmation enriches the baptized with the Holy Spirit, binding them more perfectly to the Church, and strengthening them in their witness to Christ by word and deed and in their work to bring to its fullness the Body of Christ. Confirmation is conferred through anointing with chrism and the laying on of hands. Was the thief on the cross ever confirmed? He was a confirmed thief.
He never made a statement that would qualify as part of this sacrament, so no he was not. Admittedly this occurred before Pentecost, but salvation has been the same for all time; faith that the Messiah will be (or was) sacrificed in our stead for our sins.
Thirdly there is the Eucharist, the most august sacrament, in which Christ himself is contained, offered and received, and by which the Church constantly lives and grows. The Eucharistic Sacrifice, the memorial of the death 68
Salvation By Works
and resurrection of the Lord, in which the sacrifice of the cross is perpetuated over the centuries, is the summit and source of all Christian life and worship; it signifies and effects the unity of the people of God and achieves the building up of the Body of Christ.
This is a corruption of the Lord’s Supper. These three are the sacraments required for initiation into the church, and through this church membership, into heaven. Never was this offered to the thief, but he still went to heaven.
Then we have penance; Through penance, the faithful receive pardon through God's mercy for the sins they have committed. At the same time, they are reconciled with the Church community. The confession, or disclosure, of sins frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others.
They are partially correct here; it is misdirected.
What they call a sacrament is spilling your guts to a priest and the priest absolving you of your sin. Jesus has the power to forgive sin, but no clergy of any religion has that power.
The thief on the did not do penance, instead he chose repentance to the True High Priest.
Another sacrament is the anointing of the sick.
Through the sacrament of anointing, Christ strengthens the faithful who are afflicted by illness, providing them with the 69
Salvation By Works
strongest means of support. Jesus showed great concern for the bodily and spiritual welfare of the sick and commanded his followers to do the same. The celebration of this sacrament is an opportunity for the deepening of the faith of the community who are able to witness the faith and devotion of those being anointed.
Some New Testament churches still practice the anointing with oil or the laying on of hands. This is not a sacrament to us, nor is it an ordinance; no more than praying is. It was practiced in the early church, and never was directly told to cease, but it changes nothing of the prayers offered for the sick, the only effectual part of the action.
Extreme Unction is to prepare the person for their passing; The Church asks spiritual assistance for the departed, honors their bodies, and at the same time brings solace of hope to the living. The celebration of the Christian funeral brings hope and consolation to the living. While proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ and witnessing to the Christian hope in the resurrection, the funeral rites also recall to all who take part in them God's mercy and judgement and meet the human need to turn always to God in times of crisis.
70
Salvation By Works
There is no spiritual assistance for the departed.
When their last breath leaves them, their soul and spirit is eternally bound for heaven or hell at that very instant: all the prayers, recitations, and tears will change nothing at this point. Their membership in any and every organization is moot at this point. Giving money to anyone to pray them out of hell, or the purgatory that does not exist, is just throwing money away. The rest of this sacrament is simply a funeral spelled out in more detail.
Do not worry about a comfortable coffin for them: they are not there. Soul sleeping does not exist; when the scriptures speak of someone sleeping, that is the term used for the death of a saint; they are no longer suffering, they are at peace with God, and tranquil in heaven, as opposed to screaming and writhing in eternal flames in hell.
We will not go into the other sacraments are they aren’t required, by their belief, for salvation.
The good works theory is busted in Ephesians 2:8-10, as well as by the thief on the cross, who had no time for either good works, or works of righteousness.
Ephesians 2
71
Salvation By Works
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any
man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them.
72
Salvation By Predestination
There are many, including some who call themselves Baptists, who have a misunderstanding of a sound doctrine called predestination, and this wrong interpretation corrupts it into a heresy.
A simple way to tell when this is done is to look to see if any doctrine conflicts with another established teaching. When this occurs, the problem is seen to be our error; the difference must be resolved by study, prayer, and dismissing popular beliefs because neither God nor the scriptures contradict themselves.
The wrong understanding of predestination introduces two concepts that should send up a red flag: First, it contradicts that we have been given by God a free will.
There is a word used in 93 verses in the New Testament, and most uses would be unnecessary if this heresy were true: whosoever. It points to anyone making a choice of their own free will.
The second part of this heresy produces some unanswerable questions according to their doctrine, such as what was the purpose of the apostles?
If we are predestined, Jesus did not need them. They were witnesses of His works, teachings, and resurrection.
73
Salvation By Predestination
None of which would be necessary if it has already been determined where we will go when we die.
What was the purpose of Paul’s missionary journeys? Again, if our eternal destination is out of our hands, how is this not a wasted effort?
Jesus’ death would not have to be recorded because our knowledge of it would change nothing.
Predestination would lastly tell us that our sacred scriptures are not needed either, because if we follow them or not, in the end the point is moot.
All these statements can easily be answered when we understand what predestination really means, and how its misunderstanding is a hell-spawn doctrine. This heresy breaks down to a simple question, who determines if we can be saved?
Let’s look at the scriptures causing the confusion first, and see what fits with scripture, and what does not, remembering that if two scriptures conflict, then we are interpreting at least one of them wrongly.
74
Salvation By Predestination
Ephesians 1:5
Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by
Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of
his will,
Ephesians 1:11
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being
predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh
all things after the counsel of his own will:
In the ancient Greek, there are two different words used here for the English word predestinated; one is active, the other is passive. In verse 5, the word used is προορίσας
(prō·or·í·sas), and in verse 11 we see the word προορισθέντες (prō·or·ís·then·tes).
Both of these words are participles; verbs acting as adjectives, and as we remember, adjectives modify nouns; so, what is the noun here? Who is Paul talking to?
Context is always important. When one examines a verse, we need to pay attention to those verses surrounding it to see a bigger picture. Here Paul is not speaking to the 75
Salvation By Predestination
man on the street: to see this, all we must do is go back to verse 1.
Ephesians 1:1
¶ Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the
saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ
Jesus:
Two groups are addressed here, the saints at Ephesus, and the faithful in Christ. These would be members of other churches, as these letters were circulated to other churches Paul had either started or visited (Colossians 4:16).
If I were to create a participation event, such as a 5K
run, it would be something I would expect to prepare for. A sign-up sheet, a reflective vest, or numbers to assign each participant, medical personnel in case of an injury, a course to be prepared, and much more.
Preparing for an event is what makes the event go without a hitch. I might even award a certificate of accomplishment for those who complete the course. This is called predestination.
76
Salvation By Predestination
Anyone who completes the course, I have predetermined that they’ll get a certificate. These aren’t given out before the event because that would be foolish.
Why run the course if you already have a certificate saying you did? Some might still make the effort, but not everyone would.
When Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he was speaking to those already saved; the event they had completed was their repentance and faith in Jesus, and their reward was heaven.
Predestination used here was assuring those who received this letter that there was no doubt of their eternal reward. God had predetermined that anyone who was saved would go to heaven.
It also means that a plan was involved, was complete, and that every stipulation had been covered. God knew from eternity past who would accept Jesus.
Foreknowledge and predestination are not interchangeable words, and that seems to be where much of the confusion lies. Foreknowledge is prophecy. Knowing something will happen is not the same as causing it to happen.
77
Salvation By Predestination
If I were to set a pot of beans and a bar of chocolate in front of my wife, I can say with one hundred percent conviction that she will choose the chocolate. I know she hates beans with a passion and has never met a chocolate she did not like, excluding maybe sugar-free.
That is foreknowledge. It is only predestination if I were to force her to eat the chocolate. At that point, the decision is not hers, whether she agrees with it or not.
Predestination as falsely taught is the removal of choice and contradicts free will. Scripturally interpreted, the only thing we have no choice on is heaven; all who are redeemed have no say in where they spend eternity, but who would argue for the alternative? Are there sufficient scriptures that support that salvation is open for whomsoever desires it?
78
Salvation By Predestination
God’s Love is For All
God has given each and every one of us a soul; something that survives the death of this body. We are all individuals with talents. There are no disposable people. If we were to be honest, we all know someone we would rather not know. Or at least know of someone we’d rather not.
Whether it’s because of a quirk they have which irritates us, because they cuss like a sailor, and yes, I was a sailor so I can say that; or because they love to sow discord or cause problems, we all know someone we consider to be a bad apple.
God has no hatred for anyone, and this includes child rapists, mass murderers, and drug dealers. He hates the sin, but He loves the sinner. Even those who were nailing Him to the cross Jesus took the time to ask the Father to forgive them. If God could forgive them, He can forgive anyone: this was His one and only Son they were committing this atrocity toward. In fact, it was people like these soldiers that Jesus came to save, not just those who tried to do good, but those who did not.
Watching as His Son suffered those hours in such excruciating pain without sending those legions of angels to 79
Salvation By Predestination
rescue Him shows the depth the Father loves us, to put our needs over those of His Son.
If He does not deny us His Son, He will deny us nothing.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.
80
Salvation By Predestination
Salvation’s Need is for All
The term “salvation” is best described as avoiding the hell that we all deserve by going to the heaven that we could never warrant. Yet in this life, there are those who have been deceived by the citizens of hell itself.
The first deceived are those who will tell you it is better to rule in hell than to serve in heaven. They say that Satan has promised them special things in hell including positions of power, simply for them doing something here while living, so they don’t want to be saved.
Their first deception is to believe anything the devil says to them. If the devil was in charge of hell (and he is not) the thermostat would be in his control, and yet it is not.
Just as God is the God of heaven, He is also the God of hell. And He is not giving out positions of power to anyone. Those in hell have many other things to worry about, the least of which is climate control.
In less than one second after death, everyone desires to be one of the saved, whether they felt like it in life or not.
No matter what you think of anyone, they too need salvation.
They too are loved by God. They too require mercy.
81
Salvation By Predestination
And yet some are also denied mercy because the plan was never explained to them. Or worse, wrongly explained to them, intentionally. To reach everyone, God kept the plan simple, and He kept it free, because everyone needs to be saved.
Psalm 53
1 ¶ The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.
Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity:
there is none that doeth good. 2 God looked down from
heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any
that did understand, that did seek God. 3 Every one of them
is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is
none that doeth good, no, not one.
Romans 3:9
What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we
have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are
all under sin;
82
Salvation By Predestination
God Loves the Unlovable
Many try to treat everyone equally, but that is difficult to do. Some of our preferences include our children, because of our vested interest in them. Even inside our children, many times we have a favorite, whether it’s because they more resemble us than the others, or because they are more compliant than the others, or even because they get into less trouble than the others.
We tend to favor those we know over those that we do not because we deal with, or have dealt with, them in the past. When we do not know the people involved, many times we are affected by their backstories, learning the things that have put them where they are today.
Sometimes we favor those who can benefit us the most, because, well, they can make our lives better if not easier.
As a whole, we cannot claim to be ‘not a respecter of persons. That just is not our nature.
As our Creator, God has a vested interest in everyone. He knows all of our backstories, and we, each and every one of us, are His personal favorite people. Even when we don’t know Him, He knows us, what makes us tick, what makes us unique, and what drives us to do the things we do.
83
Salvation By Predestination
He loves us, each and every one, saint or sinner. He hates our sin but loves us even while we are sinners.
He sees us as one race: human.
He isn’t concerned about what’s in our wallets, or even if we have a wallet. He does not care if we are a CEO, CFO, or even unemployed. He knows what we need here and now, and He knows what we need when we draw our last breath.
He also knows which of those concerns are most pressing and has provided for it. In this life, our last breath makes everyone equal; a soul that owns nothing, heading to the final abode. One that God has prepared for you, or one He has prepared for the devil and his angels.
Acts 10
34 ¶ Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I
perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 35 But in
every nation he that feareth him, and worketh
righteousness, is accepted with him.
Romans 2
84
Salvation By Predestination
11 For there is no respect of persons with God. 12 For as
many as have sinned without law shall also perish without
law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged
by the law;
Ephesians 6:9
And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing
threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven;
neither is there respect of persons with him.
85
Salvation By Predestination
God Wishes Hell on No One
Most of us have a list of people we feel the world would be better off without, whether these people are politicians, crooks (not all crooks are politicians, but …), people that have harmed us, or even sometimes those that just irritate us.
Executions bring up a certain sense of satisfaction because someone is paying for a crime with the highest price that can be paid: their life. Is this not the death of the wicked?
It is indeed just that, the death of the wicked. What we experience is the necessary fulfillment of justice. Some might call it closure. It is not or should not be the death that brings us contentment, but the carrying out of justice.
Love the sinner but hate the sin. We sometimes have a problem separating the two, especially since sin is so promoted that the sinners not only readily encourage it but identify by it as well.
God has no problem separating the sinner and the sin.
He does know that sin will be punished, but His love for everyone means that He gains no delight in the death of anyone, whether or not we do, and we should not.
86
Salvation By Predestination
Jesus died for the most wicked person on the planet just as much as He died for us.
Ezekiel 33:11
Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no
pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked
turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
2 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.
87
Salvation By Predestination
God's Promises
There are typically two types of promises, conditional and unconditional. Conditional promises typically start with the word “if”.
“If you behave yourself, I’ll get an ice cream cone for you on the way home today. If you do not, no television tonight” Here we see promises can be either rewards or punishments. Either ice cream and television, or no ice cream nor television.
A conditional promise is when you satisfy the condition, the promise is enacted. Unconditional promises do not have this requirement. “let’s go get some ice cream!”
has no stipulations.
Because we tend to hear what we want to hear, we sometimes miss the conditions of a promise, and then we get upset when that promise never comes to fruition. Confusing the two types of promises is something many of us did as children because of the selective hearing we can all get on occasion.
88
Salvation By Predestination
The best things about God’s promises are that they are all written out. This has two benefits: first, we know the promise has been given because there is a record of it.
Second, we can see it in its context to confirm if the promise has a condition to it.
If God’s promise is unconditional, it applies to everyone without exception, and when His promise is conditional, it applies to anyone who meets the condition of the promise.
Acts 3:25
Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant
which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham,
And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be
blessed.
Galatians 3
8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the
heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto
Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. 9 So
then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful
89
Salvation By Predestination
Abraham. 10 For as many as are of the works of the law
are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one
that continueth not in all things which are written in the
book of the law to do them. 11 But that no man is justified
by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just
shall live by faith. 12 And the law is not of faith: but, The
man that doeth them shall live in them. 13 Christ hath
redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse
for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on
a tree:
90
Salvation By Predestination
“Go Ye into All the World”
We are living in the age of the Unlimited Commission. Mark records it as “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
The Greek words that are translated as “every creature” is πάσῃ τῇ κτίσει (pá·sē tē ktí·sei) which mean it could be translated just as scripturally as preaching the gospel to “all who have been made” or “everyone in existence”.
If a drunkard wanders in during a church service, he or she shouldn’t be asked to leave unless they are causing a disturbance, meaning they aren’t there because they wished to be preached to.
If they have legitimate questions, or do desire to hear the gospel, answer their questions, and let them hear the gospel. There are no disposable people; Christ died for all.
If he or she is not there to be preached to, but to preach to us about how they’ve been wronged or whatever, be respectful as you dismiss them; maybe they will come 91
Salvation By Predestination
back later. Maybe they won’t, but we shouldn’t give them a reason to not come back.
Jesus died for all. That means there is no one the church should be refraining from preaching to. This includes those of other religions, typically the hardest to reach. Just remember Saul was a devout Jew following their religion before he became a Christian, and he brought his devotion with him. Paul still gets partial credit for those who are saved following what we call “The Roman Road of salvation.”
Do not be concerned by the life they lead now; that is in the hands of the Holy Spirit, and He will handle everything if and after they are saved. Remember that we are tying the hands of the Holy Ghost when we won’t preach to someone because we disapprove of them. And we do not want to be accused of tying the hands of the Holy Ghost.
Matthew 28
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even
unto the end of the world. Amen.
92
Salvation By Predestination
In the Old Testament, each of the heathen nations either had their own gods, renamed other gods to their own culture and myths, or kept the gods of those nations that had defeated them in the past. If you lived in such and such a nation, then so and so were your gods. That was never how it was intended, but that is how it ended up.
That’s why Ruth said in Ruth 1:16, “for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:” Naomi’s people would be her own before Naomi’s God would be hers.
This is why the Limited Commission was given.
Before His rejection on Palm Sunday, Jesus was there for those who worshipped the One True God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Since then, the Jewish Messiah was crucified. Not just for Israel, but for the entirety of the world. His blood was spilt to cover all sins of all people everywhere.
All of mankind was born dying to go to hell. Not desiring to go but destined to go. God loves us all enough that He never wants to spend a moment away from any of 93
Salvation By Predestination
us. So, He took each hammering of those nails so each and every one of us could freely avoid hell.
2 Corinthians 5:14
For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus
judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
1 John 2:2
And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours
only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
Hebrews 2:9
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the
angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and
honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for
every man.
94
Salvation By Predestination
Salvation’s Condition
Salvation does have a condition to it. Without asking God to forgive us of our sin, it is of no use to us. He did it all. He was beaten, whipped, and flogged. Any who think this by itself is no big deal should try getting whipped, beaten, and flogged sometime by someone trained in causing pain.
He took the crown of thorns for us. Anyone who has ever gotten a splinter knows how great it feels to get it out because they know how painful it feels to get it. But this was not one piece of wood put in a finger.
It was a dozen or more pieces crammed onto the crown and forehead of His head, a lot more sensitive than our fingers. And they were left there for hours.
He had the nails hammered through His wrists and feet, so He could use the foot nail to push His raw back up the roughhewn cross, where more and more splinters could enter His back each time He breathed while He hung there all those hours.
His dignity was removed as He hung there for hours, naked, despite what artwork might show. He did indeed pay 95
Salvation By Predestination
it all as He bled and died, so that we would have to pay nothing.
He is a provisional Savior to the world, a conditional Savior for all, but to those that accept Him, a permanent Savior, giving a salvation that can never be taken away.
1 Timothy 4:10
For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach,
because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of
all men, specially of those that believe.
Nothing we’ve covered here could in any way promote the heresy that God wants only certain people saved and all others to go to hell. In fact, this heresy will send some to hell because it promotes the idea that no one has to do anything to be saved; they either already are or can never achieve it.
Nothing is a more hell-spawn doctrine than this.
96
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
In an ABC poll taken in 2005, 89 percent of people polled believed in heaven, 85 percent of believers thought they were going there, and only one in four thought they had to be saved to get in.
Most of us have spoken to someone that thinks that you only have to be good to make it inside the pearly gates.
Of those who do not think they are going to heaven when they die, many believe that hell is unavoidable.
There are times when you’ve attended the funeral of someone who never went to church; never believed in God; spent most of their time either drunk or stoned, only to hear someone at their funeral say “At least they are in a better place now …”
There is a common myth that says that when we die, heaven is the default final resting place, and no matter what we do, God is just going to let us in because we suffered at least a little in this life.
Some might say they are going to heaven because they went through some kind of ceremony involving water as a newborn. They themselves had no say in the matter and they still think that the ceremony was legitimate and their place in heaven is assured.
97
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
Your parents can do nothing to change your eternal destination. Neither can your spouse, a priest, a psychologist, or anyone for that matter. Only you can, of your own free will; and you still have to do it right.
When someone tells you they are going to heaven because they have been good, how do you respond?
Let us look at the fact that Jesus paid the price, but for us to claim that benefit, there is something we must do as well. Calvary was not a waste of time. It was never a part of the plan; it always was the plan. Let’s see what we can tell others to let them know their real eternal destination, who is eligible to go, and how to make sure they get it right.
98
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
God’s Means
The last thing Christ did before His ascension was to give the church their marching orders. And yes, the Great Commission was given to the apostles as church members.
If it had been given to them as apostles, it would have died with them.
The spreading of the good news is how any of us were saved. We are, in turn, to continue telling the story of Jesus to the lost world, in hopes that it might be saved also.
This is not a job left for just pastors and deacons; yes, they preach and teach on Sunday, but witnessing isn’t the same as preaching; not if it is to be effective.
First, the life we live should be a witness for us. As we grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord, our lives should and will reflect that.
Witnessing should not feel forced. The Holy Spirit will nudge you, if you are in a place where you can listen to Him. He will tell you what to say; we are instruments, He is in control. Again, you must be in a place in your life where you can hear Him, and He can use you. After all, you might 99
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
be the only chance that some sinner will ever have to accept Christ.
Ezekiel 3
17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the
house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and
give them warning from me. 18 When I say unto the
wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not
warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked
way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his
iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 19 Yet
if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his
wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his
iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
We should never shy away from the opportunity to witness, but more importantly, we should never wander far enough away from Jesus that we can’t hear Him anymore.
Anything that God asks us to do, He empowers us to do. Even when we can’t believe in ourselves, we can always believe in Him.
100
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
Matthew 28
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even
unto the end of the world. Amen.
Acts 10
42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and
to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the
Judge of quick and dead. 43 To him give all the prophets
witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him
shall receive remission of sins.
44 ¶ While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell
on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the
circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as
came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was
poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
101
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
God Has a Method
In a courtroom, the testimony of those who witnessed an event are presented before the judge and jury. One lawyer will ask questions of the witness, the other will bring out reasons why this witness cannot be trusted. The jury will pit the results of the examination and cross-examination with each witness. Is what they said true, and are they a plausible witness?
In the spiritual realm, we are the witnesses. We know our personal side of the story with Jesus, and how He has saved us. The question is, does the jury see us as plausible witnesses by the lives we lead?
If not, God cannot use us as He wishes to. This leads to blessings missed, treasures not stored in heaven, and us wondering what God’s will is for us. God uses those who are truly ready for service to be His instruments in saving people.
Romans 10
102
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom
they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him
of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear
without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except
they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of
them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad
tidings of good things!
103
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
God Has a Mode
There is a word that rarely appears in the bible outside of a quote. That word is “say”. Most of the times you see it, someone is speaking. “But I say unto you” is an example. Much of the Bible is written in past tense because it is a written record of the past.
Revelation 22:17 has the distinction of being the last invitation of the Bible.
Revelation 22:17
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that
heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And
whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
The Spirit is the Holy Ghost and is the sole Administrator of the New Testament church. The bride is herself the New Testament church.
The word “say” is present tense. This “last invitation” is still ongoing. The Lord and His church are reaching out even today to the lost and dying world.
104
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
Remember that “church” is a reference to the members, the laity as well as the clergy. We are all expected to be active soul-winners.
We the believers are the process God has chosen to get His invitations out. We never have to worry about running out of invitations, just running out of time.
Luke 14
16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great
supper, and bade many: 17 And sent his servant at supper
time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things
are now ready. 18 And they all with one consent began to
make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece
of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have
me excused. 19 And another said, I have bought five yoke
of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me
excused. 20 And another said, I have married a wife, and
therefore I cannot come. 21 So that servant came, and
shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house
being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the
streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor,
and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. 22 And the
servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and
105
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
yet there is room. 23 And the lord said unto the servant,
Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to
come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I say unto
you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste
of my supper.
106
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
Mankind Has a Decision
The invitation extended to everyone is a “whosoever will” invitation. Proxies are never mentioned nor accepted.
No matter how much you want someone to accept Christ, neither you nor anyone else can do that for them.
Some religions, beginning with the Catholics, think baptism has something to do with salvation, and so believe the earlier someone is “baptized”, the sooner their eternal destination is settled. The baptism of an infant is in so many ways unscriptural, and one of those reasons is that a baby a few days old cannot confess that they are a sinner in need of a Savior, hence they are not a scriptural candidate for baptism.
When the irregular churches of the sixth century needed to raise money, they introduced the “Sale of Indulgences”, where someone living could make a financial contribution to said irregular church in the name of someone who had died to minimize their suffering after death. This false teaching led to the seventh century false doctrine of purgatory, the place where people were supposedly purged of their sins.
107
Salvation By Grace Through Faith
People can’t pay for their own sins successfully, much less for other people’s sins. Jesus did that on Calvary.
All the irregular churches were doing was raising funds.
When anyone looks in the mirror, they are looking at the only one who can invite Jesus into their heart. If they never do, when they pass from this life and find themselves at the Great White Throne Judgment, they will have no one to blame but themselves.
They cannot be prayed out of hell or the lake of fire; no confession of any sort will do them any good. Because everyone, before going into the lake of fire after the Judgment, will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father. However, if they confess that here and now: all the difference in the world.
Joshua 24
15 ¶ And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose
you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which