The Good Of The Father (Buying Jesus)

 

For in grace, through faith, are you saved, and this is not out of you; it is God's approach present, not of works, lest anyone should be boasting. 

Paul to the Ephesians 2: 8-9, Concordant New Testament 

I came across an old Billy Graham crusade video the other night in which the old preacher seemed to declare the work that needed to be done in order for one to be saved.  The first being that the individual needed to repent, or turn back, from their sin.  The second requirement was that the individual must come to the Lord in faith.  Now, this has been a long used tactic of those in the mainstream church for thousands of years.  YOU must turn from your sin.  YOU must believe.  Somehow, the free gift of salvation offered by the Father now must be achieved by the Lords children.  The apostle Paul warned us of this in his letter to the Ephesians.  For in Ephesians, Paul clearly states that salvation is "God's approach present, not of works" {Paul to the Ephesians 8-9}.  Secondly, is there indeed sin to repent from if Jesus has already taken our penalty upon Himself at the cross {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}?  Yet, as I said, this has been the teaching of the mainstream church for thousands of years.  I am not surprised, then, that the old preacher Billy Graham, having been raised up in the teachings of the church, would continue to speak the church narrative.  Even while I was in the church, I was witness to those who would have airs about them in regards to their supposed standing with the Lord.  They had personally won that battle, turned from their sins and were now right with God.  The funny thing is, others within the church celebrated and respected these individuals.  However, I believe that Paul, were he with us today, would have admonished such behavior.  See, what we know in Christianity as salvation is that belief that we are saved by our heavenly Father for eternity.  While admitting the free gift of salvation, the church all too often sends the message that our salvation can also be lost as easily as it was given to us freely.  So, has God ever been known to go back on His word?  Well, if you are to listen to church theology, you might think that this is the case.  My good friend who adheres to the Eastern Orthodox sect of Christianity constantly reminds me that we need to pray for the Lords forgiveness lest we spend our eternity in hell.  So, our loving God, who never lies, would suddenly take away that which He has given us willingly?  I find that hard to swallow. 

That, if ever you should be avowing with your mouth the declaration that Jesus is Lord, and should be believing in your heart that God rouses Him from among the dead, you shall be saved 

Paul to the Romans 10: 9, Concordant New Testament 

It is my belief that our salvation is an issue of our understanding and not of our own efforts.  Paul has spoken that if we should be "Believing in your heart" that God raised Jesus from the dead, that we will be saved {Paul to the Romans 10:9}.  So, do you truly believe that you're saved?  If so, no amount of effort on your part will change that.  But what about my sin?  Brother, hasn't Jesus already conquered sin on that cross?  You believe that Jesus died for your sins but you still claim that you need forgiveness for them?  To me, that sounds like an issue of your belief and not of sin.  You do not believe in your heart that you have been found innocent in the eyes of the Father.  Far too many people have fallen for the false mainstream church doctrine which speaks to the Father turning His back on His creation and taking away that which He has freely given us.  That does not sound like the God I know!  The God I know loved me enough to create me in His own likeness {Genesis 1:27}.  The God that I know loved me enough to dispatch His own Son to take the penalty I justly deserved {Johns Account 3:16-17}.  Those in the church will point to the iconic scripture which we find in John 3:16 as evidence of the Lords love for us, and they are correct in doing so.  But many in the church will also cringe at the second part of this scripture, by which the apostle John clearly states that Jesus did not come to judge the world, but that the "World may be saved through Him."  This is referred to as universal salvation, and it has been disavowed by many in the mainstream church.  How can someone who behaves badly somehow be saved?  How was the man Saul saved?  How was Matthew the tax collector saved?  It has never been our duty to decide who will and who will not be saved.  However, it does fall upon us to believe in Christ and the free gift which has been given to us by the Father.  To know in our hearts that we're saved.  

~Scott~