WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE THAT SAYS…
22 WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE THAT STATES YOUR
NAME CAN BE BLOTTED
OUT OF THE LAMB’S BOOK OF LIFE? Rev. 3::5
“He
that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not
blot out his name out of the book of life,
but I will confess his name before my
father, and before his angels.”
Jesus tells us he will not blot out the names of those who overcome. This implies that he will blot the names of those who do not overcome. So, “Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5:5) Believers are the only ones who will not have their names blotted from the Lamb’s book of life.
Regarding the blotting of names, Jesus compared the kingdom of heaven to a king who prepared a great wedding supper for his son, and invited “chosen people” to the celebration. When his choice guests declined the invitation, the king swore that those who refused his supper would taste his wrath instead, making it painfully obvious he’d stricken their names from the list. (Luke 14:16-24) The king then, summoned everyone, “the good and the bad,” to come and enjoy his supper. (Matt. 22:10) Notice everyone’s name was initially on the list. They only needed to confirm their reservations.
According to Scripture, Christ “died not for our sins only,
but for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:2) This placed everyone’s name, “the good and
the bad,” in the Lamb’s book of life, the King’s guest list, so-to-speak. The death and resurrection of our King
prepared a place for everyone in His heavenly kingdom, but many refuse this
King’s invitation. For we see that if a person dies without
believing in Jesus’ death and resurrection for eternal life, then that person’s
name is blotted from His book of the living. (Ps. 69:28) Every name, “the good and the bad,” was
written in the lamb’s book of life when the lamb was slain before the
foundation of the world in preparation for their salvation. However, only those
who overcome will not have their
names blotted out of the book which were written there from the foundation of
the world. (Rev. 17:8, 13:8) For, “Who is
he that overcometh the world, but he
that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5:5) This confirms John’s earlier proclamation that:
“He that believeth
on him is not condemned, but he that
believeth
not is
condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name
of the only begotten Son of
God.” (John 3:18)
Basically, either you believe in Jesus and your sins are blotted out or you don't and your name is! (Ps. 51:1, 1 John 5:5) Since Jesus is the “finisher of our faith,” this eliminates any possibility that losing your faith will cancel your salvation. (Heb. 12:2) It's Jesus who keeps your name on the books.
LUKEWARM
OUT OF HIS MOUTH? Rev. 3:16
“because
thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my
mouth.”
Contrary to
popular opinion, the “lukewarm” are not the lazy lethargic members in the body
of Christ. The lukewarm are anything but
inactive. They are generally more
zealous for good works than most born again believers. The lukewarm crowd
contains the most self-sacrificing, thoughtful, peace loving people ever to go
to hell. As a matter of fact, these
people will be cast into hell while boasting of their godly accomplishments to
Jesus Christ Himself. (Matt. 7:21-22) The lukewarm live by the golden rule and
they consider themselves very “spiritual.”
However, they are devoid of the divine nature the new birth
supplies. They base their salvation and
spirituality on their own benevolent works, philanthropies, excellent
character, and moral decency rather than exclusively on Jesus’ work on the
cross and His literal resurrection from the grave. (Matt. 7:22, Rom. 4:5,
10:9-10) The lukewarm will find out the
hard way that the road to heaven was not paved with the fulfillment of good
intentions. The road to heaven is paved
with nothing but faith in Christ’s death, blood, and resurrection for eternal
life. (
Preachers the world over, have threatened congregations of born again believers with the damnation recorded in this Scripture. They tell believers that if they become lax in their commitment to Christ, they are lukewarm and in danger of being spewed out of the body of Christ by the Lord Himself. Such ministers believe that “cold” and “hot” speaks of one’s zeal for the Lord, and those who are not “on fire for Jesus” will be spewed into outer darkness. This teaching comes from ministers who have not “rightly divided the Word of truth.” (2 Tim. 2:15) Jesus declared that being born again is the only criteria for entrance into the kingdom of heaven. Zealousness has nothing to do with it! (Luke 7:47) The new man born in every believer is hot or “on fire” because he is the “candle of the Lord” in believers. (Prov. 20:27) Whereas, the cold are those who are “dead in trespasses and sins,” for the dead are always cold. The sinner’s soul is paralyzed in death inside a nature that is cold toward God. Human nature, the flesh, the nature of sin. (Rom. 6:6)
Now, concerning being spewed or vomited
out, the Apostle Paul would ask, “does not even nature itself teach you that a man can only spew out of his mouth
things that are not part of his body?” (1 Cor. 11:14, 12:15) For instance, you cannot cough up a lung,
vomit out a foot, or spew out an arm, because they are part of your body. Born again believers are members of the body
of Christ, and just as you cannot spew one member of your body from your mouth,
neither can Christ spew any member of “the church which is his body,” out of
his. (Eph. 1:22-23) Therefore, it should
be evident that the lukewarm are “among” members of the body of Christ, but are
not actual members of Christ’s body. For
it is impossible for a man to spew a member of his body out of his mouth. Jesus Christ prefers us to take the way of
faith and be saved or take the way of unbelief and be damned, rather than take
the way of works and have Him spew us into outer darkness. The tepid works of men cannot save. God just can't stomach them!
24 WHAT
ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE THAT INDICATES THAT GOD CAN WITHDRAW
HIS HOLY SPIRIT FROM YOU? Psalm 51:11
“Cast me not away from thy presence; and take
not thy holy spirit from me.”
Can
God withdraw His Holy Spirit from the born again? To answer this question you must realize that
this prayer was prayed by King David who was under the inferior covenant of the
Law. (Heb. 7:19) During the Old
Testament era, the Holy Spirit could not dwell in man, not even this man after
God’s own heart because no person was holy enough for God’s spirit to dwell
inside, because Christ’s blood had not been shed to purge any soul from
sin. Like Noah’s dove, the Holy Spirit
could not reside on corrupt flesh. In
the Old Testament when God wanted to do a work, His Spirit would “come upon” a
person to accomplish a task and then depart.
In the Old Testament, the only place
where God could dwell was on top of a box, called the Ark of the Covenant,
between two cherubs in the Holy of Holies.
This was the only place hallowed
enough to be worthy of God to dwell. Not
until the new birth produced the sin-free new creation “that cannot sin” could
God make His abode in believers. (John 14:26, 1 John 2:7, 3:9) New Testament believers are the only people,
since creation, to have the Lord God Almighty live inside them by way of
Christ’s Spirit; the new man. This was
the mystery of godliness hidden from ages and generations. It is “Christ in you;” God dwelling in
man. (Col. 1:26-27)
Concerning New Testament believers, God
sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying “Abba Father,” and that
self-same spirit promised never to leave nor forsake us. (Gal. 4:6, Heb.
13:5) Jesus pledges that once He comes
into you, He will “never leave” or forsake you. (Heb. 13:12) Christ’s Holy Spirit does not retreat from
the heart of the redeemed when quenched, vexed, or grieved at the lack of
growth of such saints. This new man is
married to your soul for better or for worse.
He is there to stay for “he abideth faithful.” However, under the Old Covenant this was not
the case.
When King Saul sinned before the LORD,
the Scripture states that “the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul.” (1 Sam.
16:15) Later, when King David committed
sins more atrocious than Saul ever dreamed.
David feared being appointed the same fate as his predecessor, from whom
God withdrew his Spirit and hid Himself. (1 Sam. 28:6) This is why David earnestly prayed, “cast me
not away from thy presence, and take not thy holy spirit from me.” (Ps. 51:11)
Because the Son of God spoke his
irrevocable promise that He would “in no wise cast out” believers nor will His
Holy Spirit ever leave or forsake them.
New Testament believers are in no danger of being cast from God’s
presence or having the Spirit of God stripped from them. (John 6:37, Heb. 13:5) The Spirit of Christ is the greater one
within you; therefore, your rambunctious old man cannot toss him out or chase
him away. The new man is the Spirit of
Christ, and God the Father does not take away this “life giving” spirit from
any blood-washed soul, “for the redemption of their soul is precious and it
ceases forever that he should still live forever.” (Ps. 49:8-9) Forever never ceases and neither does the
eternal redemption and eternal salvation of the redeemed. (Heb. 9:12, 5:9)
The Spirit of God, which is the Holy
Spirit, never departs from anyone who has believed the gospel for their soul’s
salvation. Jesus Christ was not being
dishonest when He announced that He would be with us always. His spirit never leaves or forsakes the
redeemed.
24a WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE THAT
STATES YOU MUST ENDURE UNTO THE END TO BE SAVED? Matt. 24:13
“But he that shall endure unto
the end, the same shall be saved.”
As Solomon advised, “with all thy
getting get an understanding” because this is hard for many Christians to
believe, but Jesus Christ never told one born again believer to endure unto the
end to be saved. Salvation is not an
endurance test. Salvation is a gift; a
gift to all who believe in Jesus Christ as their savior. When Christ mentioned enduring unto
the end, He was issuing the nation of
·
The four horsemen of the Apocalypse: Famine,
Death, War, and the Antichrist. (Rev. 6:1-8)
·
The inability to buy or sell. For no one with the mark, 666, or the Antichrist’s name
on
one’s palm or forehead can be saved. (Rev. 13:17-18, 14:11)
·
The Antichrist’s wrath against
·
The Seven Vials of the wrath of God. (Rev. 15:7)
·
The Seven Trumpet Judgments. (Rev. 8:2)
·
The Hidden Horrors the Seven Thunders
uttered. (Rev. 10:3)
·
The Seven Seals of Judgment. (Rev. 6)
·
Global Warning that scorches men. (Rev. 16:8)
·
A meteorite striking the earth and destroying
one-third of sea life. (Rev. 8:10-11)
·
Earthquake so violent that it shakes the earth
off its axis. (Isa. 24:20, Rev. 6:12-17)
·
Family betrayal for not swearing allegiance to
Antichrist. (Rev. 13:7-18, Mark 13:12)
·
The
“And
then shall the end come.” (Matt. 24:14, 21)
Every Jew fortunate enough to endure unto the end of the tribulation period,
culminating with Christ’s Second Coming to rescue Israelis from total
annihilation, will be saved. (Rev. 1:7,
Even Job admitted he could not endure,
and he was perfect. (Job 31:23) If we had to endure abstaining from all
wrongs until the rapture or our death, not one of us would be saved. This is why God gives us His divine nature
that cannot sin and neither leaves nor forsakes us. (1 John 3:9, Heb.
13:5) This hidden man of “Christ in you”
endures beyond the end because he “endureth forever.” Born again Christians need not wait until the end to
see whether or not they will be saved.
Jesus did our enduring for us when He endured the cross so we would be
“saved from wrath through him.” (Heb. 12:2, Rom. 5:9) If you are born again Paul wrote regarding the end, “ye have your fruit unto holiness and the end
everlasting life.” (Rom 6:22) When
Jesus spoke of the end, He was not speaking to the born again, but to the
nation of
AND
REMOVE YOUR CANDLESTICK? Rev. 2:5
“repent ... or else I will come unto thee
quickly and will remove thy candlestick out
of
his place except thou repent.”
It may seem ridiculous, but many
Christians who read this Scripture believe the Savior is threatening the
removal of their salvation. (John 6:37)
Jesus threatens no one's salvation, because He is salvation itself, and
He cannot be threatened. Notice the Lord
said, “I will remove your candlestick,” not “I will put your light out.” Remember, “the Lord is thy light and thy salvation,”
so if He put out your light He would be snuffing out Himself.
For ages, Christians have believed they
are the light of the world. Actually, we
are like John the Baptist who announced he was “not the light,” but sent to
bear witness of the light. (John 1:7-8)
Jesus Christ is “the true light that now shineth” and the Church’s
ministry is like a candlestick that holds forth “the light of the glorious
gospel of Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:4) Jesus
said of
In the book of the Revelation, candlesticks represent the ministry of the Church, the bride of Christ. The removal of one's candlestick speaks of the removal of a saint’s ministry from this world. God permits the removal of some Christians from this life prematurely. (Acts 5:1-11) Many Christians become entangled with things so worldly that they cannot be discerned from the world when they wander from the faith. “For this cause many are weak and sickly, and many sleep (have died).” (1 Cor. 11:30-32) However, these believers remain “saved, yet so as by fire,” for the Lord is still their light and their salvation. (Ps. 27:1) If God extinguishes “the light” in any believer, He would be guilty of theocide, because He would have snuffed out Himself.
26 WHAT
IF A PERSON BELIEVES IN THE LORD JESUS TO OBTAIN THE PROMISED SALVATION BUT IS NOT
WATER BAPTIZED? ISN’T HE OR SHE STILL
LOST, BECAUSE THE SCRIPTURES STATES THAT:
“The like figure baptism doth also now save us….” (1 Pet. 3:21)
When you’re confronted by pastors and laymen who teach that water baptism is required for salvation, you need only “rightly divide the word of truth” to shut their mouths. As Paul wrote, “with well doing ye should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.” (1 Pet. 2:15) However, one must be “skillful in the word” to silence them. To do this pertaining to the doctrine of water baptism as a basis for salvation, you need only ask them to read Ephesians 4:5 aloud. They will read “There is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.” Ask them, “How many baptisms are there?” They will reply, “One baptism.” Then state, “So there is one baptism that does now save us.” Next, direct their attention to 1 Corinthians 12:13 and have them read aloud, “By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body.” Now tease them a bit as Elijah did Jezebel’s prophets. (1 Kings 18:27) Ask them, “Did it say that by some man we were all baptized or by one spirit we were all baptized? You will find it pains them to acknowledge the Spirit is being recognized for administering the one and only “baptism that doth now save us.”
Next, ask them which “one baptism” is greater, being baptized by the Spirit into the body of Christ, or being baptized by some man into a body of water? When they start adding to their arguments, press the point again of exactly how many baptisms does God recognize since there is only “One Lord, one faith, and one baptism?” They will grudgingly admit, “One.” Mention that you noticed it states that we were all baptized by this “one baptism.” Inquire, of them, how many does the word “all” leave out? They will answer, “None.”
Here is where “putting to silence the ignorance of foolish men” comes into play. (1 Pet. 2:15) Fit the pieces of this puzzle together for them. Ask them to re-read 1 Corinthians 12:13 and they will mutter, “By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body.” Then exclaim, “You mean to tell me the Holy Spirit water baptized me and I don’t even remember getting wet? It says He baptized us all into one body, so it had to be a body of water, right? Educate these people that the one “baptism which doth now save us” is not our flesh being baptized into water from cumulus clouds! The one and only “baptism which doth now save us” occurred at salvation, when the Holy Spirit baptized us into the body of Christ. Water baptism is only “the like figure whereunto baptism doth now save us.” When they display a chagrinned look on their faces, inform them that if water baptism is a requirement for salvation, then Paul was a false apostle. For Paul literally went on record thanking God that he did not water baptize many people. Paul wrote:
“I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;
lest any should say that I baptized in mine own name. And I
baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not
whether I
baptized any other. For Christ sent me not to baptize,
but to preach the gospel…. For it pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe.”
Paul did not put any stock in the denominational doctrine that H2O is required to save a soul from hell. (1 Cor. 1:13-14) As a matter of fact, Paul wrote this passage in the context of defeating such denominational doctrines that were being promoted in the churches then and now!
Next, direct their attention to the response Philip gave the Ethiopian eunuch pertaining to his inquiry about being water baptized.
“The Eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to
be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all
thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. … they went down into
the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.” (Acts 8:38)
Notice the eunuch brought up the issue of water baptism, not Philip. Moreover, Philip’s response is very enlightening concerning the issue of this ceremonial washing he stated: “If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest.” (Acts 8:37) Notice Philip did not state water baptism was a condition of the eunuch’s salvation. Philip replied thou mayest, not thou must! The only “must” requirement pertaining to salvation is “Ye must be born again,” by having Christ born into your heart by faith. (John 3:7) Therefore, water baptism is truly “the like figure” of the “baptism that doth now save us,” when, at salvation, the Holy Spirit baptizes every soul in the body of Christ rather than in a pool of water. (1 Pet. 3:21, 1 Cor. 12:13) Order the audio supplement: Is Water Baptism essential for Salvation?
Note: After His resurrection, Jesus Christ did not fully disclose to His followers all that His death, blood, and resurrection accomplished. Therefore, when He ascended back to the Father, the early church leaders continued in what was known as “the Apostles Doctrine” found in the early chapters in the book of Acts. It wasn’t until Paul’s conversion that the grand scope of the doctrine of the grace of God was revealed. (Gal. 1:12) Paul wrote that one must be “skilful in the word” to “put to silence the ignorance of foolish men whose mouths must be stopped for they subvert whole houses.” This doctrine of water baptism for salvation is one such subject. (Titus 1:11)
27 WHAT
ABOUT THE DOCTRINE THAT STATES YOU MUST FORSAKE EVERYTHING TO BE SAVED? IT’S GOING TO COST YOU SOMETHING TO BE
SAVED! Rom. 5:18
“By the righteousness of one the free gift came.”
(Were it not for Martin Luther standing up to Pope
Leo X’s Catholic price preachers in his day, he would not be known as the head
of the Protestants, those who were in
protest of the Roman Catholic Church
teachings on “Indulgences;” wherein you had to pay Catholic ministers money in
order to pray the soul of a loved one out of purgatory, when neither purgatory
nor Indulgences is supported by holy Scripture.
Today, however, Protestant ministers, like their Catholic forefathers,
are also levying prices on the free gift of eternal life. Pay close attention.)
Throughout the centuries,
many ministers put a price on salvation by preaching “Its going to cost you something, if you want to make
heaven your home. You’ve got to pay
the price if you want to be a Christian.”
Because of this false teaching, many sinners shrug their shoulders in
hopelessness or shake their fist at God as they walk away knowing that it is
not in them to pay the stringent prices that preachers have levied upon them
for salvation. Ironically, such sinners
are absolutely correct in squarely facing the fact that it is not in them to
pay the price for salvation, because it’s in Jesus. Legalists have preached that salvation will
cost us cigars, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, liquor, working on Sundays, going
to the movies, etc. Their lists are
endless. These ministers preach cost
doctrines for salvation, when the Scriptures teach that no man can by any means
ransom his own soul or redeem the soul of his brother. (Ps. 49:7) Jesus spoke of these legalists in Matthew
chapter 23, where he said “they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne,
and lay them on men’s shoulders, but
they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. Woe unto you
scribes 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.” (Matt. 23:13)
Price preachers who preach
prices of, “You’ve got to stop…and you’ve got to stop…., and stop…in order to
be saved,” need to stop and humble their stout hearts, and repent “by the
acknowledging of the truth” that JESUS PAID IT ALL. All of our stoppings “are counted less than
nothing” toward even a down-payment on our eternal salvation. These same preachers can look at their own
lives and still see that they have not stopped sinning enough, nor kept enough
commandments to contribute one pittance toward their salvation much less the
retention of it. This is why Peter
publicly asked the price preachers of his day,
“Why do you tempt God, to
put a yoke [of the law] around their
necks that neither we nor
our fathers were able to bear? It is only
by the grace of the Lord
Jesus that they shall be saved even as we.”
(Acts 15:10:11)
Peter later wrote that “ye know that ye were not
redeemed with corruptible things such as silver, and gold from you vain
conversation (lifestyle) RECEIVED BY THE TRADITION FROM YOUR ELDERS, but by the
precious blood of Christ.” Salvation is
a free gift to sinners. It is not a gift
for the do-gooders or those who promise to do good, for according to Christ
“there are none good.” (Matt. 19:17)
Your salvation is based on God’s promises to His Son, not your promises
to God! (Gal. 3:16) Your salvation cost
you nothing, but it cost God the most precious thing He had, the blood of His
only begotten Son.
Truly,
“there is nothing new under the sun,” because in Peter’s day believing elders
were perverting the gospel of Christ by telling people that if you don’t change
your lifestyle by keeping the laws of Moses, then “Ye cannot be saved.” (Acts
15:1,5, Gal. 5:3-4) This same tradition from
the elders is alive and quite well today, and it is being promoted by well
intentioned pastors as cost doctrines for salvation. Many well meaning elders will give you their
most cherished and historically famous tradition for redemption when they tell
you that you must turn from your sins (the breaking of the law) in order to be
saved. (1 John 3:4)
IN
CASE YOU ARE DULL OF HEARING, WHAT THESE
MINISTERS
ARE TELLING YOU IS THAT YOU MUST KEEP
THE
LAW OF COMMANDMENTS, THIS BEING THE ONLY
WAY YOU CAN TURN FROM YOUR
SINS (THE
TRANSGRESSION OF THE LAW) OR
“YE CANNOT BE SAVED.”
This is the same ole song and dance that caused “no
small disputation and dissension” in Peter’s day. Because if you could turn away from your sins
(the breaking of the law), then subsequently you have kept the whole law, and
no one accomplished that except Jesus Christ, when he kept every jot and tittle
of it for all those who believe. (Rom. 10:4)
If
God’s plan of salvation made it mandatory that to be saved you had to TURN AWAY
FROM YOUR SINS (the breaking of the law), then no one is saved! No Christian yet has successfully turned away
from sin (the breaking of God’s Law) before or after they believed. If you don’t believe this, then consult the
nearest mirror. This is why Jesus was
made manifest to “TAKE AWAY OUR SINS.” (1 John 3:5) Ministers who tell you that, YOU CAN BE
SAVED, IF YOU PAY THE PRICE BY MAKING THE TRADITIONAL VOW TO GOD THAT YOU WILL TURN AWAY FROM YOUR SINS (THE BREAKING
OF GOD’S LAW), HAVE ASKED YOU TO LIE TO GOD’S HOLY SPIRIT, BECAUSE IT IS A VOW THAT YOU CANNOT KEEP! MOREOVER,
IT IS A VOW THAT THESE PREACHERS HAVE NOT KEPT! The Apostle Paul exposed
their hypocrisy when he wrote: “Neither do they keep the law, [and thus keep
from sinning] themselves, but they demand that you keep it, so they can glory
in your flesh.” (Gal. 6:13, Phil. 3:3)
Our
Lord taught us the true cost doctrine, when He said, “Sit down and count the
cost to see whether you have sufficient to pay.” (Luke 14:28) When we sit down and count the cost of what
it takes to make us a Christian, it becomes abundantly clear that you and I
fall short; short on holiness, short on righteousness, and short of being
redeemed. And it doesn’t make any
difference to God how short you are; you’re short, and there is no great thing
we can do to make up our shortcomings and pay the price for our salvation. Ministers who are expositors of the tradition
that reformation of character, resolutions for personal integrity, and
promising not to sin (not to break God’s Commandments) are sufficient to pay
the price of being a Christian, obsure the price of blood, Jesus blood, with
what the Word rejects as a pile of dung and filthy menstrual rags of futile
self-justification efforts. (Isa. 64:6, Phil. 3:8-9, Gal. 3:11)
Never
let anyone’s ministry entice you into believing that you must pay the price (of
works) if you are going to be a Christian.
Because when Jesus asked you to count the cost, you found your resources
of self-denial, self-purification to make yourself righteous were grossly
inadequate to pay the price for the new birth of Christ in you to make yourself
a Christian in God’s sight. If they
still want to talk prices ask them, “WHERE ARE THE NAIL PRINTS IN YOUR HANDS?
ARE THE STRIPES WHICH HEAL UPON YOUR BACK? WAS A CROWN OF THORNS SHOVED AGAINST
YOUR SKULL? BUT MOST OF ALL, DID YOU DIE FOR YOUR OWN SINS? Only the price of
blood, the precious blood of Jesus, mind you, was sufficient to grant your soul
ETERNAL REDEMPTION, ETERNAL SALVATION, and grant you ETERNAL LIFE, when none of your promises to reform (works) could
save you. (Eph. 2:8-9) In order for
you to lose your salvation, you would
have obtained something that God would deem more precious than Jesus’ blood, so
much so that it would entice Him to the point that He would be willing to swap
your soul for it. So, what will you give Him in exchange for your saved
soul? Answer: ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!
While
in college, I led my roommate to Christ.
When I met him again after summer’s break, he had received “cost
doctrines” from misguided zealous Christians and he told me, “I’ve got to pay
the price if I’m going to be a Christian.”
And, I told him just like I am informing you that:
IF
JESUS DIDN’T PAY IT ALL, THEN YOU HAVE HELL TO PAY!!!
I
love the hymn of the Christian faith “Jesus Paid it All” by Elvina M.
Hall. Its words are “Jesus paid it all,
all to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson
stain, but he washed it white as snow.”
Those who follow cost doctrines preach, “Jesus paid some of it, but I
must pay the rest. Sin had left a crimson stain, so I must do my best.”
Salvation
is called our free gift because Jesus paid for it by satisfying the righteous
demands of the law by keeping its commandments. He appeased the wrath of a holy God by
making Himself the offering whereupon God could vent His wrath against the sins
of the world. Our salvation is free
because Jesus paid for it for us all.
Therefore, salvation is:
“To
him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth
the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness.” (Rom. 4:5)
“For
the wages of sin is death [paid by Jesus dying
for our
sins,] but the gift of God [by faith in
Christ’s resurrection]
is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom. 6:23)
The only way to
have your sins TAKEN AWAY is to TURN AWAY from the works of the law to pay for
your soul’s salvation, and TURN IN FAITH to Christ the savior of your
soul. The good news is that the best
thing in life is free and its God’s salvation for humanity paid in full by Jesus Christ, and it’s yours for the asking and
believing. (
28 WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE
THAT INDICATES THAT ONLY CATHOLICS ARE GOING TO HEAVEN SINCE THEY EAT THE
ACTUAL BODY AND DRINK THE ACTUAL BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST. John 5:54
“Whosoever eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life and
I
will raise him up at the last day.”
When Jesus instituted Holy Communion He proclaimed it was to be done in remembrance of Him. He did not say His flesh and blood would actually be there in the form of a wafer, grape juice, and wine. Recall that after Christ’s resurrection, the world at large was largely illiterate and very gullible to interpretations of Scripture by men who could read. In the Catholic faith, one of these men read John 5:54 and deduced that somehow people had to partake of the literal flesh and blood of Jesus Christ in order to gain life everlasting. The Church of Rome then invented a doctrine called transubstantiation, stating that when a priest of the Catholic faith blesses communion, it becomes the authentic flesh and blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, members of the Catholic Church who ingest the sacrament would have eternal life. Jesus Himself proved this to be a false doctrine when He stated that “Whosoever eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life.” Now if Catholic priests are creating the literal flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, they are lying when they tell the people who are excommunicated from the Catholic Church that they are no longer saved. Because Jesus says if they ate and drank His actual flesh and blood they have “eternal life,” period.
Let’s
put Holy Communion into perspective. At
the first Lord’s Supper,
“Jesus
took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it
to his disciples, and said, Take eat; this is
my body
which is broken for you.” (Matt. 26:26, 1 Cor. 11:24)
“And
he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them,
saying, drink ye all of it; for this is my
blood of the New
Testament, which is shed for many for the
remission of
sins.” (Matt. 26:27-28)
When Jesus said, “Take eat; this is my body…” were pieces missing from His
physical body? Or had his flesh taken
the form of oven-fresh bread? No. Well, when He said, “Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the
New Testament…” did He cut Himself and bleed into a cup for this occasion? No.
Besides, if they drank “all of it,”
then there is nothing left for anyone else to partake of. Right? Right!
Nevertheless, every cell of His body was intact, and every drop of His
blood remained in His veins. Jesus Christ showed us the implements of bread and
wine to use in remembrance of
Him. The unleavened bread or Eucharist
that we eat and the grape juice or wine
we drink, during Communion, are
no more the actual flesh and blood of Jesus Christ than they were on the
night our Lord instituted the ordinance of Holy Communion at the Last
Supper.
Salvation
does not come through you participating in Holy Communion, but by participating
in the new birth of Christ in you. This occurs when you believe in His death,
blood, and resurrection for the free gift of eternal life being made a partaker
of the divine nature. (
29 WHAT ABOUT
JUDAS ISCARIOT, WASN’T HE A SAVED APOSTLE OF CHRIST
LIKE THE REST, YET HE LOST HIS SALVATION? Matt. 10:2
“Now the
names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son
of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew
the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was
Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.”
Of all the arguments legalist
pose about losing salvation, this is one of their weakest. In relation to his twelve disciples, Jesus
declared:
“Have
not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? He spake this of Judas
Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of
the twelve.” (John 6:70)
Now I ask you, “Has a devil ever been granted
salvation?” No. So, why do legalists think Judas was the
first devil to be saved and then lost his salvation, when he was the worst
devil next to Satan himself. Its
absurd. A Psalmist
prophesied of Jesus’ prayers toward Judas his betrayer. He wrote:
“Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted
up his heel against me. But thou O LORD, be merciful unto me, and raise me up…”
“Set thou a
wicked man over him: let Satan stand at his right hand. When he
shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.”
“Let his days be few; and let another take his office.
Let his children be fatherless, and his
wife a widow. Let his children be
vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate
places.”
“Let the
extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour. Let there be none to extend mercy unto him:
neither let there be any to favour his fatherless
children. Let his posterity be cut off;
and in the
generation following let their name be blotted out.”
“Let the
iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; an let not the
sin of his mother be blotted out. Let
them be before the LORD continually,
that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.”
“As
he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing,
so let it be far from him. As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let
it come into his bowels like water, and like oil in his bones.
Let this be the reward of mine adversaries.”
Excerpts of Psalms 41 and 109
In light of this, praying for one’s enemies can take
on a whole new significance. Yet, this
was the prophesied prayer Jesus prayed for Judas and the “wicked hands” Judas
betrayed him into. (Acts 2:23) Some
ask, “How do you know this passage in Psalms is referring to Judas?” Answer: Because St. Peter cites it in
reference to another apostle who would replace Judas after to his suicide. Peter quoted:
“For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his
habitation be
desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishopric
[office] let another take.” (Acts 1:20)
Jesus states he knew Judas was a devil from the time
he chose him as an Apostle. Since devils
have never been saved, the same rule applies to this devil named Judas. Some believers are so grossly deceived that they
believe since God is a God of love, eventually even the devil will be
saved. Preposterous! (2 Cor. 6:15) In
reviewing the Lord’s Prayer in John 17, we find Jesus declaring to his Father
that Judas was lost to fulfill prophecy.
“While I was with them in the world, I kept them in
thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition
[hell]; that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” (John 17:12)
According to Proverbs 16:33, the disciples threw lots
for who would replace Judas, and the lot fell on Mathais:
“that he may
take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression
fell, that he might go to his own
place.” (Acts 1:25-26)
This man named Judas was referred
to by Jesus as “the son of perdition,” which means the son of hell, and he went
to that place for which he was named. (John 17:12)
30 WHAT
ABOUT THE ANALOGY OF THE WASHED SWINE, ISN’T THAT A BORN AGAIN CHRISTIAN WHO
LOSES HIS SALVATION? 2 Pet. 2:21-22
“For it had
been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to turn from the holy commandment
delivered unto them. But it is happened
unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that
was washed to her wallowing in the mire.”
Anyone
who says this analogy of a washed pig returning to its mud hole refers to a
born again Christian who starts sinning again, is feeding you a bunch of
hogwash. (Eccl. 7:20) First of all, born
again believers aren’t washed pigs, we’re sheep! Secondly, if you washed a sow seven hundred
times a day, how many times during that day would God consider that pig clean?
Zip! Zero! Nada! Why? Because, washed or not, God considers swine
unclean by nature, just as He considers the natural state of all men to be
unclean by nature – human nature. The washed pig
represents the religious lost who “have a form of godliness” by a code of
ethics, like the Ten Commandments, that cleans up their outer act. For example, suppose a sinner decides he
wants to go to heaven, so he stops drinking, cursing, lying, smoking, stealing,
and fornicating. He then opens orphanages that feed hungry children, he clothes
the naked, and he houses the homeless. Based solely on this information, where
will this man go if he dies? (Heb. 11:6)
If you answered “heaven,” then you need to re-evaluate your personal
plan of salvation, because in God’s sight this man is nothing more than a
washed pig. (Prov. 14:12) Nowhere was it
stated that this man believed in the Lord Jesus’ death, burial, and
resurrection for eternal life. No one is
born again by reciting Hail Mary’s, the Lord’s Prayer, keeping the
commandments, or having one’s good deeds outweigh the bad ones! (Rom. 3:20)
Though most of these things are commendable, Peter writes that salvation is:
“not the putting away of the filth of the flesh
[cleaning up your act], but the answer of
[faith in Christ gives us] a good conscience toward God by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” (1 Pet. 3:21)
Legalistic Christianity bases salvation in humanism,
the “putting away of the filth of the flesh,” washing the pig so-to-speak, but
this doesn’t grant a divine nature to anyone.
If cleaning up your act is the core of your plan of salvation then you
have as much chance as a washed pig of entering heaven’s gates, for your soul
would still remain one with its pig nature, the flesh. (
“God
so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him, should
not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Many ministers preach Nicodemus into heaven because of
his “good works,” yet according to the record in Scripture, Nicodemus was
impressed but not converted. (John 3:2)
Although Nicodemus was the first person to hear the wonderful words of
life recorded in John 3:16, Jesus Christ stated plainly that Nicodemus would
not believe them. (John 3:12) Jesus knew
that in a short time after their conversation, Nicodemus would perform the good
work of burying His crucified body, but not even that good work could save
Nicodemus. A second opportunity
presented itself for Nicodemus to confess Jesus as Lord, but again Nicodemus
remained silent. (John 7:48-53, Rom. 10:9-10)
Holy Scripture gives no indication Nicodemus ever repented of his
unbelief, which is the only sin that consigns a soul to hell. (Rev. 21:8)
The Pharisee Nicodemus’
outward walk was admirably clean, though his soul was as unclean as a pig’s,
being mired in the filth of the flesh. (John 9:40-41) Based solely on the record in Scripture
without the embellishments of man or conjecture of theologians, Nicodemus would
have been better off had he never made his infamous trip by night to hear the
way of righteousness recorded in John 3:16, than to turn from this “holy
commandment” as he did.
And this is His commandment, that we should believe
on the name of His Son Jesus
Christ. (1 John 3:23)
This “holy commandment” to
believe in Jesus is what makes us partakers of His divine nature that cannot
sin because it is born of God. (Acts 16:31, 1 John 3:9) At the new birth, God unhitched your lost
soul from its old man, the pig nature, and washed it in His own blood, then
married your soul to the divine nature of Christ born in you. (
Note: No animal on the face of the earth has a walk
prettier than the pigs’. She trips along daintily like a debutante. Yet she is one of the filthiest creatures
under heaven, and so are religionists in God’s sight.
31 WHAT ABOUT THE PERSON WHO
BELIEVES IN THE DEATH, BLOOD, AND
RESURRECTION OF JESUS
CHRIST FOR ETERNAL LIFE, BUT IS NOT A
LOVING PERSON. THEY CAN’T REALLY BE SAVED, BECAUSE JESUS
SAID:
“By
this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:35)
What
Jesus said and what you believe you heard are entirely different. Jesus said, “By this shall all men know that
ye are my disciples ....” What He did
not say is, “By this shall all men know that ye are saved!” Haven’t you experienced a believer handing you
a gospel tract as if you were as lost as a sinner? Where was the aura of love surrounding you
that should have alerted the evangelist to spare you the gospel material, so
they can give it to someone who desperately needs it? On the other hand, haven’t you timidly
approached someone to share the gospel only to be relieved and blessed to find
that person was already a believer? Why
didn’t the love exuding from him or her alert you to the fact that the person
was a Christian? Although, “the love of
God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost,” there is little chance of
it escaping if our hearts are hardened in “pressing toward” the hallmark of
love by growth in grace. (2 Pet. 1:5-7, Titus 2:11-12) If the love of God abides in you quenched,
then all men shall not know you are Christ’s disciple by
the love you show. But understand this:
“The Lord knoweth them that are his...” even when men don’t. (2 Tim. 2:19) All of Christ’s disciples are saved, but not
all saved people are Christ’s disciples.
Being saved does not make you a disciple. Being saved does not make you loving. Being saved means you were a sinner who
believed the gospel and on that basis God granted your lost soul his gift of
eternal life. Salvation only places you
at the starting gate from which love is to be your greatest quest. For love is the height of Christian
discipleship.
Various and sundry religions
have self-prescribed hallmarks of distinction.
For:
By this shall all men know that
you are:
Buddhist if you sit crossed
legged and chant
mantras during the day.
By this shall all men know that
you are:
Jehovah’s Witness if ye knock on
doors
distributing
Watchtower pamphlets.
By this shall all men know that
you are:
Catholic by the way you make the
sign of the
cross
over your bosom in acknowledgment
of
the holy trinity.
By
this shall all men know that you are: a
Black Muslim by the way you
herald the
“Final
Call” newspapers and sell bean pies.
By this shall all men know that
you are:
Islamic by the way you bow toward
the east
to
pray to God five times a day.
By this shall all men know that
you are:
Christ’s disciples if you have
love one to another.
Now, if you didn’t see a Buddhist meditating or a
Moslem kneeling in prayer toward the east or the Jehovah’s Witness or Black
Muslim hawking their religious materials, or the Catholic making the sign of
the cross, then how would you know
their faith? Similarly, Jesus declared
that men will know you are His disciples if you show love toward other
believers. The converse of this logic is
men will not know you are His
disciple if you don’t show love to the saints.
If a believer is a poor example of a loving person, this does not mean
he or she is lost. It simply means he or
she is a poor example of a loving person.
Love is the pinnacle of discipleship. Trouble erupts when little
transformation takes place in the personality beyond the initial excitement of
receiving “the forgiveness of sins” and God’s promise of eternal life. This results when Christians fail to “apply”
their heart unto wisdom. (Prov. 2:2)
Therefore, be not slothful, but give “all diligence” in climbing the
stairway of love described in 2 Peter 1:5-7:
9)
Making love your greatest quest
8)
Add to brotherly kindness = >Love
7) Add to your godliness =>
Brotherly Kindness
6) Add
to your patience ==> Godliness
5)
Add to your temperance ==> Patience
4)
Add to your knowledge ==> Temperance
3)_Add to your virtue ==>
Knowledge
2)
Add to your faith ==> Virtue
1) After receiving Christ by faith in his death,
blood, and resurrection for
eternal life.
Let’s say you are a Christian who stalled out on the
plane of temperance, which is self-control ―the fourth plane. Since you did not reach the plateau of
brotherly kindness or the pinnacle of love, does this mean you are not
saved? No! Again, Jesus said:
“By
this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if
ye have
love one for another.”
He did not say, “By this shall you be saved if you have love one for
another.” For if you stall on any plane
beneath the pinnacle of love, then all men will not know you are Christ’s
disciple. Nevertheless, “The Lord
knoweth them that are his” even when men don’t. (2 Tim. 2:19) Make love your greatest quest!
32 WHAT ABOUT
THE QUESTION RELIGIONISTS ASK LIKE IS THERE ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO CONVICT YOU OF
BEING A CHRISTIAN? 2 Cor. 4:18
“we look not at the things which are
seen, but at the things which are unseen:
for the things which are seen are temporal;
but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
Many legalist banter about the question, “If you were
convicted of being a Christian, is there enough evidence to find you guilty as
charged?” Religionists who want their
followers to be “approved of men” say
such foolish things. Many good pastors
and teachers have become ensnared by the “good words and fair speeches which
deceived the hearts of the simple.” (Rom. 16:18) The foolhardy crave to see works as if works
were the evidence. They believe
humanitarian works are proof of salvation.
Works are proof of one’s ministry, but not proof of salvation. The Bible encourages good works after
salvation; however, it in no way insinuates that works are the evidence of
salvation. Men seek evidence on the
outward appearance instead of where the Word of God says it is. The evidence that convicts you of being a
Christian is the seal of the Holy Spirit on your soul. The evidence that convicts you of being a
Christian is the “hidden man” in your heart, the new creature. The evidence that convicts you of being
redeemed is the blood of Christ by which you have eternal redemption, defined
as the eternal forgiveness of sins. (Eph. 1:7)
The evidence that convicts you of being a Christian is faith, “the
evidence of things not seen.” This is
the eternal evidence that God looks for in you.
Religionists lust to see outward signs that you belong
to God hence we see halos in pictures, backward collars, or holy garb, but God
provides the born again with no visible sign, except the same sign he gave
father Abraham. Abraham was given only
one sign to show that he was in covenant with God. That sign was the sign of circumcision. Now, how many people do you think saw Abraham’s
sign? Believers have this same sign of
“circumcision made without hands in the putting off the body of the sins of the
flesh [the old man] by the circumcision of Christ.” (Col. 2:14) No man yet has beheld this sign in us either.
Paul would ask, “Are you so foolish, having begun in
the Spirit that you would now place “confidence in your flesh” as a sign of
salvation? (Gal. 3:3, Phil. 3:3) Because
of a severe lack of pertinent knowledge in the Word, many born again Christians
would shamefully have to answer, “Yes.”
They want so badly for people to rely on works or humanism, as their
sign of salvation that their doctrine has “overthrown the faith of some.” How can your humanitarianism convict you of
being a Christian, when it wasn’t enough evidence to prove that Jesus was the
Christ? Jesus Christ was crucified
because at His trial there was not enough evidence to prove He was the Son of
God, so what evidence are you producing that will convict you as a child of
God. Can you produce a stronger case
than Jesus? I think not! The evidence which convicts you of having
eternal life is Christ in you, your only hope of glory; evidence that is
unseen. For the things that are seen
are temporal, but the things that are not seen are eternal, again showing that
the gift of eternal salvation is independent of what you can see. Order audio the supplement: Can People See Christ in You and If your
Hand Offends You Cut it Off.
Note: Christ said, “By their fruits shall ye know them,” whereas religionist
state, “By their works shall ye know them.”
Works are not fruit! Fruit are
the fruit of the spirit. Christ
indicated that many ministers will be cast alive into the lake of fire all the
while boasting of their ministerial works. (Matt. 7:22-23) Good works do not
indicate that you righteous in God’s sight.
Only the seed of Christ planted in good ground, (a gospel believing
heart) brings forth the “fruit of the spirit” if that person purposes to grow
in grace by “denying ungodliness and worldly lust. (Titus 2:11-12)
33
WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE IN HEBREWS 6:4-10 THAT
STATES:
"For it is impossible for those who
were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made
partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the
powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto
repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put
him to an open shame. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft
upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed,
receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is
rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we
are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though
we thus speak."
Of
all the questions regarding fears of losing one’s salvation, the two Scriptures
that trouble believers most are located in the book of Hebrews. Peter, the
Apostle to the Hebrews, writes that Paul wrote to his Hebrew saints things that
were hard to understand. (2 Pet.
3:16) Since the Scriptures interpret
themselves, let's rightly divide the word in the above passage by “comparing
Scripture with Scripture.” To rightly divide the word, we must know who
is being addressed, so we must ask, “Who are the "those" who were
"once enlightened" but are now in darkness? Answer: the
Jews. First, who was the book of Hebrews
written, to Jews or gentiles? It is called the book of Hebrews because it
was written to the Hebrews (Jews). How were the Jews (Hebrews) once enlightened? The Scriptures answer this question by
stating that “the Law of the Lord giveth light,” and Moses law was not given to
gentile nations but exclusively to the twelve tribes of
The Jews
refused to believe that God’s Son was the new true light of the World, so they
crucified Him and clung to the Law of Moses believing it was still the light,
when Christ put it out “nailing it to his cross.” (Col. 2:15-16, Eph. 2:14-16) Thus it was the Jews who were once
enlightened by the Law of God, but due to their unbelief in Christ the true
light, now they remain in darkness, whereas the Lord is the believers’ light
and their salvation and He can never be put out. (Gal. 3:27, Ps. 27:1)
Secondly,
it was the Jews who tasted of the
heavenly gift, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, Jesus Christ who stated, “I am not come
but to the lost sheep of the house of
Israel,” and not to give the bread of life to gentile dogs. (Matt.
15:24) God gave His chosen people, the
Hebrews, His heavenly gift at
Thirdly,
it was the Jews who were made partakers
of the good word of God, for Jesus was God’s “word made flesh that dwelled
among the Jews and they tasted the good word of God by Him and said that no man
spoke like this man, Jesus. Furthermore,
it was the Hebrews who tasted the power
of the world to come for we see in the Old Testament that the
demonstrations of miracles were not for the gentile world but were signs to the
Jews to show them the powers of the world to come, such as healing, miracles,
signs, and wonders like their dead being raised. No gentile was called to
administer these things.
Lastly,
the Scripture states that "if they
shall fall away it is
impossible to renew them to
repentance." You must, and I stress, “must” compare this Scripture with the Scripture in
Romans chapter eleven that states "it was through their fall that salvation has come to the
gentiles." (Rom. 11:11)
Remember that God dealt with
Paul
wrote that since the fall of them (the Jews) meant the riches of the
gentiles, then when God receives them again it will mean life from the dead for
us. Read Romans chapter eleven. Therefore, be aware of Peter's warning in 2
Pet. 3:16 that speak of wrestling Paul's Scriptures to your faith’s
destruction. You only understand Scripture by comparing Scripture with Scripture
because the Scriptures interpret themselves.
Therefore, lean not to your own understanding. Since this Scripture is cited more often as a
reason you can lose your salvation, this book will cite a second rendering of
this Scripture rightly divided.
the heavenly gift, and were made
partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have
tasted of the good word of God, and
the powers of the world to come, If
they shall fall away to renew them
again unto repentance; seeing the crucify
to themselves the Son of God afresh,
and put him to an open shame.”
The apostle Paul ended an overwhelming majority of
his letters with a phrase like, “Grace be with you all.” This cliché like signature ending lies at
the end of the letter to the Hebrews.
Although, many professors of religion refuse to acknowledge Paul as the
author of Hebrews, the King James Version of the Bible calls this particular
book: Paul’s letter to the Hebrews.
However, the verses in Hebrews chapters 6 and 10 are ideal verses that
Peter, the Apostle to the Hebrews, wrote in his commentary regarding Paul’s
written discourse of Scripture that he sent to the Hebrews. Peter stated in 2 Peter 3:15:
hath written unto you (Hebrews); As also
in all his epistles, speaking in
them of these things; in which are some things HARD TO BE
UNDERSTOOD, which they that are unlearned and unstable WRESTLE,
as they do ALSO THE OTHER SCRIPTURES, unto
their own DESTRUCTION.”
By allowing their natural mind, that cannot comprehend the things of the Spirit, to lean on its own understanding, they wrestle with losing their salvation when they read:
As Jesus said, “Be not like unto them.” Let’s get the mind of Christ on this matter
by rightly dividing the word of truth by comparing Scripture with Scripture,
for the Scriptures interpret themselves.
Let’s deal with the first phrase:
“It is impossible for
those who were once enlightened…”
Now, if these people were “once enlightened,” it is
being inferred that the state they are
in now is darkness. When you are
in darkness, can you see? No. You are blinded. So, we must ask, “Who were those “once
enlightened” but are now blinded? It is
the Jewish people. What enlightened the
Jews? The law. As it is written:
“The commandment is a lamp;
and the law is light.” (Prov. 6:23)
The
light of the Law of Commandments is what enlighten the Jews. As a counterbalance, we must ask, “Were the
gentiles “once enlightened”? The answer is no. According to Scripture:
“At that time ye [Gentiles] were without Christ being aliens…,
and strangers to the
covenants of promise, having no
hope, and
with without God in the world.” (Eph. 2:11-12)
Therefore,
this speaks of the Jews who were “once enlighten” by the law which, during its
dispensation, was the light. Christ came and blew out the light of the law
by stating He was the “light of the world “the true light that now shineth,”
but the Jews “received him not.” Hence,
they abide in darkness until now.
“Therefore, blindness in
part has come upon
the fulness of the gentiles be come in.” (Rom.
11:25)
David
prophesied against
“Let that which was to
be for their welfare [the law]
let it become a trap.” (Ps. 69:22)
Since
no one can keep it, the law is a trap:
“For the strength of sin is the law.” (1 Cor. 15:56)
Rabbis who teach the Jews to follow the law are
inadvertently teaching them to live in the strength of sin. Again, the power of sin is the law. This law
of commandment is the most cunning trap of the ages. (See proof number 99)
The
second qualification in this passage is that they were made partakers of this
heavenly gift. So, logically we must ask
exactly what was this heavenly gift? The answer may surprise legalists for it was
Jesus Christ. As it is written:
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begottten
son.”
Did
God give this heavenly gift to the Jews or the gentiles? Jesus was sent from heaven not to the
gentiles but to the Jews as He stated:
“I am not come to the
lost sheep of the house of
It is not meet [right] to take the children’s
[
and give it unto the dogs [gentiles].”
God sent His
heavenly Son as a gift to
The
third criteria was they “were made partakers of the Holy Ghost.” What gentile in the Old Testament was made a
partaker of the Holy Ghost. Not
one.
“Holy men of old wrote
as they were moved of the
Holy Ghost.” (2 Pet. 1:21)
No book in the Old Testament was written by a
gentile. The only people qualified for
the Holy Spirit to come upon them in the Old Testament were Jews, since God’s
promises were to them as His chosen people.
God’s Holy Spirit came upon David, Samson, and other Jews, but never a
gentile.
The last criterion that the
fallen group must fulfill is were “partakers of the power of the world to
come.” The Messianic signs Jesus wrought
were signs of the powers of the world to come.
The deaf hear, the blind see, and the lame walk. The only people who distributed the powers of
the world to come were Jews. Look in
chapter 11 of this same book called Hebrews.
It contains the hall of fame of faith displaying some of the powers of
the world to come such as women receiving their children raised to life
again. Not a gentile is mentioned there;
only Jews and proselytes Jews such as Rahab and Jephthah.
“If THEY should FALL
AWAY to renew them again unto
repentance seeing they crucified to
themselves the son
of God afresh.”
This word “they”
is very important, because God dealt with the nation of
“It is impossible that if THEY should FALL AWAY to renew them again unto repentance.”
Therefore, we have to ask the question, “Did Israel fall away?” The answer is yes according to Paul’s letters to the Romans that state:
“Though THEIR FALL salvation is come unto the gentiles.” (Rom. 11:11)
The Scripture informs us that Israel’s fall for not accepting the heavenly “gift of Christ” was so severe that it will
bring upon them severe judgment known as the time of Jacob’s (Israel’s) Trouble
in the end times. Next to the fall of
Adam, the fall of
“Behold
the goodness and the severity of God: ON
THEM WHICH
FELL [the Jews] SEVERITY.” (Rom. 11:22)
The severity is that, as a nation, it is impossible for them to be brought to repentance, because God, himself has blinded their minds and hardened their hearts. As it is written:
“He hath BLINDED THEIR EYES, and hardened their hearts;
that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand
with their heart, an be converted.” (John 12:40)
Hence, it is impossible for them to be nationally renewed again unto a national repentance, because they missed the time of their visitation to accept Christ as their national Messiah. (Luke 19:44) Now God has collectively blinded the Israelis as a nation from accepting Christ as their national savior, though Jews can and do accept Christ individually, as their personal savior.
“Now if THE FALL OF THEM be the riches of the world,
and
the diminishing of them the riches of the
Gentiles: how
much more their fullness.” (Rom. 11:12)
“For through THEIR FALL salvation is come unto the
Gentiles.”
(Rom. 11:11)
The Bible is quite plain on those that fall away after having fulfilled
all the outstanding criteria and the finger points conclusively to
The last part of the passage is:
“For the earth which
drinketh in the rain that cometh oft
upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for
them by whom
it is dressed, receiveth BLESSING from God:” (Heb. 6:7)
“But that which beareth
thorns and briers is rejected, and
nigh unto CURSING;
whose end is to be burned.” (Heb. 6:8)
Notice the use of the words blessing and cursing. Through the fall of the Jews:
“the blessing of Abraham can now come upon the gentiles.” (Gal. 3:14)
This is beholding God’s goodness. Unfortunately,
“For if THE CASTING AWAY OF
THEM (the temporary
state of Israelis) be the
reconciling of the world, what shall be the
receiving of them, but life from the dead?” (Rom. 11:15)
This passage in Hebrews chapter 6 is not talking
about born again believers but the nation of Israel who were “once enlighten”
by the law of the Lord, but now are under its curse, the curse of the Law. Again, believers were not “once enlighten”
for it is written that we are now “light in the Lord.”
The “unlearned and unstable” are legalists
who wrestle Scriptures to the conclusion that they can destroy their
salvation. They come to such “unlearned
and unstable” conclusions because they are not skilful in “rightly dividing the
word of truth.” Legalists choose to
believe that it is their faithfulness that is keeping them saved rather than
Christ’s faithfulness as the finisher of their faith, after they placed faith
in Christ’s death, blood, and resurrection for the gift of eternal
salvation. They despise the way of
salvation by faith in Christ mocking it as “easy believism,” choosing rather to
ring out their salvation through a belief in Jesus plus good works, plus great
character, plus keeping the commandments to which the Scripture states:
“CHRIST SHALL PROFIT YOU NOTHING
whosoever of
you who are justified by the law [the good
works of the law], ye are fallen from grace.”
In other words, salvation is not by a little bit of
faith in Christ plus a little bit of obedience to the works of the Law of
Commandments. Unfortunately, legalists refuse to only believe in the
gospel of the grace of God saves us.
They believe that obeying the commandments saves them, when it cannot. As it is written:
“if
[salvation is] by grace then it is no longer of works, otherwise grace is
no more grace. And if [salvation is ] by
works it is not longer of grace otherwise work is no more work.”
(Rom. 11:6)
There is no mixing the
two. Either you believe in Christ’s work
for the promised salvation saves you, or as
far as God is concerned, you believe totally in your works to save you. You cannot have it both ways or “Christ shall
profit you nothing.” (Gal. 5:2)
34 WHAT ABOUT THE SCRIPTURE THAT STATES THAT PEOPLE WHO SIN
WILLFULLY AFTER RECEIVING THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE TRUTH
ARE IN DANGER OF ETERNAL PUNISHMENT? Heb. 10:26-30
“For if we SIN WILFULLY after
that we have received the knowledge of THE
TRUTH, there
remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
but a certain fearful
looking for of judgment and FIERY INDIGNATION,
which shall devour the
adversaries. He that despised Moses’ law died without
mercy under two or
three witnesses: Of how much SORER
PUNISHMENT, suppose ye, shall he be
thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath
counted
the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and
hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? For we know him that hath said,
VENGEANCE belongeth
unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord.”
Legalists
love to use this Scripture more than any other to unsettle “unlearned and
unstable souls” that cannot rightly divide the word of truth. (2 Pet.
3:16) When our natural mind that “cannot
comprehend the things of the Spirit,” reads that only judgment awaits those who
sin willfully, it strikes terror in our hearts because every one of us knows
that we have, on more than one occasion, sinned willfully. Therefore, let us compare Scripture with
Scripture to obtain the mind of Christ,
the mind of the Spirit, on the matter of what sinning willfully after having
received the knowledge of “the truth”
actually means.
“What is truth?”
Pontius Pilate asked Jesus. (John 18:38)
Pilate did not hear Jesus’ earlier declaration of:
“I am the way, the truth and the life.” (John 14:6)
Paul wrote that it is God’s will for “all men to be
saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim.
2:4) Since Jesus Christ defined Himself
as “the truth,” the Scripture that reads:
“If
we sin wilfully after that we have received
the
knowledge of the truth.
Can be plainly rendered:
“If we sin
wilfully after that we have received the
knowledge of Jesus Christ, there remaineth
no more sacrifice for sins.”
“Because thou
hast rejected knowledge, I will also
reject thee.” (Hosea 4:6)
The only one who can save you from your sins is Jesus
Christ, and if you ignore the knowledge of His offer to do so, “there remaineth
no more sacrifice for sins” but certain judgment. You will continue in the flesh, the nature of
sin that “serveth the law of sin” willfully. (Rom. 7:25, Matt. 1:21) The
knowledge that people reject is “the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” which
can save them from their sins. (1 Pet. 2:20)
Under
the Old Covenant:
“He that despised Moses law died without
mercy under two or
three witnesses. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose
ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath
trodden under foot the
Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith
he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath
done despite unto
the Spirit of grace?”
Those who reject “the
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” have “willfully” choose to continue in the
flesh (human nature) that “serves the law of sin” willfully, because “it is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” (Rom. 7:25, 8:7) By rejecting the knowledge of Christ, people
thereby trample His offering on the cross under foot; counting the blood of the
covenant that He was sanctified (set apart) to shed an ordinary thing. (John
10:36) Lastly, they are disrespecting
the Spirit of grace that brings the message of “so great salvation.” (Titus
2:11) The answer to the question:
“Of how much sorer punishment, shall he be
thought
worthy”
is found in II Thessalonians
1:8-10 which sums up exactly “how much sorer punishment” is to be expected:
“When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven
with his
mighty angels, in flaming fire [fiery
indignation] taking
vengeance on them that know not God, and that
obey not the
gospel of
our Lord Jesus Christ: who shall be punished with
everlasting destruction [the sorer
punishment] from the presence
of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
when he shall
come to be glorified in his saints, and to be
admired in all
them that believe.” (1 Thes. 1:6-10)
This passage not only
discloses the “sorer punishment” but also indicates the “fiery indignation” of
the wrath of God on those who obey not the gospel by believing on Jesus Christ
for salvation, whose faith will be counted for righteousness.
“The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with
his
mighty angels, in flaming fire [the fiery indignation]
taking vengeance on them that know not God,
and
that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus
Christ.”
Those who die ignoring
“the truth of the gospel” of Christ will have died having “never [received]
forgiveness,” because they “believe not.” (Mark 3:29, John 16:9) Those who die in this condition are guilty of
blaspheming the Spirit’s testimony of truth regarding Jesus Christ for
salvation. (Mark.3:29, John 15:26, 14:6)
Both
the saved and the lost possess a nature that sins “wilfully” and it is called
“the flesh,” better known as human nature.
Paul gave us insight into this nature when he wrote that:
The flesh serves the law of sin.
(Rom. 7:25)
Whereas, Romans 8:9 states
to those redeemed:
“Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit if the
Spirit of God dwells in you.”
For:
“He that is joined unto the Lord
is one Spirit.” (1 Cor. 6:17)
The soul of believers is
joined as “one spirit” unto him that “doth not” and more importantly “cannot
sin” willfully, occasionally, habitually or otherwise because cannot sin
because “he is born of God.” (1 Cor. 6:17, 1 John 3:9) Yet, the flesh in believers yearn to serve
the law of sin as much as it does in a sinner (a lost person).
It
is important to note that Christians who are “unskillful in the word of
righteousness” wrestle especially with the passage in Hebrews 10:29 that
states: “Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy,
who hath trodden under foot the Son of
God, and hath counted the blood
of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done
despite unto the Spirit of grace?” Those “unskillful in the word of righteousness”
assume the “he” mentioned here is, not “the Son of God,” but a man that was
once sanctified. This is illogical
because in the two verses previous to this passage, we read:
“
We are sanctified through the offering of the body
of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Heb. 10:10)
“For
by one offering he hath perfected forever
them that are sanctified.” (Heb.
10:14)
Hence:
“We are sanctified through the offering of the body
of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Heb.
10:10)
Even those “unskillful in the word” can read for themselves that once a soul is sanctified by the offering of Jesus Christ, it is perfected for how long? That soul “hath” been “perfected forever.” Now, once a soul is “perfected forever” by the offering of Christ that sanctified it, that soul can never become unsanctified to reap such “sorer” punishments because it is “perfected forever.” (Heb. 10:14, 1 Cor. 1:30) The “unskillful in the word” should ask themselves what “forever” means. The redeemed cannot lose their salvation because Jesus Christ’s offering has “perfected” them “forever” in the Son of God. (Rom. 8:33, Heb. 10:14) “Believest thou this?”
Note: Beware of “New” age versions
of the Bible that “pervert the gospel of Christ” in Hebrews 10:14 from stating
that we “are sanctified” into we “are being sanctified.” For it reads that way in the Jehovah Witness
Bible called “The New World Translation.”
Beloved we are not “being” sanctified.
Paul informed us:
“Ye are washed [pasted tense], but ye are sanctified
[pasted tense], but ye are justified [pasted tense],
in the name
of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our
God.” (1 Cor. 6:11)
Bibles that state that believers “are being sanctified” have changed Bible doctrine and are advocating the doctrine that your works are elevating you to the plateau of “being” sanctified. This is being sanctified by works, and you should avoid such “doctrines of devils.” Always remember that just because a book cover has the word Bible on it that does not mean it contains the word of God. Satan has entered into the very lucrative Bible publishing business. He subverts basic Bible doctrines as found in Hebrews 10:14 and 1st John 3:9 by advocating the doctrine of works for a “progressive salvation,” rather than the doctrine of the new birth of Christ in you as your “eternal salvation.” (1 Tim. 4:16) Be not deceived with them, for many shall come in Christ’s name and deceive many. (Luke 21:8) Born again believers have been “perfected forever” by the offering of the Son of God. (Heb. 10:10,14) Henceforth, they cannot lose their salvation. (Heb. 10:14)