Category Archives: salvation

Salvation and safety

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cloudsBack during our discussion on alcohol, one of our commenters made a comment about “playing it safe.” Basically the idea is, “If drinking is OK, but I don’t drink, I’m still safe. But if I drink and drinking’s not OK, then I’m in trouble.” It’s an old idea, one that I’ll admit to having used in the past when discussing other issues.

I wonder how far we are willing to go with that? If we apply that rule across the board, then

  • we’ll all be One Cup, non-located preacher, non-institutional, non-Sunday School congregations
  • we won’t drink anything with caffeine
  • we won’t let women wear pants
  • we won’t go to the movies
  • we won’t allow mixed swimming
  • we’ll only use the King James Version
  • we won’t let people take communion on Sunday night (just in case that sundown to sundown thing is still in effect)
  • we won’t have praise teams, projectors or sing in four-part harmony
  • we will only use the church offering “for the saints”
  • and we certainly won’t drink alcohol

This argument seems to have been common in New Testament times.

  • “Just to be safe, go ahead and get circumcised. If it’s not a requirement, you’ll be OK. But if it is and you don’t do it…”
  • “Keep celebrating all of the Jewish feasts…”
  • “Don’t eat with the Gentiles…”
  • “Don’t eat certain things or drink certain things…”

Galatians has a lot to say about the subject:

  • “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!” (Galatians 2:19-21)
  • “Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods. But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you.” (Galatians 4:8-11)
  • “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)
  • “You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” (Galatians 5:4-6)
  • “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23)

Our salvation is not about safety. It’s about grace and freedom.

Salvation by faith

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viewI believe in salvation by grace through faith.

Yes, I believe in salvation by faith. I just think we need to know what we are talking about when we say faith.

Saving faith is not mental assent. It’s not something the same as what we typically call belief. We can see an example of that in John chapter 12: “Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.” (John 12:42-43) These people came to have faith in Jesus, they believed in him, but they weren’t willing to act on that faith. Faith that never goes into action is not saving faith.

In Romans 1:5, Paul can talk about “the obedience that comes from faith.” Saving faith moves us to do something, to respond to God in some way. Faith without obedience is dead.

That’s why I have no problem in believing that baptism is the normal way that people come to be in a saving relationship with God, yet can also say that I believe in salvation by faith. Obedience is part of saving faith. Mere intellectual assent is not saving faith. We do nothing to earn our own salvation; it’s an exercise in futility to try. But at the same time, we put our faith into action or we admit that we have no real faith.

Overlooked Treasure

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[I’ll be away from the Internet for a few days, so I’ll share with you some of the articles I’ve written for Heartlight magazine. These articles also ran on the HopeForLife.org website, which is a ministry of Herald of Truth.]

Over the years, I’ve enjoyed the television program Antique Roadshow on PBS. The show travels to different locations around the country and experts in furniture, coins, art, clothing, etc. wait as people bring in everything from junk to historical treasures. Those bringing items to be appraised often have no idea of the value of what they are bringing. Some come out of curiosity; others come wanting to show off their family heirlooms. A few come out of desperation, hoping to be told that they own something that others will pay a fortune for.
In one memorable episode, an elderly gentleman brought in a blanket that had hung in his grandmother’s house for years. The tradition in the family was that the blanket had once belonged to Kit Carson, so the man thought that it might be valuable. Don Ellis, expert in Indian artifacts, told the man that the blanket could be worth as much as half a million dollars, not because of the connection to Carson, but because of the historical value of this relic merely as an example of Indian artisanship. Ellis called it “a national treasure.”

The blanket’s owner, identified only as Ted, began to cry. He said, “My grandparents and parents were poor farmers ….” He was thrilled to discover that he possessed such a treasure, yet couldn’t help but lament the fact that his family had gone all that time without realizing what they had. They had lived in poverty, while owning something worth a fortune.

I see lots of people living that way every day. So much hurt, so much suffering, such a lack of hope, while God freely offers exactly what they need. They struggle to find strength for the day, while God longs to give them power without measure. They search for meaning and purpose, while God waits with the eternal perspective that makes sense of everything. These people deal with guilt, remorse and shame, while God offers forgiveness and a new start. The treasure is there for the taking. All they have to do is recognize the value of what God has to offer.

The apostle Paul wrote: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). God offers us riches beyond belief, not in material goods, but in spiritual ones, valuables that will never waste away. All we have to do is accept the treasure He has to offer.

The Healing

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[I’ll be away from the Internet for a few days, so I’ll share with you some of the articles I’ve written for Heartlight magazine. These articles also ran on theHopeForLife.org website, which is a ministry of Herald of Truth.]

It was Sunday, March 9, 2008. Steve Ridgell and I had traveled with Herald of Truth Ministries to the island of Cuba. We were speaking at a church service in the town of Matanzas. I used the text that I had chosen beforehand, Mark 2:1-12. The first part of the text seemed very appropriate. Verse 2 says, “So many gathered that there was no room left.” We were speaking to a group of well over 400 people when there were only seats for about 300. However, I was a bit uncomfortable with other parts of the text. As I read about Jesus healing this paralyzed man, I was acutely aware of the people in wheelchairs at the back of the audience. I couldn’t help but wonder how they felt. Like other times when I’ve spoken on this passage, I talked about how Jesus put more emphasis on forgiving the man’s sins than He did on healing his handicap. I explained that our physical needs can’t begin to compare with our spiritual needs. As I preached, I couldn’t help but wonder how my words were being received by these people whose physical needs were obviously great.

After the sermon, one of the local members invited any who needed to respond to the message to do so. Nine people came forward to be baptized into Christ. One especially caught my eye. She was one of the people in wheelchairs being wheeled forward by one of her friends, much like the paralyzed man in the story had been helped by his friends. This woman was connected to an IV bag. She was in the wheelchair because she only had one leg. It was obvious that she had major physical needs.

She was the first to be baptized. I stood in the water, and someone handed her to me. She professed her faith in Jesus, then I immersed her. When she came out of the water, no one looked at her leg. Instead, all eyes were drawn to her face. Seldom had any of us seen such joy, such pure and unrestrained joy. She was still unable to walk. She was still a sick woman. But her sins had been forgiven. My sermon about the importance of the forgiveness of sins versus physical healing was probably soon forgotten. But her sermon will long be remembered, even though it was preached without words. She knew. She understood. Her physical infirmities remained, but she had been healed in the way that mattered.