Salvation
Saving Mass Murderers
Jul 8th
Adolf Hitler is a man responsible, ultimately, for the deaths of millions. Joseph Stalin is another figure in history responsible for the tragic ending of many lives. Unfortunately, there are many people throughout history that we would recognize as mass murderers. In an instant, Osama Bin Laden became known by virtually all Americans for being the face of terror. He is a man known for being the head of Al Qaeda, a terrorist group who masterminded and carried out the September 11th attacks on the United States. Osama Bin Laden, Adolf Hitler, and Joseph Stalin are by all accounts evil people. And yet, a question lingers: can mass murderers such as them be saved?
The prompting of this post comes at a time locally when two police officers 
lost their lives in a routine traffic stop when a man pulled a gun on them and shot them to death. It was the comments made by someone I know that prompted me to think deeper on the issue of saving those who are most obviously evil among us. The man that killed these two police officers is deserving of whatever the law has in store for him. He will likely get the death penalty and sometime in the not too distant future, this man who murdered two police officers will stand before his creator and be judged. He will be judged, not only for these two murders, but for every sin he committed on this earth. I ask you, when he stands before God, will he be sentenced to hell? Of course, based purely on the way he lived his life, yes he will go to hell. And yet, we could easily say the same thing about our own lives. Based purely on the way I have lived my life, I too would stand before God and the verdict will be read, “Guilty!”
The most amazing, astounding, and sometimes baffling thing about the gospel is that it applies universally to all people, no 
matter how evil we believe they are (and no matter how good we think we are). The Bible states resoundingly that we are all condemned by the law of God. We have all broken God’s laws. In God’s courtroom, we stand as guilty as Osama Bin Laden. Yes, every one of us has the same guilty verdict awaiting us when we stand trembling before Almighty God. However, just as we are all condemned, God has also offered a pardon found in the substitutionary death of His Son. When Jesus died on the cross, he stepped into that courtroom and said, “I will pay the fine.” It does not matter how evil someone is, or how allegedly good they may seem, we are all condemned for our transgressions and we can all be saved by the shed blood and atoning work of Christ – yes, even mass murderers can be saved!
We, as Christians, must be careful of the things we say about those we see as evil. Rest assured that there is plenty of evil to be found. However, when we talk about someone else’s evil in a manner that portrays it as unique to them alone, we do not accurately reflect the evil that is within. Further, were it not for God’s restraining grace, we could not say for sure the level of evil we ourselves are capable of. Instead of the bitter anger for the mass murderer, I suggest we in humble love seek to offer the gospel even to them. I do not pretend to understand some of the seemingly senseless acts of violence that occur each day. More and more, my heart breaks over these acts. And yet, if I understand the gospel correctly, I understand then that I must forgive even the mass murderers among us and pray for their salvation. I hope and pray that those two police officers knew Christ as their Lord and Savior. I pray now that the man that killed them will also come to know the Savior.
Popularity: 9% [?]
The Gospel v. The End Times
Oct 31st
I was listenning to a Paul Washer sermon the other day (you can watch it below) and he said something to the effect of: The day Jesus comes back you will know everything there is to know about eschatology (the end times), but throughout all of eternity you will be searching the depths of the gospel.
That is an interesting statement. And after much thought, I have to say he is right. Eschatology (the study of end times) attracts a large audience of people. And yet, the reality of the end times is that they signify an end. They are a set of events, though confusing at times and fearful at others, that will simply be a part of history. They are important and they signal a pending judgment for mankind and hope for God’s elect. However, I am not sure there is any real infinite knowledge in the end times. As much as they will require awe from all that watch, we will quickly understand and quickly see what side we are on. However, the depths of the gospel are unfathomable and an eternity will not find us reaching those depths. It is difficult to even speak in a way that gives justice to the wonders of the cross.
As a Christian, as a person who claims to follow Christ, I cannot but scratch the surface of the proverbial iceberg that is the gospel. Paul Washer is pointing to something here that all true Christians understand. At the cross, we find not only our salvation, but we find the very essence of God. We find His justice, His truth, His love, His power, and we find hope. And as much as we see the mirror of our own sinfulness, we see the love of God in His forgiveness of those very sins through the death of Christ. I mentioned to a friend recently how much I love to hear about the cross and the gospel and how it just excites me — revs me up! It would seem that is because we will be spending an eternity talking about that very thing and searching its’ riches.
Here is the sermon:
Popularity: unranked [?]
God’s Economy in Salvation
Oct 28th
Romans 4:4-5: “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness…” [ESV]
All religions can be summed up into one question: Are you working for your salvation, therefore making God in debt to you, or are you trusting in the free grace and the merit of another (Jesus), and therefore the credit of another’s righteousness (Jesus)?
True Christianity is the only religion with the right answer to that question. Every other religion offers to you the opportunity to do works as an employee of God, as a means to earn a wage from God. And yet, our best works are but filthy rags. The Bible says that the wages of sin is death. Thus, in God’s economy of salvation, it is not the one who works who is justified, but the one whose righteousness is based on the merits of another, namely Jesus. In and of ourselves, we are morally bankrupt and the wages that we have earned from our sin is death. We cannot trust in our good works because despite what we want to believe, our works are not truly good. Instead, we have to trust in the one who was truly good. Jesus said to the rich young ruler, “Why do you call me good? There is no one good, but God.” That is as clear of a statement about the nature of God compared to the condition of man that you will find. We are without merit. We are in need of the merit of another.
When Jesus was crucified and then resurrected, he was a propitiation for our sins so that we could be justified by the credit of His righteousness to our account. That is the economy of God in salvation.
Popularity: unranked [?]
Thinking of Salvation: My Testimony
Oct 17th
I was fairly young the first time I “accepted” Christ. I am not sure of the exact age, but I do remember parts of the event vividly. There are only a handful of events in my youth that I remember more vividly. And yet, if you notice the quotation marks around the word accepted in that first sentence, or if you have read any of my prior content, you will perhaps know that I do not believe I was saved at that early age. Bless my mom, I know she desired to see me saved and perhaps that early seed stayed with me. Nonetheless, I did not know anything of repentance and I would not know it until I was in my late twenties. It was only when I grew older and further away from God that I knew something was off. 1 John 2:19 says that those who went out from the faith did so because they never were of the faith. I have to confess that was me. As much as I wanted my profession to be true, an accurate reading of the Bible says otherwise.
And so there I was later in life. My faith was floundering. I was on the verge of abandoning my faith all together. I was struggling to be the husband and father I should have been. I was struggling with sin and knew it. I did not understand it at the time, but the only thing I had going for me was the fact that I recognized my sin. As much as I tried to bury the feeling of being unclean, I simply could not. I felt like Isaiah who said, “I am a man of unclean lips.” I had at the time early seeds of repentance, but not yet faith. I continued in those struggles for some time, until one day the mirror of my sin finally revealed my sinful heart. I repented and placed my faith in God. And one of the greatest signs that my faith is real is that God granted me victory over one of my most deep rooted sins.
From that point on, I was changed. I was not sinless, but my relationship to sin changed. The things I loved before began to fade away — in many cases, I began hating those sinful ways instantaneously. The boredom of reading my Bible became enthusiasm for God’s Word, His truth. It is difficult to explain this to a world that is bent on earning their salvation, but this was not anything of me. It was not until I rested solely on Jesus that I found true salvation. I had come to the end of me. And yet, there is also a strangeness about the whole thing because I did not fully understand what happened until later. I knew things changed, but I could not point to that exact moment like so many others do. Instead, I can only point to a season when my sin began to weigh on me. And though I remember an event when salvation came to me, it only became clear in time when my whole life changed without any effort of my own.
Consider Matthew 11:25-30:
25 At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” [emphasis mine]
Come to Jesus you who are heavy laden with a sinful heart. Seek him, for He can give you rest!
Popularity: 5% [?]
Amazing Love
Oct 12th
As someone who writes regularly about repentance, I run the risk of not being balanced and representing the amazing love of Christ. As the popular song goes, “Amazing love, how can it be that you my King would die for me?” If you really take the time to understand what took place on the cross, it is breathtaking. The God of the universe stuffed Himself into a body, was born the lowliest of creatures sleeping in a manger, grew up in a small village where He submitted to the authority of His earthly parents, and later grew into the man we know as Jesus. This man that flipped the entire world over would then willingly submit to the governmental authorities and march towards his death as a propitiation for our sins. The God that created us died in our place so that we could live. The Bible says it is God’s kindness that should draw us to repentance — and what kindness indeed!
Popularity: 3% [?]
Are You Born Again? By J.C. Ryle
Apr 28th
Are you born again? This is one of life’s most important questions. Jesus Christ said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).
It is not enough to reply, “I belong to the church; I suppose I’m a Christian.” Thousands of nominal Christians show none of the signs of being born again which the Scriptures have given us—many listed in the First Epistle of John.
First of all, John wrote: “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin” (I John 3:9). “Whosoever is born of God sinneth not” (5:18).
A person who has been born again, or regenerated, does not habitually commit sin. He no longer sins with his heart and will and whole inclination. There was probably a time when he did not think about whether his actions were sinful or not, and he did not always feel grieved after doing evil. There was no quarrel between him and sin; they were friends. But the true Christian hates sin, flees from it, fights against it, considers it his greatest plague, resents the burden of its presence, mourns when he falls under its influence, and longs to be completely delivered from it. Sin no longer pleases him, nor is it even a matter of indifference to him; it has become a horrible thing which he hates. However, he cannot eliminate its presence within him.
If he said that he had no sin, he would be lying (I John 1:8). But he can say that he hates sin and that the great desire of his soul is not to commit sin at all. He cannot prevent bad thoughts from entering his mind, or shortcomings, omissions, and defects from appealing in both his words and his actions. He knows that “in many things we offend all” (James 3:2). But he can truly say, in the sight of God, that these things cause him grief and sorrow and that his whole nature does not consent to them. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
Second, John wrote: “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God” (I John 5:1).
A man who is born again, or regenerated, believes that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour who can pardon his soul, that He is the divine person appointed by God the Father for this very purpose, and beside Him there is no Saviour at all. In himself he sees nothing but unworthiness. But he has full confidence in Christ, and trusting in Him, he believes that his sins are all forgiven. He believes that, because he has accepted Christ’s finished work and death on the cross, he is considered righteous in God’s sight, and he may look forward to death and judgment without alarm.
He may have fears and doubts. He may sometimes tell you that he feels as if he had no faith at all. But ask him if he is willing to trust in anything instead of Christ, and see what he will say. Ask him if he will rest his hope of eternal life on his own goodness, his own works, his prayers, his minister, or his church, and listen to his reply. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
Third, John wrote: “Every one that doeth righteousness is born of Him” (I John 2:29).
The man who is born again, or regenerated, is a holy man. He endeavors to live according to God’s will, to do the things that please God and to avoid the things that God hates. He wishes to continually look to Christ as his example as well as his Saviour and to prove himself to be Christ’s friend by doing whatever He commands. He knows he is not perfect. He is painfully aware of his indwelling corruption. He finds an evil principle within himself that is constantly warring against grace and trying to draw him away from God. But he does not consent to it, though he cannot prevent its presence.
Though he may sometimes feel so low that he questions whether or not he is a Christian at all, he will be able to say with John Newton, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.” What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
Fourth, John wrote: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” (I John 3:14).
A man who is born again has a special love for all true disciples of Christ. Like his Father in heaven, he loves all men with a great general love, but he has a special love for those who share his faith in Christ. Like his Lord and Saviour, he loves the worst of sinners and could weep over them; but he has a peculiar love for those who are believers. He is never so much at home as when he is in their company.
He feels they are all members of the same family. They are his fellow soldiers, fighting against the same enemy. They are his fellow travelers, journeying along the same road. He understands them, and they understand him. They may be very different from himself in many ways—in rank, in station and in wealth. But that does not matter. They are his Father’s sons and daughters and he cannot help loving them. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
Fifth, John wrote: “Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world” (I John 5:4).
A man who is born again does not use the world’s opinion as his standard of right and wrong. He does not mind going against the world’s ways, ideas and customs. What men think or say no longer concerns him. He overcomes the love of the world. He finds no pleasure in things which seem to bring happiness to most people. To him they seem foolish and unworthy of an immortal being.
He loves God’s praise more than man’s praise. He fears offending God more than offending man. It is unimportant to him whether he is blamed or praised; his first aim is to please God. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
Sixth, John wrote: “He that is begotten of God keepeth himself’ (I John 5:18).
A man who is born again is careful of his own soul. He tries not only to avoid sin but also to avoid everything which may lead to it. He is careful about the company he keeps. He knows that evil communications corrupt the heart and that evil is more catching than good, just as disease is more infectious than health. He is careful about the use of his time; his chief desire is to spend it profitable.
He desires to live like a soldier in an enemy country—to wear his armor continually and to be prepared for temptation. He is diligent to be watchful, humble, prayerful man. What would the apostle say about you? Are you born again?
These are the six great marks of a born again Christian.
There is a vast difference in the depth and distinctness of these marks in different people. In some they are faint and hardly noticeable. In others they are bold, plain and unmistakable, so anyone may read them. Some of these marks are more visible than others in each individual. Seldom are all equally evident in any one person.
But still, after every allowance, here we find boldly painted six marks of being born of God.
How should we react to these things? We can logically come to only one conclusion—only those who are born again have these six characteristics, and those who do not have these marks are not born again. This seems to be the conclusion to which the apostle intended us to come. Do you have these characteristics? Are you born again?
Popularity: 12% [?]
Resurrection Day!
Apr 12th
On this resurrection day, I would like to ask a question. Have you been crucified with Christ? Consider Romans 6:6, “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.” Does sin still have dominion over you? Are you powerless against your sinful nature? Or, have you felt the Holy Spirit change your very nature, your very heart and sinew — has it come alive in a way that you do not fully understand? The Bible offers the world something radically different then what most religions provide. Most religions, including much of the so called Christian religions, preach a system of works righteousness, a system that is marked by a striving for righteousness — a striving that is not spirit-led, but driven by the pride of man. True Christianity says that you can’t do a single thing to earn your way to God. No, in fact, true Christianity, says that without your old self dying and you being reborn, you will not inherent the kingdom of God (John 3:3).
As we celebrate the wonder of the cross, the fact that God sent Jesus to die for us, and the amazing way in which Jesus was resurrected as both vindication of Him and as an indication that the Father was pleased with the sacrifice, we must now consider our own lives. In the New Testament, John the Baptist showed up on the seen preaching a baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins. In Mark 1:15, Jesus starts His earthly ministry with this statement, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” Jesus says elsewhere in Luke 9:23-24, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Have you died and thus, on this resurrection day, have you also been resurrected with Christ? One verse before Romans 6:6, which I quoted above, Paul says the following in Romans 6:5, “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” The amazing thing about the resurrection is that we get to also be resurrected. Have you? I am not asking if you have asked Jesus into your heart. I am asking if you have died and if you have been regenerated by the power of the Spirit? Or, are you merely playing religion?
Popularity: 5% [?]
A True Gospel on Easter?
Apr 11th
On this resurrection day, I am struck by how many churches will likely preach a gospel other than what is truly Biblical. There are churches that preach a gospel of prosperity, despite there being no promises in the Bible about material prosperity for the regenerate. There are churches that teach a gospel that rests purely on the decision of man, despite the Bible being clear that our salvation is found not in our own abilities, but in the forgiveness of God. And there are churches who teach a weak and ineffective gospel that relies on us to ask Jesus in our hearts, despite there being nothing in the Bible that talks about asking Jesus into our hearts.
However, somewhere in America – though few and far between – there are churches that teach of a great God who came to earth to die for those who repent, humble themselves before the amazing kindness of God, ask for forgiveness from a loving God, and who die to self and are made alive by the supernatural work of a savior. While I hope that many churches will preach the truly amazing story of the cross and the God (Jesus) that died on the cross, the truth is that many people will go to church this Easter either not saved and yet thinking they are saved, or knowing they are not saved and yet hoping to be saved, and both will go home fraudulently believing in a gospel with no power to save. Oh, they will hear about the cross and they will hear about a loving God, but they will not hear about true repentance, about true conversion, about regeneration, or finally, about the supernatural way in which a man who was dead to God is made alive and becomes a new creature.
Some people will tell me that we can’t preach the gospel at all times; that it is not practical to do so. I would agree to a point. We should aim to teach the Word of God, verse by verse; and within the context of what is being preached, we should preach the gospel. And you know what we will find? We will find that all of the Old Testament pointed forward to the cross and all of the New Testament either displays the cross or points back to it. Over and over again, we are told things like “we must be born again” or “he who finds his life will lose it and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.” The message is clear if we stop listening to false preachers and start reading our Bibles:
We must understand that we are utterly sinful, that we have offended a God and that without a savior we are under the wrath of God. That if we die without that savior, there will be eternal damnation to face. We must then die to self. We mustn’t trust in our own abilities, but humble ourselves before the huge and magnificent God of the universe. We must look at the cross and let ourselves be crucified with Christ. We must repent and place our faith in Jesus and nothing else. We must place our faith in Jesus in such a way that no matter what happens, even if faced with persecution and death, we trust in Jesus and no other.
Finally, if we now come to faith in Jesus or if we have in the past, we should see the supernatural work of God in our lives. We should examine ourselves to see if those things are happening. The Bible does not say trust in our deceitful hearts, but says to examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith. If you are reading this, it is my hope for you that you will examine your spiritual walk. The best way to do that is to read the book of First John. I have a booklet found here that will help you understand First John. Too many Christians believe they are saved, but have no evidence of it in their lives. It breaks my heart to see it and if you are one of them, I sincerely pray that you will take the time to examine yourself. Have you placed your faith in the right God, or the one that was made up by our American commercialism? Rest assured that most have not taken the narrow road that Jesus describes.
Popularity: 2% [?]
Once Saved Always Saved?
Apr 8th
Are we “once saved always saved,” as the moniker goes? Or, is that even a fair question? The problem with the question is that we have to be sure we understand the term saved. If you asked the average evangelical, they would likely define saved as being those who profess belief in Jesus Christ. That would not, however, be an accurate definition of those who have truly been saved. The Bible makes clear that there will be those who profess faith in Christ, but who do not truly follow Him (See: Matthew 7 and First John). Further, I would argue that the term saved is not the best term to describe those who have been purchased by the blood of Jesus shed on the cross; perhaps the regenerate is a clearer description. What I would say, however, is that if we can accurately describe the process that occurs when someone is truly converted, then we can talk about the question I have raised. In as simple a description as I can use, I would describe those true converts as the following:
Those who have repented and believed in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and who by faith alone have been saved supernaturally by the death and resurrection of Christ, and have been spiritually reborn by a supernatural work of God in their lives. They have been at that moment declared righteous by God, with Christ’s righteousness being imputed to them and their transgressions being assigned and judged in Him at the cross. Finally, it is those whose profession is proven true by their fruits.
In other words, if what we mean by “once saved always saved” is that the people in the above definition are saved and that God, having supernaturally changed their very nature and began a good work in them, will finish that work; then yes, I believe in once saved always saved. If, however, we simply mean those who profess belief, but never show any indication that a supernatural event has occurred in them, and those who continue on in sin just as before their profession of Christ, then we have to conclude that they were never saved to begin with. Further, we as Christians should not declare anyone saved, but should direct them to their Bible and instruct them to examine themselves to see if they are in the faith. Everyone, from the child recently baptized, to the elder, to the pastor of our churches, should go to the Bible to see if our conversion matches what the Bible describes as a supernatural event.
See this short booklet for more information on this.
Popularity: 7% [?]
