Tag: saved

Salvation Annulled?

We’re saved by grace, but…

Jesus says we must behave,

Nullifying grace

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…”

Ephesians 2:8

Is grace unconditional? There’s nothing we can do to earn God’s grace. But what about all the commands that Jesus gave us: repent, follow me, do not lust, go the second mile, love your enemies, judge not, honor your parents, etc.? Does grace erase those commands? Can we ignore the New Testament Gospels? I’m told that our sins have been forgiven at the cross. And let’s not forget that Jesus is coming back to judge all believers. For what!? Will God’s grace forgive all of us or just a select few? I’m so confused!

Recipes For Salvation

Once saved, always saved?

Or once saved and may lose it?

Google is baffled!

And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Acts 2:21

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:16

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. John 10:9

The Bible

If you Google “how is one saved” or “steps to salvation” you’ll get a multitude of ways of what one must do to be saved. Jesus gives many examples throughout the Gospels of how a person can be saved. A good example is a rich man asking Jesus what must he do to be saved. Jesus answered, “Sell all your possessions and follow me!” That’s gotta be hard for a rich guy. Jesus gives many, many examples of people being blessed and saved by their actions. What I don’t understand is do we have to do everything that Jesus commands or just some of them? Will we know it when we’re saved? How can my church claim that they’ve saved some souls? How is that possible? Can they save mine? As you can see, my 40+ years as a Christian led me into a state of confusion. I have no idea if I’ve ever been saved, but I’m pretty sure that I’ve lost it by now.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Finding God’s Pearly Gates

Only a few will

Find the narrow path to life

Blisters on my feet

Go in through the narrow gate. The gate that leads to destruction is broad and the road wide, so many people enter through it. But the gate that leads to life is narrow and the road difficult, so few people find it.

Matthew 7:13-14 CEB

The “narrow gate” that Jesus speaks of in Matthew 7:13-14 has always been a mystery to me. He says that only a “few” will find it. There are all sorts of commentary from people who will basically say that he didn’t really mean what he said. But, what if Jesus really meant what he said? After all, the Bible says that we may be chosen, that we must believe, we’ve got to follow a slew of commands, etc. Then when we think that we’ve done enough, believed enough, prayed, and worshipped enough, he’s going to come back and judge us! I’m beginning to believe that Jesus meant what he said: that only a few make it to the narrow gate that leads us through the myriad of paths to eternal life.

Image by Tibor Lezsófi from Pixabay

Drowning In the Sea of Love

Will I ever have

Assurance of salvation?

Drowning in my fear

Three things are necessary for the salvation of man: to know what he ought to believe; to know what he ought to desire; and to know what he ought to do.

Thomas Aquinas

When I considered myself a Christian, I always wondered if I was good enough. One of my favorite thoughts was, “Am I Christian enough?” Some pastors tell me that all you have to do is believe. Others say that I must do good deeds. And others say that I must do both. What exactly are the requirements for being saved? Is there a formula or a checklist that I can go by? What is my assurance that I am saved? If I gain it, can I lose it? Jesus says in John 3:16 that we are guaranteed eternal life – if we believe. Believe what exactly?

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I Believe In Coffee

I asked God one time

If he could help me believe…

I hate cold coffee

 Then he brought them outside and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Acts 16:30-31 NRSV

Believing in Jesus is the key to the Christian religion. There are tons of Bible verses that say “if you believe” you’ll have eternal life, prayers will be answered, and so on. Now I can’t seem to find any that tell you “how to believe.” The Apostle Thomas got direct proof from Jesus that he was the Savior. But, I wasn’t there with Thomas and I want the same kind of proof. Praying doesn’t work unless you believe (Matthew 21:22). You’re not saved (given salvation) unless you believe (Acts 16:30-31). So, how does one believe? If someone told me that my wife was sleeping with another man, I wouldn’t just believe them.

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