What's Wrong With Lordship Salvation?

The way some preachers think, Lordship salvation is some sort of doctrinal aberration. For some reason, some folks assume a person is saved first and later on they make Christ their Lord. What these Christians fail to understand is that Christ is always our Lord and Master.

Jesus himself said it was right for his disciples to be under his rule. John 13:12 and 13 (Bible in Basic English)clearly states, "Then, after washing their feet and putting on his robe again, he took his seat and said to them, 'Do you see what I have done to you? You give me the name of Master and Lord: and you are right; that is what I am'".

The Apostle Paul also said plainly that Christ needs to be worshipped as Lord at the point of salvation. Romans 10:9 and 10 (BBE) reads, "Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation."

Likewise Philippians 2:9-11 (BBE)doesn't obscure Christ's Lordship. "For this reason God has put him in the highest place and has given to him the name which is greater than every name; So that at the name of Jesus every knee may be bent, of those in heaven and those on earth and those in the underworld, And that every tongue may give witness that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

These people who claim that new believers don't have to acknowledge Christ as Lord are like those to whom Jesus put this question. Luke 6:46 (BBE) says, "Why do you say to me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not the things which I say?"

These are they who might find themselves in the predicament of the folks in Matthew 7:22 and 23 (BBE), "A great number will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, were we not prophets in your name, and did we not by your name send out evil spirits, and by your name do works of power?' And then will I say to them, 'I never had knowledge of you: go from me, you workers of evil.'"

The Bible is clear that Jesus is Lord and must therefore be obeyed. He's not merely a grief counseller or life coach but King of Kings and Lord of Lords. How sad that so many hopeful individuals will be turned away from heaven on Judgement Day.

If our Lord and Master hasn't returned by Thursday, I hope to post about why the poor in spirit are blessed.

How To Protect Yourself Now From Judgement Day

What a terrifying time it will be when Christ returns. For those who rejected him, it'll be their worst nightmare come true.

We read of how powerfully the Lord will punish the wicked in Jude 1:14 and 15 (BBE) when he wrote, "The prophet Enoch, who was the seventh after Adam, said of these men, 'The Lord came with tens of thousands of his saints, To be the judge of all, and to give a decision against all those whose lives are unpleasing to him, because of the evil acts which they have done, and because of all the hard things which sinners without fear of God have said against him."

Even worse for rich, wicked people, Everything they accumulated will be destroyed. As we see in 2 Peter 3:10 (BBE), "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; and in that day the heavens will be rolled up with a great noise, and the substance of the earth will be changed by violent heat, and the world and everything in it will be burned up."

Revelation 20:12 (BBE) shows that neither will anybody be able to avoid God's courtroom. "And I saw the dead, great and small, taking their places before the high seat; and the books were open, and another book was open, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged by the things which were in the books, even by their works."

This Book of Life contains all the names of those who yielded up control of their lives to Christ. Revelation 21:27 (BBE) warns that only those who have their names in the book will be in God's new Jerusalem. "And nothing unclean may come into it, or anyone whose works are cursed or false; but only those whose names are in the Lamb's book of life."

But Revelation 20:15 (BBE) declares the fate of those who refuse Christ's plan for their salvation. "And if anyone's name was not in the book of life, he went down into the sea of fire."

Fortunately, there is a way to escape God's wrath. Romans 10:9 and 10 (BBE) explains how to become a child of the King of Kings: Jesus Christ. "Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation."

This is the central theme of my next book, You Think You're Going to Heaven? We should be glad that God has made a way for us to be saved from his justifiable wrath. Jesus took the punishment for those of us who have surrendered ourselves to his rulership.

On Saturday, providing the Lord doesn't return before then, I hope to post about being under house arrest and how the Apostle Paul made good come out of his imprisonment.

Why Were the People in Matthew 25:34-40 Blessed?

Last Thursday, I wrote about those who will be sent to hell by the king in Christ's parable. But who are those whom he blessed and commended?

Those churchgoers who think deeds will get them into heaven might wrench these verses out of context to prove their case. But if works can get people into paradise, why does Romans 10:9 and 10 (BBE) say, ""Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation."

Furthermore, Ephesians 2:8 and 9 (BBE) make it clear that works have no part in salvation. "Because by grace you have salvation through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is given by God: Not by works, so that no man may take glory to himself."

Since boasting is taking glory to yourself, and since God will not share his glory with another person, working for salvation and entrance into heaven is blasphemy. Ponder what Isaiah 42:8 (BBE) declares. "I am the Lord; that is my name: I will not give my glory to another, or my praise to pictured images."

In Matthew 25:34 (BBE), we hear the King blessing those who are called his sheep. "Then will the King say to those on his right, 'Come, you who have the blessing of my Father, into the kingdom made ready for you before the world was:'"

And as we read in Matthew 25:40 (BBE) the king commends those Christians who wonder how they helped him when he was naked, hungry, and in prison. "And the King will make answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, Because you did it to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'" Please note the phrase, "my brotherrs." His brothers aren't the unsaved poor and oppressed but the believers in Christ.

It's clear that those who do good works without saving faith in Christ won't be commended. These verses show us who believe in the Lord that our works won't save us but they do earn commendation from our Master.

I'll keep pointing out this hard-to-swallow truth in You Think You're Going to Heaven? My book won't make much of a dent in the heresy of works righteousness but at least I'll have done something about it.

On Thursday, I hope to tackle the subject of who the ten virgins in Matthew chapter twenty-five represent.

The Belief in a Higher Power Error

Is it really enough to just believe that there is some sort of universal higher power? Many people, including good friends of mine, say that they can't believe in the Bible and Jesus. Then they give me some sort of excuse about bad examples of Christians or of misunderstandings they have of church doctrines.

Look at what James wrote about those who just believe about God. In chapter two and verse nineteen (BBE) he wrote, "You have the belief that God is one, and you do well: the evil spirits have the same belief, shaking with fear."

Beyond mere mental ascent, people must place their trust in Christ. Hebrews 11:6 (KJV) plainly states, "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

Some people will doubtless be confused at how we can believe in God and Jesus as well. Even so, Christ tells us to do so. John 14:1 (KJV) quotes our Lord as saying, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me."

Believing in the Lord means placing one's full and total trust in him and Christ's atonement for sins on the cross. As Romans 10:9 and 10 (BBE) instructs, "Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation. For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation"

Additionally, we must love the Lord rather than roboticly obeying him. Jesus said in John 14:15 (KJV) "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

Christ also explained the benefits of loving God in John 14:21 (KJV) when he said, "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."

And not only in this world do we receive new life in Christ but in the age to come. Romans 6:23 (KJV) states, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

So mere ascent that there is some sort of divine being somewhere who made the universe isn't enough to give people salvation and save them from sin and eternal torment. This is the main theme of my next book called You Think You're Going to Heaven. May the Lord use my writing to guide folks to eternal life.

On Thursday, I'll post about the error of moralism. Just being a nice person won't get one into heaven either.

Are Jehovah's Witnesses Christians?

To many folks, Jehovah's Witnesses are merely a peculiar sect of Christianity. But are these deluded folks really Christians? To understand this, we need to know what makes a person a Christian.

The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 10:9-10 (KJV), "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

But Jehovah's Witnesses believe that loyalty to "Jehovah's organization" is what saves people. This belief is contradicted in Titus 3:5 (KJV) which reads, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;"

Furthermore, our works of righteousness come from gratitude, not obligation or any phoney requirement to be saved. James 2:18 (KJV) explains, "Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works."

Genuine followers of Christ search the scriptures whereas disciples of The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society merely follow what they're told to do. But Acts 17:11 (KJV)shows what we believers in Christ ought to do. "These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

And while they fear falling out of Jehovah's favour, we have no such worry. As the Apostle Paul wrote regarding his hope of eternal life in 2 Timothy 1:12 (KJV), "For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day."

All this and more will I explain and expand upon in my next book called You Think You're Going to Heaven? Only by trusting in Christ's atonement on the cross, not a torture steak, will we be granted access to eternal life with him. So many earnest people will be consigned to hell because they sought to enter heaven by their works. I hope to redirect some from that horrible fate through my writing.

Why Isn't My Christening Enough to Get Me Into Heaven?

In my previous post, I wrote about why church attendance won't get us into heaven. Even so, some folks might argue that they were christened and therefore they're in the new covenant. The fact is that the New Testament never mentions christening or any other sort of rite whereby children are protected from going to hell.

One favourite verse of infant baptism proponents is in Acts chapter sixteen. Paul and Barnabas were put in prison and an earthquake freed them along with the rest of the prisoners. Nobody left the prison so the jailer was grateful to these saints. The Bible in Basic English renders verse thirty-one in these words. "And they said, 'Have faith in the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will have salvation.'"

Infant-baptism preachers claim that this verse proves that even the babies were baptized. It, as well as  verse thirty-three, doesn't indicate so. The jailer and his family all placed their faith in Christ and were baptized because, and only because, they believed in the Lord. Infants can't make a conscious and informed decision to place their trust in Christ.

As we read in Romans 10:9-10, "Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation." How can an infant do these things?

And here is why believing parents need not worry about any sort of rite purported to be a guardian against children being out of any sort of imagined covenant. The King James Version renders 1 Corinthians 7:14 this way. "For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy."

What a relief it is that parents don't have to add that burden to their list of things they need to do. If God required christening, would he not have said so through the apostles? I'm sure he would have if it was a requirement for faith in Christ.

Having been misinformed in the past by a wicked minister, I now crave the undiluted truth of Scripture. It's also why I'm working on a book called You Think You're Going to Heaven? So many beautiful souls are being led toward destruction because they don't realize the satanic nature of their teachers. I want to be the one who stands in the gap and proclaims the truth. By God's mercy and power, I hope to turn aside spiritual lambs heading into the slaughter house of Satan.

Why Won't My Church Attendance Get Me to Heaven?

This month, I'll be examining two questions. The first one is which requirements will let us enter heaven. The second question concerns our eternal destiny in general. After all, everybody has differing opinions on the answers to these matters but we still must make the right choice before death.

In most Christian denominations, congregants have the notion that attending church regularly will please God. When I was a child, I received an award for the best church attendance in 1965. Of course I had no choice back then. Every girl and boy in Jericho Hill School had to attend their parents 'denomination's church each Sunday except when they were ill.

So what does the Bible say about regular attendance? Hebrews 10:23-25 (BBE) reads, "Let us keep the witness of our hope strong and unshaking, for he is true who has given his word: And let us be moving one another at all times to love and good works; Not giving up our meetings, as is the way of some, but keeping one another strong in faith; and all the more because you see the day coming near."

From this and other passages, we can deduce that the purpose of church attendance is to build up our trust in Christ and to encourage others. No mention is made in Scripture regarding attendance being counted toward earning one's place in heaven. In fact, there is only one way to be saved that Scripture mentions and that's trusting in Christ's atoning work.

Perhaps the most-often quoted Bible passage on this matter is Romans 10:9-10 (BBE). "Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation."

This is obvious but some churches insist that works must be added to gain eternal life. According to James, works are a proof of salvation, not an aid to being saved from hell. Look at what he wrote in the second chapter of his epistle, verses fourteen to eighteen (BBE).

What use is it, my brothers, for a man to say that he has faith, if he does nothing? will such a faith give him salvation? If a brother or a sister is without clothing and in need of the day's food, And one of you says to them, "go in peace, be warm and full of food;" but you do not give them the things of which their bodies have need, what profit is there in this? Even so faith without works is dead.

But a man may say, "you have faith and I have works;" let me see your faith without your works, and I will make my faith clear to you by my works.

These, and many other verses, show that it's faith in Christ which produces good works in a person. Doing nice things to save yourself is extremely displeasing to the Father since it's rejection of Christ's atonement on the cross.

I'll be writing in depth on this subject in my next book called You Think You're Going to Heaven? I want nobody to go to hell because supposedly-knowledgeable and self-righteous teachers lied to them about God's entrance requirements. Once I get the debt monkey off my back, I hope to self-publish my next book. Until then, keep following these posts.