Posts Tagged ‘salvation’
Are You a Born Again Christian?
by Steve Dewhirst What other kind of Christian is there? Jesus told the night-visitor Nicodemus, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” When Nicodemus expressed his puzzlement, the Lord explained, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3-5). This rebirth…
Read MoreMust a couple, previously married, separate after they are baptized?
Question: If a couple consists of two divorced individuals, and they are converted to Christ and are baptized, do they need to separate? Answer: This question leaves out too much to answer well. For example, you did not mention whether the individuals had a right to remarry. The Bible speaks of divorced people who have…
Read MoreThe Role of Obedience in Salvation
by Jack Holt Obedience is an obligation each human being sustains to God. This is so because God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe, and we are his creatures. Beyond the fact that God is Creator and Ruler, love places us under a moral obligation to obey. As creatures with moral ability love…
Read MoreHow Salvation Comes to Man
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Matthew 7:1-6 I. Matthew 7:6 A. We don’t often think about whom we talk to about the gospel, but not everyone will be receptive to the message. B. Jesus is basically saying don’t waste your time. Not only will the message be rejected but the messenger will also be attacked. C. But consider…
Read MoreThe Mormon Plan of Salvation
by Dudley Ross Spears When Mormon authorities talk about salvation it is imperative that what they teach be understood in terms of Mormon Doctrine. It is quite easy to be misled by what they have to say about salvation due to a failure to understand what fundamental Mormon doctrine teaches. As you will see as…
Read MoreHow can I make sure I’m not doing anything wrong?
Question: I think I feel a lot better after our discussion and it’s appreciated. Any other advice you can give is appreciated. I just want to make sure I am not doing anything wrong. I try every day to live like Jesus, but like probably everyone else I find it extremely difficult. Answer: I’m going to ask…
Read MoreIsn’t justification by faith alone?
Question: Isn’t justification by faith alone? Answer: It is common for people to approach the Scriptures with blinders on, seeking to prove their point by selective use of passages from the Bible. I find it amazing that when I state that justification is not by faith alone that people turn this around and claim that I’m…
Read MoreDo members of the church of Christ believe they are the only ones going to heaven?
Question: Does the church of Christ believe they’re the only ones going to heaven? My brother married someone that goes to a church that’s a hard-core church of Christ. He’s going nuts. He will hardly look at my family and argues all the time about baptism before salvation. He has given up on the family…
Read MoreCan anyone be saved who wants to be saved?
Question: Would you say that anyone who wants to be saved, or chooses to repent, will be saved? Is there a Bible passage, or multiple passages you can point me to about that? Answer: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but…
Read MoreAre Christians predestined to go to heaven?
Question: I was looking at your website and it is very informative. Will you please answer the following question? Are Christians predestined to go to heaven? Answer: See: The articles “Can I Lose My Way to Heaven?” and “Predetermined Destiny.” And also the sermon “Being a Christian Will Not Save You.”
Read MoreHow were the Patriarchs saved?
Question: How are those in the patriarch times saved if there was no hope for them? Was it because of Jesus’ death that all (who tried to live good unto God) were saved before Moses and the Ten Commandments? Please explain. Answer: “And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by…
Read MoreIs the Lord’s Supper useless if we are saved before partaking of it?
Question: If we are saved before partaking the Lord’s Supper then partaking of the Lord’s Supper is useless. Do you agree? a. If one has received the gift of the Holy Spirit, they have the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). b. Cornelius received the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 10:45 before he was…
Read MoreWhat is the difference between water and the blood of Jesus?
Question: What is the difference between water and the blood of Jesus? Answer: The shed blood of Jesus is the reason mankind has a hope of salvation. It paid the price necessary to purchase us back from the debt we incurred by our own sins. “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness…
Read MoreIs it too simple to say we are to believe and we will be saved by God’s grace?
Question: I’m concerned that purgatory does not exist in the Bible. I believe that imaginary doctrine can be changed, as has the belief of Limbo, with innocent newborn babies, who have died prior to baptism, no longer going to Limbo. I always thought that God has told us to believe in Him and we will…
Read MoreIs a person condemned if others hate him?
Question: Is it really possible that a person is condemned to hell if people fight with him or still hate him after an incident that he is perhaps sorry about but has no courage to talk about it? He would think he has nothing against his past friends in his heart. I don’t think that…
Read MoreThey Gladly Received His Word
by Larry Ray Hafley Truth Magazine, Vol. 50, No. 2, Jan. 19, 2006. Larry Lester Roloff said that when they “gladly received the Word” (Acts 2) that meant they were saved because no sinner would do such! I am wondering why we did not think of that. Reply: If the fact that, before they were…
Read MoreRemember the Duck
Author Unknown There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm. He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods. He practiced in the woods, but he could never hit the target. Getting discouraged, he headed back inside for lunch. As he was walking back, he saw his grandmother’s pet…
Read MoreI believe that once we are saved, nothing can cause us to lose our salvation
Question: Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Ephesians 1:13-14 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,…
Read MoreCan you repent from your sins right before you die and still go to heaven?
Question: Can you repent from your sins right before you die and still go to heaven? Answer: Perhaps in theory, but it would be difficult to accomplish since we generally do not know when we will die. “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend…
Read MoreWhat needs to happen if I want to be saved?
Question: I’m a person that’s interested in Christ. I walk into your church… I hear your message and decide I no longer want to live this life, nor risk not going to heaven. Assuming there’s an altar call or an invitation or whatever you call it; I walk up, then what? Please tell me what happens next,…
Read MoreThe Greatest Question
by Foy E. Wallace, Jr. The question of all questions is “What think ye of the Christ?” What one thinks of Christ determines his thoughts and actions on every question. The correctness of faith depends on the correct answer to the superlative question “What think ye of Christ?” The question of how and when one…
Read MoreWhy would those who never heard the gospel be lost?
Question: Isn’t it true that the Bible says the following: Go into all of the world and preach the gospel. He that believes and is baptized shall be saved and he that (after hearing the Gospel) does not believe will be damned. Now, what conclusions can we logically deduce from that? I studied logic in…
Read MoreThe Deadly Danger of Indecision
by Thomas Thornhill If someone were to ask me what is the most discouraging thing I have encountered as a preacher I would reply, “The deadly danger of indecision.” Not only preachers but any person who has spent time trying to teach the word of God to a lost soul knows just what I am…
Read MoreSaving Our Own
by Connie W. Adams Over the years brethren have asked me a question which has always amazed me. Upon returning from a gospel meeting and reporting that so many obeyed the gospel, someone has been sure to ask “Were they just all young people?” Or “Were they just children of Christians?” Just young people? Just…
Read MoreWhat is God’s plan of salvation and eternal life?
Question: What is God’s plan of salvation and eternal life? Answer: This is similar to the question, “What must I do to be saved?” Clicking on that question will give you a good introduction to the subject. For further details, see the Notes on Salvation. This gives numerous verses dealing with God’s plan for saving…
Read MoreThe Living Redeemer (Hamilton)
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton When we find ourselves in difficult situations, most of us turn to our families to help extract us out of our tight spot. Such aid between family members is expected by God. “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied…
Read MoreClothed with Christ
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Galatians 3:26-29 I. Certain phrases are used so often that we forget the meaning of them. A. Not until someone asks does it take us back and then we have a hard time expressing what we know B. That is why young children’s questions of “why is the sky blue” or “how…
Read MoreNotes on Being Born Again
By Jesus’ Resurrection I Peter 1:3 By the Word of God John 1:13 I Peter 1:22-25 By Love I John 4:7 By Faith I John 5:1 By the Water (Baptism) John 3:5 Romans 6:4 (new life) Titus 3:5 (regeneration means born again) By the Spirit John 3:5 Galatians 4:29 Titus 3:5 Through Promise Galatians 4:23…
Read MoreNotes on Salvation
see Notes on Hear see Notes on Belief see Notes on Repentance see Notes on Confession see Notes on Baptism see Notes on Faithful Life see Notes on Things that Accompany Salvation see Notes on Examples of Conversion see Notes on Being Born Again see Notes on Apostasy
Read MoreHow do I cleanse my soul and forgive myself?
Question: I’d like to ask you for some verses on how I can cleanse my soul and learn how to forgive myself for a mistake that I did. Answer: “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.…
Read MoreWhat are the gifts of the Holy Spirit?
Question: What are the gifts of the Holy Spirit? Answer: When used in the plural (more than one gift), the gifts of the Holy Spirit refer to the miraculous gifts that Holy Spirit gave the early Christians. “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord.…
Read MoreSalvation is Unlimited — But Conditional
by Earl Robertson via “The Instructor”, October 1982, Volume 19, Number 10 John wrote “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17). Many of the creeds of men…
Read MoreHow do you teach preteens about salvation?
Question: How can I effectively teach preteens about the salvation plan? I would like some tips on activities in setting the mood so that when we do the calling they will truly understand what the sacrifice meant. Answer: The beauty of God’s message is that it remains constant, no matter to whom it is taught.…
Read MoreDoes believing that Jesus was God has much to do with salvation?
Question: I browsed through The Deity of Christ While on Earth and noticed that you mention that Jesus did not use the power to create while on earth. However, in John 9 we have the blind man from birth who received sight. Notice especially verse 32; Jesus created sight in this man. I agree with your message,…
Read MoreWhat Must I Do to be Saved? (Walker)
by Wayne S. Walker Of all the questions asked … Where did I come from? Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? The most important question ever asked was: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30) In the sixteenth chapter of the book of Acts, the apostle Paul…
Read MoreDoes baptism make Jesus’ sacrifice insufficient for our salvation?
Question: Baptism is a representation of us being born into Christ. It is something every Christian should do. It is not something one should do to be saved. Putting baptism as a requirement for salvation makes Jesus’ sacrifice not enough for our salvation and with this, I disagree. Answer: It was Jesus Christ who commanded,…
Read MoreSince teaching is a work, then it doesn’t save. Right?
Question: Telling others about Christ is a work. “For by grace we are saved through faith, it is the gift of God, not of works lest any man should boast ” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Answer: There was a branch of the Baptist denomination that fully accepted the idea that being saved was entirely a work of God…
Read MoreHow can baptism save?
Question: I’m confused. You said on your website that baptism is required for a person to be saved. How can this be so? Answer: Because the Bible states: “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through the resurrection…
Read MoreHow does obedience relate to saving faith?
Question: How does obedience relate to saving faith? Answer: “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and…
Read MoreBut He Never Enlisted!
by Sewell Hall He served in the army but … “he wasn’t a soldier.” We believe there is a lesson in the following Associated Press report: “An Army spokesman said Friday that 15 year old Walter Lee Martin is not recognized as a soldier — despite two periods of serving in Vietnam, because he did…
Read More