Tag Archives: plan of salvation

Reasons to Believe

PREPARED

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A well-meaning Christian who feels the urgency of the times said,

“We need to be prepared for the end of time.” 

An elderly man responded,

“I am prepared.”

This puzzled her. How could he say this? Didn’t he need to start storing food and weapons, get more righteous, keep the law better, go to church more, etc.?

He explained,

 “I am prepared, first because of the goodness and grace of God, who wants me to be saved (2 Peter 3:9). It all started when He brought conviction of sin upon me through the Holy Spirit and led me to confess and turn away from a life of sin.  His death on the cross for my sins made it clear the penalty for my sins was paid for (Revelation 1:5).  I surrendered to the urging of God’s spirit and gave Him my life to be directed by Him (John 16:8).  In return, He gave me His righteousness, and I found peace and trust in Him (Isaiah 26:3).  I was born again (John 3:3, 1 Peter 1:23).  I began to think differently and to follow Him (Romans 12:2 NLT).   I wanted to learn more about Him and to know Him better (John 17:3, Matthew 11:30. I obey because I want to honor and love Him, not because I have to do it (John 14: 15, John 14: 21).  I know Jesus and put all my trust in Him; I am prepared in Him! Anyway, I may not live to see Jesus come.  I could die in the next moment, but I am prepared in Him alone.  Have I reached perfection of character?  No! It is not required that I reach a state of perfection through my efforts.  I wear His righteousness by faith (trust) in Jesus alone.  Because of Him, I am perfect by His perfection.”

There are those who believe they must attain perfection of character before claiming salvation. I find this belief saddening. They have yet to experience the profound joy and peace that comes from resting in the assurance of God’s work to free us from sin.

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Today, most of Christ’s followers know that we live in the days before His return. He has promised to come back (John 14: 1-3), and His word is trustworthy (Titus 1: 1-3, John 17:17). Moreover, the Apostles, Disciples, and Prophets have prophesied about that glorious day when He will return to Earth visibly and powerfully, and all of heaven will be emptied to come to this earth (Matthew 25: 31, 2 Peter 3:10, Revelation 1:7).  This momentous event will mark the end of sin and death for eternity. 

He will resurrect the saved of all ages and give all who are “in Him” eternal life (1 Corinthians 15: 50-55 (NLT) 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-18. ).  Many put a lot of emphasis on the last days and the events surrounding them.  It is exciting to learn the details of the prophecies, as long as it is of no private interpretation or embellished (2 Peter 1: 19-21).  I am thankful that I belong to a body of believers who do not think they are the only denomination to be saved.  We are all “one” in Christ, no matter what church we attend (1 Corinthians 12:12).  Jesus came to save individuals, not herds who follow a set of creeds or documented sets of beliefs that a person must confess to become a member of an organization.

Let us be clear: there is only one path to salvation: through Christ alone (Acts 4:12). Not a denomination, not physical preparation, acts of good deeds, or religious forms and ceremonies.    His life, teachings, death, resurrection, and ongoing ministry to us on Earth through the Holy Spirit all bear witness to the fact that we are saved from eternal destruction (Romans 8:16).  We have the privilege of knowing we have eternal life . (1 John 5:13).

 It is not through our works or some diluted grace that allows a person to claim Jesus but to go on living a life of sin (Matthew 7: 21-23 NLT). I am confident that many who know Christ in other churches will concur that the shed blood of Jesus is our sole assurance of salvation in Christ alone, not through any works or achievements in our spiritual journey (Ephesians 2: 8-10).

When we are born again, we are born from the inside out, not through our efforts to clean up the outside and become acceptable to God (Matthew 23:25).  We sing about God accepting us just as we are.  Jesus died for us when we were still in our sins (Romans 5:8).  God slowly changed us so that we now hate the sins we once loved and love the good things we once hated. But Jesus told the highly respected religious leader you must be born again to receive eternal life and be changed (John 3:3).  We need a new starting point. When this happens by the act of the Holy Spirit, our journey with Jesus begins not when we graduate from our religious schools.

The chart below helped me understand this journey. It includes the possibility of turning from Jesus and returning to a life of sin. This happened to me, but God would not leave me. I returned, but some of my brothers did not (2 Peter 2: 20-22, Luke 11: 24-26).

  1. The picture is divided by a line. The top part is salvation, and the bottom is a condition the Bible calls lost.
  2. The squiggly line represents our life journey, full of ups and downs. Even after we are born again, we are guaranteed troubles, doubts, and challenges.
  3. On the left is our start.  We are all born as sinners because we come from a long line of sinners.
  4. As life continues, we live lost lives due to heredity and bad choices.  We are selfish. As the popular song goes…”We are born this way!”
  5. But, because of God’s love for us and His amazing grace, God draws us to Him with His kindness.  We learn of Him and hear the good news about salvation. We become convicted about our sins and realize we can do nothing without Him. 
  6. We surrender to God’s pull towards Him, confess that we are sinners, and repent (turn away from sin to God). We invite Him to control our lives. Then, we are baptized as our first act of following God’s word and obedience.  We are saved from the wages of sin that cause death! The baptism doesn’t save us. We are saved before we go down in the water. Our baptism is the public display of an inward experience in Christ.
  7. Our lives are his workmanship.  He molds and shapes us through life experiences.  A preponderance of our life’s journey reveals evidence of Christ in our lives. 
  8. We can, however, become discouraged and leave God if we choose to. God never interferes with our choices, and we may even return to the life we died to. We are lost again.
  9. But greater is God than the sin we are living.  We can get tired of sin, realize what we have done, and return to Him like the prodigal son.  We doubt the Father will take us back, but we are surprised that He comes running to us and throws a party!  (Luke 15: 11-32 NLT). God will forgive us 70 X 7 (Matthew 28: 21-22 NLT).
  10. Our second time around makes us even stronger. 
  11. Even though we may have never become completely like Christ, ultimately, we have His righteousness, which gives us title to eternity and the city of God.
  12. Salvation and preparation are found only in Jesus, who leads you on your journey. We have eternity to contemplate the sacrifice of the Heavenly Trio and continue to experience sanctification.

Salvation to the uttermost

Is it Easier to be Saved or Easier to be Lost?

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I heard this question many years ago from a famous speaker, Morris Venden. Professor Venden taught religion at Andrews University when he was not traveling and talking about his favorite topic: Righteousness by Faith Through Jesus Christ.

What do you think? Your answer may reveal your view of God and His plan of salvation.

The Difference Between Religiosity and Born-Again.

We all know, from the lips of Jesus, that we are lost if we’ve never been born again: Jesus told the very religious Nicodemus,

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:3

Nicodemus was a ruler and a Pharisee, but he was drawn to the Savior, whose words often cut across the pious religious teachers and theologians. The well-educated church leader sought a private meeting with Jesus at night to evaluate Jesus and His teachings. Nicodemus was good at being a (fill in the name of any denomination). But Jesus quickly and directly told Nicodemus of his critical need for a new heart…a new way of thinking.

Before you answer the question of the day, let’s consider the elements of Salvation. First, it always starts and ends with God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. They are all involved in saving you from eternal death. It was love that instituted the plan of salvation. They planned it and instituted it. They maintain it. Both our justification (title to heaven) and sanctification (fitness for heaven) are two different experiences connected together thru Christ, but both are God’s gifts! Philippians 2:13

Was the Plan of Salvation Easy or Hard for the Godhead?

I maintain it was easy to do, in one sense, because of God’s great love for His creation, but it was not an easy road to travel to ensure our eternal life, especially for Jesus, whose cross was the object lesson of God’s great love, grace, and forgiveness available for sinners of all kinds.

Jesus faced rejection, sorrow, shame, and eventually, a horrendous bloody death on the cross. The Father, the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Angels must have suffered with Him. They were not casual observers; they were invested in this work of salvation.

Jesus died a perceived “second” death, unable to see through the portals of the tomb. He was sure He would never see His Father nor Heaven again. Yet, He became sin for us…filthy, dripping, smelly sin! But, Paul tells us it was “joy” that motivated Him to stay on the cross. Jesus could see a happy multitude of people who would receive atonement for their sins and, thereby, a blissful eternity near His beloved Father.

“…for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame,…”

Hebrews 2:2

But it was God the Father’s great love for us that initiated the act of Grace and the free gift of Jesus for us. Read those familiar words in John 3:16 again. What is it that is at stake in this verse? Repeat it very slowly, listening to every word. It is eternal death (perish) or eternal life. Before Jesus “gave up His spirit” that day, He felt God the Father had forsaken Him, and He (Jesus) was perishing. The lost will perish because they “choose” not to believe (trust) Jesus. Perishing is not living for eternity in flames.

So is it easier to be saved or easier to be lost?

It was difficult for God, so it would be easy for us.

We don’t have to die on a cross for forgiveness from our stinking sins. We don’t have to whip ourselves or go on long pilgrimages to win the favor of a Holy God. We don’t have to pay our way into Heaven. We don’t have to have perfect church attendance or halos around our heads. We don’t have to do penitence or say a thousand “Hail Marys.” These are left-over teachings of false gods who worked off of guilt, fear, and control.

But we do have to choose Jesus. This can be hard because there are so many choices out there. But choosing means yielding to the drawing of the Holy Spirit (aka conviction). When you decide, it is as easy as opening a door.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20

It was easy for the thief on the cross even though he was a the height of pain and hopelessness. All he had to do was ask Jesus to remember him when Jesus returned.

Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”

Luke 23:42

Yielding to the conviction of the Holy Spirit is almost always referred to as “surrender,” giving up our sins for his righteousness….our own thoughts, and ways to His leading. Then peace will flow like a river, even in tough times.

The Jesus Journey Begins

Once we start on our journey with Jesus and our new heart, obedience to His will becomes our heart’s desire. Obedience because of a changed way of thinking…not obedience to receive salvation. It is already yours! So, once you choose Jesus, your salvation is easy. But the road can be difficult. Don’t buy the dangerous doctrine of not being able to lose your crown. Once you have been born of the spirit, the flesh will war against the Spirit. But it is easy to let God fight this battle for you by giving yourself to him afresh every day.


God cannot make us choose. But if we do, He will change our hearts and mold us into new creatures. We will be transformed from the person that looks and thinks like Jesus. This is the goal, but the trip is made easy with Jesus at your side and you at His side. While the experience of being born-again is instantaneous and joyous, we are constantly told in Scripture to be on guard. Why? Because we are now in a battle with the world…with the flesh.

If you look at the council of scripture, it is almost always directed to the believer. Why? Because we must be aware and on guard for the crown being taken away from us:

“Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.” Revelation 3:11

If we let Jesus reign in our lives, our path, though tough at times, will be smoothed by His grace and power. He promises to save us to the uttermost.

“…grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Roman’s 5:20-21

Let God’s Grace “reign through righteousness” in your heart today!

Our salvation was hard for God so that it would be easy for us…If we will accept it. Turn to Jesus and be saved today, and let Him rule in your life. You will find peace and joy in your journey even though there may be a cross in your future. or there is one now. He will remember you when He comes into His kingdom. Praise His Name!