Editorial – Rest

Even a casual study of the life of our Lord during His incarnation reveals that, “Throughout His life on earth, Jesus was an earnest and constant worker. He expected much; therefore He attempted much. After He had entered on His ministry, He said, ‘I must work the works of Him that sent Me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.’ John 9:4. Jesus did not shirk care and responsibility, as do many who profess to be His followers.” The Desire of Ages, 72.

Before He entered on His ministry He was an earnest worker in Nazareth: “While on earth Christ lived in the home of a peasant. He wore the best garments His parents could provide, but they were the humble garments of the peasants. He walked the rough paths of Nazareth and climbed the steeps of its hillsides and mountains. In His home He was a constant worker, and left on record a life filled with useful deeds.” In Heavenly Places, 214.

“He commenced His life of usefulness in childhood. … Between the ages of twelve and thirty, before entering upon His public ministry, He led a life of active industry.” The Review and Herald, January 6, 1885. In His ministry, Jesus was never idle.

Jesus is still working for each one of us. His work is constant—He never sleeps or goes on a vacation. How long is He going to be doing this constant intercession? “Our need of Christ’s intercession is constant.” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 6, 1078.

He will not stop until the case of every individual in this world is decided for life or for death. You and I each have a case pending in heaven; the Apostle Paul said, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” II Corinthians 5:10.

We have been given a time of probation so that we might prepare and be ready for the judgment. After the judgment is over, the whole universe will enter a period of rest. It is exciting to look forward to. Will you have a part in it?

“Not until every case is decided will Christ be at rest. …

“He came to redeem humanity, and He will continue to send message after message to save His flock from Satanic delusions. He will not cease to send His messages until the redeemed universe shall be at rest.” This Day With God, 91.

The Dead and The Almost Dead

Since the days of Adam to our own time, our great enemy, Satan, has been exercising his power to oppress and destroy. Now he is preparing for his final campaign against the church in an effort to deceive the world.

We have been told, “The enemy is preparing for his last campaign against the church. He has so concealed himself from view that many can hardly believe that he exists, much less can they be convinced of his amazing activity and power. They have to a great extent forgotten his past record; and when he makes another advance move, they will not recognize him as their enemy, that old serpent, but they will consider him a friend, one who is doing a good work. Boasting of their independence they will, under his specious, bewitching influence, obey the worst impulses of the human heart and yet believe that God is leading them.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 294.

Never forget that Satan is the father of lies. He deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden and has become bolder with his success in fooling the nations ever since then. “Satan is preparing his deceptions, that in his last campaign against the people of God they may not understand that it is he.” Testimonies, vol. 1, 341.

How did we get into such a situation that many people believe the devil is really a friend to help them?

The devil has been around for a long time and he has mastered the art of controlling the majority of the human race. “Satan is a diligent student of the Bible, and much better acquainted with the prophecies than many religious teachers. He has ever kept well-informed concerning the revealed purposes of God, that he might defeat the plans of the Infinite.” The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 2, 87.

The devil does not come to the Christian parading some atheistic philosophy. He has great success in quoting the Bible, but with the slightest twist. He came to Jesus quoting the Bible and claiming to be an angel sent from heaven to help Him out. “Satan knows better than many professed Christians what is written, for he is a diligent student of the Bible, and he works to pervert the truth, and lead men into the paths of disobedience.” The Signs of the Times, August 28, 1893. He is an expert in misinterpretation and presents things in such a way that you will think you still believe the Bible while not practicing its principles.

In the message of Jesus to the church at Sardis (“I know your works …” Revelation 3:1) was imbedded the first angel’s message, “the hour of God’s judgment is come” (Revelation 14:7 literal translation). It is in the heavenly sanctuary where God’s judgment takes place. The first angel’s message is the announcement of a present day event. The fact that God is going to judge His people constitutes Bible truth all the way back from the time of Moses. The devil has known at least since that time that the day would come when that event would take place.

Moses wrote about it in Deuteronomy 32:36: “For the Lord will judge His people.” David wrote about it in Psalm 135:14: “For the Lord will judge His people …” In both the Old and New Testaments, the future tense is always used in referring to this subject. Luke wrote in Acts 17:31, “… because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

Because Jesus Christ has risen from the dead, we can know that there is an impending judgment. On another occasion when Paul had only one opportunity to speak to the heathen ruler, Felix, he talked about three things, one of which was a coming judgment. (See Acts 24:25.)

Notice what Paul wrote to the church at Corinth in II Corinthians 5:10: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

Ellen White wrote about the judgment, which is brought to light in the three angel’s messages. She said, “The interests of the cause of present truth demand that those who profess to stand on the Lord’s side shall bring into exercise all their powers to vindicate the advent message, the most important message that will ever come to the world.” Sermons and Talks, Book 1, 385. The advent message, of course, is the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14:6–12. It is a message about God’s judgment and it is here right now. If you study the first angel’s message carefully in Revelation 14:6, 7, you will see that the hour of God’s judgment begins while the gospel is still being preached. The exact time the judgment began can be determined by studying the prophecies in the book of Daniel.

The devil’s plan has always been to deceive the world, to overthrow the church of God, and to cause all to be lost. He has followed closely the history of the world since the beginning of time, knowing full well that time was limited. He knew what Moses wrote; he knew what was in the Psalms; he knew what Daniel and Paul wrote. He understood perfectly the meaning of the three angels’ messages delivered to John on the Isle of Patmos. So he has invented his own alternate interpretation of them to deceive the people. The only defense against his deception is to be careful and diligent Bible students and be settled into the truth of the Word.

The crafty enemy of souls started setting traps thousands of years ago so that the message of the judgment and the warning to get ready would be rejected or ignored and that the church would be in a comatose state. The message to the church at Sardis reveals the startling announcement that the devil would be amazingly successful in this plot. In fact, he would be so successful that only a few people in the church at Sardis would be saved. Of all the letters to the seven churches, the letter to the church of Sardis is one of the saddest. Revelation 3:1–6: “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, ‘These things say He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”

Never forget that the devil put his lies into operation to set his traps thousands of years ago. When a mouse gets caught in a trap, it kills the mouse. When the church gets caught in a trap, it does not receive the message that we are living in the judgment hour and it dies. Ellen White wrote many times on the importance of this message:

“The warning to the Sardis church is applicable at this time.” The Review and Herald, November 2, 1886.

“To the church of the present day this message is sent. I call upon our church members to read the whole of the third chapter of Revelation, and to make an application of it.” The Review and Herald, August 20, 1903.

“The message that God gave to the churches in Ephesus and Sardis are applicable to those who in this age have had great light but have not opened the door of the heart to the knock of Christ. The Lord has shown plainly that He has a controversy with His people. The fires that have lately raged in New York and other cities were no accident. It was the hand of omnipotent power. The Spirit of God is withdrawing from the world because the warnings of heaven have not been heeded. We need to beware, for a similar condition of things is coming in amongst us as a people.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 4, 321. (Written in 1902.)

“Among those to whom this message [to the church in Sardis] was sent, there were those who had heard and been convicted by the preaching of John the Baptist, but who had forsaken the faith in which they once rejoiced. There were others who had received the truth from Christ’s teaching, and who were once ardent believers, rejoicing in the faith, but who had lost their first love, and were without spiritual strength. Because they did not hold the beginning of their confidence firm unto the end, they were believing as men without faith. They quibbled about matters of no special importance which were not given by the Lord as tests, and dwelt upon their differences of opinion till these differences became as mountains, separating them from Christ and from one another, destroying unity and love.” Manuscript Releases, vol. 6, 242, 243.

We are admonished to avoid getting caught in the trap of becoming so occupied arguing about unimportant things while salvation issues are lost to sight. This trap devised by the devil kills the church, blinding it from the most important message ever given to man—to prepare to meet God when He returns to redeem the faithful or face Him when it is too late and give an account and be lost.

Satan’s traps have caught the majority of the inhabitants of this world. Most of the Christian world today, hundreds of millions of people who claim to be Christians, do not know that we are living in the hour of God’s judgment, yet that is the most important message to be given to the world.

One very successful trap the devil has used in the past involved a promise of higher, more spiritual Christianity. Claiming to be more spiritual, Gnostic Christianity contained the deadly poison of the serpent, resulting in sensuality, but it lacked the development of Christian perfection. Gnostic Christianity had its roots in Greek philosophy, which had its roots in the ancient philosophies of Egypt and Babylonia, and therefore is rightly called in the book of Revelation, Babylon.

The Greek philosophy of Gnostic Christianity was very dangerous because it was mixed with a lot of Bible truth. People believing in this philosophy claimed that they believed the Bible, called themselves Christians and prayed to God in the name of Jesus. They claimed that the highest goal of their life was to receive the Holy Spirit but unfortunately for them the spirit they received was another spirit.

People believe today that Gnostic Christianity has disappeared. Actually it did disappear as a sect by the sixth century, but the doctrines of Gnostic Christianity did not disappear. These doctrines are present today and are presently being taught all over North America and the Christian world by both the Roman Catholic and the Protestant churches. Some of these doctrines have resulted in many Christians not being susceptible to present truth, rejecting the messages in Revelation 14.

God has sent a crucial message of warning to the world and many people scoff at it. Books have been published saying there is no need to fear the mark of the beast because Christians will be raptured away before any trouble starts. Others are not concerned, believing that when they die, they either go straight to heaven or to hell, thus avoiding judgment.

When the Protestants came out of the blackness of Babylon, they did not come to the light of all Bible truth in one generation. The two most prominent reformers, Martin Luther and John Calvin, broke away from the teachings of Babylon, making some advance steps. However, both John Calvin and Martin Luther were highly educated and versed in the teachings of a man by the name of Augustine. Today, both Protestants and Roman Catholics can trace their theology back to him. For at least nine years before Augustine became a member of the Roman Church, he was a Gnostic Christian. During his own lifetime he was correctly accused of bringing the doctrines of Gnosticism into the Christian church. Augustine was probably the leading theologian responsible for Greek philosophy being brought into the Christian church.

Because Martin Luther and John Calvin were highly trained and educated in the writings and teachings of Augustine, it should not be surprising that they brought some of this Greek philosophy and some of the poisonous Gnostic doctrines with them into the Protestant church. Remember, Greek philosophy has its roots in ancient Babylonia. There were many Gnostic sects, but there is one Gnostic sect that is mentioned by name in the book of Revelation, the Nicolaitans. Both times when mentioned by Jesus in Revelation 2, He says He hates their deeds (verses 6, 15).

During the fourth century, Martin Luther and John Calvin espoused two doctrines already in the church, derived from Greek philosophy, using them to try to fight Catholicism. One of these was the doctrine of eternal security, commonly called “once saved always saved.” That belief does not come from the Bible but directly from Greek philosophy. Both Martin Luther and John Calvin believed these doctrines. However John Calvin became the greater champion of the second—the doctrine of predestination.

The doctrine of eternal security is the idea that salvation at some point becomes locked in and makes you eternally secure. The person that believes he is saved and eternally secure and that nobody can take away his or her salvation will have no need to heed the warning that “the hour of God’s judgment is come” (Revelation 14:7). The Bible states that we all are sinful and need a continual daily dependence on Jesus. If a person is convinced that his salvation is eternally secure he may lean back and relax and eventually die spiritually. That is exactly what happened to the church in Sardis.

The second doctrine that was promoted predominantly by John Calvin is predestination. A person believing he or she was predestined to be saved will never heed the judgment hour message. It is a trap. Jesus did say, “Nobody can pluck you out of My hand” and you are safe as long as you do not choose another Master, but do not ever think that your salvation is eternally secure and can never be taken away. That promise is conditional on obedience to God and resisting anything else that would be a master over you.

The Bible itself was used in an attempt to prove the philosophy of once saved always saved. It is still happening today. The common texts used are Ephesians 1:13; John 10:28; Romans 8:1; Hebrews 10:14; I Corinthians 3:13–15. But this doctrine does not come from the Bible. It was brought into the church by Augustine, resurrected and taught a thousand years later by Martin Luther and John Calvin and has become mainline Protestantism.

However, there are also many texts that refute this doctrine: Hebrews 6:4, 5; Hebrews 10:26–31; Romans 8:12, 13; Matthew 10:22; and Galatians 5:21.

One of the key points of the doctrine of predestination emphasizes God’s sovereign will and teaches total depravity so that a person cannot make a choice until God regenerates him. Common texts used to try to prove that belief are Ephesians 2:1–5, Romans 8:7, and the most popular of all, the book of Romans chapter 9.

An important concept to understand is that no group of people has ever earned an exclusive right to the kingdom promises, either Jew or Gentile—no group and no church. The fact that Christ stated plainly that the covenant promises could be taken from the Jewish church and transferred to “a nation bearing the fruits of it” is powerful proof that predestination is not a Biblical teaching. In Matthew 21, the Jews were not predestined that they had to be God’s people forever. In Matthew 21:43, it says, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.”

Ellen White wrote, “The Lord Jesus will always have a chosen people to serve Him. When the Jewish people rejected Christ, the Prince of life, He took from them the kingdom of God and gave it unto the Gentiles. God will continue to work on this principle with every branch of His work. When a church proves unfaithful to the word of the Lord, whatever their position may be, however high and sacred their calling, the Lord can no longer work with them. Others are then chosen to bear important responsibilities. But, if these in turn do not purify their lives from every wrong action, if they do not establish pure and holy principles in all their borders, then the Lord will grievously afflict and humble them and, unless they repent, will remove them from their place and make them a reproach.” The Upward Look, 131.

The Bible does not teach either the doctrine of eternal security (once saved always saved) or the doctrine of predestination. The Jews were not predestined that they would always have to be the people of God. People are so confused about this that they still believe the nation of Israel are God’s chosen people. To be caught in Satan’s trap and believing in these doctrines will blind you to the truth of the final warning given to the world before the return of Jesus in the clouds of heaven. We need to face reality. No one is saved yet. Jesus is going to save us if we stay loyal to Him and never choose another Master but we are still living in a world where Satan believes he reigns supreme. He lays temptations and for us in every direction.

The texts used to promote the doctrine of predestination are as follows: John 6:37, 44; Matthew 11:27; John 5:21; Romans 8:29, 30; Ephesians 1:5; Revelation 17:8. But the honest seeker for truth must also consider the texts that refute this doctrine: Acts 14:1; John 7:16, 17; Matthew 23:37; II Peter 3:9; I John 2:2; Luke 13:24.

In Revelation 2 Jesus said he hated these Gnostic doctrines of the Nicolaitans that originated from Babylon. The question for you and me today is, “Do you hate what Jesus hates?” If you love what He loves, then you will hate what He hates.

Salvation is not complicated. John 20:31 says, “… these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” If you have belief, you will have life. Life comes when you hear the gospel and have faith in the promises it contains. Paul wrote, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘The just shall live by faith.’ ” Romans 1:16, 17.

The devil is skillful. He has many traps. As time runs out Satan becomes more desperate for a bigger catch. In this article, we have touched very briefly on one major trap that the devil devised so that the church living in the time when the judgment hour was preached would feel no need of the final warning and reject it. The judgment hour message is the most important message there is because your response to it will determine your eternal destiny. The three angels’ messages are true; they are infallible; and they need to be studied, memorized, and meditated upon. Pray that the Lord will help you have the experience therein mentioned so that you will be ready for the final judgment.

(Unless appearing in quoted references or otherwise identified, Bible texts are from the New King James Version.)

Pastor John J. Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church of Free Seventh-day Adventists in Wichita, Kansas. He may be contacted by email at: historic@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.

Must a Man be Buried to be Saved?

by Cody Francis

Must a Man be Buried to be Saved?Must a man be buried to live? It sounds like the most absurd question ever asked. Never does being buried carry the slightest connotation of life. In fact, nothing could be more terrifying than being buried alive. When an earthquake hits and demolishes buildings, thousands can experience the awful fate of being buried alive; buried under a mound of concrete, iron, and wood, the air filled with so much debris that it is impossible to breathe. One young lady who was buried under the debris of her own home in the Izmit, Turkey earthquake of August 17, 1999 said, “each minute was like a year.” Time, August 30, 1999, “Buried Alive.” Only one who experienced such an awful fate could understand. Each tick of the second hand would seem like days on end as a person was pinned between the remains of their own home. Thousands in Turkey, alone, suffered death at the hands of the merciless earthquake, but must a man be buried to live? The survivors and relatives would answer a resounding NO! A man must be rescued to live; but Jesus had something else to say, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” John 12:24, 25. Jesus said that if a kernel of wheat were to bring forth fruit it had to die. Then He brings the illustration even closer and says that if we love our life, we will lose it and if we hate our life, we will gain it. Jesus said that in order to live, we had to die! What did Jesus mean? It sounds like an oxymoron. If it is true that a man must die to live, then must a man be buried to live, as well?

You Must Die

“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, and the gospel’s, will save it.” Mark 8:35. Jesus clearly said that if we are going to attempt to preserve our lives, we will wind up losing our life in the end. It is only those who are willing to lose their life for Jesus and the gospel that will, in the end, save their life. Jesus said that if we are to live, we must die! By looking at the entire context, it helps to understand exactly what He meant. “When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, ‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?'” Mark 8:34-36. In order to follow Jesus a person must deny himself, lift up his cross, and lose his life. If a person does not do these things he may end up gaining the entire world, owning businesses, corporations, houses and lands, but still be lost. The importance and necessity of dying is a very common illustration that is used repeatedly throughout the Scriptures, but what does it mean?

There is a part of each one of us that must die, and if this does not die, we will be among those who may gain the entire world, but in the end lose their own soul. “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. For to be carnally minded is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” Romans 8:6-8. The carnal or fleshly nature is at enmity with God, and if we continue to retain this wicked nature we will not be able to please God. This carnal mind is our natural mind, the infirmities that are common to all humanity. There is, in human nature, a hereditary tendency toward sin. Writing of the struggle of the natural mind, Paul said, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.” Romans 7:18, 19. There is a struggle that goes on deep inside the heart and mind of every human being. A struggle between the natural, carnal elements of human nature and the Holy Spirit striving upon the heart of man. The natural desires, feelings, etc. are in conflict with God’s Word, for naturally a person is full of selfishness and pride. Each of us has been born into this world of sin and sorrow. We are descendants of Adam, and with our lineage to Adam comes the weaknesses and the hereditary tendencies to sin. Through our birth, we become citizens of the kingdom of this world. I was born in the United States of America. I am a citizen of the United States, and I didn’t have to do anything to become a citizen of this country. I was born here, by default I am a citizen. I have friends, on the other hand, that are now citizens of the United States, but it wasn’t easy. They had to go through a lot of work, effort, and education in order to become a citizen of the United States. If I desired to become a citizen of another country, I likewise would have to go through all the requirements to become a citizen of that country. It is the same way with the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world. We are all born into the kingdom of this world, we do not have to do anything to become citizens, we are so by default. Since we are citizens of the kingdom of this world, all have fallen into sin. “As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no, not one; …’ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:10, 23. Because all have been born into the miserable kingdom of this world, all have fallen short, all have sinned, and there is not one who is righteous. Each one has inherited and developed to one degree or another, a character with tendencies to sin. Everyone is in a hopeless situation. “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? No one!” Job 14:4. All have become unclean through the defilement of sin, and it is absolutely impossible for anyone of us to bring something clean out of the unclean vessels that each has become. A change must happen. Something outside of ourselves must take place in order for us to become citizens of the kingdom of God.

The change that is necessary in order to become a part of God’s kingdom, is death. A person seeking a change of citizenship must, in most cases, renounce his allegiance to his former country. So likewise, our allegiance to the kingdom of darkness must be renounced and a change must occur. In order for that change to occur, we must die. We must die to our old sinful natures. “Therefore brethren, we are debtors–not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but, if by the Spirit, you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.” Romans 8:12-14. Through the Holy Spirit, deeds of the body (the old, sinful nature) must be put to death. Only as we thus die, shall we live. We must not live according to the flesh, for all who live according to the flesh will die (not just the first, earthly death, but the dreadful second death, Revelation 20:14.) What are the deeds of the flesh? “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21. The term “flesh” in the Bible is not just the physical flesh, bones, and blood, but is the fleshly, carnal nature. Simply stated, the works of the flesh are disobedience to God’s Ten-Commandment Law. It is this that must die. Our old nature of disobedience to God must be put to death. Without this death to sin and self, we have not become a part of God’s kingdom; we are still “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel.” Ephesians 2:12.

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20. Paul had the experience of dying to his old sinful habits. He likened it to a death by crucifixion. His sins, his old fleshly desires, his sinful habits and tendencies were hung upon the cross, but that did not mean that he was physically dead. For some religions it is the height of spiritual attainment to basically kill yourself, but that is not the crucifixion and death that the Bible is talking about. It is a death to our sins and a new life in God. Not only does a person need to die to their old way of life, but they must also live through Christ. Paul said that since He is dead, it is now Christ living through him. He is following the example of our Lord. In whatever situation he found himself in, he chose to do what Christ would do. “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.” Romans 6:11-13. The Christian is forbidden to be an instrument of unrighteousness, and in order to be delivered from that, he must be dead to sin and alive to God. The sin, with all its clamors, is to be crucified, while Christ’s life of obedience is to be implanted in us. “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3.

Not only must a person die to live, but also this is an experience that must occur everyday. “I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.” “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.'” I Corinthians 15:31; Luke 9:23. Salvation and death to our old sinful natures is not a once in a lifetime decision. Unlike popular belief, these verses, along with many others, teach the opposite of “once saved, always saved.” (For more information on this subject, see Steps to Life’s booklet, Once Saved, Always Saved?) Every day a recommitment and rededication to the Lord must occur. If this does not happen, we are not truly following the Lord, for Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” If we don’t make the decision every day, we are lagging behind in the dust, and it will take an even greater effort to catch up. As Daniel did in the courts of Babylon, so must we. “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself,” Daniel 1:8. Daniel made the choice and the decision to follow the Lord, and so must each one whom desires to change loyalties from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. We must say as did Paul, “I die daily.”

You Must be Buried

Knowing that we must die, the question naturally rises, must we be buried as well? Certainly if we die, no one would want an unburied carcass of sins hanging around. Is there some way in which our old, sinful nature is buried? “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we, who died to sin, live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin.” Romans 6:1-7. Indeed, there is a way that our old, sinful way of life is buried. Baptism is the ceremony of the new covenant that represents the burial of our sins. Baptism actually represents the entire process of death, burial and resurrection. As a person is baptized, he is baptized into Jesus’ death. Not only is he showing his faith in Jesus death for him, but he is also pledging to experience that death to sin. (vs. 2) As Christ was buried in the tomb, so the sinner’s sins are buried in the watery grave of baptism. (vs. 4) So as Christ was raised from the grave, as a person rises from the waters of baptism, he is to walk in the newness of life. (vs. 4) Baptism is the ceremony by which a person expresses their faith in the amazing gift that God has given to mankind through His Son, and by which he pledges to experience the death to sin, the burial of sin, and the resurrection to new life. “Buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.” Colossians 2:12.

Baptism–how?

If a man is going to die and then be buried to live, he needs to know what the correct method of burial is. There are many different methods that men use and claim it to be baptism. There is sprinkling, pouring, immersion, triple immersion, and even water-less baptism. How can we tell which is the Biblical method of baptism?

“Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized.” John 3:23. The Scriptures record that John was baptizing in Aenon because there was much water there. Do you need “much water” to sprinkle someone? No. Do you even need “much water” to use the pour method of baptism? No, a pitcher of water will suffice. Do you need “much water” to immerse? Yes, you cannot immerse even one person unless you have an ample supply of water. It definitely takes “much water” to baptize by immersion.

“And all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.” Mark 1:5. Notice where the people were baptized–it was IN the Jordan River. Not on the side of it, not on its banks, but actually in it. Is it necessary to be IN the river in order to sprinkle? No. Is it necessary to be IN the river to pour? Not really. Is it necessary to be IN the river to immerse? Absolutely! You cannot immerse a person if you are not, in reality, IN the river.

“Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?’ Then Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away,” Acts 8:36-39. They both went down into the water and then they both came back up out of the water. Once again, it was not something that they did along side the road. The only method of baptism that this could possibly be is immersion. In neither sprinkling nor pouring do either the person being baptized or the person baptizing go down into the water. It is only in immersion that this occurs. Clearly, the Biblical method of baptism is immersion.

The English word baptize actually comes from the Greek word, baptidzo. Baptidzo simply means “dip, immerse.” A Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, Gingrich & Danker. When the translators came to that word, they realized that they had never before been dipped and so they conveniently transliterated the word, that is, they just gave it English letters and made it an English word. Thus the very meaning of the word “baptism” is immersion. How much clearer our English reading would be if the translators would have translated it directly. It would read, “Now John also was immersing… because there was much water there” “and were all immersed by him in the River Jordan” “And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and he immersed him.” As we put the actual meaning of the word into the verses, it becomes obvious that the Biblical baptism is not sprinkling or pouring, or any other method but immersion.

Neither pouring nor sprinkling could have the significance that immersion does. Baptism shows our faith in the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord and it also testifies of our death and burial to sin and our resurrection to a new life. Only immersion carries that deep significance. As a person goes down into the waters of baptism they are showing that they are dying to sin. When the person is laid underneath the waters, it represents the burial of sin, and then when a person comes up out of the water it typifies their resurrection to a new life. Sprinkling is little more than a shower. It has no significance of death to sin, burial, or resurrection. Both sprinkling and pouring destroy the beautiful symbolism given us through baptism. According to God’s Word, the only correct method of baptism is immersion.

Baptism–when?

Having seen that a person must be baptized by immersion, the next question that needs to be answered is when can a person be baptized? There are several things that must take place prior to baptism. If these experiences do not take place before baptism, the Biblical example is not being followed.

“Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'” Acts 2:38. When the people were convicted of the truth that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, the promised Messiah, they asked, “What shall we do?” Acts 2:37. In answer to their question, Peter says, “Repent.” The first step is given–repentance. They were not to be baptized and then repent. Repentance came first. So today, repentance must precede baptism. It was so important that repentance accompany baptism, that John’s baptism was referred to as, “the baptism of repentance.” (See Mark 1:4) All who came to John to be baptized knew that repentance for their sins had to come first. Really, if repentance does not precede baptism, the importance of baptism will not be understood. There must be the conviction that we are guilty sinners. As the listeners upon the day of Pentecost, a person must be “cut to the heart.” (Acts 2:37.) There must be deep, heartbreaking guilt that our sins put to death the only begotten Son of God. “Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner,… For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.” II Corinthians 7:9, 11. The Corinthian church had a true sorrow that was not to be repented of. Repentance literally means “a change of mind.” (A Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, Gingrich & Danker.) The necessary repentance before baptism is a sorrow for our sins, realizing that they crucified our beloved Savior, but also a change in our mind to do the works of God. Some, thinking that baptism of itself has power to save a person, will be baptized with no remorse for their sins whatsoever, and think that in so doing they are securing a title to the kingdom of God. Nothing could be farther from the truth! If repentance does not precede baptism, it is valueless.

“He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16. Jesus himself states that belief also must come before baptism. In John the Baptist’s day, they did not know who they were to believe in, (Acts 19:4) but now, we know exactly whom we must believe in. Now Before baptism, it is necessary to say with the Ethiopian eunuch, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Acts 8:37. A person must believe that Jesus is indeed the promised Messiah, that He is the One in whom their sins can be forgiven. We must realize that not only was Jesus a good man and great teacher, but that He is the only way that we can be saved. “Nor is there salvation in any other,” Acts 4:12. We must know as did Peter, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” John 6:68, 69. Christ must become everything to us. We must believe that He is the only way through which our sins can be forgiven, the only way through which our great and many sins can be thrown into the depths of the sea. We must believe that He alone is our only hope and ground of eternal life. Before a person is baptized, he must truly believe on Jesus, the only begotten Son of God.

“‘Go ye therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen.” Matthew 28:19, 20. Jesus, in His Great Commission given to the disciples and to all believers, states that they are to make disciples and then baptize them. A person is not to be baptized until they have become a disciple of Jesus. What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus? Jesus explained himself by saying, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.” A person needs to receive instruction on the gospel and the many things that Jesus taught. A person needs to have some time to become acquainted and familiar with the truths that Jesus taught before making the commitment of baptism. Baptism is similar to marriage. I would never encourage anyone to get married on the spur of the moment or on the impulse of emotion alone. Yet there are thousands who are baptized while on an emotional high, and they don’t realize the commitment that they are making. Jesus said that a person should count the cost of the step that he is taking. “And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it–lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all who see it begin to mock him. Saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” Luke 14:17-33. Jesus was very clear that a person must realize the decision that he is making before making the step. The conditions are plain and simple; “Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.” Luke 14:33. We must be willing to do whatever the Lord asks of us. We must be willing to forsake everything, because that is exactly what baptism symbolizes. It is a death and burial of our sins and a resurrection to newness of life. Our old sinful way of life must be buried in the watery grave of baptism. Anyone who desires to follow their Lord all of the way into baptism must be willing to count the cost and choose to follow the Lord wherever He asks.

“But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘Brood of vipers! Who has warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance,” Matthew 3:7, 8. John the Baptist refused to baptize some individuals who came to him for baptism! Some preachers will baptize anyone who desires baptism, but that is not following the example of John the Baptist. Do you think that a preacher should conduct a funeral for someone who is still alive? How would you like it if you were the person who was being buried alive? We would all agree that a live person should NOT be buried, but what about in baptism? Baptism is a funeral service. It is a resurrection service as well, but the funeral comes first. The “body of sin” (Romans 6:6) is dead and buried. What is the body of sin? The body of sin is, of course, the old habits and sinful way of life. That is why Paul, later on in the chapter, says, “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body.” Romans 6:12. If a person has been buried and their sins are dead–sin is not to reign! It is not to continue to be practiced. When you conduct a funeral, the dead body is not to be exhumed. (People get arrested for that.) Since a baptism is a funeral when the sins and the old sinful way of life are buried, would it be right to bury a person who is still living in their old sinful way of life? NO! It would be burying someone alive! (If you bury someone alive in our world today, you will be arrested for murder; but many preachers are spiritually guilty of this very crime!) If a person comes desiring baptism and is carrying a flask of liquor, would it be wise to baptize him? No! That is the works of the flesh that is buried at baptism. “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery,… drunkenness,… those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21. That is why John the Baptist refused to baptize some of the Pharisees and Sadducees, they were not showing, by their lives, that they were dead to their old sinful way of life. John the Baptist said, “Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance” Matthew 3:8. A person must show by their life that they have indeed accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and that they are willing to follow Him no matter what. When a person has had a true conversion, it becomes obvious to all around that a change has taken place. The new birth must occur before a person is baptized, just like the love between two individuals must precede the wedding, not the other way around. A person must show that he is no longer carnally minded, but now he is spiritually minded. (Romans 8:6.)

While it is true that an individual must show by his life that he has accepted Jesus, that does not mean that a person must be perfect before he can be baptized. If that were the case, no one would end up being baptized, and Jesus’ final commission would never be fulfilled. Three thousand were baptized and added to the church on the day of Pentecost. (Acts 2:41, 47.) They had given evidence in their life that they accepted Jesus as their Lord and were going to follow Him, but they still were not perfect. We know that they were not perfect because in just a little while, problems arose in the church. There was complaining and bitter feelings over supposed favoritism. (See Acts 6:1.) Obviously, they were not perfect or they would not have had this problem. Although they had chosen to follow Jesus all of the way and had given evidence of conversion in their lives, they still had trials and temptations, and they still fell. They were striving to follow Jesus all of the way and that is what the Lord asks of us.

You may be asking, “When is baptism to take place?” We need to look to see if it is acceptable to baptize babies. We have seen that there are four things which the Bible teaches that must take place before baptism: 1) repentance, 2) belief, 3) instruction, and 4) obedience. Can a baby repent for its sins? Can a baby believe in Jesus as its only hope of eternal salvation? Can a baby be taught to observe all that the Lord has commanded? Can a baby obey the Law and teaching of Jesus? The obvious answer to all of these questions is, no. A person must be of an age to understand the importance and the meaning of baptism before he takes the important step of baptism. “Moreover your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims, who today have no knowledge of good and evil,” Deuteronomy 1:39. A child must come to an age of accountability before he makes the necessary step of baptism. He must have knowledge of good and evil. While still too young to understand the difference, God accepts his childlike devotion and he will not be held accountable until he reaches the age of accountability, which occurs at different ages for different children. A person must repent, believe, be instructed and obey before he is ready to make the commitment and decision of baptism.

Baptism–why?

It is argued by some that all that is necessary is baptism by the Spirit, that water baptism is of no value anymore. Others are afraid of water and cringe at the thought of being submersed in it. Humanity can come up with many different reasons to avoid baptism, but in reality they are all excuses. God has given us a plain command in His Word. The question is whether or not we are going to obey and follow His plain command.

“Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I have need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’ But Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'” Matthew 3:13-17. Jesus Himself came to the River Jordan and was baptized. Why was Jesus baptized? There was certainly no need for His sins to be washed away, for He had no sins, yet He came to John and insisted upon being baptized. John the Baptist, realizing whom it was who was requesting baptism, balked at the thought. (I am sure that I would too.) John knew that here was his Creator and King, and He was desiring to be baptized by him, a lowly sinner! Jesus insisted that he be baptized saying, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” It was fulfilling all righteousness for Jesus to be baptized. Why was it so essential that Jesus be baptized? So that He could give us an example to follow. “For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.” “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:” John 13:15; I Peter 2:21. Jesus was baptized, not because He needed to be baptized, but so that He could demonstrate to us just how important this ceremony is. If Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, condescended to the waters of baptism, should we hesitate to take that important step?

“Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?'” Acts 2:37. When the Holy Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost, there was a great deal of heart searching that went on. Peter delivered a powerful sermon in which he showed that the Jewish nation was guilty of the blood of the Son of God. As he was bringing the appeal home to the hearts of the hearers, a most important question escaped from their lips. As they saw themselves sinners in need of Christ, they asked, “what shall we do?” The Holy Spirit was pressing conviction strongly upon their hearts, and their earnest desire was to know what to do to be right with God. The answer from Peter came, plain clear and simple, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38. Those who were convicted and desiring to follow the Lord were given definite directions. They were to repent of their sins and then to follow their Lord into the waters of baptism. Peter did not say that it was an option or a good idea, it was essential. If they were going to repent and follow their Lord, they must take their public stand for Him by baptism. So today, as souls are seeing the goodness of God and what it is that He asks of them, they must make a public commitment, through baptism, to follow the Lord. This should not be something that is considered a hard, grievous requirement. If we truly love the Lord it will not be hard. Just as it is not hard to marry someone whom you truly love, so it is not hard to publicly pledge our fidelity to the Lord through baptism. What must we do? Repent and be baptized.

“He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:16. Jesus, in some of the last words that He spoke before ascending to heaven, makes a plain, straightforward statement of who will be saved. It is those who 1) believe and 2) are baptized. There are two essential elements. One without the other will not save a person. The belief must come first, belief in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, the only One through whom we can be saved. Belief that He has taken our sins upon Him and if we repent and confess He will wash away our many and terrible sins. True belief will always lead to something else, though. True belief will lead to publicly stating our belief through baptism. Thus true belief comes first, but then it is followed by baptism. There are, of course, cases in which a person cannot be baptized, but the Lord accepts their devotion; for example, the thief on the cross. He accepted Jesus in the twilight of his life. He only had a few hours left when he made the confession, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” Luke 23:42. It was an impossibility for him to come down from the cross on which he was hanging and be baptized, so the Lord accepted his sincerity of heart, knowing that if he had the opportunity to be baptized, then he would have. All must be baptized who have accepted Jesus and are able to be baptized by immersion. There are some cases in which I have been familiar that because of paralysis or deathly physical affliction a person could not be baptized. They desired to, but it had become impossibility through their physical situation. God looks at those cases and weighs the heart and does not hold a person accountable, but if a person is fully able and refuses to be baptized, they are refusing Jesus Himself.

Jesus made perhaps the strongest statement of all about baptism in His night interview with Nicodemus. “Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.'” John 3:5. There is a new birth that each and every person who is saved must experience. “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3. If a person is not born again, he will not be saved. As we have already studied, baptism is a representation of this new birth experience; and if a person does not follow through with the outward sign of the new birth, he will not be saved. “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” John 3:5. An individual must be born of water in order to enter God’s kingdom. What is this new birth of water? It is the waters of baptism, which symbolizes the new birth. If a person has the opportunity to be baptized and refuses (or procrastinates until it is too late), he CANNOT enter the kingdom of God. Is baptism important? Is it necessary? There could be nothing more important and necessary than a true baptism accompanied by the inward experience. Must a man be buried to live? Absolutely, that is the only way that he will see life!

While I was in the Philippines a pastor told me of a unique baptism that he had administered. There was a lady who had started studying the Bible and it had wrought a total change in her life. This woman had been involved in a life of crime before her conversion, but she was now making the decision to surrender to Jesus. She had been involved with the rebels. In the Philippines, there are guerrilla outpost camps that are in rebellion to the government of the Philippines. Generally speaking, they are communist and are striving to see the present government overthrown and a communist government set up. There are frequent clashes between the Philippine Army and the National People’s Army (commonly known as the “rebels”). The National People’s Army (NPA) is known for its violence and taking of hostages. This woman, who had started studying the Bible, was not only involved with the NPA, but she was a commander in the NPA! Her life had indeed been a life of crime in a rebellious military atmosphere, but she was now making the decision to follow Jesus all of the way. She knew that she would have to surrender to the Philippine Army and discontinue her rebellious military career. There was one condition that she had–she wanted to surrender to Jesus before surrendering to the Philippine Army. This was arranged and my pastor friend agreed to baptize her so that she could publicly surrender to Jesus. The Philippine Army was going to take no chances, though. They surrounded the site for the baptism with jeep loads full of soldiers to make sure that this high profile rebel would not escape. As soon as she was baptized and surrendered to Jesus, she peacefully surrendered to the Philippine Army. How important is baptism? This once rebel leader knew how important baptism was. Her one qualification was that she take her public stand for her faith before she was captured. How that faith and submission is needed in the lives of many Christians here today in our peaceful lands.

What Hinders You?

Do you desire to live? There is only one way that you can live eternally with Christ Jesus–you must be buried. The Lord has done everything possible that you might be saved. Then He has just set a few simple prerequisites for us. Will your take your stand on the Lord’s side? Have you made your stand for Jesus as the woman in the Philippines did? Is the Lord speaking to you, convicting you of your need to make a deeper commitment to Him–even the commitment of baptism? There was an incident that happened nearly two thousand years ago, but its lesson is still for us today. Philip, the evangelist, had been working mightily for the Lord in Samaria, but the Lord directed him to a very out of the way place. He did not know why the Lord was leading him there, but he willingly followed. As he was traveling he came to a chariot in which was riding a high ranking official from the kingdom of Ethiopia. This man earnestly desired light and was pouring over the Scriptures for more understanding. (What everyone who desires to have more light and knowledge should do.) “Then Philip opened his mouth and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.” Acts 8:35. The Lord had directed Philip to this honest man who was seeking for light in order that he might show him the more perfect way–that he might teach Jesus and Him crucified. As Philip was teaching, light and understanding dawned on this noble man’s mind. “Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?’ Then Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.” Acts 8:36-38. Oh, that there were thousands of souls like the honest Ethiopian. When he learned the truth from the Word of God, he did not make excuses. He said, “What hinders me from being baptized?” What hinders you, Friend, from being baptized? Do you believe with all your heart that Jesus is the Messiah and understand the meaning for your life? Have you counted the cost and decided that it is better to lose the entire world than to lose Jesus?

There was a young lady in the Philippines whom I baptized. I will never forget her testimony. She had been working at a place that required her to break God’s holy Law. As we studied, she decided that even if she had to lose her job, she was willing, in order to follow Jesus. She said that she may have to lose her job for taking her stand, but it was better to lose a job than to lose Christ. Oh, how I wish that there were more like her. She was willing to lose everything rather than to lose Jesus. She believed with all of her heart that Jesus was the Son of God and she was going to follow Him no matter what. Do you believe that? Are you willing to follow Jesus as she was, even if it costs you your job, your friends, your family, your house, your car, your anything? Do you truly believe that Jesus is the Son of God? Or maybe you have already been baptized by immersion before (anything else is not baptism at all,) but have had a new conversion and would like to make a public recommitment. Frequently couples renew their marriage vows, and there is nothing wrong with renewing your commitment to Jesus to follow Him no matter what. When Paul met those who were learning more and having a new conversion, he re-baptized them. (Acts 19:1-6.) Your eternal destiny is at stake. Don’t you want to be on the safe side of eternity? Will you make that decision right now, to begin preparing for the most wonderful public commitment of baptism? Don’t wait until it is too late. Don’t, like Agrippa, be almost persuaded. (Acts 26:28.) For although he was almost persuaded, he was completely lost. Friend, don’t make that dreadful mistake. “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” Acts 22:16

All emphasis the authors unless otherwise stated.
All texts from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Sources:

  • The Desire of Ages, Ellen G. White, 1898.
  • His Mighty Love, Dr. Ralph Larson, Teach Services, 1995.
  • A Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, F. Wilbur Gingrich & Frederick W. Danker, University of Chicago Press, 1983.
  • Time Magazine, August 30, 1999, “Buried Alive”
  • World-Wide Bible Lectures, Fordyce W. Detamore.

Click here to view other exciting posts on Bible topics from Steps to Life.

The Only Way to be Saved

by Cody Francis

The Only Way to be SavedThere are many pleasing theories in the world today that are very comfortable to the carnal mind. I was talking with a man about religion one time, and he presented his version of the Lord and the way to be saved. He said that really we were all going to the same place. He didn’t think that any religion was necessarily correct. Buddhists, Hindus, Christians, Muslims, pagans, they are all going to the same place, just taking a different route, he said. They all have different beliefs, but God isn’t that particular, his view was that they really are all the same. You could do anything, say anything, believe anything, and you would still be headed to heaven, he said. There is no doubt about it; this view is a comfortable idea. You don’t need to worry if you are on the right path or not because every path leads to the same place. You don’t need to worry about anything; everything will be all right. Although this is pleasing to the senses, is this really what the Bible teaches? Does the Bible teach that it doesn’t matter what you believe or do? All that matters is that your heart is in the right place? Are there many roads to heaven or is there only one way to be saved?

The Only Name

“Let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’ Nor is there salvation in any other, for there in no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:10-12. Peter, speaking as he was moved by the Holy Spirit, (vs. 8) emphatically states that there is no other name under all of heaven by which we, or anyone else, may find salvation. There is only one name in which there is power to save–and that is the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. It may sound nice to think that there are hundreds of ways to be saved, that a person can go in any direction that he chooses and still be acceptable to God; the problem is, it simply doesn’t hold up with Scripture. It is only through Jesus that a person can find salvation, as we discover in John 3:16, 17. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” The only name by which we can be saved is the name of Jesus, because He is the only begotten Son of God. God has only one begotten Son, and since the Lord of Glory has only one Son, then there is only one way to be saved. Jesus Himself made this very clear, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” John 10:9. Jesus likened God’s church to a sheepfold with only one door. The only way that you could lawfully get into the sheepfold was through the door. There are not five or ten different doors through which a person may enter, there is only one, and that only way is through Jesus, our Lord and Saviour.

While it is true that the only name by which anyone can be saved is through Jesus, the plan of salvation is more involved than just that. There are going to be many people who knew Jesus’ name, but will end up being lost. Even demons know Jesus’ name. “Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, saying, ‘Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are–the Holy One of God!'” Mark 1:23, 24. Not only did the demon know Jesus’ name, but he also knew that Jesus was the Holy One of God! Certainly there is more to salvation than just knowing Jesus’ name, or else this demon would be among the saved. What a revolting thought! To think that a terrifying demon would be saved! We have no need to fear, for that will not be. The Lord has already cast Satan and all his fiends out of heaven (Rev. 12:7-9, 4) and they will not gain admittance again.

Not only do the demons know that Jesus is the Holy One, but there are going to be many people who will claim to know and believe that Jesus is Lord, but this will not save demons or people. “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” Matthew 7:21-23. Here is a group of people who think that they are saved. They think that they have a right to enter through the pearly gates into the New Jerusalem, but alas, too late they find that they have been duped! They call Jesus ‘Lord.’ They work miracles in HIS name! They cast out demons in HIS name! They prophesy in HIS name! But, even though, they have prophesied and done all of these wonders in Jesus OWN name, they themselves are lost. Certainly if they are calling Jesus ‘Lord’ and work miracles in His name, they know the name of Jesus, the only way to be saved, but that is not enough. They are sadly deceived. They think that they were saved, when they really do not know the only way that they can be saved. How is it that demons and well-meaning Christians could be lost while knowing the name of Jesus?

Knowing Jesus

Simply knowing the name of Jesus is not enough. A person can know that Jesus lived, he can know that Jesus died, he can know that Jesus rose, but simply having the knowledge will save no one. It is true that there is no other name by which a person may be saved, but there is more involved than just knowing that Jesus existed. In order for a person to be saved he must truly know Jesus. Jesus rebuked the disciples because they did not TRULY know Him. “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip?” John 14:9. Not only is it possible to know about Jesus, and even spend a great deal of time with Him and still not know Him (as with the apostles experience), but tragically this sad fate will happen to billions.

We know many people in this world. We have business acquaintances. There are family friends. There are great-aunts and third cousins. There are the neighbors. We know all these people, but there is a difference in the way we know them and the way we know our spouse, children, or best friend. So there is a difference in the way that people know Jesus. Some know Jesus as an historical figure. Others know Jesus as a good man and mighty teacher. Others know that He is the foretold Messiah of the old covenant, the Son of God. And still others know Him as their personal Lord and Saviour. For some people the only time that they call upon Jesus is when they are swearing. Others spend an hour each week with Jesus as they serve their time at church. Some spend five or ten minutes a day while going through their prayers. But still others spend time with Jesus as they are walking down the street, as they are at their workplace. He is their constant companion and the hours they spend with him are not limited to time or place. They are not isolated from the world in some monastery, but moment by moment they are communing with their Lord.

Jesus said, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” John 17:3. It is only this personal companionship with our Lord that will amount to anything at all. It is only by personally knowing our Lord and Saviour that we can be saved. This personal relationship with Jesus as, not just a good person, not just a mighty teacher, not just the Messiah, but as our personal friend, Lord and Saviour, is the only way to be saved.

The Pharisees knew Jesus. They could not deny His existence. He lived and walked and taught among them, but Jesus said that they did not know Him. “Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.'” John 8:19. Even though they knew that He existed, even though they had talked and disputed with Him, they did not truly know Him. Jesus emphatically said that they did not know Him or the Father. They did not have a personal acquaintance with Him. He was not their personal friend, but rather their enemy. So today many know of Jesus. They know that He is the only way to be saved, but they do not really know Him. His life and teachings rebuke their lives and even though they know that He is true, they do not want to learn of Him. They desire to go their own way and do their own thing and that is exactly what they do. Like the Pharisees they may think that they know Him, but Jesus says, “I do not know you.” Luke 13:25, 27.

The throng that followed Jesus, knew Jesus. They had seen His miracles. Many of them had even experienced His miracles. They had friends or relatives who had been healed by the Saviour. Many had been among the thousands that miraculously received food from His hands at the feeding of the five thousand and the feeding of the four thousand. This was the class who it was said, “And the common people heard Him gladly.” Mark 12:37. But even though they were the ones who heard Jesus’ words with gladness, it didn’t go much deeper than that. They were not with the Pharisees who were caviling and trying to find fault with everything that Jesus said, but they still didn’t truly know Jesus. When Jesus uttered some of the more testing truths, the truths that struck against the natural inclination of humanity, it was mournfully said of them, “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” John 6:66. They knew Jesus. They knew His words, His life, His teaching, but they didn’t really know Him. When it came to leaving their preconceived ideas behind, when they had to go against their own desires, when Jesus’ teaching cut across the besetting sins in their lives, they refused to go any further. They had all the externals of being good followers of Jesus, but it didn’t reach down into their hearts. “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.'” Luke 9:23. They refused to lift the cross. There are many in our world who have the same experience as the throng who pressed about Jesus. They come to church, they do all the things that “good Christians” should do, but when the Lord convicts their hearts of some besetting sin that needs to be given up for His name, instead of heeding the voice of God’s Spirit speaking to them, they harden their hearts. (Hebrews 3:8, 12, 15) Although they think that they know Jesus, as Jesus said to the Pharisees so He will say to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.” Matthew 25:12. All because they thought they knew Jesus, but they did not REALLY become acquainted with Him, the only way to be saved.

There were another group of men who were the most closely associated with Jesus of anyone upon the earth. These were the twelve disciples. In order for them to follow Jesus, they had to make many sacrifices. They left behind the comforts and amenities of home life to follow Him. “Then Peter began to say to Him, ‘See, we have left all and followed You.'” Mark 10:28. They picked up their cross and followed Him. They walked with Him along the way. They heard the wonderful words of life as they dropped from His lips. They saw the mighty miracles that He performed. They ate with Him, they were constantly with Him. But, even though, they were constantly with Him, there were still many things that they needed to learn. Jesus said, “Let these words sink down into your ears,” Luke 9:44. It was only those who allowed Jesus’ sayings to sink down into their ears who truly knew Him. Those who, not only traveled and ate with Him, but hung upon His every word truly knew Him. The eleven faithful disciples gained this experience after the crucifixion, but at least one had a deeper connection than any of the others. He it is who is our example of how we can truly know our Lord, how we can truly know Him who is the only way to be saved. This disciple was none other than John, the son of thunder (Mark 3:17), but who earned the endearing title, the beloved disciple (John 21:20-25.) It was John who was leaning upon Jesus’ bosom at the Last Supper. (John 13:23.) It was John who could not bear to be separated from His Lord and followed Him into the courtyard of the high priest. (John 18:15.) It was John to whom Jesus committed the care of His mother. (John 19:25-27.) It was John who was the first of the twelve to reach the tomb on the resurrection morn. (John 20:2-4.) It is the experience of John, the beloved disciple, which teaches us the only way to be saved. His relationship with Jesus was more than just a form. His relationship was not limited to mere externals, it was a deep, inwrought experience of the heart. He did not just say that he knew Jesus, but he really and truly did know Jesus.

It was John, writing many years after Jesus’ crucifixion, after he had spent decades in the service of his beloved Lord and Master, that gave us the clearest insights into this concept of truly knowing Him. “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life–the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us–that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” I John 1:1-3. John, writing to the churches probably fifty to sixty years after the cross, reminds his hearers that he had personally seen, heard, and handled the Lord of Glory. It was his earnest desire that his readers may have the fellowship with Jesus that He had developed over the years. To John, his relationship with Jesus was not just knowing Him. It had gone far beyond that, it was a fellowship that they had one with another. This fellowship was the result of personally knowing Jesus as his personal Lord and Saviour. John further continues, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” I John 1:6, 7. If we are walking and abiding in the light of truth, as Jesus is, we are going to have fellowship with each other. Amazing thought! Beyond the comprehension of our mortal minds. Weak, finite beings may rise to the height of fellowship with the Infinite One! This most precious experience that John had, he sought to lead others to have as well. This experience is by no means limited to two thousand years ago, but can, and is to be a part of our experience. How can we have that intimate fellowship with our Lord? How can we know Him better than we know anyone else?

Knowing His Death

In order to have that intimate fellowship with Jesus, it is essential to know why He had to die, the experience that He went through at His death, and what His death has accomplished.

Why did Jesus have to die? He did not have to die, but He chose to die. We have no choice. “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” Rom. 5:12. By one man death spread its dark shadows over our fallen world. Because Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, the results of their sin passed upon all men. We are all descendants of Adam and Eve (not from some monkeys or amoebas) and because of our lineage to Adam and Eve, we are all destined to die. But that was not so with Jesus. He is not a descendant of Adam and thus the curse of death did not pass to Him. He chose to die for us. “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” John 10:17, 18. Jesus was not forced to die for us, He chose of Himself to lay down His life for us. Between the Father and the Son there was a most mysterious counsel and a counsel that we shall never be able to fully understand. The Bible calls it the counsel of peace. “Behold, the Man whose name is the BRANCH! From His place He shall branch out, And He shall build the temple of the Lord; Yes He shall build the temple of the Lord. He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule on His throne; So He shall be a priest on His throne, And the counsel of peace shall be between them both.” Zechariah 6:12, 13. By comparing the other Old Testament prophesies of the Messiah, it is easy to see that the Branch is another name for the Messiah. (Isaiah 4:2; 11:1; Jeremiah 23:5; 33:15.) The counsel of peace was to determine how the justice and righteousness of God’s throne (Psalms 89:14) could be maintained; and also how He could condescend to save lost mankind. When Adam and Eve fell, there was indeed silence in heaven. Man had forfeited the wonderful promises and the Paradise that God had provided for them. But at that moment, when everything looked as if it were lost for humanity, Jesus, the Infinite Son of God, stepped in and volunteered to die in man’s behalf. It was not something He was forced or coerced into doing, He voluntarily chose to take man’s place. Thus it could be said of Him, “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Revelation 13:8. From the very establishment of this world, Jesus made the commitment to die for lost man. Then when the “fullness of the time had come,” (Galatians 4:4) a voice was heard in the courts above, “Behold, I come; in the scroll of the Book it is written of me.” “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me.” Psalms 40:7; Hebrews 10:5. The Infinite Son of God, the one equal with God (Philippians 2:6), chose to come down to rescue poor, sinful, fallen mankind. It was a voluntary act, a voluntary sacrifice.

Jesus said in John 12:23, 24, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” That very week Jesus was going to be crucified and die for the sins of the world. His hour had now come. Throughout the book of John the phrase, “for His hour was not yet come” keeps repeating (See John 2:4; 7:30; 8:20), but a change was taking place. Now His hour was come. As Jesus thought of the awful cup of which He was even then beginning to drink, He said, “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.” John 12:27, 28. His soul trembled at the thought of the anguish that awaited Him, but then He remembered that it was for this very cause that He came into the world. Jesus was born into this world in order that He might die on our behalf. He used the illustration of a grain of wheat. If you preserve a grain of wheat all you have is one grain, but if you plant it, it will produce a hundredfold. So Jesus, by giving His pure and holy life for mankind, was to save millions. If He were not to give up His life, though, He would remain alone; for the only way that mankind could be saved was by the death of the Lifegiver. Jesus was fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah, “When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,… He shall see the travail of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong,” Isaiah 53:10, 11, 12. Jesus looked by faith to those who were to be saved through His great sacrifice. He saw “His seed,” justified “many,” and was then able to “divide the spoil with the strong.” Through His sacrifice, the undeserving sons of Adam could be justified and could become once again the “sons of God.” (John 1:12, I John 3:1.) “For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the author of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” Hebrews 2:10. In order for Jesus to bring many “sons to glory,” He must be made perfect through the sufferings of the cross.

The only way that mankind could be saved was through the death of the One through whom “all things were made.” John 1:3. The only sacrifice that could wash away the debt of man’s sins was the One who had power to lay down His life and to take it again. (John 10:17, 18.) The claims of God’s holy Law are so great that God could not do away with His Law in order to pardon man. No, the claims of the Law had to be met. The price had to be paid, and the only One who could do that was the One of whom it was said, “in Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” John 1:4. That is why Jesus’ death does not abrogate the Law. On the contrary, it exalts and establishes it. “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.” Romans 3:31. The death of the One who “is before all things, and in Him all things consist” (Colossians 1:17) was the only way that the price of our sins could be paid. It was only thus that God could be “just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:26.

Jesus’ death was not just an ordinary death. That alone could never be sufficient. Jesus’ death was the anguish of our sins being laid upon Him. The just for the unjust, the innocent for the guilty, the pure and spotless One, for the stained and polluted, such was Jesus’ love for us. “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” II Corinthians 5:21. It was not the physical suffering that caused the death of Jesus, but the weight of the sins of the world that were laid upon Him. Jesus only hung upon the cross for six hours. (Mark 15:25, 34.) To us that may seem like an eternity, but it was frequent that criminals would spend hours, and even days, hanging upon the cross until they were finally suffocated by their own body weight causing their death. But not so with Jesus. Jesus expired in six hours, surprising both Pilate and the guards. (Mark 15:44, 45.) It was not the pain and physical suffering of the cross that killed our Saviour, it was our sins. It had been prophesied hundreds of years earlier, “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5, 6. As He suffered upon the cross; our griefs, our sorrows, our transgressions, our iniquities were all laid upon Him. The one who had never transgressed felt the heavy curse of transgression fall upon Him. The only One who had never done iniquity, felt the iniquities of the entire world bear upon His holy soul. The most unbearable weight that has ever been placed upon humanity was laid heavily upon Him. Truly He was made to be sin for us. He suffered the awful weight and guilt of sin as it pressed upon His innocent soul. He suffered, not just the first death that all men die, but He suffered the pangs of the second death for all of mankind. He was made a curse for us, that we might be freed from the curse. (Galatians 3:13.) But the most terrible of all was that Jesus, the One who had been with the Father from the days of eternity, (John 1:1; 17:5; Malachi 5:2) was separated from the Father. Sin was so awful; and in order to drink fully of the cup of human suffering and woe that He had put to His lips, He had to be cut off from God. (Matthew 26:38, 39.) Sin bore so heavily upon Him that He felt as if He would be cut off from the Father–forever. This terrifying thought wrung from His pale, quivering lips the mournful cry, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Matthew 27:46. The enormity of sin was so great that He felt the broad black gulf that sin makes between man and His Creator. It was almost more than Jesus could bear. Truly He trod the winepress of God’s wrath alone. (Isaiah 63:3; Revelation 14:19.) He stood between God and man without an intercessor. (Isaiah 59:16.) As one writer puts it, “Upon Christ as our substitute and surety was laid the iniquity of us all. He was counted a transgressor, that He might redeem us from the condemnation of the law. The guilt of every descendant of Adam was pressing upon His heart. The wrath of God against sin, the terrible manifestation of His displeasure because of iniquity, filled the soul of His Son with consternation. All His life Christ had been publishing to a fallen world the good news of the Father’s mercy and pardoning love. Salvation for the chief of sinners was His theme. But now with the terrible weight of guilt He bears, He cannot see the Father’s reconciling face. The withdrawal of the divine countenance from the Saviour in this hour of supreme anguish pierced His heart with a sorrow that can never be fully understood by man. So great was this agony that His physical pain was hardly felt.” Desire of Ages, 753. No, Jesus did not just die an ordinary death, nor even a martyrs death, He died the most excruciating, awful death of separation from the Father on account of our sins. Wonder of all wonders! The most full, complete display of eternal love possible.

Jesus’ death is everything to us. Without His death we are without God, and without hope. (Ephesians 2:12.) Wanderers in this strange world of ours, without an aim and without purpose. But since Jesus’ death, we can be freed from the endless drudgery of this life and be placed on a higher purpose. It is only through Jesus’ death that our sins can be forgiven. Jesus died that we might live. He took our sins upon Him in order that our sins might be taken from us. “For this is the blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission [margin, forgiveness] of sins.” Matthew 26:28. Jesus spilled out His blood in order that His blood might cover our sins. “Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger for ever, because He delighteth in mercy, He will turn again, He will have compassion upon us; He will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” Micah 7:18, 19, KJV; Psalms 103:13. By Jesus’ death upon Calvary, these precious promises can become a reality. Our sins can be thrown into the very depths of the sea and can be removed from us as far as the east is from the west. “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth to be a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.” Romans 3:24, 25. Through faith in Jesus’ precious blood that was spilt for us, all of our sins that were previously committed can be passed over. It doesn’t matter how great or how many there may be, they can be thrown into the very lowest depths of the sea, if we only come to Him in repentance and confession. The greatest sinner in the world will be freely pardoned, if he will only come in humiliation to the foot of the cross. When the hearers on the day of Pentecost were convicted of their sins and of the righteousness of Jesus, they asked, “What should we do?” Peter’s assuring answer came, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins;” Acts 2:38. There must be a true sorrow for our sins. Without that true sorrow for our sins, we will never experience the cleansing from Jesus’ blood. There must be that “repentance to salvation not to be repented of” in order for Jesus’ blood to be applied to the soul. II Corinthians 7:10, KJV. Not only does there need to be true, heartfelt, deep repentance, there needs to be confession of our sins to our Great Sin Bearer. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9. We must come to Him in prayer and tell Him that we are sorry for our sins, confess our sins to Him, and ask Him to take them upon Himself. When we come to Him in true faith, He will not turn us down. Our sins will be washed away by the blood of the Lamb, but there is more to knowing Jesus than just knowing His death.

Knowing His Life

His death, as important as it is, is not the only element of Jesus’ life that we need to know in order to truly know Him. We must know His life, as well. “For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” Romans 5:10. Paul says that we become reconciled to God through the death of Jesus, but that we will be saved by His life. (There is more to being saved than what many realize. For more information on this important topic see Steps to Life’s booklet, Once Saved, Always Saved?.) If we shall be saved by His life, obviously we need to know His life. Without knowing His life, we will not be saved by it.

“Always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.” II Corinthians 4:10, 11. It is the life of Jesus that we are to show to the world. As we truly know the life of Jesus, we shall be able to manifest His life in our lives. Jesus death was all-sufficient to forgive and to wash away our sins; however, forgiveness of our sins is not the end, but really the beginning. As we come to Jesus in repentance and humiliation at the foot of the cross, and ask Him to cast our sins into the depths of the sea, Jesus, in His love and through the merits of His death, does just that. But, He desires to do more. It is then Jesus’ purpose to write His life in our lives, and that is what knowing His life is all about. “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ‘Who committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth’; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;” I Peter 2:21-23. Jesus lived His life of perfect obedience to God’s holy Law to give us an example that we should follow Him. Not only did Jesus take our penalty of death upon Him, but he also lived a life of perfect obedience to give us an example to follow. “For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.” John 13:15.

For four thousand years, the devil had been accusing God and telling man that God’s requirements were too much, that God was asking the impossible. (The devil is using the same arguments today.) All had sinned, (Romans 6:23) all had fallen under the power of the devil, and not one had been able to live in perfect obedience to the God of Heaven. From Adam to John the Baptist, not one had lived up to God’s perfect standard. But Jesus came to this world to prove the devil a liar and father of it. (John 8:44.) In order for Jesus to prove that God’s claims were “holy and just and good” (Romans 7:12), He had to come in our likeness and defeat the devil on His own turf. In order for Jesus to prove that, through the grace and power of God, obedience is possible, He had to come in the likeness of fallen man. “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man…. Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved Him to be made like unto His brethren that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.” Hebrews 2:9, 14, 16, 17, KJV. Jesus voluntarily left His glory behind and was made lower than the angels in order that He might destroy the devil. Jesus went to the lowest depths, He took upon Him the seed of Abraham. He took upon Him, the likeness of sinful, fallen flesh. He took our nature with all its weaknesses and defects. Amazing love! The Creator of the universe would stoop to take our weakened, fallen nature. Jesus did not just take Adam’s nature before the fall; He took our nature after the fall. “Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel:” II Timothy 2:8. Why did He have to come in the seed of David, in man’s nature after the fall? “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” Romans 8:3, 4. God’s Law has a weakness, it cannot give the suppliant power to keep it. It points out the sins of the sinner and it also points the way the sinner should walk, but it does not and cannot give the sinner power to obey it. It was this weakness that God was remedying through sending His only Son in the likeness of our sinful flesh. Jesus lived a life of perfect obedience to God’s Holy Law in the likeness of our sinful flesh, in order to give us the example and the power to obey. Jesus condescended to this low estate in order that the “righteous requirement of the Law” could be fulfilled in us.

Jesus’ life shows all the heavenly beings, all mankind, and all the hosts of hell, that God is perfectly just and fair in His requirements of mankind. Jesus showed that it IS possible to live in complete obedience to God’s Law and His Word. Jesus, in our nature, defeated the devil once and for all in order to show to us that we, likewise, can be victors over the devil. Our part is to follow in the footsteps of the Master Teacher and rely upon His power. “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God…. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.” I John 3:8, 9; Romans 8:7, 8, 13, 14. Jesus said to all those who desire to become Christians, “let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Mark 8:34. We must follow in the perfect example that our Lord, the Son of Man, gave to us. This following Him and death to our fleshly nature (sinful nature) is what the Bible refers to as the new birth. “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” John 3:3; II Corinthians 5:17. As we understand and truly know how we are saved by Jesus’ life, we see that there is much more to the only way to be saved, than just the cross. The cross is where the journey begins, then the sins that have so long beset us must be laid aside (Hebrews 12:1, 2), we must follow the example of our precious Saviour, Jesus, and only then will the journey end at the mansion that Jesus is preparing. This is why Jesus, in His messages to the seven churches, repeatedly urged, “To Him that overcomes.” (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21.) In order to reign with Jesus, we must overcome our sins here in this world. “To him who overcomes I .will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” Revelation 3:21.

Knowing His Mediation

“Who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.” “Who is He who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.” Romans 4:25; 8:34. The third crucial element of knowing Jesus, is knowing His mediation and intercession for us. Paul states that He was raised again for our justification. Further explaining, he says that Jesus is making intercession for us before the Father. He was raised for our justification in order that He could ascend to the Father and intercede on our behalf. Salvation does not end at the cross. Jesus’ ministry for us does not even end at the cross. The cross is, indeed, an all-sufficient sacrifice for sin, but it is just the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and of the Christian life.

At Jesus’ ascension, He ascended to the throne of God in the heavenly sanctuary and began His heavenly ministry for us. “Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected and not man.” Hebrews 8:1, 2. Jesus is now officiating as our High Priest before the throne of God. Jesus’ work did not stop when He ascended to heaven. He is not now idly waiting for His people to get ready so that He can come to claim His own. He is earnestly working and interceding on their behalf. It is Jesus who is our mediator to the Father. “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,” I Timothy 2:5. Jesus is our Intercessor, Mediator and High Priest to the Father. The one who took our nature upon Him and died in our behalf is now pleading His blood that we might be saved. This third part of Jesus’ work is just as important as His death and His life, for it is only through His mediation that we will be able to live His life of obedience. “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them. For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;” Hebrews 7:25, 26. Jesus is able to save to the uttermost. He is able to save the absolute worst sinner upon the face of the earth, because He is living and making intercession before the Father. Without His continual intercession we would be lost through the attacks and sophistry of our adversary, the devil.

“My little children, these things I write to you, that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” I John 2:1. John shows us why it is so essential that we have our Saviour mediating before the throne of grace for us. He divulges His reason for writing, in order that we may not sin. He longs for the church to fully live the example that Jesus laid down for us, of a spotless life, but then he adds that if we do fall, we have an advocate with the Father–Jesus Christ our righteous Saviour. Jesus is even now ministering in the heavenly courts in order that we may be given the power to sin not. Precious thought! Not only did Jesus live as our example, die on our behalf, but now He is mediating for us to enable us to overcome all sin. If perchance, we fall, He is there ready to catch us and present His blood of forgiveness if we will only call upon Him. Our high ideal that is set before us is “sin not,” but if we stumble and fall, Jesus, our Advocate, is interceding for us; and because of this we can come to Him and find His precious pardon. Not only is the promise that He is there, but it goes deeper than that, He even knows all the experiences that we go through. “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:14-16. Your wonderful Saviour and advocate knows exactly what you are going through. There may not be another person on the face of the earth who can understand the stress and turmoil that you are enduring, but Jesus can sympathize with you for He has been there before. Our Advocate was tempted in all points like we are. There is not a temptation that can be brought to bear upon us that our Saviour did not overcome, and now, with the knowledge of the fierceness of temptation He pleads for us. When we are tempted to give way to doubt and discouragement, He lifts His holy hands and pleads with the Father, “Behold, I have graven” them “upon the palms of my hands.” Isaiah 49:16, KJV. He pleads His shed blood to cover our sins and pleads His spotless character to be imputed to us. (Zechariah 3:1-6.) It is through this wonderful assurance of His advocacy and high priestly ministry that we can truly “be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:48. Because of His intercession, we have the assurance that we can come boldly to the throne of grace to obtain the mercy and grace that are so essential if we are going to overcome. Our Saviour is mediating at the throne of God to secure our forgiveness and to give us power to overcome.

The Everlasting Gospel

The true knowledge of our Saviour, His death, His life, and His mediation is the only way to be saved. It is this message that prophecy foretells as going to the entire world. “Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth–to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people–saying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.'” Revelation 14:6, 7. The whole world is going to make a decision; whether they will accept this wonderful everlasting gospel or whether they will turn to their own way. God’s requirements are not hard and difficult, but they do require a complete surrender. Without this complete surrender to Him to forgive us for our sins and to give us the grace to overcome our sins, we shall be among those who cry, “The great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” Revelation 6:17. The everlasting gospel is simple, so simple that an unlearned child can understand it. This gospel is knowing Jesus, the only way to be saved. “And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” “As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him, who called us by glory and virtue.” Proverbs 9:10; II Peter 1:3. Friend, do you know Him? You have heard of Him from your childhood. The stories are familiar, but do you really know Him? Do you know Him personally? Do you know what He has done and what He is still doing for you? If you come to Him in repentance and humiliation, and tell Him that you want to know Him more and more everyday, if you comply with the simple conditions of repentance and confession at His nail pierced feet, He will say to you as He said to the woman caught in sin two thousand years ago, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” John 8:11. The gospel could be put in no simpler terms than in those ten words. Jesus offers freedom from the condemnation of sin for all who know Him, who confess and repent of their sins; and then He gives the power to “go and sin no more.” Billions have rejected the only way to be saved because they clung to their terrible sins. Sins that crucified the precious Saviour. They loved their sins more than their Saviour. They were unwilling to overcome through His power and through His name. They cling to their sins and with their sins they will be destroyed by the fires of the last day. They did not truly know their precious Saviour. They do not know what He has done through His death, life and mediation. Do you know? Do you want to know more? Will you be among the glad company who have experienced the words of the everlasting gospel? Will you confess your sins to Jesus and be freed from the guilt and condemnation of sin and then choose, through the power that His mediation gives you, to overcome? Will you be among the group who, with Paul, can say, “I know whom I have believed” II Timothy 1:12?

All emphasis the authors unless otherwise stated.
All texts from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Sources:

  • The Desire of Ages, Ellen G. White, 1898.
  • The Ministry of Healing, Ellen G. White, 1905.

Click here to view other exciting posts on Bible Prophecy from Steps to Life.

If you would like to reprint or translate this book please contact Steps to Life for permission.

Once Saved, Always Saved?

by Cody Francis

Once Saved Always Saved?The Most Important Question

There are multitudes of questions on thousands of different topics that flood our world and minds. But despite the many and varying questions today, there is one that stands out supreme. The most important question that has ever been asked, or will ever be asked, was asked nearly two thousand years ago by a common guard at the local jail. “And he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’” Acts 16:30. Paul and Silas had been put into prison for preaching the Word of God, and instead of groaning and complaining like many of us would be tempted to do, they praised God. All the way until midnight they were praying and singing hymns. The prisoners and jail keepers had never heard such noises come from that prison before. It was an amazement to them, that these two preachers could praise their God even while in stocks with lacerated backs. Then as the night wore on an even stranger event occurred; a great earthquake opened the doors and loosed the chains of the prisoners. The guard fearing that his captives had escaped, drew his sword to slay himself, when the voice of Paul rang out freezing the sword in mid-air. Paul assured him all of the prisoners were there. As the events of the night flashed through the jailer’s mind, he became convicted that the God of heaven was with these unusual prisoners. Now instead of taking his own life, his thoughts were turned in the most important channel that the mind can run, “What must I do to be saved?” This is the most important question ever asked, and is the question above all others that we must know the answer to. This heart searching question is so important because our destiny is at stake. If we do not know the correct answer to this question, we will be lost. The Bible has sadly depicted that this will happen to the majority of this earth’s inhabitants. (Matthew 20:16; 22:14; Revelation 12:9; 13:3) Therefore since this is such a serious and important topic, we will search the Word of God to find the answer.

Paul gives a simple answer to the question in the very next verse, “So they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Acts 16:31. It is an easy answer. It is not hard for us to understand, but is there more involved to Paul’s answer than what most people realize? As we search the rest of the Bible, we emphatically see that there is much more involved. Paul gave us the basic simple answer, but there is a voluminous amount to study in His few simple words. A few questions immediately come to mind. Do we simply believe that Jesus walked the earth, and that will assure us of salvation? Must we believe in His atoning merits for salvation? Is saying a simple prayer of belief all that we have to do and then go on our way? Or must there be a constant abiding relationship? Once we have believed on Jesus are we saved from that point on, no matter what we do? Or must there be a continual belief in Him throughout our daily walk? Once we are saved are we always saved? Or is it possible to loose our salvation?

How am I Saved?

In order to answer our questions on this subject and the underlying question that is the title of this booklet, we must understand clearly what the Bible teaches about how it is that we are saved. There are actually three different phases of being saved. These three phases can easily be remembered as past, present and future.

We see how we are initially saved in Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” This verse clearly teaches us that we are saved through grace. There are no works that we can do in order to save ourselves. Paul gives us no room for doubt by saying, “not of works” (vs. 9). If we think that we are going to be able to do some work in order to be saved we are sadly mistaken. No matter how many good works we can do, it will not atone for our past sins. The only way that we can be relieved from our burden of guilt and sin is by coming to our Lord in confession and repentance and asking him to forgive us for our sins. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9. “He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” Proverbs 28:13. When we come to Him in this step, He forgives us our sins and we are saved from penalty or guilt of sin. “Because in his forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.” Romans 3:25. It is at this step that our past or previously committed sins are forgiven. Because of God’s grace, forbearance, and love, He passes over our sins that we have previously committed and we are saved from the penalty of our past sins. This is what is referred to in the Bible as justification by faith. (See also 1 Corinthians 15:2; Ephesians 2:5)

There is yet another step in the path of being saved though. The Bible does not just end with those that have been saved from the penalty and guilt of their past sins. There is another, equally as wonderful step in the ladder of salvation. “That the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.” Romans 15:16. It is essential that we have the experience of being sanctified by the Holy Ghost. If we are not having this sanctification process take place in our lives, we are not continuing in the process of being saved. This is why Paul says, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” I Corinthians 1:18 NKJV. Paul knew that salvation does not end with confession and repentance for our sins. He says that the cross is the power of God to those who are being saved. This denotes a continual process, not simply a one time experience. We are not just “saved.” After having been saved from the guilt and penalty of our past sins we must experience the “being saved.” Jesus speaks to all who have accepted Him as He spoke to the woman in John 8, “Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more.” John 8:11. The Lord gives us pardon, full, free and complete, but then he tells us that we must have the experience of “being sanctified,” of “being saved.” After having been saved from the penalty of our past sins (justification), there is the need of being saved from the habits and tendencies of sin (sanctification). Sanctification is the process in which our lives are molded into the likeness of our Savior, then we are saved from the power of sin in our lives. (See also 2 Corinthians 2:15)

The final step of salvation is yet in the future. It is this final step that the majority of texts in the New Testament are pointing forward to. It is when we shall be saved. Peter makes it very clear in his speech to the elders and apostles who were assembled together that there is still a final step. He says, “But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.” Acts 15:11. Even though Peter and the apostles had fully accepted Christ as their Savior, and as Paul said, they were being saved, they knew that there was yet a third step. There must be a process of being saved from the presence of sin before the plan of salvation is complete, which does not occur until “this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortality.” I Corinthians 15:53. (See also Matthew 10:22; 24:13; Mark 13:13; Romans 5:9, 10)

Thus, we can see from the Scriptures that there is not just one step in being saved, but three distinct steps. Having been saved from the penalty of sin, being saved from the power of sin, and will be saved from the presence and surroundings of sin. It is unsafe to think that because we have experienced one of the steps that we are secure. All three are equally important and not one can be isolated by itself.

Growing Up

Paul says in Ephesians 4:15, “but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ.” Clearly we are not to remain stagnant in our Christian life, we are to grow up into Christ. Growing is not something that happens overnight. We do not plant a garden and then expect to harvest it the next day. We know that in gardening, it is going to take some time. First the seed must sprout, grow to maturity and then produce its fruit and then the fruit must grow to complete fruition. It can take one to two months or it can take years, but if we expect that one time act of planting the seed to be enough, we are in for a disappointment. It is the same way in the Christian life. “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” I Peter 2:2, 3. Peter tells us that we are to desire the milk of the word in order that we may grow thereby. When a baby is just born it is not ready for the trials of life. It must grow up under the nurturing of its parents. It is a very sad thing to see grown adults who only have the mental capacity of a child. It is even sadder spiritually. When we have first come to Him, we are not to keep the spiritual level of an infant, we must grow up. Peter again exhorts us in the last verse of His second epistle, “but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” II Peter 3:18. It is obviously something that is highly important in our Christian walk. It is essential that we accept Jesus as our Saviour. That we confess our sins to Him and fully repent, but that is not enough, we must “grow up.” If we are not growing we are in danger of dying. Being saved is more than a one time decision, it is a growing process.

Jesus himself amplified on this important truth in His parable of the sower. “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. And the ones that fell among thorns are those, who when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” Luke 8:11-15. Jesus is here presenting the different ways that the gospel can be received into the heart. Unfortunately, the majority do not receive the gospel, but allow some other considerations to block the way. This parable teaches us an important principle about “growing up” that we need to consider. The first class of hearers, hear the word, but instead of believing, the devil snatches it from their heart and they do not receive the gospel. According to verse 12, though, if they would have believed, they would have been saved. They would have experienced that first part of salvation, of confessing and believing in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins. They would have been saved from the penalty and guilt of sin, but alas, they refused. The next class did make more progress, though, not only did they hear, but they believed as well. (vs. 13) They did believe in their sin pardoning Savior, they did receive that forgiveness and they were saved from the penalty and guilt of sin. This precious experience did not last though. They had it for a time. They believed for a while, but then trials and persecutions came and their faith gave out. Even though they heard, received with joy, and believed and were saved, they fell away. They did not continue to grow and thus they brought forth no fruit. The third class fails to bring forth fruit to maturity as well. The last class is the class that each one of us need to make sure that we are in. This is the good ground, with “noble and good hearts.” Not only do they hear, not only do they believe, but they “keep it and bear fruit with patience.” Vs. 15. This is the only class of hearers that is blessed. It is only those who “grow up” and “bear fruit” that are blessed. None of the others, no matter how good their beginnings looked, are accepted. As Jesus said in another parable, “And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.” Luke 13:9. If we do not bear fruit we will be cut down. Growing up and bearing fruit is not something that is optional, if we do not do it we are going to be cut down and will not enjoy the reward of the righteous. The reward of the righteous is only for those who, “follow on to know the Lord” Hosea 6:3 KJV.

Abiding in Him

Jesus uses a great number of parables to help us understand this most important question of what we must do in order to be saved. In John 15, He teaches beyond a shadow of a doubt that if we do not abide in Him, we will have no hope of salvation. Jesus this time uses the representation of a vine and the branches. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.” John 15:4. Jesus is not just giving us good counsel, He is giving us a direct command. The verb “abide” is in the imperative. It is something that we must do if we are going to obey Jesus. Abiding does not just mean that we accept Him and go on with our life. Abiding is a constant remaining. The Christian life involves not just believing on Him; it involves abiding in Him. If we do not abide in Him, we are not following Jesus’ direct command, then the sentence pronounced upon those who do not abide in Him will be our lot. “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” John 15:6. There is absolutely no mistaking what Jesus is saying here. If we do not have that constant abiding relationship with Him, we will be cast out, thrown into the fire and burned. Once again it doesn’t matter how sincere and fervent our relationship with Him may have previously been. It does not matter if we have truly confessed our sins, believed on Him and accepted him. If we loose that connection with Jesus, we are as a branch that is separated from the vine, and have no hope of the blessed hereafter.

How do we abide in Him? Jesus makes it crystal clear that unless we are abiding in Him, our religion is in vain, but what does it mean to abide in Him? “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” I John 2:6. If we are going to abide in Him, we must walk as He walked. We must follow the example that our Lord has given for us. He came to this earth and as the Son of Man, he gave us an example of how we should walk. “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:” I Peter 2:21. We are to follow the steps of our loving Lord. The call was not given to Peter and Andrew, James and John alone, but to each of us Jesus says, “Follow Me,” Matthew 4:19. This is indeed a “high calling,” but it is a “high calling” that each of us are to “press toward.” Philippians 3:14.

The object of the Christian life is not just to make a profession, but to bear fruit. “By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” John 15:8. Our Father is glorified if we bear much fruit. Our bearing fruit is how it will be known that we are His disciples. Throughout the Bible, it is only the ones that bear fruit that are commended. “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away;” John 15:2. If the branch (representing us vs. 5) does not bear fruit it is taken away. A religion that is only a profession, is not true religion at all. True religion is to glorify God by bearing much fruit, and this can only be done by maintaining a constant abiding relationship. (vs. 5)

Strive for the Narrow Gate

There are many sincere and honest proponents of the theory that once you are saved, you are always saved no matter what you do. It is not our purpose to enter into controversy over this question, but simply to see what God’s Word says. This is a topic that we must be certain that we understand correctly from the Word of God. This is a question that could determine our destiny, and the last thing that we want is to find out too late that we were wrong in our ideas as to what we must do to be saved. Unfortunately, the majority of the world are going to come to this unhappy realization, too late. Jesus told us that, “Narrow is the gate, and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:14. There are going to be very few that will be saved. It is a tragic fact, but it is a fact none-the-less, because Jesus Himself said it. Why are few going to find it? Because it is narrow and difficult. Most of the world will not want to endure the narrowness and difficulties that are involved in the Christian walk.

Since there are few who find it, we are urged to strive for this narrow and difficult way. “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” Luke 13:24. Striving does not denote a one-time confession and repentance. It brings to mind the most vivid pictures of toil and effort. If you are striving, it doesn’t just happen. It doesn’t come easy. There is an effort that must be put forth, and if we don’t put forth this effort, we are not worthy of being His disciple. “And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” Luke 14:27. This striving is referred to in many places as lifting our cross and following Him. We all have a cross to bear. Our Lord bore that cruel cross for us, and the song asks, “Must Jesus bear His cross alone?” No, Jesus does not bear His cross alone. We, each one of us, have a cross that we must lift and Jesus has told us that if we don’t lift that cross, we cannot be his disciple.

There is even more about this striving to enter the straight and narrow gate. It is something that must occur everyday. If it doesn’t occur everyday, we are not following and believing in Christ. “Then He said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Luke 9:23. If we desire to come after Christ, if we desire to be a Christian, it requires us to deny ourselves and take up our cross daily. It is not something that occurs once in our life. It is not something that happens now or then. It is something that we must experience every single day. Daily we must take up our cross and follow Him. If we are not doing this, we are not really following Him at all, because this is what He has told us to do. The Apostle Paul knew this. He said, “I die daily.”

I Corinthians 15:31. Neither Paul nor Jesus were talking about physically dying, for it would be impossible to physically die everyday. They were talking spiritually. Every single day it is necessary to die to our own sinful wants, desires, etc. and live and “walk in the newness of life.” Romans 6:4. To be dead to our habits of sin and walk in the footsteps that Christ has tread for us. This can seem to be overwhelming and we can even be tempted to think that it is impossible. “For with God nothing will be impossible.” Luke 1:37. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Phil. 4:13. Let us never forget the power and strength of our God. If He has said that through Him we can do it, it is entirely possible by faith in Him.

Faith and Works

As we have already noticed, there is repeated counsel throughout Scriptures of the need of maintaining a living personal relationship with our Lord. This is true belief in Him. If our belief does not lead us to a personal daily relationship with our Lord, there is something amiss. A deception that plagues our world today, is that all you have to do is have a superficial, unacting belief. James dealt a death blow to this theory. “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” James 1:19. It is true that there must be the mental assent that there is one God and that Jesus is indeed our Savior, but that’s not enough. James tells us that even the demons have more than simply a mere mental assent—they tremble as well! Obviously more is required than mental assent and trembling, for we all know that there will be no demons in heaven. What else must appear in our lives in addition to belief? “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you by faith by my works.” “But do you not know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” James 2:18, 20. Our belief and our faith must lead to action or else, in reality, we are devoid of true faith and belief.

Constantly throughout the Scriptures we are urged to be diligent and make sure that our title to the mansions above is clear. “Therefore, my beloved, [he is writing to church members] as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Philippians 2:12 “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue… Therefore, brethren, [once again, writing to church members] be even more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1:5, 10, 11. Paul urges the saints, bishops and deacons (see Philippians 1:1) to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling. He is not talking to unbelievers who have never given their hearts to the Lord; he is talking to church members that have already started on their Christian walk. Obviously there is more to the Christian walk then simply starting. Paul apparently feared that the Philippian brethren, would not continue and thus be found wanting. It is becoming clear that neither Paul, nor the other Bible writers, believed that once a person was saved, they were always saved. Peter is even more emphatic than Paul on this issue. He urges the believers to give all diligence. This was not something that they were to try at once or twice. This was not something that they were to haphazardly attempt. This is something that they are to put all of their effort and strength into. He gives an entire list of Christian virtues that they are to put forth an effort to obtain, and then says to be even more diligent (even more diligent than giving all diligence? That is what he says!) to make their calling and election sure. Peter knew that if the believers were not diligent enough, they could miss out on their calling and election. Even though, they had previously had a precious experience in the Lord (vs. 1), if they did not put forth that diligence, they could fail of being received into the kingdom of heaven. He states in verse 11 that if they are giving this diligence, though, an entrance into Christ’s kingdom will be supplied. Obviously, neither Peter nor Paul believed that once a person is saved, afterward they are always saved.

Does this mean that salvation is obtained by works? Absolutely not! All of the good works in the world could not save a person. We are saved by grace through faith and NOT of ourselves. Salvation is a free gift from God. (Ephesians 2:8) But, Paul is careful to balance out his statement by saying that “we are created in Christ Jesus for good works.” Ephesians 2:10. Although good works will never save one soul, good works are important, for faith is revealed by good works (James 2:14-26), and “without faith it is impossible to please Him.” Hebrews 11:6.

Is it Possible to Lose our Salvation?

A region that had been very privileged with the labors of Paul was the churches of Galatia, but in Paul’s absence false teachers had come in and were wrecking havoc upon the good work begun by Paul. Paul is trying to correct the terrible influence of these false apostles by the rather rebuking letter of Galatians. Paul laments over the fact that they are apostatizing from the truth that they heard from his lips. “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel.” Galatians 1:6. They were turning away from Christ to another false gospel. No longer were they believing in and following Christ wherever he led them. “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth” Galatians 3:1. Paul was fearlessly rebuking them for their apostasy. No longer were they obeying the truth. We must note, though, that it was not that they didn’t know or hadn’t obeyed before. It was that they had turned from the truth and their experience, and were going in another direction. They had backslidden from the truth, from God. “Before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?” Galatians 3:1. They had seen in their minds the love of Christ in being crucified for us. They had had a true conversion experience, but alas, no more. As Paul continues to rebuke and instruct he makes a most revealing statement. “I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain.” Galatians 4:11. Paul was afraid that he had bestowed the most tiring labor for a group of churches all in vain. If he was afraid that he had labored in vain, he must have known that they were in danger of loosing their salvation. If they had truly been saved from the penalty of sins before, and once you are saved you are always saved, he would have had nothing to worry about. They would have still been in the kingdom of heaven and everything would have been fine, but this is not what he said. He was afraid for their salvation. He was afraid that they would lose their salvation by apostatizing from the truth. He was afraid that they would be lost because of their failure to continue in the way of life.

One of the greatest characters in all of sacred history is the Apostle Paul himself. The majority of the books of the New Testament were written by this great man (14 out of the 27), and even the second most voluminous writer of the New Testament, Luke, was his traveling companion. He has probably never been equaled as an evangelist, pastor, writer, theologian. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Paul had a true conversion and a deep experience with the Lord. If anyone disagrees that Paul was not truly converted, they are disagreeing with the Bible itself. Yet even though there may never have been a greater man in spiritual attainments, Paul knew that if he lost his connection with the Lord, he would be judged as guilty as the vilest sinner. “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” I Corinthians 9:27 KJV. According to Gingrich’s Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, this word translated “a castaway” (adikomos) means, “failing to stand the test, unqualified, worthless” “disqualified” “unworthy” “useless.” This same word is used in Hebrews 6:8 saying that this state is “near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned.” Without a doubt this is a lost condition. (If this castaway’s future is to be burned, those who become this castaway obviously won’t be saved, and Paul himself, that great apostle, knew that if he didn’t keep his connection with the Lord, that would be his lot.) Even though he had preached to others, even though he had done many great things for the Lord, even though he had been saved from the penalty of his sins, he could be lost. If even the apostle Paul could be lost, there is no one who is exempt. No matter if we have given our hearts fully to the Lord, no matter if the Lord has used us mightily in His cause, if we loose our connection with him, we will become a “castaway.”

God’s Promises are Conditional

A principle is given that can be seen interwoven all throughout the Bible. This principle is that God’s promises and threatenings are conditional. “The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.” Jeremiah 18:7-10. We can see this again in Deuteronomy 28:45, 46, 63, “Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which He commanded you. And they shall be upon you for a sign and a wonder, and on your descendants forever…. And it shall be, that just as the Lord rejoiced over you to do you good and multiply you, so the Lord will rejoice over you to destroy you and bring you to nothing; and you shall be plucked from off the land which you go to possess.” When God gives a promise, if that nation is disobedient and rebellious, God cannot fulfill that promise for them. Likewise, if God threatens judgment and the nation turns from its wicked ways, God can and will bless and do good to that nation. We can see this very forcibly illustrated in the story of Jonah and Ninevah. God gave Jonah the message to proclaim that Ninevah would be destroyed in forty days. Jonah boldly proclaimed this message. (Three days in the fish’s belly had taught him the lesson he needed to learn.) At the end of the forty days, the judgment predicted did not fall. Why? “Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.” Jonah 3:10. The curse was conditional and since they turned from their wickedness, God turned from the curse he had put upon them.

This same principle is true in our spiritual lives as well. “But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.” Ezekiel 18:21. What a precious promise this is! No matter the wickedness that a man may have committed, if he turn from that wickedness which he has done, he shall live. He will be forgiven and will escape the sentence of death. (Not the first death that all men die, but the second death. Revelation 20:14) The opposite is also true. “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he had done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.” Ezekiel 18:24. If a righteous man loses his connection with the Lord and does wickedness, his previous righteousness, shall be forgotten. He will die. This verse is perhaps one of the clearest verses on the topic of once saved, always saved. It is clear, plain, and unmistakable. No matter how righteous a person is, no matter if they have been saved, no matter how good a person has been, if he loses his connection and does wickedly, he shall die. Nothing good that he has done before will be remembered. He has turned his back on the Lord, and the Lord does not give to him the promises that he before enjoyed. God’s promises and threatenings are conditional. Conditional upon our continued connection with Him. If we lose that connection, we have lost the promises as well.

In discussions that I have had on this topic with other fellow Christians, it has been urged upon me that God would not take back something that He has given. It is said that God would not give salvation and forgiveness and then take it back. The verses above from Ezekiel clearly explain that God would and does do that, but Jesus has given us a parable to illustrate this point very clearly. In Matthew 18, we find a parable about a servant who owes his king a great debt. The servant has no way to pay this great debt, and pleads with the king for mercy. The king is moved with compassion upon his servant and forgives the entire debt. The wicked servant then goes out and demands that another servant pay him a much smaller debt. He is unable to pay, and the wicked servant whose great debt was forgiven, has him thrown into prison until he can pay every penny. When the king hears of what has transpired, he reverses his decision and throws the wicked servant into prison until he can pay all that is due. Jesus then draws the conclusion, “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” Matthew 18:35. Will our Father take back something that He has freely given to us? Jesus said He would. If we do not forgive others, our sins will not be forgiven, regardless of what we may think or if we have been saved previously. God’s promises and threatenings are alike conditional.

It is claimed by others that salvation is eternal, that it is forever, that it is once and for all, and because of that, once you are saved, you are always saved. The truth that we have been studying about in these verses, though, is that God’s promises are conditional. Yes, Jesus promises us eternal life. Yes, Jesus is the author of eternal salvation. But we are not to take that and make it contradict the hundreds of verses that clearly teach that it is possible to stumble, fall, and lose our salvation. God’s promise of eternal life is conditional, just like His promises to the nations. God’s promise of eternal salvation is conditional, just like the kings mercy in the parable was conditional upon right actions. But God’s threatenings of wrath to the sinner are also conditional. If the sinner turns from his wicked ways, God will turn from the wrath He has threatened to pour upon him. (See Ezekiel 18:30-32)

Has a Saved Person Been Lost?

There are a couple of examples given in the Word of God that testify to us that it is possible for one who was at one time saved, to turn and be lost. The first one is found in the New Testament and was at one time one of Paul’s co-laborers. The man who made the wrong choice that will cost him his salvation is Demas. “Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow laborers.” Philemon 23, 24. There was a group of five people who were sending their greetings to Philemon. One was a fellow prisoner, while Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke were Paul’s fellow laborers. Demas was at this time a fellow laborer with Paul. Did Paul’s fellow laborers have a true conversion experience? Paul had a reputation for only having the best quality of workers. There was division earlier in Paul and Barnabas’ ministry because Barnabas wanted to take on a fellow laborer who Paul did not think had the grit and the Christian experience that it takes to be a worker in God’s cause. Paul further states that, “the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.” Philippians 4:3. Paul’s fellow workers were honest Christians, whose names were in the book of life. Surely then, Demas did indeed have a true conversion and his name was registered in the Book of Life. Did it stay that way? “Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.” Colossians 4:14 This time no commendation or anything is said regarding Demas. Luke was indeed beloved, but Demas just greeted them. Was it possible that Paul had just forgotten to mention anything about Demas. Yes, but the next verse gives us the mournful account of what happened to Demas. “Be diligent to come to me quickly; for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and departed for Thessalonica—Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia.” II Timothy 4:10. In probably the last book that Paul wrote, he states that Demas had forsaken him because he loved this present world. Did he preserve his connection that he at one time had? No, he loved the things of this world. “If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” 1 John 2:15. Although at one time Demas’ name was written in the Book of Life, he let go of his connection, loved the things of this world, and thus the love of the Father was not in him. Without the love of the Father, he no longer had the promise of eternal life, for “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” John 17:3. Demas is a tragic example of a one time worker for the Lord, who lost his connection and thus lost his promise of eternal life as well.

Probably one of the saddest cases in all the Bible is the case of the first king of Israel. He had such a good beginning and then ended in hopeless despair. In the beginning Saul was little in his own eyes and the Lord was able to abundantly bless him. (I Samuel 15:17) Shortly after Saul was anointed as king, he had a true conversion and new birth experience. We read, “Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.” I Samuel 10:6. It happened all as Samuel had told Saul, “God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day…. Then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them.” I Samuel 10:9, 10. Saul had a conversion and new birth experience that none can deny. The Scriptures say that another heart was given him. God fulfilled His promise of Ezekiel 36:25 on Saul. He was baptized with the Holy Spirit and was changed into a totally different man. That miracle of transformation took place in Saul’s life. He was saved from the guilt and penalty of sin, but tragically it went downhill from there. When Samuel delayed coming at the request of Saul, he went ahead and officiated at the sacred altar. Samuel said, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you.” I Samuel 13:13. Instead of keeping his connection with the Lord, he broke the commandment of God, but it still got worse. When Saul transgressed God’s commandment again, the Lord said, “I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” I Samuel 15:10. Saul’s apostasy had gotten so bad that the Lord repented that He had ever made Saul king of Israel. As a result of Saul’s backsliding from God, the kingdom was torn from Saul and given to his neighbor who was better than himself. I Samuel 15:28. Still, Saul stubbornly followed his own sinful course despite God’s continued pleadings until, “the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the Lord troubled him.” I Samuel 16:14. The Lord had pled with Saul until finally the Spirit of the Lord was forced, by Saul’s own stubborn course, to depart from him. That is the most dreadful thing that can occur to any human being, for without the Spirit of the Lord we are lost. “Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” Romans 8:9. For Saul, the story continued to get worse. “And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him,”

I Samuel 28:6. When Saul pled with the Lord there was no answer, for Saul had rejected the voice of mercy and God could do no more. Having received no answer from the Lord, Saul turned to what God declares to be an abomination—he consulted one with familiar spirits. The next day was to be Saul’s last. The Spirit of the Lord had left him, he had been tormented with evil spirits, and now his life was to end in despair and misery. Saul, with his own sword, took his own life. (I Samuel 31:4-6) So ended the life of one who had such a good beginning. As a young man he had followed the Lord. He was born again and became a changed man, but he didn’t keep his experience. He “lost his first love” (Revelation 2:4), and the Lord “removed his lampstand” (Revelation 2:5). It has been asserted that all backsliders will return to the Lord at a later date, but the story of Saul sadly disproves that theory. Saul had been saved from the guilt and penalty from sin, but he “turned away from his righteousness and committed iniquity” and thus “all the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered.” Ezekiel 18:24. Saul, although he had a saving experience at one point, died apart from the Lord, a lost man. We must never fool ourselves that just because we were saved at one point, we will be saved no matter what. That is what Saul did and it cost him eternity.

No Man Can Pluck Him Out of His Hand

I was talking to a friend one time about what we believed. We were going through many different Bible doctrines when we came to the topic of once saved, always saved. We realized that we did not understand the Bible the same on this point and decided to individually study it out and relate our findings to the other. As I studied this, I compiled many verses and brought my list back and gave them to her. Her research had uncovered one verse that supported her theory. To this day, this is the only verse that has been presented to me in support of the theory that once we are saved, we are always saved. When I have discussed this topic with other Christians, I have brought up this fact, and it doesn’t seem to bother them that there are hundreds of verses that point to the realization that it is possible to lose our connection with the Lord and be lost, to the one verse that is used in support of the theory that you can never be lost no matter what you do. And even this verse rightly understood, fits in with the overwhelming majority of other Scriptures.

The verse that is used as proof that you cannot possibly be lost is John 10:28, 29, “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” Jesus plainly said that no one was able to snatch us out of our Father’s hand, but does that mean that it is impossible to be lost once we have a saving relationship with our Lord? It is important to read verse 27 along with verses 28 and 29, “My sheep Hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” Jesus is talking about those true followers who hear His voice and follow Him. The promise is only to those who are hearing and are following. What a precious promise this is! If we are hearing and following Jesus, we will receive eternal life and there is nothing the devil can do about it. He cannot snatch us out of His hand. Praise God! As long as we are continuing to have that relationship with Him, the devil is powerless to do anything. That does not mean however that the sheep cannot decide to stop following Jesus. God’s hand is not some sort of jail, that it is impossible for us to get out of. If we make the choice to stop following Jesus and get out of our Father’s hand, God does not stop us. By accepting and following Jesus, we are not automatically turned into robots that have no power of choice. God continues to give us free choice. He does not take our free choice away when we choose to follow him. It is like the lost sheep. When the shepherd finds the sheep and the sheep chooses to go with the shepherd, it is totally safe. As long as the sheep stays with the shepherd, the faithful shepherd would rather lay down his life than allow his little sheep to be lost. With the shepherd the sheep has no fear. It is safe. No one can pluck it from the shepherd’s care. But if the sheep decides to wander away from the shepherd’s side, the sheep is in danger again. The shepherd cannot protect the wandering sheep while it is out of his care. So likewise, no one is able to take us from our Father’s hand, but we can make the choice to get out. Just as a lost man can choose to be saved, so a saved man can choose to be lost.

We Must Endure

There is a theme that is repeated throughout the Bible and that is that we must endure. “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22 “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.” Matthew 24:12, 13 Jesus, in no uncertain terms, says that those who endure to the end will be saved. What then about those who don’t endure to the end? The only logical conclusion is that they will not be saved. It was after Abraham “had patiently endured” that “he obtained the promise.” Hebrews 6:15 It is the same for us. We are not going to receive the promise unless we patiently endure.

The writer of Hebrews (most probably Paul) urges us again and again of the necessity of enduring and continuing that abiding relationship with our Lord. (Hebrews 2:1-3; 3:6; 6:4-6; 6:15; 10:23, 26-27, 35-38) In these verses there are fearful consequences ascribed to those who fail to abide and endure. In 10:23 it says, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” He urges us to hold fast our profession. Why? “For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.” Hebrews 10:26, 27. He is not talking about others, but himself and the believers. He knows that if they do not “hold fast” and endure, they will meet the fearful judgment of devouring fire. He does not say that they will be saved, or that their reward will be less. He says that they will be lost. A believer can choose to be lost, just like an unbeliever can choose to be saved. Paul is very concerned over this matter and continues on, “For you have need of endurance so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:” Hebrews 10:36. We have need of endurance for Paul knew the Master’s word’s that “he who endures to the end shall be saved.” Mark 13:13.

Why the Necessity of Endurance?

When a person comes to the Lord in contrition and humiliation, the Lord registers his name in the Book of Life. (Philippians 4:3; Luke 10:20; Hebrews 12:23) When a person experiences the first part of salvation and is saved from the penalty and guilt of his past sins, the Lord accepts him and puts him in the book of the living. (Psalms 69:28) There the names of all who have experienced the new birth are recorded, but that does not mean that they are there forever. The names are not written in stone, until the final part of salvation occurs. “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book.” Exodus 32:33 “He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.” Revelation 3:5. If we do not overcome the world and sin, our names will be blotted out from the book, and the ones who are going to enter through the pearly gates are “only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.” Revelation 21:27. There are going to be many precious souls who have been saved from the guilt of their past sins, but will not continue walking with Him, and the Lord will have no other choice but to blot their names from the Book of Life. If we do not endure to the end, if we do not grow up into Christ, if we do not abide in Him, if our faith is not shown by our works, if we do not overcome our sins and the world, our name will be stricken from the records of heaven. The doctrine that once we are saved we are always saved is a perilous doctrine with no foundation in the Scriptures. It is leading precious souls to think that they have nothing to worry about because they are saved, but if we do not have that continuing abiding in Christ, we have everything in the world to worry about. Our name will be stricken from the Book of Life and we will be left outside the Holy City.

The Lord does not want one soul to be lost, but “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne:” Psalms 89:14. The Lord in His great mercy has provided a way that we can be rescued from the pit and degradation of sin that we have sunken into, but God is “just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:26. God is still going to be just. Those who have made the choice to rebel against His government will have to receive the just reward of their deeds. Not that we are saved by our works. There is only one way of salvation and that is through the merits of our crucified Savior, but we must make the daily choice to allow Him to work out His good pleasure in our lives. We must allow the Master Potter to shape and mold us into His image. If we refuse for this process to take place in our lives, we are rejecting our Lord, and there will be a sentence to meet. It is only those who allow this work of grace to take place in their lives that will have an inheritance among the faithful. If we do not endure to the end, we are as verily rejecting Him as if we had never accepted Him. May the Lord help each of us to not only accept Him as our Savior, but also continue to abide and grow up into Him that we need not be ashamed at that day.

All emphasis the authors unless otherwise stated.
All texts from the King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Click here to view other exciting posts on Bible Prophecy from Steps to Life.

Your Last Chance to be Saved

by Cody Francis

Your Last Chance to be SavedOur world keeps racing on. We have coined the term the “rat race” to describe our race of life. Everyone is busy and has so much to do. There is a living to make, a house to clean, meals to prepare, automobiles to maintain, children’s activities to attend, and on and on the list goes. We go through the routines scarcely thinking about anything other than how to make it through the day. So it was thousands of years ago. “Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be when the Son of Man is revealed.” Luke 17:28-30. When Sodom was destroyed, the focus of every mind was right here on the things of this earth–eating, drinking, buying, selling, etc. They were too busy to think of eternal realities and did not know that they were speeding toward their last chance to be saved. Their eternal destiny was soon to be forever decided. It was soon to be forever fixed in the unchangeable records of heaven. It is the same today. The prophecies of both Daniel and Revelation focus upon this most solemn time in this earth’s history–the time of judgment. The judgment has eternal consequences for every person that has ever lived upon this earth, yet rarely does this most important event even enter our minds. We rush on through life little realizing that, very soon, our eternal destiny will be forever decided. This fixing of every man, woman and child’s destiny is one of the most awesome and fearful events ever to occur. We cannot, with safety, overlook the importance and solemnity of this event, because it is our last chance to be saved. Thus, God’s Great Judgment Day is a topic that demands our attention and careful study.

The Hour of His Judgment

Revelation tells us of three last messages that are to go to the entire world. In these three messages is contained the last message of mercy to the perishing world. God, through these messages, is pleading to His people. These messages must not be overlooked, for if we overlook them, we are overlooking the loving God who is sending them to us. Our decision upon these messages will determine our eternal destiny. In the very first of these messages, the truth and importance of the judgment is forced home upon our minds. “Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth–to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people–saying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.'” Revelation 14:6, 7. This angel [or messenger, the Greek word angelos means “messenger”] has a most startling message that goes to the entire earth. He is not commissioned to take this message to one privileged part of the world, but it is his work to take this message to every inhabitant. God attaches such importance to this message that, He decrees that it must go to every corner of the earth, and the central point of this message is that the hour of God’s judgment has come. We are exhorted to worship the Creator specifically because His judgment has now come. Apparently, God’s judgment begins while the hubbub of life is still going on! The judgment has to be going on while the earth is still inhabited with nations, tribes, etc. for it would be futile to send a message if there was no one to send it to. Could it possibly be, then, that the great judgment day is now going on? Is it possible that the hour of God’s judgment has already begun?

“Because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:31. Paul was a deep student of prophecy and he knew that God had appointed a day for the judgment to begin. We know that we will not know when the Second Coming will occur, for Jesus said, “But of that day and hour no one knows, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Matthew 24:36. We will not know the time for the Second Coming. We can rest assured that if anyone tries to tell us that they know when the Second Coming will be, they are a false prophet, for no one knows the day nor the hour of Jesus Second Coming. But we are told that there is a set day for the judgment to begin. God has furthermore promised, “Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants, the prophets.” Amos 3:7. Since there is an appointed day for the judgment to begin, and the Lord will do nothing without telling us through the prophets, and since a message goes to all the world saying that the judgment has come, we can conclude that God has revealed, somewhere, in the prophetic writings of the Bible when His Great Judgment Day will begin. It is only left for us, with the aid of the Holy Spirit, to dig deep and find out when and where it is.

Paul was very clear that there was going to be a time for the judgment, but at the same time he knew that it was not in his day. “Now, as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, ‘Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.'” Acts 24:25. As Paul was giving his defense before Felix [which turned into an appeal for Felix to give his heart to the Lord], a powerful part of his argument was the judgment to come. In Paul’s day, the judgment was still to come. This is repeated again and again throughout the Scriptures. “But the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment. He shall judge the world in righteousness, and He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness.” “Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!” Psalms 9:7, 8; Matthew 10:15. The Psalmist, Jesus, and Paul testify that the judgment was still in the future; but nearly two thousand years have transpired since then, is that still the case?

This is not the only information that we have about when the judgment will come. It is an unarguable fact, that the judgment had not occurred in David’s, Jesus’ or Paul’s day, but it must occur before Jesus comes again. “He who is unjust; let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still. And behold, I am coming quickly and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.” Revelation 22:11, 12. The final decree of the judgment is here recorded. The solemn declaration that it is too late to change. Those who have followed in the course of sin will stay that way, and those who have chosen to follow Jesus, no matter what, will be pronounced righteous and holy still. But then, directly after this closing decree of the judgment is given, Jesus says that He is coming quickly. Jesus’ Second Coming occurs right after the judgment closes. Furthermore, Jesus says that His reward is with Him. If he is coming again and His reward is with Him, it must have already been decided in the judgment who was given the reward and what reward they were given. Without a doubt then, the judgment takes place BEFORE Jesus comes again. Thus not only was the judgment still future in the apostles day, but it must take place shortly before Jesus comes again. Could we be in this most solemn event right now?

The Judgment in Heaven

“I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; his garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire; a fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The judgment was seated, and the books were opened.” Daniel 7:9, 10, margin. In verses 3 to 8, the successive rise and fall of the great empires of Bible prophecy is pictured, along with the rise of the anti-christ power in verse 8; then the next major event that Daniel sees happening is the judgment of God. This judgment does not occur on this earth, for the Son of Man is said to come to the Ancient of Days [the Father]. “I was watching in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.” Daniel 7:13. This is a judgment that occurs in heaven with Jesus [the Son of Man] and the Father [the Ancient of Days] and all of the myriads of angels assisting and watching with intense interest. It does not take place here on this earth, but rather takes place in heaven. (Subpoenaed to the Trial of Life is the first booklet on the judgment in this series and thoroughly discusses why the judgment, what goes on in the judgment, who the players are in the judgment, the results of the judgment, etc. It may be helpful to read that booklet first.)

John likewise saw the judgment beginning in heaven. “The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that you should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear Your name, small and great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth. Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple.” Revelation 11:18, 19. John saw when the time came for the dead to be judged, and notice that it is associated with the temple of God, which is in heaven. Once again, it is seen that this judgment takes place in heaven shortly before Jesus comes again the second time. (Revelation 22:11, 12.)

2300 Days

The book of Daniel is a progressive book; it is continually building upon the last vision. In Daniel 2, the rise and fall of the four successive empires is portrayed. Then in Daniel 7 the view is expanded to include the anti-christ and also the judgment. In Daniel 8 the scene becomes much fuller yet. Not only are the empires and the anti-christ foretold, but the climax of the vision zeroes in and pinpoints the judgment. “Then I heard a holy one speaking; and another holy one said to that certain one who was speaking, ‘How long will the vision be, concerning the daily sacrifices and the transgression of desolation, the giving of both the sanctuary and the host to be trampled underfoot?’ And he said to me, ‘For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.'” Daniel 8:13, 14. In verses 3, 4 a ram is pictured, which represented Medo-Persia. (verse 20) The Medo-Persian empire lasted from around 538-331 BC. After that, in verses 5-8 there is shown a male goat which is none other than Greece, (verse 21) and Alexander the Great, its first king. The Grecian empire ruled from approximately 331-168 BC. In verses 9-11 is shown a little horn arising from one of the four winds, which history reveals to be the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire continued to rule from about 168 BC to AD 476. (For a much fuller description and history see Steps to Life’s booklet, Why Hitler Lost.) After that, by comparing II Thessalonians 2:3, 4; Daniel 7:25; Revelation 13:5-7 with verse 12 is seen the anti-christ power, or the papacy. The Papacy continued from AD 538-1798. (For a Scriptural documentation on the anti-christ power see Steps to Life’s booklet, Surviving the Great Tribulation.) After Daniel was shown these earthly powers that had trampled upon God’s people, who were persecuting those who were following God’s Word all of the way, he was shown two holy beings in conversation regarding these desolating powers to come to God’s people. The assurance was given that “For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.” Daniel 8:14. Thus, sometime after 1798 a process was going to begin that was the means of delivering God’s people from the persecuting powers. What is this process? Daniel 7 the chapter that Daniel 8 was building upon, answers that question for us. “But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, [the anti-christ power that has worn out the saints, verse 25] to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” Daniel 7:26, 27. It is the JUDGMENT that sits and takes away the powers that have persecuted God’s people, and gives the kingdom to God’s true people.

Just as Paul preached, and as John saw in heaven, there is a prophecy that tells us when the judgment begins. It is perhaps the focal point of the book of Daniel. “And he said to me, ‘For two thousand three hundred days; then the sanctuary shall be cleansed.” Daniel 8:14. The time period here given is the longest prophetic time period given in the Bible. It covers a vast amount of time, for the angel Gabriel in explaining it says, “And the vision of the evening and morning which was told is true; therefore seal up the vision, for it refers to many days in the future.” Daniel 8:26. The part of the vision of the two thousand three hundred days [literally “evenings and mornings”] is true, but it is for many days in the future. Two thousand three hundred days may not seem like such a long time to us. After all, it is only a little less than six and a half years, but there is something that we must always remember when studying Bible prophecy. The prophecies are given in symbols. Obviously, a ram and male goat do not make any sense to us unless we understand that they symbolically represent their respective nations. So, a day in Bible prophecy is a symbol that is used again and again. A day in Bible prophecy represents a year. “According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection.” Numbers 14:34. “I have laid on you a day for each year.” Ezekiel 4:6. The children of Israel were forced to wander in the wilderness for forty years. God did not just pick a number out of a hat. It was how long the spies were spying out Canaan, and because of their unbelief, they were required to wander for forty years. It was one day for a year. It was the same with Ezekiel. The Lord had him lay on his side a day for each year. Thus we see a principle that comes up again and again throughout Daniel and Revelation–a day in Bible prophecy equals a year. Then it isn’t so hard for us to understand why Gabriel said that the prophecy was for many days in the future. It was not just six and a half years; it was for two thousand three hundred years. A long prophecy that extends many days into the future!

The Explanation

As we notice in Daniel 8, all of the vision is explained in the latter part of the chapter. Not just are the symbols given, but in some instances, the empires themselves are given by name. Gabriel was explaining this vision in very straightforward terms, but then something happened. Gabriel began to explain the part of the vision referring to the two thousand three hundred years (verse 26), but Daniel could bear it no longer. “And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick for days; afterward I arose and went about the king’s business. I was astonished by the vision, but no one understood it.” Daniel 8:27. Daniel’s concern for this latter part of the vision was so great that when Gabriel began to explain it to him, he fainted. It then became useless for Gabriel to continue explaining the vision, since Daniel had fainted. You cannot explain something to someone who has fainted. The explanation of the twenty three hundred days/years was stopped. Then Daniel states that no one understood the vision. What part did they not understand? Did the ram confuse them? No, it was clearly explained to be Medo-Persia. Did the male goat astonish them? No, it was emphatically explained to be Greece. What part was causing the consternation? The only part of the vision that was not explained–the two thousand three hundred days/years.

As this was something that was terribly distressing to Daniel, he did what all Christians should do when they do not understand something. He studied God’s Word and sought the Lord earnestly in prayer. In Daniel 9:4-19 is recorded the beautiful prayer of repentance and confession for the sins of Daniel’s people. Then in answer to Daniel’s prayer, Gabriel returned (verse 21) saying, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand. At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:” Daniel 9:22, 23. Daniel was in great perplexity regarding the vision of the two thousand three hundred days/years, and so had he pled with the Lord for forgiveness and understanding. In answer to Daniel’s strong supplications, Gabriel returned with a message of comfort and hope that he was going to give him skill to understand the vision. Then he begins his explanation.

“Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;” Daniel 9:24, 25. Seventy weeks are “cut off” [the Hebrew word, chathak literally means “cut off”] for the Jewish people and for the earthly city of Jerusalem. How does seventy weeks being “cut off” explain the previous vision of the twenty-three hundred days/years? Gabriel is telling Daniel that the seventy weeks of prophetic time are cut out of the original twenty-three hundred days/years. Thus, if we can determine the starting date for the seventy prophetic weeks, we will also have the starting date for the twenty-three hundred days/years.

By looking at the seventy weeks, we see that there is indeed a clear starting point given. “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, until Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks” Daniel 9:25. It could not be stated clearer. When the decree is given to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, this is when the time period of the seventy weeks is to begin, and consequently that is when the two thousand three hundred days/years would begin as well. It was when the decree was given to both restore and rebuild Jerusalem that this great time period, extending to the judgment, was to begin. As we turn to the pages of Scripture again, we see that there was indeed a decree given for the restoration and the rebuilding of Jerusalem. At the time the vision was given, Jerusalem was destroyed, the temple was in ruins and the land of Israel was basically uninhabited. But within a few years that would begin to change. When this change occurred the prophetic time periods were to begin.

By turning to the book of Ezra we see the actual decree recorded for future generations. God made sure that these time periods were recorded in His Word, because He knew we would need these decrees in order to understand the seventy week prophecy and the prophecy that gives the starting date for the great judgment day. “So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia.” Ezra 6:14. Ezra records for us that there were actually three decrees given commanding to rebuild the broken down city of Jerusalem. Which of the decrees marks the starting time for these time periods? While there were three decrees, there was actually only one that fits the two prerequisites in Daniel 9–“to restore and rebuild.” The first two dealt with the rebuilding of the temple and the city, but there was only one that both restored and rebuilt Jerusalem. This is the last decree given by Artaxerxes. The entire decree is recorded in Ezra 7:12-26. In this decree is found encouragement for the Jews who desired to return to Jerusalem to do so (verse 13, 14.) There are provisions given for rebuilding of the temple (verse 19-22) and then there is the setting up of magistrates and judges to “judge all the people that are beyond the river” (verse 25, KJV) and the exemption of the workers at the temple from “tax, tribute, or custom.” (verse 24.) This decree, then, not only commands and provides for the rebuilding of the temple and Jerusalem, but it also restores, to a certain extent, the liberty and the self-government of the Jewish people. Thus, it is the only decree that matches the requirements given in Daniel 9, and the date that we must use for the reckoning of the prophecies. When was this decree given? Once again, the Bible is not silent on this, either. “And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes.” Ezra 7:8. History bears out that the first year of Artaxerxes’ reign was in 464 BC, thus the seventh year would be 457 BC (464 – 7 = 457.) It was in the fifth month of the seventh year, or around the fall of 457 BC that Ezra came to Jerusalem and the decree was able to go into effect. By the study of the Bible and history, then, we have been able to arrive at the date that was given for the beginning of the prophecies–457 BC.

The Messiah’s Ministry and Death

It would be well for us to briefly review the seventy weeks of Daniel 9, before looking more in depth into the two thousand three hundred days/years. [A much fuller study to the seventy weeks is found in Steps to Life’s booklet, The Rapture and Israel’s Future]. The seventy weeks and the twenty three hundred days/years are inseparably connected. They both begin at the same starting date. They both deal with the sanctuary. (Daniel 8:14; 9:24.) One foretells the first phase of the plan of salvation, the other predicts the second and final phase. One prophesies of the Saviour’s earthly ministry, the other tells of the Saviour’s heavenly ministry. One happens on this earth and “seals up the vision and prophecy” (9:24) so we can be certain that the second, which happens in heaven, will occur.

In the explanation of the twenty three hundred days/years, Gabriel begins by telling Daniel that there are seventy weeks allotted to the Jewish people and to their city, Jerusalem. It was during these seventy weeks that they were to finish the end of sins, etc. Israel had been in rebellion against God from day one. The Lord had loved them and taken them as his own special people, but they were continuing to rebel against their loving God. Daniel was afraid that because of Israel’s continued rebellion and backsliding, the Lord would cast them away altogether. Daniel had pled that the Lord would hear and forgive Israel’s sins again. Gabriel, in answer to Daniel’s consternation regarding the twenty-three hundred days and his concern that God was going to disown his people, said that God was still going to give Israel another seventy weeks to repent and turn to Him. Seventy weeks is not a very long time–only 490 days [70 weeks x 7 days in a week = 490 days] or less than a year and a half to be exact, but we must remember the prophetic day for a year principle. (Numbers 14:34; Ezra 4:6.) Not 490 literal days, but 490 prophetic years. Thus God was going to bear with His rebellious people for another 490 years (Matthew 18:21, 22.) During this time, He was going to work for them in a way that He had not done before–He was going to send His own Son to call them to repentance.

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times.” Daniel 9:25. There was going to be sixty-nine weeks until the Messiah was to come. Sixty-nine weeks would be 483 prophetic years [69 weeks x 7 days in a week = 483 days or prophetic years]. Reckoning from the starting point of 457 BC and adding 483 years, it brings us down to AD 27. [483 – 457 BC = AD 26; but then you must add one year to account for the absence of a zero year in the BC/AD time-line, so 26 + 1 = AD 27.] Sure enough, we find that exactly at the appointed time Jesus was baptized and anointed to His mission as the Messiah. [“Messiah” is a Hebrew word meaning “anointed one,” just as “Christ” is a Greek word meaning “anointed one.”] At Jesus’ baptism, He was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10: 37, 38.) His baptism occurred, as divinely predicted, in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar. (Luke 3:1-3, 21, 22.) The fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar was none other than AD 27. The Lord had revealed five hundred years earlier, to His prophet Daniel, the exact time of Jesus’ baptism.

The prophecy did not end with Jesus’ baptism, though. It predicted an even more important event. “And after sixty-two weeks [the seven weeks was how long it took to rebuild Jerusalem and after the rebuilding of Jerusalem, as brought to view in the last part of verse 25, it would only be another sixty-two weeks] Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;” Daniel 9:26. The Messiah was going to be cut off! Being cut off is a clear reference to His death. “He was cut off from the land of the living;” Isaiah 53:8. Sometime during the seventieth week the Messiah was to die for the sins of the people, but it zeroes in and gives us the exact time that He was to be “cut off.” “Then He shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.” Daniel 9:27. In the middle of the week, a stop was put to sacrifice and offering. How did this happen? Jesus died on the cross as our spotless lamb of God and it is now futile to offer sacrifices, because He, the Great Sacrifice, has already been offered for us. “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure… then He said, ‘Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes away the first that He may establish the second.” Hebrews 10:5, 6, 9. When Jesus came and died on the cross for us, He took away the first covenant with all its animal sacrifices, and thus brought “an end to sacrifice and offering.” This occurred exactly in the middle of the week just as the Lord had foretold. One half of a week is three and a half days, which in prophecy would equate to three and a half years. By adding three and a half years to the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, we come to the spring of AD 31, the exact time when Jesus offered up Himself for our sins. [Adding three years to the fall of AD 27 brings us to the fall of AD 30; and adding another half year takes us over into the spring of AD 31]. Prophecy was fulfilled to the very day.

At Jesus’ ascension into heaven, the “Most Holy,” Jesus were anointed to the priestly and mediatorial work that began then. (Daniel 9:24; Hebrews 1:8, 9; 7:28 KJV.) Thus, Daniel 9 had predicted, not only the life and ministry of the Son of God, but also the beginning of His work in heaven. Jesus began His intercessory work for His people, but then at the end of the seventieth week, in AD 34, when Stephen was stoned, He stood in judgment upon His unrepentant people. (Acts 7:56; Ezekiel 44:24) Israel had refused to repent and now the fearful consequences had come. Instead of receiving and accepting God’s own Son, they nailed Him to the cross. Instead of believing the messages of warning that the Lord sent through His apostles on the day of Pentecost and afterward, they stoned them. Probation had closed upon the nation of Israel and now the gospel began to go to the Gentiles. (Acts 8:4; 9:15; 10:28.) The seventy weeks had ended. The events that had been predicted five hundred years earlier happened to the very letter of what God had said. The “vision and the prophecy” was sealed up. (Daniel 9:24) The events that were to occur on this earth happened exactly as predicted, and it was certain that the previous vision of the two thousand three hundred days/years which was to occur in heaven would be fulfilled to the very letter as well.

When Does the Judgment Begin?

Having briefly investigated the seventy weeks, it is now important to go back to the two thousand three hundred days/years and see how the seventy weeks fit into the twenty-three hundred days/years. We have seen that the seventy weeks were “cut off” from the twenty-three hundred years, and consequently, the starting time for the seventy weeks would be the same starting time for the twenty-three hundred years. Having seen from history, and the Bible, that the starting date is 457 BC, all that we should need to do is calculate the time in order to discover when the judgment begins. Adding two thousand three hundred days to 457 BC brings us up to AD 1844. (2300 – 457 = 1843 + 1 year to account for the missing zero year = 1844) The same date is arrived at by adding the remaining 1810 years (2300 – 490 = 1810) to AD 34, the end of the seventy weeks that were cut off from the twenty-three hundred days. (1810 + 34 AD = 1844.) However you look at it, the only feasible date that the two thousand three hundred days/years could end is in 1844. There is no other starting date that can be found other than 457 BC. There is no other time period that the seventy weeks could have been “cut off” from, than the two thousand three hundred days/years. There is no other vision that Gabriel could have been explaining in Daniel 9, than the unexplained vision of Daniel 8, or the two thousand three hundred days/years. The two thousand three hundred days/years cannot be taken as literal days, for Daniel 9 is an explanation of Daniel 8. There is not even the remotest possibility of thinking that the seventy weeks are literal days. Would God give such an important prophecy as the twenty-three hundred days/years without giving a starting date? Would Gabriel say that the seventy weeks were “cut off” and then not have them be, in reality, cut off? Would the Lord send Gabriel to explain a vision that did not need to be explained? The repeated answer is a definitive NO! The only way that chapters eight and nine of Daniel make any sense is to understand that the two thousand three hundred days/years begin in 457 BC and end in 1844.

The question that we now have to consider is what happened in 1844, and why is to so important? We have already seen that it is talking specifically about the Judgment Day of God, but why does it say, “then the sanctuary shall be cleansed”? Daniel 8:14. What sanctuary was to be cleansed? There was no sanctuary existing on earth in 1844. Then where does this grand judgment, or cleansing, take place?

The Sanctuary

When God led the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, He directed that they make Him a sanctuary. “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.” Exodus 25:8. This sanctuary was what the Israelites carried through the wilderness and then was set up in Shiloh. (Joshua 18:1) The sanctuary stayed here until David moved it to Jerusalem (II Samuel 6:17-18), but then Solomon built a permanent temple. (I Kings 6:1-14) Through the continued apostasy of the children of Israel that temple was finally destroyed by the Babylonians. (II Chronicles 36:18, 19) Then upon the return of the captives from their exile, they built another temple. (Ezra 6:14, 15.) But this temple too, as Jesus predicted, was destroyed, “Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Matthew 24:2. In AD 70, the Roman General, Titus, came and totally destroyed and burned the city of Jerusalem, along with the temple. (Luke 21:20.) Not one stone of that massive structure was left standing upon another. Were any of these sanctuaries existing in 1844? No. The last temple had been destroyed for over 1700 years by 1844. Was God aware that this would happen? Of course. God predicts and controls the future. He knew that there would not be an earthly sanctuary standing in 1844, at the time when the sanctuary was to be cleansed. What, then, could He have in mind? How is this amazing prophecy fulfilled?

After Jesus death upon the cross, as we have already noted, the sacrifices had no value, for Jesus had done away with them by the offering of His body. The rituals and services of the temple also passed away as insignificant at that time. No longer was there any need for the earthly sanctuary service, for Jesus had come and done away with the types of the old covenant. (Colossians 2:14-17.) The earthly sanctuary was no longer needed. Because of the abolition of the earthly sanctuary services at the cross, there is another sanctuary brought to view in the New Testament. This is not the shadowy types of the good things to come (Hebrews 10:1) or a part of the first covenant which was faulty, growing old and ready to vanish, (Hebrews 8:7, 13) but this sanctuary was one “established on better promises.” (Hebrews 8:6.)

When the Lord commanded the children of Israel to build Him a sanctuary, He did not leave it up to them to decide what it looked like and how to design it. He gave them very specific instructions. “And see to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.” Exodus 25:40. The Lord gave Moses a specific pattern and commanded that it be made exactly like the plan that he was shown. Why was it so important that Moses follow the details of this pattern? It was because this pattern was to act as a picture of the real sanctuary in heaven. The book of Hebrews elaborates on this at great length. “Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord erected, and not man…who serve the copy and the shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, ‘See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.'” Hebrews 8:1, 2, 5. Paul quotes from this same verse in Exodus, and makes the point that the earthly sanctuary was just a “copy and shadow of heavenly things.” The earthly sanctuary was a replica of what the real sanctuary in heaven looks like. This is the sanctuary that is established upon better promises. This is the “true tabernacle.” This is the sanctuary that the Lord built, and not man. This is true of no other sanctuary. The Lord directed in the building of the other sanctuaries, but it was men working as God gave them skill that built the earthly sanctuaries. But there was no man who laid a hand upon the sanctuary that is in heaven–it was the Lord alone who built this sanctuary. It is this sanctuary in heaven that Gabriel was speaking about when he said, “to anoint the Most Holy.” (Daniel 9:24). It is this sanctuary in heaven that Jesus ascended to and began His mediatorial work as our Great High Priest. (Hebrews 4:14-16; 6:20; 8:1) It is the heavenly sanctuary that all of the types and shadows of the earthly sanctuary were pointing forward to. “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but their His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place [the Greek word hagia literally means “holy places”] once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” Hebrews 9:11, 12. Clearly, Christ was anointed as our High Priest, not of this poor earthly sanctuary which was only a shadowy type, but he became a High Priest of the “greater and more perfect tabernacle,” that is the heavenly tabernacle or sanctuary. This tabernacle is not of this creation for it is in heaven and was constructed in heaven. Not only did He enter that heavenly sanctuary, but He entered it with His own blood. He is not mediating with the faulty blood of bulls and goats, but is ministering with His own precious blood. From these passages there is no doubt that there is indeed a sanctuary in heaven, and it is at this sanctuary where Christ is now ministering for our salvation. If we deny that there is a heavenly sanctuary, we are denying that Christ is our High Priest, for if there were no sanctuary there would be no High Priest. No, the Bible is full of evidence of our Saviour’s work as Great High Priest for our salvation. There is a sanctuary not made with hands in the heavens, and there is a High Priest ministering for us right now.

In the book of Hebrews, not only does it validate the truth of a heavenly sanctuary for us, but it also tells us how this sanctuary looks. “Then indeed, even the first covenant had ordinances of divine service and the earthly sanctuary. For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary; and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, which had the golden alter of incense and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail.” Hebrews 9:1-5. A splendid description of the earthly sanctuary is given, attempting to show the dazzling glory and beauty that surrounds it, making sure to note that it was a part of the first covenant and not the heavenly, but the earthly sanctuary. Then, later on in the chapter he refers to this earthly sanctuary by another name, giving us a faint idea of what the heavenly sanctuary looks like. “For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;” Hebrews 9:24. Jesus did not go into this earthly sanctuary of the first covenant, but into the sanctuary of the second covenant–the heavenly sanctuary. After giving a detailed description of the appearance of the earthly sanctuary, he gives the earthly sanctuary a most revealing name–“copies of the true.” Which sanctuary then is the true? Undoubtedly, the sanctuary in heaven. What was the earthly sanctuary? It was a copy, or a picture, of the true one in heaven. Thus, by looking at the earthly sanctuary with all of its furniture and ceremonies, we can get a glimpse of what the heavenly sanctuary looks like and what work will go on there. That is why the Lord was so specific that the pattern of the earthly sanctuary was followed exactly. If they did not follow the pattern exactly it would not be the perfect copy, or picture, of the true heavenly sanctuary of the new covenant. But they did follow the pattern God had given, so that we can now study the apartments, furniture, and ceremonies of the earthly sanctuary to learn of the heavenly sanctuary.

Revelation also reveals that there is a sanctuary in heaven. The articles of the heavenly sanctuary keep appearing again and again throughout Revelation. In fact, it appears so much that we can derive that the book of Revelation was actually given from the heavenly sanctuary itself. “Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands,” Revelation 1:12. In the very first chapter this theme is introduced. John sees Jesus standing in the middle of seven golden lampstands. Where were these lampstands from? They were an article of furniture in the first apartment of the sanctuary. “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. And he was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” Revelation 8:3. Now, John sees an angel ministering before the golden altar. Once again this golden altar was in the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. A golden altar is again pictured in Revelation 9:13. “Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple.” Revelation 11:19. This time there is a difference. It is still an article of furniture from the sanctuary, but this time it is from the second apartment, or the Most Holy Place. It is the most sacred piece of the entire temple. It is the Ark of the Covenant in which the Ten Commandments were kept. Continuing on through the book of Revelation, voices coming from the temple are heard (Revelation 16:1, 17,) angels are seen coming from the temple (Revelation 14:15, 17; 15:6) and the temple is opened and filled with smoke. (Revelation 15:5, 8.) Definitely the temple, or the sanctuary in heaven, plays a prominent part in the last prophetic messages for God’s people. It can also be seen from Revelation that not only is there a sanctuary in heaven, but there is the furniture of the sanctuary, and there are the two apartments of the heavenly sanctuary just like there were the two apartments of the earthly sanctuary.

As we look in the New Testament and at the new covenant, the answer to our question about which sanctuary could be cleansed in 1844 is strikingly answered. There was no earthly sanctuary. They had all been destroyed for hundreds of years before 1844. But there was a heavenly sanctuary, and just as Daniel [in Daniel 7] had previously seen the judgment taking place in heaven, so in Daniel 8, he sees the judgment beginning in the sanctuary which is, undoubtedly, in heaven. We are coming close to being able to fit the puzzle pieces of the climatic twenty three hundred days/years prophecy together, but first, we need to look at one more thing. What was the cleansing of the sanctuary?

The Cleansing of the Sanctuary

The crux and the climax of the entire vision of Daniel 8 was the prophecy relating to the “cleansing of the sanctuary.” The “cleansing of the sanctuary” was simply another term for the most solemn of the yearly sacred assemblies known as the Day of Atonement. Speaking of the Day of Atonement, Moses records, “For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the Lord. It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on linen clothes, the holy garments; then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the congregation.” Leviticus 16:30-33. It can be seen that on the Day of Atonement was when the final atonement was made for the sanctuary and for the children of Israel. The people were finally cleansed from all of their sins and an atonement, or cleansing, was made for the sanctuary.

By cleansing the sanctuary, the sins of the children of Israel were also cleansed. Throughout the year, when a man sinned he would bring a sacrifice to atone for his sin. He would slay the lamb with his own hand and the sacrifice was offered upon the altar. The priest then transferred the blood into the sanctuary. Day by day, the blood built up in the sanctuary, until the Day of Atonement. The blood was a record of all the sins that the children of Israel had committed, but it was on the Day of Atonement that the sanctuary was cleansed from the record of sin that had continually built up. Thus, not only did the Day of Atonement cleanse the record of sins from the sanctuary, but it also symbolically blotted out the people’s sins. The people were forgiven when they brought their lamb to be sacrificed, but the record was not blotted out. It was on this most solemn of all days that the sins were actually blotted out. It was a solemn day of judgment when the sins were blotted out as it is graphically described in the Bible. “And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. For any person who is not afflicted of soul on that same day, he shall be cut off from his people. And any person who does any work on that same day, that person I will destroy from among his people.” Leviticus 23:28-30. There was no doubt in the ancient Israelites mind. This was the most solemn day of judgment, and if he did not unite in soul searching he was cut off from the people of God. It was the most solemn and serious day of the entire year for the Jews. It was the time when destinies were decided and lives were fixed–it was their last chance to be saved.

On this solemn day the High Priest went alone into the Most Holy Place of the sanctuary, and it was there the final atonement was made. “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.” Leviticus 16:15. This was the only time that the High Priest entered into the second apartment of the sanctuary. Every day the priests ministered about the first apartment, trimming the lamps, burning incense and transferring the blood of the sin offering to the sanctuary, but only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, did the High Priest alone minister in the Holy of Holies. In this second apartment was the Ark of the Covenant containing the Ten Commandment Law, and the mercy seat on top. The priest would then sprinkle the blood upon the mercy seat and by so doing make an atonement for, and cleanse the sanctuary.

The Heavenly Sanctuary Cleansed

Some have questioned if the heavenly sanctuary really needs to be cleansed, but as we have already seen, the Bible explicitly answers this for us. “Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in presence of God for us;” Hebrews 9:23, 24, margin. There is no room for doubt, the heavenly sanctuary does indeed need to be cleansed. Paul says that it was necessary for the earthly sanctuary (the pattern of the things in heaven) to be cleansed with “the blood of goats and calves,” but the heavenly sanctuary will be cleansed with better sacrifices than that, even “with His own blood.” Hebrews 9:12. What is it that needs to be cleansed from the sanctuary above? What could possibly be impure in that world of perfection? Sin and sinners written in the books. So the judgment solves the problem of impurity in the heavenly sanctuary. Those who “add iniquity to their iniquity,… Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.” Psalms 69:27, 28. During the judgment, sin and sinners are blotted from the book of records, and thus the heavenly sanctuary is cleansed from the impurity that has symbolically been heaped upon it for centuries.

As everything in the old covenant was a “shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things,” Hebrews 10:1, so it is with the Day of Atonement. As the sinner brought his lamb and confessed his sins upon the head of the lamb, so we, under the new covenant, come to Christ accepting Him as our Lamb (John 1:29; I Peter 1:19) and confess our sins unto Him. (I John 1:9; Proverbs 28:13) He then forgives us on the merits of His sacrifice. (Romans 3:24-26.) But as in the earthly service, the record of the sins is still in heaven and it is not until the close of the judgment that the sins are completely blotted out. (Acts 3:19) The judgment determines whether the lives of God’s people match their profession. (see Steps to Life’s booklet, Subpoenaed to the Trial of Life.) Those who have loved their Lord enough to follow Him and keep His commandments will be retained in the book of life (John 14:15; I John 2:3, 4; Revelation 22:14) and their sins will be blotted out. Those who cling to their life of sin and lawlessness will have their names blotted from the book of life. (Exodus 32:32, 33; Revelation 3:5) Thus the sanctuary in heaven will be cleansed from sin–either the sin itself, or the sinners who cling to sin, will be blotted out.

By looking at the symbolic service of the old covenant, it is explicitly taught that the plan of salvation did not end at the sacrifice of the lamb. There was still a final atonement needing to be made, and so it is in the New Covenant as well. Jesus’ sacrifice upon the cross was all sufficient and was a complete sacrifice. He said, “It is finished,” and every word is true. God’s justice was fully vindicate and the devil was soundly defeated, but there was still more to the plan of salvation than just that. “It shall be imputed to us who believed in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offense, and was raised because of our justification.” Romans 4:24, 25. Jesus’ sacrifice upon the cross was for our offenses, or for our sins, and it perfectly paid the price, but there was more. He was raised for our justification. If it was completely over on the cross, everything would have been complete and there would have been no need for anything more, but the inspired record states that he was “raised because of our justification.” Our justification could not be accomplished without His resurrection. Something else needed to occur. That something else is His intercession at the right hand of God, and then the final cleansing of the sanctuary. (Romans 8:34, Acts 17:31) Because Jesus said, “It is finished,” does not mean that everything was completed, for it is recorded in Revelation that He will say the same thing at least two other times. “Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, ‘It is done!'” “And He said to me, ‘It is done! I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.” Revelation 16:17; 21:6. The atonement upon the cross was, without a doubt, complete and all-sufficient, but as in the typical service, there was still more. That is why Jesus ascended to heaven, and that is why Gabriel told Daniel that the sanctuary was still to be cleansed.

What Happened in 1844?

We have seen that the “sanctuary” was to be “cleansed,” and when we do the arithmetic, the only possible date that we can come up with is 1844. There was no earthly sanctuary at this time, but there was indeed a heavenly sanctuary to which Jesus ascended after His resurrection. What then occurred in 1844?

Because the “holy places” of the earthly sanctuary were merely “copies of the true,” (Hebrews 9:24) and there were two apartments, we can have no doubt that in the heavenly sanctuary there are, likewise, two apartments. Not only do we know that the heavenly sanctuary looks like the earthly one, but also the services of the earthly sanctuary represented what the services of the heavenly sanctuary would be like as well. “For if He [speaking of Jesus, the minister of the sanctuary of the new covenant] were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law; who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things,” Hebrews 9:3, 4. The priests of the old covenant ministered according to the “copy and shadow of heavenly things.” Their ministration was a representation of what would occur under the new covenant. As on the yearly Passover, the innocent lamb was slain, Jesus, the Lamb of God, was crucified for our sins on Calvary. The feast of weeks represented the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost. Likewise the Day of Atonement pointed forward to the day of judgment that was to take place. In the earthly Day of Atonement, the High Priest went into the second apartment only once a year, and from this we can conclude that Jesus also will enter once into the second apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. As the Day of Atonement was when the sanctuary was cleansed in the typical service, once again, we can understand that when Jesus enters the second apartment in heaven it will be for the cleansing of the sanctuary. As the Day of Atonement was the day of judgment in the earthly service, we can be certain that when Jesus enters the second apartment to cleanse the sanctuary, it will be the day of judgment. What then happened in 1844? In fulfillment of the well verified prophecy of Daniel 8:14, Jesus entered into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary to do the final work of atonement and to cleanse the sanctuary from the stain of sin that has, year by year, decade by decade built up. In fact, it was October 22, 1844 (the Day of Atonement was on October 22 in 1844), that the great judgment day began. It is the only legitimate understanding of the prophecies of both Daniel and Revelation.

There is even further evidence from Revelation that this is exactly what happened. John does not write of the exact time, but he certainly tells us about the time when Jesus will enter the most holy place. “Then the seventh angel sounded:… Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple.” Revelation 11:15, 19. At the sounding of the seventh angel, John writes that the temple in heaven was opened and he saw the Ark of the Covenant. The veil into the second apartment of the heavenly sanctuary was lifted and John peered into the most holy place where the work of judgment began. The Ark of the Covenant was only kept in the second apartment and this is the only thing that John could have seen. As the second apartment was only entered on the Day of Atonement, or the cleansing of the sanctuary, this was the cleansing of the sanctuary that John saw beginning in 1844. As we compare scripture with scripture, there can be do doubt about it–Jesus entered into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary in 1844 to cleanse the sanctuary and conclude the plan of salvation.

It is Done!

The judgment began in 1844 and has been going on ever since. We are living in the most grand and solemn time of this earth’s history. Right now is the time when the judgment is going on in the courts above. As the Day of Atonement was a time of soul searching and self-examination, so today we must always bear in mind that the great judgment day of God is going on right now. We may not be able to see it. We may not personally be called before God’s judgment bar, but it is going on none-the-less, and the results will be no less final. It is the last chance for the inhabitants of this world to be saved! Very soon the command will be issued, “It is done!” Revelation 16:17; 21:6. It will then be too late. If we are not following the Lord all the way at that time, we will be left outside the holy city. The final decree will be pronounced and we will be on the wrong side. “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.” Revelation 22:11. All will one day be on one side or the other. We may be able to ride the fence now, but then we will be all for the Lord or all against Him. Indeed it is a fearful and solemn time to be alive, for it is our last chance to be saved, but for those who are following Jesus wherever He leads and doing whatever He asks, it is not fearful, it is not scary. It is the most joyous time for it means that very soon we will be with our Savior for the ceaseless ages of eternity. “Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. For behold, the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.” Isaiah 26:20, 21.

All emphasis the authors unless otherwise stated.
All texts from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Sources:

  • The Great Controversy, Ellen G. White, Review and Herald, 1911
  • God Predicts Your Future, John J. Grosboll, Steps to Life, 1994
  • Messiah in His Sanctuary, F.C. Gilbert, reprinted by Leaves of Autumn, 1991
  • Daniel and the Revelation, Uriah Smith, Southern Publishing Association, 1944
  • Subpoenaed to the Trial of Life, Cody Francis, Steps to Life, 1999

To order call 1-800-THE TRUTH or write to PO Box 782828, Wichita, Kansas 67278
If you would like to reprint or translate this book please contact Steps to Life for permission.

Click here to view other exciting posts on Bible Prophecy from Steps to Life.