November 18, 2021
Many people have their ideas of what salvation is and what it does. That's fine but often deadly. If you believed that faith in a tree would give you eternal salvation, you would be eternally wrong. If you are wrong about anything, you don’t want to be wrong about where you spend eternity.
If we want to hold the right thoughts about God and his work among men and gain an eternity in heaven, we must go to Him in His Word. Let HIM determine your thinking . . . and then measure your experience against what He says.
GOD’S REVELATION TO PAUL
The Apostle Paul was falsely accused before a Roman governor. In giving his defense, he recounts what God told him on the road to Damascus when Christ saved him for a meaningless life. Christ told him his life’s work was to bring the message of true salvation to both Jews and Gentiles.
“I am sending you to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.” (Acts 26:18).
If you have a red-letter edition of the Bible, you will notice that these words are in red--an exact quotation from none other than the Author of our salvation Himself. So, what is true salvation?
Make no mistake: if true salvation has occurred, as it had in Paul, all of this transformation happens in a moment—the moment the Lord reveals Himself, reaches to save us and we cross the line of faith. It is all of God.
C.S. Lewis began as a serious-minded atheist and Oxford professor. He came to believe there was a God, but he was still not a Christian. Lewis said the moment of salvation happened for him on the top of a double-decker bus in London. When he began the trip to the zoo, he was not a Christian, but by the time the bus stopped at the zoo, he had become a true believer . . . and his life showed the glorious evidence.
Evaluate every testimony in light of God's glorious description of true salvation. And, if you know Christ, never underestimate the glorious gift you have been given.
Father, thank You that You love us enough to save us. Holy Spirit, thank You for your work in bringing us to repentance and faith. And Jesus, God’s precious Son, thank You for the glorious, sacrificial work You did to purchase our salvation.
May 08, 2025
All of us are dramatically shaped by how we view ourselves. Some have too low a perspective; some too high. To be imbalanced here is harmful in either direction.
May 06, 2025
We spend our lives trying to gain certain things and are full of joy when we get them. Our first car, our first job, our first home. Reputation, and prestige, and influence. The list is long. But is it possible to have all those things and not have the most important thing?
April 30, 2025
And then he said with a twinkle in his eye that had seen nine decades plus, “I believe this may be the best season of my life!”
