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Interesting comment yesterday suggesting works and intellect make the difference from lost to saved…from self-follower to Christ-follower.
To be a true Christian is to be born again having your sins washed in the blood of the Lamb. Jesus died a perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins. Only He could do it…only He can offer you forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Only you can accept it.
You can’t earn it…work for it…purchase it…be good enough or smart enough…you can only accept with a sincere heart, not your intellect, what Jesus offers because of Calvary. It is by the Grace of God you are saved through faith…not by works…lest you should boast.
The intellect…your best works…your best goodness…your best intentions are nothing but filthy rags in God’s eyes. He can only look at you through the shed blood sacrifice of Jesus and His righteousness. Only through the cross will you ever obtain forgiveness and eternal life.
You can deny it…spit on it…laugh at it…curse it…call it a fairy tale…or you can accept it…embrace it…find Salvation…thank God for it. What you cannot do is make it go away…the cross of Calvary is the only way to eternal life…the Only Way.
This is what I believe. You are free to believe what you want. I will pray for you, but I won’t give you chapter and verse; I won’t read the Bible for you. Search the scriptures and know the truth. Some of what is written here today is God’s word paraphrased. Find a concordance and read God’s word for yourself with the heart. Do not chance eternity on ego and intellect. There are no do-over’s, the soul never dies and eternity has no end.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
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Well stated good friend! The saving grace we have in Christ is just that… grace! “Not of works, or I might be tempted to brag a little.” Oh, the wonder of the Cross of Christ! God bless, Leroy!
I believe we are saved by grace, not by works, but I believe that because we are saved, we do good works from a humble and grateful spirit…these are works like sharing and caring for other people, physically, spiritually, meeting needs of those around us…We are called to be salt and light, to be followers of Christ, and to represent him to others here in this life. And I believe we represent him best when we show love, service, and gratitude. ~ Sheila
What an awesome free gift of Grace is our salvation because of Calvary’s Cross, freely offered! It is up to us to accept the gift. We cannot earn it–no way! We can only reach out our hand and hold it in love!
Great closing statement!
Thank you Pastor LeRoy. (2 Tim 4:1).
Appreciate the bold words Butch … Bernie
Exactly, LeRoy. I don’t know if my comment was the one that sparked this, but if so, allow me to clarify.
When I spoke of keeping our hearts open to Jesus yesterday, I was saying the same thing you are today. We can’t earn our salvation; we can only accept it as a free gift from God. But we do have to accept it; He won’t force it upon us.
And once we become followers of Christ, we need to keep our hearts open to Him so our love and relationship don’t grow lukewarm. We keep our hearts open to Him by Bible reading, prayer, worship and meditation – in other words, by focusing on Him instead of ourselves.
We’re not saved by our works, but we have been saved unto good works (Ephesians 2:8-10), and we’re called in James to demonstrate our faith by our works. Rich Mullins had an a cappella song called “Screen Door” based on this concept. It started:
It’s about as useless as a screen door on a submarine,
Faith without works, baby, it just ain’t happenin’…
It wasn’t your comment…a professed non-Christian comments caused me some concern…today’s blog is a “preaching” witness that was on my heart.
Thanks for setting my mind at ease, my brother. I’d hate for anything I say to be misconstrued about such an important matter.
So true – every word. Thank you for your faithfulness.
Amen!
Glory to God Bro. Leroy….what a powerful Word this morning! I pray that it will find it’s way into the hearts of everyone who’s understanding is unclear on this subject. God Bless you sir!
MInister Glenda
Amen! Sister Glenda…Amen!