“UNDERSTANDING SALVATION FROM JOB”

Note Jehovah’s words to Job: The only way that salvation could be earned........if man could do what Jehovah declared here to Job!

“Have you an arm like God, and can you thunder with a voice like his? ‘Adorn yourself with majesty and dignity; clothe yourself with glory and splendor. Pour out the overflowings of your anger, and look on everyone who is proud and abase him. Look on everyone who is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand. Hide them all in the dust together; bind their faces in the world below. Then will I also acknowledge to you that your own right hand can save you’.” (Job 40:9-14).

Obviously, NONE of these things can be performed by man. 

Does baptism in water qualify as an “UN-PERFORMABLE” act? If so, how was it possible for you to be baptized in water?

Seems as if preachers who reject the Lord’s teaching to the apostles, have convinced their audiences that it is impossible to “be” baptized for remission of sins, but POSSIBLE to “be” baptized for other reasons.

Seems that they are powerful enough to PERFORM the baptizing on someone, but NOT for remission....that is an impossibility according to their rationale.

The Lord COMMANDED the apostles to preach these words:

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, he that believeth not, shall be damned. [Mark 16:16 (cf. Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 24:47]

Phillip preached “Jesus” to the eunuch, and he asked, “See here is WATER, what doeth hinder me from being baptized?” (Acts 8:35-38). What prompted this eunuch to ask about being immersed in water when JESUS was preached?

There is only one conclusion: Phillip preached “if you believe and are baptized, you shall be saved” (Mark 16:16) when he preached JESUS to this eunuch.

“BIBLE PROPHECY”

 

Bible prophecy will ever be appealing to man because it deals with “what is to come”, and man has an innate desire to know what the future holds. The prophets ‘of old’ spoke the future and modern-day ‘self-proclaimed’ prophets appeal to this desire of man.

I submit that Bible prophecy is NOT a difficult subject! However, Bible prophecy must be understood in accordance with God’s eternal purpose. That is the key! This great purpose of God is main theme of scripture. Notice:

·         Amos 3:7— “For the LORD God does nothing without revealing his secret (counsel) to his servants the prophets.”

·         Psalm 25:14— “The secret counsel of the Lord is for those who fear Him, and He reveals His covenant to them.”

·         John 7:17— “If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God…”

·         1 Corinthians 2:9-10— “…it is written, ‘Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.” For to us God revealed them through the Spirit’.”

It is clear from these passages that God’s will would be revealed and therefore, could be known. I believe the clearest, ye concise explanation of God’s eternal purpose is from Ephesians 3:6: “…the Gentiles are fellow-heirs, and fellow-members of the body, and fellow-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel…”. Repeatedly in his epistles Paul affirmed that eternal life in Christ was promised and purposed:

–  Titus 1:2 – In hope of eternal life, which God…promised before the world began.

–  Titus 3:7 – That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

–  2 Timothy 1:1 – Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus.

This eternal life was purposed for all in Christ, and the church (His body) is comprised of those from every nation who have obeyed the gospel (cf. Ephesians 1:3-11; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).

The manifold wisdom of God has been made known by this uniting of Jew and Gentile into the same body. Paul wrote: “For he is our peace, who made both one, and brake down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; that he might create in himself of the two one new man, so making peace…” (Ephesians 2:14-15). 

THIS ‘salvation’ was the subject of bible prophecy (1 Peter 1:10-12).

 

“AUTHORITY IN RELIGION”

Is there a moral standard of right and wrong? If there is no standard higher than man’s, then our society is set for destruction. There is, however, a standard that claims to be divine in origin, a standard that comes from the Creator to His creation. That standard is the Bible. It is not just a man’s standard that prohibits murder, for even those who would oppose God’s word cry out about the atrocities of murder. If they reject the word of God as the standard, what right do they have to impose their standard on others? Without a standard of right and wrong, there is no right or wrong, there is simply preference.

We see and recognize the need for authority in the physical realm. In weights and measures, time, and distance, we have recognized standards. Without these standards, agreement would be impossible. If there is disagreement, by appealing to a particular standard, any and all differences in understanding can be settled. Also, the fact that we can all agree as to our understanding of these standards can be seen from an example from the sports world. 

In the Olympic games, there are athletes competing from nations all over the world. There is one set of rules for all those athletes, coaches, trainers, covering the particular sport as well as the permissible drugs/medications. We have seen that certain athletes have been disqualified for using banned substances. These various rules are printed in many different languages and yet everyone involved must understand those rules and understand them alike, regardless of their nationality.

Can we not see that this principle is just as true in religion? Do we not see that without a recognized standard in religious matters, there can be no agreement? By what standard is society going to oppose murder or settle the matter of whether or not same-sex marriages are right or wrong: man’s or God’s? Is there a standard by which all religious matters can be resolved? If so, can there be agreement upon that standard, and if so, upon what basis? This is why an understanding of AUTHORITY IN RELIGION is so vital.

What does the Bible say about the need for authority in religious matters? This question is moot if your attitude toward the Bible is that it is not the inspired will of God. The first matter to be addressed is ‘What is your attitude toward the Bible’? ‘Do you view it as authoritative’? Next, consider these matters: ‘Do you believe the Bible can be understood and understood alike’? If not, why not?

Remember the Olympic rules? Regardless of the various languages it may be printed in, all nationalities can and do understand the rules. If man's correspondence is capable of being understood alike, why would such be impossible in a writing that originated with God? (cf. 2 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 1:1-2; 2 Peter 1:20-21).

Freedom from sin is dependent upon an understanding of God's will. Jesus said “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32). Jesus had stated earlier in John 6:45, that coming to the Father depended upon being taught properly. Jesus declared the Father’s will in His teachings (John 7:16-17).

HINDRANCES TO UNDERSTANDING:

If anyone could have explained the will of God clearly, would it not have been the Lord Himself? Consider, did Jesus convert everyone He taught? The obvious answer is ‘no’. Was it because He was a poor teacher? Why didn’t everyone believe on Jesus when He came into the world? Why do some people have “eyes to see, yet cannot see” and “ears to hear, yet cannot hear”? The Bible records Jesus’ answer in John 3:17-21.

The Holy Spirit revealed through the apostle Paul other criteria for understanding truth. One must have the desire or love for truth rather than a love for evil (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:10, 12). There must be a desire to both understand and agree upon truth. The reason that people disagree on the doctrines of the Bible is not because agreeing is impossible, but because they are unwilling to accept its doctrines as final and authoritative. It is a matter of submission to God’s wisdom.

In the text of Matthew 21:23-27, we find a conversation between Jesus and the religious leaders of the day on the matter of authority. We learn two very important lessons from this text.

1) The Need For Authority— The chief priests, scribes and elders of the Jews recognized this, as evidenced by their first question, ‘By what authority are you doing these things’? Their second question, ‘who gave you this authority’, is evidence that authority must come from one who has the rightful power to grant it. The chief priests, scribes and elders had not authorized Jesus, so they inquired about His authority and the source of it.

2) The Proper Source Of Authority— Jesus’ question, “…the baptism of John, whence was it, from heaven or from men”, shows the only two possible sources of authority — God or man. A failure to respect and agree upon God’s authority is why religious division exists. For these reasons, it is imperative that we understand the need for authority and the proper source of authority for what we believe and practice in religion.