29 March 2009

No Christian Was Ever Saved By Faith Alone

(Kent Heaton)

The doctrine of salvation by faith alone is a popular means by which many in the religious world have been deceived into believing they have obeyed the will of God and live under the presumption they are disciples of Christ. While the doctrine has been around for many years, Billy Graham did much to propagate the idea of salvation by faith alone. He writes, “Those who surrender their lives to Him and receive Him into their hearts. It is this act which makes you a Christian” (My Answer, 9/15/55). Pulpits throughout the land offer an invitation of false hope when honest people are seeking the way of salvation. What they are given is a doctrine of men that is not found in scripture.

Martin Luther said, "We are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone." While he played with semantics, Luther suggested in opposition to the works salvation of the Roman Catholic Church that one had simply to have faith to be saved. Neither is true (salvation by works alone; salvation by faith alone) and yet many people are still being led to believe that accepting Christ as their Savior and Lord is all it takes to “make” a Christian.

Remarkably, the only place in the Bible (all sixty-six books) that “faith” and “alone” is found is written by James in James 2:17 – “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone” (James 2:17 – King James Version). The American Standard Version renders the passage, “Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.” Martin Luther believed that James contradicted what Paul wrote but it never changed the truth of Paul’s writings nor James because “no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:21).

Not one example of a person becoming a New Testament disciple by “faith alone” is found in scripture. There are many examples of conversion (Acts of the Apostles) but none are told to say “yes” to Christ and at that moment experience the new birth. Does eternal life begin the moment we accept Christ as Savior and Lord? Not according to the Bible. Why do so many people believe in such a doctrine when there is no evidence of teaching in the word of God?

The great tragedy of the doctrine of salvation by faith alone is the deception it brings to the hearts of those who honestly are seeking the truth of deliverance from sin and in the mind of God fail to achieve that blessing. Why? The apostle Paul warned Timothy of the dangers of the doctrines of men. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Timothy 4:3-4). The doctrine of salvation by faith alone is a falsehood.

Is faith necessary for salvation? “Without faith it is impossible to please Him…” (Hebrews 11:6). What did Peter tell those gathered on Pentecost (Acts 2:36-41)? What instructions were given the Samaritans in Acts 8:5-13? How did the Ethiopian become a disciple of Christ (Acts 8:35-38)? How did Paul explain his conversion (Acts 9:1-19; 22:1-21)? Cornelius found the truth in Acts 10 as did Lydia in Acts 16:13-15; the jailor in Acts 16:25-34 and the Corinthians in Acts 18:8.

What must you do to be saved today? Follow the same pattern as found in the New Testament. That is the only way to be a Christian (Luke 6:46-49).

Considering The Outcome

(Bill Hall)

We have no sympathy for those who at every funeral "preach the dead right on into heaven," who ignore the obvious failure on the part of the deceased to serve the Lord, who try to think that all will somehow get to heaven in spite of their disobedience. There is a hell, and the many of this earth (in contrast to the few) are going there (Matthew 7:13-14).

But we must not allow one extreme to beget another. While the majority will be lost, there are those in this world whose single purpose in life is to serve the Lord and go to heaven when they die; who devote themselves daily to studying God's word and living by its precepts. When such people die, it is right to speak of their good life and faithfulness to the Lord; it is right to commend their example of faithfulness and perseverance to those who may be discouraged; it is right to speak of their eternal reward.

The Hebrew writer stated it this way: "Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith" (Hebrews 13:7 - NASV). Three things are implied in this verse: (1) There had been men in their midst who had served the Lord faithfully unto death; (2) The Hebrew Christians were to be confident that the outcome of the lives of those men was a happy one; (3) Considering this, they were to imitate their faith.

We, like the Hebrews, have had the good fortune of knowing many who have lived godly lives and have now passed on to their reward. Some were elders; some were preachers; some were Bible class teachers; others were just good, faithful, dependable disciples of the Lord who placed His kingdom first in their lives. We are not speaking of the lukewarm and indifferent. We are not speaking of those who claim to be Christians, but were lacking in the fruits of Christianity. We are speaking of the truly dedicated ones who constantly reflected the character of their Father and their Lord Jesus Christ. Their influence on our lives was tremendous. They were men and women of whom this world was not worthy. And the list grows with each passing year.

Every one of these had to overcome serious obstacles to be faithful to the Lord. The Devil challenged each one of them, but he failed. They gained the victory through Christ. Now they are eternally happy because they persevered. Could we ask any one of them, "Was it worth it," his reply immediately would be, "It was a thousand times worth it!" Not one of them regrets a single moment he spent in the Lord's service.

We thank God for such people. We rejoice in their salvation. We look on their passing not as those "who have no hope." And "considering the result of their conduct," we dedicate ourselves to imitating their faith.

The Light Near Damascus

(W. Curtis Porter)

Not long after the church was established in Jerusalem a great persecution arose that scattered the disciples abroad. The opposing Jews wished to stamp out the religion of Jesus Christ, and they expected persecution to accomplish their desires. But the dispersion of the church meant the increase and growth of the Lord's cause.

In the work of persecution, no name is more prominent than the name of Saul of Tarsus. “But Saul began ravaging the church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison” (Acts 8:3). He was not content to persecute the Lord's disciples in his own city, but went even to strange cities. On a mission of persecution, we find Saul, with some companions, on the way to the city of Damascus. As they neared the city, there was a great demonstration. In the language of Saul himself, we have it related this way: "And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light about me" (Acts 22:6).

With respect to this heavenly light, the questions are often asked, "What was its purpose? Why did this light shine about Saul?" Some have thought it was evidence of his salvation and they have often insisted that such has been experienced by them. This, however, is a mistaken idea. The light did not shine around Saul as an evidence of his salvation. Neither did it appear for the purpose of saving him. I know that this heavenly light led, even directly, to his conversion, but that was not the purpose of the light. To understand the purpose of this light, we must keep some divine statements in mind. These may be found in the following:

During the personal ministry of Christ He selected a number of men to be His witnesses to the uttermost parts of the earth. These He called "apostles." While the two words, of course, are not synonymous, they are applied to the same men. Apostles are those who are sent. Witnesses are those who testify of things they know from what they have seen. But the two words are so used of the same men that we almost think of them as interchangeable terms.

The apostles were to go into all the world to preach the gospel, and in so doing they were to testify concerning Christ. Hence, Peter declared, "Him God raised up the third day and showed him openly; not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead" (Acts 10:40-42). There can be no doubt that the witnesses here mentioned were the apostles whom the Lord had chosen, and to them the Lord declared, "Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

But for a man to be a witness of the Lord he must be qualified, and an essential qualification for a witness was that he must see the Lord after His resurrection. How could one testify that God had raised up Christ from the dead unless one saw Him after His resurrection? The necessity of this is shown in the proceedings by which one was selected to take the place of Judas. Judas was one of the apostles — one of those chosen to be witnesses. Therefore, someone who could testify of the resurrection of Christ was selected to be his successor. The divine record says concerning the matter, "Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection" (Acts 1:21-22). As a result, Matthias was chosen. He could be a "witness of the resurrection" because he had seen the Lord after His resurrection — he was with them until the Lord was taken up from among them. No one then could be an apostle — a witness — unless he had seen the risen Lord. Keep this in mind as we study Saul.

The divine record tells us in plain words the purpose of that light — if we understand what caused the light. Jesus appeared to Saul as he neared Damascus. When He appeared, it was a glorious appearance. The glory of Jesus was so great that Saul was stricken blind. "And when I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus" (Acts 22:11). It was at this time that he saw Jesus, and His glory was so great that the physical eyes of Saul could not endure it.

Let us read the purpose of this appearance of the Lord. Was it to give proof of Saul's salvation? What was its purpose? When Saul reached Damascus and there waited for information that had been promised him, we learn the Lord sent Ananias, a disciple in that city, to him. Here's what he said to Saul when he arrived: "The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth. 'For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard” (Acts 22:14-15). How could Saul be His witness without seeing Him? He could not.

If we need it to be made any plainer to us, it is made so in Acts 26. Reading verse 16, we find the language of Saul as he later rehearses the matter, giving the Lord's words as they were spoken to him: "But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose..." Here we have it. The Lord is actually telling the "purpose" of His appearance to Saul — "I have appeared unto thee for this purpose." For what purpose? To save him? To prove he was already saved? No. For what purpose then? "I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee."

The light was caused by the glory of the Lord. It shone in splendor because the Lord was there. The light appeared because the Lord appeared, but the Lord appeared to Saul to qualify him as a witness for Him. He must go out to testify of the risen Christ as an apostle to the Gentiles. Consequently we later hear Paul emphasizing his apostleship by a series of questions: "Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord?" (1 Corinthians 9:1). He had seen Jesus. He saw Him near Damascus, and was therefore qualified to be an apostle — a witness. For this reason the Lord appeared to him. This was the purpose of the light.

No such demonstration ever occurred in the conversion of any other man. There is a reason for it. All the other apostles had seen the Lord while He was on the earth. They also saw Him after His resurrection and before He ascended. No later appearance to them was necessary. But Saul did not see Him after He arose, and he had to see Him at a later day in order to testify. No witnesses have been chosen since Saul was chosen, and no such light has ever occurred in the conversion of any man since. There is no need for such today, for witnesses are not now being selected. It will not occur in your case.

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also”

(1 Corinthians 15:3-8).

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