Christian Essays | Richard Gunther

Was Einstein a Christian?

June 3rd, 2010 - Salvation

If you were able to ask a room full of people what certain words meant, you would find that there were many different understandings about each word you presented.
For example “cup”. As soon as the word is sounded, the imagination finds a definition. The “cup” you thought of might be floral and delicate, or white and ornate with a large handle, or plain, or solid, or a modern thing with a small handle. Or you might think of a beer mug, or a metal cup, or something made of pewter. There are thousands of different options.
When one listens to scientists talking about mysteries, they quite often use the word “God” to summarise the unknown. Stephen Hawking did this, and so did Einstein. In fact Einstein once said “God does not play dice with the universe”. Just what, exactly, did he mean when he used the word “God”?

Albert Einstein was born in 1879 of German Jewish parents. He was not brought up in the Jewish faith, but was instead sent to a nearby Catholic elementary school in Munich, and then to the local high school. He was described as a rather slow and dreamy student, who was bored with non-scientific subjects – not an outstanding prospect for someone who went on to be one of the most brilliant thinkers in recent history!
At age 11 he went through a religious phase, in which he ate no pork, and composed songs to God, which he sang to himself on the way to scjhool. From age 12 on he read popular books on science, taught himself algebra, geometry and calculus, and studied Immanuel Kant’s anti-theistic (anti-God) ‘Critique of Pure Reason’.
Concerning this time of life, Albert later wrote “Through the reading of popular scientific books I soon reached the conviction that much in the stories of the Bible could not be true . . .”
Albert went on to achieve outstanding success in studies on light, theoretical physics, the size of atoms, Brownian motion and relativity. There has never been a dispute over his genius, but there has been debate over his spiritual views.
His understanding of God is an interesting subject. Despite the advantage of having access to the Bible from an early age, he chose rather to rely on his intellect for understanding. He wrote “I cannot conceive of a God who rewards and punishes his creatures, or has a will of the kind that we experience in ourselves. Neither can I nor would I want to conceive of an individual that survives his physical death; let feeble souls, from fear or absurd egoism, cherish such thoughts.”
By these words Albert made it clear that he did not believe in (a) a personal God, (b) a God who treated humans as a Father would his children, (c) A God who raises the dead. He considered those who believed these things to be either feeble-minded, or bound by fear, or arrogant.
It is thus clear that when Albert said the word “God” he was not referring to the God as depicted in the Bible, but to something like “rationality in the universe.” Albert’s definition of “God” was “a deeply emotional conviction of the presence of a superior reasoning power, which is revealed in the incomprehensible universe . . .”
Compare this with the Bible definition of “God” : Father, Creator, Judge, Lawgiver and Saviour. As to his denial of life after death, Albert had to reject the life, miracles, words, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. There is no way the definition which Albert attaches to the word “God” can be harmonised with the definition which the Bible attaches to it. This, logically, leads us to the conclusion that, despite his intelligence and outstanding achievements, Einstein could not have found what the Bible calls a “saving faith”.
It is therefore incorrect for Christians, as they sometimes do, to claim that Einstein was a Christian, since the definition which he attached to the word “God” was at complete variance to that which the Bible uses. One cannot have it both ways.

Jehovah’s Witnesses

May 4th, 2010 - The Church

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When a cult comes knocking, many Christians duck for cover! What a shame. Of all people, it should be the Christians who know best the Book which their Heavenly Father has put into their hands! Why should a cult-member be more familiar with the words of God than a child of God?

This little article has been written to help you, the Christian, to know enough about certain doctrines, and about Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW) to not only meet them with confidence, but to also show them where they are wrong in their beliefs.

But first let me say that it is probably impossible to know everything about JW thinking. They have so many interpretations, often contradictory, with so many subtle and vague additions, that sometimes even the simplest and most straightforward verses can be twisted around to mean almost anything they want.

So do you give up before you start? No! Over the years, many JWs have been shown the errors in their beliefs and have been converted – for example William Schnell, who was totally entangled in the JW movement for 30 years, but finally came free.

The main reason why (some) JWs confuse Christians is because (some) JWs really train themselves. Comparatively few Christians train themselves. How many Christians do you know of who spend hours learning Scriptures? How well do you understand your own Bible? Could you show me, going from verse to verse, why you are a Christian? Could you show me, from Scripture, who Jesus is, who God is, why Jesus came to earth, where he is now, and so on? Could you open a Bible right now and point at the Scriptures which teach about sin, salvation, judgment, baptism and the blood of atonement?

JWs put many Christians to shame by their zeal too. Motivated by a certain amount of fear, and a desire to gain a footing in heaven through their dedicated, hard work, JWs set their sights on the goals held up by the JW teaching, and endlessly, determinedly visit their neighbours. How often do Christians visit their neighbours? How often do Christians go out of their way to witness for Christ?

Jesus wants Christians to be trained, efficient, confident workers – not hesitant amateurs. 1 Pet. 3:15. There are some things very good and worth noting in the ranks of the JW – zeal for one.

But be encouraged. This essay will give you answers to the JWs. Solid Bible answers. If you learn the right verses, you will be able to meet the JWs at your door, and answer them in clear terms. They may not want to come back, but then again, they might be open to instruction!

Most people who belong to a cult think they are right, and everyone else is wrong. They are in and everyone else is out. If you are not with them, you are an outsider. If you say you are a Christian, they may regard you as blind, duped, or part of an evil system. You must try to show the cult-member that you understand what being a Christian means, and be as loving as possible, and behave in a good-mannered and reasonable way.

JWs interpret the Bible with the help of Watchtower literature. They use the Bible, but they have to be told by other people what it means. They have great difficulty actually reading it for themselves.

Which means they end up believing what they are told to believe.

Some of their main wrong beliefs are:

1.There is no Trinity

2. Jesus is a created being

3. Jesus was resurrected as a spirit without a real body

4. The Holy Spirit is not personal, and not God

5. Salvation is helped by works and not by Grace alone

1. There is no Trinity.

JWs don’t understand the Trinity, that is, they mis-define it. Because they mis-define it, they ask Christians silly questions, such as: If Jesus is God, how could he pray to God? Did he send himself to earth from heaven? How could he say God sent him? Was Jesus praying to himself? Did he answer his own prayers?

But when we properly define the Trinity, things become clearer. The Bible teaches that within the nature of the one true God (Jehovah, the Father) -

Is.42:8, 43:10, 44:6,8, 45:21, ICor. 8:4 – 6, Neh. 9:6, 1 Tim. 2:4 are three divine

Persons.

The first Person is the Father, the second is the Son and the third is the Spirit. Jesus the second Person is able to pray to the first Person. Each Person of the Trinity (or Triune God) is fully God, and all three Persons partake of the same nature of God. This is a great mystery, but it is stated in Scripture, so that, even if we don’t understand it fully, we are still expected to believe it. (Do you understand how a TV works? Do you believe it works, even though you don’t understand how it works you can still believe it works)

JWs have a problem with God. They reduce Him to dimensions which fit their own reasoning, rather than face the full account of God as expressed in the Bible, which is not so convenient to their way of thinking.

Now become familiar with what the Bible says about the fact that there are three Persons in the one God: Mat. 28:19, Luke 3:21, 22. The Father: 2Pet. 1:17. The Son: John 1:1 (called the Word, or Logos), 8:24, 58, Col. 1:13 – 17, Titus 2:13. The Spirit:Acts 13:2, 10:19,20, Heb. 3:7 – 11, Ps. 95: 6-11, Acts 5: 3,4, Heb. 9:14.

If you look all these verses up, and think about them, you will be able to show a JW most of the facts about God’s true nature.

2. Jesus is a Created being. JWs don’t accept the deity of Jesus. They say he was created. They misquote John 1:1. If they do use John 1:1 to “prove” their case, here is an effective way of showing them their error:

Tell them this is what they are saying: There is the one true God, Jehovah, and there is the Word, or Jesus. One big God and one small God. As John 1 says, the Word, or Jesus “was in the beginning with God” and he “made all things” and “in him was life”, and this Word was “made flesh” and “we beheld his glory” and v. 18 says Jesus “has declared” or revealed God, to us.

Now how can God, Jehovah, possibly tolerate this Jesus, who takes so much glory from him? Have a look at Is. 43:10, 11, and 44:8, John 17:3 and Deut. 32:39. There is a contradiction here.

As John 1 says, Jesus is the creator of all things. Logically, he cannot be the creator of himself. (Is. 44:24). God created all things. Either Jesus is an intolerable rival to Jehovah, or he is an equal.

JWs like to quote Col. 1:15 and Rev. 3:14 to show that Jesus was created. In fact these verses show the opposite. In Col. 1:15 “firstborn” is Greek (protokos) and means “the preeminent one, the one with the right to rule”.

The other reference, in Revelation has Jesus calling himself “the Amen”, but this is a title which Jehovah uses for himself. Again, Jesus calls himself “the true and faithful witness” which is another title used of Jehovah for himself – Jer. 42:5.

Another verse JWs use is a statement by Jesus that he is “the beginning of the creation of God”. Here, say the JWs, is proof that Jesus was created, but the Greek for “beginning” is ‘arche’ which means “the source, or origin, or ruling one” It does not mean that Jesus was created at all.

Another problem JWs have is in understanding headship, or rank. For example, a husband and wife and two sons may all be equals when it comes to sharing a meal, or sunbathing, but if they all happen to join the army, they may be set up in different positions of rank. Rank does not alter a basic equality. 1 Cor. 11 and Philippians 2:1 -11 describe the positions of rank in which various names are listed. Jesus subjected himself to the Father (Jehovah) and shared human nature. Why? So he could die for sinners. This humbling of himself did not in any way alter his equality with the father in the wider, larger sense. As a Man, Jesus could pray to his Father. As the Son, he could expect to be received back into the glory he left behind when he took on the flesh.

Now how can God, Jehovah, possibly tolerate this Jesus, who takes so much glory from him? Have a look at Is. 43:10, 11, and 44:8, John 17:3 and Deut. 32:39. There is a contradiction here.

Useful hints as you speak to JWs:

1. Be honest. Tell them you are a Christian. If you really are a Christian, you will be able to say this with confidence. Born again Christians have an experience from which they can testify, rather than an argument from which they can make assertions. The Holy Spirit works in and through Christians to help them when they represent Jesus to other people – John 14:17.

2. Do not pay for their literature. Reason? Because you do not believe in supporting an organization which is misleading its members. (Would you support an organization which taught that the Greek gods should be worshipped, or that promoted abortion?) Any free literature they want to give away can be taken, because that is one less for someone else to read. Also, if you take something they give, they might take something yougive, such as a gospel tract.

Now that you have plenty of good answers, from the Bible, you can share salvation with any JWs who come to your door, without fear of being caught off balance. Of course, if you want to do an in-depth study of JWs there are quite a few books available, but the main thing, when countering a cult, is to know the truth, rather than all the error. It is better to know what God says than to know what everyone else thinks.

In a nutshell, if you know the Bible thoroughly, you can handle any cult, false teaching, or “twisted unlisted’. The main thing is that you spend time getting really familiar with the key Bible passages, which means you have to do some work. The good news is the more you put in, the more you get out. Lazy Christians are easy prey for cults.

Also, you will come to understand your own faith. A huge proportion of Christians believe what they do simply because someone told them. They never checked it up in the Bible. The minister, or Pastor, or some Christian friend, or someone at a camp . . . can you really trust their word? Make sure – find it in the Bible for yourself, and get it straight from God!

When speaking to a JW, always maintain a loving, thoughtful attitude. Don’t argue in an unloving way. It is possible to disagree with a smile. Who knows, but maybe your gracious manner will speak louder than your words?

Think of the visit of the JWs as an opportunity to witness. Many Christians find it difficult to go out and witness to someone. The JWs arrive at your door, eager to talk about the Bible. Even if you make a complete mess of it, you have lost nothing. Think of it as good practice. You may find yourself running back to the Bible, after they have gone, and searching the Scriptures for answers. That’s got to be a plus. (Does your pastor or whatever get you doing this?!)

Watch out for this: when you quote or read a verse to a JW, you may assume that they understand it the same way you do. Usually they don’t. You may have to go through what you say slowly, making sure the same definitions are agreed on by both you and them. If not, then there is very little common ground on which you and they can stand.

Be sure to present the plan of salvation. If the JW never talks to another Christian, at least you know that you have told them how they may be born again, and have their sins forgiven, and get into God’s kingdom without need of works to earn an entrance.

16 bits of advice:

1. Speak lovingly. People remember how you speak for a lot longer than what you spoke about. Speak the truth, but speak it lovingly – Eph. 4:15.

2. Many cults are quite newly sprung up, and none of them can agree with any of the other cults in every point. Many of them say they accept what the Bible says, yet they consider everyone else to be outside their own particular flock. Here is the problem: logically, if any one of these cults is in fact right, then God has, for hundreds of years, allowed Christians to be wrong in many vital areas. Why did God wait until only recently to reveal the truth? Well, he didn’t. He revealed the truth a long time ago. It is the cults who are wrong, not the Christians.

3. If you get the chance, share your personal testimony. Tell the JW (or any cultist) how you received Jesus by faith, repenting of your sins, and entered God’s family – all by Grace. The personal testimony is a powerful blow to a cult, because no cult-member really knows the Lord. None of them have a personal walk with God. Perhaps you could write your testimony out and have it ready as a typed, photocopy, to give to people.

4. Keep to what you know. Stay in your own territory. The cult-member will try to lure you away, out into the traps and snares of the cult beliefs. Ignore the lures. Simply don’t answer, or say “Well, that’s what you believe”, which is a fair way to handle things, because just because a person believes something, that does not make it correct. (Hitler believed many things about Jews, but his fanatical confidence didn’t make him correct).

When you get the chance, keep referring to what Jesus did, what Jesus said, what Jesus claimed. If your focus is Jesus, you may find that His presence in the debate decides things for you.

5. If the cult-member quotes a scripture, get your own Bible and read the verse out loud yourself, then read the verses before and after it. Quite often this alone will spoil the cult-member’s argument, because a text without a context can be a pretext.

6.Ask the cult-member for his or her address. Some will give this to you. When they have gone, send them some appropriate literature. Ask them, too, perhaps, if they need any help with their family, work, whatever, and offer to pray for them. mean it. Do it.

7. If they offer you literature tell them you will accept it on the condition that they will receive literature from you. If they do accept your Christian book or whatever, make sure they say they will read some of it. If you read some of theirs, you may grow stronger in your faith, as you compare error with Scripture. If they read some of yours, they may be saved.

8. People often join cults because they are insecure. If you get the chance, tell the cult-member how wonderful it is that God has accepted you, as you are, into his family, simply because you accepted Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour. You didn’t have to do anything to get into God’s Family. You were “accepted in the beloved” – Eph. 1:6. All the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption you could ever need were freely given to you the moment you received Christ – 1 Cor. 1:30, 31. If you get the chance, read out Eph 2, Col. 1 and 2, Heb. 10 or Rev. 1;

9. Every cult reduces the Bible in some way, from being the perfect, authoritative

Word of God to something less than this. Some cults think the Bible is incomplete, or untrustworthy, or defective, or outdated. Ignore these attitudes and quote it anyway. (What soldier goes into battle, and then asks if the enemy minds if he uses his sword?) Heb. 1:1,2, 2Tim. 3:15 – 17.

10. Every cult has its own version of God. 1 John 5:20, Heb. 1:1 – 14, John 17:1-5.

11. Every cult denies the Biblical Jesus in some way. As with point 9, just keep quoting your Bible and ignore the wrong views. For example: There is a difference between truly and fully. When Jesus was on earth, in human form, he was not fully God. Obviously, he could not have been, or every person he met would have been consumed, since “no man can see God and live”. But Jesus was truly God. For the relevant Scriptures: Jesus is truly God John – 20:28 – 31, John 1:1 onwards, and truly Man – Philippians 2:5 – 11, 1 Tim. 2:5,6.

12. Every cult has its own particular beliefs about Mankind, such as, what Man is, where Man came from, where Man goes at death. These may end up wasting you time as side-issues. Focus on Jesus. Keep steering the conversation back to Jesus. If you must comment on trivial matters, just quote the Bible and leave the matter with the listener. Don’t try too hard to explain everything you read. God’s Word is alive. It doesn’t usually need much help. (A powerful lion doesn’t need defending either!).

13. Every cult has its own version of salvation. Usually, a cult cannot rest in the finished work of God. Usually, cult-members have no assurance of God’s love. Talk about these things as much as you can – Rom. 5:6 – 11. The only “work” God requires of us is to “believe in” the Son, whom the Father sent – John 6:29. Our salvation is the result of Grace = the unearned, undeserved, unmerited favour of God – Eph. 2:8 – 10. What Jesus did for us on the cross is all we could ever need – Heb. 7:25 – 28. God will finish his work in us himself – Philippians 1:6.

14. When the Cult-member leaves, you may feel that you made no impression on him or her. Cheer up. Your love, your personal testimony, your refusal to turn the time into a heated argument . . . they will have had some effect. (Several testimonies from ex-cult-members have testified to the witness, or manners, of a strong Christian as being a deciding factor in their later conversion). And just think, if every door the cult-member knocked on was opened by a Christian with the right attitude …!

15. After the cult-member has gone, pray earnestly for them and leave the rest to the Lord.

16. If the same cult-member returns three times, you may feel that there is little chance of them changing. You are quite within your rights to kindly ask them not to return again -Titus 3:10.

If you think back to the day when you were saved, the chances are it was because God suddenly moved on you. It may have been at a church meeting, or perhaps someone was witnessing to you, or maybe you were all by yourself and not really concerned about spiritual things, but wherever you were, something happened and you went from wondering about God to wanting Him to change you. That was the act of grace which accompanies all true conversions. It is God’s work, not ours. It is an act of divine grace. God gives us the power to understand, to repent, to confess, to live the Christian life. All we do is choose, and even then there is an element of God’s work, because before we are saved we are “dead in trespasses and sins”. Obviously, a dead person cannot make choices. God has to revive us so we can hear Him.

So when you are witnessing to a cult or to anyone at all, just do your job and leave the rest to God. Conversion is definitely not your job, but living for Jesus and sharing the gospel is, so keep to that and God will do whatever else He can.

Salvation – What you must believe to be a Christian

March 29th, 2010 - Salvation

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One of the most common objections to Christianity is that “It doesn’t matter what you believe, because all religions are the same”.

Even a cursory glance at the main religions will reveal this to be utterly untrue. While it is true that there are some similarities between all the main religions, there are also some obvious and glaring differences which are unavoidable. This creates the problem of knowing which differences to discard and which to keep. Obviously, if one religion says God is a ‘god of war’ and another says God is a ‘god of love’ we have two opposites which cannot be reconciled. It is an ‘either-or’ situation.

Put another way, suppose you asked a child what her mother was like. “She has red hair, and she is very skinny” says the child. Then you ask another child what this same woman is like. “She has black hair and she is as round as the moon” says the other child. If both children describe the same woman in completely different ways, we must have two different women, and as well as that we cannot tell which description is correct. It is exactly the same when we examine the different religions – they all describe God in different terms. It is therefore impossible to fit all the religions together as one homogenous whole.

Before we look at the differences between religions, we will look generally at the similarities.

When we examine the nation of Hebrews, called Israel, in the Old Testament, we find that they were very much like their neighbours. Their culture, their society, their commerce and their government system was almost identical to that of the surrounding nations. The social customs included weddings, funerals, festivals and public or private ceremonies. Even more important was Israel’s tabernacle and temple. These two buildings were very similar to other religious buildings in Egypt, Babylon and Persia. Not only that, but Israel’s patterns of worship and style of prayers, vestments and ritual were also similar.

A.H.Sayce, the Assyriologist wrote:

“So far as we are at present acquainted with the peculiarities of the Assyro-Babylonian temple, it offers many points of similarity to the temple of Solomon at Jerusalem. Thus there were an outer and an inner court and a shrine, to which the priests alone had access. In this was an altar approached by steps, as well as an ark, or coffer, containing two inscribed tablets of stone, such as were discovered by Mr. Rassam in the temple of Balawat. In the outer court was a large basin, filled with water, and called a ‘sea’, which was used for ablutions and religious ceremonies. T the entrance stood colossal figures of winged bulls, called ‘cherubs’, which were imagined to prevent the ingress of evil spirits. Similar figures guarded the approach to the royal palace, and possibly to other houses as well. Some of them may now be seen in the British Museum . . .”

“As among the Israelites, offerings were of two kinds, sacrifices and meal offerings. The sacrifice consisted of an animal, more usually a bullock, a part of whose flesh was burnt upon the altar, while the rest was handed over to the priests or retained by the offerer . . .

“There are evidences moreover, of a monotheistic school among the priests, which resolved the manifold deities into forms of Anu and his counterpart Anat; but the school had few adherents.”

(Assyria, Its Princes and People; The Religious Tract Society. London, 1926, page 92-94)

Thanks to the work of some dedicated archaeologists, we now know that even in the style of writing religious prose, there was little difference between Israel’s poets and the poets of other nations. Take, for example, this hymn written to praise the sun, penned by Pharaoh Iknaton in 1350 BC (that’s 400 years before a Hebrew poet penned Psalm 104) The Pharaoh saw the sun as an image of the one sole God, creator of everything:

“How glorious in beauty you are

When you appear on the edge of heaven,

O thou living Aton, the creator of life!

When you rise at dawn over the eastern horizon,

You fill the whole earth with your splendour.

How benevolent you are, majestic, brilliant,

Standing high over every land.

Your rays embrace the nations, to the furthest limit

Of all that you have made . . .”

Several verses follow with much the same tone. The Pharaoh was not liked, and his idea that there was one God was soon destroyed by the majority of priests, who quickly restored the polytheistic status quo as soon as the Pharaoh died.

And from Babylon we have an ancient penitentiary psalm, which was still in use by the Assyrians in 1000 BC:

“My Lord is wrath in his heart; may he be appeased again.

May God be appeased again, for I knew not that I had sinned. (See Ps.41:4)

May Ishtar, my mother, be appeased again for I knew not that I had sinned.

God knoweth that I knew not: may he be appeased.

May the heart of my God be appeased . . .”

(and so on for several more verses)

History shows that, despite the recurrence here and there of monotheism (just one God), the idea never lasted. All religions except one maintained a plurality of gods, and goddesses. In fact some religions had thousands of gods. The only religion which maintained that there was but one God was Israel, and it did this in the midst of the nations which all believed in many gods. Israel’s monotheism sprang from the Scriptures, which were held as sacred and kept from generation to generation. Even though many Israelites adopted the heathen religions, they never threw away the Scriptures. There was always a godly remnant, a (comparatively) small number of Israelites who held to the one God and would not reject Him as the only true God. It was this adherence to certain statements in Scripture which set these Israelites apart as God’s people.

Taking this a little further, we can see that it was faith in certain propositional statements which made the godly Israelites different. In most other ways they were the same as their neighbours, but in a small area of beliefs they were so different their eternal salvation depended on what they believed.

Returning for a moment to the question asked of the children, let us draw from the children some statements of similarity.

“My mother is a woman”

“My mother has a human body”

“My mother has had two children”

“My mother has eyes, ears, mouth, nose and teeth”

We could extend this list of similarities a long way, and in the end one might wonder if there were any significant differences worth mentioning. When it comes to religions, we could say that there are so many similarities, any differences which may exist are not worth mentioning. But the differences are so important they distinguish Christianity as unique and totally separate from all other religions. The similarities count for something, in that they are like echoes, or shadows of the real sound and substance, but they themselves are not the sound or the substance.

C.S.Lewis often pointed out that all the myths and legends and religions pointed towards Jesus, in that they all seemed to anticipate His coming. Just as a shadow betrays something solid, the myths and legends often suggested some final reality which would meet the shadow and complete it. And having found Jesus, all who follow their shadows ought to quickly abandon them for the great reality.

Christianity or more correctly Christendom shares many things with all other religions. It has buildings, and all the entrapments of other religions such as vestments, cups, pots, pulpits, pews, windows, carvings, sacred areas, relics, pictures, statues, and so on. It has special prayers, ceremonies, songs, music, and clerical duties. It has prophets and other ‘ministries’, and it has ‘tongues’ or glossolalia, which is common to all ecstatic speaking in cults and Satan worship too. It has pilgrimages and ‘holy buildings’ and saints, holy seasons, festivals, charitable works and the like. The list goes on and on, and one might be excused for thinking that Christianity is, after all, just one of many similar religions.

Even the ‘Golden Rule’ is not unique to Christianity. (Mat.7:12) It was not invented by Jesus, but was already in circulation. It is found in the teachings of Prince Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, who spoke it 500 years before Jesus. It is also found in the teachings of Confucius and others – except that it is in a slightly different form. (Rabbi Hillel, 100BC put it this way : “Do not unto your neighbour what you would not have him do to you.”)

But within Christendom there is a remnant, just as in the Old Testament days. These true Christians hold to a set of propositional truths which set these believers apart from all other religions, all cults, and all belief systems. These propositional truths are so simple they might just slip by some people without being noticed! They concern one person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and they MUST be believed, otherwise the seeker cannot be saved.

At this point I would not like to set down some sort of formula. There are many variations of the propositional truths, which all cover the same ground. I would suggest that people read the entire gospel of John to gather everything they need, but having said that there are certain verses stand out as more specifically aimed at conveying salvation, which I will quote below. All the following propositions have to do with Jesus, and it is important to note that in every cult and religion these statements are either denied, or twisted, or ignored.

Jesus is God. He is God the Son. About 2000 years ago He humbled himself and, by the miracle of conception, joined with a female human ovum. At that moment God became flesh and nine months later a son was born to Mary and Joseph. Jesus grew up a sinless child and at about 30 years of age began his ministry as the Messiah. He healed all the sick who came to him, he raised the dead, and he taught and preached as he travelled about. Finally he surrendered his life on a cross and died. For three complete days he lay in a tomb, then he rose from the dead and spent many weeks confirming his resurrection with his followers. He then ascended back to the Throne of heaven and sat down beside his Father. One day he will return as King of kings and Lord of lords, to raise the dead, restore the whole of Creation, and inaugurate His everlasting kingdom. All who have believed in Him will be given a place in that kingdom, to rule and reign with Him for eternity.

1. 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. God sent not His Son into the world to condemn (judge) the world but that the world through Him might have life”

“believes” means ‘to obey’.

When the Bible uses the expression ‘God’s Son’ or ‘Son of God’ it does not mean it in the sense that humans do. To be the Son of God is the same as saying ‘God the Son’ – full equality form God in every way and sense.

2. John 1:29

“Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world.”

Jesus is the only adequate Saviour of the world. Only the sinless Son of God could atone of sinful Mankind.

3. John3:3,7

“Verily, verily, I say to you, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” “Marvel not that I said to you, You must be born again.”

‘Born again’ means, literally, ‘born from above’. This is something only the Holy Spirit can do. No human can do this with the flesh, or by good works. Only God can give birth to His own children.

4. John 1:12

“As many as received him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name.”

‘power’ here comes from the Greek ‘exousia’ meaning ‘authority’. This means Christians can declare by faith that, having received Jesus, they are, by the authority of God’s Word, God’s children.

5. John 3:36

“He that believes on the Son has everlasting life; and he that believes not shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides on him.”

This shows that people who make an intelligent decision to reject Jesus fall, by default, into judgment.

6. John 5:24

“Verily, verily, I say to you, He that hears My word, and believes on Him who sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but IS passed from death into life.”

Jesus here claims equality with the Father. To hear Jesus is to hear the Father, and vice versa.

One small note. When the Bible uses the word “believe” it often comes from a Greek word which means “be subject too”. This means that just ‘believing’, in the intellectual sense, is not enough. One might also say that one “believes” in the queen, or the prime minister. What Jesus expects of His followers is OBEDIENCE. We show God that we love Him by obeying Him. It is therefore highly likely that people who say they are Christians but who do not obey Jesus, are not in fact Christians, but rather worldy people who have deceived themselves.

To conclude I would like to look at eight ways by which we CANNOT be saved. These eight ways are so common you may have tried one of them yourself, and, though it is not very pleasant to contemplate it, ‘your church’ if you attend one, may practice one or more of these ways as well. It happens, that as churches abandon the only way of salvation, they adopt substitutes.

Method 1

Subjective experiences.

All religions and also the cults talk of inner experiences. They like to refer to an ‘inner warmth’ to verify or confirm the reliability of a text (i.e. the Mormons), or some transcendent experience (as in TM and other mystical branches). Dreams, visions, strange physical experiences, visitation by angels or weird visual effects . . . ghosts, apparitions of saints, or of ‘Mary’, feelings of power, bright lights . . . all these experiences are common to believers in all the different religions. They may be partly imagination, partly demonic, partly self-deception, or they may be from God – whatever the case, they do not mean that the one who experiences them is saved.

Method 2

Objective action.

There is no disputing the fact that it is good to do good works. Acts of charity are always highly valued and those who give the most are often the most admired. Charity is common to all religions, and should not be neglected, but it can never earn a person salvation. For the Christian, charity comes as a result of being saved. For all others, charity comes as a way of earning something, be it self-respect, promotion, atonement for sin, or the hope that some deity might look with compassion instead of anger.

Method 3

Rituals.

Islam is a good example of earning a place in heaven through ritual. The ‘Five pillars’ are: “belief in Allah, worship, alms-giving, pilgrimage and fasting.” Rituals are not a stepping stone path to heaven, but to hell. They may be useful as a structure to help with various activities, but they are worthless as a way to earn salvation. God, the true God, is not swayed by the amount of prayers we offer, or the length of time we kneel, or the degree to which we go hungry.

Method 4

Family relationship.

In the Old Testament some Israelites thought they were safe because they were members of Jacob’s line. Possibly Samuel’s sons thought the same thing because they were his children. Today there are children who feel safe simply because their parents are Christians. The fact is, God has no grandchildren. We are either His children through the new birth, or we are not His children.

Method 5

Racial origin.

Jesus and John the Baptist commanded repentance, and John told the Jews that God could raise up children from stones if He so chose – so being the descendants of Abraham made no difference to God. Some of the Jews thought that being called a “Jew” ensured them a place in God’s kingdom, but Jesus and Paul corrected them on this point (Mat.3:9, Phil.3:4-9). We have a similar sort of thing today when some people label themselves as ‘Christian’ simply because they are ‘New Zealanders’ – as if belonging to the ‘Christian West’ is sufficient to make one a Christian.

Method 6

Obedience to a priesthood.

There are many in Christendom and also in other religions who think that by obeying the spiritual leadership they are pleasing to God. This is an easy trap to fall into. I have met people who have spoken of ‘having to obey the pastor’ even when the pastor is leading them in the wrong direction. Blind obedience, servility and refusal to take personal responsibility for one’s own decisions is not the way to salvation. God expects us to make up our own minds what we believe, not rely on someone else. There is an event (one of several) in which a man called Korah (Num.16) led many people to their doom. God did not destroy just the leaders, sparing their followers, saying that the followers were blinded and therefore not to blame no, God held the followers accountable too.

Method 7

Asceticism.

Many Christians think that God is somehow pleased with them if they deny themselves certain (harmless and non-sinful) things. Austerity is still seen as a great effect of being a devoted Christian. In the past the admired people were those who sat on top of poles, or who lived in caves for years, or who wore sackcloth, or who lived as monks, hermits, flagellants and the like. (This is not to say that Christians ought to indulge in everything they want, or be gluttonous!) Some Christians, through misplaced obedience to God, deny themselves meat, or makeup, or jewellery, or movies, or wine, or some other thing. If their motives are right there is no harm in this, but if they think they can earn some sort of pleasure from God by these denials, they are completely mistaken.

Method 8

Personal sacrifice.

See Micah 6:6,7. As John Ashcroft, US Attorney General said “Islam is a religion in which Allah demands you send you son to die for him; Christianity is the faith in which God sent His Son to die for you.”

There is nothing wrong with Christians making sacrifices, in fact it is usually part of the Christian life, but we must never think for a moment that God is impressed or swayed in judgment by anything we might give. We have never been allowed that option. Logically, if God could be swayed by our sacrifices, then those who made the biggest could gain more favour from God than those who didn’t. This would make God corrupt.

The topic of this article was “What must you believe to be a Christian?” and although I may have taken a long path, I think the areas I have touched on are all important. Sometimes we need to check out the things that we must stay away from, in order to see more clearly the areas which we are encouraged to remain with.

Salvation is, when all has been said, so breathtakingly simple and so easy to understand it is a wonder that so few find it. It is also unique to Christianity. No other religion or cult has the Christian way of salvation.

Read Romans 10:9,10 and 1John 5:9,10 and notice how clear it is. All God requires of us is that we believe the witness of the Bible when it tells us who Jesus is. Salvation is incredibly accessible. There is no wall of priests, no barrier of ritual, no stumbling block of self-sacrifice, no ceremony, no temple or mosque to attend. We must simply believe in Jesus and obey him and we are saved. I cannot say what happens to those who begin well and then fall away. That is not the subject of this article. All I know is that TODAY Jesus wants you to believe in Him, and then tomorrow as well, and the day after that, right up to the last day you live.

This is the fundamental and unique thing which makes Christianity different from all other religions. The difference is a Person, and the matter of salvation depends on our accepting and believing certain things about that person. Having made that step of faith we may have many wonderful feelings and experiences, but the cornerstone of Christianity is Jesus.

How I became perfect

March 28th, 2010 - Salvation

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I used to think I was a good child.

Well-mannered

Well-behaved

Helpful

Kind

Considerate

And hardly ever in trouble at school.

So when I met the 10 Commandments

I didn’t expect to find much wrong with me.

Commandment number One :

“YOU SHALL HAVE NO

OTHER GODS BEFORE ME”

This means that

God wants us to love Him more

than we love anyone, or anything else.

God wants to be more important to us than

sport

marriage

friends

job

money

health

awards . . .

you name it.

Commandment number two:

“YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FOR

YOURSELF ANY GRAVEN IMAGE”

A “graven image” is something we can make,

and then worship.

One kind of “graven image” many people make

is a false idea of God.

God is not Santa Claus,

He doesn’t live in the Land of Fluffy Bunnies.

He isn’t stupid,

He isn’t blind

Or permissive.

When people invent God they make a god after their own imagination . . . just like a “graven image”.

Commandment number three:

“YOU SHALL NOT TAKE THE

NAME OF THE LORD YOUR GOD IN VAIN”

Just the slightest bit of disrespect is enough

to break this one.

Some people, when they are angry,

or abusive, actually swear with God’s Name!

Commandment number four:

“REMEMBER THE SABBATH DAY

TO KEEP IT HOLY”

For many people, Sunday is just

another day for work.

Or they use Sunday for anything but God.

Either way, they don’t respect the day

as God intended.

Commandment number five:

“HONOUR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER”

There is no such thing as a perfect child.

Most parents will know this.

Children never respect and honour their parents

in all things . . . so every child,

of whatever age,

has broken this commandment

at some time or other.

Commandment number six:

“YOU SHALL NOT MURDER”

Jesus said hate is much the same as murder.

Very few people have only thoughts of love

for everyone

all their lives.

Even the odd bit of dislike is enough -

calling someone a name,

putting them down . . .

murder has many shades.

Commandment number seven:

“YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY”

Adultery includes dirty thoughts,

impure words,

lust

enjoying immoral things.

Commandment number eight:

“YOU SHALL NOT STEAL”

Even wanting to steal something

is enough for God,

borrowing and never returning,

taking more than you should,

dodging tax,

petty theft

‘perks’.

Who hasn’t done it now and then?

Commandment number nine:

“YOU SHALL NOT LIE”

You may not tell big, obvious lies

but sometimes people tell ‘half-truths’

or they don’t say all they should,

or they avoid saying something . . .

or they are deliberately misleading.

Lies can come in many different forms.

Commandment number ten:

“YOU SHALL NOT COVET”

Coveting is greediness,

wanting more than you need,

wanting the latest, largest, newest . . .

gathering and amassing,

hoarding.

Everyone is a little covetous at times.

So now I saw that I had broken all ten

of the Ten Commandments.

I was guilty on ten counts.

A sinner in God’s sight.

Helpless, weak and hopeless.

Even if I tried really hard to be good

I knew I could never meet the standard set by God.

His Law was perfect – and I was not.

But God has made a way.

When Jesus, the Son of God,

died on the cross,

He paid the full penalty for my breaking

of the Ten Commandments.

Now all I have to do is put my trust in Jesus.

If I trust in Jesus as my Saviour,

and live for Him as my Lord,

I will be saved from the penalty of breaking

the Ten Commandment -

everlasting death.

As soon as I become a follower of Jesus,

God extends the perfection of His own Son,

and covers me, with the same perfection.

How did I become perfect?

By receiving from God

all that He in His GREAT LOVE

was wanting to give.

Bible texts for your reference :

Commandment One

Jesus said “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple” Luke 14:26 (This is hyperbole. Jesus wanted to grab our attention by using an expression of high contrast)

Commandment Two

“You thought that I was altogether like you; but I will reprove you” Psalm 50:21,22

“Although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God . . . but . . . changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image . . .” Romans 1:21 – 23

Commandment Three

“Understand you senseless among the people; and you fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, shall he not hear?” Psalm 94:8

“Every idle word that men shall speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgement” Matthew 12:36

Commandment Four

“Bear no burden on the sabbath day . . . nor do any work, but hallow (respect greatly) the sabbath day . . .” Jeremiah 17:19-27

Commandment Five

“(The wicked) has said in his heart ‘God has forgotten; He hides His face; He will never see it” Psalm 10:11

” . . .in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Christ Jesus . . .’ Romans 2:16

“He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness” Daniel 2:22

Commandment Six

“Whoever hates his brother is a murderer” 1John 3:15

“Whoever says ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire . . . whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of judgement” Matthew 5:22

Commandment Seven

“Whoever looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” Matthew 5:27,28

“Do not lust after her beauty in your heart” Proverbs 6:25

Commandment Eight

“For you write bitter things against me, and make me inherit the iniquities of my youth” Job 13:26

“Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth . . .” Ecclesiastes 12:1

“Flee also youthful lusts (desires), . . .” 2 Timothy 2:22

Commandment Nine

“Behold you desire truth in the inward parts” Psalm 51:6

“But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire . . .” Revelation 21:8 (Symbolic language, but a clear implication)

Commandment Ten

“Do not lay up (hoard) for yourselves treasures on Earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal . . .” Matthew 6:19-21

“And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content” 1 Timothy 6:7,8

THE HEART

“the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” Jeremiah 17:9

“And the Lord saw the wickedness of Man that it was great upon the Earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” Genesis 6:5

“All our righteousness is like filthy rags” Isaiah 64:6

THE PRICE IS PAID

“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us . . .” Galatians 3:10-14

“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities . . .” Isaiah 53:4-6

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes (trusts in) Him should not perish but have everlasting life” John 3:16

While the Ten Commandments are still a guide for my life, they no longer condemn me to death! I will not be punished by the justice of God, although I may be disciplined by God my heavenly Father. I am free to live for Jesus without guilt or fear.