Is it my imagination or does it appear that millions of Christians think this life of a believer is some easy road? If I hear “once saved always saved” one more time I will _____.
Furthermore the way Grace is tossed around you’d think God didn’t judge sin or think it was much of a big deal. Not so.
Men’s hearts are dark and their deeds reveal what is in their hearts. All will be exposed, judged and cleansed. One way or the other.
God will expose all evil everywhere
Agape (pronounced ah-gah-pay) is the Greek word for sacrificial love. Greek, being the most exacting of languages, has several words for love. Phileo means love between people. We recognize Philadelphia as the city of brotherly love. There is eros for sexual love, and storge which is family love, and there are many parts of the world where only family love exists. Sloppy agape has come to mean for the Christian church that since Jesus paid it all, we can sit back on His laurels and be-bop our way to the final whoppy-goodbye. Others call it greasy or cheap grace.
Grace is God’s word for blessings no human has now or ever will deserve. Grace then is undeserved benefits. But you’d jolly well think many are only too happy to let Jesus pay it all and then live no-account lives on the interest payments.
Sitting in church produces no Christians
I can barely count the numbers of “believers” – using the term loosely – who think they become Christians by sitting in church. I challenge you. Sit in the garage for three months and see if you can turn into a Ford F150.
Jesus (and the Bible) reassures the new believers that they are not going to slip back into hell. But people – if you’ve been around for some years, you should not need constant reassurance about your salvation. You are not a baby anymore – or should not be. Babies are lovable and cute but they produce little more than smiles, and feces. Parents are only too happy to take them off the bottle and enroll them into kindergarten.
The test of salvation is continuing maturity
The test of salvation is growing up. Is there anything more heartbreaking than seeing a bus load of adults who have some severe retardation? Or disability? No, because we know that the best that life has for them is not available. God will save and bless them but it is not the perfect thing for man.
Same for the believers. Time to show up, grow up and man up.
4 Responses
Correction: Eros is everywhere, and causing trouble everywhere too.
Indeed. The once-saved, always saved doctrine is VERY difficult to reconcile with the parable of the 2 debtors in Matt 18:23-35.
The master (symbolized by God the Father) forgave the first debtor. But, eventually the forgiveness was revoked because of his actions later.
This clearly is contrary to the common misunderstood doctrine of salvation within Christendom today.
AS a teacher it is nearly impossible to present the “whole counsel of God” when believers think they can slip under the wire with little or no commitment or effort.
once saved always saved is at variance with many scriptures, but is oh so popular in the church.