|
|
The
Simplicity of Salvation
by Rev.
Myrl Eddings
The
first book of the Bible, Genesis, gives us a glimpse into the events of creation. It speaks of the earth and its many features and
the heavens, but is silent about hell. I
believe that this place of torment is not mentioned here because it was never God’s
intention for mankind to go there. In fact,
we’re told just the opposite—that hell was created for the devil and his angels
(Matthew 25:41). Furthermore, it’s not
His will that any should perish, but that all come to repentance (II Peter 3:9). Among mysteries that we may not fully understand,
we can ascertain that the Lord simply wanted to fellowship with someone with a free will
other than his angelic host and therefore made man. We
know the story—how that paradise soon surrendered to a common, meager existence as a
result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience.
Introduce Lucifer into the mix and even Heaven
itself cannot tolerate such dissent (Isaiah
14:12). His first lie to man was designed to convince them that God was withholding from
them what amounted to infinite wisdom and immortality.
Of course, what the Creator was actually trying to do is keep them from
immorality, not immortality. The devil’s
favorite myth now is the illusion that God can’t be reached and the best we can hope
for is the deification of ourselves or some pagan ideology. It doesn’t matter what the diversion, so
long as the end result is a life apart from God. Unfortunately,
Satan has recruited many willing co-conspirators to help him pull off the illusions, the
most effective of which may be some of those who stand behind pulpits, and teach heresies
and man-made traditions that promote salvation by works, rather than faith. It’s manifested in many ways, but the bottom
line is to focus the attention of the misguided soul on a vain pursuit of trying to
achieve glorification through any number of methods that rely on one’s own supposed
goodness—in effect, nullifying the work of Christ on Calvary, and disposing of the
‘naïve’ dependence on forgiveness.
With
so much misinformation disseminated, confusion surrounding justification abounds. It seems that in a modern age of complexity, the
most critical issue of all would be entangled with the greatest procedural hodgepodge. On the contrary, however, the God who is informed
and involved in the smallest detail has simplified the way to eternal life so that
everyone can plainly follow His plan. God did
not attempt to conceal the truth that leads to life. Jesus said, “Whosoever will, let
him come and drink of the water of life freely”.
A common misconception is that we can’t be saved unless we’re
chosen of God. Yet, Joshua advised the
Israelites to choose whom they would serve. The
choice really belongs to each individual. No
one is eternally damned. Even scriptures
related to Judas Iscariot refer anonymously to the person who would betray Christ in terms
such as, “the son of perdition”. Anyone
who stepped in to fill that role could have met with his same fate.
In
a nutshell, those who are ultimately chosen are first called and afterward choose
themselves to follow the Lord. We needn’t
fear the consequences of living for God, since He is the enabler of man to overcome every
trial. There is no need to be concerned with
failing in our walk with Him, for provision has already been made for our forgiveness and
cleansing (I John 1:9). Jesus said that he
came that we might have more abundant life. That
can be accomplished through the power of the Holy Ghost, not through any other means. The real authority and joy in life originates with
God and is accessible by those who simply are in a right relationship with Him (James
5:16). The only supposed benefit in going one’s
own way is seasonal pleasures of sin. After
the season has passed, only the dread of unfulfilled ambitions and fear of eternal wrath
remains. God has a plan for the overall
welfare of man that is found in Christ. Jesus
asked, “What profit is there, if a man gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” There’s no good reason to turn the Savior
away. He is waiting to save those who are
willing from their sins. He will be found of
us when we seek Him with all our heart (Jeremiah 29:13). With worldwide turmoil, and
trouble on every hand, where else can we go?
|
|
|