Check out this short video from our brother Mark his YouTube channel, ProclaimHisWord
I hear teachers - prominent, well respected Bible expositors - seemingly mock the simplicity of the gospel, stating that believing on Jesus Christ is not enough, even citing James 2:19 to "prove" it:
"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
So, does James 2:19 negate John 3:16, Acts 16:31, Romans 1:16, Romans 5:1, and the hundreds of other scriptures which state plainly that we are saved by believing? (Note that the Bible uses the words "belief", "faith", and "trust" as synonyms: If I believe God, I am trusting him; I have faith in what he says. Look at Ephesians 1:12-15, and you will see these three words used just this way.)
Someone has said that you can make the Bible say anything you want it to. The key to correctly understanding & applying scripture is context. Look at James 2:19 again. What is the context in which James is writing? Two things stand out that we must look at:
- James chapter 2 is juxtaposing faith in God which only God can truly see with works which men can see. The former has to do with the vertical relationship between God and man; the latter, the horizontal relationship between man and man. We are saved by faith apart from works, but as a man, I cannot see your faith in God. I can only see what your faith in God produces, which is the fruit or the works that come as a result of the new birth. Faith without works is dead. But what must I do to work the works of God? The Jews asked this of Jesus - check out his answer:
"Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:28,29)
- Chapter 2 verse 19 in particular references the fact that there is one God. "Thou believest there is one God;...." Let's stop here: no where in the holy scriptures are we told that a man may be saved by belief in one God. Correct? In fact, according to Romans 1:18-21 all men know that the one true God exists, and have turned away from him, so that they are without excuse. So, comparing the belief James is writing about here and the saving faith of John 3:16 and others is a wrong comparison. Going on with 2:19, "...thou doest well: the devils believe, and tremble." What do the devils believe? That there is one God. They tremble, because they are on the losing end of their war against Almighty God, and know the fate that awaits them, and that their time is short. They know that God has not provided a Savior for fallen angels. Is this clear to you? Do you see this? They indeed know the Lord Jesus, the eternal Son of God, became a man, to redeem man from the consequences of our sin against God. We are commanded to have faith in God, and to have faith in Jesus Christ, that he died on the cross to pay the penalty for man's sin. The angelic creatures who followed Satan in rebellion against God have no Savior, therefore comparing their belief about the reality of the one God with the command for men to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved does not comport: it is comparing apples to oranges, so to speak.
Our mighty creator God has proven himself faithful throughout all of history, as we read in the Bible: all he promises to do, he will do. Because Jesus Christ faithfully fulfilled his mission through his death, burial and resurrection, God can forgive a vile sinner like you or I, not because we are good, but because Jesus Christ paid the debt 2000 years ago. To believe on Jesus Christ is to believe what God has said in his word, that Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3) - for my sins against God, and that looking to him by faith alone, trusting in him, that God will forgive my sin and give me the gift of eternal life. Period. Plus nothing. Minus nothing.
Any "good works" we do come as a result of our new life in Christ, through the power of God working in and through our life, so that God alone gets all the glory, praise and honor. Like Mark says in the video, its all about Jesus! So don't let someone fool you into thinking you must do some work in order to be saved; don't start looking at yourself to see if you are measuring up, because you don't! Neither do I. Keep your eyes upon Jesus, and run this crazy race of life with patience, as Paul writes in Hebrews 12. Yes, striving against sin, but to run the race, to fight the good fight of faith, not to be or to stay saved!
Hope this helps. I love you in Jesus Christ.
Paul.
EXPLAINING AWAY MARK 16:16
ReplyDeleteFaith only believer want Mark 16:16 to just go away. It will not go away, so they try to explain it away. Over 100 translations of the Bible include Mark 16:16, however, that does deter some faith only believers from insinuating or simply stating that Mark 16:16 should not be including in the Bible because it was missing from a couple of manuscripts. If you believe God has a hand in guiding men to translate the Bible correctly, then have to believe Mark 16:16 should be included. If you do not believe the Bible has been translated accurately, then I would suggest that you burn all of your Bibles.
EXPLAINING AWAY
Mark 16:16 He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
The most popular way of explaining away Mark 16:16 is to say that it does not say, that he who has not been baptized will be condemned, therefore water baptism is not essential to be saved.
If a secular law were written as such: He who does not commit robbery and does not murder will not go to prison; but he who commits robbery will go to jail. Would that mean you can still murder and not go to jail; because it does not state murderers will go to jail? NOT MURDERING IS ESSENTIAL TO NOT GOING TO JAIL!
Being baptized is essential to not being condemned.
There have been many attempts to explain water baptism away from Mark 16:16, including denying that, and, is a conjunction linking belief and baptism. Many attempts at distorting the simple meaning of words and sentence structure are used. Grammatical distortions are used in order to make Mark 16:16 fit the "faith only" narrative.
HAS BEEN BAPTIZED SHALL BE SAVED, STILL MEANS WATER BAPTISM IS ESSENTIAL FOR SALVATION NO MATTER HOW MEN TRY TO EXPLAIN IT AWAY.
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Steve: thanks for visiting and commenting.
DeleteYou are in error if you believe water baptism is essential for salvation. How was Abraham justified? Genesis 15 & Romans 4 make it clear that he was justified by believing God - period.
Paul claims he was not sent to baptize, but to preach the gospel in 1 Corinthians 1:17, in which the Holy Spirit clearly distinguishes between the gospel & baptism. Acts 26:18 clearly teaches us that we receive forgiveness of sins and are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ.
So it is not men trying to explain it away: God gave us his word, and it is clear enough. In fact, water baptism would be a work, and as such, it is no more grace, according to Romans 11:6. In Acts 10, Cornelius & those gathered with him received the Holy Spirit the moment they exercised saving faith in the message Peter delivered, so obviously they were saved prior to water baptism. In Acts 16:30, 31, Paul instructed the Philippian jailer to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (plus nothing!) to be saved. Paul clearly explains the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
"Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:...." I could go on and on, Steve.
And yes, Mark 16:16 is in my Bible; the person who believes not is damned.
As is the person who declares another gospel, according to Galatians 1:8,9.
Steve, if you are trusting in water baptism for salvation, you are not saved. Be sure of that.
And by telling other people that this is necessary for salvation, you fall under the Paul's condemnation in Galatians.
I beg you to look at the whole counsel of God, for it is not God's will that you perish.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16
I believe that people should be water baptized, not for salvation itself, but as an outward sign of an inward work of God. It is a command by Jesus and I should do it. And why wouldn’t I really.
ReplyDeleteWater baptism is an ordinance that Jesus established for the Church, as shown by His command in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:16). Jesus Himself set an example for His Church by submitting to baptism by His forerunner, John the Baptist (Matthew 3:13–17). Peter echoed the command to be baptized in his sermon on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38,41). Throughout the Book of Acts, the apostles observed the ordinance, baptizing their converts (Acts 8:12; 8:36–38; 9:18; 10:47,48; 16:15; 16:33; 18:8; 19:5,6; 22:16). The spiritual significance of water baptism is taught in the epistles (Romans 6:3; 1 Corinthians 10:2; Galatians 3:27). There is no question about whether you should be baptized. The questions are how, when, and by whom?
Acts 2:38: “Then Peter said to them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” To properly understand Peter’s meaning, we must consider the phrase “for the remission of sins” in light of its usage, its context, and the rest of Scripture. The word “for” (eis) can mean either “with a view to” or “because of.” In the latter case, a person would be baptized because he had been saved, not in order to be saved. People are saved by receiving (not rejecting) God’s Word, and Peter’s audience“gladly received his word” before they were baptized (Acts 2:41). Verse 44 speaks of “all that believed” as constituting the early church, not all who were baptized.
Throughout the bible salvation is to those who believe, not to those who are baptized. The work is in God, and if I take any part of it the Lord gets less glory. I am baptized and I am glad I did it. Jesus did it, why shouldn’t I.
Now, since Steve you brought up baptism for salvation, should I assume that you would have issue with “who” has the authority to baptize?