Needful Reminder: We Are Saved By Faith Alone In Jesus Alone. Period.

Check out this short video from our brother Mark his YouTube channel, ProclaimHisWord

(http://www.youtube.com/channel/UClDSddbvzF3XdW-VXb9KiHg).

 

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.

What A Fun Day!

You won't believe what a blessed day - what a fun day - we had reaching out with the hope of the gospel and proclaiming the Lord Jesus Christ down at the DMFM this morning. God worked in such a special way, in my life: I was up late last night, 'till at least midnight, checking out a couple of videos of people who came out of the Jehovah's Witness cult. I woke up at 1:30 with a irritated cough, and when I rolled out of bed at 7 AM, I felt sick, weak, and tired. Not to get into too much detail - I have a lung disease which leaves me fighting relatively constant low-level infections, for which I take a monthly dose of antibiotics to keep under control. This morning felt like a flare up: joints aching, slight sore throat, and a little feverish.



Patrick Henry speech notes & million dollar 4th of July tracts

 

But, I had committed this morning to gospel outreach, and I prayed for God to work his mighty power through my weakened body, downed a couple ibuprofen & Tylenol, used my inhaler, and started my July antibiotic 2 days early. I had printed out Patrick Henry's famous "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death" speech last night, so I completed organizing my thoughts and scriptures, and packed about 400 "Happy 4th of July" million dollar bill tracts to hand out to the Market-goers.

We prayed on the drive down for a place to park, a place to stand and speak & give out tracts, and for the Holy Spirit to work in people's lives, and all of those prayers were answered. We got a spot in the parking ramp very quickly. The north-east corner of 4th & Court was open (wind behind me), and a musical group across the street was just leaving. This is the same spot I read the Patrick Henry speech last year, and the intersection was packed.

Click HERE for the audio. My battery died near the end, but you'll get the meat of the message. I left in about 8-10 minutes of audio at the beginning, when I was greeting people, and announcing that we'd be reading the Patrick Henry speech. You'll get an idea of what goes on before we start, but just fast forward if its too boring.

Just  before I started speaking, Frank Chirico showed up, and that was another blessing and a help. Frank works most weekends, so it is rare that we get to labor together in the harvest field. Praise the Lord - when I transitioned from the Patrick Henry speech to the proclamation of the gospel, a woman walked up and wanted to "ask a question" (she really wanted to present the claims of Roman Catholicism - thank God he delivered Mary, myself, and Frank from that false gospel!). I was able to slide her over to Frank, and keep going; without Frank being there, it would have been difficult to keep the flow of the message and make the link between the liberty and freedom of Patrick Henry's speech, and the freedom we all need, and can only obtain, through the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, thank you, bro! God brought you right when I needed you.

Mary and Frank on the corner of 4th & Court Ave. I spoke just to the right of
where Frank is standing, a point from which I was surrounded by Market-goers.
360 degrees of preaching freedom - it was a blast!
 

I felt ill right up to the time I began speaking. But after that, God faithfully supplied his supernatural power. I experienced that scripture:

"Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." (Philippians 2:12-13)

God gave us the desire to reach out to those around us, and he supplied the power needed to do it. I had a blast! I mean, I experienced the joy of the Lord, and the Bible says that the joy of the Lord is our strength. I don't take video, but many stopped to hear the Patrick Henry speech, and also to hear of the bondage and slavery that both sin and religion bring, and of the only cure: the freedom that is in the Person of Jesus Christ. So let me publicly thank the Lord for his kindness to us this morning. Mary also had a neat encounter with a young man who regularly tap-dances for donations near the corner of 4th & Court. Since we usually see him, Mary approached him to give a tract and talk to him. Turns out he was raised Mormon, so Mary got to share the real gospel, and we hope to give him some stuff to help him understand the difference between Joseph Smith, the Mormon false prophet, and the Lord Jesus Christ, the one and only Savior of sinners.

When finished, Frank and I joined Mary in passing out the 4th of July tracts, and about 11:45 you could feel the air cool off, and the smell of rain. The heavens opened up, and it rained hard for a few minutes, with everyone running for cover. Right behind us was an overhand from the Surf Shop bar, and Mary jumped in there. I was already soaked, so I didn't care. I told Frank, "Look, a captive audience." So when Frank headed for his car, I took a few minutes, standing in the rain, and spoke to the group there, reading the gospel message from the back of the tract. One guy decided it was more tolerable to get wet than to listen to the gospel message, and took off. But there were believers there, too, and one lady thanked me. A few more tracts went out.

Walking back to the car with Mary, I was struck by the beauty and wonder of what I just experienced.
What a joy to lift up the precious name of Jesus. What fun - may I say that in a reverent, holy manner? What fun to publicly identify with the one True God, and to proclaim his mighty power to save. To be able to warn sinners to flee from the wrath of a Holy God! To offer the only means of escape that Jesus provides, full and free. There is nothing like it, brothers and sisters.

Reader, if you are a stranger to the grace of God: if you are religious but not born-again, or if you are just lost; listen: you will have to give a full account to your Creator some day. God does not desire that any perish, but he is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11). He's done everything needed to purchase your forgiveness and salvation. Jesus paid it all on the cross 2000 years ago, and God will forgive you and receive you as his child if you will repent and trust in Jesus Christ, that he died for your sins on that cross. Come to him today, by faith - "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,...." (Acts 16:31)

For Nash

This is a screen shot from Google Maps of the Hess Gas Station on Walsingham, in Largo, Florida, about a mile from the hotel we stayed at during our trip down there for Emily's wedding. On Monday, April 15th, around 8 PM, I was filling up our rental car when a 40-something year old man approached me, asking for money. From my work on the streets, I've been approached countless times for money, but my general rule is that I rarely just give money away. Instead, I offer to buy them a meal or some food. That is what I offered to this man, whose name is Nash.

 

 

Nash was from out of town, from New York I think, visiting a friend, and hoping to get work as a truck driver. It takes a lot of discernment when dealing with people on the street, and I don't claim to have much more insight than anyone else. But I do want to bless others as a Christian man, and I want to share the truth of Jesus Christ with as many people as I can; I did both with Nash on this night. I loaded him up with what that this gas station could offer: a couple of hot dogs, a large bag of chips, some breakfast rolls for the next day, and I can't remember what else. And as Nash was getting his food, I gave him the bread of life, the straightforward gospel of Jesus Christ, the promised Savior, who alone can deliver from sin, death, and Hell, and who offers eternal life as a gift to all who will repent and trust in Him. And with his food he also got a "One Second After You Die" gospel booklet to take along.

 

Brothers. all we have is a gift from God, and we have to let it go to bless this dying world around us. I cannot give to every guy sitting on the off-ramp with a cardboard sign, but there are times that I can, and this encounter with Nash was a divine appointment. Please pray for his eternal soul, and let's pray for each other, that we would be channels of God's love and care, to faithfully declare the Risen, Living Savior, and to be rich in good works to those around us.

 

Thank you, Father: you have blessed me with eternal blessings. What a privilege it is to show Christ's love and to declare his saving power. I hope to see Nash in Heaven some day.