Salvation Made Simple By D. Davenport It is God’s intention that the message of salvation is as simple as possible. Indeed it is His will that even a three year old child can understand it. Even so, the basic gospel message of the Bible has been confused, misunderstood, and mixed up since the first century. This is not surprising when it is realized that the history of man is one of confusion, violence, and de-Evolution. Modern man teaches Evolution but the Bible recognizes de-Evolution when it comes to the spiritual condition of the mind of man. The gospel (which literally means “Good News”) and salvation (which means being “rescued”) can be summarized in three simple parts: 1. Placing Personal Volitional Trust: This is the HOW of salvation. The bible calls this kind of trust “belief” or expressing “saving faith” and involves more than just intellectual assent. Romans 4:5 But to him that worketh not, but BELIEVETH on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. This righteousness is called “justification” in the bible and is a legal standing before God. It is “just-as-if” the sinner had never sinned. Instead of God forgiving our individual sins, He PAID FOR THEM HIMSELF. This is called the “Substitionary Atonement”. Thus, it is true that the believer is “forgiven” although his or her sins were actually “paid for”. He obtains the status of “imputed righteousness.” It also has to do with believing WILLFULLY. Thus the mind and the will come together to “receive” the free offer. This “free gift” is mentioned in Ephesians: Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. It is important to remember that while the gift is completely free it has to be TAKEN to be appropriated. Therefore, the bible message of salvation is preached, understood, and received by willful faith. Hebrews makes reference to this: Hebrews 4:2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Frankly, the world is full of people who actually believe that God is offering them salvation free of charge but who have not actually TAKEN the offer. Many of these people think that they have taken it when they have not. They have not expressed by an act of their will at a particular moment in their life the act of taking the gift being offered. Many of these people may “sound” religious and use high-sounding theological terms such as referring to the “Atonement” or the experience of “coming to know God” experientially. Simply put they may be trusting in a tradition, experience, emotion, notion, assumption, or misconception rather than the Word of God rightly divided: 2Timothy2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. A failure to study (instead of merely quoting, reading, or wrongly dividing) the Bible rightly divided forces people to resort to other strategies to apprehend truth. But there is no other way to be absolutely sure of absolute truth other than “dissecting” (the literal meaning of the word “divide”) the Bible “precept by precept.” Paul apparently used the word “dissect” because he was a Tentmaker by profession which involved cutting precise patterns. In the same way we read the Bible and understand it only by making “distinctions and divisions” in order for it to make sense. 2. (Personal Volitional Trust)…In the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ: This is the WHAT of salvation. It is important to remember that it is not YOUR faith that saves you nor is it your sincerity. God achieved Redemption for sinful man through the specific historical fact of having His only Son (Jesus Christ) actually PAY for your sins through the blood sacrifice. When He died it proved that the sacrifice was made. When Christ was buried it proved to the world that he was actually dead (the wages of sin is death). And that God raised Christ from the dead proved that God had received Christ’s payment as an acceptable sacrifice. So the real question of saving faith here is FAITH IN WHAT? Many people refer to “my faith” but the Bible has no agreement with their misguided notions. True faith is only an INSTRUMENT by which to receive the free offer: Ephesians 2:8 For BY GRACE are ye saved THROUGH faith; Returning to the question of “faith in what” the Apostle Paul needed to remind the Corinthians exactly WHAT they were expressing faith IN to be saved: 1Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: People often speak of hearing the personal voice of God or giving their life to God. NONE OF THESE EXPERIENCES SAVE YOU. Nor does walking an aisle, getting water baptized, going forward, or joining a church. For that matter “asking God into your heart” (Revelation 3:20) is taken out of its proper context in Revelation where God is described as being “outside” of a Kingdom Assembly during the Tribulation. Rather it is believing in the SPECIFIC way that God provided for your salvation. God achieved your redemption through Christ’s sacrifice and you have to understand and believe it specifically: Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that GOD HAS RAISED HIM FROM THE DEAD, thou shalt be saved. There is no salvation apart from believing (“in your heart”…or the “inner man”) in the Resurrection of Christ as a payment for your sin. This is “confessed” through saving faith. This confession is related to the PROVISION of Christ. But it is also important to understand that we also confess the PERSON of Christ. This means that we believe in two “fundamentals” about Christ’s identity. Although the word “fundamentalism” has been associated with a number of controversial things it is important to remember that “fundamentalism” was originally formed to re-affirm the belief in several basic tenants. Two of these tenants include the DEITY of Christ and His VIRGIN BIRTH. We won’t examine these two realities in great depth here but they are essential to understanding the Atonement itself. Simply put, Christ HAD to be God to pay your sin debt since GOD was the one offended in the first place. Also Jesus HAD to be virgin-born since any human-born person would be tainted by sin and therefore unable to achieve redemption. John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I AM HE, ye shall die in your sins. Thus, we express faith in the: A. PERSON of Christ: (The virgin-born Deity) And the: B. PROVISION of Christ: (The effective blood sacrifice) 3. (Personal Volitional Trust in the death, burial and resurrection of Christ)….Without works or human efforts of any kind: This is the IF of salvation. People often talk about the gift-offer being “unconditional” but in one sense this is not true. There ARE conditions for salvation but they related to Belief and not Works. The first one we discussed had to do with willful TRUST. The second had to do with TRUST IN WHAT? The final one that we will examine has to do with a final condition that can be expressed this way: “You can claim to place your trust in Christ’s sacrifice and STILL not be saved.” Why? Since God paid for EVERYTHING He absolutely will not allow any human being to “add” anything to His perfected work. In the bible this is called “mixing” works and grace. The two realities are such complete opposites that Paul makes it clear that if you add ONE work or human effort to God’s completed work then it is no longer grace: Romans 11:6 “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” Since the only way God can save you is through the perfect payment of his Son then you HAVE to receive grace through a FREE GIFT. God is not interested in any of YOUR works or efforts: Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Millions of people are insulted by the Biblical reality that every one of our works prior to salvation are as “filthy rags” to God. Why is this so? The answer is that God’s standard is absolute PERFECTION: Although the book of James is directed to Israel under the fulfillment of Judaism the point is made clear: James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet OFFEND IN ONE POINT, he is guilty of all. It is important to realize that while God loves sinners He HATES sin. Every human being enters the Earth a sinner by birth, by nature, and then demonstrates this reality by PRACTICE. Does God love each and every one of them desperately? Yes. But even so it is a reality that every human being that comes into the world is SEPARATED from God because of their sin nature. This utterly flies in the face of the New Age notion that we are “All God’s Children”. It must be a sobering reality for every new parent to understand that “my little angel” is alienated from God. Rather, every human being that has ever lived (provided they arrive at the age of accountability which King David refers to ) becomes accountable to the reality that they are SEPARATED from God through their sin nature. Admittedly this is a hard pill to swallow. The conventional wisdom is that we are “not that bad” and that God “is my Co-Pilot”. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. 1Peter3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the JUST FOR THE UNJUST, that he might BRING US TO GOD, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:v Jesus Himself used this kind of language: John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. And this: John 2:25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man. The message of the bible is that every human being comes into this world separated from God and that they must trust Christ’s Resurrection WITHOUT ADDING any works or human efforts of their own because GOD WILL NOT ACCEPT THEM. Indeed, if you try to MIX in one work God will REJECT it because the only way He can save anyone is BY GRACE. Our modern legal system has a provision for convicted defendants called “placing yourself under the mercy of the Court”. In this scenario the defendant pleads guilty and acknowledges that the Law condemns them and demands the prescribed punishment for the infraction. The defendant is utterly helpless at this point to “add” anything to the proceedings or to the judge’s sentencing. For this reason he can only exercise the desperate and helpless request that the Judge exercise “mercy”. Mercy is the utter polar opposite of Justice. But God has an even better plan in accomplishing Redemption for mankind. In God’s economy BOTH mercy and justice are accomplished. Human beings receive mercy and yet God accomplishes Justice through the payment of Christ. Instead of sentencing the human defendant the Judge appoints His own Son to pay the FULL PRICE of the defendants crime. The defendant has nothing to offer. He can only “believe and accept” this offer of mercy. Many of our modern-day sentiments about salvation are simply incorrect. Much of this occurs because the TEACHING people sit under is CONFUSING. For one thing the language used is sloppy and even incoherent. Preachers often talk about “giving your life to God”, or “coming forward” or “making your peace with God”. None of these things save you because God is not accepting ANYTHING that you do. Christ has done it all and God requires us to believe and receive this is the manner that HE has prescribed no matter how sincere or zealous a person may be. Paul referred to many Jewish members of the Nation of Israel in this manner: Romans 10:2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but NOT ACCORDING TO KNOWLEDGE. If you are interested in doing a Bible word study you might consider examining every instance of the word “knowledge” throughout the Bible. We often think that we can “help” God through our own misguided sincerity but we are wrong. Even the teaching that “we are all created in God’s image” is incorrect for the simple fact that after God’s original creation fell, (Adam and Eve) the offspring that they produced were after (sinful) Adam’s image. They were separated from God at birth. The knowledge of all this is illuminating but for some people disturbing. It contradicts much of what they have been taught even in denominational churches. But it is important to remember that God has NO interest in condemning any human being. Rather He has provided a perfect, simple, and easy solution for everyone if they will only BELIEVE exactly what He has said without trying to change or alter it according to their own ignorance or agenda. Think about this verse: 2thess2.10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. The popular television Pastor Charles Stanley has pointed out (and is certainly correct) that it is no longer the SIN question but the SON question that matters. The verse in second Thessalonians says that they received not the LOVE OF THE TRUTH and perished. Many people receive PART of the truth but they are still not justified. They believe Christ died for their sins but they either don’t place personal trust in that fact or they attempt to ADD something to God’s perfect payment which God will not accept. God wants you to know you are a SINNER in order to bring you to the SAVIOR. His purpose is for you to know that He loves you and has provided everything That you need. He warns us that He will NOT accept any of our works or human efforts not to make us feel unworthy but because He can ONLY accept the perfect life and sacrifice of His Son. He wants to “Impute” the righteousness of His Son to YOUR account. Unfortunately many modern ministries are obsessed with proclaiming that God is interested foremost in your physical circumstances and that God wants you healed, healthy, and wealthy. While physical blessings WERE part of the Covenant (contract) with the religious Nation of Israel they are NOT the promises given to the Body of Christ today. God is much more concerned about your SPIRITUAL condition than your PHYSICAL condition. Indeed each of us will die one day and leave this “flesh tent” behind. 2Corinthians5:10 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. It is hard for many people to understand WHY God spends so much time asserting the fact that human beings are alienated from Him and need to be “reconciled”. To some this sounds like “judgementalism” and “negativity” but nothing could be further from the truth. There is an old Southern Baptist saying that is full of wisdom: “You’ve got to get them unsaved before you get them saved”. This sounds like a crude slogan but when you examine the brilliant legal treatise known as the book of “Romans”, Paul spends more than TWO chapters teaching about this universal alienation. First in chapter One Paul expounds upon the historical alienation of the Gentiles and how God “gave them up”. Then Paul expounds upon how the Jews in the Nation of Israel are CONDEMNED by the Law. Why so? Because Paul wants to make sure everyone understands that they are ALIENATED from God. Only a person who is ALIENATED can understand the need for RECONCILIATION. We often hear experiential stories from emotional people on religious television about how they were “reconciled” to God through some sort of breakthrough ecstatic realization that God loved them. But if you pay close attention it becomes obvious that the person rarely makes any reference to any initial realization of being first ALIENATED from God: Romans 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Re-visiting Romans chapter one is instructive. Eighteen verses into this masterstroke Epistle, Paul does not mince any words. God’s wrath wrests on every human being who has not had a spiritual “regeneration”. Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of REGENERATION, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Notice how Paul himself re-visits the concept of understanding spiritual “truth” as the means by which to be reconciled? Without getting too far off track, it is interesting to make a note that the key to both being Justified and walking (the word “walk” is used six times in the book of Colossians) in the Christian life is SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING: Colossians 1:9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and SPIRITUAL UNDERSTANDING….. Everything starts with understanding since the alternative leads to action without purpose. In fact when you examine history you find all sorts of religious action that is misguided yet sincere. Even many modern day “mission trips” are sometimes bathed in purposelessness. It is as if people think that simply by being busy they are accomplishing something. This is according to the religious nature of man. We often see it in the form of “other” cultic forms of human behavior than can only be considered a religion by every definition of the word. The end result is predictable: Ephesians 4:18 Having the UNDERSTANDING DARKENED, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: This darkened understanding is NOT God’s will: 1Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints. In short, even modern Psychologists understand the simple fact that everything a person does is preceded by something that they first THINK. Few of us realize that Satan’s (originally referred to as Lucifer in the Old Testament) main line of attack is through MINDS and thought lives rather than through destroying people through adverse calamities, mayhem, or death. To be sure these are often the RESULTS of his influence but through darkening the mind of fallen men he is able to achieve his goals: 2Timothy 2:26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. Indeed it is by subtle errors and not profound gross error that most individuals are led astray from understanding truth and “lightening” their dark understanding: Acts 13:10 Oh full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? When skilled counterfeiters produce paper money their goal is for the note to be look as SIMILAR to real money as possible. The deception is “subtil”. Satan has a similar plan in place. He wants people to be religious but lost. He also wants the gospel that is preached to be as similar to the saving gospel as possible with just enough subtil errors to render it ineffective. Thus it cannot be overstated that God’s purpose is for us to understand with clarity. It is interesting to observe that after regeneration God’s main purpose is to RENEW OUR MINDS and not our circumstances, emotional state, or finances: Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your MIND, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. And what is God’s perfect will?: John 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might KNOW thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. Ephesians 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the KNOWLEDGE of him: 4. Conclusion: 1. By placing personal volitional trust, …….. 2. in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Virgin-born Deity Christ, 3 without adding works or human efforts of any kind…… 4. a person receives Justification (imputed righteousness) before God. A person receives this gift by GRACE through FAITH and is REGENERATED by God unto reconciliation. Our final verse perfectly incorporates all of these realities into one statement: Ephesians: 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise…. TRUST. THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST’S SACRIFICE. WITHOUT WORKS. FOR JUSTIFICATION. greenvillegrace@yahoo.com (864) 420-4347
It is God’s intention that the message of salvation is as simple as possible. Indeed it is
His will that even a three year old child can understand it.
Even so, the basic gospel message of the Bible has been confused, misunderstood, and mixed up since the first century. This is not surprising when it is realized that the history of man is one of confusion, violence, and de-Evolution. Modern man teaches Evolution but the Bible recognizes de-Evolution when it comes to the spiritual condition of the mind of man.
The gospel (which literally means “Good News”) and salvation (which means being “rescued”) can be summarized in three simple parts: