Study of the

Doctrine of Salvation

Mario R. Velez., Th.M.

Professor of New Testament Studies

Email: ProfVelez@intergate.com

Charis Chapel Bible Church and

Theological Seminary and Bible Institute

11596 Beechnut St.

Houston, Texas 77072

Phone: 832-875-2757

http://www.charisseminary.org/

Mario Velez's Theological Home Page

http://oocities.com/mariostudies

Edited by:

Carol Gash

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Table of Content

Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

What is this Salvation from?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

The Reason Christ is the Only Way. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

God's Essence Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Redemption, Reconciliation and Propitiation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Salvation is God's Gift to Mankind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Spiritual Death is resolved through Christ.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Salvation is by Faith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Salvation is Secured Forever. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Some Misconceptions about the Salvation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Appendix. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

1. God’s Attributes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

2. The Last Judgment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

3. Biblical Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

4. The Ark of the Covenant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Introduction

In this study I will expound on the subject of salvation and some of the erroneous misconceptions that occur when believers, as well as unbelievers, discuss this subject. I will examine and explain the steps that the Lord has designed within this so great doctrine of the Bible. I pray that you will be able to study and to concentrate objectively. For the unbeliever, I pray that after this reading, you will have a crystal comprehension of the Lord’s infinite love toward all humanity and especially toward you personally, and that you will accept this free gift joyously. For my fellow believers, may this study enlighten you further so that you may share our Lord’s Gospel more accurately.

What is this Salvation From?

To begin this study, let’s first examine the word, "salvation." The word "salvation" comes from the Greek word [soteria] and means, "to be saved, to be delivered, to be preserved." The concept related by this word is one of being rescued or delivered from a lost status to a status of safety. While the word also connotes a deliverance from physical harm or physical death, the focus of this study is the deliverance from the consequences of our spiritual death that, has as a result, the eternal condemnation to the lake of the fire. This condemnation is more commonly known as spending eternity future in "hell." The alternative to "hell" is to be in the future of eternity in "heaven" with God in a state without grief, without pain because the old order of the things would have passed away (Rev 21:4). Hell is a subject about which the Bible speaks very clearly and should not be disregarded, and contrary to popular belief, one who goes there, will by no means be in a state of rest. Ignoring hell does not change the fact of its reality any more than ignoring the fact that if you jump out of an airplane head first, that you will not crack your head wide open. Fortunately, God has provided a solution for this problem through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which we will see as we progress through this study.

Hell is commonly referred to in the Bible as the "Lake of the Fire." This lake of the fire will be the final destination for, not only the fallen angels, but also for all unbelieving mankind who did not accept Christ for their salvation. In Matthew 25:41 we are told that hell was originally prepared for Satan and his fallen angels. Unfortunately, unbelievers will also be cast into the Lake of Fire. Now, the reference to unbelievers is not to those that don't believe in God, but specifically to those who don’t believe in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior; He alone is God's solution to not spending eternity future in the lake of fire. Continue reading to understand why Jesus Christ is the only solution to the problem of hell.

In Luke 16:19-31 we have a glimpse at what occurs when an unbeliever dies, in the example of the Rich Man and Lazarus. The rich man's soul departed with an interim or temporary body into the fire of torments (Luke 16:22-23). We know that they both had an interim body because in Luke 16:24, the Rich Man called to Abraham and asked him to send Lazarus to dip the tip of his FINGER in water and cool the TONGUE of the Rich Man. As would be with the Rich Man, eventually the unbeliever will be resurrected with a body of damnation (John 5:28-29) to stand trial at the Great White Throne of the Last Judgment¹ (Rev 20:11-15). Any unbeliever will be judged on the merit of his own self-righteous human works, which is considered human righteousness or relative righteousness. The sins of the unbeliever will not be the issue because the judgment of man’s sins has already been poured out on Jesus Christ on the Cross (1John 2:2). As this is the case, God is Holy and can only accept perfect divine righteousness, which is what the Lord Jesus Christ provides when we accept it by faith; therefore, when an unbeliever rejects Jesus Christ, he is actually putting his own imperfect human righteousness before God's Perfect and Holy Throne. As a result, the Holiness of God has no choice except to reject the unbeliever's imperfect righteousness and to condemn them to the Lake of Fire where they will live forever in terrible, indescribable and hopeless suffering (Rev 20:15). We will study God's Holiness further in the next section of this study.

Let us be clear. God does not delight in condemning anyone to hell, and He longs that everyone be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1Tim 2:4). The Lord has allowed everyone the right to choose, through his or her freewill, for or against, the gift of salvation provided through Jesus Christ. Ultimately, it is the unbeliever who rejects God's free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ who chooses to be sent to hell, since that is the consequence of rejecting Christ. The Lord simply and painfully honors the decision that the unbeliever makes when he or she rejects God's gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. So essentially, the person that states that God is love and will not send anyone to hell is in fact true. The decision to spend eternity in the Lake of Fire is made, not by God, but by the person who has decided to reject God's gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. So, it is imperative that we learn about how to avoid going to hell; one’s future will depend on it.

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¹.Judgment of the Great White Throne - This Judgment is for unbelievers who rejected Christ for their salvation. They are not judged for their sins, because Christ paid for them all on the cross, but for rejecting His saving work on their behalf. This Judgment occurs after the Millennial Reign of Christ and is for unbelievers only (Rev. 20:11-15; 21:8; 22:10-15). SEE the Last Judgment/Biblical Timeline in appendix 2-3, pp. 38-40.

The Reason Christ is the Only Way

Without doubt we have all heard at one time or another about Jesus Christ and how He died for the sins of the world. Unfortunately, not everyone fully grasps all of the mechanics involved in how He is the only way to salvation. To further understand this, let us examine the essence of God. The essence of a person is that which makes a person and consists of all their attributes. God's essence is therefore made up of ten attributes, eight of which refer to His essence box, with the other two attributes, known as His Holiness, which guards His essence box.² This Holiness consists of the two attributes known as His righteousness and Justice.

To further understand God's Holiness, let us consider God's perfect Righteousness as His legislative attribute and His perfect Justice as His judicial attribute. The legislative branch of any government in the world is the branch of that government that composes the laws of the nation that it governs. In other words, it is the group of individuals of that particular government that are in charge of making the laws. The Judicial branch of a government, on the other hand, is the group of individuals that are in charge of enforcing the laws that are created by the legislative branch of the government. Therefore, in order for mankind to gain access to God's Love, God's Holiness had to first be satisfied. God's legislative attribute, known as His perfect righteousness, declares that for imperfect mankind to be united with a perfect God, they must be as perfect as God is since He cannot be united with imperfection. To be able to approach His throne while alive, and to live before His throne after death, mankind must be as righteous as He is righteous.

For imperfect humanity to have access to God while in a state of imperfection would mean that God would cease to be perfect and would no longer be God. God's perfect righteousness declares that we, as imperfect sinners, come short of satisfying His perfect righteousness (Rom 3:23). Since we do not possess a perfect righteousness that is in keeping with God's standards, God's judicial attribute of perfect justice is required to execute the penalty for our sin. This penalty is not just physical death but death in the lake of fire after we die physically. God had to reconcile imperfect sinners to His perfect Holiness, which again, is

made up of His righteousness and justice. Since God could not become imperfect like we are, He designed a plan that would declare us perfect like He is, a plan that we could freely accept or reject.

It is for this reason that the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ had to die on the cross as a substitute for us. As our substitute, the Lord Christ Jesus took the penalty of death that God’s Holiness demanded for sin. He also took our imperfect righteousness on Himself and provides for us the only perfect righteousness that is acceptable to God. Only the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ is acceptable before the Holiness of God and it is the perfect righteousness of Christ that is accredited to us when we accept it by faith.

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² The Attributes of God - These are the attributes that make up God’s essence, SEE Appendix 1, p. 37

In our study of salvation, we should keep in mind three Biblical concepts accomplished by Jesus Christ. These accomplishments include redemption, reconciliation and propitiation.

Redemption:

The first concept is that Jesus Christ redeems us, which connotes the idea of setting free or liberating by a payment of a ransom. The ransom that Christ paid was for our salvation and was not with corruptible things but with His very own precious blood:

KJV 1Peter 1:18-19, “18) Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain

conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19) But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a Lamb without blemish and

without spot:”

Redemption addresses the problem of sin. That problem was that God's Holiness required a ransom of death and that death is represented in the blood of Christ. The blood of Jesus Christ represented His sacrificial death on the cross. Christ liberates us by paying in full the debt of death that God's Holiness demanded as the penalty for sin. It is through His ransom that we are set free from our helpless, lost, and bondage state into which we are born in. Our lost condition is due to us being born sinners with a sin nature, a sin nature which was imputed to us with Adam's original sin (Rom 5:12).

We are totally helpless in our state as sinners and in need of a redeemer to purchase us out of the slave market of sin into which we are born. As God, Jesus Christ was not qualified to save us, because a qualified redeemer was required to be judged for sin, and to pay the ransom of death. Therefore, as God, Jesus Christ could not have anything to do with sin, nor was He subject to death. On the other hand, in His humanity, Christ was able to be judged and to pay the ransom of death for us through His sacrifice on the cross. This is why Jesus Christ, as the living Word, had to be born in human, fleshly form and dwell among us (John 1:1; 1:14). As our Redeemer, Jesus Christ paid our ransom with His blood, so that we might be reconciled with the Holiness of God and restore our broken fellowship that sin had caused.

Before moving on, let us examine briefly some of the qualifications that a redeemer was required to meet before being able to redeem. Going back to the Old Testament, the first qualification of a redeemer was that he had to be nearest of kin or nearest relative (Lev 25:25; 25:48, Ruth 3:12-13). To fulfill this requirement, Christ entered the human race in the form of human male:

KJV Phil. 2:7, “But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:”

The second qualification of a Kinsman-Redeemer was that he had to be free of any need for redemption himself. Unlike the high priest of the Old Testament who first had to offer a sacrifice for his own sins and then offer one for the sins of the people, the Lord Jesus Christ did not need to sacrifice for His sins since He was without sin (Heb 4:15):

KJV Heb. 4:15, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points

tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”

The third condition that a Kinsman-Redeemer had to meet was that he must be willing to redeem. The Lord found joy in doing the will of the Father and He willingly gave up His life so that He could purchase or redeem us out of our bondage of sin (John 10:17-18):

KJV John 10:17, “17) Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18) No man taketh it

from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received

of my Father.”

Redemption was completed when the price was fully paid (Lev 25:27). As we have already seen in 1 Peter 1:18-19, the price of our redemption has been paid in full by the precious blood of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is the only one that is capable of buying us back from the market of sin and into the state of salvation.

Reconciliation:

The Greek word for "reconciled" is [katallasso] and means, "to change completely." The problem that this word addresses is not sin as in redemption, but it addresses the condition of the sinner. As a result of Jesus Christ resolving our problem of sin by the ransom of His blood, our condition as sinners is now changed forever before the Holiness of God. Our condition of the broken fellowship with God's Holiness due to sin is changed completely to one of restored fellowship. When we accept the sacrificial ransom of Jesus Christ on the cross, our position before the Holiness of God is one of no sin and perfect righteousness. This is certainly a complete change from our original helpless state of sin and imperfect righteousness. Again, Jesus Christ and He alone is the one who makes this possible as our Kinsman-Redeemer:

KJV Rom. 5:10, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we

shall be saved by his life.”

By no means does reconciliation apply to God. As I have already mentioned, God is perfect and does not need to conform to us, we are the ones that need to change to conform to Him. And thanks to the grace of God, He provided a Redeemer in the Lord Jesus Christ to purchase us out of our lost state of sin and reconciled us to Himself.

Propitiation:

As a result of being redeemed from our sinful state and being reconciled to a new position, the Holiness of God is now propitiated. Propitiation relates the problem of the atonement or the appeasement of the Holiness of God. Propitiation signifies that the Lord Jesus Christ has satisfied the Holiness of God by His death on the Cross. God's wrath of executing death to us because of our sin is turned away because Christ took that wrath of death on the cross for us. God did this in His immeasurable grace because He loved us so much, even while we were yet sinners, and sent His uniquely born Son to die for us on the Cross:

KJV 1John 2:2, “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

KJV 1John 4:10, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

KJV Rom. 3:25, “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission

of sins that are past, through forbearance of God;”

KJV Rom. 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

KJV 1Pet. 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness:

by whose stripes ye were healed.”

We might note that the word "propitiation" is only found in the English Bible three times. In Roman 3:25 the Greek word for "propitiation" is [hilasterion] and is a reference to Jesus Christ as being "the means by which sins are forgiven." In 1 John 2:2 and 1 John 4:10 the word for "propitiation" is the Greek word [hilasmos], which also connotes that Christ is "the means by which sins are forgiven." One more important verse to examine is Hebrews 9:5 where the Greek word [hilasterion] is once again used, but this time it is translated "mercy seat." The mercy seat of Hebrews 9:5 is referring to that of the Ark of the Covenant of the Old Testament.

A description of the Ark of the Covenant³ is found in Exodus 25:10-22. The ark was a rectangular box made of acacia wood overlaid with gold. The wood represented the humanity of Christ and the gold represented His deity. Inside, the ark contained the gold jar of manna that represented the people's sin in rejecting the provision of God. The staff of Aaron that had budded was also inside, which represented sin in revolt against God's order. The two tablets with the Ten Commandments were the last items inside the ark, which represented sin in the sense of transgression of known divine laws. The cover of the ark was what was called the mercy seat, which was also overlaid with gold. At each end of the mercy seat, also made of gold, were two figures with wings extended over the mercy seat (Heb 9:5). These two figures were called cherubs. These two cherubs represented the Holiness of God, and as we have already seen, His holiness is composed of His perfect righteousness and justice. The cherubs looked down at the mercy seat and it was on the mercy seat where the blood of the sacrificed animal had to be sprinkled as a temporary appeasement for the Holiness of God. The sprinkling of the animal's blood represented the spiritual death of Jesus Christ bearing our sins. This was a shadow until Jesus Christ would once and for all obtain redemption by the shedding of His own blood (Heb 9:12).

Therefore, the mercy seat is where the Holiness of God meets sinful mankind; it is the place where sins are forgiven. It is the place where the Holiness of God looks downward at the mercy seat and sees the precious blood of Christ that covers our sins. Upon seeing the blood of Christ, the Holiness of God the Father is satisfied or propitiated. Christ satisfies the demand of the death that the Holiness of God requires. This is why Jesus is the means by which our sins are forgiven. As a result, God’s Holiness is no longer compromised and is free to fully love and bless those who accept Jesus Christ as the only means by which their sins are forgiven. This is certainly the greatest gift that has ever been made available to anyone who is willing to accept it by faith.

Salvation is God’s Gift to Mankind

Christ died and paid the penalty for every sin that we have committed and will ever commit in the future. Through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross we now have access to a perfect God. It is the Lord's work on the cross that saves us from spending eternity future in the Lake of Fire, and we can now be united with the Lord in heaven forever. This is the free gift that God has provided in His love to all who accept it by faith. This salvation is never based on what we do or not do, but on the work that the Lord Jesus Christ did in dying on the cross to pay the penalty for our sinful imperfection. This wonderful truth is declared to be God's gift to mankind in Ephesians 2:8-9:

KJV Eph. 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9) Not of works, lest any man

should boast.”

God The Father designed this perfect plan because it was the only way to reconcile imperfect and sinful humanity to His perfect person or essence. God The Son executed this plan when He came in human form to be the perfect sacrifice of the plan (John 1:1-2,14). God The Holy Spirit is He who gives us the ability of understanding this perfect and marvelous plan. God the Holy Spirit makes it effective when we accept it by faith (John 14:26).

In view that God has done all the work in providing salvation to mankind through the person of Jesus Christ, the scriptures are free to declare that this salvation is now available to anyone who simply accepts it by faith. This undeserved favor from God is known as His grace. Although He should execute the judgment of death to us as sinners, in His abundant grace, He provided a solution to our problem so that we could be in union with Him forever. The following scriptures declare this great news:

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³ The Ark of the Covenant - SEE the illustration of the Ark of the Covenant in Appendix 4, p. 41.

KJV Acts 16:31, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

KJV 2Tim. 3:15, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through

faith which is in Christ Jesus.”

KJV Acts 4:10-12, “...by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth…12) Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name

under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

KJV Rom. 5:15, “But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of

God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ hath abounded unto many.”

Not only does God the Father credit Jesus Christ's perfect righteousness to us when we accept it by faith, but scripture also declares that we receive eternal life as well. The following scriptures reveal this fact:

KJV John 3:15, “That whosever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

KJV Rom 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

KJV 1John 5:11, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”

KJV 1John 5:13, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal

life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”

We all have everlasting life, which is simply life that has a beginning but no end. We all had a beginning when we were born physically, but will live everlastingly either in heaven or in hell, depending on whether we reject or accept Christ. The amazing fact about eternal life is that it never had a beginning, nor does it have an end, because it is self-sustaining. Going back to the essence of God, eternal life is one of the attributes of God, which means that He does not depend on anyone or anything to sustain Him; He is the source of life and all life depends on Him who has always existed. It is amazing that He loved us so much that He was willing to share His very own life force with those who would accept Jesus Christ by faith!

Spiritual Death is Resolved Through Christ

One of the problems that Jesus Christ resolved in salvation is the problem of spiritual death. To understand spiritual death, let us go back to the book of Genesis to examine our original human father in Adam. The Lord gave him a physical body when He formed Adam from the dust of the ground. After forming a physical body for Adam, the Lord breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, which resulted in Adam receiving his human spirit along with his human soul (Gen 2:7). This made Adam what is known as a trichotomous human being, which simply means that he was composed of three parts, his body, soul, and spirit.

At the time of the fall of Adam and Eve, which resulted when they disobeyed the order of God not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they suffered a spiritual death (Gen 2:17; 3:6). As a result of their disobedience, our original parents suffered the consequence of spiritual death. They lost their human spirit and they acquired a sin nature. This sin nature has been passed down to all humanity, since the fall, through the chromosomes of the father of every human offspring (Ps 51:5). There is one exception to human offspring being born with a sin nature. This exception was the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ by the Virgin Mary. God, The Holy Spirit provided the twenty-three perfect chromosomes that were needed to conceive the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew 1: 20 it is declared:

KJV Matthew 1:20, “But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph,

thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.”

Although the Virgin Mary was a virgin, Mary did have a sin nature like the rest of us, for we are told in Romans 3:23 that, "ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God," including the Virgin Mary. Whether it was the Virgin Mary, Moses, the Apostle Peter, the Apostle Paul or any other one of us, we all have sinned. The Apostle Paul gives us an account of his own struggles with sin in Roman 7:18-20. This is why Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11:1 that we should follow his example as he follows the example of Christ. In other words, if you don't see him following the example of Christ, then we should not follow him because he also had a sin nature and was vulnerable to failures like the rest of us. Again, the only exception to this rule was the perfect humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not to say that the Lord’s human will to choose was removed from Him in His humanity. In this sense it was possible for Him to choose to sin; yet, He was unable to do so because His humanity could never be separated from His deity. In His deity, it was impossible for Him to sin. Although Adam did not have a sin nature before the fall, he used his volition to sin, and as a result, he acquired a sin nature after he sinned. The Lord, on the other hand, used His volition not to sin and maintained His will totally surrendered to the will of His Father. God had declared that He would set apart a perfect seed in woman that would be necessary for the Lord's virgin birth, back in Genesis 3:15 when He declared, "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

The process of meiosis and polar body results in a woman's seed being uncontaminated prior to the time of fertilization, just as the Lord declared in Genesis 3:15. When it is time for the female ovum or egg cell to be released from the ovary, the ovum goes through a cell division, which reduces the number of chromosomes to half their original number. This division is known as meiosis and results in the ovum discarding twenty-three contaminated chromosomes in the form of smaller cells known as polar bodies. Through the disintegration of these non-functional polar bodies, unneeded cell matter is disposed along with the contamination of the sin nature. This leaves one larger egg cell or ovum with the uncontaminated chromosomes that then grow in the ovary of a woman until it reaches maturation. At maturation, the egg cell is carried to the fallopian tubes where it is ready for fertilization by the male sperm cell. This is the uncontaminated seed of woman that the Lord reserved in anticipation of the virgin birth of our Lord way back in Genesis 3:15.

However, since there is a sum of forty-six chromosomes that are required for conception, no woman is capable of conceiving without the fertilization by the male sperm cell. Twenty-three chromosomes are provided through the female egg cell and twenty-three by the male sperm cell to make the total of forty-six that are required for conception. The female ovum with the twenty-three uncontaminated chromosomes of the mother becomes contaminated at the time it is fertilized by the father's sperm cell, which is how the sin nature is passed on. The result of this process is offspring born with the genetically-formed sin nature. This trend began after Adam sinned and caused all to be born in sin from that point; therefore, Roman 5:12 says that sin entered the world through one man; that man was named Adam. But just as God condemned all humanity through one man, He would also save all humanity through one man, the perfect Lord Jesus Christ. Chromosomes are simply the structures that carry genetic information that are used to give us the characteristics of our parents.

By condemning the human race on account of the original sin of Adam, the Lord is now free to save the human race on account of the work of salvation done by Jesus Christ on the Cross. This is one of the reasons that the perfect Justice of God is now free to save small children that might perhaps die before reaching the age of accountability, as well as the mentally retarded, automatically due to the work of salvation from the Lord on the Cross. As we were condemned for the act of the man called Adam, so likewise we are now able to be saved by the act of another man, the perfect God/Man Jesus Christ.

In the case of the birth of the Lord, God The Holy Spirit provided twenty-three uncontaminated chromosomes in the place of the twenty-three contaminated ones that are usually provided by the male's sperm cell of the human father. When God The Holy Spirit provided twenty-three uncontaminated chromosomes that were required to fertilize the egg cell of the Virgin Mary, it completed the total forty-six chromosomes needed for the conception of the Lord's perfect humanity. As a result, the Lord was born a perfect human being and without a sin nature. He was fully qualified to be the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. Therefore, the scriptures declare to us that Christ had no sin (2 Cor 5:21) and appeared once and for all to do away with sin by the sacrifice of His own self (Heb 9:26).

Indeed, the head of Satan was crushed in defeat through the work of salvation that the Lord finished on the cross (John 16:11). However, the Lord's saving work certainly didn't come without a price. The Lord was indeed bruised by the suffering He endured. He went through more suffering because of the cross than we will ever know. Isaiah 53:5 declares that He was bruised for our sins so that we, who believe, might have peace with God. That is, so that the Holiness of God could be satisfied and the condemnation forfeited for the death we deserve:

KJV Isaiah 53:5, “But he was wounded for our transgressions,he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon

him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

Therefore, it has been Adam's original sin that has caused us all to be born spiritually dead people with a sin nature. But as I have already mentioned, through the Lord's saving work on the cross, believers are able to regain the human spirit that was lost at the fall. God The Holy Spirit creates a human spirit at the moment that we accept the Lord's saving work on the cross. This is what the Bible calls a spiritual birth (John 3:6):

KJV John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

A spiritual birth is what is known as being born-again, not physically but spiritually. The Lord tried to explain this concept to the Jewish teacher Nicodemus when He explained to him that no man would be able to see the Kingdom of God unless he is born-again (John 3:3). Nicodemus did not understand that the Lord was referring to a spiritual birth and not a physical one. Being born-again is simply the result of us believing in the salvation work of the Lord Jesus Christ by faith and faith alone, which is what the Bible teaches (Gal 2:16; Rom 5:1). As a result of our spiritual birth, we are told that we are now children of God in Galatians 3:26. In the same manner by which we are born physically from the seed of our human parents, so likewise, we are born spiritually from the seed of God into His family. Again, 1 Peter 1:23 tells us that believers are born again (spiritually) after hearing and accepting the Gospel of the saving work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. Although it is God the Holy Spirit who makes this spiritual birth effective (Titus 3:5), it is the Word of God that presents the good news of why Christ is the only means of salvation to us imperfect sinful human beings. This is so we can have an opportunity of accepting or rejecting this message (James 1:18).

KJV John 3:3, “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom

of God.”

KJV Gal. 2:16, “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, evenwe have believed in

Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be

justified.”

KJV Rom. 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”

KJV Gal. 3:26, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.”

KJV 1Pet. 1:23, “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”

KJV 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.”

KJV James 1:18, “Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”

The human spirit that we obtain at spiritual birth is the immaterial part of us that is designed by God to convert, store and make use of spiritual phenomenon. God, The Holy Spirit takes the doctrinal principles that we store in our human spirit as we learn them and gives us the understanding so that we can believe and apply these principles in our lives (John 16:13). It is through the perception, belief and the application of God's biblical principles that we store in our human spirit that we are able to gain divine wisdom known as God's wisdom. The unbeliever, on the other hand, does not have a human spirit and is incapable of understanding the things of God, because we are told in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that the things of God are foolishness to him because he or she is unable to understand them. At the time that the message of salvation is presented to the unbeliever, God The Holy Spirit acts as a human spirit to permit the unbeliever to understand the basis for salvation. In this way the Justice of God gives every unbeliever an equal opportunity to accept or to reject the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. The Justice of God is perfect and will assure that everyone that has reached God consciousness will have an opportunity to listen to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As a result, they will choose for or against that Gospel from his or her very own freewill.

Salvation is by Faith

We have examined that Jesus Christ is the only perfect sacrifice that the Holiness of God will ever accept. We have also looked at why we are born in sin and must be condemned by God's perfect Holiness. We have also seen some of the marvelous benefits that are acquired at the moment that we accept the saving work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although some of the benefits that a believer acquires through the spiritual birth like perfect righteousness, eternal life, a human spirit and becoming children of God have been mentioned, there are many other assets that a believer possesses. Some other marvelous benefits that the born-again believer possesses are the indwelling of God the Father (John 14:23), God the Son (John 14:20) and God the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:11). I will eventually do a separated study on spiritual self-esteem that will include all the assets that the born-again believer obtains the moment he or she accepts Jesus Christ and are born-again spiritually. For now these few will suffice to show us some of the marvelous things that the believer receives from the Lord through His abundant grace.

KJV John 14:23, “Jesus answered and said unto him, if a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will

come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

KJV John 14:20, “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.”

KJV Rom. 8:11, “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ From the dead shall

also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.”

As we have looked in the prior verses of salvation, the Bible emphasizes that we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ's saving work. It is not by works that we do or do not do. The word "faith" is translated from the Greek word [pistis] and signifies, "to trust, to believe, confidence." Hebrew 11:1 tells us that faith is being confident in what we hope for and being certain of what we don't see. Faith is a system of perception that does not require merit from us but instead is based on confidence in the authority and truth of what God has revealed to us about Himself in His most precious Word. And His Word declares that Jesus Christ is the only way to be saved; the Lord Jesus Christ Himself states that He is the only way John 14:6:

KJV John 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

In salvation, faith represents a trusting belief or confidence that Jesus Christ is the only sacrifice that satisfies the Holiness of God, and that He has been sacrificed in our place. We are confident that we will be in heaven in eternity future as a result of what Jesus Christ has done for us. Jesus Christ has all the merit in salvation, because without what He did as our perfect sacrifice on the cross we are doomed to remain in our helpless and imperfect state of sin expecting the condemnation to hell by the Holiness of God. When we have heard and understood this great news of the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, we simply have a trusting confidence in the message and accept it by faith. At that moment in time we are set apart into the family of God to await our future glory in heaven for all eternity, in union with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. That a gracious and loving God would do this for imperfect and sinful mankind is certainly a reason to shout for joy!

Salvation is Secured Forever

As I have already mentioned, at the moment that we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior we are put in union with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, as well as also becoming children of God through the spiritual birth. Our saved position as children of God is permanent and there is nothing that will ever change that, not even ourselves. In the same way that a child of human parents will never cease to be the child of those parents, so also the born-again believer will never cease to be a child of God and part of His family forever. In spite of what an earthly child does or even denies their parents, nothing will ever change the fact of that biological connection that those parents and child share. So likewise with our spiritual birth, nothing will ever change our spiritual connection with our heavenly Father. Our saved position never was dependent on what we did, but in what Christ did, so there is nothing we can do on our part to lose that position. Paul tells us in Roman 8:38-39 that there is absolutely nothing that will ever separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. We should expect our inheritance as obedient children of God, an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade and is kept in the heaven for us (1Pet 1:3-4).

KJV Rom. 8:38-39, “38) For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,

nor things to come, 39) Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in

Christ Jesus our Lord.”

KJV 1Pet. 1:3-4, “3) Blessed be the God and Father of our lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us

again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4) To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that

fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you.”

This certainly does not give us a license to freely sin, but a responsibility to overcome our sin as born-again children of God. Our obedience to the Lord should be a result of our saved position, but that obedience is not the means by which we are saved. We have already seen that it is Christ who has done all the work for our salvation in redemption, reconciliation and propitiation. The Lord himself declared, "it is finished" after He had completed His saving work by dying on the cross for the sins of the world (John 19:30):

KJV John 19:30, “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his dead, and gave up the ghost.”

The word "finished" in John 19:30 is translated from the Greek verb [tetelestai] and means, "finish, complete, end, finalized or accomplish." This verb is in the indicative mood, which is the mood of assertion. This mood is asserting the completion of the saving work of the Lord. [Tetelestai] is also in the perfect tense and the passive voice. The perfect tense refers to a completed past action with an emphasis on the results of that particular action. Thus, the perfect tense of this verb is referring to the completed past action of the Lord's saving work on the cross with emphasis on the result of that work. The result of the Lord's completed saving work continues today and is available to anyone who accepts it by faith. The passive voice signifies that another person is acting upon the subject. The subject was the Lord Jesus Christ. God the Father was acting upon Jesus Christ when the Father imputed our sins to Him and judged them all.

Therefore, Jesus Christ has done and completed the work of salvation so that it would be available to all. We should be careful not to obtain a state of arrogance in thinking that we can do something to lose our salvation because it never depended on any works on our part to begin with. As we have seen, salvation is a gift of God from His grace and it is not from our works that anyone of us should boast (Eph. 2:8-9). Do we have to do any kind of works when we get a gift from our loved ones? Of course we don't, we either accept their gift or we reject it, thus likewise with God's gift to all mankind in His Son, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. When we accept this gift of God by faith, it is credited to us; and the Lord puts His seal of ownership on us as His children by the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption (2Co. 1:22; Eph. 1:13; Eph. 4:30). For the believer, this day of redemption is not a spiritual redemption, because that occurred at salvation. The day of redemption for believers is a future event of the body when we will exchange this imperfect sinful body for a glorified body like that of Christ Jesus (Phil. 3:21).

KJV 2Co. 1:22, “Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.”

KJV Eph. 1:13, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: inwhom also after that ye

believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,”

KJV Eph. 4:30, “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”

KJV Philippians 3:21, “Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working

whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.”

One last point to examine in regards to eternal security is found in Ephesians 2:8. The word "saved" in this verse is composed of the verb participle [sesosmenoi] from [sozo] meaning, "to save, keep save and sound, to preserve." A participle is a verbal adjective in that it shares the characteristics of both verbs and adjectives. In its verbal aspects [sesosmenoi] is in the perfect tense and passive voice. The perfect tense, once again, describes an action that was completed in the past, but continues to have existing results in the present time. You could refer to this tense as a combination of the present and the aorist tense in that it denotes not only a completed past action of the aorist tense but the continuance of the present tense as well. The past action is when we exercised faith in Christ and the existing results is our present continual saved state. The passive voice lets us know that the subject receives the action of the verb. This means that the believer, at the point of faith in Jesus Christ, received the action of being save. This action constitutes the forty things we receive at salvation such at eternal life, perfect righteousness, union with God the Son, God the Father, God the Holy Spirit just to name a few.

Paul, in order to emphasize the eternal security of the believer actually used two verbal forms in this verse to provide a more forceful expression. He included, along with [sesosmenoi], the Greek verb [este], which is translated “are ye,” meaning, “be, exist, be located in, remain, stay.” The verb [este] is in the indicative mood, present tense and active voice. The indicative mood is used to described something that is, as opposed to something that may or might be. In other words, he is letting us know that we are located or remain in our saved position as a fact. The present tense also shows us that our eternally secure saved position perpetually exists and will never change. The active voice also expresses that the subject either performs, produces, or experiences the action or exists in the state expressed by the verb. Therefore, in our case the active voice involves the believer existing in the perpetual state of salvation.

Thus, Paul used the verb [este] to give duration to the continuous and eternal result of faith in Jesus Christ. This is why the Lord stated that no one would pluck us out of His hand, not even ourselves, since it was never based on our works, but on His work on the Cross (John 10:28-29). This is why Paul continues when he states that it is, "not of yourselves: it is the gift of God Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:9).

KJV John 10:28-29, “28) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

29) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”

Some Misconceptions About Salvation

1. Not believing in God or in a place called hell.

Although a person may claim not to believe in God, the apostle Paul tells us different. In Roman 1:20 he writes that nobody has an excuse for not believing in God because all creation declares His person. King David also proclaimed a similar statement in Psalms 19:1:

KJV Rom. 1:20, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are

made, even his eternal power and God-head; so that they are without excuse:”

KJV Psalm 19:1, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork.”

These verses tell us that all created things are a testimony to a higher designer and creator. There is a complexity and a harmonized order in every aspect of nature. We have only to consider the vast diversity of life forms that inhabit the earth alone to conclude this. There is an inexhaustible amount of species to consider, not only the quantity of species on land and sea, but there is also a whole different world of microorganisms that exist as well. We are sometimes not even aware of the existence of these microorganisms because they are too small for the eye to see. However, in spite of whatever living organism that might be in view, all living things possess a complex structure in their form of being from the largest to those in the microscopic realm.

The sophistication and the precision of the human mind and body are also reasons to marvel when they are examined in all their detail. There has yet to be a computer built that can rival the human brain. The most complicated computer in the world does not possess the imagination or creativity of the human mind. Also, our bodies are composed of complex microscopic cells that have particular functions within our bodies. We have cells that maintain the rate and the rhythm of the beat of the heart. The eyes have cells that perceive light. We have skin cells, muscle cells and nerve cells that know to carry out their respective functions within the framework of our bodies. Our organs are composed of cells and each organ communicates with the other to maintain the body in a harmonized order without us even having to think.

Let's take for example the process of our digestive system after having eaten a large meal. Because our digestive system needs more blood to digest the food, our digestive system communicates with our cardiovascular system so that the blood vessels that are found in the digestive system widen to permit more flow of blood from the heart. Our digestive system then communicates with our nervous system in order to permit the brain to receive the impulses of nerves that communicate of the increased work. In return, the brain responds by recognizing a decrease of hunger and an interest to avoid less vigorous activities. The point to remember is that the structure of all the living organisms are designed in a complex and ordered manner that demands a designer and creator.

Whether it is the complexity of all living organisms or the perfect orbital paths that the planets in our solar system maintain, all about creation manifests to us a harmoniously designed order. As a matter of fact, Webster's dictionary defines the cosmos as, "an orderly harmonious systematic universe." This definition is truly appropriated because there is a Supreme Designer and Creator, and He has placed an order behind everything that He has created.

Yet, with all the evidence that declares the existence of God, mankind theorizes that all these things happened by chance through the process of evolution? The theory of evolution is based on speculation, which truly does require faith, unfortunately, on the wrong thing. The probability that life occurred from a random set of circumstances is the same probability of a pile of rocks and wood evolving into a house, or a pile of steel evolving into a car! In the same way that we can look at a house or at a car and know that there was someone who designed and created that house or car, thus likewise, we can look at all creation and know that there is a designer and creator behind everything created. Any scientist who is honest with his own self will know that the chance of life coming into existence by chance is a mathematical impossibility. Some scientists have indeed realized the impossibility of such an event happening.

The inherent or inborn nature of mankind to worship a supreme being is also a testimony for the existence of God (Rom 1:21-25). All cultures around the world, no matter how secluded they may be from the rest of civilization, have some form of worship to a higher "power." This is due to the fact that they have looked at all the creation and it has testified to a creator. Therefore, creation testifies to the invisible essence of God in all He has created whether a person wants to admit it or not.

I had a person ask me how I knew that God existed although I had never seen Him nor had touched Him. I simply posted the question to them of how they knew that someone had designed and had created the building that was in front of where we were. They had never seen nor had they touched the person who had designed or built that particular building that was in front of us; however, they did not have any doubt that someone had indeed designed and built that building. I asked them if the doors and the windows in that building had fallen in place by mere chance, or if the shingles on the roof had grown together in a straight alignment by coincidence. I then asked if they had seen or touched the person who had designed and created their computer in their home. They stated that they did not have the slightest doubt that someone had built that computer. I asked them if the keys on the keyboard of their computer had come together by chance. I asked them if the steering wheel or the wheels on their car had joined themselves together randomly to complete the car that they drove. Before I could continue, they simply stopped me and they said, "I get it."

For someone to observe all the evidence inside creation that testifies to a creator and simply ignore that evidence is a testament that that person is divorced from reality, and the Bible declares such person a fool (Ps 53:1):

KJV Psalm 53:1, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: There is none

that doeth good.”

We can know this all powerful and supreme God that created all things on a more personal basis through what He has left us in the completed Bible. The Bible is very clear about the subject of hell and how Jesus Christ is the only way to be saved from hell, so what the Bible claims will either be true or a lie. We can reason that if the Bible is truly the Word of God, then the subject of hell and Jesus Christ are real; otherwise it is just a series of fairytales that we can just simply dismiss.

Let us consider some facts about the Bible that make this book different than any other book in the history of mankind. It was written during a 1,600-year span of time, throughout some 40 or so generations. There is a sum of sixty-six different books inside the Bible that were written by over 40 authors. These authors were from pretty much every social degree that society had to offer. Some of these biblical authors were peasants, kings, fishermen, tax-collectors and such. Some of these authors never even knew one another and they wrote from three different continents during the 1,600-year span that the Bible was written. In addition, they were from different generations during this same 1,600-year time span in which the bible was written. However, regardless of all these variations in social, geographical and temporal degrees, each one of the writers of the Bible had a harmonious agreement in all the subjects that are covered within the Bible. The consistent main message throughout the entire Bible is of redemption for mankind, with Jesus Christ being the only way to that redemption. In the same way that creation is not by chance, neither is the harmonious consistency of the Bible. It is not by chance, because it was God who guided these human writers of the Bible to write His exact message to humanity without distorting each writer's personality or writing style. This is why the Bible can make a claim that no other book in the world can make, that it is really the Word of God and be absolutely correct in making such a statement:

KJV 2Tim 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in

righteousness:”

KJV 2Pet 1:20-21, “20) Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation. 21) For the prophecy came not in

old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”

We should note that unlike the Holy Bible, there are other books that are considered sacred, but have been written by only one man. In such instances when there is only one writer involved, it does not bring the problem of dissimilarities. For example, it is said that the Prophet Muhammad alone received revelations from God in the book of Islam, which is known as the Qur'an (Koran). There is no chance of disagreement when there is only one writer involved. However, the Bible had over forty writers and did not have a problem in continuity. To have continuity within forty disassociated writers about such controversial subjects as God, heaven, hell, the purpose of life, or salvation would be impossible unless God, is in fact, the true author. It is difficult to have agreement on such subjects with only six, five, four or even two people who know each other, much less with forty people who have never met one another or have not even lived during the same generation. But with God using the human writers as His writing instruments, continuity certainly is not a problem for He who is perfect.

As far as historical and archaeological proof for the Bible or Jesus Christ is concerned, it is certainly overwhelming. For someone to dismiss the historical and archaeological evidence of the Bible's accuracy simply shows their lack of research in these areas. In the book by Joseph P. Free "Archaeology and Bible history,"⁴ he states that, "Archaeology has confirmed countless passages which have been rejected by critics as unhistorical or contradictory to known facts." The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus also gives historical accounts that verify parts of the historic accuracy of the Bible. The Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus has also given historical accounts in his writings about Christ and Christians in Rome. These are just three men of many that have given such historical accounts. The historical and archaeological evidence with regard to the Bible, when examined in great detail, absolutely warrants the certainty of the Bible. It does so because God is truly the author of the Bible and eventually the Bible always proves to be accurate because God is perfect and He does not make mistakes.

One last subject to consider that attests to the Bible being the

Word of God, is prophecy. Consider that no religious leader has ever been foretold about before they were actually born. This is what sets the Bible and Jesus Christ apart from any other book and person in human history. The Bible predicted precisely about the future birth of Jesus Christ. One prophecy about the future birth of Jesus Christ is given in Isaiah 7:14, which was written about 700 B.C. or so:

KJV Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his

name Immanuel.”

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This prophecy was fulfilled when Mary, who was still a virgin and had not married Joseph yet, conceived the humanity of Jesus Christ through God the Holy Spirit (Matt 1:18). As we have examined already, it was God the Holy Spirit that provides the 23 uncontaminated male chromosomes needed for Mary to conceive the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was also called "Emmanuel," which testifies to the Deity of Jesus Christ because in Hebrew this word signifies, "God with us" (Matt 1:23). After Joseph took Mary as his wife, he refrained from having sexual relations with her until after she had given birth to the humanity of the Lord so that she would remain a virgin until then (Matt 1:25). Remember that the Prophet Isaiah had written this prophecy over seven hundred years before it occurred:

KJV Matthew 1:18, 23-25, “18) Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before

they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost...23) Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and

they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us, 24) Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of

the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: 25) And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his

name Jesus.”

The book of Psalms also has prophecies that were written hundreds of years before the time of Jesus, yet fulfilled precisely as they were written. The words of Psalms 22:1, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" are uttered by the Lord on the cross when He was being judged for the sins of the world (Matt 27:46). You have to remember that the humanity of the Lord had always been in fellowship with God the Father until that moment. In that instant God The Father placed the sins of the world on the Lord to judge them. He had to abandon the humanity of the Lord because the Holiness of God cannot have anything to do with sin. Therefore, the Holiness of God had to abandon the humanity of the Lord until all the sins of the world had been judged on Him.

KJV Psalm 22:1, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?”

KJV Matt. 27:46, “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, my

God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

Psalms 22 has also written in verse 8 the words, "He trusted on the Lord that He would deliver him: Let Him deliver him, seeing He delighted in him." These words were fulfilled by the words that were uttered by the religious leaders that were mocking the Lord while He was on the cross in Matthew 27:43 when they said, "He trusted God; let Him deliver Him now. . ." Psalms 22 has other prophecies such as in verse 18, "They part my garments among them, And cast lots upon my vesture." These words were fulfilled by the soldiers in John 19:23-24:

KJV John 19:23-24, “23) Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part;

and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. 24) They said therefore amng themselves, Let us not rend

it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my

vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.”

These are just four prophecies that were fulfilled exactly as they were foretold previously hundreds of years before they happened. The chances of just these four prophesies occurring is astronomical, unless an all-powerful and all-knowing God is indeed behind them. These prophecies were not mere coincidences. The majority of the Bible is full of prophecies that have been fulfilled or will be fulfilled in the future and they are not just lucky guesses by the human writers.

Therefore, God exists, as testified by all creation, and has revealed Himself to us through the Holy Bible. The Bible also testifies about a place called "hell." God has revealed to us through the Bible how we can be saved from hell. We can deny this truth, but us denying the existence of God will not cancel His existence any more than us canceling the existence of gravity just because we say that it does not exist. The person that denies the existence of God and the authority of the Bible does not have a base for such a conclusion because the evidence for both is overwhelming. Such a person will not have anyone to blame but himself or herself for spending eternity in the Lake of Fire, because he or she chose from their own freewill to reject the vast evidence that the Lord has placed before them. I have covered just a mere fraction of the evidence to support the existence of God and the authority of the Bible. To cover more evidence is a study in itself, but for now this is only part of the study of salvation, which we are now embarked in.

2. Just believing about the existence of God in general is sufficient to get to heaven because we are all His children and a

loving God would not send anyone to hell.

As we have already seen, God has provided evidence in everything that He has created to allow us to know about His existence so that no one is without an excuse for not believing in Him (Rom 1:20). Let us not forget that Satan and his fallen Angels believe in God, however, they will spend eternity future in the Lake of Fire (Matt 25:41). The book of James states that even demons believe in God and tremble (James 2:19):

KJV Matt. 25:41, “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the

devil and his angels:”

KJV James 2:19, “Thou believest that there is one God; thou Doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.”

Therefore, a general belief in God is not sufficient to make it into heaven; otherwise, Satan and the fallen angels would be there also. As previously mentioned, God is indeed a God of love, but He is also a holy God. It is that holiness that has to be satisfied before we can have access to His love. When we accept Jesus Christ as our saving Redeemer, who died as a substitute for our sins, we are declared to be children of God through the spiritual birth (Gal 3:26). Jesus Christ certainly eliminated the universal Fatherhood of God when He told the Jewish unbelievers that they belonged to their father the Devil (John 8:44). The Bible certainly does make the distinction between the two. We may all be God's creation, but not all are children of God unless we are born-again spiritually through faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross:

KJV Gal. 3:26, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.”

KJV John 8:44, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of you father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and

abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father

of it.”

3. Striving for salvation on the basis of good works such as the keeping of the Ten Commandments etc.

We have already seen in Ephesians 2:8-9 that salvation is a gracious gift from God to anyone who accepts it by faith, not of any works that we should boast. I certainly hope that it is clear by this point that it is Jesus Christ's saving work on the cross that is the basis for salvation. The Ten Commandments served a purpose back when they were given to the Jews and they serve a purpose today as well, but the purpose is not salvation.

The Jews were saved way before they were given the Ten Commandments. The basis for their salvation was the same for them as it is for us today, faith in Jesus Christ. In the same way that we look back at the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ on the cross today, the believers of the Old Testament looked forward to the future work of Jesus Christ.

The Jewish believers of the Exodus generation were saved during the Passover from the plague of the firstborn (Ex. 11:1-10). This was the tenth and final plague that fell upon Egypt, before the Pharaoh finally ordered Moses and Aaron to take the Israelites and leave (Ex. 12:1-31). They were ordered to sacrifice a lamb without defect and use the blood to be put on the sides and the tops of the doorframe of the houses where they also ate the lamb (Ex. 12:3,5,7). The Lord explained through Moses that the blood would be a sign and that He would pass over any house with the blood of the lamb so that the destructive plague would not touch them (Ex. 12:13). At this point the Israelites had two choices to make. They could believe these instructions and follow them or disbelieve these instructions and reject them. Those who believed these instructions would not suffer the plague of the firstborn and those who disbelieved would suffer this plague. The sacrificial lamb was a shadow of Jesus Christ, for He is called the "Lamb of God" in John 1:29 and Peter tells us that the Lord was also without blemish or defect (1 Pet 1:19). The blood represented the redemptive work of Jesus Christ (Col 1:14), which God's Holiness sees in the person who accepts it for their redemption. God's plague of condemnation to hell is passed over those who have been covered with the redemptive blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Again, as in the Exodus or in our generation today, it is God's gracious mercy that provides salvation.

After the Lord saved the Israelites at the Passover, He saved the people from Pharaoh's army by parting the red sea so that they could cross (Ex. 13:17-15:21). The red sea crossing was a shadow of baptism, which occurs after a believer has accepted God's gift of salvation. Now, the subject of the baptism is one that is misunderstood sometimes and most people identify this word with water. The word "baptism" connotes the idea of identification, basically the identification of one thing with another resulting in a change. A baptism of water is symbolic of the baptism of the Holy Spirit:

KJV 1Co. 12:13, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and

have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”

KJV Acts 1:5, “For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”

When we understand and we accept Jesus Christ's work of redemption, reconciliation and propitiation on our behalf, God The Holy Spirit baptizes or sets us apart from our lost sinful position to our saved righteous position in Christ Jesus. We are then identified with Jesus Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection and are put into union with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ forever more. If we do not understand that Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation and the only perfect sacrifice that the Holiness of God will accept, then all the water baptisms in the world will not make any difference in us going to heaven.

Once the Israelites had gone through Passover and crossed the Red Sea, they were given the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai. The Lord gave the Israelites these commandments so that they would learn the necessary principles needed to maintain the protection of life, liberty and property within their nation. These same principles that are found in these commandments are necessary for any national entity to survive and to maintain stability and order within its people. Without laws in our country against stealing, murder, speeding etc., we would certainly be a country in a state of unbridled madness. A country in such a state would certainly not survive very long. The Israelites would also not have survived very long if the Lord had not given them some statutes to maintain their stability.

The Law of the Old Testament was made up of other commands beside those given in the Ten Commandments, such as those pertaining to sacrificial offerings. The book of Leviticus is very detailed about what some of these commandments were that pertained to the sacrificial offerings. Let us examine a bit closer the Law of Moses in order to understand the purpose of the Ten Commandments.

Basically, the Law of Moses is divided into three sections. The first section of the Law of Moses is called the Decalogue or what we normally refer to as the Ten Commandments, which are summarized in Exodus 20:1-17. These Ten Commandments are used to define liberty from the point of view of human activity of individuals within a national entity. These commandments are directed to believers as well as to the unbeliever within a nation, with the exception of worship of God. In other words, in order for individuals to live in liberty within any nation, there needs to be a moral level within that nation that prohibits certain activities. We cannot live in freedom when someone is robbing us; therefore, stealing needs to be against the law and applies to everyone whether they are a believer or not. We cannot live in freedom if someone kills you; therefore, murder needs to be against the law and applies to everyone whether they are a believer or not. The Decalogue gives everyone in a nation the freedom to live their lives so that they can have an opportunity to eventually hear God's message of salvation and to choose for or against that message from their own freewill.

The second section of the Law of Moses are the ordinances or the spiritual codes and are covered in Exodus 25:1 through Exodus 31:18. We have to remember that they did not have the completed Bible at the time of the Old Testament as we have it today. Instead, God communicated His message of Salvation by oral teachings and rituals. Whether it was the structure of the Tabernacle and its furniture, the method of procedure of the Levitical Priesthood, the description of the Holy Days or the meaning of the Levitical offerings, they all spoke of the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. For example, the animal that was sacrificed in the burnt offering had to be male and without defect. This offering was a shadow of the perfect humanity of the Lord. He became the reality that the burnt offering foretold when He was offered on the Cross once and for all (Heb. 7:27-28). This was the way that the Israelites were supposed to learn about God's message of salvation. But before someone is able to learn about God's message of salvation and accept or reject that message, whether then or now, they have to have the freedom to do so. This freedom comes from the moral level that the first section of the Law of Moses provides. This is why the Ten Commandments are referred to as the freedom code. There is one thing to remember, morality is not spirituality. An unbeliever can be just as moral as a believer and still not be saved.

The last section of the Law of Moses could be referred to as the establishment code and is covered in Exodus 21:1-23 through Exodus 23:9. The establishment code provided all the principles that Israel needed to properly function as a nation. These principles pertained to freedom and authority, privacy, the rights and privileges of individuals inside that nation. The establishment code also provided the principles that belong to the military policy of a nation, taxes, marriage and divorce, diet, health, proper sanitation, judicial and quarantine systems. And again, whether then or now, these principles are necessary for the prosperity of any nation. Let us remember that the ten percent giving of the Old Testament was a system of taxes. The reason for these taxes was to provide the material needs of the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widowed (Deut. 26:12-13). This is much like the tax system of our country today that provides for the operation of our government to provide the services for its citizens. Spiritual giving does not have a percentage amount. In the spiritual life of the believer, it is the motive of the donation that counts and not the quantity, as Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 9:7, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

The investigation of these three sections that compose the Law of Moses should dispense with the idea that only the Ten Commandments compose the Law of the Old Testament. As we have seen, the Law of Moses was much more detailed than just the Ten Commandments. The New Testament believer does not live under the law but under grace (Rom. 6:14). The intention of the Law was never to save but to give awareness and understanding of sin (Rom. 3:20). The law shows us the sinners that we are, and should move us to realize our need for God to provide salvation, which He has in His grace through Jesus Christ. We are all in need of salvation since all of us have sinned and we have all come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:22-24):

KJV Rom. 6:14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”

KJV Rom. 3:20, “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”

KJV Rom. 3:22-24, “22) Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for

there is no difference: 23) For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24) Being justified freely by his grace through the

redemption that is in Christ Jesus:”

We sometimes tend to focus on only outward sins such as stealing, murdering or sexual immorality, yet we tend to neglect to see the mental sins that we commit in our mind. The Lord spoke of such mental sins as greed, malice, deceit, envy, slander, and arrogance (Mk 7:22-23). Paul states in Galatians 5:4 that those that are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ and they have fallen far from grace. Then he goes on and lists some more mental sins such as hatred, friction and selfish ambitions in the later part of the fifth chapter of the book of Galatians. We have all hated, maligned, gossiped, argued or lied. The sin of lust alone has different categories besides just physical lust. There are such forms of lust as power lust, approbation lust, chemical lust or monitory lust. It is when we begin to see how sin really encompasses our life that we really realize just how helpless we are in our sinful state. It is then that we see God's grace and truly appreciate what He has done for us through the gift of salvation in Jesus Christ.

4. Feeling sorry for sin, inviting Christ into your heart.

We usually associate the word "repentance" with feeling sorry for our sins and it is usually added as a condition for salvation. Therefore, a study of the Biblical meaning of repentance is warranted as part of our study of salvation.

The Greek verb [metanoia] signifies, "a change of the mind, a conversion." There may be sorrow involved, which may lead to repentance, but that sorrow itself is not repentance. In 2 Corinthians 7:10 the Apostle Paul writes, "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation..." Now, the sorrow was what led to repentance, but it was not the "change of mind" that constituted the repentance itself. When it comes to salvation the issue is always, "...Believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved…," as Paul told the jailer in Acts 16:31. The only sin that God the Holy Spirit condemns us of is the sin of not believing in Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation (John 16:8-9). When God in His grace presents to us the good news that Jesus has died for us on the cross to redeem, reconcile and propitiate us, we then have two choices. We can either reject this good news or we can "change our mind" about Jesus Christ because we now understand that He is the only perfect sacrifice that the Holiness of God will accept, and without Him, we are totally and completely lost. It is the understanding of this good news that leads us to "change our mind" about Jesus Christ; we then simply believe this message for our salvation. The changing of our minds about Christ is what constitutes the repentance.

Inviting Christ into your heart as a condition for the salvation has been taken from Revelations 3:20, were it reads:

KJV Rev. 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup

with him, and he with me.”

This verse has been taken out of context to refer to an unbeliever opening the door to Christ and inviting Him in for salvation. To put it in the context in which it was intended, we must go back two chapters to see where John receives the instructions from the Lord as to who the recipients of the message were. In Revelation 1:11 we are told that the recipients of the message were the believers in the seven churches at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. Revelation 3:20 is specifically directed at the believers in Laodicea as we can see from verse 14 of the same chapter. The believers at Laodicea had acquired wealth to the point of taking pride and comfort in their wealth as opposed to taking pride and comfort in the Lord (Rev. 3:17). Their focus on their wealth made them indifferent towards the Lord and as a result had caused them to get out of fellowship (Rev. 3:16). In Revelation 3:19 the Lord warns them about changing their minds (repent) about their indifference toward Him; otherwise, He would rebuke and discipline them. In Revelation 3:20 the Lord is telling these believers to remove the door of their sinfulness by using the confession technique of 1 John 1:9 so that they may once again be restored to fellowship with the Lord.

Thus, Revelation 3:20 is an invitation to born-again believers out of fellowship, whether then or now, to be restored back to fellowship with the Lord through 1 John 1:9. This verse is in no way a reference to the unbeliever. In the case of the unbeliever, the Lord is the one who does the inviting when He provides someone to communicate His great message of salvation to the unbelieving world (Matt. 11:28; Jn. 6:35; Jn 6:37):

KJV Matt. 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

KJV John 6:35, “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of Life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me

shall never thirst.”

KJV John 6:37, “All that the Father giveth me shall come o me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise case out.”

The unbeliever cannot invite Christ into his or her heart, because before God's Glory can fellowship with someone it must have a place to dwell. To understand this point further, let us go back to the Old Testament when God's Glory dwelt in the Tabernacle, specifically in the section of the Tabernacle known as the Most Holy Place (Ex. 26:33). Before God's Glory could dwell with the Israelites, they had to first construct a Tabernacle where God's Glory could dwell. The instructions for building the Tabernacle are found in Exodus chapters 25-30 and the actual construction is explained in Exodus 35-40. Once the Tabernacle had been completed, the Glory of the Lord could then dwell within the Tabernacle (Ex. 40:34-38). Before God's Glory can dwell within a person today, the New Testament tells us that a person has to hear and accept the message of salvation. At the point of accepting that Christ is the only way to be saved, God the Holy Spirit creates a human spirit where God's Glory can then dwell. We have already covered this in the section that deals with the believer being born-again spiritually. The temple that the Glory of God dwells in today is the body of every born-again believer as stated by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19:

KJV 1Co. 3:16, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”

KJV 1Co. 6:19, “What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not

your own?”

Therefore, God can have fellowship with us as believers. We invite Him to do so when we confess any known sin through 1 John 1:9. On the other hand, the unbeliever cannot have this fellowship until he or she has accepted God's gift of salvation and becomes a born-again believer.

5. Committing to God and making Christ Lord.

We need to be careful not to make commitment a part of salvation. Commitment should be a result of salvation, but never a means for salvation. When Paul writes that we should present ourselves holy and acceptable to God by the renewal of our minds, he is speaking to believers that are already saved and is speaking about the experiential sanctification of the believer (Rom.12:1-2). The moment we accept Christ for our salvation we are born-again into God's family, this is called positional sanctification. After salvation we then have a responsibility to grow to spiritual maturity by growing and applying God's Word. This maturation process is a conformation to the character of God and is what is known as experiential sanctification.

As far as making Christ Lord, we are entered into union with His Lordship the moment that we are saved and are set apart into God's family by God The Holy Spirit. Therefore, He is our Lord whether we realize it or not. Jesus Christ is Lord now, always has been Lord and He will always be Lord. The question is if we will be united with Him by accepting His work of salvation on the cross that He carried out on our behalf or not?

Conclusion

I certainly hope that this study has given you sufficient insight into what constitutes the great salvation that God has provided in His love and infinite grace to all of humanity. God's marvelous gift of salvation has been given freely to us in the form of the perfect Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to anyone who accepts Him by faith. Let us not get caught up in the arrogance of thinking that we can add any works on our part to God's finished work, lest we cancel God's grace (Rom. 4:14; 11:6). Now that we have studied about the good news of how the Lord Jesus Christ has provided salvation for us, all that is left on our part is to "Believe on Jesus Christ and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31)! This is the most important decision that you can make in your life, because this decision will determine if you will spend eternity future in heaven or in the Lake of Fire. If you have never made this decision, it is yours to make right now. You can decide to ignore this marvelous message or to accept God's gift of salvation in the person of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I hope that this study has cleared up what exactly is God's gift of salvation. I also hope that you now realize that there is no other name under heaven by which we are saved except the name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12):

KJV Romans 4:14, “For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect.”

KJV 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 is it no more

grace: otherwise work is no more work.”

KJV Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must

be saved.”

May God bless you and keep you,

Mario R. Velez Jr., Th.M.

Appendix

1.God’s attributes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

2. The Last White Throne Judgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

3. A Biblical Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

4. The Ark of the Covenant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Appendix 1

God’s Attributes

Scripture has given us ten attributes of God that express to us His essence or who He is. These ten attributes can be attributed to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Although the three members of the Godhead are three distinct personalities, they are all one in essence and that essence is express in these ten attributes: There are more scriptures for each attribute but the ones provided below should suffice for a basic foundation for each attribute.

1. Sovereign – Having created all things signifies that all created things are subjected to Him and thus owe obedience to Him, there is no higher authority than

Sovereign God. We are told in 1Chron. 29:11, “Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that

is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kigdom, O Lord, and thou are exalted as head above all.”

2. Love – This is the attribute that everyone seems to predominately relate God with. This is the attribute that motivates God to share His happiness and blessing

with His creation. Love is the reason He made a way for imperfect mankind to be reunited with His perfect person through Jesus Christ. The apostle John

declares in 1John 4:8, “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”

3. Eternal Life – This life can only be attributed to God since it is life that has never had a beginning and will never have an end. Although angels have been

around for different ages, there was a time when they did not exist, thus they had a beginning. This does not apply to God since Isaiah 9:6 declares He is the,

“…everlasting Father…”

4. Omnipresence – Through this attribute we can know that God is personally present everywhere. This means that God in His wholeness is in every place and

at all times everywhere. The writer of Psalm 139:7-8 lets us know that, “7) Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? 8)

If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.”

5. Omniscience – This attribute expresses that God is all knowledge, meaning that there is no need for Him to learn anything since He knows all things whether

past, present or future. We are told in Acts 15:18 that, “Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.”

6. Omnipotence – This is the attribute that lets us know that God has unlimited power and it is this power that will change our bodies liken the Lord’s glorious

body.This is the power that is able “to subdue all things unto Himself” (Phil. 3:21)

7. Immutable – No one or nothing that has been created can claim to be immutable. Yet, God is immutable, which means that He cannot change. This is why

Malachi 3:6 declares, “For I am the Lord, I change not…” (Heb. 13:8)

8. Veracity – In His veracity God cannot express nothing but what is truth and is incapable of lying for Numbers 23:19 tells us, “God is not man, that he should

lie…”

9. Perfect Righteousness – God is without sin and He is the only supreme good that can be found; thus, perfectly righteous. In Psalm 50:6 it is stated that,

“…the heavens shall declare His righteousness…”

10. Perfect Justice – Being perfectly just, God can do what finite man can not accomplish, which is to always make perfect and just judgments. This is why on

the basis of what Christ has done on our behalf 1John 1:9 states, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us

from all unrighteousness.”

Appendix 2

The Last Judgment Of The Last White Throne

KJV Rev. 20:11-15, “11) And I saw a great white throne,and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and The heaven fled away; and there was found no place for

them. 12) And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead

were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 13) And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell

delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 14) And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the

second death. 15) And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

The Judgment of the Great White Throne that is mentioned in Revelation 20:11-15 is sometimes referred to as the second death or last judgment. This judgment will only be for the unbeliever who will be under the condemnation of rejecting Jesus Christ as their Savior. The rejection of Christ as Savior is the unpardonable sin that Christ could not and did not die for on the cross. This is why the Apostle John tells us in John 3:18, "He that believeth (accepts) on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not (rejects) is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." This is the one sin that God the Holy Spirit convicts the world of (John 16:8-9):

KJV John 16:8-9, “And when he is come, he will reprove (convict) the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of Judgment: 9) Of sin, because they believe not on me;”

This Judgment is considered the second death because not only will the unbeliever suffer a physical death, but he or she will also suffer a spiritual death, which will be total separation from God forever in the Lake of Fire. This spiritual death will occur when they are resurrected from their physical death with a body of damnation to stand at the last judgment to be condemned to the lake of fire.

There will be two books opened at this judgment, the book of life and the book of works. The book of life will only have the names of believers and the names of the unbelievers will be blotted out because of their rejection of Christ. Therefore, the only book that will be relevant to the unbeliever will be the book of works. This is the book that will contain all the human works of the unbeliever and will amount to only human imperfect righteousness. Remember that Christ was judged for all the sin of the world, so only human good works will be the issue at this judgment and not sin (1John 2:2):

KJV 1 John 2:2, “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not four ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

Regardless of how many good works the unbeliever can accomplish in their lives, when considered in their entirety, these works will only amount to relative imperfect human righteousness. God's Holiness is perfect and cannot have fellowship with anything less than perfect righteousness. Christ is the only one who can provide this perfect righteousness and it is this perfect divine righteousness that is imputed to all believers at the moment that they accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. To live in union with God forever, we must not only have God's perfect righteousness but also God's perfect eternal life. Christ provides both to anyone who will accept Him by faith. The unbeliever does not possess perfect righteousness or eternal life. Therefore, it is the unbeliever's imperfect self-righteous human works that is the basis for this last white throne judgment. It is the pinnacle of arrogance to even think that we could possibly achieve a perfection that only Jesus Christ provides. In essence, the unbeliever makes a conscience decision to stand on his or her own merit before the white throne instead of Christ's saving work by rejecting His gift of salvation. The unbeliever makes the willful or unpardonable sin of unbelief in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ from their own freewill. Therefore, their condemnation to the Lake of Fire is based on their very own choice. The merit for salvation lies in Jesus Christ alone so that all that remains for us to do is accept His finished saving work on the cross (John 3:36).

KJV John 3:36, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting (eternal) life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on

him.”

This last judgment of the white throne will be the final event that will occur before the Lord creates a new heaven and a new earth in order to prepare creation for the eternal state. This event will culminate God's biblical timeline of human history before the start of eternal history. The biblical timeline on the next page illustrates the events of God's timeline of history.

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

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