WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?
Saved? From what? Saved from condemnation and death. This is why the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, came to the earth: too die for our sin so that we through faith can receive eternal life.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:16-19)
Do you believe that Jesus died for you and then rose from the dead? Do you believe he is coming back again? Do you talk to him? Do you read his Word, the Bible and do you obey it?
Not one of us will make it to heaven on own merit, by being good person, nor by going to church. Not one of us is good enough. All of us have sinned and we each come short of the glory of God. Our sin separates us from this Holy God. In Titus 3, Paul wrote that it is, "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, which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life."
And to my Roman Catholic friends, ex-Catholic evangelist, Mike Gendron, says: Many Catholics do not understand who Christ is because the official teachings of the Roman Catholic Church paints a different picture of Him than what is revealed in the Sacred Scriptures. Vatican Council II declares that we attain our own salvation and co-operate in saving our brothers through prayer and good works (p. 66, Vatican Council II Documents; Flannery). Was Christ merely "the gate opener" of heaven or was He the Savior? If we can attain our own salvation, then why did Christ have to die for us? Is Christ the only Mediator between God and man or does He share that role with Mary? According to VC II, when Mary was "taken up to heaven, she did not lay aside her saving office, but by her manifold intercession, continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation," (page 419). Is Jesus the only Way to the Father, or are Moslems, who reject the deity of Christ, part of God's plan of salvation as stated by VC II, (page 367). Is Christ and His Word the Truth or should we believe the Dogmas of the Catholic Church that nullify the sufficiency of His perfect sacrifice, His grace and His Word. Vatican II states, "In the supremely wise arrangement of God, sacred Tradition, sacred Scripture and the Magisterium of the Church are so connected and associated that one of them cannot stand without the other," (page 756)... The importance of believing who Christ is can best be summed up by the words of Christ Himself, "You will surely die in your sins unless you come to believe who I am," (John 8:24). (Mike's website)
May nothing stop you nor I from discovering the Truth which brings freedom and eternal life I pray!
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.
1 comment:
I hope you don't think that Catholics believe we are saved by works!
In fact, Catholics and Lutherans have resolved that issue and made a joint declaration on the matter:
"The declaration said justification and salvation are gifts of God and cannot be earned by performing good works, but rather are reflected in good works. The dispute over justification -- particularly over the place of a person's response to God's offer of salvation -- was a key factor in the division of Western Christianity at the time of the Protestant Reformation.
Hopefully the World Methodist Conference will also join the resolution.
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