Salvation Is From The Lord

I have been thinking about salvation today because of a lesson taught on Matthew 16:13-20, something said to me after class, and a sermon preached on Psalm 67.

Today I spoke up because the topic is very close to my heart. I believe that my salvation is from the Lord and I believe that the salvation of all the elect is from the Lord.

The instructor asked, “What are your first thoughts when you heard this passage read.” His question assumed the historical debate between Catholics and Protestants about the apostle Peter. However, my first reading of this text had nothing whatsoever to do with this debate. I first read this scripture from a clean slate. When I read this text for the first time, my thoughts were on Jesus’ question to his disciples. “But who do you say that I am?” 

The first time that I read this text I was an unbeliever, and had no prior knowledge about the historical church positions regarding the apostle Peter; therefore, my focus was on the question posed, “Who is Jesus?”

The instructor posed another question, a question as to how someone might conclude that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Some of the answers:

1. Divine Revelation
2. Scriptures
3. Hearing
4. Miracles

He then focused on Scriptures and labeled it, “Reasoning,” and asked, “Can anyone come to faith in Jesus Christ through reasoning alone?” I decided to reverse the question because while I believe that my salvation is from the Lord, and the salvation of all the saints is from the Lord, I do not discount human reasoning as taking part in our salvation. I believe that our salvation is like a recipe, a recipe which requires a combination of human reasoning and divine intervention. 

John 15:26-27, 

When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning. (NASB95)

I said, “Let us reverse your question. Can someone come to the Lord by reason alone? Can someone come to a salvific faith in Jesus Christ by revelation alone? Has anyone in the history of the world ever done that? Can someone on an island, who never heard of Christ, nor had access to the Scriptures come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God?

I believe that it is a very serious question indeed, for it was through my reasoning through the Scriptures that I came to know and believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Am I saying that I came to this through reason alone? No, the Holy Spirit was doing a work in me during the years that I read the Scriptures and reasoned through them. Without election and the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit I would not have trusted in Christ alone.

Do you want to know what convinced me that Jesus is who the Scriptures claim that he is? The apostles believed that Jesus, is the Christ, the Son of God, who died on a Roman cross, was buried in a garden tomb, and on Sunday morning arose bodily from the dead. These same men, who were running in fear at Jesus’ arrest, now boldly preached that Jesus of Nazareth, is the Christ, the Son of the living God, having all authority in heaven and on earth. 

After class, a woman that I do not know, but was told by my wife that she is the mother of someone that I do know, said to me that Romans 1:19-20 proves that people can and have come to faith in Christ without hearing. I found this strange for three reasons. First, it is not what the text says but actually gives the reason that those who don’t hear are not without guilt. Second, it is not what all of Scripture teaches and is actually not Calvinism but Hyper-Calvanisim. Thirdly, just minutes later our pastor would preach a beautiful sermon on evangelism and missions from Psalm 67. 

Yes, salvation is from the Lord but consider also that “Faith come from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” (Rom. 10:17, NASB95)

True Love

Think about what this text is saying. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” Does one give good things to those one hates? The answer is no! And one would certainly not give ones best, but that is exactly what God did, he gave is only begotten Son. 

Valentines Day is a day in which people think of romantic love but this is not the love that God demonstrated to the world. Romantic love can be a selfish love because romance makes one feel good. The love of God is not a romantic love but a love that is compassionate and gracious. The sinner is the enemy of God, yet God gave his only begotten Son for sinners.

 The second part of this text says, “That whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Some have made things out of this text that they ought not, considering that the entire context from which this passage comes is a rebirth that comes by the Holy Spirit. It is not a person choosing God, but God choosing the person. One believes in the Son of God because it was granted to that particular person by God. (cf. John 6:37, 44, 65)

Nonetheless, the assurance is without a doubt; whoever believes in the Son of God “should not perish, but have everlasting life.” What is the assurance? The assurance is that the one who made the promise rose bodily from the dead. (John 20:19-20)

His name is Jesus, He is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Repent (change your mind) and believe the gospel (good news).

Bought at a High Price

I began writing this blog during the summer of 2010. I did not even know what a blog was, but I had a burning desire to exalt Jesus Christ, so I sought ways to do that. Writing this blog was one of the ways in which I sought to honor God. 

Early into writing, I named the blog, “A Slave of Jesus Christ,” because this is the way that apostle Paul saw himself, as did the other apostles. They would address their letters to the churches, insert apostles name, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ. The actual Greek word translated into English bond-servant is δοῦλος doulos, which literally translated means slave. So if these men, who were first in the church of Jesus Christ saw themselves as slaves of Christ, should I think myself anything else?

The apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6:20, “For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” (NASB)

The price that the Corinthian Church was bought at, the price that we have all been bought at, is the body and blood of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Not only did I write in this blog, but I began evangelizing to the best of my abilities. Giving out tracts everywhere that I went, and even doing so with purpose. I stood on street corners with a cross that said, “Are You Ready.” I preached in open air in the cities of New Orleans, New York, Atlanta, Phoenix  and in Tyler, TX. I went back to school, to get a bachelors degree, so that I could go to seminary. I obtained a masters degree in theological studies from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, MO, graduating on May 3, 2019.

I was on top of the world, and desired to dive head first into ministry. The ministry that I then sought was a teaching ministry, not at a university, but to pastors in the mission field. I also applied for, and was excepted, June of 2019, into the doctoral program at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. However, my world began falling apart, in fact, it began crumbling before I even realized it, it began crumbling when I started this blog.

Our son Daniel graduated from high school, and we sent him to the University of North Texas, but instead of going to class he fell into parties and drinking. We withdrew him from school, and brought him home. He continued to do the same when he came home, but when we told him that he could not, and live in our home, he ran away, and has been gone since. Over the past few years, he would appear briefly, but it has been two years since we heard from him last.

Our daughter was to be married in June of 2019, married to a young man that Darlene (my wife), and I had grown to love. This young man was an engineer for Lockheed Martin, working on the Orion Space Craft. I enjoyed telling people that my future son in-law was working for the space program. Suddenly, without warning, the marriage that had been planned, and paid for by us, was off. Our daughter would not give an explanation, and if we asked, how dare we hurt her feelings.

She continued to live with us, but would leave on weekends to go visit a friend. She was an adult, so as long as she respected our home, she could live with us. All the while I continued forward, pursuing the plan of teaching pastors in the mission field. 

During the summer of 2019, I became certified to teach, by a missionary organization, my first trip was to Cuba, September, 2019. In a week long trip to Cuba, I, and another brother taught systematic theology to a group of pastors, and church leaders on the island. I was so energized by this, but the problems at home continued.

We were to return to Cuba, for another session, December 2019, but our visas were denied by the Cuban government, they would allow us entry, only twice a year, so we planned to return spring of 2020.

You already know what happened, spring of 2020, a world wide pandemic, with everything shutting down. I had been a Registered Nurse since 1997, in fact, an ICU nurse, so I returned to ICU nursing. I contracted COVID-19 around Christmas of 2020. I awoke on Christmas morning to a text message from our daughter, I expected Merry Christmas, but what I actually received sent me into a tailspin of despondency, of which I have not yet recovered.

She was embracing another young woman, and had a wedding ring on her finger. In the spring of 2021 our daughter entered into a civil union with another woman. In the summer of this year, our son will be 34, and our daughter 30. Our son will not communicate with us, and our daughter is in a homosexual relationship, in a civil union with another woman.

I have not been involved in any ministry since, I confess that I have no drive to do so. The pastor of our church, Sylvania Church in Tyler, Texas, asked me to teach, a year ago, systematic theology on Wednesday evenings. I did, but with a despondent heart. He recently asked me to teach again, but I did not have the energy. I stopped writing in December of 2021. In November and December of 2022, I wrote a few blogs, stories really, about our lives.

I have a desire to begin writing again, possibly every Sunday morning. I do not know what I will be writing, maybe stories from our lives and the lives of those whom I know. I have not yet recovered from the pain of this world, but I am, nonetheless, a slave of Jesus Christ, he bought me at a high price, the price of his own body and blood; therefore, I shall honor God, and glorify the name of Jesus while I am able.

Brotherly Love

I have wondered, why do authors quote from an older English version of the Bible, like the KJV? When reading a writing in which the author quotes much scripture, he will use several English translations and often much of the KJV. Most English versions allow only a set number of verses quoted without special permission and there is no copy right on older translations like the KJV; therefore, a writer is free to quote from this translations as much as he desires.

I believe that there is no other commandment greater than to love ones neighbor. I know! I know! Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with everything, and the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. But how did Jesus teach his disciples to love God.

He taught his disciples to love God through loving ones neighbor. The apostle John wrote in 1 John 4:20-2, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” (KJV)