John 5:24 vs. Heaven’s Gate(keepers)

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 By johninnc

Luke 8:5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.

In 1997, a fringe religious cult named Heaven’s Gate made news headlines by committing mass suicide. I won’t go into the details behind this group’s delusional UFO-based religion. The only silver lining to this story was that it was a very small movement.

By way of contrast, there is a very large delusional religious group of loosely-affiliated false teachers and their followers that I will euphemistically nickname as “Heaven’s Gatekeepers.” Heaven’s gatekeepers are self-appointed guardians of grace, who have super-imposed their false religious beliefs onto the gospel. In so doing, they attempt to trod into the ground the seeds of the Sower by spreading counterfeit seeds.

So, what is the seed of the Sower, and who do Heaven’s Gatekeepers represent?

Luke 8:11-12: Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

According to the above verse, the seed of the Sower is the word of God. The devil is the one who would take the words out of the hearts of the hearers. It follows that those who counterfeit the gospel of Jesus Christ with their false gospels are doing the work of the devil.

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

The Bible is explicitly clear that eternal life is received by grace through faith in Christ, that a person receives eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited from the first moment of belief, and that assurance of eternal life rests solely on God’s promise to the believer.

Alternatively, Lordship “salvation” (LS) encompasses myriad false teachings that emphasize the PERFORMANCE of good works, the PROMISE of good works, or the EVIDENCE of good works as essential accompaniments of (or even components of) faith in Christ. LS points to works as necessary to receiving, or at least providing evidence, that faith in Christ has indeed resulted in eternal life.

LS is one of the choice weapons of Heaven’s Gatekeepers. Let’s look at a few examples:

Repentance to be true, to be evangelical, must be a repentance which really affects our outward conduct… All sin must be given up, or else you shall never have Christ: all transgression must be renounced, or else the gates of heaven must be barred against you.

The above quote comes from famed 19th century preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon, who is often praised as “The Prince of Preachers,” and who is still quoted far and wide. Spurgeon contradicts God’s word by his cynical insistence that repentance, which he defines as turning from sin, is a requirement for receiving eternal life. This concept is completely alien to biblical scripture.

God does undoubtedly command us both to repent, and to bring forth fruits meet for repentance; which if we willingly neglect, we cannot reasonably expect to be justified at all: therefore both repentance, and fruits meet for repentance, are, in some sense, necessary to justification.

This statement has been attributed to John Wesley, an 18th century theologian who started the Methodist movement within the Church of England. No matter his credentials, Wesley conditions the possession of eternal life on not willfully neglecting good works. Note that any assurance of eternal life would be impossible under this false condition, and any attempt at assurance would be mis-focused.

 Just to say “believe in Christ” can produce a false assurance of the hope of Heaven. Jesus spoke often about the gift of eternal life. To make it clear, He said, “Count the cost.”

The late Billy Graham, often referred to as “the Protestant Pope,” made this ridiculous claim. Jesus never said that one must “count the cost” to receive eternal life. Eternal life is a free gift, with no cost or obligation to the recipient. Otherwise, it would be a trade.

You see, the outward change is often without the inward. However, the inward change is never without the outward…

Good intentions are not enough. Agreeing with what I have said here is not enough. You must admit you are a sinner, repent of that sin, and put your faith in Christ. 

Greg Laurie, founder of the Harvest Crusades and the subject of the 2023 film “Jesus Revolution” made these false claims. He incorporates all three facets of LS  – the promise of good works, the performance of good works, and the evidence of good works – in this phony gospel appeal.

(Following are some prominent members of the “faith community” who are on record as having endorsed Greg Laurie’s “Harvest Crusade”: Billy Graham, Rick Warren, Jack Graham, Ronnie Floyd, Robert Morris, George Wood, Tony Evans, Matt Chandler, Judd Wilhite, James MacDonald, Wayne Cordero, Craig Groeschel, Donald Akin, Kevin Ezell, James Merritt, Steve Gains, Sandy Adams, JD Greear, Frank Cox, Chuck Swindoll, Wilfredo “Choco” De Jesús, Levi Lusko, Bayless Conely, Max Lucado, Bart Millard, Jentezen Franklin, Phil Wickham).

Jesus is the straight gate and the narrow way that leads to life. Don’t listen to the foul flock of fowls who have appointed themselves as gatekeepers.

For more information about the free gift of eternal life, click here: The Gospel

A Walkabout with the Whatabout

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By johninnc

John 3:16: 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.

The beauty of John 3:16 is that it is clear, concise, spoken with authority, and by the ultimate Authority. If there were any exceptions to the truth of this statement, then it wouldn’t be true. Accordingly, any time we find ourselves looking for, or considering exceptions to this statement, we are on the wrong track.

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

John 5:24 highlights that the eternal life spoken of in John 3:16 begins the moment a person believes in Jesus as Savior, and can never be lost or forfeited. In other words, that eternal life is…eternal. And, there are NO additional conditions given for assurance of eternal life.

Please note that the “great debates” about grace vs. Calvinism/Lordship “salvation,” unconditional eternal security  vs. conditional security of the believer, and the only legitimate basis for assurance of eternal life have ALL been settled by the words of Jesus Himself.

Much of my ministry, both here, and at the Expreacherman site, has been to help dispel the endless searches for exceptions to the gospel truth. The permutations are almost endless, but here are some of the types of objections raised:

  • What about head faith vs. heart faith?
  • What about Matthew 7:23?
  • What about demon belief?
  • What about fruit?
  • What about life change?
  • What about repentance from sin?
  • What about verses that seem to say people can lose eternal life?
  • What about people who don’t want to change their lives?

The “what about” questions have lots of sources, including: a pre-existing mindset; a natural understanding of man’s ways (“there’s no such thing as a free lunch”) as opposed to God’s ways (“…the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”); biblical scripture misused or not used in the proper context; “church history;” denominational creeds; and authority figures.

Anyone who has believed in Jesus as Savior needs to be aware that he will likely face a barrage of “what about” questions regarding the truth of the gospel, and he should be able to confidently answer them.

Our adversary is very cunning, and will try to use any and every device to create doubt as to how to have eternal life, whether or not eternal life is unequivocally eternal, and the proper source of assurance.

Our statement of faith includes the following:

We reject any purported scriptural interpretation or other teaching that violates any of the following clear tenets of scripture:

  • Eternal life is received by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone
  • Eternal life can never be lost or forfeited
  • Assurance of eternal life can only be based on God’s promise

I have learned to be particularly alert to false scriptural interpretations that violate our source for assurance of eternal life. Any teaching that even hints that one must look to positive life changes as either the basis for assurance of eternal life, or even as “supplemental” assurance of eternal life should be rejected outright,

If you have heard the “what about” questions, and would like to know what the Bible says about how to have eternal life, click here: THE GOSPEL

Lordship Salvation: Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust

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By johninnc

Now, everybody try one, two, three!
We can fly! we can fly! we can fly!
This won't do what's the matter with you?
All it takes is faith and trust oh!
And something I forgot Dust!
Dust? Dust?
Yep! Just a little bit of pixie dust

From the song You Can Fly! You Can Fly! You Can Fly! (Disney's "Peter Pan")

Faith, trust, and pixie dust. If you “truly believe,” plus have some pixie dust, then you’ll be able to fly.  If you can’t fly, you either lack faith and trust, or you lack pixie dust.

This seems pretty innocuous for a fairy tale. But, when it becomes a metaphor for how to have eternal life, the results can be catastrophic. Such is the false gospel of Lordship “salvation” (LS).

LS is the unsupportable and unbiblical belief that the PERFORMANCE of good works, the PROMISE of good works, or the EVIDENCE of good works MUST accompany faith in Christ in order to establish, or provide evidence, that such faith has resulted in eternal life.

The Bible, on the other hand, teaches that one receives eternal life, that can never be lost or forfeited, upon believing in Jesus as Savior. And, the Bible also teaches that the proper basis for assurance of eternal life is God’s promise alone, without reference to any evidence of works, life change, etc.

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

A recent article entitled “Christians Take Action Against a ‘Woke’ Disney,” by James Hirson, lists favorably people both associated with the false gospel of LS and the charismatic movement. Following are short excerpts from the article (bold), followed by my comments:

The Burbank protest also featured Pastor Rob McCoy from Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park, California, and Pastor Samuel Deuth from the Awakened Church in San Diego.

My comment: Godspeak Calvary Chapel teaches a false LS gospel. Following is an excerpt from “what we believe”:

When a person repents of sin and accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord, trusting Him to save, that person is immediately born again and sealed by the Holy Spirit, all his/her sins are forgiven, and that person becomes a child of God, destined to spend eternity with the Lord.

Notice the word “and” that is added to belief in Jesus. That “and” conditions receipt of the free gift of eternal life on repenting of sin. This is not biblical.

Awaken Church has the following under “Articles of Faith”:

We believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit as a gift available to believers subsequent to the new birth, with the normal initial evidence of speaking in other tongues (Luke 11:13; Acts 2:4)...

The redemptive work of Christ on the cross provides healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer (Isa 53:4-5; Matt 8:17).

My comment: the baptism of the Holy Spirit occurs with EVERY believer immediately upon belief in Jesus as Savior. There is no necessary outward evidence of baptism of the Holy Spirit, and certainly NOT speaking in tongues. Further, the atonement guarantees eternal life to all believers, but does not guarantee physical healing.

Spiritual gifts such as prophecy, tongues (languages), and faith healings were manifestations of the Holy Spirit’s power solely for the demonstration of God’s wisdom, purpose and power in the establishment of the early church. We believe these gifts have ceased to exist, now that scripture is complete. 1 Corinthians 13:8.

Perhaps one of the most worrisome for The Mouse House is the recent statement by highly influential Samaritan’s Purse president Franklin Graham.

“When I was young, my father @BillyGraham took me to visit Mr. Walt Disney,” Franklin recently stated in a tweet.

“We weren’t allowed to watch many TV programs growing up, but because of Mr. Disney’s commitment to wholesome entertainment, parents had confidence in their content. That has sure changed!” he said…

My comment: Franklin Graham has taken the reigns of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), the organization founded by his late father. The BGEA teaches a false LS gospel of works, as found on its website under “Steps to Peace with God.” Following is an excerpt:

To receive Christ you need to do four things:

1. ADMIT your spiritual need. “I am a sinner.”

2. REPENT and be willing to turn from your sin.

3. BELIEVE that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross.

4. RECEIVE, through prayer, Jesus Christ into your heart and life

My comment: The Bible says anyone who believes the gospel has eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited. Nowhere does scripture say that a person must be willing to turn from sin in order to receive the free gift of eternal life. If one had to be willing to turn from sin in order to receive eternal life, then eternal life would not be a gift – it would be a trade. And, nowhere does the Bible say that one must receive through prayer, Jesus Christ into his heart and life.

False gospels mix faith and works in a fatal recipe. Faith in Christ plus works for eternal life is simply faith in works for eternal life, just like “faith, trust, and pixie dust” as a recipe for being able to fly is simply faith in pixie dust.

So, in a sense, LS is just “faith, trust, and pixie dust” with the label of “Christianity” appended to it.

Disney is a “woke” corporation that seems intent on destroying its legacy. But, Disney has never purported to tell people how to have eternal life. Ministries that purport to be Christian, but which teach false gospels, are much more dangerous.

If you would like to know how to have eternal life click here: The Gospel

The Southern Baptist Convention Versus John 5:24

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By johninnc

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

The above verse is a direct quote from Jesus Himself. It stands in opposition to what is taught by many groups purporting to represent Him. One such group that teaches doctrine contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ is the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC).

The SBC fancies itself as “reaching the world for Christ,” but in reality it hews to the false gospel of Lordship “salvation” (LS).

LS is the unsupportable and unbiblical belief that the PERFORMANCE of good works, the PROMISE of good works, or the EVIDENCE of good works MUST accompany faith in Christ in order to establish, or provide evidence, that such faith has resulted in eternal life.

Following are excerpts directly from the group’s website, SBC.net:

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a body of like-minded local churches cooperating together to reach the world with the Good News of Jesus Christ. There are currently more than than fifty thousand Southern Baptist cooperating churches and church-type missions...

What Southern Baptists Believe

Southern Baptists believe that the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself to mankind, with His ultimate revelation being the Gospel message of redemption through Jesus Christ. For that reason, Southern Baptists have summarized their biblical convictions in a statement of faith called The Baptist Faith and Message. Southern Baptists are not a creedal people, requiring churches or individuals to embrace a standardized set of beliefs; but we are a confessional people. The BF&M represents the confessional consensus of “certain definite doctrines that Baptists believe, cherish, and with which they have been and are now closely identified.”

So, what does this “confessional consensus” include? Following are some excerpts from the Baptist Faith and Message (BF&M):

Under “Salvation”:

A. Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of God’s grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences of grace.

Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Saviour.

Under “God’s Purpose of Grace”:

All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end.

My comment: This all seems pretty confusing and errant. There is nothing in the Bible that conditions receipt of eternal life on either “turning from sin to God,” nor “commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior.” Further, the Bible does not say that “all true believers endure to the end,” nor “persevere to the end.”

Maybe the SBC clarifies it elsewhere? Perhaps to provide clarification, or to add further detail to the BF&M, SBC.net has the following under “How to Become a Christian”:

Are you ready to accept the gift of eternal life that Jesus is offering you right now? Let’s review what this commitment involves:

I acknowledge I am a sinner in need of a Savior – this is to repent or turn away from sin

I believe in my heart that God raised Jesus from the dead – this is to trust that Jesus paid the full penalty for my sins

I confess Jesus as my Lord and my God – this is to surrender control of my life to Jesus

I receive Jesus as my Savior forever – this is to accept that God has done for me and in me what He promised

My comment: Acknowledging that one is a sinner in need of a Savior does not require one to “repent or turn away from sin”. There is no biblical requirement to “confess Jesus as my Lord and my God” in order to receive the free gift of eternal life. Nor is there any requirement to “surrender control of my life to Jesus” in order to receive eternal life. And, what does “to accept that God has done fore me and in me what He promised” even mean?

Maybe one of the top leaders of the SBC could help explain some of this. J.D. Greear is the former SBC president (2018-2021), and pastor of Summit Church in North Carolina. Following is an excerpt from a February 21, 2013 interview with Jonathon Merritt:

Neither the great Baptists of the past nor the Bible describes eternal security as a one-time ritual that produces a guarantee of salvation no matter how you live your life. They described it as the knowledge that if God had started a true work in you, he would complete it. And the way that you show your salvation is genuine is by persevering for the rest of your life.
Persevering in the faith is proof that you have the salvation you could never lose; failing to persevere shows that you never had it to begin with.

My comment: “How you live your life” has absolutely no bearing as to whether or not you have eternal life. Anyone who does not understand this has no business attempting to teach the gospel to others. We find that the “perseverance” error from the BF&M is shared by Greear. And, note the alacrity with which Greear equates church tradition with the word of God (“Neither the great Baptists of the past nor the Bible…”).

Next are some excerpts from one of Greear’s articles entitled “Don’t Be A Fundamentalist (Calvinist Or Otherwise)”:

Some people give such enormous weight to minor issues that the gospel itself is obscured.

Calvinism is one such issue. We only have so much “bandwidth” as a church, so I choose rather to be known for the gospel than for a tough stance on particulars of Calvinism that are less important than the heart of the message...

So at The Summit Church, I often say, “Calvinism is not an issue to me until it becomes one to you. But when it becomes one to you, it becomes one to me… and I’ll probably take whatever side you are not.”

My comment: Greear’s errant view of perseverance is one of the false tenants of Calvinism, which intersects with the false gospel of LS.

Finally, here is an excerpt from Greear’s Facebook page under “How do I know I am saved?” It draws on a quote from his book, “Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart”

Do you believe that Jesus has paid it all? Do you know that He is Lord, and are you in a posture of submission to that Lordship? Then rest in Him.

My comment: It’s hard to know what this even means, but it sounds an awful lot like “allowing Jesus to be Lord of your life” or some similar false gospel add-on that is prominent within LS. In any event, Greear’s advice on how to have assurance of eternal life is not consistent with God’s word, as expressed in John 5:24.

____________________________________________________________________________

So, the SBC has false gospel doctrine embedded in its “confessional consensus” and this false gospel doctrine is embraced and expounded upon by one of its most recent top leaders.

For someone who understands the gospel and who has believed in Jesus as Savior, the SBC offers a better mission field than it does a church.

And, if you have grown up in, or attended an SBC church, and still aren’t sure how to have eternal life, click here: THE GOSPEL

The False Religion of Calvinism

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By johninnc

I recently received an email from a reader who expressed confusion as to whether he should believe that eternal life is available to everyone on the same terms, or whether he should lend any credence to the tenets of Calvinism (in particular, that Christ died only for the elect vs. everyone).

Following is the mainstay of my response:

Maybe I can help you, maybe I can’t. If God were to choose who was going to believe, that means He makes our decisions for us. Let me give you an example of what this false hypothetical would mean: It would mean that anything that I tell you, or anyone else, or don’t tell them, would be pre-ordained by God. What you choose to believe would also be pre-ordained by God. I cannot help anyone who thinks God pre-ordains who is going to be a believer, unless God pre-ordains that I will help them and that they will be helped by me.

Calvinism undermines the integrity of the gospel. Each of the five tenets of Calvinism strikes at the core of the gospel message. The tenets of Calvinism are often remembered as an acronym “TULIP,” which represents Total Depravity (the false view that people are unable to believe without having been first gifted faith or regeneration); Unconditional Election (the false view that God chooses who will believe); Limited Atonement (the false view that Christ died only for the elect); Irresistible Grace (the false view that the elect are irresistibly drawn to faith in Christ); and Perseverance of the Saints (the false view that the elect persevere in some unquantified level of sinning less and doing good works).

The truth is that anyone can believe the gospel; that God did not choose who will believe the gospel; that Christ died for the sins of the whole world; that people can resist and reject the drawing ministry of the Holy Spirit; and that no one need evaluate his life for signs of persevering in the faith to know whether or not he has eternal life.

I am familiar with most of the scriptural arguments that Calvinists make, and they are making faulty interpretations. Most of them are predicated on God’s foreknowledge of all things that will be, and falsely assuming that because God knows, He chooses. Think about this for a moment: if God knows that a person is going to tell a lie, is He choosing for that person to tell a lie? Of course not! If He were to do that, it would mean that God caused the person to tell the lie. The Bible says that Satan, not God, is the father of lies.

A second predicate for Calvinists is that God will make happen everything that He wills. This is also not true. God’s will is that we love our neighbors as ourselves. It should not take very long to conclude that not everyone does this consistently.

Let’s look at some scripture:

1 Timothy 2:4: Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

This means that it is God’s will that all men be saved. But, we know from scripture that not all men are going to be saved. So, it is clear that God’s will is not always done. In fact, every time you do something outside of God’s will, or fail to do something that is His will, that is more evidence that man’s volition can override God’s will.

Matthew 23:37:  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

Here, Jesus expresses His will, but says that the Jewish people would not do it!

Romans 16:7: Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.

How could anyone have been in Christ before anyone else, if everyone who was going to believe was chosen by God?

John 3:16:  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.

This doesn’t say “whosoever was chosen to believe.” It says whosoever.

John 3:18: 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.

If God has chosen everyone who will believe, how could one of those people be condemned? Yet, everyone stands condemned unless and UNTIL they believe in Jesus as Savior. I have eternal life now, but there was a time when I did not.

John 20:31: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

The book of John was written to spur belief. It was for everyone, not just those whom God chose to believe.

Luke 8:12: Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

The devil certainly seems to think that everyone could be saved.

Hebrews 2:9: But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

This makes it clear that Christ died for every person. His atonement becomes effectual for a person the moment he believes.

____________________________________________________________________________

There are many other scriptural passages that eviscerate the false religion of Calvinism. I hope this post will be useful in helping believers refute Calvinism whenever they encounter it.

If you have questions about how to have eternal life, click here: THE GOSPEL

Where COVID (And Everything Else) Meets John 5:24

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By johninnc

I recently suffered a tough bout with COVID that had me wondering whether I would ever recover. I have to admit it was frightening, at times, to languish for a couple of weeks, being very sick and showing no signs of improvement.

But, it was very reassuring to know, throughout this and all the other trials in my life, that I have eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited.

I shared this sentiment on a public news website, and I got some very sad responses.

The first commenter had this to say: It is impossible for you to know that, since you haven’t died. It’s just this kind of pretending to know things you can’t know that poisons everything.

My response: Nope. Unless you think Jesus is a liar, it is possible to know that you have eternal life right now.

A second commenter weighed in with: Nobody thinks Jesus was a liar. There are other possibilities other than the ones fundamentalist apologists present (either you live forever if you’re saved, or Jesus was a liar). For instance, he could have been wrong. Or he could have been speaking figuratively, as he was wont to do. Or he could have not actually said those things. There are many possibilities here. We don’t have to accept any of them. We can humbly hope the one we like the best is true. There is no harm in that.

My response: Humbly hoping is not believing.

The first commenter came back with: Considering there likely was no Jesus, and that if there was, he most certainly was not divine, then yeah, Jesus was a con artist.

_____________________________________________________________________________

The above exchanges were very sad, with people stating their disbelief in Jesus as Savior. Neither commenter professed to believing in the Deity of Christ. The second commenter professed belief that Jesus was not a liar, but then contradicted Jesus’ claim of Deity by saying that “Jesus could have been wrong,” among other false statements. The first commenter turned out to be a mocker.

These comments are just a small sample of error regarding the following clear tenets of Biblical scripture:

1.  Eternal life is received by Grace alone through Faith alone in Christ alone. Eternal life is received the moment one believes in Christ as Savior, not after one dies.

2.  Eternal life, once received, can never be lost or forfeited.

3.  One may be assured of eternal life, based on God’s promises alone (i.e., assurance cannot be obtained, nor reinforced, from internally-focused changes in attitudes, behavior, etc.).

The Bible consistently affirms these truths. Following is a Bible verse that states them very succinctly:

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Can you understand what this verse means? “Believeth” means that one receives eternal life by believing the gospel message. Nothing else enters into it. “Hath everlasting life” means that eternal life is a present possession. A person who has received eternal life has it now. Eternal means eternal! “Shall not come into condemnation” means that a person who has believed in Jesus as Savior never needs to be concerned about “maintaining” eternal life. It is a done deal. It is in God’s unfailing hands. “Is passed from death unto life” means that a person who has believed in Jesus as Savior has eternal life!

What wonderful promises, from Jesus Himself!

I’ve done a lot of living since COVID arrived on the scene. I would have rather not gotten sick, but I did, and God is healing me. Eventually, all of us who are physically alive now and who also have eternal life will die physically from something, or be evacuated from this world via the rapture of the church. Then, we will be forever with Jesus.

Those who die without believing in Jesus as Savior will never have eternal life. They may avoid COVID, and may live to be centenarians, but they still will never have eternal life.

These are the only two possible outcomes for everyone.

If you would like to know more about how to have eternal life, click here: THE GOSPEL

You CAN Handle the Truth

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By johninnc

John 1:14: And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

In the 1992 legal drama “A Few Good Men,” a self-important marine officer was caught in a lie during a trial. When asked for the truth, his response, dripping with contempt and condescension began with: “You can’t handle the truth.”

We have heard this kind of equivocation so many times that many of us have become numb to it. We hear it, in various forms, on the lips of politicians, military officers, public health officials, and rank and file members of society.

The truth is never going to win a popularity contest in our world, and so many people take solace in the crowded world of lies. Satan, whom the Bible describes as “the father of lies,” is hard at work, trying to keep people from understanding or believing ANY truth, including the most important truth of all: the gospel of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:4: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Within the world of professing christendom, there are three general types of lies that undermine the gospel message, as follows:

  1. That eternal life may be received through a combination of faith in Christ plus our own works.
  2. That eternal life really isn’t eternal life, and must be maintained by our good works or faithfulness.
  3. That our assurance of eternal life can be based on examining ourselves for evidence of eternal life, in terms of sinning less, doing more good works, changes in attitudes, etc.

We cannot know the motives for why people teach, or tolerate these lies. We know that Satan’s motive is to deceive people, and that he is behind all of these lies.

Jesus warned against following the crowd in believing lies versus believing the truth about how to have eternal life:

Matthew 7:12: Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

He defined Himself as both the straight gate and the narrow way that leads to life:

John 10:9: I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

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.

One sure way to evaluate purported biblical teaching for error is to consider whether it meets the following three tenets, consistently taught throughout the Bible:

1. Is it consistent with eternal life by Grace alone through Faith alone in Christ alone?

2. Is it consistent with eternal security?

3. Is it consistent with assurance of eternal life, based on God’s promises alone (i.e., it is not internally-focused on changes in attitudes, behavior, etc.)?

If a scriptural interpretation clears all three tests, it might be true. Otherwise, it can be categorically dismissed as false.

Jesus summed up the truth about eternal life, the permanence of eternal life, and the proper basis for assurance of eternal life in the following verse:

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

If we could not handle the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we would not be accountable for it. But we can handle this truth, and our eternal destinies each rest on whether we believe it, or not.

You CAN handle the truth.

If you would like to know more about how to have eternal life, click here: THE GOSPEL

Easy Believism

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By johninnc

John 3:16: 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.

I have a Christian friend who was relating a conversation he had with someone who said “I don’t believe in Lordship Salvation, but I don’t believe in Easy Believism either.” My friend’s excellent response was “well, pick one!”

I define Lordship Salvation (LS) as follows: LS is the unsupportable and unbiblical belief that the performance of good works, the promise of good works, or the evidence of good works MUST accompany faith in Christ in order to establish, or provide evidence, that such faith has resulted in eternal life.

LS can be overt (one must forsake all of his sins and follow Christ in obedience and discipleship in order to receive eternal life) or VERY SUBTLE (one’s behavior will change once he has received eternal life, one must desire to get better in order to receive eternal life, one must want to have a relationship with Jesus in order to receive eternal life, or one must go beyond mere intellectual assent (head faith vs. heart faith) in order to receive eternal life.

Following are some quotes containing LS concepts from influential pastors/evangelists:

Greg Laurie: Jesus essentially said the only way your sins are forgiven and to know you will spend eternity in Heaven is by putting your complete trust in Him. And there will be tangible results to show you have done that...

You must admit you are a sinner, repent of that sin, and put your faith in Christ.  

(Laurie’s definition of “repent of that sin”: To repent means to “change” or to “turn.”  It’s like driving down the highway, pulling a U-turn and heading the other direction. More than simply being sorry, it is a word of action. Many people feel remorse for their sin but never truly repent. Remorse is being sorry, repentance is being sorry enough to stop.)

My comment: The Bible says that a person receives eternal life when they believe in Jesus as Savior (see John 3:16, above). The Bible also says that a person can be assured of having received eternal life upon believing in Jesus as Savior.

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Notice in John 3:16 and 5:24 there is no mention of stopping sinning being a requirement for eternal life, nor is there any mention of any tangible results to show that you have received eternal life. Jesus spoke the words in John 3:16 and John 5:24. Greg Laurie gave the above quotes that contradict Jesus’ words.

The late A.W. Pink: There is a faith in Christ which is saving, and there is a faith in  Christ which is not saving. Possibly, the reader says, “But I know that mine is the former: I have seen myself as a lost sinner, realize I can do nothing to gain acceptance with God, and have put my trust in the finished work of His Son.”…

Dear friends, others who were equally sure as you are  now in Hell! Suffer us to enquire, Have you tested your faith by Scripture? Have you taken the trouble to ascertain whether your faith is accompanied by those evidences which are inseparable from a saving faith?

My comment: A.W. Pink contradicted Jesus’ words from John 3:16 and 5:24. Jesus gives no requirements for self-introspection for evidence of eternal life.

The late Billy Graham: As I approached my 95th birthday, I was burdened to write a book that addressed the epidemic of “easy believism.” There is a mindset today that if people believe in God and do good works they are going to Heaven. But there are many questions that must be answered. There are two basic needs that all people have: the need for hope and the need for salvation. It should not be surprising if people believe easily in a God who makes no demands, but this is not the God of the Bible. Satan has cleverly misled people by whispering that they can believe in Jesus Christ without being changed, but this is the Devil’s lie. To those who say you can have Christ without giving anything up, Satan is deceiving you.

My comment: The Bible never says that believing in God and doing good works are how one receives eternal life. The Bible says that a person receives eternal life when he believes in Jesus as Savior. It makes no mention of “giving anything up.” If we had to give something up in order to receive eternal life, then eternal life would not be a gift. It would be a trade. Billy Graham contradicted Jesus’ words.

Not surprisingly, advocates of LS denigrate faithful preaching of the gospel using terms such as “easy believism,” “cheap grace,” “greasy grace,” “sloppy agape,” and the like. Such denigration is in keeping with their contradiction of the truth. To add further weight to their attacks on the gospel, LSers often falsely conflate the faithful teaching that a person receives eternal life by believing in Jesus as Savior with teaching that a person can receive eternal life in other ways, such as “raising a hand,” “walking an aisle,” or “saying a prayer.”

I personally have no objection to the term easy believism, because simply believing the gospel always results in eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited. Always. Belief in the truth of the gospel message means that a person understands and believes that Jesus is not only necessary for eternal life, but that He is enough. If you want to call that easy believism, then I am guilty as charged!

As my friend would say, “pick one!”

If you would like to know more about the gospel click here: THE GOSPEL

Lordship Salvation: No John 5:24

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By johninnc

John 5:24: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

The Bible is explicitly clear that eternal life is received by grace through faith in Christ, that a person receives eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited from the first moment of belief, and that assurance of eternal life rests solely on God’s promise to the believer.

Alternatively, Lordship “salvation” (LS) encompasses myriad false teachings that emphasize the PERFORMANCE of good works, the PROMISE of good works, or the EVIDENCE of good works as essential accompaniments of (or even components of) faith in Christ. LS points to works as necessary to receiving, or at least providing evidence, that faith in Christ has indeed resulted in eternal life.

LS is a pernicious evil that both serves to keep people from coming to faith in Christ and to rob believers of the joy and assurance of eternal life. LS is also pervasive, and has become imbedded throughout professing Christendom.

The most subtle forms attack the objective promise of God as the only reliable basis for assurance, in favor of references to subjective forms of assurance. Some real life examples are:

1. The genuinely saved person hungers and thirsts for righteousness, even when he is struggling with temptation or even if he stumbles into sin. In fact, this writer is not overly concerned with the destiny of those who struggle nearly as much as he is about those who do not care enough to struggle. Indifference is more of a red flag than weakness.

My comment: One should not look for “red flags” such as indifference to sin for evidence of eternal life, nor lack thereof. If one starts to stratify the motives for sin into “struggling with sin”, “stumbling into sin”, and “indifference to sin” in order to look for “red flags”, they are no longer fruit inspecting but inspecting the motives for fruit or lack of fruit. This is a red herring that is more consistent with LS than it is with grace.

2. The hallmark of a true Christian is the decreasing presence of sin in his life.

My comment: If that statement were unequivocally true, then the basis for assurance of eternal life would be the decreasing presence of sin in one’s life.

The Bible says that we can have assurance of eternal life based on God’s promise alone, without reference to the extent, if any, to which our lives begins manifesting positive change.

3. There is no works required – and yet THERE IS a fundamental, paradigm shift. We are no longer putting “Self” in front of “God”. Not talking about actions.. but …”INTENTIONS”.
When we are born again our intent is to follow Him deliberately at the expense of self ambition.

My comment: A “paradigm shift” in which one intends to follow Jesus at the expense of self-ambition is not a requirement for receiving the free gift of eternal life. Nor is an evaluation of our intentions for evidence of such a “paradigm shift” any kind of a basis for assurance, nor lack of assurance of salvation.

4. When we pursue Jesus as Lord and trust our lives to Him and determine that we are going to follow Him regardless, we find in Him all the assurance for our salvation that we need. And that will then put our minds and hearts at rest and led us into the arena of peace we so need. You need the assurance of your salvation, and that is exactly what Jesus means when he says. “I am the Bread of life.” He gives you the full assurance of your salvation when you trust your life to Him and follow Him faithfully for the rest of your life. Jesus is the Bread of life.

My comment: the author mixes truth with error in the above excerpt, and in so doing manages to mix God’s grace with man’s works for providing the assurance of eternal life. Man’s efforts are imperfect, can be inconsistent, and fleeting. Even if one has followed Jesus faithfully (based on his own quantification standards), how can he be sure that he will continue to do so for his entire life?

This false teaching would naturally lead to unhealthy introspection for a believer,  and could also reinforce a non-believer’s natural inclination toward thinking that works were necessary to receive eternal life.

How can teaching something different than what God’s word teaches on something as important as the basis for assurance of eternal life constitute following Him faithfully? Quite a conundrum, isn’t it?

So, you see from the above examples subtle undermining of the only reliable source of assurance. I would encourage anyone who reads this article to compare any statements about how to have assurance of eternal life to John 5:24. Substitute the claimant’s words or phrases for the basis of the promise Jesus makes in John 5:24 and see if they line up. If they don’t, you can dismiss them out of hand!

If you would like to know how to have eternal life click here: THE GOSPEL