Q: What is salvation?
A: Salvation is a sovereign act of God whereby He forgives us for our sins and grants us a pardon from the eternal sentence of death in Hell.
Salvation is deliverance from:
- The power and effects of sin (Rom. 5:12)
- This “present evil world†(Gal. 1:4)
- The “curse of the law†(Gal. 4:5)
- Bondage to sin (Rom. 6:6, Gal. 4:3)
- Death (Rom. 6:23) (though we will die, we will not stay dead)
- Hell (Matt. 10:28)
- Judgment (Rev. 19:13)
- The “second death†or the Lake of Fire (Rev. 19:14-15)
Salvation is a free gift, and therefore cannot be earned through good works (Ephesians 2:9).  It is based not on our own righteousness, but on the righteousness of Jesus Christ, the only Man who never sinned. We are saved by faith (Ephesians 2:8) that the blood of Jesus was sufficient atonement for our sins (Romans 3:25). When we accept Jesus as our Savior, His righteousness is applied to us, and we become a child of God, holy and blameless, and are entitled to the protection, blessings, joy, and peace of God. Our names are written in the Book of Life, and we will miss the coming Judgment of this sinful world and the eternal sentence of damnation and punishment by a Holy and Righteous God (Revelation 20:12).
Q: Who needs to get saved?
A: Everyone. The Bible says,
“All have sinned and come short of the glory of God†(Romans 3:23).
Q: What is sin?
A: Sin is the transgression of the Law (1 John 3:4).
Q: What is the Law?
A: The Law are God’s rules for perfect and upright behavior, and contain His prohibitions against sin. God first gave the Law to Moses as a template for His chosen people, Israel. The Law can be found in the Old Testament books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy; but the first part of the Law, called the Ten Commandments, can be found in the book of the Exodus Chapter 20 verses 3-17, and are these:
- “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (v. 3)
- “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them” (v.v. 4,5)
- “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
- “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy” (v. 8)
- “Honor thy father and thy mother” (v. 12).
- “Thou shalt not kill” (v. 13).
- “Thou shalt not commit adultery (v. 14).
- “Thou shalt not steal” (v. 15).
- “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor (v. 16).
- “Thou shalt not covet…any thing that is thy neighbor’s” (v. 17).
To break any one of these commandments is a sin.
Q: But babies have never sinned, and most little children have never sinned. How can they be considered sinners?
A. When Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, sinned, they cursed the world, and their sin was passed down to everyone. Every single person on earth is born into sin and is therefore a sinner. The Bible says,
“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men for that all have sinnedâ€Â (Romans 5:12).
Moreover, virtually everyone on earth is guilty of breaking at least one of the Ten Commandments. Almost everyone, for example, has lied, and, in so doing, broken the Ninth Commandment, which is:
“Thou shalt not bear false witness [lie]†(Exodus 20:16).
Q: But if I only break one of the Commandments, but keep the rest, won’t I get credit for that?
A: No. The Bible says that if we break one commandment, then we have broken them all. Scripture says:
“For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10)
Q: Why does it matter that we are all sinners?
A: Because the Bible says that the penalty for sin is death.
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23).
Q: What is death?
A: According to the Bible, there are two deaths. The first death occurs when our physical body ceases to function: that is, when all biological functions, our heart, brain, lungs, and all vital organs, can no longer sustain us. But there is a second death…
The Second Death
The Bible teaches that after our body dies, our soul continues to live on; and though our soul doesn’t have a heart, lungs, and any of the organs our physical body has, it is still alive; and can still feel pain, heat, and discomfort just like our physical body does. The soul can feel emotions like joy and sadness, and retains our memory of the things of this life. It can even feel hunger and thirst. Yet, unlike our physical body, the soul never ceases to exist.
When a person dies in his sins, he is sent to Hell, a temporary place of torment where a soul awaits the final Judgment, which will take place after the thousand-year reign of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth. At the Judgment, the soul that is not in Christ will be found guilty of his sins, and will then be condemned to the Lake of Fire, a permanent place of torment, where a condemned soul will be tormented for all eternity. The Bible calls the Lake of Fire the Second Death:
“And death and Hell were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death” (Revelation 20:14).
Hell and the Lake of Fire
Hell and the Lake of Fire can be likened to what happens when a person in the United States is charged with a crime. After the person is first arrested and charged with a crime, he is consigned to a prison until he can appear before a judge where the charges against him are formally read, and he is asked to plead “guilty” or “not guilty” to the charges. This is known as an arraignment. The judge then gives him a date when he must again appear in court (preliminary hearing). In some cases, the person may be allowed to go free until his court date, provided he pays a sum of money determined by the judge. This is known as bail. If he is unable to pay the bail, however, or if the judge determines the person should not be allowed to go free, then he will return to jail until his preliminary hearing. If ultimately the person is found innocent of the crime for which he has been charged, he will be set free; but if he is found guilty, he will return to prison and immediately begin serving his sentence.
When a person dies, there is no opportunity to post bail. A soul sent to Hell will remain imprisoned there until the Great Judgment, where he will be tried and found guilty.  Then he will be thrown into the Lake of Fire to be tormented for all eternity.  The Bible says:
“And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night” (Revelation 14:11).
Q: Why do we die?
A: God originally intended for man to live forever. When God created Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, He told them that they could eat of every tree in the Garden of Eden, where they lived, except the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, located in the center of the Garden. If they ate of this tree, God told them, they “would surely die.” Satan, a powerful angel who had led a failed rebelled against God and was therefore kicked out of Heaven and exiled to earth, was present in the garden. Taking on the form of a serpent, Satan deceived Eve into eating of the Tree of Knowledge, telling her that God had lied, and that if they ate of it, they would not die. Eve then ate of the fruit of the tree, sharing it with her husband, Adam. As Adam was the father of all mankind, his disobedience brought the curse of sin and death upon the whole world. Some call this Original Sin. Because of Adam’s sin, all die and are condemned to go to Hell.Â
Q: Why would God send us to Hell?
God doesn’t want us to die or go to Hell. The Bible says:
“The Lord is…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9)
But though God loves us, and doesn’t want to punish us, His just nature calls for sin to be punished. The death sentence could therefore not be annulled. But God is not only just: He is also merciful. In His love for us, God provided a way to both satisfy His just nature and be merciful unto us. His solution was brilliant. In that God is not one person, but, in fact, three persons (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit), one of those persons would come into the world as a human being for the sole purpose of sacrificing Himself in order to redeem us from sin. That person was the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Second Person of the Holy Trinity:
“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” (John 3:16).
Q: How exactly did Jesus redeem us from sin?
A: There were three things Jesus had to do to components the act of redemption.
1. Jesus had to qualify to redeem us from sin
Jesus qualified to redeem the world from sin by leading a sinless life. As the Passover lamb had to be free from any defect, so was the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus, free from sin. As He was the only Man who never sinned, only Jesus qualified to redeem, or buy, our sin debt from God.
2. Jesus had to remit our sin
In order for the Lord Jesus to redeem us from sin, God had to first relinquish us of our responsibility to pay the penalty for our sins. This is known as remission. To remit is “to refrain from inflicting or exacting punishment” (Random House Collegiate Dictionary). Â The Bible says that the only way sin can be remitted is through the shedding of blood:
“Without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).
When Jesus shed His blood on the cross, He remitted our sins; that is, He canceled our responsibility to pay that penalty for those sins.
3. Jesus had to pay the penalty for our sin
After remitting our sin debt, Jesus then paid our sin debt. The Bible says that the penalty for sin is death:
“The wages of sin is death…” (Romans 5:26).
Jesus not only died a physical death, but He also went to Hell for us, since Hell is the punishment for sin. Jesus never sinned, so He could neither stay dead nor stay in Hell. But rules are rules; so, in order to keep us from having to go to Hell, the Lord Jesus went there for us.
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Q: How did Jesus die?
A. Jesus was crucified on a cross by order of the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. Crucifixion was a method of torture whereby a person was fixed to a wooden cross by driving nails through his hands and feet, and left there to die. Death in this manner was painful, slow, and cruel. As the position of the person’s body made it extremely difficult to breathe, the victim usually died of asphyxiation (lack of air). Before He was crucified, the Lord Jesus was savagely whipped.
Q: Why was Jesus crucified?
A: Jesus was falsely accused of sedition (inciting rebellion against the authority of the state) by the Jewish religious authorities who were jealous of His power and authority. At that time, Judea was part of the Roman Empire, and the Jewish religious hierarchy had only limited authority. The Jews could stone a person to death who was guilty of breaking the law of Moses; but, though they tried, they were unable to kill Jesus for this reason. They therefore seized Jesus by night and held a secret trial in the early morning hours. Bringing in false witnesses who testified against Jesus, the Jews found Jesus guilty of heresy and brought Him before Pilate. Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, and tried three times to set Him free. But the Jews insisted, so Pilate reluctantly condemned Him to death.Â
Jesus was innocent of any crime, and was guilty of no sin; but He allowed himself to be falsely accused, condemned, and murdered in order to pay for our sins. If we believe on Him, and accept His sacrifice, He will forgive us our sins, both Original Sin and our own past sins. We will then go to Heaven, rather than Hell and escape the Second Death.Â
Q: But I’m a pretty good person. Won’t being a good person and doing good deeds get me into heaven?
A: Unfortunately, no. The Bible says,
“There is none good; no not one” (Romans 3:23).
The Bible also says,
“Therefore by the deeds of the law [good works] there shall no flesh be justified [declared righteous]†(Romans 3:20).
Additionally, Scripture says,
“For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast†(Ephesians 2:8-9).
God doesn’t want anyone bragging that he’s going to heaven by his own efforts.  Jesus already did the work to get us into heaven; we just need to believe in Him. In case you still think you can make it on your own, because you have been a “pretty good person,†the Bible says,
“Scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe†(Galatians 3:22).
Q: But I already believe in God. Â Isn’t that enough?Â
A: No. Â The Bible says:
“Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father” (1 John 2:23).
The Bible says:
“Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils believe and tremble.” (James 2:19).
The Apostle James meant that even though the demons believe in God (because they have seen Him), they are not going to heaven, because they won’t worship Him or willingly obey Him. Â It is not enough to believe in God; we must obey Him by obeying His Son, Jesus, who said:
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me” (John 14:6).
The only way to Heaven is by faith in Jesus Christ.
Q: You say that those who believe on Jesus are saved by faith; faith in what?
A: Faith that the blood that the Lord Jesus shed on the cross was sufficient payment for our sins. Â The Bible says,
“God hath set forth [Jesus] to be a propitiation [a substitute suitable to satisfy God’s righteousness]Â through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins…” (Romans 3:25).Â
Q: Couldn’t I shed my own blood to redeem me from sin?
A: No, because everyone on earth, including you, has sinned. The Bible says:Â
“All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
In the same way a person burdened with debt cannot pay another person’s monetary debt, a person burdened with sin cannot pay another person’s sin debt. Only the blood of Jesus will do.
Q: Why was the blood of Jesus any different from mine?
A: Because Jesus Christ is sinless.
Q: How is it possible that Jesus is sinless?
A: Jesus is sinless for two reasons. First, the Lord Jesus was not born with Original Sin; that is the sin of Adam and Eve. Original Sin is passed down through the man, because the sin of Eve was attributed to Adam. Original Sin is also generational, meaning that every single person on earth after Adam was and is born with the sin of Adam. Â Every person on earth is conceived through the natural biological sex act between a man and a woman; and is therefore said to be born of a man. Jesus, however, was not conceived of a natural sex act. Jesus’ mother Mary was a young virgin, who had never had sex with a man; and Jesus’ Father was the Holy Spirit; that is God. Jesus’ birth, therefore, was not natural, but Supernatural. Because of this, Jesus was not born with Original Sin.
Second, Jesus is the only man in the history of the world who never sinned, though He was tempted, like we all are. The Bible says:
“But He [Jesus] was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin†(Hebrews 4:15). Â
“[A]nd in Him [Jesus] is no sin” (1 John 3:5).
“For He [God the Father] hath made Him [Jesus] to be sin for us, Who knew no sin” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
“[Jesus] did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22).
Because the blood of Jesus was perfect and sinless, God would only accept the shedding of His blood for the redemption of mankind.
Q: Why did it have to be Jesus?
A: Because Jesus was 1. a Man, and 2. sinless. Our sin had to be redeemed by a man because through his disobedience, Adam, the first man, caused sin to enter the world. Â The Bible says:
“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Romans 5:12).
Since sin was caused by a man, sin had to be redeemed (paid for) by a Man. Â This was the only way to satisfy God’s sense of justice. Â Remember how God said, “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth?” Â Well, a man for a man:
“For if by one man’s offense death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one [Man], Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17). [Brackets mine.]
“Therefore as by the offense of one [man] judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one [Man] the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life” (Romans 5:18). [Brackets mine.]
“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one [Man], shall many be made righteous” (Romans 5:19).  [Brackets mine.]
“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22).
Because the Lord Jesus was a man and was sinless, the shedding of His blood satisfied God’s requirement for redemption. Â In other words, Jesus took our place and paid for our sins with His own blood. Jesus is righteous and holy, and, through His sacrifice, His righteousness and holiness have been applied to us. Though our physical body will still die, we will miss Hell and the Lake of Fire. Â This is what is known as Salvation. Â God says that if we accept Jesus’ sacrifice, He will “remember [our] sins no more” (Hebrews 10:17). Â
Q: How do I get saved?
A:  You must 1. Hear the gospel, 2. repent, and 3. believe on the Lord Jesus and confess Him as the Son of God.
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1. Hear the Gospel
The Gospel is everything we have discussed unto this point, which, in a nutshell is this: We are all sinners who deserve to die and go to Hell. But Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, died and shed His blood on the cross to redeem us from sin. If we accept His sacrifice as full payment for our sins, then we are saved from Hell and the Lake of Fire.
2. Repent
To repent means to regret having sinned against God and to turn away from sin: to do a 180 and run from it. Repentance is so important that the first word that both John the Baptist and Jesus Christ spoke when they began to preach was “Repent!†(Matthew 3:2, 4:17).  Repentance happens in the heart. When we repent, we acknowledge in our heart that we’ve done wrong and we resolve to turn from our evil ways and live as God intends.
3. Believe on the Lord Jesus and confess Him as the Son of God
After repenting we must confess Jesus as the Son of God (or the Christ) believing that His sacrifice for us was sufficient payment for our sins. The Bible says:
“If thou confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thy heart that God has raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
“For with the heart, man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10).
Some believe that one must confess his sins or confess that he is a sinner in order to be saved, but this is not true. In order to be saved, one must simply believe in his heart that Jesus is the son of God and that He rose from the dead. Then one must confess this with his mouth.
The conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch from the Book of Acts proves this. It happened like this: the disciples of Jesus flee Jerusalem due to the persecution of the Church following the martyrdom of Stephen. On the road out of Jerusalem, the Apostle Philip encounters an Ethiopian man who is a proselyte to the Jewish faith returning from worshipping in Jerusalem. The Holy Ghost directs Philip to go and talk with the man, who just happens to be reading from the Book of Isaiah. Philip asks the eunuch if he understands what he is reading, and he admits that he could use a little help. He asks Philip to whom the prophet was referring when he wrote:
“He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb opened He not His mouth: In His humiliation His judgment was taken away: and who shall declare His generation? for His life is taken from the earth.”
Philip then begins at that very same passage of Scripture and preaches Jesus to the man. As they continue on their way, they passed a body, and the eunuch says to Philip, “See here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?” Philip replies, “If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.” The eunuch then says, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts 8:25-37).
Only Past Sins Are Forgiven At Conversion
It is very important to remember that when we get saved, the Lord Jesus forgives our past sins only:
“God hath set forth [Jesus] to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” (Romans 3:23-25).
This is a supreme act of mercy. Instead of requiring us to remember every sin we ever committed and confess it, God gives us a one-time across-the-board Get Out Of Jail Free Card. But He will only do this once, because Jesus died only once.Â
Future Sins Must Be Confessed
Any sins we commit after we get saved have to be confessed specifically as soon as possible. The Bible says:
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
“But if we confess our sins [to God, NOT to a priest], He [Jesus] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousnessâ€Â (1 John 1:8,9).
Notice that the passage says all. There is no sin so bad that Jesus won’t forgive it. You might think you have done the worst thing in the world, but God has seen a lot worse.  As long as you ask for forgiveness, and mean it, Jesus will forgive you.  Murderers, kidnappers, idolaters, prostitutes, adulterers, homosexuals, drug addicts, child abusers, witches, Satanists, sexual perverts–the list goes on and on.  All have asked for forgiveness, and Jesus has forgiven them all.  And the Bible says that once God forgives you, He will never remember your sins again (Hebrews 10:17).  What a blessing! God is not like us, and, boy, am I grateful.
So, if you’re ready to ask the Lord Jesus for forgiveness, just repent of your sins, believe that Jesus died to take away your sins, and confess Jesus as Lord, the Son or God, or the Christ. If you want, you may also ask Jesus to forgive your sins and to be your Lord and Savior. Â The important thing to remember is that there is no set prayer. Â Whatever you pray, as long as you mean it, God will accept it. Â The Bible says:
“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (Romans 8:26).
What this means is that since we don’t always say what we mean (because we don’t always know what we mean), the Holy Spirit does that for us. He literally translates our prayers to God, because He knows and understands what is in our hearts. Â So talk to God in the best way you know how. To make Jesus your Savior means to accept His sacrifice on your behalf, and to make Jesus your Lord means to let Him be the Master of your life.
If you do these things and really mean it, then you will begin a wonderful new life with Jesus.  You will be saved, and Heaven is now your inheritance.
The Bible says:
“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“ (1 John 5:13).Â
If you believe that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sin and have confessed Him as Lord, then YOU ARE SAVED.
Now:
1. Get baptized. The Bible says that after we get saved, we must get baptized.  out of obedience. as an act of obedience.  If you are a Roman Catholic who was baptized as an infant, please read this post on the significance of baptism, so you will know why your baptism was unscriptural.
2. Get yourself a Bible and read it every day to get to know Jesus better. Start with the Book of Matthew. I highly recommend the King James over all other versions, because I personally believe it to be the only English Bible version that is the complete inspired Word of God. This is because I have found that while the other Bible versions may contain some truth, only the King James contains the whole truth. The other versions not only disagree with the King James in key areas of doctrine, but they also disagree with each other. The King James stands alone. If you prefer to use another Bible version, however, by all means do; but I would recommend that you stick to that version alone and not consider all versions to be inspired by God, because they don’t all agree. If God were the author of all the versions, then they would all agree perfectly. Decide which version you believe is God’s Word.
3. Talk to Jesus every day. This is called prayer.  You should pray at least once a day, whenever it is convenient for you.  Thank the Lord for protecting you during the night and for waking you up in the morning, and ask Him to help you to resist temptation and make it through the day.  Make time for Him. Talk to Him just like you would talk to someone you trust.  Only know that Jesus is more than a trusted friend. He is the Creator of the universe, and He has the power to do whatever He wants.  At night, thank the Lord Jesus for bringing you through the day, and for feeding, clothing, and sheltering you. Ask Him to watch over you while you sleep.
4. Worship, fellowship, and serve with other Christians in a church where Christ is preached and the Bible is the final authority. Â (If you cannot find such a church, however, you are under no obligation to attend church. I have not been able to find a good bible-based church in St. Louis, where I live, so I do not belong to any church.)
5. Tell others about Jesus Christ. This is called witnessing.
To help you in your Christian walk, I highly recommend the booklet “The Next Step” from Chick Publications. Â It is an excellent primer on the Christian life and will get you off to a good start.
There’s one more thing: Three days after Jesus died, He rose again, and later ascended up to heaven. Jesus is coming back to take all believers to heaven with Him.  This is the day we are all waiting for. You should too!
May God richly bless you as you walk with Him. Welcome to the family!
Bro. Tony Keeton
The link to the article about the Roman-Catholic baptism being unscriptual seems to be removed.
(http://gospellightandtruthcrusade.com/baptism/)
it redirects to
(http://www4.gospellightandtruthcrusade.com)
which has only dangerous links on it.
Thanks, Matti. I have redirected the link back to a post on this site. Unfortunately, the Gospel Light and Truth Crusade website will be down until further notice. Thanks for letting me know I needed to get that squared away. Hope you’ve been well!
This child Paola Bellini of Dayton OH needs your help from demon possession, drug abuse, Satanism, and prostitution: https://www.instagram.com/melektaus999la_strega_del_mare/. Ironically enough her father, Peter, holds a Doctorate in theology with the United Methodist church.
It’s not unusual for the children of pastors, missionaries, and others in the ministry to have serious struggles with the forces of darkness. Satan seems to go after them harder than the rest. I’ll be praying for Paola’s deliverance.
TSM
Hello sir, If you don’t mind I would like to have a conversation with you via email to better understand and discuss some things you have talked about in your above article. Thank you for this publication it was very informative and has helped me find some peace I’ve been missing in my life for some time now. I look forward to your response and thank you again sir.
This is very well written, thank you for your version, many people are tormented even the most religious are subject to evil spirits, maybe even more so. Praise the Lord he shall walk with me through the sands, and when I only see one set of foot prints, its because he had to carry me. God Bless you
Thank you and God bless you, too!
TSM
God had me stumble upon your blog, I say it was the Lord, because I just know it to venture. But I had just go e through some images of abuse at Angola prison, and one of the images disturbed me so til I found myself asking God, do You not love us (blacks)because sometimes it really seems like us don’t. So I pushed the microphone on my phone and just said it. A moment later ghe results came back, although your blog wasn’t first it was the one that drew me . I was in tears from the first paragraph. I believe in God and His son , my saviour with all my heart. I’ve always said that’s the one thing they can’t take from us and it’s our praise and worship. when we(blacks) have faith we got it and ain’t afraid to tell how good God’s been. But there are times when we question. I always thought the blacks were like the Jew’s, but tell me this why are the Jew’s not suffering like the blacks still are. I know some of us deserve some things. But gosh they fail us as soon as they see our color. We weren’t born with silver spoons, but tried to make the best of what we were given. It just upsets me so sometimes til I found myself hating them. Jesus help.
I just did what you wrote above.
incl asking forgiveness for my sins, i had more then a few.
Some i find so terrible, i cannot put them in words to you, but i did to the lord Jesus, i cried a lot. I curse during the days a lot due to the $$ mess we are in, promised i would try not to get that angry again cause then i do not wanna curse.
Or maybe this will no longer happen.
I also asked how i could influence or give inspiration to my partner to do the same.
Cause he is stuck on a generational curses as well.
So I wanted to thank you for this education….Inspiration, great answers and love.
Again thank you.
I will keep you updated
Praise the Lord!
thank-you for your posts, you made scriptures so easy to understand and always backing it up with bible. Thank you you have cleared allot of confusions in my head. Thank-you.
You are very welcome, Vicky. Thank you for letting me know that our work here has not been in vain, and I pray that it will continue to bear fruit in your life.
God bless you.
Should I read the New Testament in Greek or the King James version?
Unless you speak Greek, Charles, then, if you chose to read the Bible in English, you would have to trust that the particular translation you chose to read was true to the original language. At the end of the day, that is what it boils down to: trust. Now, I believe that if God wanted all believers to learn Greek, then He would not have provided His Word to us in our own language. William Tyndale, the great martyr, from whose translations the King James Bible is mostly based, reportedly told a high ranking Roman Catholic priest that the day would come when the poor farmer boy who pushed the plow would know more of the Scriptures than the Catholic priest did. And William Tyndale gave his life to make that happen. Some of the most unlearned people, including slaves and farmers, were mighty in the Scriptures, because they trusted the King James Bible. And so do I.
If you are truly concerned with people growing in their personal relationship with Christ, please don’t tell them “get yourself a King James Bible”. The KJV is not “blessed” or “inspired” any more than many other good english translations out there. I don’t know how this KJV only stuff got started, but it is harming the cause of Christ. “Old” does not equate to “good”. Yes, there are some “bad” translations out there, but some of the good ones are the NIV, NKJV, NLT, ESV, NASB just to name a few.
Thanks for your comment, Norm. You say that the KJV is no more inspired than “many other good english [sic] translations.” The Bible claims to be the Word of God. If, however, you are correct in saying that the KJV is no more inspired than the other translations, then true believers have a problem: for if you compare the KJV with the NIV, you will quickly discover that they do not agree in key areas of doctrine. If they were all the Word of God, then God would be a liar, because the Bible says that God is not the Author of confusion. Moreover, the Bible says that Jesus never changes. If one translation says one thing and another something else, then, if God were the Author of those translations, then He would again be a liar, because if His Word changes, then He changes--His mind, if nothing else.
If Christians accept all translations as the true Word of God, then we would be shifting as the sand, and as unstable as water. In order to stand firm, the true Christian must settle on one standard. Let me bring this home for you. If you were the CEO of a company, and found that at board meetings, your mandates were consistently misunderstood and mis-exectued by the same three people, regardless how clear and concise you were, yet just as consistently understood and correctly executed by one individual, who would you most remember when cutbacks became necessary? Who would you remember for promotion? I think the answer is clear. Jesus is no different. Those who waver and vacillate on His Word will undoubtedly waver and vacillate in carrying out His commandments. They will find out that being PC and “non-dogmatic” are as un-Christlike as you can be. “Jesus said I (alone) am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: NO MAN cometh unto the Father, BUT by me” (John 14:6).
Besides all this, all other Bible versions have dumbed-down the English language to appeal to the progeny of our failed educational system. If you cannot read the King James Bible--and many claim to be unable to--then you will have great difficulty reading “50 Years in the Church of Rome,” or “Morals and Dogma,” or “Two Babylons” all of which are must-reads for any serious Christian soldier, and are written in what is today considered archaic language, by men with a firm command of the English language.
These are but a few of the many reasons the King James Version is preferred over the rest, and they have nothing to do with “Old.”
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (John 1:1).
You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5:39-40).
Jesus Christ is the Word, not a particular translation of the scripture. It saddens me that so many people are relying on literal interpretation of a particular translation to give them life.
If you read the verse this way, perhaps your eyes would be opened. “In the beginning was the King James Version, and the King James Version was with God, and the King James Version was God.”
Nothing I say will change a heart, only the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ has the power to do that. In myself, I am a broken, cracked, useless, mistake-ridden vessel that my great Creator chose to inhabit through His Son, my Savior. If he chooses to use my hands to type a message, they are His to use.
I have nothing against the KJV. I read the KJV (not exclusively). But I ask, what if you took your trust out of the King James Version and placed it in the Word?
Let me answer your question with a question: In that we all have free will, and, thank God, can read what we will, then why can’t you be comfortable letting me choose to read exclusively, what you choose to read occasionally? And, if I advocate the same, then why can’t you merely choose not to follow my advice, and be comfortable with that?
Debate about which version of the Bible is right/best can cause
conflict & division.
One day I was home sick. The man I met in church & dated was pro KJ. He knew I was sick, yet came to my house immediately started yelling at me in anger, almost in a rage, demanding that I throw out all other versions.
My first Bible, the one I’ve had for years, the one I wrote in, underlined, etc was NIV. I obtained a small pamphlet that notes
the specific scriptures claiming that the KJ is correct. I went to my NIV, made note of such & continue to use my NIV.
Was he straining out a gnat & swallowing a camel?
Pharisee-like law keeper or Believer being led by Holy Spirit?
Any debate can cause friction. But there are some things worth debating and some that are not. I don’t debate faith-based issues, because they are FAITH BASED and every man’s faith is his own business. Personally, I put my faith in the King James Version of the Bible, because I happen to believe that the King James is the inerrant Word of the Living God. I have enough sense to know that all the bible version cannot be the Word of God because they don’t all agree. The Bible teaches that God is not the Author of confusion, so where there is confusion, you can bet God had nothing to do with it. God therefore cannot be the Author of all the bible versions. I have it on good authority, however, that the Lord Jesus is the Author of the KJV, so I stick with that, and when someone asks me which version I prefer or suggest that Christians use, I always say the KJV.
HOWEVER….Though I believe Satan is the author of all Bible versions besides the KJV, I believe God has allowed those Bible versions for a reason. I know from my Bible and practical experience that what Satan intends for evil, God uses for good, and I believe this is true with the various Bible versions. The KJV was written in the “King’s English” then and now is the gold standard for the English language. Language does not evolve, as many believe, but is intentionally altered to suit the whims of the day or the agenda of those who control the mechanisms by which language is changed. The English of the King James is the best there has ever been, and all the classic works of English literature were written in the King’s English. Many people, including myself and my own son, who has learning difficulties, have learned to read by reading the King James Bible. Any English teacher worth his salt can tell you that if you learn to read using the superior, then you can read anything inferior; but if you learn to read using the inferior, it is next to impossible to understand the superior.
The Roman Catholic Jesuit-controlled American education system has intentionally dumbed down the English language so that most people cannot understand the classics or the King James Bible. Moreover, I can tell you from personal experience that many of the classics being used as college textbooks today have been edited and republished using inferior English. Tragically, many English students cannot understand even the edited versions and have to rely upon the internet or dictionaries to decipher even commonplace words in the venacular. The situation is absolutely appalling.
Why has this been done you ask? So that people will not be able to understand the Kings James and will therefore opt for an easier to read version. The problem, however, is that in many key areas of doctrine, the other version vary considerably from the King James. It is for this reason, in my experience, that many who adhere to a version besides the KJV are not as convinced of the power of God than those who stick to the King James. Let me give you an example:
In Chapter 12 of the Gospel of John, we read that Jesus, after having raised Lazarus from the dead, came to Jerusalem before the Passover. Some Greeks had come to see Jesus, who when He saw the Greeks, was troubled in His spirit, knowing that his day of suffering would soon be upon Him. Jesus, speaking to the Father says:
Here is John 12:28 as it appears in the NIV: “Then a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘I have glorified it and will glorify it again.'”
At first glance, the verses look almost identical. But there is a word in the KJV that is missing in the NIV: the word both.
You may think this trivial, but it is actually crucial to an understanding of the nature of God. The omission of both in John 12:28 of the NIV translates to God saying that He has already glorified Himself in the past and will also glorify Himself in the future.
BUT, and this is a very important but, the inclusion of both in John 12:28 of the KJV translates to God saying that He has already done both the past action and the future action. God is essentially saying, “I have glorified myself, and I have will glorify myself.” Read about this in a post I wrote five years ago:http://www.thestillman.com/stillmanfiles/2011/03/jesus-declares-the-end/.
This is important because the Bible says that God declares the end from the beginning and calls those things that are not as though they are. God is the only Person who can say He has already done something that hasn’t happened yet. This is just one example why I stick with the King James. And there are many more.
Because the failed American education system has produced a populace that does not have a good command of the English language, many cannot read and understand the King James Bible. The inferior bible versions can be of help to many of these people, for some bible is better than no Bible, and, knowing something of what God said is better than having no idea at all what He said.
So, while I prefer the King James, I don’t belong to the “King James Only” camp. I rather belong to the “Whichever Bible You Choose Only” camp. Because the bibles don’t all agree, then they can’t all be God’s Word. But, because Jesus said that “heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away,” it isn’t true that none of the bibles are God’s Word, because that would make Jesus a liar, and the Bible says that God is not a man that He should lie. We must therefore make a choice. Whichever bible you choose, choose the one you sincerely believe is the Word of God, make it your foundation, and put it to the test. If your anchor is the NIV, then roll with that. If you are sincere, then the Lord will one day direct you to the Bible He wants you to read. If you think that He already has, then no one should dispute that.
TSM
So uplifting…the work of Jesus will overcome all evil!! God bless you all..
At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow! God bless you too, Dave.
thank you for such a rewarding site too read the word of god thank you god bless you and yours
You are very welcome, William. God bless you.