Rampant Corruption of Belief
Belief is a very malleable concept. It’s easy to manipulate by people. Churches and their leaders can offer the results of belief for something less and far less than belief. They evoke the promises of God for those who believe, yet without the actual believing. Nothing could be of greater or worse consequence.
The Bible gives no varieties of Christians. Nevertheless, varieties of professing Christians take belief into their own hands and turn it into whatever they want. The different versions of belief have divided into several categories, even though there is still only one true belief and only one that saves. What is the belief that saves?
True faith in Christ is not complicated except that men have corrupted and perverted it. It’s not normal or easy any more to help a person understand belief in Christ. People have heard the wrong thing again and again. All the false teaching about belief also now must be undone. The preacher must untangle all those tangled wires and make them straight again.
It is a very low percentage, less than ten percent to whom I talk, that knows the gospel. When it comes to explaining belief, that percentage shrinks exponentially. We arrive at a tiny percentage of people in the United States that understand the gospel. Above all, they don’t understand belief. You’ve got to explain it if they’re going to get it. This is part of what preaching the gospel is.
Not By Works
If he knew those verses from the Bible, someone could go thirty minutes quoting verses that say that salvation comes by believing in Jesus Christ. Salvation comes by believing in Jesus Christ. First, one should establish that salvation comes by believing in Jesus Christ. It is not by works. Someone could also go thirty minutes quoting verses that say salvation is not by works.
Part of understanding belief in Jesus Christ is that it is not by works. Works and faith are mutually exclusive. Verses say this. If you believe in Jesus Christ, it is not by works. Belief itself is not a work, or else belief in Jesus Christ would be a way of saying that salvation is by works. It isn’t. Salvation comes by belief alone.
Jesus Is Savior
If someone believes in Jesus Christ, believing in Him is believing He is Savior. You don’t believe in Jesus Christ if He is not Savior. He is Savior. A so-called Jesus who is not Savior is not Jesus. Churches, denominations, and Christian religions may say that Jesus is Savior, but most of them don’t believe that. He is not Savior as seen in their adding works to belief in Jesus Christ, what I call either frontloading or backloading works.
Frontloading
When a so-called preacher adds a particular work on the front end like baptism or another sacrament, making that necessary in addition to belief, that is not believing in Jesus Christ. This is frontloading works. If this other work is necessary in addition to believing, then it is actually not believing any more and Jesus is not Savior.
Backloading
Other false preachers say that someone must do good works to stay saved. If he stops doing certain works, he could lose salvation. I can never find how many works it is that someone must do who must also rely on works for salvation. You can’t know how many works because scripture says it isn’t by works. It is by believing in Jesus Christ alone. This is backloading works, to say that works are necessary to stay saved. If you have to do good works to stay saved, then who is doing the saving? You are. Then Jesus is not Savior and you do not believe in Jesus Christ.
In explaining belief in Jesus Christ, the true preacher of the gospel must explain this works issue. So many have corrupted the gospel in this manner. Among all religions, doing good works or trying to be good for salvation is the biggest perversion of the gospel. It’s an old corruption that continues to fool and deceive people.
Passages
There are some great passages to use against works for salvation. I will explain Romans 3:20-28, 4:1-6, Galatians 2:16, 5:1-6, Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5, Romans 11:6, and others. Sometimes you will need to pinpoint a particular work, like baptism, and know verses that debunk that particular work. This is important to know and explain.
Jesus saves, which contradicts salvation by works. If someone believes in Jesus Christ, then He is Savior. Adding anything to belief will nullify salvation for a person. A true preacher will explain this as thoroughly as necessary to convince of this point from scripture.
More to Come
Thank you for this series, Kent!
Do you think it would be good as I witness to a Hindu lady, for instance, to start with all scripture being given by the inspiration of God, so that she understands that all the Bible verses I give her about belief in Jesus are what God has said, not man?
Hi Priscilla,
Thanks. I have used a few different approaches with Hindus. That would be fine to quote 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Instead, you could just offer to explain the gospel and show how that the gospel and Hinduism could not both be true. They contradict one another. You may need to park on the nature of the one true God in the midst of that presentation, that Jesus is not just another god to put on the shelf with her other gods. She would need to repent of her polytheism.
Thank you. I have started with the gospel and that the God of the Bible is the God of the whole world, and we all have to answer to him, and I have given her a Bible. I appreciate your advice.
I’m looking forward to this series.
That’s a blessing to hear!