He Came To Tell Us The Truth Series

In a chapter called, “Being God’s Child: Event or Process?” in the book, “The Jesus Proposal’ Rubel Shelly… A pastor at a church of Christ in Nashville who struggled with this concept himself writes;

When I get to heaven, maybe I’ll ask God when I was really saved. Was I when I was 12 and was immersed in the cold water on a hot July night? Was when I got clear on the Holy Spirit at about age 22. Was it when I finally grasped the grace-nature of the Gospel in my 30’s? I suspect he will tell me there was ‘no moment at which’ I was saved – but that he sought and found me through the entire process.

IN – the last year or so I have become convinced that salvation is not an event but a process. A process where God brings the truth of His Kingdom to each of us and we respond in faith and obedience. AGAIN – to quote Shelly…

Saving faith always welcomes new information, new insight, and new events of surrender. It has no need to be defensive in it’s need to grow, express and obey.

WHEN – I was 19 God brought new truth, new information to me about entering His kingdom. YOU SEE – I was raised in the Lutheran church and was never baptized the way we see in the N.T. I was only sprinkled as a baby. And I surrender to that truth on December 30, 1979 and I continued my process of salvation.

WHEN – I was in Bible College I attended a church called Poinciana Christian Church. AND – while there I saw a powerful example of what it looks like to be open to new information, new truths, news insights and new events of surrender. 2 couples in their 80’s who had been leaders in a church for 50 years. Leanred some new truths about salvation and they surrendered to that truth and all 4 were baptized (immersed into Chroist)…

AND – let me tell you about 2 things that were not done…

1) there was no debate wheteher or not they were save before this event

2) there was no insistence that this baptism had nothing to do with being saved.

I like how, Max Lucado says it this way; ‘Is it possible for an un-baptized person to be saved? Yes definitely. Should every believer be baptized? Yes, definitely.

Salvation is a process of which; hearing the word, growing down and being born of water and the spirit are part of the process.

AGAIN – this Wednesday night…

NEXT;

Jesus Told People The Truth About Doing ‘Good’ Stuff For Show

IN – that great sermon on the mountains by the Sea of Galilee… Jesus took all the good things that people were doing and placed them on the scale of truth…

"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full… And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full… When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.” Matthew 6:2,5,16