Some of my favorite books to read are memoirs of people who have come to faith in Jesus Christ. There is something powerful about hearing an individual’s story of how God rescued him or her from spiritual darkness. It reminds me that while God sovereignly reigns from Heaven over the whole world, He is also providentially calling individuals to Himself. And every testimony is unique.
Jesus famously said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). Jesus is the only hope of the world and there is no salvation outside of Him. At the same time, God uses various avenues to bring His gospel to a lost soul.
I recently finished reading the book Leaving Buddha: A Tibetan Monk’s Encounter with the Living God by Tenzin Lahkpa. It was fascinating to learn Tenzin’s firsthand account of what life as a Buddhist monk is like. Not only is a Buddhist monk required to live a celibate life, every day comes with a rigorous set of disciplines, such as repeating mantras, studying the life and teachings of Buddha, tirelessly using a prayer wheel, and practicing meditation. As a child, Tenzin’s mother “offered” him to the temple to become a monk.
I learned that many Buddhists live in constant fear of the “all-seeing eye” of Buddha. Tenzin writes:
“The concept of karma was taught to me as a child to keep me from doing anything my mother did not want me to do. My mother discouraged me from having bad thoughts, skipping prayer, or neglecting my duties as a Buddhist. If I did, Buddha would know. His all-seeing eye saw everything. I could not hide.” (37)
After meeting a relative who was a Christian, Tenzin asked his teachers about Jesus. It was intriguing to learn that many Buddhists have a fear of even mentioning the name of Jesus. Tenzin’s teachers viewed Jesus as a “dangerous deceiver” (172). Ironically, it was his teachers’ strong aversion to Jesus that piqued his interest even more. What was it about this Jesus that is so unspeakable?
While recovering from a bout with tuberculosis, Tenzin met a doctor from Sweden who wore a cross around his neck. When Tenzin asked about it, the doctor said it means he’s a follower of Jesus. Tenzin wanted to know more, so the Swedish doctor brought him booklets with information about Jesus.
Tenzin quickly devoured everything the doctor gave him. Tenzin recalls:
“On one page, it told how Jesus paid the price for man’s sin. His grace paid the debt. This was a shocking difference between Buddha and Jesus. Buddha taught that followers had to do many things to earn their way into a better afterlife.” (172)
Perhaps the clearest contrast between the two was Christianity’s central theme of love. It struck him that Christians can say, “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
“In Buddhism, enlightenment and knowledge drive our motives, not love. Maybe you could say that we love knowledge, but you could not say that we follow Buddha because we love him or because he loved us.” (174)
In time, Tenzin recognized that it was the love of Jesus that he most needed. All the prayer wheels and Buddhist disciplines were attempts at saving himself, but Jesus came to offer His own life to save him. He could never know how much sacrifice Buddha demanded of his disciples. By contrast, Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice on the cross so he could be forgiven of all his sin. Unlike Jesus, Buddha never claimed to be God and he had not given his life so others could live. Tenzin asked Jesus to come into his life, and he now follows Jesus, not Buddha.
There is no love like the love of Jesus. No so-called “savior” that even comes close. Jesus alone claimed to be God who came among us, and He alone rose from the dead.
Sometimes looking at other religions and faiths helps me see anew how Jesus really is the Light of the world. Across our world and in our community are countless people who are trapped in spiritual darkness. May we, as followers of the risen Lord, be fearless in proclaiming the Name of Jesus.
“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
Prayer
Father, give me eyes to see the lost and hurting all around me each day. Help me to love others with the mighty love of Jesus. Grant me opportunities and boldness to speak the name of Jesus and declare His message of salvation to those trapped in spiritual darkness. By the only Name that saves. Amen.
If you have thoughts on this post, I’d love to hear from you.
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” (John 11:25, BSB)
The fear of death has long plagued humanity. It’s a universal dread that hangs over the whole world. It’s the knowledge that one day, we won’t wake up. One day, our loved ones, our family members, our favorite pet, all those we treasure most in life, will no longer be here. That’s a sobering thought.
And the fear of death is one that humans have tried to deal with from the beginning. How do we escape this fear? What hope do we have? What answers and assurance are there for us?
In his Gospel, the Apostle John wants us to see that the only remedy for the fear of death is the God of life, whom we meet in Jesus Christ. That’s why John puts so much focus on who Jesus is. He knows that nothing else matters if we get Jesus wrong.
God doesn’t want you to live your whole life in fear of death. He wants to give you the assurance of life found in Christ.
John 8 narrates a high-octane dialogue between Jesus and His biggest critics, the religious leaders of Israel. Jesus makes some astounding claims, calling these leaders “slaves to sin” and saying the devil is their daddy.[1] As you can imagine, those comments didn’t sit well with them.
These religious leaders figured, “Well, we can fight fire with fire!” So, they come back with this attack:
The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?” (John 8:48, NIV)
Calling Jesus a “Samaritan” was supposed to be a racial slur, but that’s not the thing that bothered Jesus. However, calling the holy Son of God “demon-possessed” is outright blasphemy. So why would they do that?
See, it was so hard to deny that something supernatural was happening with Jesus. Even the Jewish Talmud concedes that Jesus was doing some kind of supernatural deeds, but they attribute them to satanic sorcery. Some Jews today still believe that Jesus was in league with the devil.
In fact, Rabbi Daniel Asor, not long ago said, “Jesus was a false prophet, for he acted only through sorcery. He himself is the embodiment of Satanism.”
But today, that’s a minority opinion on Jesus. Most people today think of Jesus as a kindly “Mr. Rogers” type of guy who was just a great example of love and compassion. People like Madonna and Justin Timberlake have worn T-shirts calling Jesus their “Homeboy.” Oprah Winfrey has said that she finds Jesus to be an “inspiration,” and Brad Pitt has said that he “respects” Him. That sounds pretty safe. Who wouldn’t want to get on board with a Jesus who is there to cheer us on and left an example of love and kindness?
Now, it’s true that Jesus was full of love and compassion. In fact, no one else comes even close. But what if this view of Jesus is so watered down that it’s not even recognizable when we look at what the real Jesus said and did?
There’s a sense in which people like Brad Pitt say they “respect” Jesus because it allows them to stay a safe distance away and avoid the biggest truth about who Jesus claimed to be. But Jesus doesn’t merely want to be respected or inspire us to be nice. He came into this world making the most earth-shaking claims imaginable. So, to downplay what Jesus actually said is to ignore the real Jesus.
See, who Jesus really is matters because if Jesus claimed to be God 2,000 years ago, that claim still stands today. If it was true in the first century, it must be true in the 21st century.
So, Jesus sets the record straight.
“I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honor my Father and you dishonor me. I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” (John 8:49-51, NIV)
And here Jesus makes an enormous claim. “Whoever obeys [or holds to or commits themselves to] His Word will never see death.”
Jesus is referring to spiritual death: separation from God. He’s speaking in the same sense as when John earlier said, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”[2]
Jesus is saying that He alone holds the answer to the timeless question of our mortality.
Many philosophers have made the case that the fear of death drives nearly all human behavior. Even when we’re not conscious of it, it’s there under the surface, shaping the way that we approach all of life. Some have said that philosophy itself is the mind’s way of trying to transcend the looming specter of death.
But of course, it’s not just philosophers that have tried to overcome the fear of death.
Here’s what the Bible says. Jesus died for us, “that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Hebrews 2:14-15, NIV).
Interestingly, people have tried all sorts of ways to get around death, to stave it off, and avoid it. But God calls us to confront the reality of our own death, so that we will be prepared for what comes next. So, here’s a question: How often do you reflect on your own death? Most people try to avoid the subject as much as possible.
If you were to ask the Bible, “Why do we die?” The answer is that we were never meant to die. Death is an enemy and a foreign invader into God’s good world (1 Corinthians 15:26). It’s here because sin is here (Romans 5:12). When our first parents rebelled against God, death made its first entry. That’s because when you rebel against the God of life, death is the result. This fear of death tells us that things are not as they should be. And people have come up with all sorts of ways to try to deny death.
Believe it or not, there are those today who have the hope that through medical advancements, like stem cell research and nanobots, they will be able to avoid death altogether. The logic goes something like this: We know that death is caused by certain diseases, disorders, or bodily malfunctions, so all we must do is find a cure for every disease and disorder, and we will be able to live indefinitely.
The first Facebook president, Sean Parker, has boasted: “Because I’m a billionaire, I’m going to have access to better healthcare… I’m going to be like 160 and I’m going to be part of this, like, class of immortal overlords.”
He’s not the only one talking this way. In a recent TED talk, British researcher Aubrey de Grey claimed that through nanobot technology, “the first human beings who will live to 1,000 years old have already been born.” As it turns out, the search for the mythical fountain of youth has continued even in the 21st century.
But at the end of the day, I have to say, it’s all incredibly foolish. There’s only One who can save you from death, and I assure you, it’s not nanobots! It’s the One who called Himself “The Resurrection and the Life.”
Have thoughts on this post? I’d love to hear from you!
“Note then the kindness and the severity of God.” (Romans 11:22, ESV)
Not long ago, my friend Matt and I were on Oregon State’s campus talking to people about Jesus. A Jewish rabbi approached us and asked, “Are you Jewish?” When we said we were not, he explained he was passing out materials for celebrating Passover and then started to move on.
When Matt asked what he thought of Jesus, he quickly declined to answer. I couldn’t help thinking, But Jesus is the One Passover is ultimately about.
“For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.” (1 Corinthians 5:7, ESV)
Sadly, throughout the years of engaging with Jewish people, whom I love with the love of Jesus the Messiah, I have had very little fruit in even discussing Jesus. His very Name seems to be a conversation killer.
“To the Jew First”
Nevertheless, I remain convinced that I must tell Jewish people about Jesus. I’m not going to accept our culture’s “everyone gets to choose their own brand of spirituality” mantra. For many people, choosing your spirituality is like choosing your own flavor of ice cream. Just go with whatever floats your boat. But spiritual truth is like gravity; you can deny it has any bearing on you, but you do so at your own peril. We don’t get to decide what God is like; rather, we discover what God is like.
Our culture may say I’m being disrespectful and intolerant of my Jewish neighbor by telling him about Jesus. But, at the core of my being, I believe that every person on the planet, irrespective of their ethnic and religious background, needs to hear the gospel.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16, ESV)
Americans love to say things like, “My God would never send anyone to hell.” Or even, “My God is tolerant of all faiths and lifestyles.” They have a lot to say about their God. But that’s the problem. Such people have violated the first three commandments and set up a false version of God in place of the real God.
Instead, people need to hear what the true and living God of the Bible has to say about this:
“It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27, ESV)
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:36, ESV)
The truly loving thing is to tell my Jewish neighbor that Jesus fulfilled the Hebrew Scripture that spoke of a Messiah (Psalm 22; Isaiah 53; Zechariah 9:9; 12:10), He fulfilled the Temple sacrifices of the Torah, and He is going to return one day soon to judge and to save.
God’s Plan for Israel in Romans 11
I’m also motivated by passages like Romans 11 to keep sharing the good news of the Messiah. Now, fair warning. Romans 11 is a bit dense for those who are new to the Bible. And even learned scholars continue to wrestle through all its implications. Nevertheless, I think it’s a passage worth a careful reading as we think about God’s plan for Jewish people as a whole.
In the eleventh chapter of Romans, the Apostle Paul is warning Gentile believers to not presume on God’s gracious character. Throughout this monumental letter, Paul has been carefully explaining the gospel of God’s grace—telling sinners how they can be reconciled to a holy God. He has emphasized both God’s righteous character and His extraordinary mercy. But in Romans 11, he discusses the problem of Jewish people rejecting Jesus, the Jewish Messiah. In other words, if Jesus is the Heaven-sent Jewish Messiah, why do so many Jews reject Him? He asks the rhetorical question: “Has God rejected his people? By no means!” (Romans 11:1).
Paul uses the illustration of an olive tree to say that the Jewish people who rejected Jesus’ right to rule over them are like the “natural branches” that were “broken off because of their unbelief” (Romans 11:20). Gentile believers were like wild olive shoots that were grafted in to the tree in place of the branches that were removed.
“But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you.” (Romans 11:17-18, ESV)
So, Israel’s rejection of her Messiah is what led to the gospel going out to the nations? In God’s providence, yes, that’s what happened (see Romans 11:19-20). However, Gentile believers must not grow complacent and presume on God’s grace, thinking they now have the right to the root (Jesus) and Jewish people do not.
“But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.” (Romans 11:20-21, NIV)
Natural Branches and Wild Branches
Here’s the point. Many Jewish people rejected Jesus and had confidence in their Jewishness that God would spare them from judgment. John the Baptist directly confronted this mindset (Matthew 3:9-10). However, in the same way, God now gives Gentiles a severe warning. We ought not to presume that because we grew up in church, got baptized, and listened to Audio Adrenaline growing up that we too will be spared from judgment.
Why? Because it is only through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, His substitutionary death for our sins and resurrection from the grave, that we are saved. If we have not surrendered our lives to Jesus, it doesn’t matter what our “Christian” background is—we “too will be cut off” (Romans 11:22).
“Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.” (Romans 11:22, ESV)
John Stott writes, “Not that those who truly belong to Him will ever be rejected, but that continuance or perseverance is the hallmark of God’s authentic children.”
Faith in Jesus makes all the difference, because that is how we are united to Christ and get to wear His righteousness before a holy God on the Day of Judgment. To “continue in his kindness” is to demonstrate that our faith is genuinely in Jesus, because genuine faith continues to the end.
“For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.”(Hebrews 3:14, ESV)
Thus, we should have a holy fear of the Lord and be staggered by the sheer grace of God to save us by hanging Jesus on the cross we deserved.
See, without this warning, we’d miss out on an important aspect of God’s character, that He is holy, just, and righteous. We should revere Him and have an awe for who He is. The warnings in Scripture help us to not lose sight of this.
Warnings are given by God to shake us out of our spiritual slumber that proudly thinks we are better off than others because we were raised in the “right” church or family. Warnings like this also remind us what is at stake for everyone who dies apart from Jesus.
We Gentiles are the wild branches. We aren’t the natural heirs of the promise, but we’ve been adopted into God’s family through faith in Jesus. I don’t believe that the church has replaced Israel in God’s plan, but that we have been grafted into the root of Israel. No promise of God has been abrogated; instead, our understanding of the original promise to Abraham and his offspring has been expanded (Genesis 12:1-3; Romans 4:13-18). But Paul warns us Gentiles not to be arrogant, because we are nourished by the Jewish root (Jesus).
“Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved.” (Romans 11:25-26, ESV)
This gives me great hope! Even though it looks today like Israel will go on rejecting her Messiah, God says that this is only a temporary situation. The hardening is “partial” not total, and it will only be “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” In other words, as more and more Gentiles turn to the Jewish Messiah, eventually it will reach a tipping point. At that providential moment in history, there will be a sudden and powerful inflowing of Jews into the kingdom of God.
“All Israel Will Be Saved”
Paul says, “All Israel will be saved.” This cannot mean all of “spiritual Israel” or the elect remnant of Israel will be saved; otherwise, the statement would be redundant. Paul has to be speaking of ethnic Jewish people, and his statement probably carries even more force in light of the fact that Israel has been a sovereign nation since May 14, 1948. In other words, God is not done with Jewish people. In His sovereign plan, Israel—as a nation—will one day repent and trust in Jesus as their Messiah and God.
Does this mean that every Jewish person alive at that point will be saved? F. F. Bruce explains: “’All Israel’ is a recurring expression in Jewish literature, where it need not mean ‘every Jew without a single exception’ but ‘Israel as a whole.’”[1]
That makes good sense, because even today while there is a “partial hardening” on the Jewish people, there are still a great many Jews who love and worship Jesus.
Okay, so what’s the big takeaway from all this? Be not discouraged as you encounter Jews who reject the gospel today. Yes, it is sad when any person (Jew or Gentile) rejects the offer of eternal life. Paul said he was willing to go to hell for the sake of his fellow Jews (Romans 9:3)! His heart’s desire and prayer was that his countrymen would see their need for the righteousness of Jesus (Romans 10:1-4).
But God has a purpose and a plan, and we can always trust what God is doing in the world today; He told us it would happen this way. For myself, I’m committed to continually honoring Jewish people as those whom God has used mightily throughout history. We must roundly condemn all forms of anti-Semitism, including weaponizing the Bible as a tool of denigration. We must thank God for how He has blessed Abraham’s descendants and, in turn, allowed us who love and follow Jesus to be grafted on to the Abrahamic olive tree. The Bible I read every day is very Jewish!
And I’m also committed to sharing the good news of Jesus the Messiah with every Jewish person I meet.
“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5, ESV)
I pray this encourages you to be bold in the gospel. If you have any thoughts or questions about this, I would love to hear from you!
From its beginning, the Christian movement has been rooted in the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. No other religion or faith tradition so powerfully bases everything in the reality of one event. And yet, Paul can write to other Christians, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14, ESV). Everything hinges on the truth of this singular event in history. Apparently, evidence matters even to Jesus Himself. The Bible says, “After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3, NIV). That being the case, it’s worth considering the following twelve pieces of evidence from both Scripture and outside Scripture for this event.
1. Jesus died by crucifixion.
All the evidence both within the Bible and outside the Bible demonstrates that Jesus truly died on Good Friday (Matthew 27:50-56; Mark 15:37-41; Luke 23:46; John 19:33-35). Roman soldiers were professional executioners, and if a soldier failed to carry out his orders, his own life would be on the line. No one survived crucifixion. This rules out the swoon theory, which argues that perhaps Jesus didn’t die on the cross, and somehow survived being covered in myrrh, wrapped in burial cloths, and laid in a stone ossuary for 36 hours. If, by some miracle He survived all this, could Jesus really have convinced His followers that He had come back as the Lord who conquered death?
2. The location of the tomb was well known.
Every record we have uniformly teaches that Jesus’ body was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-55; John 19:38-42). Because there are no competing accounts for the tomb’s location and women followers witnessed his burial, that rules out someone going to the wrong tomb on Easter morning.
3. The tomb was empty.
The earliest record of Jesus’ tomb from both friends and enemies of Christianity is that the tomb was empty on the Sunday following the Friday that Jesus died on the cross. Christ’s enemies claimed the disciples stole the body, and this continued to be their claim even in the time of the second century apologist Justin Martyr.[1] One thing the “stolen body” story assumes is that the tomb really was empty. Interestingly, we don’t see any of Christ’s enemies claim that the disciples merely went to the wrong tomb, or that the tomb was still occupied. Enemy attestation is generally powerful evidence in court, so this proves that the tomb Jesus had been interred in was empty on Easter morning (Matthew 28:1-8, 11-15).
4. Women as the first eyewitnesses.
The first eyewitnesses of both the empty tomb and the risen Jesus were women (Matthew 28:1-10; Luke 24:9-12). This is significant because a woman’s testimony was not valid in a first century court.[2] The fact that women are recorded as the first eyewitnesses who courageously went to the tomb while the men were holed up in an upper room behind locked doors is an embarrassing detail that would only be included if it truly happened (John 20:19, 26). This demonstrates that the account has the ring of truth and is not an invention of Christians.
5. Individuals and groups saw the risen Jesus.
The accounts of Jesus being witnessed demonstrate that He was seen in a variety of circumstances by both individuals and groups of various sizes (1 Corinthians 15:1-8; Matthew 28:9-10, 16-20; Luke 24:15-32, 36-53; John 20:14-29; John 21; Acts 1:3-9, 9:3-9; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8). Some skeptics have argued that the disciples probably just had hallucinations of Jesus, as sometimes happens with the bereaved. However, the fact that Jesus appeared to groups as large as 500 people rules out the hallucination theory, since hallucinations are subjective experiences for individuals. If a group witnesses something, they must be seeing something that has an objective reality outside themselves.
6. The physical nature of Jesus’ body.
Jesus proved His resurrected body was real and physical by showing the nail scars in His hands and eating with the disciples (Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-28). This shows the risen Jesus was not a ghost or a spiritual vision. N. T. Wright has also demonstrated that in the ancient world, the word resurrection universally referred to “new bodily life” after death.[3] It was not a general term for the afterlife or “going to heaven.” When Paul preached Christ’s resurrection to the Athenian Greeks, they scoffed – not because they didn’t believe in the soul’s afterlife, but because they denied any return to bodily life (Acts 17:32). Jesus’ resurrection is recorded as a real event with eyewitnesses, not a metaphor for “Jesus rising in our hearts” or some other such nonsense.
7. The resurrection was proclaimed from the beginning.
Our earliest records indicate that the most pivotal message proclaimed by the early church in Jerusalem from the beginning was that Jesus was bodily raised from death and that this was based on eyewitness testimony (See Acts 2:22-24, 32; 3:13-15, 26; 4:10-11; 5:30-32; 10:39-41; 13:26-31, 34-39; Romans 1:4; 4:24; 7:4; 10:9; 1 Corinthians 15:15-20; Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 2:12; 2 Timothy 1:10; 1 Peter 1:21; 2 Peter 1:16; 1 John 1:1-3). This rules out the legendary development theory.
8. Origin and sudden growth of Christianity.
It’s very difficult to explain the origin and sudden growth of the Christian movement apart from Jesus truly rising from death and appearing to eyewitnesses (Acts 2:41-47; 5:42). There were other self-proclaimed messiahs in the first century, who were later killed or crucified. In each case, these movements died with their founders. So what led the early Christians to begin worshiping Jesus, who was also crucified as a criminal by Rome? Historian N. T. Wright said, “Never before had there been a movement which began as a quasi-messianic group within Judaism and was transformed into the sort of movement which Christianity quickly became.”[4] One early Christian creed dates from within the first few years after the cross and includes a list of eyewitnesses to the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3-7). Such an early date rules out legendary development, too.
9. Liars make poor martyrs.
The Apostles went from hiding behind locked doors to being willing to suffer and die for their claim to witness the resurrected Jesus (John 20:19, 26; Acts 5:40-42; 6:59-60; 12:1-2). This is compelling because while martyrs can be deceived and may unknowingly die for a lie, it’s hard to imagine a group of men willingly dying for what they knew to be a lie. Can you imagine their rallying cry: “Okay, fellas, we’re about to go out and suffer horribly and possibly die for this whopper we’ve just cooked up. Who’s with me?!” When people try to cover up a fraud, there is usually some kind of motivation, like money or power. But these men only lost power because of their devotion to the risen Lord. They had nothing to gain in this world by proclaiming the resurrection. Their only motivation for enduring persecution and death must have been their firm conviction that Jesus truly did rise as Lord of life. Historian Michael Licona has said, “Liars make poor martyrs.”[5] And Blaise Pascal said, “I only believe histories whose witnesses are ready to be put to death.”[6]
10. Early belief that Jesus is God.
All the evidence shows that the earliest Christians were Jewish monotheists (believed in only one God). However, they also worshiped Jesus as God, something utterly unthinkable unless Jesus had truly proved Himself to be God by rising from the dead (John 20:28; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:15-19). Skeptics like Bart Ehrman have tried to argue that the view that Jesus was God evolved over time, but the evidence of the New Testament shows that Christians understood Jesus to be God from the first decades while eyewitnesses to His resurrection were still alive. They simply adopted the view that Jesus took of Himself, such as when He forgave sins as only God can, claimed to be the Giver of life, said He shared in the Father’s divine glory, and took the divine name “I Am” (Yahweh) to Himself on numerous occasions. We can especially note Jesus’ affirming response to Thomas, who after seeing the resurrected Lord proclaimed, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).[7]
11. Unexpected conversions.
Even non-Christian historians generally acknowledge that both James, the Lord’s brother, and Saul of Tarsus were initially skeptics about Jesus being the divine Messiah. In fact, the book of Acts records Saul as a passionate opponent of Christianity who wanted to destroy the movement until he encountered the risen Lord and later became known as the Apostle Paul (read about this transformation in Acts 9:1-30). It’s very hard to explain James’ and Saul’s sudden conversion to Christianity after initially opposing it apart from the resurrection.
12. Immediate transformation of religious observance.
The first Christians immediately began meeting on Sunday, instead of Sabbath (Saturday), the day that Jews had gathered for worship for hundreds of years (Exodus 20:8-11; Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2). This only makes sense if Jesus did in fact rise on Sunday (John 20:1-2). The first Christians also began celebrating the Lord’s Supper (a special meal that commemorates the Lord’s death; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34) and baptism (which is the initiatory rite of a disciple and pictures union with Christ in His death and resurrection; Matthew 28:18-20). Both ordinances only make sense in light of Christ’s substitutionary death and resurrection in history.
Conclusion
Certainly, it might be hard to accept that someone truly defeated death itself on the basis of one or two pieces of evidence. However, the cumulative case that can be made for Christ’s resurrection is staggering. Because of space constraints, I’m only giving a brief overview, but this is just the tip of the ice berg. Each one of these could be unpacked in far greater detail. The point is that the Christian claim that Jesus rose from the dead is well-founded in history. This gives the Christian great hope. Salvation is by grace alone, apart from any good works or religious obedience. All who put their trust in the risen Lord are assured of forgiveness of sins and eternal life with Him (Romans 10:9-10). Jesus said, “Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19, NIV).
Have thoughts on this post? Feel free to comment below!
[1] This is mentioned in Justin’s Dialogue with Trypho.
[2] N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God (Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 2003), 686-96.
[4] N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God, 17.
[5] Quoted in Gary Habermas and Michael Licona, The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus.
[6] Quoted in Josh and Sean McDowell, Evidence that Demands a Verdict.
[7] There is also plenty of extrabiblical evidence that the earliest Christians worshiped Jesus as God, including the writings of the ante-Nicene fathers. In the year 112 AD, Pliny the Younger wrote to his Roman Emperor Trajan that Christians he saw “were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god, and bound them themselves by a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds…”
“Amazing grace! How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; Was blind, but now I see.”
Thus begins the well-known hymn, “Amazing Grace.” Those words were written by a former slave trader turned gospel minister from the 18th century named John Newton. While the hymn “Amazing Grace” is known and loved by millions, the author of that hymn is not as well known in our secular age.
Wretched Sinner and Slave Trader
John Newton was drafted into the Royal British Navy at 18. But early on, his rebellious spirit got the best of him. Newton attempted desertion, which earned him a public flogging on the main deck in front of his entire crew, an ordeal that was equally excruciating and shameful. Filled with bitter rage, Newton began mocking his captain and leading a life where he regularly blasphemed God and committed all kinds of indecent acts.
After leaving the Navy, Newton entered a new career aboard a slave trading ship. His actions became more and more revolting. In his own words, Newton said, “I was exceedingly vile… I not only sinned with a high hand myself but made it my study to tempt and seduce others upon every occasion.”[1] One biographer said of Newton: “Although he had been brought up in the Christian faith by his devout mother, who died when he was six, Newton had become such an aggressive atheist and blasphemer that even his shipmates were shocked by his oaths.”[2]
When his ship was caught in a violent storm, Newton surprised even himself by crying out to God for mercy. Eventually, the storm calmed and Newton began to sense that perhaps “there is a God who answers prayer.”[3]
Eventually, he felt compelled to study the Scriptures. As Newton read, the God of the Bible seemed to come alive to him. He felt drawn to Jesus, the very same Jesus he had once mocked and ridiculed.[4] But realizing that his debt of sin had piled up high over the years, he assumed that God would want nothing to do with him. Yet, to his amazement, he found that the God of the Bible is a God of astounding grace who offers sinners like himself forgiveness. Newton came to see that in Jesus Christ alone, there was a path to grace, freedom from sin and total acceptance with God. He renounced his sinful ways, and trusted in Christ for salvation.
After beginning a pastoral ministry in Olney, England, Newton continued to be amazed by the favor God had shown to one so undeserving as he. Not only did Newton leave behind his life as a slave trader, he eventually preached against this cruel practice. His sermons and writings carried great weight, because he was speaking as one who once lived the wickedness he now condemned.
In his diary, Newton wrote a prayer to God, “Thou hast given an apostate a name and a place among thy children—called an infidel to the ministry of the gospel. I am a poor wretch that once wandered naked and barefoot, without a home, without a friend: and now for me who once used to be on the ground, and was treated as a dog by all around me, thou hast prepared a house suitable to the connection thou hast put me into.”[5]
Today, Newton’s legacy is not merely that he was a terrible sinner, but that he came to understand—to really understand—what Christianity is all about. It’s all about the amazing grace of God found in Jesus Christ.
What Christianity Is All About
It took some time for Newton to truly grasp the wonder of God’s grace. In a similar way, so many people today simply don’t understand just what God is offering them. They can hardly believe that God is as gracious as the Bible describes Him to be. Complete forgiveness of sins? Assurance of eternal life? A love relationship with God Himself? How could this be?
We assume that we must somehow earn acceptance with God. That’s the default perspective for every single one of us. Grace sounds too good to be true. We think that there must be something that we must do in order to be forgiven, and in order to be welcomed into God’s family. We don’t understand how God could offer the unfathomable riches of grace, forgiveness, and acceptance apart from any work from us (Romans 4:5-6).
And to be honest, this is why such a large number of people simply don’t understand Christianity. They think they do, but they don’t really. They think that Christianity is all about a God that is for good people. And so, in order to become a Christian, we must clean up our act, walk the straight and narrow, and live an obedient life—maybe even with God’s help. And then after we have cleaned ourselves up, God will welcome us as one of His own.
But that’s not what Christianity is all about. Christianity is all about Jesus and what He has done. First and foremost, it’s not about us and what we can do for God. Christianity does not say that, in order to be saved, you have to become more religious, do good works, do penance, and be obedient to laws and ordinances to somehow make yourself worthy of God. No!
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9, ESV)
Incredibly, the Bible says that God credits righteousness “to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly” (Romans 4:5, NIV). In fact, you know what the Bible says about good works that are done to earn God’s acceptance? It calls them things like “filthy rags” and “sewage” (Isa. 64:6; Phil. 3:8). Why? Why would God view even our best works as filth? Here’s what the Bible says:
“We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.” (Isaiah 64:6, ESV)
Isaiah is saying that when good works are done to earn God’s acceptance, even our most righteous deeds are actually foul to God because they are still tainted by our sin. Why? Because every one of us, ever since the fall of man in Genesis 3, has come into this world with a sinful heart. Some are offended by this teaching. Many would rather believe that people are basically good.
But when we are most honest with ourselves, we can see that this is absolutely true. There is a darkness in us that keeps us focused primarily on ourselves. If we would stop and examine our own thoughts and actions, we would all have to admit that we are incredibly selfish creatures.
Even in our best moments, we are nearly always looking out for ourselves. We lie to make ourselves look better. We often ignore the needs of others. We don’t always show love to others like we should. We envy others when they succeed. And the root of the problem is this: We have all chosen to live as if our lives belong to ourselves and not to God. We’ve lived as if God doesn’t exist or doesn’t have a say over how we live our lives.
But we don’t belong to ourselves. We belong to God. We are His by divine Creator rights. When an artist creates art, that art is his. It belongs to him because he created it. As our Creator, we owe our very existence to God alone. We were created for His glory, and yet we have committed the great sin of turning our backs on Him.
Are You Thirsty?
Now enter grace. This is what Isaiah says—or really this is what God says—Isaiah’s just the one delivering God’s message:
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?... Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live.” (Isaiah 55:1-3, NIV)
This is just incredible. Here is God, the very God who we have all rebelled against, saying to every one of us, “Come!” Rather than turning us away or annihilating us for all our rebellion, He’s calling us to Himself in love. And, remember, because we’ve committed the infinite offense of sinning against the almighty God of the universe, He would be perfectly just to simply judge all His creatures for what they have done. It is not an overstatement to say that each one of us, myself included, is deserving of hell (Romans 1:32, 6:23).
As an ambassador for Christ, I am compelled by Christ’s love to warn you: There really is a coming day of judgment. And more importantly, according to Scripture, God Himself “is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
Jesus Himself repeated this same invitation to whomever would heed His voice:
“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:37-38, NIV)
We owed a debt of sin we could not pay, and yet full forgiveness is offered to each one of us through simple faith in Christ. The reason God can do that and still be just is that He took the sin that we are guilty of, and He laid it on His own Son, Jesus Christ, when He hung on the cross.
“He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13-14, NIV).
In his astounding love, Jesus paid the price for our sin. Although we could never pay such an awful price, Jesus could, because He is both God and man. Only as a man could Jesus bear man’s sin, and only as the infinite God could He pay the infinite cost.
And before Jesus died, He cried out on the cross, “It is finished!” (Jn. 19:30). It’s finished! It’s done. The price for sin has been paid. The work of atonement is complete. Now, whoever will yield their lives to Jesus, trusting in Him alone, will receive everlasting life and be forgiven of their great debt of sin.
What a shame it would be to have such an amazing invitation offered to us and then ignore it.
He Will Abundantly Pardon
Remember, John Newton had lived a contemptible life. He had squandered the opportunities he had been given and chosen to live a life of complete rebellion. He mocked others, sexually abused many of the slaves on his ship, and lived an utterly wicked life.
But God chose to forgive Newton of his countless sins. Even Newton struggled at first to believe that God could love him and want anything to do with him. “What mercy could there be for me?”[6] Newton asked himself as he first considered the gospel in light of all his terrible sins. And yet, God showed grace to him and gave him a new heart with new desires.
Newton realized that God was the God of second chances. God extended the invitation to Newton to come to Him, to come to the cross of Christ where the great burden of his sin could be removed and he could fully receive the love of God. And Newton never ceased being amazed at God’s grace in rescuing him, an utterly undeserving “wretch” in his own words. He spent the remainder of his life working to end the slave trade and spread the gospel of grace.
On his deathbed, Newton told his close friend, “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Savior.”[7]
Many of us can think like Newton did when he first heard the gospel. We can think that we’ve sinned one too many times, that we’ve failed too many times. So—we think—surely God wouldn’t want anything to do with me… would He? Wouldn’t He just give up on me?
But, friend, if you think that God would ever give up on you, you’re not thinking of the God of the Bible. You’re thinking of a false god. God is more gracious than you could possibly imagine. In the words of Philip Yancey, “Grace, like water, always flows downward, to the lowest place.”[8]
The New Testament describes Jesus as One who came with “grace upon grace” (John 1:16). See, that’s the most amazing thing: for those who rest in Christ, there is no end or limit to God’s grace. In Jesus, there is grace that is greater than all your sin.
“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” (Isaiah 55:6-7, NIV)
God “will abundantly pardon” you when you turn from sin and trust in Christ. Jesus is inviting you right now—come to Him. Embrace His offer of life and forgiveness. Come to Christ and discover what it truly means to be forgiven.
Have thoughts on this post? Feel free to comment below!
[1]John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace, Jonathan Aitken. P. 18.
Here’s a fun thought experiment. Think through all the things in your life that had to occur just so in order for you to be where you are today, including where you live and who is nearest and dearest to you. Films and novels have captured this fact that every event in our lives is but one link in a long chain (or network) of causes and effects that stretches back to the beginning of the world.
In my own life, I can think through the long series of notable events that had to take place in the precise order and time that they did for me to end up at the church college group where I met my wife, Whitney. If any one of these events had occurred even slightly differently, there is little reason to think I would have met her when I did.
If you are a Christian, the same thought experiment can be done for considering how you came to faith in Christ. Whether you consider the home in which you grew up, the time in history in which you were born, or the church where you ended up, there is a convergence of events that had to take place for you to even hear the gospel. We like to use the word “fortunate” when we think about all this, but we need to understand that according to the Bible, all these necessary events took place according to God’s design, not mere happenstance.
God Determines the When and the Where
When Paul preached to the Athenian philosophers, he said that there is one sovereign Lord and Creator who is responsible for all we have—including the very breath in our lungs. Paul then says God “made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him” (Acts 17:26-27a).
What a profound statement! God determined the when and where of every nation. But what is true of nations is also true of individuals. After all, He is a personal God who deals not merely with nations in general, but with individuals in particular.
Consider how personally God deals with King David’s life:
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb... Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.” (Psalm 139:13, 16, ESV)
Nothing about our lives—not even the when or the where—is accidental. God can tell Jeremiah the prophet that even before He formed him in his mother’s womb, the Lord had already set him apart for his life’s task (Jeremiah 1:5). Is this only true of Jeremiah? Or does God form each of us in the womb having already planned what our life would look like? Job speaks of everyone born of woman when he says, “A person’s days are determined; you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed” (Job 14:5, NLT).
None of this teaching on God’s providential planning of every human life nullifies the truth that we make real choices as image bearers of God. We are not just mechanistic cogs in a grand machine, but precious individuals with loves and fears, who are responsible for our actions.
J. I. Packer uses the word “antinomy” to describe this apparent incongruity between God’s absolute sovereignty and the genuine choices of His creatures.[1] While we tend to pit God’s sovereignty against human responsibility, the Bible never does. Both truths are taught in Scripture, so the Christian must accept both. Whatever cannot be reconciled in our finite minds can and is reconciled in the mind of God (Isaiah 55:8-9; Romans 11:33-36).
If God is absolutely sovereign, there can be no accidents. Nothing about your life can be chalked up to mere happenstance or dumb luck.
“Forbidden by the Holy Spirit to Speak”
In the book of Acts, we read the story of Paul’s first journey to the city of Philippi. It’s fascinating to see all the events God used to providentially bring His Apostle to these people.
It all starts with Paul, Silas, and Timothy setting out to reach the people of Asia (the northwestern region of modern Turkey) with the gospel. They know God has called them to proclaim this message of grace, but they aren’t exactly sure where yet. Consider how the Holy Spirit sovereignly directs their steps:
“And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.” (Acts 16:6-10, NIV)
It can seem kind of strange at first when we read that they were “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia” (v. 6). We might think, Why wouldn’t God want Paul to preach the gospel there? And then we find out that they wanted to go to Bithynia, but again “the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them” (v. 7). We wonder, What’s the deal? Doesn’t God want those people to hear the gospel and be saved, too? Elsewhere, we read that God does not wish “that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9, ESV).
But we can forget at this point that God in His perfect grace is also sovereign. He is King over all, and He never acts arbitrarily or on a whim. And while we don’t understand all the reasons, what we need to see is that God had a sovereign appointment for Paul. It wasn’t in Asia, and it wasn’t in Bithynia. But it was in Macedonia, and Philippi was smack dab in the middle of Macedonia. This reminds us that ultimately the salvation of the lost is not up to us; it is up to God. He is the One who does the sovereign work of salvation, and He’s working out His perfect plan according to His timetable.
We aren’t called to debate with God about what is best. He alone is God. Scripture tells us that He is the Potter; we are the clay.[2] We don’t get to tell God what to do. He is the One in charge of this whole show, and the more we get on board with His plan, the better things will go for us in the long run.
It’s intriguing to me that God gets Paul’s attention here by appealing to his compassion. In Paul’s dream, he sees a man from Macedonia pleading with Paul, “Please, Paul. Come here and help us!” We know this is primarily about meeting their need for salvation, because verse 10 says that Paul immediately concludes God called them “to preach the gospel” to those Macedonians. So this man in the vision is saying, “Paul, we’re lost and without hope! We are doomed if you don’t come tell us about the risen Lord.”
All by Grace
When they come to Philippi, things initially go very well. Paul and his buddies find a group of women just outside the city meeting together by the river. And Paul begins to open the Word of God to these women, telling them the good news that forgiveness of sins is freely offered to them through the Lord Jesus. Wherever Paul goes in the book of Acts, he calls people to repent of their sin and trust in Jesus as their sin-bearing Lord and Savior. He nearly always gets a mixed response from people when he preaches the gospel.
But for whatever reason, the author Luke zeroes in on one particular individual, a woman named Lydia and her response. “One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul” (Acts 16:14). Isn’t that beautiful? “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what” Paul said.
As Christians, we can wonder, Why does God have me where I’m at right now? Why this job? Or maybe, Why can’t I find a job? Why this neighborhood? Why this health issue? Why this hardship? But what if God has you exactly where He wants you right now? It may not be where you’ll be forever or for very long, but what if God has a purpose in putting you in the situations you face every day? What if God wants to use you where you are right now in a way that He couldn’t use you otherwise?
If we see nothing else from Lydia’s conversion, we need to see this: God is sovereignly orchestrating His plan in every person’s life. No one comes to Christ by accident. God is working out His plan. When you take a step back, it’s amazing to see how this all worked out. Remember, Paul wanted to go to Asia. God said no. Paul wanted to go to Bithynia. God said no. Finally, God gives Paul a vision to bring his band of merry men to Macedonia, and finally to Philippi.
And when they get to Philippi, it just so happens that they find a group of women meeting by the river outside the city. What a coincidence, right? What good luck! And it just so happens that God was preparing the heart of a woman in that group named Lydia who was about to receive the gospel. Amazing, isn’t it? All along, God was setting Paul up. He says, “I’m going to use you to bring My gospel to Lydia, Paul. And Lydia’s going to believe. Lydia’s Mine.”
There are no ultimate accidents. There are no coincidences in God’s mind. He is working out His perfect plan for the good of His people and the glory of His name. We serve a sovereign God, a God far more powerful and good and merciful than we could possibly imagine.
If you are a Christian today, it is because God worked out all the details for you to encounter the gospel of the crucified and risen Lord. He brought the light of truth into your heart, where before there was only spiritual blindness (2 Corinthians 4:4-6). If someone led you to Christ, it wasn’t sheer luck that you happened to know that person. God is in the business of rescuing people from their sin according to His perfect and sovereign plan. In evangelism, we have an essential part to play, but we didn’t write the script.
And when we share the gospel, we are simply jumping on board with His plan that is already in motion. We’re not the master engineers here. He’s the One who wrote the blueprint for His plan of redemption. So what does that mean? That means all the glory goes to Him for saving us. We don’t even get a smidgen of the credit. Because it’s all by His grace.
J. I. Packer points out that this is actually good news. When we share the gospel with others, we are participating in a mission that cannot fail. And the fact that we pray for the lost to be converted is proof that we really do believe He is sovereign in salvation. Packer writes:
“When you pray for unconverted people, you do so on the assumption that it is in God’s power to bring them to faith. You entreat Him to do that very thing, and your confidence in asking rests on the certainty that He is able to do what you ask. And so indeed He is: this conviction, which animates your intercessions, is God’s own truth, written on your heart by the Holy Spirit.”[3]
“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5, NLT). You have been saved by grace! Not human effort.
Have you repented and trusted in the Lord Jesus for salvation? If not, I urge you to do that today. If you have, have you thanked God for your conversion?
Soli Deo Gloria.
Have thoughts on this post? Feel free to comment below!
[1] J. I. Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God, 23-24. As Packer explains, an antinomy is something in theology that has “an appearance of contradiction,” but “is not a real contradiction.”
One of the most common questions Christians have is: “How can I be sure that I’m really saved? How can I know?”
And often this question is not even verbalized, but it’s a doubt that can weigh on a believer’s heart for a long time, sometimes for years. Or it can come and go.
One of the devil’s chief goals is to steal the Christian’s assurance. He wants us to be living in constant doubt. He wants us to be constantly plagued by the thought, Maybe I’m not really saved. But God wants genuine believers to have assurance of salvation.
A good father would never want his children to always be plagued by doubt on whether they really belong to him. And that is God’s heart, too.
What Does Assurance Look Like?
A merchant ship once came across a fierce storm while crossing the Atlantic Ocean. One sailor clutched his seat with white knuckles while massive waves rocked the massive vessel. He cried out to his shipmate, “We’re going to sink!” The other man shook his head. “I’ve been aboard this ship through many storms.” With calm confidence, he added, “She’ll take us safely to harbor.”
What was the difference between the two men? Both were facing a massive storm at sea, but only one had assurance they would make it home safely. The difference was not in their self-confidence, but in how much confidence they had in the ship.
This illustration helps us see that our assurance of salvation will depend on what we know about the object of our faith. We will be assured of a great salvation only if we know we have a great Savior.
Run to the Blood
In the book of Revelation, John records an apocalyptic scene where the dragon – who is the devil – is thrown down to earth in the midst of a cosmic war.
And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.” (Revelation 12:10, ESV)
Satan is an accuser. He is constantly trying to shake our faith. He’s constantly trying to steal our assurance of salvation. So what does he do? He accuses us over and over, day and night. Satan says, “Look, how you’ve failed God. Do you really think you could belong to a holy God?” Satan keeps a constant ledger to accuse us and steal our confidence.
So what do the Christians do when these accusations come? It says:
“And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” (Revelation 12:11, ESV)
When in the midst of life’s trials, your faith is shaken and you begin to doubt your own salvation, the most important thing is not to first look at your own life. It is to run to the blood of the Lamb. It is to claim the promises of the gospel.
Martin Luther discussed times when the devil seemed to fixate on a single sin from his past in order to torment his conscience and steal his assurance. Luther urged his readers not to disagree with the devil that they had broken the Law, but to instead point the devil to the crucified Savior who already bore the Law’s condemnation in their place.[1]
So many Christians have come to believe that they can lose their salvation if they go one step too far. If they fail God one time too many, then all is lost. Or many people have been taught that if they die with unconfessed sins, they’ll be lost forever.
One church with this confusing theology had a weekly ritual where the town drunk got saved every Sunday morning and then was drunk every Sunday evening. One day the pastor said to him, “Next Sunday we ought to shoot you right after you get saved!” He was joking, of course, but you can see where this whole theology leads. Salvation is seen as something you’re constantly dipping into and out of, like a kid that can’t decide if he wants to be in the swimming pool. On this view, everything depends on your daily moral performance. But, friend, salvation is not like that.
Let me just tell you clearly: Salvation is about being born again. Do you think you can undo the new birth?
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV)
The Bible says, that when the Holy Spirit comes into our hearts at salvation, from that point forward we are “sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). Picture an envelope sent from earth that is guaranteed to arrive in heaven. When God seals something, it cannot be undone!
If your good works didn’t have anything to do with getting you saved, then they don’t have anything to do with keeping you saved.
What about spiritual fruit?
Someone might think, Now, wait a minute. Shouldn’t we look for spiritual fruit for confirmation that we’re saved? That’s true, and we don’t want people who have not given their lives to Jesus to have a false assurance that they are saved while living like the rest of the world.
Here is something that I think will be helpful: There is a massive difference between a driving source of assurance and a confirming source of assurance.
Consider what Jesus said:
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24, NIV)
Notice that eternal life is a present possession for the believer. They “will not be judged,” because they have crossed over from spiritual death to life in Christ.
When you’re looking for assurance of salvation, the first and foremost thing you must turn to is the gospel itself, which is the driving source of assurance.
Driving source of assurance (the Gospel): The promise of forgiveness and eternal life for all who trust in Jesus Christ.
Confirming source of assurance (spiritual fruit): Evidence of Christ’s moral transformation in your life.[2]
You don’t turn to evidence of moral change as the primary source of assurance. It’s an important fruit of spiritual life, but not the root of assurance.
Think of it this way. The gospel is like the accelerator in your car. When you press on that pedal, that’s what drives the car forward. Good works are like the speedometer. They are indicators that you’re saved, but they are not to be the driving source of assurance.
Kept by Jesus, for Jesus
Consider what Jude says to those who might be struggling with doubts about salvation:
“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 24-25, ESV)
Who keeps you from ultimately stumbling? God. Who presents you blameless before the presence of His glory? God. Your salvation is in His hands, not yours. It always was and always will be.
Instead of me trying to convince you that no one who is genuinely saved can lose their salvation, let’s look at promises from Scripture.
You are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:7b-8, ESV)
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6, ESV)
And this next one is the words of Jesus, recorded in John 6. Listen to how all-encompassing this promise is.
“All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” (John 6:37-40, NIV)
Not only does Jesus say He will never drive away any who come to Him, but He says He won’t lose a single one of those the Father gave Him. So, the logic works like this. All the Father gives to Jesus come to Jesus. All who come to Jesus will be kept by Jesus. All who are kept by Jesus have eternal life.
The Golden Chain of Redemption
If all those promises from our Lord were not enough, we could still turn to Romans 8:29-30, a passage often called “the Golden Chain of Redemption.”
“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30, ESV)
Some Christians balk at the whole idea of predestination. But frankly, this and many other passages would have to be ignored to dismiss the idea of predestination. It is a word meant to give Christians a humble assurance of their final salvation.
Notice, especially in verse 30 that there doesn’t seem to be room for any to fall away from salvation. It’s not as though you can be predestined, called, and justified, but somehow miss out on being glorified. Each link in the chain is connected to the next, creating an indestructible chain of security that stretches all the way back to eternity.
It is fascinating that Paul uses the past tense when he says “those whom he justified he also glorified,” as though our future glory has already taken place (v. 30). We would expect him to use the future tense (“will be glorified”), because this will happen at Christ’s return. So how can Paul say this? Because in God’s eyes it is as certain as something that already happened.
Super Bowl XLVIII was expected to be a tough battle between the Seahawks and the Broncos. Going into the game, no one imagined Russell Wilson would lead his team to a blowout victory over the superstar Peyton Manning and his Broncos. When the Seahawks led 43-8 with two minutes remaining in the game, Seahawks fans confidently declared, “We won! We won!” Although the game was not yet over, victory was certain. In the same way, because our victory in Christ is so certain, Paul can speak of it in the past tense.
These promises are meant to give the believer confidence. Assurance of salvation is the birthright of those who are born again.
But even if you were to say to me after all these promises, “Jason, I still don’t know. It seems like people can lose their salvation. I know people who have left the faith.” Here’s what I would say: The Bible does talk about those who fall away, but it never says those who have saving faith in Jesus ever fall away.
Are there any examples of someone who lived among the community of the faithful and later fell away? Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve disciples Jesus chose to travel with Him. But Jesus called Judas “one doomed to destruction” and said it would be better for Judas “if he had not been born” (John 17:12; Matthew 26:24). So, yes, there are examples of those who appear to love and follow Jesus and then fall away. But that’s not the same as those who are truly saved by trusting in Jesus. This is a sober reminder that you can trust in a pastor, priest, church, or even set of doctrines, but not actually be trusting in Jesus.
Over and over, the Scriptures proclaim this promise: If you are saved by Jesus, you are kept by Jesus and for Jesus.
To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ. (Jude 1, ESV)
Notice, it doesn’t say we keep ourselves saved. It’s a passive term. We are kept for Jesus.
Mustard Seed Faith
Our tendency is to look primarily at ourselves and consider whether we have done enough for God, to see whether we really belong to Jesus. But while self-examination has its place, the Bible doesn’t encourage us to look inwardly for assurance. We are called to trust in Christ alone for salvation, resting everything on His work through the cross and resurrection.
Even passages that don’t mention faith, like Romans 8:29-30, don’t negate the necessity of faith in Christ for salvation. The Bible is crystal clear that salvation comes through faith in the risen Lord.
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9, ESV)
One thing people often do is they think: Yes, I have faith in Jesus, but is my faith strong enough to save? But this kind of thinking can end up turning faith into a work. You can think, I just need to muster up enough faith for God to accept me. But if you’re doing that, you’re missing the whole point of faith.
Remember the two sailors? Salvation from the storm did not rest on the strength of either individual. The sailor assured of survival was resting in the strength of the ship itself, not the strength of his faith.
Faith is about looking outside of yourself to someone else. The size of the faith isn’t what ultimately counts. Jesus said a mustard-seed size will do (Matthew 17:20). What matters is that we persevere in faith, knowing that our keeping the faith ultimately depends on God keeping us (Hebrews 3:14; 2 Peter 1:10).
Take some time to meditate on God’s promises of eternal life and ask God for the faith and assurance that He will keep you in His hands forever.
Feel free to comment or share your thoughts below!
Lamp and Light 