Jesus on Old Testament Miracles

One cannot claim he has faith in a man and yet doubt that man's veracity. Our only choice is to believe what a man says or disbelieve it. Such is the case with Jesus. We either believe in Jesus as a man whose word can be trusted or we disbelieve him; we consider his word as unreliable; it is either one or the other. If his word is at times unreliable, you never know when to believe him and when not to. He cannot be fully trusted.

This article comes as a result of a sermon I heard in which the preacher made the comment that with many people today, everything in the Bible is seen as figurative or symbolic and thus not to be taken at face value. To be specific, everything that seems incredible, the miraculous, is simply the use of figures and symbols to make a spiritual point; thus, when scripture is looked at in this way, one does not have to deal with the supernatural in the affairs of men for the simple reason that the supernatural never happened.

Viewing scripture this way presents some very real problems for many of the things people wish to deny Jesus declared to be factual. The problem then becomes, do you believe Jesus or do you think he lied or, at the very least, was mistaken. I thought it would be good to compile a list of some of the things Jesus spoke of in such a way as to confirm their reality.

The listing was compiled by starting in Matthew and just taking events in the order in which I found them in a red-letter edition of the New Testament. Thus, the reason we start with Sodom and Gomorrah is that it was the first confirmation I came to of an Old Testament miraculous event Jesus confirmed as I ran my finger up and down the pages of Matthew—Matt. 10:15. I quote the Luke passage, for it is more in-depth than Matthew, but I will include what Matthew quotes Jesus saying as well.

(1) Jesus confirms Sodom and Gomorrah and what happened there, saying, "Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all." (Luke 17:28-29 NKJV) "Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!" (Matt. 10:15 NKJV) The words Jesus spoke confirm what the Old Testament had to say about Sodom and Gomorrah. Did Jesus lie? Can one believe the Bible account of Sodom and Gomorrah?

The Bible says, "the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord." (Gen. 13:13 NKJV) In Gen. 18:20, Gomorrah is included with Sodom as a place whose "sin is very grievous." (Gen. 18:20 NKJV) In Gen. 19:5, we see the nature of their sin. Two angels came to Lot (Gen. 19:1), but their appearance was that of men (Gen. 19:5). The men of Sodom came to Lot and insisted that he "bring them out to us that we may know them carnally." (Gen. 19:5 NKJV) They were engaged in homosexuality, men with men engaging in unseemly sexual acts.

One cannot be an advocate of gay marriage and be a faithful Christian, not if he or she believes the Bible. In 1 Cor. 6:9-10, in the New Testament, not the Old, Paul, speaking by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gives a list of those who "will not inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Cor. 6:9 NKJV) and says "do not be deceived" (1 Cor. 6:9 NKJV) about it. In that list, we find "homosexuals" and "sodomites." (1 Cor. 6:9 NKJV) Did Jesus lie about Sodom and Gomorrah? Do you believe what he said?

(2) Jesus confirms the story of "the prophet Jonah." (Matt. 12:39 NKJV) "But He answered and said to them, 'An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.'" (Matt. 12:39-40 NKJV)

Many people do not believe the story of Jonah, but Jesus says it happened. They think that a man could not survive in the belly of a giant fish for three days and nights, but the reason they reject it is that they discount the supernatural. They think scientifically that such a thing could not happen. My answer to that would be, of course not. Clearly, it is a supernatural event out of the norm, but the biblical text tells us as much.

This was no ordinary fish, for the Bible says, "the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah." (Jonah 1:17 NKJV) God made this giant fish for a specific purpose, put it in a specific location at just the right time, to do a specific task (swallow Jonah), and designed him in such a way that a man could survive inside him. Jesus said this happened. Did Jesus lie? Do you believe him?

Can we believe in Jesus, a supernatural being having no earthly father, and then say supernatural events have never happened, that miracles are just fairy tales? If the miraculous is always to be rejected, then who can believe in the virgin birth of Christ and/or his resurrection? How can we believe in our own resurrection if we do not believe in the miraculous?

Even if evolution were true, would that not also be just as much mind-boggling as the Bible's creation account? Both are beyond the realm of human reason and understanding, both incomprehensible by the human mind. Evolution is a mathematical impossibility and thus would be just as much a miracle as anything the Bible speaks of. Evolution has life evolving from non-living matter. If true, is that not a miracle? Both the evolutionist and the creationist believe in miracles, but one will admit as much while the other refuses to acknowledge it.

(3) Jesus confirms man's creation and Adam and Eve. "And He answered and said to them, 'Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning "made them male and female," and said, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh"?'" (Matt. 19:4-5 NKJV) Thus man was a creation of God and did not evolve. There was a beginning, and at that time human beings, male and female, were created by God. Please note Jesus says you can read about this, "have you not read." (Matt. 19:4 NKJV) Thus, Jesus confirms the account given in Genesis of the creation.

Jesus further confirms the account of Adam and Eve as being real people and not mythological when he confirms the life and death of Abel. Since Abel was the son of Adam and Eve, then if there is no Adam and no Eve, there is no Abel. "Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar." (Matt. 23:34-35 NKJV) Jesus says Abel died a righteous man; thus, Abel did indeed live, the son of Adam and Eve.

If Adam and Eve were mythological instead of living human beings, the question arises, how about Abel? Was Abel also mythological? At what point in time do we move in the biblical account from mythological beings to actual living human beings? Jesus teaches that there was no mythology to it.

(4) Jesus confirms the flood account. "But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." (Matt. 24:37-39 NKJV) Jesus says there was a flood, a man named Noah, and an ark. Who was taken away in the flood? Jesus says "took them all away," thus it was a universal flood. God said to Noah, "the end of all flesh has come before me." (Gen. 6:13 NKJV) Those who want a local flood only have to deal with these passages. Was Jesus a liar? Were only a part of them, a part of all flesh, taken away? Do you believe Jesus told the truth?

(5) Jesus confirms the burning bush incident. "But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?" (Mark 12:26 NKJV) This was the bush that burned with fire but was not consumed (Exodus 3:2-3). A bush that burns with fire and yet is not consumed is a miracle. Jesus is saying the passage is legitimate and is putting his stamp of approval on the account being a matter of factual history.

(6) Jesus confirms the miraculous feeding of the widow in Zarephath and her son in 1 Kings 17 for approximately 3 years and 6 months. When Elijah met her, she had but barely enough food for that single day for herself and son (see 1 Kings 17:12), but Elijah speaks God’s word to her, "The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the LORD sends rain on the earth." (1 Kings 17:14 NKJV) That ended up being nearly 3 years and 6 months (see Luke 4:25).

Here is what Jesus said about that, confirming it as a real event, "But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow." (Luke 4:25-26 NKJV)

(7) Jesus confirms the miraculous healing from leprosy of Naaman. "And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian." (Luke 4:27 NKJV) You remember Naaman was told by the prophet Elisha to dip 7 times in the river Jordan (1 Kings 5:10), and he would be cleansed. After hesitating, he finally did so and was cleansed. We have Jesus here confirming another Old Testament miracle.

(8) Jesus confirms Lot's wife being turned into a pillar of salt. He says, "Remember Lot's wife." (Luke 17:32 NKJV) What is to remember about her if she did not turn into a pillar of salt upon disobeying God (Gen. 19:17, 29)? That is the very thing we are to remember lest we too disobey.

I ask, do you believe what Jesus taught? Do you believe the things he said about the events I have listed above? If you doubt them, you question Jesus' veracity. How can you believe Jesus is Lord and Savior and yet doubt his word, for to doubt his word is to doubt him? If Jesus is prone to fairy tales, then how do you know what to believe or think?

Why would we expect God to be reined in by science, by naturalistic processes, when God, by definition, is outside and above the natural world, for he is the one who, if he does exist (I do not doubt that he does), created it all? He who created nature is not bound by what he created. The creation does not reign over the creator. The creator has not created a thing more powerful than himself, a thing he cannot intervene in and change to suit his purposes.

If you or I build a house, do we not have the power to take that house and remodel it? Why then cannot God intervene miraculously in the affairs of nature and of mankind, of which he created both, to suit his own purposes? Why does supernatural intervention surprise us to the point that we deny that it can happen?

Those who doubt generally do not want to believe. They do not search for God. They are running from faith because they do not want to believe, for belief would mean being bound by God and his commandments, which limit our freedom to do as we please, and I add, as we all know, we are all inclined to do what we want to, to do what pleases us. It is our human nature.

Even among religious people in Christendom, many have doubts about various passages in the Bible, but why? I think the root of the matter is that doubt allows us the freedom to build our own unique version of Christianity to suit ourselves. If we cannot trust the Bible completely, then we get to build the Bible (the doctrines and commandments) that most pleases us. It allows one to have a smorgasbord religion where one can pick and choose rather than just take what God has served up. We like the meal we would prepare better than the one God has prepared. It is a liberal brand of Christianity, but by design to meet a purpose—to live life the way we desire.

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To Be Spiritually Minded

Every person who has ever contemplated the subjects of life and death, the meaning of life and eternal destiny, and has chosen faith in Christ as the route they desire to follow has found themselves in a constant struggle. On the one hand, there is the deep desire to do what is right according to God's will, as we read in the Bible, and on the other hand, there is that desire within us that wants to do what we want to do, which often means violating God's will. We have two states of mind, it seems, living within us. The one is the mind of the flesh, the natural man as he exists without God in his life, while the other is that of the spiritually minded individual to whom God deeply matters.

Which mindset shall prevail? The Bible teaches it is a matter of life and death. Hear Paul: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him." (Rom. 8:5-9 ESV)

To set the mind on the flesh, the things of this life and of the fleshly body, we are told, is death. Now, why is that so? Because, Paul says, such a minded person does not submit to God's law. But we might reply, do we not live in a fleshly body? Yes, we do, but God, our creator, put us here for a purpose, and that purpose was not to live like the rest of the dumb animals of creation who live by the instincts of the flesh. We were created with a nobler purpose in mind, with the idea of living eternally with God, and not just for living a brief span of years on earth like a dog. We are better than that.

When God created man, he said, "Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness." (Gen. 1:26 NKJV) Only man was created in the image of God. Jesus said of man in John 10:34, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?" (NKJV) Only mankind is referred to as God's sons and daughters, as his children, when they obey him (2 Cor. 6:18). We are not merely a higher-ranking animal. Paul says, speaking to Christians, "We shall judge angels." (1 Cor. 6:3 NKJV) We were created to be spiritual beings in bodies of flesh for a time before being transformed from our fleshly bodies into immortal spiritual bodies (1 Cor. 15).

We were put here to glorify God. "Everyone who is called by my name, whom I have created for my glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him." (Isa. 43:7 NKJV) "Glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Cor. 6:20 NKJV) The sin of the world after God made man could be summed up by saying, "although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." (Rom. 1:21 NKJV) This led to all types of specific sins as a result of the state of their hearts and minds.

Jesus said in his prayer to the Father, "I have glorified you on the earth." (John 17:4 NKJV) That is our job as well. The only way God can be given glory by man is by obedience. Disobedience to God does not bring God glory but dishonors him as God and as the ruler of humanity. Disobedience is sin.

We might ask why God gave us fleshly bodies that desire the things of the flesh rather than spiritual things. Our bodies give us free will. Created as a robot versus as a man, how could God receive glory from an object that had no free will, no feelings, and no ability to think, reason, or choose? I don't think you are going to go trade your wife or husband off for a robot and say you can find the same kind of love and happiness with it as you do with your spouse. We love our spouse in part because they had free will in choosing us as a life partner. They did not have to do that. So, I think, it is with God. When we choose God, it means something to him, and he does care about us.

Where does the mind of the flesh lead a man if a man is fleshly minded? Paul gives a list of things that flow from such a state of mind in Gal. 5:19-21, "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV) Another list is given in 1 Cor. 6:9-10, "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV)

Every one of us is tempted by sin. "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." (James 1:14-15 NKJV) Paul says, "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." (Gal. 5:17 NAS) Again, he writes, "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man." (1 Cor. 10:13 NKJV) So, that is the situation we find ourselves in, even after becoming Christians. We begin the Christian life spiritually minded enough, or else we could not have become a Christian, but unless we die physically almost immediately thereafter, here comes temptation for that is the nature of these fleshly bodies we live in. How do we remain spiritually minded so that we might have life and peace as taught in Rom. 8:6?

We will never succeed a hundred percent. John says, speaking to Christians, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:8-9 NKJV) Much of the New Testament was written to deal with sin in the lives of Christians. First Corinthians is perhaps the best example of that.

I have brought up the fact that we will never succeed one hundred percent for one reason, as a reminder to not despair and be overcome by discouragement when we sin or fall. A Christian may have to repent numerous times in their life from the sin that the King James Version says "doth so easily beset us." (Heb 12:1) David Lipscomb, a Christian writer from the late 1800s through the early 1900s, made the comment that he doubted any Christian ever lived a single day without committing a sin. Whether that is true or not I cannot know but it is certainly closer to the truth than the idea that we seldom or never sin. I remind the reader, Jesus taught that even evil thoughts are sin (Matt. 15:19-20) and sins of omission are also sins (James 4:17). Have you had any sinful thoughts or failed to do the good that you could have done?

We must remember what Jesus told Peter when Peter asked how many times he should forgive his brother. Peter, I suspect, thought he was being generous by saying seven times, but what did Jesus say in response? "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." (Matt. 18:22 NKJV) Jesus was thus saying there is really no end to forgiving and was certainly implying God would likewise forgive us, no matter how many times we need forgiveness, just as long as we repent, confess our sins to him, and are willing to give it another full faith effort. So, never ever give up in despair. Never!

How does one maintain a state of spiritual mindedness to the greatest extent possible? One Old Testament character that stands out as being deeply spiritually minded is Daniel. One of the first statements you will read about Daniel, with respect to his godly character, as you start the book of Daniel, is found in chapter 1 verse 8 where it says, "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies." (Dan. 1:8 NKJV) "Daniel purposed in his heart." If one is going to pursue any course in life successfully, he or she must first purpose in his or her heart. Purposing in your heart gives you direction and motivation. There is no point in starting a diet or exercise program, enrolling in college or a training program, or doing anything else unless you have first firmly purposed in heart to see the thing through.

As this relates to becoming spiritually minded, this means you must determine in your heart that that is the way it is going to be. Things do not happen by accident. If you want to be a spiritually minded person, you must prepare to be one and work toward that end. Unfortunately, many Christians seemingly never develop spiritually beyond what they were on the day of their conversion. Instead, they gradually grow lukewarm and indifferent, and many fall away. What happens?

One likely contributor to such a state is spiritual starvation. Peter says of a newborn Christian, "desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby." (1 Peter 2:2 NKJV) It is impossible to maintain spiritual mindedness in the absence of spiritual food. Tuck your Bible away and do not use it and the result will be regression in spiritual mindedness, not growth. Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63 NKJV) The words of God are spirit. Paul said, "These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches." (1 Cor. 2:13 NKJV)

Spiritual mindedness is not developed in the workplace, the fitness club, the golf course, in attendance at school activities, on family outings, etc. It comes with reading, studying, contemplating, and meditating on the words of the Spirit--the words of the Bible.

This takes us back to the point made--you have to purpose in your heart you are going to be faithful in reading and studying the word of God, and not just do it occasionally or once in a great while. Just as in exercise or fitness training, there is no such thing as reaching your goal without a commitment to doing it. A growing knowledge and understanding of God's word is essential to growing spiritual mindedness in our lives. How can you become spiritually minded without knowing the mind of the Spirit? That is found in the word of the Spirit.

Let us go back to Daniel, a spiritually minded man. The Bible teaches that Daniel was a praying man. "And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days." (Dan. 6:10 NKJV) It is impossible to be a spiritually minded person if one does not have a prayer life. Quit praying, or only give prayer a random and hurried few seconds a day, and again, you are destroying spiritual mindedness rather than building it. One cannot pray to God without thinking about God (spiritual mindedness). Prayer is, among other things, thinking about God. A spiritually minded man will have a thoughtful and consistent daily prayer life.

Then Daniel also kept good company. The apostle Paul said, "Do not be deceived: 'Bad company ruins good morals.' " (1 Cor. 15:33 ESV) The Good News Bible puts it this way: "Do not be fooled. 'Bad companions ruin good character.' " (GNB) Daniel had 3 good friends--Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego--who like Daniel were godly men. These men refused to worship the golden image set up by Nebuchadnezzar and, as a consequence, were cast into the furnace of fire from which God miraculously rescued them (Dan. 3).

If one desires to be a godly person and develop spiritual mindedness in his or her life, that one needs the fellowship of like-minded people. "Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together." (Heb. 10:24-25 NKJV) Worshipping with God's people is essential to spiritual mindedness and growth.

To become spiritually minded, we must become doers of the word and not hearers only. To fail in this we become academics only, even if we spend time in the word. We must allow the word of God free rein in our lives so that we live it. We worship God, do the things he tells us to do, and refrain from those things he forbids.

One can read any book of instruction on any topic, but until you put into practice what you read, it cannot be said that the word has become a part of who you are. For example, we want a pilot who has gone beyond reading how-to-fly manuals. We want one flying our plane who has actually flown. To be truly spiritually minded, we must be doers of the word. If we are disobedient to the word, we are not spiritually minded.

It is a mistake to take spiritual growth and spiritual mindedness for granted. Physical growth and development will occur whether you do anything or not, but it is not that way in the spiritual realm. The passage of time itself is not going to make you or me any more spiritually minded than we are now.

You have to make a commitment and an ongoing effort, or else you will do nothing more than grow old and die like the rest of mankind who live for the flesh, who live for the things of this life and this physical body. How will you differ from the mass of humanity unless you commit to the development of the spiritual side of your life? Paul says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." (Rom. 12:2 NKJV)

The development of spiritual mindedness is not like turning on a light. You cannot just flip a switch. It takes time. No one becomes a spiritual giant, even if such a one exists, overnight.

If you live with a fleshly mind long enough, you may find it personally impossible to turn your life around, lacking the will to do it.

"To be spiritually minded is life and peace." (Rom. 8:6 NKJV) "To set the mind on the flesh is death." (Rom. 8:6 ESV) I think we all know whether or not we are spiritually minded. It is not a hard thing to know. Do thoughts of God and his word enter your mind frequently or not? Do you have a strong desire to know and do God's will?

The free will God has given us means we have a choice. Our state of mind is a matter of choice, a matter of life or death.

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Sheep and Goats

There are things a person ought to know about God. In fact, we ought to know all we can about God in view of the fact that, "The LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture." (Psalms 100:3 NKJV)

In many ways, life is a great mystery. There is only so much we can know about it but the one thing that is certain is that we came from God. It is either that or the Bible is a lie. It is either that or life came from non-living matter (which, I might add, brings another question—where did the non-living matter come from).

Solomon, by inspiration, wrote, "Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed…Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it." (Eccl. 12:6-7 NKJV) One day we must all give an account of our lives before God. This is the fate God has destined for us.

"For it is written: 'As I live, says the LORD, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.' So then each of us shall give account of himself to God." (Rom. 14:11-12 NKJV)

God is only going to make two divisions on the Day of Judgment and all those who have ever lived will be placed in one division or the other. "All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left." (Matt. 25:32-33 NKJV) Of the goats set on the left hand Jesus says, "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matt. 25:41 NKJV) He goes on and says, "These will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." (Matt. 25:46 NKJV)

This brings me to Psalms 7:11, the subject of this piece, goats. The entirety of Psalms 7:11 reads, "God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day." (NKJV) With God man is either justified (we might say made righteous or forgiven) or else he must go into the category of the wicked. Man is either a sheep or a goat as God gives no other options.

Does this mean that by man's standards, or yours or mine, that all the wicked are what we Americans normally think of as wicked men? Not at all! Many are great guys or gals in that they are honest in their dealings, reliable, kind and thoughtful of others, friendly, do a lot of good deeds, and are often very likable people and fun to be around. Often their only discernable fault is that they have left God out of their lives, but you see that is as big as it gets. How does one leave his Creator out of his life and not give him any thought or honor or respect? How does one live his life as though God does not matter?

What if we treated a mother or father, a son or daughter, a wife or husband this way? What then? Could it be said we love them, that we respect and honor them, and that we care about them?

When we treat God like he is nothing to us and he does not matter, how can we think we are going to be seen as sheep in his eyes? We have obviously shown we are not concerned about him. We have treated him with contempt whether we set out to do it intentionally or not.

When we treat God this way, we deeply offend him and figuratively kick sand in his face. Can we blame him if he is angry with us? The Bible teaches God has feelings as well as man does (Gen. 6:6). We hurt him when we do not care about him. Have you ever had anyone you love treat you that way? You love them, but they treat you in such a way so that you know by their actions they really do not care about you. If so, you know a little about how God must feel when a man casts God from his life or will not allow him to enter in.

Remember John 3:16? God loves us, and we treat him as though he was to be avoided at all cost, as though he was evil. No, we may not do these things intentionally, but that does not change the reality of our actions.

I memorized Psalms 7:11 because I felt it was something I needed to keep in mind. God is longsuffering with us, not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9), but the fact that my life or your life is seemingly going along well does not mean God is well pleased with us. It may only be that in God's goodness he is exercising forbearance and longsuffering in an effort to lead you or me to repentance (Rom. 2:4 NKJV).

I don't care how much your friends think of you, they do not love you like God does, and they are utterly powerless to save you. Neither are they going with you the day you die. We all die alone. Even on D-Day, when men were dying all over the French beachheads during WW II, each had to make the trip to eternity alone, whether a human hand held their hand or not. Many left for eternity that day, but each went alone. The only friend man has capable of being with him through his darkest hour is God.

When that day comes, and it may sneak up on you unexpectedly and early in life, and it will certainly come late in life, do you want to face an angry God? Are you able to take on God and win? Do you want to be foolish enough to try that?

Psalms 7:11b is very short, just a few words. The message is powerful and ought to be life changing. Is it going to change your life? If your attitude toward God and his word needs changing, and you do not change, then you are sure to face an angry God. We do not want to be a goat on that day.

Man has been given free will and gets to choose the road he/she will take with all the consequences that come with that. Put another way, man gets to reap what he has sown (Gal. 6:7) and will indeed do so. "The way of the unfaithful is hard." (Prov. 13:15 NKJV) It is a way that is too hard for me to travel intentionally. I cannot take on God and win. It is my hope for you who read this that you come to the same conclusion for yourself. One has not known terror until he faces an angry God on the Day of Judgment.

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How Does One Get Into The Church Christ Built

Not a single denominational church was built by Christ, for he built his church, one and only, in the first century hundreds of years before any denominations came into existence. The New Testament scriptures, after the gospels and Acts chapter 2, all refer to the church as a then-existing institution. Paul wrote to various churches in some of his epistles. John in the book of Revelation wrote to the seven churches of Asia. The church Christ built was established in the first century, not during the Reformation or the centuries thereafter.

The question men and women need to be seeking an answer to today is not how do I get into this denomination or that one, but how do I get into the church Christ built? Don't ask how do I become a Baptist or a Methodist or any other such thing, but how do I become a Christian? How do I enter into Christ's church?

Being in the church Christ built is an entirely different thing than being in a denomination. One can be in a denomination and yet outside the church Jesus built. If being in a denomination is the same as being in the church built by Jesus, then the denomination has no reason for existence and should drop its denominational name and associations and just call itself what it would be under those circumstances--the church of God, the church of Christ, the church, or some other scriptural name or designation. It would be "the church" and not "a denomination." It would be the church Christ built.

Generally speaking, almost all denominations admit they are not essential, for most freely admit that one can be in another denomination other than their own and be saved, thus making the one they are in non-essential. This is also an unintended confession that they are not the church Jesus built, for his church is essential. We need to let that thought sink in.

Many say Jesus is all that matters; the church does not matter. Why do they say that? Because they have a denominational concept of the church. I am the first to agree that there is not a denominational church on earth that matters, and every one of them ought to cease their existence. But, that is a far cry from saying that the church Christ built does not matter.

In this article, I am not concerned about how one gets into X, Y, or Z denomination, but with how one gets into Christ's church. Certainly, there are steps to be taken as there are steps to be taken before one can enter any institution. One must be made aware of the institution, what it does, and what purpose it serves before any desire can be created to be a part of it. So it is with the church Jesus built.

The church built by Jesus matters so much that you cannot be saved outside of it, without becoming a member of it. It is "the church of God which he purchased with his own blood." (Acts 20:28 NKJV) If you are outside that church, it means you were never purchased with the blood of Christ. It means you are not a part of the body that he is saving. "He is the Savior of the body." (Eph. 5:23 NKJV) What body? "He is the head of the body, the church." (Col. 1:18 NKJV) The church is the spiritual body of Christ of which he is the Savior. It is the body he is saving.

Christians are "members of his body, of his flesh and of his bones." (Eph. 5:30 NKJV) "You (Christians--DS) are the body of Christ, and members individually." (1 Cor. 12:27 NKJV) One is either in that body or he is not; you are either inside or outside, and where you are makes all the difference for salvation. Yes, the church matters. It is not Jesus yes and the church no.

The church is what Jesus gave himself for on the cross. "Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it, that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish." (Eph. 5:25-27 NKJV)

Salvation is in Christ, which is the same as saying in his body, the church. "Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory." (2 Tim. 2:10 NKJV) In Christ, one is a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17). In Christ, are found all spiritual blessings (Eph. 1:3). "In Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been made near by the blood of Christ." (Eph. 2:13 NKJV) That is in Christ and not out of him. The list could go on and on, but the point is that to be "in Christ" is absolutely essential to salvation, but to be in Christ is to be in his body, the church. The church is thus essential.

One cannot join the church Christ built. God adds the man or woman to it under certain conditions. "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." (Acts 2:47 NKJV). Who was added to the church? Those who were being saved. Who then is in the church? The saved. Who is outside the church? The unsaved.

Does God just add whoever he pleases to the church unconditionally? If so, it would not be a man's fault if he failed to obtain salvation. There would be nothing he could do about it as it would be entirely in God's hands. It does not work that way. At the close of the first gospel sermon ever preached, Peter exhorted the crowd saying, "Save yourselves from this untoward generation." (Acts 2:40 KJV) Other more modern translations use the words "be saved," but the thought is the same. It is up to the individual. The individual has something to do. Salvation is not unconditional, and God does not save men adding them to the church unconditionally.

Does this mean that all who are in the church are saved? No, for some go astray and live in sin and hypocrisy, in indifference and unconcern, without a deep abiding faith and love, who have fallen away. It does mean, however, that you must be in the church to be saved, for that is where those who will be saved are placed by God.

Upon hearing the gospel, before one can be added to the church, before God will do the adding, one must believe what he has heard. Paul defines the gospel by which we are saved if we believe in 1 Cor. 15:3-4, "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he arose again the third day according to the scriptures." (NKJV) This correlates with Peter's confession of Christ in Matt. 16 when Christ asked, "But who do you say that I am?" (Matt. 16:15 NKJV) Peter's reply was, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Matt. 16:16 NKJV) Jesus then says, "On this rock I will build my church." (Matt. 16:18 NKJV) It was by the resurrection that Jesus was "declared to be the Son of God with power … by the resurrection from the dead." (Rom. 1:4 NKJV) Thus, one must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died for our sins and was raised from the dead.

Jesus Christ as the Son of God is the foundation upon which the church was built, "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." (2 Cor. 3:11 NKJV) He is the "chief cornerstone" (Eph. 2:20 NKJV) of the church. So a man must believe these things about Christ to be saved. Faith, then, is essential. We are "living stones" (1 Peter 2:5 NKJV) being built up as "a spiritual house" (church - DS) (1 Peter 2:5 NKJV) upon the foundation that has been laid--on Christ Jesus.

But, is this faith enough by itself? No, and all know it who are honest. Why do I say that? Because on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, when Peter preached Jesus to the Jews, he did not once command them to have faith in Jesus. Why not? He did not need to, for their faith became evident when they cried out to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "'Men and brethren, what shall we do?'" (Acts 2:37 NKJV) Make no mistake about it, these Jews believed everything Peter preached that day in preaching Jesus.

Here is my point—if we are saved by faith alone, why not dismiss that crowd on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, dismiss them and all go home? If we are saved by faith alone, there is no need for any further instructions as to how to become a child of God, a Christian. There is no need for further instruction on what is necessary to be saved. When the men ask "what shall we do," why not tell them to go home now and just continue to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and Savior of the world?

The answer is simple enough for an honest man. Faith was not all that was necessary. Peter tells them to, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." (Acts 2:38 NKJV) There are many who say that yes, in order to be saved, one must also repent of one's sins. However, that is where they want to stop. They want to separate repentance from baptism in the passage and gladly ignore the fact there is a coordinating conjunction there, the word "and," that joins the two words, making one just as essential as the other. That separation will not work. Peter said they must do both. If repentance is essential for the remission of sins, the passage teaches that baptism is also.

Denominations do not practice this, nor do they believe it. But, remember this article is not about how to get into a denomination. It is how to get into Christ, which is the same thing as getting into his body, the church. None of us should care how to go about getting into a denomination. Who needs one? It is the church Christ built into which one must enter for salvation.

The only man prepared to enter into Christ where salvation is found, to enter his body, which is the church, is a penitent obedient believer. He/she is obedient in the sense the person is willing to obey as he/she learns the Lord's will, which at this point is repentance and baptism.

In the Great Commission, the apostles were instructed to baptize only one group of people--those who were made "disciples." (Matt. 28:19 NKJV) One can only know whether or not a person who presents himself for baptism is a believer by asking him. This brings us to another element essential for salvation--the confession of Christ. "With the mouth confession is made to salvation." (Rom. 10:10) Timothy was said to "have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses." (1 Tim. 6:12 NKJV) It is the good confession Christ witnessed before Pontius Pilate (1 Tim. 6:13), which was that he was "the Christ, the Son of the Blessed" (Mark 14:61-62). See also Acts 8:36-38.

Thus, the steps into Christ are (in order) faith, repentance, confession of Christ, and finally baptism into Christ. How does one get into the body of Christ, the church? "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body." (1 Cor. 12:13 NKJV) "Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus ....” (Rom. 6:3 NKJV) "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." (Gal. 3:27 NKJV) There is no such thing as a Christian in the New Testament that was not baptized for the remission of sins. Why do I say that?

(1) Baptism was for the remission of sins. (2) It was into Christ. (3) Christ commanded it (Mark 16:16, Matt. 28:18-20, John 3:3-5). (4) Peter commanded "every one of you" to do it. No exceptions on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. Paul said to the Corinthians "we were all baptized into one body" (1 Cor. 12:13 NKJV), no exceptions. (5) The churches of Judea were "in Christ" (Gal. 1:22, 1 Thess. 2:14). A church can only be in Christ as the membership is in Christ; that comes by way of baptism.

The individual who complies with the conditions that God gave will be added by God to the church, for the same process that makes one a Christian adds him to the church when done from the heart. Only God can know whether or not one truly believes in Jesus from his heart. Only God can know if a man has repented from the heart of his sins. These things being true, a man can by all appearances go through the steps essential to salvation, but God only knows the sincerity of the heart.

I cannot add you to the church even if you by all appearances seem to meet God's qualifications. That is God's business, not mine nor man's. Since I cannot know or judge your heart, I have to assume your sincerity and honesty and accept you as a child of God, a living stone in God's church. I would want the same treatment from you. A faithful Christian will never deny such a one the right hand of fellowship.

I would remind the reader in closing that to be in Christ is the same as being in his body, in his church, and that is where salvation is found, in the body of Christ. "He is the Savior of the body." (Eph. 5:23 NKJV) How does one get into the church Christ built? The Bible provides the answer. Denominations do not.

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