Historical Posts
Jesus Our Savior
We are all drowning spiritually. And, there is a Savior. But sadly, most reject his help. It makes no sense.
Have you ever been lost? It’s a frightening thing to be lost and alone and need a savior! Maybe as a child you were separated from your mother in a larger department store. Perhaps you were a hunter on new terrain. Unfamiliar with the topography, you became disoriented. Or, you took the wrong exit on the freeway and ended up in unfamiliar surroundings. Whatever the situation, we have all been there and needed help.
- The heart races.
- The palms sweat.
- Panic sets in.
- An overwhelming sense of helplessness and despair fills the soul.
- It seems hopeless.
- Something terrible is bound to follow.
Do you remember how relieved you were when a clerk calmly reassured you that everything would be all right and helped you locate you mother (or child)? Or, you saw a familiar landmark and found the path back to camp? Or, you saw a sign pointing you in the right direction, and were soon on track again? Whoever, or whatever the savior, there was a deep sense of relief and gratitude.
Now, imagine something even more frightening. Your boat has capsized in the middle of the Ohio river. You neglected to wear your life jacket, and you are a mediocre swimmer at best. You can stay afloat for a few minutes, but if help does not come soon, it will be over. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a boat pulls alongside and offers assistance. How would you respond? No right thinking person would reject such an offer, would they?
The fact is, we are all drowning spiritually. And, there is a Savior. But sadly, most reject his help. It makes no sense. He is the only Savior (Acts 4:12). Reject Him, and there is no hope. Death is inevitable without His help. Again, you would think no one would reject his offer, but they do. Millions do!
Let me urge you not to make the mistake of turning your back on the only Savior there is. John Rowe wrote: “I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore, very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more; but the Master of the sea heard my despairing cry, from the waters lifted me, now safe am I.”
Jesus came to rescue all of us, but He can only save those who reach out to Him. Do you believe (John 8:24)? Have you repented (Luke 13:3)? Have you been baptized (Acts 2:38)? Is He your Savior?
Salvation: Hear - Believe - Repent - Confess - Be Baptized - Live Faithfully
Content by Roger Rush
Visit Roger at the 6th and Washington Street Church of Christ in Marietta OH.
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One out of a Hundred – audio
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Do you like collecting things?
Perhaps you collect coins, stamps, baseball cards, or some other common item. I have the first set of Hardy Boys books in hardback, including the Handbook. I am also attempting to visit all 30 NHL arenas, collecting tickets and pucks from each one. If just one is missing, my collection would not be complete! I enjoy each and every book, ticket, and puck; other collectors enjoy each and every coin, stamp, or card.
A shepherd does more than just collect sheep.
He feeds them, protects them, and guides them. He also is concerned if even one sheep goes missing! Jesus is our Good Shepherd (John 10:11-16). He is willing to lay down His life for His sheep. If one sheep goes astray, He will go looking for it!
Yes, every single sheep is important!
If He has 100 sheep and one goes missing, will He not leave the 99 and look for the one that is lost? Let Jesus answer for Himself: Matthew 18:11-14. When one’s collection is complete, there is much rejoicing! Likewise, there is much rejoicing when a wayward Christian comes home. Jesus came to “seek and save that which was lost (Luke 19:10).” Is He looking for you?
Are you the lost sheep, or do you know a lost sheep?
Do you need to come home? Do you know where the lost sheep are? Can you help them find their way again? As Jesus said, “it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish (Matthew 18:14).”
Peter said that God is “longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).”
Paul told Timothy that God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).”
Content by Richard Dillon
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The Challenge of Evangelism
Introduction
- The church faces many challenges. There is the challenge of restoring New Testament Christianity in a religiously pluralistic society – John 14:6. There is the challenge of making our homes what God wants them to be – Psalm 127:1. There is the challenge to remain holy – 1 Peter 15-16. But the supreme challenge we have as Christians is to take Jesus Christ to the world – Mark 16:15-16.
- To meet the challenge of evangelism every Christian must be serious about doing their part to assure everybody hears the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must have the zeal to teach the world the Word of God as the first century church did – Acts 19:8-10; Acts 8:3-4.
- If you had a medical emergency, your loved ones would feel a great urgency to get medical attention immediately to help. The world today has a great spiritual emergency and needs Christians to respond to keep them from spiritual death through the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
All Accountable Men and Women are Lost and Need Forgiveness
- Christians must see the urgency and the need to save lost souls that are dying everyday. Every soul that has transgressed God’s commandment is lost and separated from God – Isaiah 59:1-2. And anyone separated from God needs forgiveness – Romans 3:23; 6:23. Your soul and everyone else’s soul is valuable and worth all the effort to save!
- At the Day of Judgment, all accountable men & women that do not know God or have not obeyed the gospel of Christ will be eternally punished night & day forever – 2 Thessalonians 1:-7-9. In 2 Peter 3:9, you learn that God does not want us to perish, but wants all to come to repentance. Which should encourage each of us to reach out to lost soul and plant the seed of the Word of God that they might obey Jesus to be saved?
- If you are not committed to the teaching and preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and feel you are not accountable to do your part to teach Christ to the lost, it is not likely you will be evangelistic. May we all have the spirit of the Apostle Paul, “…woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!”– 1 Corinthians 9:16
God Has Only One Plan of Redemption to Save Man
- God has a plan for the redemption of man; God has one plan, one way, and one church to save men & women from their sins – Matthew 7:13-14. That one way is Jesus Christ, and His church that was purchased with His own blood – John 14:6. Salvation is only in Jesus Christ and not through other men or churches – Acts 4:12.
- It is important for all the world to know the truth because error and false doctrine fills the world, and the only thing that can liberated those in the bondage of sin is the truth – John 8:31-32. Did you know many people’s worship to God is in vain because they do not have a proper relationship with God and they’re practicing false doctrines of men – Matthew 15:8-9.
- If you have neglected your Christian responsibility of teach the Word of God, why not come today and rededicate yourself to His service – James 5:19-20. If you’re lost, Christ died for yours sins, and God raised Him from the Dead. Why not come today.
Content by Harry (Andy) Anderson Jr.Return to the Home Page
Decision Tree – Judgment in a Saved Condition
(Did you jump into the middle of this? Please start at the beginning of the decision tree.)
Your physical life is over and you now face the benefit of the decisions you made while you were alive. You are spiritually alive before God. You have:
- Lived your life believing in Jesus. Eternal life is the result (John 3:15-17).
- Searched the scriptures and found eternal life (John 5:39)
- Gone to the Word of God to find eternal life (John 6:68)
- Been willing to lose your life for Christ, and found it (John 12:25-26)
- Believed the things that were written and lead to life (John 20:30-31)
- Confessed Christ before men, now he will confess you before His Father (Luke 12:8).
All Decisions are Now in God’s Hands
Content by Zachary Van Tassel
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Few Versus Many – Luke 13:23-28
Text: Luke 13:23-28
In Luke 13:23, An individual asks Jesus if there are few who can be saved. The disciples asked a similar question in Matthew 19:25, wondering who could be saved. Here the question is ‘how many?,’ rather than ‘which ones?’
Many Will Attempt to Enter Heaven
Jesus says in Luke 13:24 that there are many who will attempt to enter, and cannot. We must not be with the many. Instead we must strive to go in the narrow gate.
A similar passage is Matthew 7:13-14, where Jesus compares the wide gate and broad way that leads to destruction wherein many enter, with the narrow gate and difficult way which few find. The wise man says “there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12).
But Are Not Known by Jesus
In Luke 13:25 Jesus says that some will be on the outside looking in, and will say “Lord, Lord, open for us.” Instead of being admitted, they will not be known.
Jesus rebuked those that said “Lord, Lord” but did not do what He said (Luke 6:46). Again in Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus says that not everyone that says “Lord, Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but those that do His Father’s will.
We Must Truly Be His
People will claim to do things in the name of Christ in Luke 13:26, but have they? After all, Paul commands us to do all in His name (Colossians 3:17). He also warned Timothy and Titus to beware of false teachers, and that many would be led astray by them. John said not to believe every spirit, but to test each one to see if they are of God (1 John 4:1ff.).
The False Will Be Lost
Jesus confirms they are false in Luke 13:27, telling them to depart for He never knew them and they work iniquity (see Matthew 7:21-23 above, and Matthew 25:41-46).
In Luke 13:28, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all prophets are in the kingdom of God, but some will be thrust out.
We don’t want to be on the outside looking in! On the outside there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; rather, we should be on the inside. Remember, “many are called, but few will be chosen” (Matthew 20:16).
Content by Richard Dillon
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Luke 13:23-28 Lord, Are There Few That Be Saved? audio
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Reading: Matthew 7:13-14
Text: Luke 13:23-28
Introduction
- QUOTE: John 3:16-17
When you read the message of God, you should get excited, because God has made a way for all in the bondage of sin to be delivered out darkness into the Light by Jesus – Colossians 1:12-14
Therefore, salvation is being delivered from end result of sin (death).
- Almost Everyone Wants to Be Saved
Interestingly, when you converse with people about salvation, almost everybody wants to be saved or wants to go to heaven, but only a few are willing to strive to comply with God’s requirements to be saved – Luke 6:46; Matthew 15:8-9
Today, the sermon is titled LORD, ARE THERE FEW THAT BE SAVED? (Luke 13:23-28)
Jesus Says to Strive (Agonize) to Enter in at the Strait Gate
- Jesus admonishes striving to enter the strait gate – Luke 13:23
The word strait means to be constrained, restricted, or narrow.
Therefore, the strait gate will be difficult and not easy to pass through because it requires faithfulness (obedience) to God.
As a result, few will enter in – John 14:15
- Deception
It’s a deception of our adversary the devil (1 Peter 5:8), to believe entering into the kingdom of God (the strait gate) takes little forethought or effort – Luke 13:23
In Acts 14:22, we learn it will take continued faithfulness, and going through much tribulations to enter into the kingdom of God.
It’s not good enough just to get at good start.
We must continue to the end – John 8:31-32; Matthew 10:22
Entering the strait gate will require faithfulness until death – Revelation 2:10
- Two Ways
There are two ways you can follow, the narrow way (life) and the broad way (destruction) – Matthew 7:13-14
There will be many people whom will follow the broad way, and a few will be faithful to God and follow the narrow way that leads to eternal life.
Jesus, tells us to strive to enter the strait gate because many will seek to enter in and not be able – Luke 13:23
Jesus Says That Many Will Seek to Enter in and Not Be Able
- Many Will Seek
Many will seek to enter in and not be able because they have entered the wide gate of disobedience to God – Matthew 7:21-23
Multitudes in this group will take the path of least resistance, they will do things there way and not God’s way and will find themselves lost – Luke 13:25-29
- A High Price
The cost of becoming a Christian (or entering the strait gate) is too high a price for many people to pay for salvation – Mark 10:17-22; Matthew 16:24-26
For masses of people, obeying the gospel of Christ is not easy task for them. Why? Because it requires one to forsake all things and to love God more than man – Luke 14:26-33
- Biblical History
And finally can anyone ignore the Biblical history on the question Lord, are there few that be saved?
– In Genesis 6:5-8, God sees the wickedness of man but Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
– In 1 Peter 3:20, we find a few souls were saved from the great flood.
– Shall we not also consider Israel whom God saved from Egyptian bondage but afterward destroyed them because of unbelief – Jude 5.
– Only two men entered Canaan land that left Egypt Joshua & Caleb – Numbers 26:63-65
Therefore, let us strive to enter in the strait gate, since few will be saved! When Jesus comes back again, do you want to be on the outside looking in? – Luke 13:28
HEAR BELIEVE REPENT CONFESS BAPTISM LIVE FAITHFULLY
Content by Harry (Andy) Anderson Jr.Return to the Home Page
Religion is Dangerous – Luke 18:11-12
Text: Luke 18:11-12
I think religion’s danger is that it gives us false comfort that this is what it means to know God.
Remember the Pharisee’s prayer?
“God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get” (Luke 18:11-12).
Five!
That’s how many times he uses the first-person pronoun “I” in that short little self-congratulatory prayer.
“Are you saved, Mr. Pharisee?”
“Of course I am. Look at everything I do and don’t do.”
“So you’ve never sinned?”
[Long pause]
“Well, sure, but not nearly as often as most. See that tax collector over there? That’s what a real sinner looks like.”
The Pharisee’s major problem was that his religion had skewed his view of himself
He honestly thought he was on good ground before God because of what he had done, and, perhaps more importantly, what he hadn’t.
The tax collector, on the other hand, who presumably had very little religion, was on much better footing with God. Why?
Because he knew he desperately needed God for salvation. He knew he had nothing to bring to the table.
And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!‘ (Luke 18:13)
“Are you saved, Mr. Christian?”
“Of course I am. I’ve been baptized, and my church attendance is almost perfect. And besides, I don’t drink, lie, or cheat on my taxes.”
None of us would say that, of course, but I’m afraid that sometimes we think it, if only subconsciously.
It’s all because we love to create ways to measure faithfulness. We look at things we can see and quantify, like attending church, committing sexual sins, or giving financially to the church. They tell us what we think we need to know about our faithfulness.
But the most important question is this:
Do our hearts belong to Jesus?
If they do, then sure, many of the outward signs will follow.
The problem is . . . in different ways we can motivate ourselves into doing the outward part while ignoring the heart.
That’s why religion is dangerous
It helps us avoid asking the tough questions about where our allegiance really lies.
With God or the world?
Content by Donald W. Treadway
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