Category: Salvation

In Philippians 2:12-13, the Apostle Paul exhorted Christians to “…as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” The text clearly shows that man has an obligation regarding his own standing before God. Though we are saved by grace, this does not excuse us from honest and diligent effort to obey God. He saves us, but we are sadly mistaken if we believe that He will save us without any effort on our part. Those who are unrepentant sinners will only suffer loss.

In the New Testament, there are two instances where a disciple is referred to as one who is “full of faith.” Stephen (Acts 6:5,8) and Barnabas (Acts 11:24) are the two men mentioned. The Holy Spirit chose two men who personify the apostle’s admonition to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Stephen suffered martyrdom because of his unflinching proclamation of the gospel of our Lord. In Acts 11, we are told that as a result of Barnabas’ preaching “a great many people were added to the Lord” (vs. 24). Barnabas continued steadfastly in his work, and was a great help and companion to Paul in his ministry.

Continue reading “Working Out Your Own Salvation” →

The account of Saul’s conversion is unique in many ways because it involves not only his conversion, but also his appointment as an apostle. However, Saul had to do what all have to do in order to receive the forgiveness of his sins.

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AOTS Number 52

Children want to know if their pet is going to heaven? Does God care about animals? Are we different than the animals? These are challenging questions, but fortunately, we have scriptural answers to give.

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Jesus promised his disciples (and by extension, all Christians) an eternal abode with Him in heaven. If we desire the reward, and live a life in keeping with Christ’s commands, we have a mansion prepared for us.

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As Acts 8, with Philip preaching to the Eunuch shows, the Lord gives each of us opportunities to preach the gospel of our Lord.

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AOTS Number 37

Because the hope we have in Christ does not depend upon self, there is no reason for the Christian to be a pessimist.

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Podcast Number 46

Does the text in Acts 2:38 indicate that we are baptized because our sins are forgiven, or in order to receive the forgiveness of sins. Context and a word study indicate that “for the remission of sins” indicates that repentance and baptism are necessary for salvation!

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Faith in Jesus Christ reconciles us to God, thus giving peace, sonship, heirship and eternal life.

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In his epistle to the Philippians, the apostle Paul expressed his attitude toward his service to Christ. Simply put, he wasn’t about to “count his chickens before they hatched.” In his own words, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14).

The reason for this single-minded approach in his service to the Lord is stated in the preceding verses, “that I may gain Christ, and be found in him” (vs. 8b-9a). Further, he longed for the result of such a fellowship with his Lord, “if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection of the dead” (vs. 11).

Continue reading ““I Press Toward the Goal”” →

The book of Acts reveals the joy of each individual as they obey the gospel of Christ, and become children of God. They rejoice when they rise from the waters of baptism, and all of God’s children rejoice with them.

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(Gospel Meeting: Mark Mayberry) Seventh in a series of nine lessons based on 1 John 2:15-17. Where the world passes away, those who live according to God’s will have the hope of eternal blessings through their relationship with the Son of God.

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Podcast Number 25

The doctrine of justification by faith is a doctrine full of comfort to the Christian. It is also one of the most misunderstood doctrines in the Bible.

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We commonly use the phrase “A to Z” to identify the sum total of any particular thing. If a person is knowledgeable on a subject, we say he knows it from “A to Z.” If a person is accomplished in a particular area, we say that he has done it all, from “A to Z.”

In the Bible, similar phrases are used.

Continue reading “Alpha & Omega” →

There is much to be learned about the Redemption of man in the short salutation Paul gives to the Romans in the beginning of his epistle (Romans 1:1-7).

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Whether it be the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, the imperfect knowledge of Christ exhibited by Saul, The Eunuch and Cornelius prior to their exposure to the gospel of Christ, or the Lukewarmness of the Laodiceans, just being “religious” does not guarantee salvation.

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