WHAT WILL BE YOUR
ETERNAL HOME?
Questions
and Answers
about
God's
Salvation Plan for Mankind
from
God's Holy
Word, the Bible
Family Radio
School of the Bible
October 2003
What Will Be
Your Eternal Home?
Q-1. My eternal home? Well, I believe I will be
in Heaven with God after I die. Won't only extremely wicked people be in
Hell?
A. According to God's
Word, the Bible, most people who have ever lived will spend eternity in
Hell under God's righteous hatred and anger because of their sins. Jesus
Christ tells us in the following verses that only those “few” whom
God saves find the "narrow way" to eternal life:
Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter ye in at the strait [narrow] gate: for wide is the
gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be
which go in thereat: Because strait [narrow] is the gate, and narrow
[constricted] is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find
it."
We know from other verses in the Bible that the word
"few" here means that only "a remnant" (a small percentage)
of mankind will be saved. The words "destruction" and
"life" refer to eternal damnation (Hell) and eternal life (Heaven).
Actually, God considers all of us wicked enough in our natural,
sinful state to be sent to Hell:
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God;"
Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately
wicked: who can know it?"
Psalms 9:17 "The wicked shall be turned into hell..."
The Bible says that Jesus Christ is the Only Way
to be saved from Hell and, as a result, to live eternally with God:
John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth,
and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
This booklet contains information from the Bible to help
you understand more about this very important matter of God's salvation plan.
The verses quoted are from the King James Version of the
Bible that was first published in AD 1611. In this booklet the words in
brackets [ ] have been added for clarification purposes and some
words are shown in bold type for emphasis. Please read the Bible verses carefully.
Q-2. Who is Jesus Christ?
A. That is one of the
most important questions anyone can ask, and various aspects of the answer are
found throughout the Bible, which is also called the "Scriptures" and
the "Book". God used a man named Moses to write the first five parts,
or "books", of the Bible:
Luke 24:27, 44 "And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he [Jesus
Christ] expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning
himself…And he [Jesus Christ] said unto them, These are the words which
I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be
fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in
the psalms, concerning me."
John 5:39, 46-47 "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal
life: and they are they which testify of me [Jesus Christ]…For had ye believed
Moses, ye would have believed me [Jesus Christ]: for he wrote of me. But if ye
believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?"
Hebrews 10:7 "Then said I [Jesus Christ], Lo, I come (in the
volume of the book it is written of me) to do thy will, O God."
(1) Jesus Christ is Eternal God of the Bible
who became a man about 2,000 years ago. He
was conceived by God the Holy Spirit, was given birth by a woman, lived in a
physical body for nearly 40 years, died by crucifixion, was buried, rose
physically from the dead, and returned to Heaven. The Bible states that there
is One God who exists as Three Persons – God the Father, God the
Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit: Deuteronomy 6:4-5 "Hear, O Israel: The
LORD [Jehovah] our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God
with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." Isaiah
46:9-10 "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and
there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the
end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet
done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:"
Matthew 28:19 "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father, and of the Son [Jesus Christ], and of the
Holy Ghost [Holy Spirit]:" 2 Corinthians 13:14 "The
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God [the Father],
and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all..."
(2) The Bible
was written in two sections: the Old Testament (written mostly in Hebrew) and
the New Testament (written in Greek). God of the Old Testament and God of the
New Testament are one and the same Eternal God of the Bible: Isaiah 44:6 "Thus saith the LORD
the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts [Jesus Christ]; I am
the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." John
10:30 "I [Jesus Christ] and my Father are one." John
14:9-10 "Jesus saith…he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and
how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I [Jesus
Christ] am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak
unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he
doeth the works." Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ the same
yesterday, and to day, and for ever." Revelation 1:8, 22:13
"I [Jesus Christ] am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,
saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty…
I [Jesus Christ] am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the
first and the last."
(3) Eternal God of the Bible is the only
God. God is not simply the greatest of
many gods – He is the only True and Living God. This separates Him from
all other gods and idols, which are merely concepts and forms that humans have
produced from their own minds and in the image of things God created: Psalms 96:4-5 "For the LORD [Jehovah]
is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. For all
the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens." Isaiah
45:22-23 "Look unto me [Jehovah], and be ye saved, all the ends of the
earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by
myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not
return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear."
Jeremiah 10:10 "But the LORD [Jehovah] is the true God, he is the living God, and an
everlasting king: at his wrath
the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his
indignation." Romans 1:21-23, 25 "Because that, when
they [mankind] knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful;
but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of
the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds,
and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things…Who changed the truth of God into
a lie, and worshipped and served the creature [creation] more than the
Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen."
(4) Jesus Christ is the "Word of
God", who is the Creator of all
things: Genesis
1:1 "In
the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." John 1:1-3
"In the beginning was the Word [Jesus Christ], and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All
things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was
made." John 1:10, 14 "He [Jesus Christ] was in the world, and the
world was made by him, and the world knew him not…And the Word
[Jesus Christ] was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory,
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and
truth." Colossians 1:16-17 "For by him [Jesus Christ] were all
things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and
invisible… all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before
all things, and by him all things consist." Revelation 19:13
"And he [Jesus Christ] was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his
name is called The Word of God."
(5) The Scriptures are also called the
"Word of God". Jesus Christ is
God's Incarnate Word (that is, God in human flesh). He is God's Ultimate
Revelation to mankind and is the personification of the Bible, God's Written
Word. The Word of God is eternal, and its purpose is God's eternal salvation
program for mankind: Isaiah 40:8
"The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall
stand for ever." Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth shall
pass away, but my [Christ's] words shall not pass away." Ephesians 6:16-17 "Above all, taking the
shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of
the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God:" Hebrews 4:12 "For the word
of God is quick [living], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged
sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit [i.e.,
the spiritual], and of the joints and marrow [i.e., the physical], and
is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
(6) God's Word comprises the Law and the
Gospel. God is Spirit, and His Word (the
Bible) is spiritual (John 4:24; 6:63). The spiritual
theme of the Bible is God’s salvation program for mankind, and the Bible is
full of stories about people and historical events to illustrate various
aspects of God’s program. God reveals the nature of His program – and,
therefore, His own nature – with the Law (commandments) and the Gospel
of grace (promises). The two elements
are united and inseparable. The Law is
an integral part of the Gospel, and the Gospel is an integral part of the Law.
The whole Bible is a harmonious unit that comprises both parts and is the
complete written revelation of God to man. The purpose of God’s
salvation program is to redeem His people from His eternal wrath for His
glory: Jeremiah
24:7
"And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the
LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they
shall return unto me with their whole heart." Ephesians 1:11-12 "In
whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to
the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in
Christ." 1 Peter 2:9 "But ye are a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth
the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous
light:"
(7) Jesus Christ, who is fully God and fully
man, is called both the "Son of God" and the "Son of Man"
in the Bible. Eternal God is unique. No
person, object, or idea can be compared to God. Anything said about God must be
based on His revelation of Himself to us in the Bible. The reality of God is
always much greater than human minds can understand or express: Isaiah 55:8-9 "For my thoughts are
not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my
thoughts than your thoughts." 1 Corinthians 2:14 "But
the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are
foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned."
(8) Jesus Christ is the Supreme Ruler of the
Universe. His title "Christ"
means Anointed One, or King: Acts 2:36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that
God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ."
1 Timothy 6:15-16 "Which in his [Jesus Christ's] times he
shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord
of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can
approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power
everlasting. Amen."
(9) Jesus Christ is the Savior of His
people, who are from "all nations, and kindreds, and people, and
tongues" of the world (Revelation 7:9). His name "Jesus" means "Jehovah
is Salvation": Isaiah 43:11 "I, even I, am the LORD [Jehovah]; and beside me there is
no saviour." Matthew 1:21 "… thou shalt call his name JESUS:
for he shall save his people from their sins."
Q-3. Why do we need a Savior?
A. Man needs a Savior
because he is a fallen, sinful creature. Every human being has disobeyed God's
Word and, consequently, is under the condemnation and wrath of God in his
natural, or unsaved, state. Jesus Christ provides the Only Way to be saved
from spending eternity in Hell. Only if Christ has paid the penalty for our
sins can we stand without condemnation before God. In other words: if we do not
have Christ as our Savior, we must pay for our own sins in Hell. The Bible
explains how mankind got into this predicament as follows:
(1) God set up a test for our first parents
in the Garden of Eden by His Word, or Law: Genesis 2:16-17 "And the LORD God commanded
the man [Adam], saying, Of every tree of the garden [Eden] thou mayest freely
eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of
it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."
(2) Satan, a fallen spirit being, deceived
man into rebelling against God: Genesis 3:4-5 "And the serpent [Satan] said unto the woman [Eve], Ye shall
not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your
eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."
(3) Adam's pride caused him to fail the
test. He disobeyed God's Word (Law), and he fell into sin: Genesis 3:6 "And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and
that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise,
she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with
her; and he did eat."
(4) Adam's sin of disobedience brought death
into the world: Genesis 3:17-19 "And unto Adam he [God] said, Because thou hast hearkened
unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which
I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground
for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns
also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of
the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto
the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust
shalt thou return."
(5) As descendants of Adam and Eve, mankind
has inherited a sinful nature; and, consequently, the whole human race is
infected with sin, is in rebellion against God, and is subject to death: Romans 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world,
and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have
sinned:" Psalms 51:5 "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me." Psalms 58:3 "The wicked
are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking
lies."
(6) God gave Satan (the Devil) and other
fallen angels (demons) rule over unsaved man because Satan spiritually
conquered mankind with his deception: John 8:44 [Jesus said] "Ye are of your father the
devil [Satan], and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from
the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.
When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the
father of it." 1 John 3:8 "He that committeth sin is of
the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son
of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." 2 Corinthians
4:3-4 "But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In
whom the god of this world [Satan] hath blinded the minds of them which believe
not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God,
should shine unto them."
(7) Disobeying God's Word (Law) is sin: 1 John 3:4
"Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the
transgression of the law."
(8) Man is alienated from God in his natural
state because of his sins: Proverbs 15:29 "The LORD is far from
the wicked [unsaved]: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous [saved]."
Psalms 34:16 "The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to
cut off the remembrance of them from the earth." Romans 3:10-11, 23
"… There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth,
there is none that seeketh after God… For all have sinned, and come short of
the glory of God."
(9) The
penalty for sin is eternal damnation in Hell: Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin
is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord." John 3:36 "He [one who is saved] that believeth on the
Son hath everlasting life: and he [one
who is not saved] that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the
wrath of God abideth on him."
Q-4. What will Hell be like?
A. Hell is to be under
God's eternal wrath and punishment for our sins. It is not simply
"annihilation" – as many people want to believe – because man has an
eternal soul. Hell will be terrible beyond anything we can imagine, and God
uses dreadful language to describe it:
(1) Hell will be eternal
"punishment": Matthew 25:46 "And these shall go
away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life
eternal."
(2) Hell
will be eternal "torment": Revelation 14:11 "And the smoke of their torment
ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night…"
(3) Hell will be eternal
"darkness": Matthew 22:13 "…cast him into
outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
(4) Hell will be eternal "fire": Mark 9:44 "Where their
worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." Revelation
20:15 "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was
cast into the lake of fire."
Q-5. Who will execute judgment upon unsaved people and
sentence them to Hell?
A. God the Son, Jesus
Christ, is the Savior of His people, whose sins were forgiven through
His sacrifice at the Cross. He is also the Judge of all unsaved people,
whose sins have not been forgiven. They must pay for their own sins in Hell:
Isaiah 33:22 "For the LORD [Jehovah] is our judge, the LORD is our
lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us."
John 5:22 "For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all
judgment unto the Son [Jesus Christ]."
Matthew 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to
kill the soul: but rather fear him [Jesus Christ] which is able to destroy
both soul and body in hell."
Q-6. Why would a loving God create an eternal
"Hell"?
A. It is true the
Bible says, "God
is love" (1 John 4:8, 16) because
God demonstrates His love by salvation. God saves those He loves, and those He
saves love Him in return. However, the Bible also says that God is "a consuming fire"
(Deuteronomy 4:24; Hebrews 12:29) because
God's wrath is often represented by "fire" in the Bible. God, who is
perfectly righteous, cannot tolerate or excuse sin in any form.
God's perfect justice demands a severe penalty for sin that He calls the
"second death" – eternal damnation in Hell under the wrath of God:
Deuteronomy 7:9-10 "Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the
faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep
his commandments to a thousand generations; And repayeth them that hate him to
their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he
will repay him to his face."
Psalms 21:8-9 "Thine [God's] hand shall find out all thine enemies: thy
right hand shall find out those that hate thee. Thou [God] shalt make them as a
fiery oven in the time of thine anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his
wrath, and the fire shall devour them."
Habakkuk 1:13 "Thou [God] art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and
canst not look on iniquity."
Revelation 21:8 "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and
murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall
have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the
second death."
Q-7. That doesn't make sense to me. Doesn't God love
everyone in the whole world?
A. God's love is
related to His salvation program. He loves His chosen people (the elect), who
are scattered all over the world; and He demonstrates His love by saving them
from eternal Hell:
Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth [exhibits] his love toward us
[believers], in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
Galatians 3:13 "Christ hath redeemed us [believers] from the curse of the
law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that
hangeth on a tree:"
2 Corinthians 5:21 "For he [God] hath made him [Jesus Christ] to be sin for us
[believers], who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in
him."
Revelation 5:9
"And they [believers] sung a new song, saying, Thou [Jesus Christ] art
worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain,
and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and
people, and nation;"
The popular "God loves you" slogan is part of a
particularly deceptive false gospel that teaches that Christ died for the sins
of every human being and now some action by man is required to
"accept" God's gift of salvation. That kind of false gospel promises
that anyone can obtain "peace and safety" with God at any time they
so desire. If true, that would put man in control of his eternal destiny.
However, that view is contrary to what the Bible teaches – that is, man cannot
save himself. God has indicated that there will be a proliferation of these
kinds of false gospels prior to Christ's return:
2 Corinthians 11:3 "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled
Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity
that is in Christ."
1 Timothy 4:1-2 "Now the [Holy] Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the
latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits,
and doctrines of devils [demons]; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their
conscience seared with a hot iron."
2 Corinthians 11:13-15 "For such are false apostles, deceitful
workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel;
for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no
great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of
righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 "For
yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the
night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction
cometh upon them, as travail [birth pains] upon a woman with child; and
they shall not escape."
God considers those who become deceived by false gospels to
be "spiritually drunk" and under God's wrath:
Deuteronomy 29:19-20 "And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this
curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace,
though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness
to thirst: The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his
jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in
this book [the Scriptures] shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out
his name from under heaven."
The Bible teaches that God loves people from every
part of the world who believe in Jesus Christ:
John 3:16 "For God so [in this manner] loved the world, that he gave
his only begotten Son [Jesus Christ], that whosoever believeth in him should
not perish, but have everlasting life."
John 14:21 "He that hath my [Christ's] commandments, and keepeth them,
he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and
I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."
Proverbs 15:9 "The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the LORD: but
he [God] loveth him that followeth after righteousness."
However, the Bible also states clearly that God hates
all of the unsaved of the world who will stand in judgment for their sins:
Psalms 5:4-5 "For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness:
neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy
sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity."
Q-8. But isn't it unfair for God to save some people and
not all?
A. We have to
understand "fairness" from God's perspective – not our own. God is
not a “respecter” of persons (Romans 2:11; Acts 10:34; Galatians 2:6; Ephesians 6:9; Colossians
3:25). He does not have to save anyone because
we all deserve eternal damnation for our sins. However, God has the sovereign
right to save whomever He so desires without giving any reason to anyone for
His actions (Romans
9:14-16).
Romans 9:20-23 "…O man, who art thou that repliest [disputes] against God?
Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel
unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to show his
wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels
of wrath [unbelievers] fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the
riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy [believers], which he had afore
prepared unto glory."
Psalms 24:1 "…The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the
world, and they that dwell therein."
Proverbs 16:4 "The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the
wicked for the day of evil."
Q-9. Why can't I just
"believe" to become saved? Or "accept" Jesus as my personal
Savior? Or "choose" Christ? Or "decide" to follow Him? Or
"confess" my sins?
A. The Bible doesn't
say anything about man acting to "accept" or to "choose"
Jesus to become saved. The Bible says that before Creation God chose
each individual person that He would save, and God obligated Himself to
give eternal life to the elect at some point during their lifetimes.
Psalms 65:4 "Blessed
is the man whom thou [God] choosest, and causest to approach unto thee,
that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy
house, even of thy holy temple."
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 "But we are bound to give thanks alway to
God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord [believers], because God hath from
the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the
Spirit and belief of the truth: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to
the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."
The Bible teaches that we cannot save ourselves. No
church, no religious ritual, no person, and no human effort can save us. Only the work done by the Lord Jesus Christ
at the cross and by the Holy Spirit in our hearts can save us. Believing, or having
"faith", is the result of salvation – not the cause of
it. God gives spiritually dead men many commands in the Bible they cannot
possibly obey before they become saved, and one of them is to
"believe":
Acts 16:31 "…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be
saved…"
Matthew 5:48 "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which
is in heaven is perfect."
Acts 3:19 "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your
sins may be blotted out…"
Acts 2:21 "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on
the name of the Lord shall be saved."
Matthew 22:37 "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."
John 14:15 "If ye love me [Jesus], keep my commandments."
John 3:7 "Marvel not that I [Jesus] said unto thee, Ye must
be born again [from above]."
In other words, a spiritually dead person cannot
love God, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, or keep God's commandments.
Q-10. If I believe all the things the Bible says about
Jesus Christ, is that "faith"?
A. No. That just means
you acknowledge what the Bible says about Jesus is true – even demons know
those facts (James
2:19). The faith that saves people from
Hell is the faith OF Christ. That is, Jesus faithfully went to
Hell to pay for the sins of His people:
Galatians 2:16 "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the
law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus
Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by
the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be
justified."
In other words, the kind of faith that is in view here is
manifested in a believer's life as a complete trust that the Lord Jesus
Christ has done ALL the work of his or her salvation. That faith, or
trust, grows as we read and study God's Word, the Bible:
Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto
thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct
thy paths."
Romans 10:17 "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God."
Q-11. If we have never read the Bible to know God's Law,
how can God hold us accountable for breaking His Law?
A. God says in the
Bible that:
(1) He created man in His spiritual and
moral "image": Genesis 1:27 "So God created man
in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created
he them."
(2) He has placed the knowledge of eternal
existence in the hearts of men: Ecclesiastes 3:11 "…He [God] hath set
the world [eternity] in their heart, so that no man can find out the work
that God maketh from the beginning to the end."
(3) He has also written His Law on the
hearts of every human being: Romans 2:15 "Which show the work
of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing
witness..."
(4) All of us have broken His Law because of
our sinful nature: Ecclesiastes 7:20 "For there is not a
just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not." 1 John 1:8
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not
in us."
(5) We know that we are accountable to God
for our sins: Ecclesiastes 12:14 "For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every
secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Matthew 12:36
"But I [Jesus Christ] say unto you, That every idle word that men
shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." Romans
14:11-12 "For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every
knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one
of us shall give account of himself to God." Revelation 20:12
"And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books
were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the
dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according
to their works."
(6) We have no excuses for our sins: Romans 1:19-20 "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them
[mankind]; for God hath showed it unto them…so that they are without excuse."
(7) Due to these facts, man knows in his
heart that he is in trouble with God; and, consequently, he hates God for it: Proverbs 14:2 "He that walketh in his
uprightness [i.e., a saved person] feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in
his ways [i.e., an unsaved person] despiseth him [God]." James
4:4 "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship
of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the
world is the enemy of God." Romans 5:10 "For if, when we
were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much
more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his [Christ's] life." John
15:22-23 "If I [Jesus Christ] had not come and spoken unto them,
they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin. He that
hateth me hateth my Father also."
Q-12. OK, maybe I have sinned a few times; but I'm a
fairly decent person. Won't my good deeds balance out my bad behavior and
mistakes?
A. No. By God's
standards of righteousness even the most "moral" person is a
desperate sinner on his way to Hell. Our problem is not just "bad behavior
and mistakes" – sin is deliberate rebellion against God. The
Bible teaches that all of our thoughts, words, and actions are sinful in
our natural state:
(1) After the first man, Adam, rebelled
against God the whole human race died spiritually and inherited Adam's sinful
nature: Romans
5:12
"Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by
sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:"
(2) Man's basic nature is wicked: Jeremiah 17:9 "The
heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know
it?" Psalms 58:3 "The wicked are estranged from the womb:
they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies."
(3) All people are sinners: Romans 3:10-12 "… There is none
righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that
seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become
unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one." Romans
3:18 "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
(4) One sin is enough to send a person to
Hell: James
2:10 "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one
point, he is guilty of all."
(5) All unsaved people love their sins: John 3:19 "And
this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved
darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
Q-13. If mankind is so depraved and
wicked, why doesn't God just wipe out the whole human race? Why does He bother
with us at all?
A. Although everyone
deserves to be cast into eternal Hell, God sovereignly planned to save some people
for Himself from before Creation for His good pleasure and glory:
Romans 9:15 "For he [God] saith to Moses, I will have mercy on
whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom
I will have compassion."
2 Corinthians 6:16 "…for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said,
I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their
God, and they shall be my people."
Ephesians 1:4-6 "According as he [God the Father] hath chosen us in
him [God the Son] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy
and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the
adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good
pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he
hath made us accepted in the beloved."
Q-14. Now I am getting worried that maybe I'm not a
true child of God. Isn't there something I can do to guarantee that
I will be saved from Hell?
A. The Bible says there
is nothing we can do to get ourselves saved. God considers all of man's
attempts at becoming "righteous" to be like "filthy rags"
in His sight:
Isaiah 64:6 "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our
righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our
iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
We must be covered by the spotless robe of Christ's
righteousness to be acceptable to God:
Isaiah 61:10 "I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be
joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he
hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh
himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels."
All human beings are sinners and rightly deserve God's
eternal wrath. However, for those God chose to save from Hell (the
elect) He sent His Son, Jesus Christ the Savior, to endure the punishment for
their sins on the cross. Christ's physical death is not what saves His
people. He had to experience the spiritual "second death" – the
equivalent of eternity in Hell – for every person He came to save. Since
God is not confined to time and space as we are, it is only because Jesus
Christ is fully God and fully man that salvation is possible for mankind:
Isaiah 53:6 "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every
one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him [Jesus Christ] the
iniquity of us all."
John 10:11 "I [Jesus] am the good shepherd: the good shepherd
giveth his life for the sheep."
Q-15. Since God decided whom He will save before Creation
and there is nothing I can do to become saved, why did you give me this
booklet?
A. This booklet
presents the Gospel of Christ, and "gospel" means “good message” (or
"good news"). Actually, it is the “True Message” because the True
Gospel of the Bible is God’s message to mankind that contains
both bad news and good news. The bad news is that all men
are under God’s wrath and curse of death (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:17-19). The good
news is that the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners from
eternal damnation in Hell (Luke 19:10; 1 Timothy 1:15)
and that God allows sinners to humbly petition Him for mercy through prayer
(see Luke 18:13 at Q-24). God has established the procedure to be used to
carry out His salvation program, and one of His conditions is that every person
He plans to save (the elect) must come in contact with the Gospel of Christ at
some point in their lives. As believers proclaim the Gospel throughout the
world, God uses His Words of Scripture to draw His people to Himself:
Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for
it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth…"
John 6:44 "No man can come to me [Jesus Christ], except the Father
which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last
day."
Psalms 51:17 "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and
a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise."
Q-16. I'm confused. How can anyone become saved?
A. Jesus answered a
similar question from His disciples in Matthew 19:26, "…With men this is impossible;
but with God all things are possible." Since
natural man is spiritually dead, he is completely helpless with regard
to his salvation – it is impossible for man to save himself. But God, in His
mercy, can save any wretched sinner He so desires out of the whole miserable
mass of humanity and make him a "vessel unto honor" (Romans 9:21).
The Bible clearly teaches that salvation is totally by
God's sovereign grace, mercy and love. God does ALL the miraculous work
of salvation. Only God can give a person eternal life. God must draw His chosen
people to Himself and grant them repentance, spiritual understanding, faith to
trust Him, and a capacity to love and obey Him. The fact that anyone
"seeks" God is because God gives him that desire. Only God can create
a new eternal soul, or "heart", and make a "new creature"
of a person:
Ezekiel 36:26-27 "A new heart also will I [God] give you, and a new
spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony
heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And
I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and
ye shall keep my judgments, and do them."
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
Ephesians 2:8-10 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should
walk in them."
Q-17. Does that mean that "faith" is a gift from
God?
A. Exactly. The way
that God wrote Ephesians 2:8 in the Greek language means that the elect “are being saved by grace
through faith” (see Q-13). In other words, faith (or
belief) is the ongoing process (or means) through which God operates
(or works) to save His people, and that kind of faith is a gift from
God. Ephesians 2:9 explains that the faith
that is the result of salvation is totally independent of man's
"works", or efforts. All faith is “work”, but the faith related to
salvation is the work of God.
John 6:28-29 "Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might
work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work
of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent."
Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath
begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:"
Philippians 1:11 "Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are
by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God."
Philippians 2:13 "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and
to do of his good pleasure."
We see in Ephesians 2:10 that true believers are God’s
workmanship, which means "the fruit (or result) of a
workman’s labor”. We see in Galatians 5:22-23 that a true believer’s faith is
the fruit of the Holy Spirit: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law."
Throughout the history of the world mankind has invented
many kinds of religions and "do-it-yourself" salvation plans in order
to get right with God, but it is only God's actions that produce salvation from
eternal Hell:
Isaiah 5:20-21 "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put
darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and
sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent
in their own sight!"
Malachi 2:17 "Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye
say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is
good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God
of judgment?"
Matthew 16:25 "For
whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his
life for my [Jesus'] sake shall find it."
John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and
the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Q-18. In view of all the other religions in the world, how
can Jesus Christ be the ONLY WAY to eternal life?
A. Everyone has a
"religion" whether they realize it or not – even self-proclaimed
"atheists". Whatever you believe about God and spiritual matters is
your religion. However, there is a big difference between religion and salvation.
Many people are religious – even many who say they are "Christians" –
and are very sincere and devoted to their religions; but they have never become
saved. They have not become born from above and, consequently, have not
received God's gift of eternal life.
Proverbs 14:12 "There
is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of
death."
Jesus Christ
is the Only Way to escape God's eternal wrath because He is God's Way.
He is the God-Man who provides the only solution for man's sin
problem:
John 3:14-16 "And
as Moses lifted up the serpent [on a pole *] in the wilderness, even so
[in this manner] must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth
in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so [in this
manner] loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." [* See
Numbers 21:5-9]
Acts 4:12 "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is
none other name [Jesus Christ] under heaven given among men, whereby we must be
saved."
God tells us in the Bible that a true believer – that is,
one in whom the Holy Spirit "dwells" – has been adopted into God's
eternal family as one of His children and has become a "joint heir"
of heavenly glory with Christ:
Romans 8:15-17 "For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to
fear; but ye have received the [Holy] Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba,
Father. The Spirit itself [Himself] beareth witness with our spirit, that we
are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and
joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be
also glorified together."
A true believer is one who has entered into a personal,
intimate and eternal relationship with God through salvation. Therefore, a true
believer is no longer under God's condemnation and wrath because the penalty
for all of his or her sins – past, present and future – has been paid by
Jesus Christ:
John 5:24 "Verily, verily, I [Jesus Christ] say unto you, He that
heareth my word, and believeth on him [God the Father] that sent me, hath
everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from
death unto life."
1 John 5:11-13 "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal
life, and this life is in his Son [Jesus Christ]. He that hath the Son hath
life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have
I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may
know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son
of God."
Romans 5:1-2 "Therefore being justified by faith [Christ's faith], we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have
access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the
glory of God."
Romans 8:1-2 "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are
in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For
the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of
sin and death."
Q-19. How does God go about saving someone?
A. We don't know the
details of what Eternal God does or how He works. However, God gave us the
account in John 11 describing how Jesus resurrected Lazarus' body from physical
death, and that event is an historical parable that illustrates how God
resurrects the soul of a spiritually dead person to eternal life through the
miracle of salvation:
John 11:25-26, 43-44 "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the
life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And
whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?…And
when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.
And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and
his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and
let him go."
The spiritual, or "first", resurrection is
further discussed in the following verses, where we see that the spiritual "second
death" has no power (authority) over those who have been
"raised up" by the spiritual first resurrection:
Ephesians 2:5-6 "Even when we were dead in sins, [God] hath quickened us
[made us alive] together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath
raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in
Christ Jesus:"
Colossians 3:1 "If ye [believers] then be risen with Christ, seek
those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of
God."
Revelation 20:6 "Blessed and holy is he [the believer] that hath part in
the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power [authority],
but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a
thousand years."
Q-20. Since the first resurrection is for the souls of
believers, does that mean there will be another resurrection for their bodies?
A. That's correct. The
Bible says that after God has saved all those He plans to save (the
elect) then Jesus Christ will return to earth to complete His salvation
program. That will be the "Last Day" – the end of this universe and
Judgment Day. On the Last Day all who have trusted in Jesus as their Savior and
Lord will be resurrected and transformed into their glorious eternal bodies and
will be with Christ forever:
John 6:39-40 "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me [Jesus
Christ], that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but
should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent
me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have
everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day."
Matthew 24:30-31 "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man [Jesus
Christ] in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they
shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of
heaven to the other."
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 "For the Lord himself [Jesus Christ] shall descend from heaven with a shout,
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in
Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall
we ever be with the Lord."
1 Corinthians 6:14 "And God hath both raised up the Lord [Jesus Christ], and will
also raise up us [believers] by his own power."
1 Corinthians 15:50-52 "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh
and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit
incorruption. Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we
shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last
trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed."
Philippians 3:20-21 "For our conversation [citizenship] is in heaven; from
whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change
our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body,
according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto
himself."
All the unsaved will also be resurrected to stand for
judgment on the Last Day:
John 5:28-29 "…the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the
graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good,
unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the
resurrection of damnation."
Only those who become saved can do "good" in
God's eyes because they are covered with the robe of Christ's righteousness (Isaiah 61:10) and are empowered by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Those
who do "evil" are all the unsaved people who have ever lived who are
spiritually "dead" in their sins:
Revelation 20:11-12 "And I saw a great white throne, and him [Jesus
Christ] that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away;
and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead,
small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book
was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead [unsaved]
were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to
their works."
The Bible also says that God will destroy the entire
universe by fire on the Last Day and will create “new heavens and a new earth” where Christ will reign with His people forever:
Revelation 6:15-16 "And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich
men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every
free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And
said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb [Jesus Christ]."
2 Peter 3:10, 13 "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night;
in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the
elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are
therein shall be burned up…Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for
new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
Q-21. That's amazing! Are there any other sources of
written information from God where we can read more about these things besides
the Bible?
A. No. The Bible is
the only written revelation from God to mankind, and its primary purpose
is to explain the Gospel of Christ – that is, God's salvation plan. It also
provides an absolutely true and accurate historical record of certain
civilizations and events from Creation; and it sets forth God's guidelines for
moral behavior for the whole human race. Most importantly, however, the Bible alone
and in its entirety sets forth both God's Law and the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, which God uses to save His people from eternal Hell:
2 Timothy 3:16 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God
[God-breathed], and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness:"
1 Peter 1:23 "Being
born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word
of God, which liveth and abideth for ever."
Romans 10:17 "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word
of God."
Q-22. Some people claim to receive
messages from God. Is God still speaking to mankind in any way?
A. God spoke directly
to the minds of those He used to write His Book, the Bible, over a period of
about 1,500 years. He then used men to assemble and preserve it for 1,900 years
after He finished writing it so we can hold a copy in our hands and read it
today with total confidence that it is the complete Word of God –
nothing more and nothing less. Therefore, God speaks to us today only
through His Written Word – the Bible:
2 Peter 1:21 "For the prophecy [God's Word] came not in old time by the
will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."
The Bible is the only source of absolute truth about
life and death available to mankind at this time. Once God finished writing the
Bible, He ended any possibility that someone can receive a message from Him
through dreams, visions, tongues, or signs of some kind. The Scriptures give us
everything God wants us to know about spiritual matters:
Deuteronomy 29:29 "The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but
those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever,
that we may do all the words of this law."
Ephesians 5:6 "Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because
of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of
disobedience."
Furthermore, God gave us this important warning at
the very end of His Book:
Revelation 22:18-19 "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of
the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God
shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any
man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city,
and from the things which are written in this book."
The statement about "the plagues that are written in this
book" refers to the
plagues that God tells us about throughout the Scriptures that typify
God's eternal wrath that the unsaved will experience in Hell:
Q-23. How can I know for certain that God has already
saved me?
A. This question gets
to the essence of what life is all about. God tells us everything we
need to know with regard to His salvation plan for mankind in His Book, the Bible,
and God explains that assurance of our salvation is indeed possible:
1 John 5:11-13
"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this
life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the
Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that
believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have
eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."
We must realize that God does ALL the work of
salvation. The Bible teaches that we cannot save ourselves. No church,
no religious ritual, no person, and no human effort can save us. Only the work done by the Lord Jesus Christ
at the cross and by the Holy Spirit in our hearts can save us. Believing,
or having "faith", in the Lord Jesus Christ is the result of
salvation – not the cause of it.
If God has already saved you from eternal damnation, He has
put His Spirit within you and resurrected your soul (that is, you became a new
creature in Christ); and your spiritual war with God has ended, as God stated
in the following verses:
Ezekiel 36:26-27 [God
said:] "A
new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within
you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and
I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within
you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments,
and do them."
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:
old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
Romans 5:10 "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God
by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by
his life."
In other words: If God has saved you from Hell, the Lord
Jesus Christ paid for ALL of your sins with His life so that you now
have eternal life, and you made no contribution to your salvation in any way:
Titus 3:4-7
"But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man
appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to
his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy
Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the
hope of eternal life."
However, if God does not save you before you die or the Lord Jesus Christ returns in judgment, you will spend eternity in Hell under the wrath of God paying for your own sins. In