Starting Your Own Relationship with Jesus Christ (And Why We Need Him!)

(Updated 3/12/20, to simplify it, add new stuff, and make it cleaner-looking.  I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time.)

John 3: 16: “For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

God so loved the world.  He didn’t just love the world; He so loved the world.  He so loved the world that He (Jesus) would die in our place before He would miss out on an eternal relationship with us.  He knew that we would disappoint Him and hurt Him and fail Him, but He still so wanted a relationship with us that He made a way.  He knew that there would be many, many people that would reject His gift of love and salvation, but an eternity spent with those who would choose Him was worth the price of dying on the cross.  That is some amazing love!

Let me ask you something: If you were to die today or if Jesus came back today, would you be ready?  Seriously.  This life as we know it isn't going to go on forever.  And we are not invincible.  People die every day, in every kind of way.  Are you ready to face eternity, whatever comes the moment after you take your last breath?  Have you figured out who Jesus is and why He matters so much?

Because this will be what matters most the moment after you die.  Actually, it's what matters most in this lifetime, too, because it greatly affects what happens the moment after you die.

Is the Rapture taught in the Bible?

             I believe there’s going to be rapture of the true believers before the tribulation starts (which I looked at in "The End Times" post, so some of this will be review of that).  

             In this post, I’m going to list which significant passages I think refer to the Rapture and which refer to the Visible Second Coming, which will happen at the 6^th seal, during the tribulation.  This is all just my opinion.  I do not claim to have any special revelation from God.  It’s just the best way I make sense of Scripture.
 

             Before I get into the verses, keep this in mind:
          1.  All “coming of the Lord” passages that include something about Jesus coming in power and great glory and with angels pertain to the visible second coming of Jesus at the 6^th seal during the tribulation.  (However, there are some passages that refer to the visible coming which don’t use those words, but you can tell by the context, by the fact that they were already talking about the big “end of time” visible second coming.  And He also comes again visibly at the end of the trib for the battle of Armageddon, so that coming is referred to at times.  But neither of these "visible comings" are the rapture.)
          2.  None of the passages that pertain to the rapture have the words “in power and great glory and with angels.” 
 

             This helps clear up a lot of confusion about which “coming” the passage is referring to.  

Can You Lose Your Salvation?

(Added as the final post in the "Predestination vs. Free-Will" series.) 

I believe the Bible shows that if someone is truly a believer, sealed with the Holy Spirit, then it's not possible for them to lose their salvation.

It's no secret that I disagree with and hate Calvinism - the idea that God predestines who goes to heaven and who goes to hell.  CALVINISM IS NOT BIBLICAL!  It's full of twisted Scripture, "secret" word meanings, presumptions about how God acts, etc. - all so it can try to support its own misconceptions of God and salvation and the Gospel.

But there is one area that we can agree on: a true believer cannot lose their salvation.

However, I see it much differently than they do.  So I couldn't even call myself a 1-Point Calvinist.  (Maybe a 1/4-Point Calvinist?  But why would I even want to do that!)


Calvinism believes that God picks who goes to heaven, that He causes us to believe in Him, and that He will help believers "persevere" to the end.  They find security in this because "If God made it happen, then there's no chance of falling away."  

However, Calvinism actually leads to major insecurity about your salvation- because a person can never know for sure that God picked them until and unless they "persevere" in the faith all the way to the end.

Does Believing in Predestination Affect Our Prayers?

(Part of the "Predestination vs. Free-Will" series)

So, here's a question ... Does your belief in whether it's predestination or free-will affect how you pray for people and their salvation?

Yes, very much so.  

If you are a Calvinist and you believe that God Himself sovereignly chooses whether someone should go to heaven or hell, how would you pray for that person's salvation?  You'd have to pray something like, "Dear God, please choose this person to be saved.  Make them believe in You.  But it's up to You if they are saved or not.  And if it's not Your Will, then I guess I will have to accept it."

And you'd be praying this knowing that it doesn't matter if you pray it or not.  Because you can't affect God's "predetermined" plans either way.  But, hooray for you, at least you are going through the motions, like a good Calvinist.  Even though God Himself caused you to go through the motions, since Calvinism believes that God controls all we do.    

What About Those Who've Never Heard of Jesus?

(Part of the "Predestination vs. Free-Will" series)

In the previous "predestination" posts, I have been making the case that anyone can be saved, that God didn't predetermine who goes to hell and who goes to heaven.


            “But,” you might wonder, “how can it be possible for all people to come to Jesus if some people have never even heard of Him, such as those who live in the jungles of a primitive island or those who grew up in another religion and only heard the name of other gods?  How can they be saved if the Bible says that only those who call on the name of Jesus will be saved, and yet they have never even heard of Him?  You can’t call on a name you never knew about.”

            I have always been interested in sorting this question out in my mind – how (and if) salvation can come to those who never heard about Jesus.  When I was a Calvinist in my teens (a tiny, baby Calvinist that never grew up), I used to think "Oh well, that's just the way God determined it, that they should be lost.  Who are we to question Him?"  

            But I think I understand it differently now.  (I do not know if I am accurate on this, but it’s what I think so far.) 

            First off, keep in mind that there is a difference between those who have never heard of the Bible or Jesus and those who have heard but who reject it (such as atheists or those of most other religions).  And I will look at each group separately.

Acts 13:48: Not as "predestination" as it sounds

(Part of the "Predestination vs. Free-Will" series)

Calvinists often point to Acts 13:48 as an ultimate predestination verse.  "... and all who were appointed (ordained) for eternal life believed".  They say, "See, God appointed them, predestined them, chose them to go to heaven.  And because He chose them, they were predestined to believe.  And those who weren't chosen can't believe."

But look it up online and you'll see that it's not that cut-and-dried.  It's not as "predestination" as it sounds.

First off, it's important to not take it out of context or separate it from the rest of Scripture.  If you do, then it could definitely sound like God predetermined that only certain people would obtain eternal life.  But we need to look at it in context and in relation to the rest of Scripture.