When a dispute arose concerning whether or not Gentiles needed to become Jews in order to be saved, the apostles and elders met prayed, discussed and decided, no they do not. Peter captured the sentiment saying,
"Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are" (7-11).
His last line is powerful... We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.
Ahh, the grace of God and the simplicity of the Gospel.
It is through Jesus, belief in Jesus, not human-made rules, that we are saved.
Believing in Jesus is the great divide in human life. One either believes and follows Him or does not.
Tomorrow I get to gather with a room full of believers as we center our thoughts, our hearts, our minds, and our praise and worship of Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit. Oh, what a joy!
Jesus, thank You for the reminder that You are it. Belief in You bring salvation. Amen and Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment