Five Questions from a Baptist Friend

Question 1: Must a person be baptized to be saved? Question 2: Can one lose his or her salvation? Question 3: Are the members of the church of Christ the only ones going to
heaven? Question 4: If one loses their salvation, what do they have to do to get it back? Question 5: If the members of the church of Christ are the only ones going to heaven, where is that stated in the Bible?

Question 1: Must a person be baptized to be saved?

A: 1) In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus commanded the apostles to make disciples of all nations by baptizing them and by teaching them. Disciples are made by baptizing and teaching. So according to this scripture, a person cannot be a disciple until he is baptized. 2) In Mark 16:15, 16, Jesus commanded the apostles to preach the gospel to every creature. Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. He that believeth not shall be condemned.” Notice that it takes both belief and baptism for salvation. 3) In Acts 2:38, the men and women who had crucified Jesus asked what they needed to do be saved, “Men and brethren what shall we do?” Peter responded, “Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins.” Baptism is said here to be “for the remission of your sins.” 4) In Acts 22:16, Ananias is telling Saul of Tarsus what he needed to do to be saved. He says, “And now, why tarriest thou, arise and be baptized and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” Baptism is said here to be for washing away sins. 5) In Romans 6:1-10, Paul is reminding the Christians in Rome what happened after their baptism. He said that baptism is like the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. He says, “we are buried with him by baptism into death that like as Christ was raised up from the dead to the glory of the Father, even so we should also walk in newness of life.” Baptism places us into newness of life just like when Christ was resurrected he had a new life. 6) In Galatians 3:26-29 Paul writes that baptism puts us in Christ and makes us heirs to the promise. 7) In Colossians 2:11-13 Paul says that baptism makes us alive through Christ and gives us the forgiveness of trespasses. 8) In 1 Peter 3:21, Peter says that baptism now saves us.

So, in light of these passages we see the following (these numbers correspond to the scriptures above): 1) One cannot be a disciple unless baptized. 2) One cannot be saved without belief and baptism. 3) One cannot have forgiveness of sins without baptism. 4) One cannot have sins washed away without baptism. 5) One cannot have newness of life without baptism. 6) One cannot be an heir of the promise without baptism. 7) One cannot be made alive or have forgiveness of trespasses without baptism. 8) One cannot be saved without baptism. Study your own Bible on this issue. Be honest. Don’t just take my word for it.

Question 2: Can one lose his or her salvation?

A: Again, let’s look at the scriptures themselves. 1) In Acts 5:1, a couple named Ananias and Saphira lied to the Holy Ghost and fell down dead at the Apostles feet. Were they Christians before this? Yes. 2) In Acts 8:1-14 we see that many became Christians. One of those who became a Christian was a man named Simon. Later in the chapter, Simon sinned and Peter rebuked him. Peter commanded him to Repent. If Simon had not repented, would he have been saved? No. He was in the “gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.” 3) In Acts 20:29,30 Paul is speaking to the pastors/elders of the church at Ephesus. He says that from among your own selves some will arise speaking perverse things. Can a person be an pastor/elder of the church without being a Christian? Yet, some would arise who would teach perverse things. Why the warning if they could not be lost? 4) In Galatians 5:4, Paul says that those who tried to justify themselves according to the Mosaical law had “fallen from grace.” Notice these words, “Ye are fallen from grace.” How could someone fall from grace if they never had grace? 5) In Hebrews 6:4-6, the writer says that it is impossible to renew someone to repentance. Who is that person? It is the person who: (1) was once enlightened, (2) tasted of the heavenly gift, (3) made partakers of the Holy Ghost, (4) tasted the good word of God, (5) tasted the powers of the world to come. Can a person be all of these things without being a Christian? Clearly someone must be a Christian to have all of these blessings, yet, we read that if they fall away it is impossible for us to renew them to repentance. Why would this be written if it were not possible to fall away? 6) In 1 Peter 2:20-22, Peter says there are some who (1) escaped the pollutions of the world through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and (2) knew the way of righteousness. They were Christians. He then says that (1) these have become entangled again in the pollutions of the world, and (2) turned away from knowing the way of righteousness. He says that these are like the dog returning to his vomit and the clean sow to washing in the mire. They have become lost again.

So, 1) Ananias and Saphira were Christians; they were lost. 2) Simon was a Christian, but he sinned and had to repent. 3) Some pastors/elders of the church taught perverse things and were lost. 4) Those who justified themselves by the law of Moses had “fallen from grace.” 5) Christians who had once received the Holy Ghost can so sin as to be impossible for us to renew them to repentance. 6) It is possible to escape the pollutions of the world (become a Christian) and be entangled in them again and be lost. Again, study your Bible and don’t take my word for it.

Question 3: Are the members of the church of Christ the only ones going to
heaven?

A: This is the toughest question, because many think that when a person says, “church of Christ” he means strictly the building down the road and the people that meet in it or any organization that has that name on their building. That is not what is meant by “church of Christ.” Again, let’s open our Bibles and study what the Bible says. 1) In Matthew 16:18, Jesus promised to Peter that he would build His church. It is Christ’s church. It is the church of Christ (see also Romans 16:16). 2) In order to be a member of the church, one must be saved. In Acts 2, Peter preached the first gospel sermon and 3000 people were saved. In Acts 2:44 it says that the Lord “added” such as should be saved. To whom did he “add” these saved people? He added them to the church. The King James version has the word church. Some of the other versions do not. But whether the word is there or not, the saved were added to something. That something was the church. 3) We read in Ephesians 1:22, 23 that the church is the body of Christ. 4) We read in Ephesians 5:23 that Christ is the savior of the body which is the church. 5) We read in Colossians 1:18 that Christ is the head of the body, the church. 6) We read in Colossians 1:24 that the body is the church. 7) We read in 1 Corinthians 12:12, 13 that we are baptized into the body.

So, 1) the church belongs to Christ; it is the church of Christ. 2) The saved are added to he church. 3) The church is the body of Christ. 4) Christ’s saves the body that is the church. 5) Christ is the head of the body, the church. 6) The body is the church. 7) We are baptized into the body. So, when we are baptized, we are baptized into the body of Christ that is the church of Christ. Those who are saved are in the body of Christ alone. Those who are saved are in the church of Christ alone.

Now, you may have a further question from this study. How do I know the church of Christ when I see it? Does the sign on the front of the building that says, “church of Christ” mean that this is THE church of Christ that we find in the Bible? No, not necessarily. The only way that you can know the true church of Christ is by seeing if those who claim to be the church of Christ are DOING what Christ said to do in His word, the Bible. Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Many claim to belong to the Lord, but they don’t really belong to the Lord. The only ones who belong to the Lord are the ones who DO the will of His Father. If the building down the street says “Church of Christ” but they are not DOING what the Father wants to be done, then they are not the church of Christ of the Bible. I would not be a member of a church that was not DOING what the Bible says. The church of Christ must DO what God says to be the church of Christ.

You might also be wondering, why use the name “church of Christ?” We use the name church of Christ because 1) the church belongs to Christ, 2) the name honors Christ, 3) the name reminds us that we belong to Christ, 4) the name identifies us with Christ. There are OTHER scriptural names for the church in the Bible. It is also called the church of God and the church of the firstborn ones (two examples, there are more). The believers are called saints, Christians, believers, disciples, and followers. All of these are Bible designations. As I said, we must go by what the Bible says. When we designate things in some other way, then we are not following what the Bible says. For example, in 1 Corinthians 1:10, Paul rebuked the church at Corinth because they were calling themselves after Paul, and Peter, and Apollos. Paul said that he was not crucified for them, but Christ was. He rebuked them because they called themselves something other than what Christ called them. Some today call themselves by other names than what are in the Bible. Should we do this? No. We should do what the Bible tells us to do.

Question 4: If one loses their salvation, what do they have to do to get it back?

A: Look at the example of Simon in Acts 8:19-24. He had already been baptized (8:13). It only took one intentional sin to cause him to be “in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.” But he repented and prayed and he was forgiven. Sometimes we sin unintentionally, or in ignorance. In that case, the blood of Christ covers our sins (1 John 1:7) but the faithful Christian will always ask to be forgiven of these sins of ignorance (1 John 1:9, 2:1).

Question 5: If the members of the church of Christ are the only ones going to heaven, where is that stated in the Bible?

A: Perhaps the most significant scripture on this particular question is Ephesians 5:23. This verse says that Christ is the Head of the church and the Savior of the body. In Ephesians 1:22, 23 we read that the body is the church. Whose church is it? It is the church of Christ. There is only one Savior of the church and there is only one church that is going to be saved. Ephesians 4:4 tells us that is the “one body.” That “one body” is the one church that belongs to Jesus Christ–the church of Christ. Please refer to question three in this series for additional explanation.

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What is the Promise in Acts 2:39?

What is the promise in Acts 2:39?

In a previous question, we talked about the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:38. Summarizing what was said in regard to that question, the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:38 must be the ability to do miracles. The evidence for that is this: 1) That all references made to the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:1-37 are references made to the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit. There is no compelling reason in the immediate context to make any changes to this idea in verse 38. Why would Peter change from talking about the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit to some other manifestation of the Holy Spirit? There is no reason to do so in this text. 2) Peter in Acts 10:45 uses the exact same phrase, “The Gift of the Holy Spirit” in reference to the miracle of tongues. So the only other time the phrase “The gift of the Holy Spirit” is used it refers to the miraculous. 3) Peter says in Acts 11:17 that the same “gift” was given to “us” at the beginning (the day of Pentecost). The “us” in this passage is the apostles and the brethren as indicated in Acts 11:1. So the gift of the Holy Spirit had to be given in Acts 2 both to the apostles and the brethren. It was given to the apostles in Acts 2:1. Where was it given to the brethren? Acts 2:38 was the first promise of this gift to they who would eventually be brethren and then they received it with the laying on of the apostles hands as indicated in Acts 8:14-20 and Acts 19:5, 6.. Peter in fact calls this “the gift of God” in verse 20. So “the gift of the Holy Spirit” in Acts 2:38 must refer to the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit; all of the evidence in both the immediate and the remote context leads us to this conclusion.

Someone says, however, what about verse 39 which reads, “For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” Doesn’t this indicate that “the gift of the Holy Spirit” is to be given to believers? How can one reconcile this with the idea that “the gift of the Holy Spirit” is the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit? However, for one to interpret the promise in verse 39 to be referring only to the gift of the Holy Spirit is to ignore the context. There are two promises made in the context of Acts 2. There is first the promise of the Father that the Holy Spirit is going to come. We see this promise discussed in Acts 1:4, Acts 2:17 and Acts 2:33. But there is another promise interwoven with these promises. This second promise is the promise of salvation. We find this promise in Acts 2:21, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” We know from Acts 22:16 that this refers to the promise that comes as a result of baptism–remission of sins. This is what Peter states in the first part of Acts 2:38. Verse 39 is merely referring back to that promise–the promise of the remission of sins; the promise that “whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the promise of salvation are closely related, because one is a sign for the other. That is the force of the Joel’s prophecy. When you see the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit then you will KNOW that the promise of salvation has been made available for all men. Peter is simply restating the same concept in Acts 2:38 and 39 as Joel stated in prophecy.

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When Did God Make Dinosaurs?

When did God make dinosaurs?

In Genesis 1:24 we read, “And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.” All the “beasts of the earth” were made on day six. We read in Exodus 20:11 “For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Everything that was made that ever lived upon the face of the earth was made in those six days. God made dinosaurs within those six days; he made the ones that live in the sea and fly on the fifth day and the ones that roamed around on the earth on the sixth day.

So did men and dinosaurs live together as contemporaries? Yes. We read in the book of Job regarding dinosaurs. Job 40:15-24 “Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee; he eateth grass as an ox. Lo now, his strength is in his loins, and his force is in the navel of his belly. He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his stones are wrapped together. His bones are as strong pieces of brass; his bones are like bars of iron. He is the chief of the ways of God: he that made him can make his sword to approach unto him. Surely the mountains bring him forth food, where all the beasts of the field play. He lieth under the shady trees, in the covert of the reed, and fens. The shady trees cover him with their shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about. Behold, he drinketh up a river, and hasteth not: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his mouth. He taketh it with his eyes: his nose pierceth through snares.”

There is also much physical evidence that shows that men lived in the same time as Dinosaurs. One such example can be found in the town of Glen Rose, Texas. Through that town runs the Paluxy River. In the bed of this river were discovered dinosaur footprints. Some of these dinosaur footprints are on display at the University of Texas at Austin. The interesting thing about these footprints is that right along side there are human footprints. The human footprints were made in the same time frame as the dinosaur footprints. How could this be true if dinosaurs did not live in the same time as humans?

There is other evidence as well. In some old Indian dwellings in Havasupai Canyon in Arizona there are pictures of dinosaurs that were drawn on the wall by humans. Human footprints have been found in rock that is supposed to be 500 million years before man appeared. Human footprints have been found with trilobites. Human skulls found 130 feet below the earth under 5 separate layers of lava. There have even been some fossilized dinosaur bones found that have human carvings on them done with a flint stone. The evidence points to the fact of the coexistence of dinosaurs and man together in the same period of time.

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Is a Person Responsible for the Sins of their Children?

Is a person responsible for their children’s personal relationship with God after they leave the home? What does this do to the qualifications of the elder?

The answer to the first part of this question is clearly related to us in the scriptures. We read in Ezekiel 18:20, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” Each person is responsible for his or her own relationship with God when the person reaches the age where they can be held responsible for their sins before God whether the child is still in the home or not. So the answer to the first part of this question is, “No, a person is not responsible for their children’s personal relationship with God after they leave the home.” Is a person responsible to teach their children? Yes. Is a person responsible to train up their children? Yes. Is a person responsible to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4)? Yes. However, these are things that are done by the adult, not by the child. One may influence a child in the right direction and hope to teach that child to become a Christian one day, but that decision belongs to the child and not to the adult. The relationship is a personal relationship between God and the individual person.

In regard to the second part of the question, the qualification for an elder of having believing children is found in Titus 1:6. It merely says, “having believing children” or “having children that believe.” The qualification does not state whether these children are in the home or not in this passage. However, if we look back to 1 Timothy 3:4, 5 there we find a little more information. We see here that the elder is to be one who “ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?).” Is this describing children who are in the home or out of the home? I believe that it is describing children who are in the home, literally, in “his own house.” So, when we put these two things together, we find that an elder must at least have had believing children who are in his own house.

Having these things in mind, the question is really this, “Can an elder become disqualified from being an elder if his child stops being faithful to God?” If we were to answer “Yes” to this question, then we must also say that the children have to be in the house. The answer to this question is, “No.” The qualification for the elder is an examination of the person who is to become an elder. Has he trained his children in such a way that they believed the gospel while living in his house? Yes, he has. He is qualified. Once the children leave the house and go their own ways, and fall away from the faith, one can still answer this question in the same way. Has he trained his children in such a way that they believed the gospel while living in his house? Well, yes, he did train them this way. They did, while they were in his house, believe the gospel. He remains qualified, though the child, of his own will, leaves the faith. So the qualification is not one of the ongoing faith of the child, but rather, it is a qualification of the man who would become an elder. He met that qualification at the time that he was appointed to the eldership. He continues to meet that qualification because at the time he was appointed, he had believing children. He will always be one, of whom it can be said that he raised his children to be believers.

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Please Explain Hebrews 10:26-27

Please explain Hebrews 10:26-27

The book of Hebrews is primarily concerned with Jewish Christians who have decided that it is not worth living Christianity anymore and who have decided to go back to Judaism. The writer of the book of Hebrews is exhorting and encouraging these Christians NOT to go back to Judaism. The book is laid out much like a sermon with several points being made within the sermon. The theme of the book is “The way of Christ is the better way.” The main points of the book are as follows: 1) Christ is a better mediator. 2) Christ is a better high priest. 3) Christ offers a better covenant. 4) Christ offers a better sacrifice. 5) Christ’s way is the way of faith–a better way.

During the course of the book, the writer often stops and exhorts the listeners to faithfulness. For example, in Hebrews 3:12-13 he stops to exhort against unbelief and disobedience. In Hebrews 4:12-13 he stops to magnify the word of God. In Hebrews 5:11-14 he pauses to rebuke those who have not grown as they should. This type of exhortation is what is happening starting in Hebrews 10:19ff. The writer is exhorting the reader to faithfulness. He is careful also to remember the main point about which he is discussing, namely the better sacrifice that Christ offers. Let’s now read Hebrews 10:19-25.

Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Notice that the Hebrew writer is drawing upon points he made earlier about entering into the Holy place with Jesus as our high priest, he exhorts us to three things: 1) Drawing near with a true heart (vs.22), 2) holding fast the confession of our faith (vs.23), 3) considering one another to provoke unto love and good works (vs.24). It is out of this third point–considering one another–that we have the exhortation to NOT forsake the assembling of ourselves together, but exhorting one another.

Now, the Hebrew writer turns in verse 26 to what will happen if we do not heed his exhortation. That is, if we fail to draw near, hold fast, and consider one another–things that we KNOW we should do–the Hebrew writer considers this failure to be sinning willfully. When we sin willfully, there are consequences. These consequences are: 1) There remains no more sacrifice for our sins; 2) we can expect judgment/condemnation from God; 3) we can expect a fierceness of fire which will devour the adversaries. Two good parallel verses to these verses would be Hebrews 6:4-6 and 2 Peter 2:20-22. In other words, it is possible for a Christian to so sin as to lose his salvation.

Now that we have looked at the general context, perhaps a few additional questions are in order regarding verses 26 and 27. First, what does it mean to sin willfully? In essence, this means that a person has learned and obeyed the truth and that now, in spite of knowing the truth, that person has decided not to heed it anymore in their life and they have turned away from it. This could be in regard to a personal habit in someone’s life. It could be in regard to disobeying the laws of the land. It could be in regard to sexual immorality. It could be in regard to false worship. In the context, however, it is specifically in regard to those who simply had stopped coming to the regular assembling of the saints when they knew it was the right thing to do. Remember James admonition in James 4:17. “Therefore, to him who knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

Second, what does it mean that there does not remain a sacrifice for sins for this person? John comments on this in 1 John 1:6, 7, “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” The idea is that the blood that Jesus shed no longer is effectual for us. It will no longer cover our sins if we simply abandon what we know to be true. Therefore, the sacrifice itself is no longer effectual for our sins.

Third, what does verse 27 mean? It simply means that if one continues in this state of rejecting the knowledge of the truth, then one can expect God to punish him just as God would punish those who had never obeyed the truth (cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:8). It is serious, serious, SERIOUS business to have a correct understanding of God’s word and then to leave it for willful sin. Let’s each resolve in our minds this very hour that regardless of what trials and temptations come our way, we will always have a heart that is soft enough and tender enough to let God’s will rule in our lives.

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