Does church attendance guarantee Heaven? Walk in almost any southern church, attend a Christian concert, or be a guest at any church sponsored function today and what will you hear? Give your life to Jesus! Just say Jesus is Lord and then come gather with us every Sunday. Praise God.
However, does that guarantee entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven? Where is it written in your Bible? Send it to me so that I can see it. Jesus is the author of eternal salvation to those who obey Him (Hebrews 5:9). Does your Bible say that those who say Jesus is Lord, and believe in their heart that God raised Him from the dead have eternal salvation? No my friend it does not.
The righteousness that comes by faith involves saying certain things that are in line with what is written in the Bible, and refusing to speak against what is written. Saying Jesus is Lord is simply the beginning of that process.
Romans 10:6-10
6 But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?'” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) 7 or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?'” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. NKJV
With the heart we believe unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation (verse 10 above). We were saved when we believed that God raised Jesus from the dead, and confessed with our mouth that He is Lord, but believing doesn’t stop there.
After being saved, can we now speak against the faith and remain in the faith? Your Bible says we can’t in 1 Timothy 6:20-21, but what do you say? Can we ignore Romans 10:6-8 while trusting in Romans 10:9 above? Most do, so I thought I would ask.
When you read the entire passage of Romans chapter 10, it paints a different picture than a onetime confession of faith. The righteous don’t just have a onetime confession of faith, but they live by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7, Galatians 2:20, 3:11, Hebrews 10:38, Romans 1:17).
That’s why it can be so confusing after we are saved when we attend church services where the truth is shunned. One minute we follow what is written to a “t,” and the next we skip this or that passage of scripture because it doesn’t fit the message we proclaim. We can’t live by two, five, or fifteen verses, but we live by every Word of God (Matthew 4:4, Deuteronomy 8:3), and those who worship God, must worship Him in truth and Spirit (John 4:23-24).
The Word itself is truth (John 17:17), and Spirit (John 6:63). Can we start with the Word and finish with the wisdom of men? Your Bible doesn’t think so according to 1 Corinthians 1:17, and Colossians 2:8, but what do you think? Does what you believe line up with what is actually written in your Bible?
The bottom line is that if you believe Jesus Christ, then there are a lot of things written in your Bible that you need to know. Being saved doesn’t guarantee you that you will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but is only the beginning. Only those who believe the Gospel are sealed.
Ephesians 1:13-14
13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. NKJV
Who is sealed according to that passage of scripture? Are all who say “Jesus is Lord” sealed, or those who first “hear the Gospel of their salvation,” and then believe it? Is Romans 10:9-13 the Gospel of your salvation? No it isn’t, but only a part of it.
In the Gospel of your salvation, the righteousness of God is revealed or made known. We can’t skip explaining the righteousness of God which is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe (Romans 3:21-22) and yet still declare that people are guaranteed an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. If you haven’t heard the righteousness of God explained then you have not heard the Gospel of your salvation. Check the verses below in your Bible.
Romans 1:16-17
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” NKJV
The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation of everyone who believes, but “in it,” according to verse 17 above, the righteousness of God is revealed or made known. It is a righteousness that is by faith from start to finish, and the just shall live by faith. If you have not heard that we have to live by faith, then you have not heard the Gospel, and if you have heard it, but reject it, then you cannot possibly be sealed with the Holy Spirit guaranteeing your inheritance.
The people who are justified, or righteous, will not just start with faith (Romans 12:3, Ephesians 2:6-8), but they will live by faith. If they stop living by faith, they will not receive what is promised; salvation of the soul (Hebrews 10:36-39). Check it below.
Hebrews 10:36-39
36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: 37 “For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. 38 Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” 39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul. NKJV
Your faith is what is of greater worth than gold (1 Peter 1:6-7), and the end result of your faith is the salvation of your soul (1 Peter 1:9). No faith, no salvation of the soul. Check the verses and then you will know that you should not get your Gospel from a song on the radio. There is a song that says that we are worth more than gold, which like most popular songs it is not in accordance with what is written in the Bible.
When will Jesus make His home on the inside of us according to John 14:21-23? Check the verses and then you will know just how easy it is to accept and believe a lie. Is Jesus a friend of sinners or of those who obey Him according to John 15:14? You need to know the truth because it’s not just the radio that paints a different picture of what faith in Jesus Christ is, but many who are not called by God stand up to proclaim what you want to hear (2 Timothy 4:1-4).
Those whom God has sent to speak, simply speak according to His Words (John 3:34, Jeremiah 23:22). Those who are called by man, speak from the view-point of this world (1 John 4:5-6). That is how we who hear should be able to recognize those with the Spirit of faith (2 Corinthians 4:13, 1 Peter 4:11), and those with the spirit of error (1 John 4:6).
There are many who promise unsuspecting people an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven, but do not explain God righteousness? Go back and get it right because you are leading millions to their death. It is written that this will happen in the falling away (2 Thessalonians chapter 2), but you don’t want to be among those who lead people to their death for financial gain. Get it right, and know the truth for yourself.
If you believe Jesus Christ, the One and only talked about in your own Bible, then He said that only the righteous would enter the Kingdom of Heaven. If you trust in Jesus, then let’s get it right.
Matthew 5:20
20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. NKJV
Many are saved, but being saved does not mean we will be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. We need to seek first the Kingdom of God, and God’s righteousness (Matthew 6:33), and both of those are found in the New Testament (Luke 16:16, Romans 1:16). I have written about that many times on this blog.
We have to strive to enter the Kingdom (Luke 13:22-28 below). The Thessalonians were only considered worthy to enter the Kingdom of God after they continued in their faith through the trials (2 Thessalonians 1:3-5). Check those verses in your Bible.
Luke 13:22-28
22 And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you,’I do not know you, where you are from,’ 26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. NKJV
If you have any questions, please ask. I am here to help, not hinder. However, if you do not believe what is written in your own Bible, then please find someone else to argue with. There are millions of so-called Christian outlets that rely on philosophy, and human wisdom, but avoid what is written in the Bible. You will be right at home in one of those groups.
If it is not written in the Bible, I am not interested in it, and have no need of it. As it is written, “Do not go beyond what is written” (1 Corinthians 4:6), and “Do not add to My Words, or I will rebuke you and prove you a liar” (Proverbs 30:6). The bottom line is that all will be condemned who do not love the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). Do you believe that?
Do you believe that we have to hold to the Word of God, or we have believed in vain?
1 Corinthians 15:1-2
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you — unless you believed in vain. NKJV
Does that say “saved if” in verse 2 above? If we are “saved if” we hold to the Word that was preached, then how can we be sealed if we do not believe the Word that was preached? Do you believe the Word of God written in your own Bible, or someone who testifies in direct opposition of it? It’s time! It’s time to wake up and learn the truth for ourselves.
Can you attend church services and never learn the truth? Most certainly you can. Today’s church has become a spiritual country club that holds to all kinds of man-made up rules that are not even written in the Bible, and totally ignores what is written. You will hear things like do not drink, do not smoke, and do not buy a lottery ticket (Colossians 2:20-23), long before you would ever hear the doctrine of Jesus Christ found in John 14:21-23, or John 15:1-17? That shows that we are holding to a worldly expectation of righteousness rather than God’s righteousness.
Instead of making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them to obey Jesus as it is described in the great commission (Matthew 28:19-20), we are more concerned with how to play Christian sports. Are we not a country club? I don’t mean that in a bad way, but if you have an ear for the Word of God, let’s get our priorities in order. A friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God (James 4:4, 1 John 2:15-17, Romans 8:5-8). If we are going to gather as a church, then let’s do church, or perhaps have two services; one for worldliness and one for growing the church in keeping with Ephesians 4:11-14 (Hebrews 5:11-6:12).
I’m Alan Ballou; a servant. If I may be of service to you regarding spiritual matters (healing, restoration, deliverance), then please contact me. If you do not believe what is written in your own Bible, cry out to the Lord first, and then contact me through my website www.How ToStop Sinning.com.
