Eternal Life / Salvation. What it takes to be "saved", and more importantly, remaining "saved"

Eternal Life / Salvation.

What it takes to be "saved",

and more importantly, 

remaining "saved".

I believe all the "work" for my salvation has been done by the Lord Jesus Christ.

And that I have been "saved" ( past tense ) by His Grace ( undeserved mercy )

through Faith ( my trusting in Him and His work in the Cross on my behalf ).

Ephesians 2:8,9 is where I first saw and understood the gift of God's salvation had nothing to do with my efforts.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. 

And this is not your own doing; 

it is the gift of God, 

not a result of works, 

so that no one may boast. 

And Verse 10 does mention "works", but only that we "should" walk in them ( not that we had to or automatically would ).

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

And as a born again believer, I then have the choice to serve or not serve my Lord.

Everything in scripture encourages us to Serve the Lord, and to become a Disciple,

but it's a separate decision ( and truly needs to be renewed each day ).

Some will believe and not service. 

Referencing John 12:42

Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue;

and the result of living for yourself and not the Lord results in your "works" being burned up, but you are still "saved".

I Cor. 3:10-15

 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 

If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.

And unfortunately, most Christians remain "babes" in Christ. 

Never growing into the close relationship the Father wants to have with each of His children.

Paul spent a lot of time with the Corinthian church, and we have two long letters he wrote to them.

He longed for them to understand the fullness of their new life in Christ.

Many of them struggled to follow the teachings and example Paul offered to them.

But he never questioned their eternal salvation.

There are many verses that assure us of our "permanent" new relationship with God,

once we are "saved" ( by trusting Christ as our Saviour ).

Such as that fact we are born again - now children of God,

John 1:12,13

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 

who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

* We will not come into judgement,

John 5:24,

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. 

He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

And I have always referenced 1st John 5:13, because John writes that we can know ( as a fact ), that we possess eternal life ( NOW ).

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.

And even if we "deny" Him, He can not deny Himself ( we become part of the Body of Christ when we believe ).

Serving and "suffering" results in rewards, but a lack of service will not keep Jesus from "saving" His beloved child.

2 Timothy 2: 10 - 13

Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, 
that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 

The saying is trustworthy, for:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

I know there are several passages that might be taught by others to say we have "our part" to do,

but I don't believe those passages ( like Phil. 2:10 and James chapter 2 ) are referring to our eternal "salvation".

I recently found this Video on "working out" your salvation

( what it means and does not mean ),

see:

https://youtu.be/gm8WqoJ4WZo

And this one on the topic of "Denying" Christ,

https://youtu.be/4JswUNzJ5w4

More information about Eternal Life and Salvation can be found here:

Grace Evangelical Society

https://faithalone.org/

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

Looking to the Return of Jesus Christ at the end of the age

What should be our mindset?

Hebrews 13:14

For here we have no lasting city, 

but we seek the city that is to come.

1 Peter 1:13

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, 

and being sober-minded, 

set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you 

at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

And what are we to be doing?

I Peter 4:10,11

As each has received a gift, 

use it to serve one another, 

as good stewards of God's varied grace: 

whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; 

whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies

—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. 

To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. 

Amen.

From the English Standard Version

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

SHORT Video = https://youtube.com/shorts/cKmj4gh7ofA

Rapture just before the Wrath ( before 7th Seal ) = Pre-Wrath Theory

Most people have heard of the three common theories on when the Rapture 

( aka the return of Christ, when believers are transformed and united with Him ),

as

Pre-Trib ( before the Great Tribulation period begins )

Post-Trib ( at the end of the Great Tribulation )

Mid-Trib ( at the middle or the 3 1/2 year mark, assuming a 7 year Great Tribulation time frame ).

But have you heard of the Pre-Wrath Rapture?

It is a variation of "Mid-Trib".

Not necessarily at the "middle", but before the 7th Seal ( which contains the Wrath of God ),

and some think before or at the 6th Seal.

No mention of the "wrath of God" occurs with the first 5 Seals.

I can think of several scriptures that would seem to support this scenario.

I Thessalonians chapter 5, verses 9

For God did not appoint us to wrath,

but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Revelation chapter 11 and verse 15 - 19

We see the LAST Trumpet:

You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. 
And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, 

 

Revelation chapters 15 and 16 ( basically the whole chapter ),

tells us who these plagues are poured out on.

"on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. "

AND in chapter 16 verse 14,

we see the ungodly coming to fight against God.

This makes a lot of sense

if Jesus had already come back to Jerusalem.

We ( the resurrected and "Raptured" believers ) would be with Him

( and thus fully protected from the Wrath being poured out on the rest of the earth ).

***

But I'm not "convinced" of a "pre-wrath rapture"

because the "gathering" and the "coming" of Jesus Christ

seems to include His Visible Return,

when every eye will see him.

And that is when He slays the wicked.

In Matthew 24:30,31 we read,

"And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, 

and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, 

and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky 

with power and great glory. 

And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet 

and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, 

from one end of the sky to the other.

AND the passage in Revelation 19:11-21

Noting Verse 11 =

And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.

Verse 15 =  

From His mouth comes a sharp sword, 

so that with it He may strike down the nations, 

and He will rule them with a rod of iron; 

and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, 

the Almighty.

Verse 21 = 

And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh

So many "theories" 

and so many books / preachers out there.

Don't be discouraged. 

Pray - Read - Pray some more.

God is more than able to show you the way.

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

Escaping the Wrath of God

If you want to escape the wrath of God,

Then believe in Yeshua.

John the Baptist tells us in the gospel of John

 chapter 3 verse 36,

The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, 

but the one who rejects the Son 

will not see life; 

instead, 

the wrath of God remains on him.

And the apostle Paul writes in

I Thessalonians chapter 5, verses 9 - 11

For God did not appoint us to wrath, 

but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 

who died for us, 

so that whether we are awake or asleep, 

we may live together with him. 

Therefore encourage one another 

and build each other up 

as you are already doing.

Note: As Christians,

We can expect to experience tribulation.

In John 16:33 we read,

These things I have spoken to you, 

that in Me you may have peace. 

In the world you will have tribulation; 

but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Youtube version = 

https://youtube.com/shorts/hMT_RSav10k

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

Is a Pre-Trib Rapture of the Church required to save believers from Wrath?

In the Great Tribulation,

Are Believers 

Saved from experiencing Tribulation 

or 

Saved from the Wrath of God?

And is this "saving" by means of a Pre-Trib Rapture 

of all the believers,

or some other form of "Escape" or "Protection"?

Part of the misunderstanding of the End Times comes from 

thinking of the Tribulation period as being 

when the "Wrath of God" is poured out.

When in fact that is only what occurs at the very END.

Perhaps only lasting 30 days or less.

If we look at  

the 7th Trumpet 

and

the 7 bowls of wrath 

We see that these are clearly poured out on the ones who have rejected God, 

and are "with" the antichrist.

Taking a closer look at these passages,

in

Revelation chapter 16,

Verse 1,

Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels,

"Go and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God on the earth."

In Verse 2,

a sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast 

and those who worshiped his image.

In Verse 3, 

the bowl is poured on the sea

In Verse 4,

the bowl is poured on the rivers and springs of water

In Verse 8,

the bowl is poured on the sun, 

and power was given to him to scorch men with fire.

In Verse 10,

the bowl is poured on the throne of the beast, 

and his kingdom became full of darkness;

In Verse 12,

the bowl is poured on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up.

Finally 

Verses 17 - 21 we read,

"Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, 

and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, 

from the throne, 

saying, "It is done!" 

And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; 

and there was a great earthquake, 

such a mighty and great earthquake 

as had not occurred since men were on the earth. 

Now the great city was divided into three parts, 

and the cities of the nations fell. 

And great Babylon was remembered before God, 

to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath. 

Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 

And great hail from heaven fell upon men, 

each hailstone about the weight of a talent. 

Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, 

since that plague was exceedingly great."

We need to look more closely at the actual words WRATH and TRIBULATION in context.

Let us look at the Four verses I've heard used,

to see why they are NOT talking about Christians 

being spared the time of the Great Tribulation.

I Thessalonians 1:10  we read,

and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, 

even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

Romans 5:9  we read,

Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, 

we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

I Thessalonians 5:9 and 10 we read,

For God did not appoint us to wrath, 

but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 

who died for us, 

that whether we wake or sleep, 

we should live together with Him.

II Thessalonians  2:7 and 8 we read,

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work;

only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.

And then the lawless one will be revealed, 

whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth 

and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

I do not believe this means the Church or the Holy Spirit ( in believers ).

That is just the theory many will present, but there is no scripture to back this up.

Besides, the Holy Spirit will still be around and working through the Two Witnesses, and the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation.

There is "something" holding back Satan 

and the deception that the Beast and False Prophet will use 

to control most of mankind living upon the Earth

during the last 42 months before the glorious return of Christ.

Please note that no reference is made in these verses as to the method 

( or HOW ) 

the Church is to be exempted from the divine wrath,

whether it be removal or protection.

So let us not ASSUME 

it requires a Pre-Trib Rapture of the Church.

Besides these 4 verses, 

I have heard what is called 

Symbolic evidence - 

similar stories of God saving 

or protecting people during times of destruction.

I find that there is a lot of  

Symbolic evidence 

to support that God can protect his people

from the wrath that will come upon mankind.

Examples include but not limited to:

Noah and his family did not leave the planet during the year long Flood event.

They were protected in the Ark 

that God told them how and why to build.

And the plagues of Egypt affected the Egyptians, 

but the children of Israel were protected from them.

Rahab was protected when the walls of Jericho came crashing down.

She did not have to be removed in order to be protected from the fate that came upon the rest of the people in the city.

So, God has shown He can protect His elect, 

at the same time as pouring out wrath 

or judgement on the unbelieving ones.

A further stretch to make a case for a Pre-Trib Rapture,

Is that some want to use the old ceremony for a Jewish wedding

 as an analogy for Christ and His bride,

but it's not scriptural, 

and therefore proves nothing.

John 14:3 and 4 are used to connect the analogy,

but the passage says NOTHING about when He is coming back for us,

only that He promised He would.

Logically there is a flaw in this idea 

that a Pre-Trib Rapture is required to save us from wrath,

Because,

Even if ALL the Believers were Raptured at the beginning,

guess what.. new "believers" will be around IN the TRIBULATION period. 

And therefore subject 

( exposed )

to the "wrath" believers are supposed to be "spared" from.

If that is what the previously mentioned verses were talking about.

But they are not.

It is simply a misunderstanding of the words, wrath and tribulation. 

And ignoring other verses on the topic.

My main "point" is that the Wrath of God is the final bowls 

( lasting a very short period of time at the end of the Trib ), 

and God can "protect" the few remaining believers

from these "plagues",

just as he did the children of Israel in Egypt,

and 

The real "wrath of God" that believers are spared from is the Second Death 

( for those not found written in the Book of Life )  

who will suffer the wages of sin 

( Death, Destruction, or Perish in the lake of fire ) 

at the great white throne judgement.

And we ( believers ) 

will enjoy the gift of everlasting life.

Romans 6:23 we read,

For the wages of sin is death, 

but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In conclusion:

We need to realize that Tribulation has been going on for the last 2,000+ years, 

and that word is used in reference to believers over 40 times in the New Testament.

As Jesus clearly tells us

In John 16:33

These things I have spoken to you, 
that in Me you may have peace. 
In the world you will have tribulation; 
but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

The "Great Tribulation" is a specific 3 1/2 year period at the very "end" 

just prior to the return of Christ 

to rule and reign for 1,000 years on Earth.

And it is upon His visible return, 

that we are to be resurrected 

or if living at that time,

to be changed in a twinkling of the eye.

For more on that, 

please check out some of my other posts and videos.

And for those who might want to look deeper into the subject,

I would recommend this Book by Robert H. Gundry,

The Church And The Tribulation.

He address all the theories and scripture 

on the subject of whether the Church is to be on the Earth

During the Great Tribulation.

Oh! And the answer would be a definite YES.

So, stay alert and be watching 

so you are NOT taken by surprise when it happens.

Youtube video version = 

https://youtu.be/lt9BM1R9ad4

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

The Secret Pre-Trib Rapture - Why So Popular

While researching the teachings on our "meeting the Lord in the air", 

or 

as it is commonly called,

"The Rapture" of the Church.

The question arose as to why a "Secret Rapture" 

Before the Tribulation Period 

is so popular 

and commonly taught in churches today,

since it's not what is actually described in scripture.

* See some of my other posts 

on this topic for more details 

of why the "rapture" comes at the end of the tribulation period 

and not before.

I found several writers discussing the origin of the teaching.

And while some would claim

it has always been taught,

most would agree 

that it became popular in the early 19th century.

Most mention John Nelson Darby,

usually listed as just Darby or J.N. Darby,

as one of the early promoters of the doctrine.

As early as 1827, 

he began formulating a dispensation view of God's dealings with man.

Dividing the Church "age" from the nation of Israel.

Other details 

and why I do not accept the Dispensational teachings 

will have to wait for another post.

Today 

I am just sharing a very short / abbreviated  history

of the Secret Rapture teaching 

that has been commonly taught 

( and retaught ) 

for the last 150 years.

Namely;

That Darby taught this in the Brethren Church,

and at many other Bible Prophecy conferences in England,

and later made at least 6 speaking trips to the United States.

Between 1859 and 1874.

He was well received by those who saw the prophecy in Revelation

 as "future" events, yet to occur.

As many others at the time

had been teaching them as "historical" 

and all having occurred in the past.

The "futurist" view is more accurate than the "historical" view, 

but 

the Rapture still occurs at the end, 

upon the return of Christ 

to rule and reign,

and 

not before the tribulation period begins.

One of the early promoters in the Americas

of the Dispensational view 

and Secret pre-tribulation Rapture 

was C.I. Scofield.

His popular study bible included this teaching. 

Lewis Sperry Chafer included the teachings in his Bible study guides,

and was a founder ( with his brother Rollin ) of Dallas Theological Seminary in 1924,

where many others were taught this doctrine.

After Chafer's passing in 1952, John F. Walvoord became president of the school,

and a more modern promoter of the Secret Rapture theory.

Writing several books on the subject.

This is just a quick highlight of a few KEY promoters of the teaching.

If you do an in depth study, 

you'll find many writers and preachers that have promoted it over the years.

And if you look a little more closely, 

you'll also find many who have written and taught against it.

One of the best books on the subject as a whole would be,

THE BLESSED HOPE,

A BIBLICAL STUDY OF THE SECOND ADVENT AND THE RAPTURE.

By George Eldon Ladd.

He writes in a clear manner 

and discusses all the KEY scripture passages,

while quoting and refuting those with an opposing viewpoint.

All in a most gracious manner. 

I'll close with one of the Key Bible passages on the subject of the Rapture,

I Corinthians 15:51-53

Behold, I tell you a mystery; 

we will not all sleep, 

but we will all be changed, 

in a moment, 

in the twinkling of an eye, 

at the last trumpet; 

for the trumpet will sound, 

and the dead will be raised imperishable, 

and we will be changed. 

For this perishable must put on the imperishable, 

and this mortal must put on immortality

AMEN!

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day