Messages like "Trusting in His Grace" (posted in the Daily Message Forum) always generate questions. Here's one that I received via email that I'd like to open up for general discussion.

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Dear Steve,

There are too many people that believe all you have to do to go to Heaven is accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. That's only the first step, isn't it? You can't just stop there, it's an on going committment or you wouldn't get very far in your Christian walk. You can't do what you want when you want and it's "ok" because you're saved. You have to read the Bible and pray everyday. You have to feed the Spirit living inside of you. You need to follow God's word, you're in a position of authority, you have an awesome ministry, you reach a lot of people everyday. I'm asking you to please consider elaborating (if you feel lead to do so) that it doesn't just stop at accepting Christ. After accepting Christ we have a responsiblity to God to strengthen our commitment in order to grow and continue our walk.

Thank you for your time and consideration of my request.
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I think that the question stems from peoples' misinterpretation or devaluation (is that a real word? I mean "to make the value less") of the word "lord" in the term "Accept Jesus as your lord & savior". Almost anyone can accept the idea of a savior, but almost nobody likes the idea of a lord (supreme ruler/ absolute boss/ ultimate authority) of their life. The savior aspect of Jesus will comfort us, forgive us & provides the propitiatory death on the cross; however the lord aspect gives us instructions, directions, guidance & judgements & we, being strong willed & stiff necked don't always listen or agree. People don't want to face the reality of Jesus' lordship, so they ignore it. I think people take the word "lord" in that term & give it a meaning that is more soft, like "friend" - almost everyone wants Jesus to be their friend & savior. Nobody has a problem with Jesus as long as he isn't interfering with their day-to-day lives (some might feel like: "I give him 2 hours a week on sunday, what I do the rest of the week is my business").

The writer of the question said "There are too many people that believe all you have to do to go to Heaven is accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior." as if accepting Jesus as lord & savior were a small thing; but nothing could be further from the truth! Accepting Jesus as lord & savior isn't some obscure esoteric, mysterious thing that only affects us in the herafter, neither is it a minor, casual decision akin to "Do I want beef or chicken for dinner?" - it is a very real, powerful decision that affects us now in more ways than I can list here in a short time. That is why it is refered to as conversion, as we are converted to a new (eternal & abundant) life which begins now & has far-reaching consequences & reprocussions.

"Accepting Jesus as our lord & savior" is part of repentence (which contains the idea of us turning away from our sin & toward God), because we have to realize that we need a savior due to our sinful condition, before we can be saved.

There are a few points about salvation that I will mention here:

1) Salvation is nessisary for us because "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23), & "The wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23).

2) Salvation, by definition is the negation of the penalty of our sins & our passport to the eternal & abundant life.

3) Salvation is aquired by {a} grace (God's unmerited favor) through {b} faith (moreso Jesus' faith in us, than our faith in him; compare Gal 2:16), not of works lest any man should boast.

Because it says "not of works" that means that there is nothing under the sun that we, as humans can do to earn our salvation - not even repent! (But realize, without repentance there will be no acknoledgement that we need salvation, therefore it will be impossible to recieve it). However one of the ideas in the question concerns discipleship - which is an ongoing christian lifestyle; Jesus said something about how we will know them by their fruit because you don't get figs from a thorn bush & vice versa.

Remember: Salvation was, is, & always will be a free gift (compare Rom 6:23); unable to be earned (all we need to do to recieve salvation is to accept the free gift; compare Rev 4:20). But at the point of genuine repentance & salvation there will be a simultaneous transformation - "If any man be in Christ he is a new creature" (compare Rom 12:2) Jesus will take up residence in our heart (Christ in you, the hope of glory) & when God gives us a rebirth (Marvel not that I tell you that ye must be born again) he gives us a new prime directive; compare Eph 2:10 - that verse says that we are created for the purpose of good works, wich God has before ordained that we should walk therein.

As far as reading the bible goes - that is part of discipleship because "Faith commeth by hearing & hearing by the word of God" (Rom 10:17) & "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Heb 11:6).

As far as praying goes - that also falls under the category of discipleship because Christanity is a relationship; & no relationship can possibly grow without communication.

There is another idea that goes hand in hand with dicipleship; that of sanctification (which means that God will set us apart, or make us Holy). Sanctification is the process of us growing in grace & becomming "conformed to the image of Christ".

So in conclusion: Accepting Jesus as lord & savior is indeed the first step (part of repentance). And in order to be saved, we do nothing (God does it all, because it is impossible for us to save ourselves) but in order to know (provide evidence) that we are saved, we should have a lifestlye of discipleship & sanctification. Good works in general (including reading the bible & praying that the person who wrote to you mentioned) are not requirements for salvation; but rather they are done out of gratitude for the salvation that we already recieved, & a genuine, heartfelt desire to become closer in our relationship to God (it is also a part of santification & a natural byproduct of being born again). I feel that the question writer has merged or blended the ideas of repentance, salvation & discipleship - all are interconnected but all have different definitions.

I forgot one last issue - that of the theif (Mk 15:27) on the cross next to Jesus - he was told "today ye shall be with me in paradise" (Lk 23:43) & obviously he was in no position to get baptized or do any works "meet for repentance" (Mt 3:8) - nevertheles he was saved; & that brings to mind the parable that Jesus told us, about the man who owned a field & hired workers to work in it, all for a dollar a day & the people who started early in the morning were hired for the same rate as the people who were hired at the end of the day & when pay time came, the people who were hired early complained that the people who were hired late got the same pay. But the lord said - "It's my money, I can spend it how I see fit - I hired you for a dollar & I hired them for a dollar" (or something like that) the point being, that there will be some people who, just because we don't see that they have a lifestyle of discipleship & sanctification, doesn't mean that God didn't save them. Now this is no excuse to postpone your repentance untill the end of your life, because Jesus also said that he is comming back as a theif in the night; & if the goodman of the house knew what hour the theif would come, he would have watched; & not have suffered his house to be broken into. So we should always be prepared for the return of the Lord because we don't know when he is comming for us. Jesus also said that when he returns, if he finds servants who are not doing what they should be doing, that they will be punished (& perhaps not even enter into heaven; remember the foolish virgins who forgot their oil?). Remember that James said that "Faith without works is dead, being alone" which tells me that repentance without discipleship is not true conversion (which was probably the question writer's main point, that I found out was in the content of the message in question in the first place; so I don't understand why he wrote the question, unless he didn't read or understand the whole message).

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Slade,

I got the following in my e-mail today, I think it ties in here a great deal - I just hope Jack Van Impe doesn't mind me reprinting it without his permission:

"Let's consider the outcome of practicing sin. Multitudes think that walking an aisle, signing a card, and sending one's photograph for baptism constitutes a salvation experience. Soothed and salved by such religious pilgrimages to the altar or prayer room, they continue the practice of every abominable degradation known.

Regardless of their decadent lifestyle, all is well because once-upon-a time they made a beeline to the altar. Unfortunately, all they gained by it was "exercise," not an "experience." The "move" made, the practicing sinners rest in an unexperienced experience and they will die as unconverted converts. How deceived they are! How sad they will be at the judgment when Christ cries, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity (Matthew 7:23).

As I preach such convicting truth I realize that some sin-laden worldlings are angry. They are crying, Christian liberty, Christian liberty." Ah, but Christian liberty is never a driver's license to steer one's life into the pathways of sin! Others lament, "We are under grace and thus are able to do anything and everything. "Ah, but grace does not allow for a lifetime of disgrace! The 'Apostle of grace" dogmatically teaches this.

Strange as it may seem to some, Paul's "grace message concerning sin is identical to John's "legalistic" discourse about iniquity. Why not? God wrote all of the Bible. He used Paul, John, and others-even their personalities and vocabularies-but He guided every word into place (2 Peter 1:2 1). As a result, Paul, as well as John, makes it clear that one cannot love sin, desire sin chase sin, live in sin, and check into a sinless heaven. Though any Christian can commit any sin at any time, Paul nevertheless concludes that there must be evidence of a "new nature" constantly battling against an "old nature" if one has been born again. No evidence-no experience with God! It's that simple.

This is so because the Spirit of God becomes "grieved" (see Ephesians 4:30) and "quenched" (see 1 Thessalonians 5:19) when believers sin. The believer, in turn, shares the grief produced by the indwelling Spirit. Then, if he continues in sin, he is "spanked" spiritually (see Hebrews 12:5) and may "die" prematurely (see 1 John 5:16), going home "ashamed" (see 1 John 2:28) and suffering the loss of all rewards-being saved ...as by fire (1 Corinthians 3:15). It is foolish, therefore, to teach that Paul's "grace" proclamation allows one to live in sin.

If, at this point, one is still unconvinced, Paul's following warnings should settle it once, for all, and forever. Hear him in 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not [SHALL NOT. That's right, shall not!] inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators [premarital sex experimenters and "trial marriage" proponents] nor idolators. nor adulterers [extramarital fingers and swingers] nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind [homosexuals], Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards [social tipplers who tipple one too many], nor revilers. nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

Paul again warns in Ephesians 5:3-7, But fornication [premarital sex], and all uncleanness, or covetousness [love of materialism and filthy lucre], let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints: Neither filthiness. Nor foolish talking. nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. For this [you] know, that no whore monger [immoral sex practitioner], nor unclean person [smutty jokester] nor the covetous man, who is an idolater [money lover], hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. [None? None!] Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things [sins] cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them. No doubt about it. Depraved, debauched, decadent practitioners of sin inhabit the lake of fire for all eternity (see Revelation 21:8).

One more judgmental alarm is sounded by Paul in Galatians 5:19-21. He says, Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past. that they which do such things shall not [What? SHALL NOT!] inherit the kingdom of God. Such grammar is so simplistic and understandable that further comment is unnecessary. It all convincingly says, He that practiceth sin is of the devil.

Does all this mean, then, that practicing sinners have no hope? Perish the thought! God loves sinners and sent His Son to Calvary's cross to shed His blood for a world of wicked inhabitants. This blood, which flowed so freely from a love-filled Saviour, cleanseth from ALL sin (see 1 John 1:7). Because of it, a great number of Corinthians described in 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10 as fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, homosexuals, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, and extortioners were eternally forgiven as verse 11 proves. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus , and by the Spirit of our God. This is what the "second birth" did for them and will do for you today if you receive Christ. Remember, ...whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13)."

The preceeding was written by Jack Van Impe - please forgive him if any scripture references are incorrect... Sometimes he gets the adresses wrong but the scripure normally says what he said it does; you just gotta look for it if he is mistaken. I noticed 2 missing quote (") marks so there may be other errors.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Slade,

VERY Good!!