GOSPEL NUGGET #641

 Man Who Did Not Believe In Faith Alone In The Doctor Operated On Himself

He had a heart problem that required immediate surgery. When he went to the surgeon's clinic, he did not like what the doctor told him.

"Trust me. I can save your life. I have been doing this for 30 years. All you have to do is lie down on my table. I will put you to sleep and I will do all the work," the doctor said.

"No! Doc! That would mean salvation by faith alone! I reject that! I believe in salvation by works, by my own efforts! Thanks, but no thanks! Bye! You are just like those false preachers!" the man stormed out of the clinic.

So the man set up his own operating table at home and did an open heart surgery on himself.

After his wake, they buried him a week later.

--- REAL FAKE NEWS WITH A PUNCH

GOSPEL NUGGET #640

 Man Desperately Tries To Find A Place On Earth Where It Is Not Under Heaven

A man who would not want to be saved by the Lord Jesus Christ wanted to find a place on earth where Jesus Christ would not be Savior.

He read in Acts 4:12 the following words:

Ac 4:12 "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name UNDER HEAVEN given among men by which we must be saved."

"I want to be saved by works. I don't want to be saved through Jesus Christ. 'Under heaven' would mean anywhere on earth because everywhere on earth is under the canopy of heaven. I want to look for a place on earth where there is no heaven above so I can be saved by another method, namely by works and not through Jesus Christ."

He thought he found the place when he went to Antarctica, but, when he looked up, he saw, to his dismay, heaven above.

Right now, he is soliciting funding for his project from people, especially those who are not Christians, who will help him find a place on earth where it is not under heaven.

--- Real Fake News With A Punch

GOSPEL NUGGET #639

A Man During The Flood Of Noah Insisted On Being Saved By Water Baptism --- Drowned

Archaeologists have uncovered an antediluvian journal detailing the confessions of a man who insisted that water baptism will save him if the Flood of Noah comes.

"I defy Noah's preaching that only the ark can save us! That we should all be in the ark and trust in the ark alone. That there is no condemnation in the ark. No! I believe that water baptism will save me from the Flood!" he wrote in his journal.

That was the last entry he wrote. Experts believe that he perished in the Flood.

--- From Real Fake News With A Punch

GOSPEL NUGGET #638

 Man Assisted An Elevator On The Way Up

A man who rode an elevator in a mall shocked everyone when he tried to squeeze his hand out. He said that he wanted to assist the elevator on the way up. The others who were inside with him tried to convince him to just relax and stay put. Trust in the elevator and to let the elevator elevate him.

He saw the whole thing in a spiritual sense. He viewed the 3rd floor as heaven, the basement as hell, the lower ground as the world where he lived, and the elevator as the Savior.

He said that he is just being consistent with his beliefs. He believed in faith plus works. He insisted that he can't just stand there and do nothing. He must contribute to his elevation.

The latest update on the man said that he was rushed to the hospital because he broke his arm when he squeezed it out.

--- From Real Fake News With A Punch

GOSPEL NUGGET #637

 Man Experimented With Faith Plus Works To See If It Works

Mr. Peligroso Matagak did the experiment on the top floor of a tall 100-story building; with one leg standing on the very edge on solid cement while the other on nothing but air. Part of him is relying on solid matter while another is attempting to keep himself up by sheer will power and effort.

To everyone's horror, Mr. Matagak, straddling between solid matter and empty space, fell straight into his death down on the pavement below.

"I told him that it won't work!" said a Christian preacher shaking his head visibly upset about what happened.

He continued: "Over and over again I told him that it was by faith alone, by standing on the reliable solid ground, with both feet firmly planted on it. But he just won't listen! He would always insist on faith plus works."

It is feared that Mr. Matagak's case is not isolated, that thousands, even millions, are doing this deadly experiment with their souls, egged on and encouraged by people who call themselves preachers.

--- From Real Fake News With A Punch

GOSPEL NUGGET #636

 Millions of Filipinos Decided To Swim To The US

In an astounding display of physical prowess, millions of Filipinos have decided to swim from the Philippines all the way to the US.

"I know I can make it. Just believe in yourself!" said one Filipino gasping for air as we caught up with him in the Bohol Channel.

When asked as to why he decided to do it, one Filipino replied: "We Filipinos believe that we can make it to heaven by our own works and efforts, without relying on the Savior and what He did on the cross. So might as well swim the Pacific Ocean to the US without needing to be on a boat." Amid the thousands of floating bodies, many are still undaunted, confident that they could make the impossible 13,208-kilometer distance that spans both countries.

--- From Real Fake News With A Punch

GOSPEL NUGGET #636

Mt 9:2 Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you."

His condition was that he had a physical defect --- he was paralyzed. He was helpless in doing anything about it. He needed a miracle. 

His course of action was that he came to the right person. He had faith in Him as the promised Messiah of Israel who will come for them and heal them. 

The Lord Jesus did not ask him if he did good works, if he did community service, if he went to church regularly or if he read his Bible consistently. All these have their proper place but they are not the basis and the cause of his eventual healing. What did the Lord see in him that He healed and forgive him? He saw faith in Him in his heart.

His cure was by mercy through faith alone in Christ alone and not of works.

The physical miracles of the Lord were a demonstration and an illustration of what He could do for us in the spiritual realm. Just as it required a miracle for the paralyzed man to be healed so it requires a miracle for a sinner to be saved. 

And when a sinner is saved, he is "saved by grace through faith...not of works." (Eph. 2:8,9). 

 

GOSPEL NUGGET #635

What does it mean for God to not remember the sins of those who trust in the atonement of Christ?

Heb 10:17 then He adds, "Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."

* First of all, what it does not mean?

It does not mean that God will lose memory over it. It's a figure of speech. Not a literal statement that God can actually forget.

God is powerful and almighty, yes. He can do as He please. Nothing is impossible to Him. But God's attributes are never in opposition to each other; they work together in harmony. God would never use His power to cause Him to infringe upon another of His attributes, namely, His omniscience. For God to literally forget is for God to stop being omniscient.

The Corinthians experienced the forgiveness of God but God in inspiring the book of Corinthians clearly remembered the former sinful deeds of the Corinthians:

1Co 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such WERE (past tense) some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

God forgave King David but He clearly remembered the sinful deeds of David. When He caused the book of 2 Samuel to be written, the record of David's sins was written down with it as well, by His inspiration.

* Secondly, what does it mean for God not to remember sins?

It's a figure of speech that God will never hold it against anyone who trusts in Christ because He held it against Christ on the cross on the trusting sinner's behalf. When He sees the trusting sinner's sins, He now sees Christ assuming it, bearing it, taking it upon Himself, with His blood on it.

2Co 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

God now treats the trusting sinner as though he never sinned. He now treats him as righteous before His sight.

GOSPEL NUGGET #634

Salvation by Works and Salvation by Faith Contrasted

Salvation by works is putting your trust in yourself; that you can make it; that you can pass by your own performance. It is being confident in yourself that you can measure up to God's perfect standard.

Salvation by works is salvation by self. 

On the other hand, salvation by faith or reliance in the Savior is the humble acknowledgment that you can't make it; that you could never pass by your own performance. It is being confident in the Savior's work on the cross and of Him being your Substitute who does measure up to God's perfect standard.

Salvation by faith is salvation by a Substitute.    

If you are given an offer to pass muster, make the grade, qualify for salvation, through the perfection of a substitute, would you take it? Would you rely on Christ's work for you and of Him as your substitute? Or would you rather be saved by your own performance? 

Would you take a perfectly righteous Substitute on your behalf? Or would you take your chances in yourself as you are, confident in your own righteousness before God? 

P.S. Salvation by faith plus works won't do. Once you get your imperfect rating involved you will mess it up. Salvation by faith plus works is like agreeing to be graded on both Christ's perfect score along with your imperfect grade. No problem on His side, it's your end that spoils it all.

GOSPEL NUGGET #633

 Conviction Of Sin

* What is it?

It is to be convicted and convinced of a spiritual crime (sin). An inward awareness of one's sin and sinnerhood. It is to be convinced that one is a sinner bound for judgment, stripping a sinner of his self-righteousness. It is God humbling us making us realize who we are in His eyes. A preparatory work for salvation.

* Who does it?

Joh 16:8 "And when He has come, He (Holy Spirit) will convict the world of sin...

It is the work of the Holy Spirit. It is not natural in man. It is supernaturally wrought out in him by the Spirit.

* Examples of men being convicted of their sin

- Isaiah's experience

Isa 6:5 Then I said, Woe is me! For I am undone; for I am a man of unclean lips

Isaiah became aware of his woeful (not blessed) sinful and spiritually ruined condition

- Peter's experience

Lu 5:8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!"

Peter became aware of his unholiness and sinnerhood.

- The tax collector's experience

Lu 18:13 And standing afar off, the tax-collector would not even lift up his eyes to Heaven, but struck on his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner!

The Tax Collector became sorrowful of his sinful condition and realized that only God's mercy could save him.

- The men of Israel's experience

Ac 2:37 And hearing this, they were stabbed in the heart, and said to Peter and to the other apostles, Men, brothers, what shall we do?

They were pierced with the guilt of their sin and became concerned about what to do with it.

- The Philippian jailer's experience

Ac 16:29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.

30 And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

The Jailer's case was intense (conviction varies in degrees in every case) he trembled about his unsaved condition and asked: "What must he do in order to be saved?" Conviction of sin made him ask this question. Have you been convicted of sin enough to make you concerned about your spiritual condition that you desire salvation? Do you now realize that you are spiritually undone and ruined, that you cannot save yourself? If yes, one more step, come to Christ and what He did on the cross, trust in Him for salvation.

GOSPEL NUGGET #632

 The Sidetracked Debate As To Which Is The True Church Of God

Every single time you hear of people debating and arguing as to which is the true church, the idea behind it all in their thinking is that the church is an external, religious organization.

In their thinking, the Lord Jesus Christ has instituted this one particular religious organization which was imitated by other religious organizations in the process of time. Now, the problem in their thinking is how to pinpoint and prove that such and such is really the organization that He truly built. And you have to be part of it in order to be saved.

The truth of the matter is that Church refers to the condition of people. Church (Eklessia in Greek) means called out ones. God calls through the Gospel that sinners should repent and trust in Christ. Repentance and faith are heart conditions with regard to God's call.

The people who responded positively, by true repentance and faith in Christ, are the people who have been effectively called. Hence, they become the Called Out Ones of God also known as the Church of God.

It is very possible to have your official name as "Church of God" registered in SEC and monopolize it and not truly be the Church of God because the individuals who compose it are not truly repentant and are trusting in Christ for salvation.

It is very possible to call your group as "I Think We Are The Church Of God" in the SEC registration and yet be truly God's Church because the individuals who compose it are truly repentant and are trusting in Christ for salvation.

To debate as to which group is the true Church is to be sidetracked. For the Church refers to people who have truly repented and trusted in Christ for salvation, whatever group you may be involved in.

Notice how cunningly deceptive Satan is. He sidetracks you big time at the same time making you believe that you are still on track.

In this instance, he sidetracks us by making us focus on which is the true church in order to be saved, making us forget our individual responsibility to personally repent and personally trust in Christ and what He did on the cross for salvation.

GOSPEL NUGGET #631

What About Those Who Died In A Wrong Religion, Will They Be Saved?

Answer:

First of all, salvation is not found in religion. Salvation can only be had through the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

When the apostle Paul and company were asked: "What must I do to be saved?" His answer was not "Get yourself involved in the true religion and you will be saved." No religion can take away your sins. It's your sin that brings damnation to your soul. The sin problem must be addressed. And God addressed it through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The thief on the cross did not join a religion. But the Savior beside him was enough. And he was promised Paradise.

Can a dying man in the hospital who has repented of his sins be

saved even without joining himself locally to a church? Yes, the saving grace of God is not confined through the four walls of a religious organization. It's in the Savior.

Second, even if you are a member of a local church with 100% accurate Biblical teachings, if you have not truly repented and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross, you will never be saved.

Israel had the true religion in the Old Testament. Their religion was revealed and given to them by God through Moses. But if an Israelite did not repent and trust in the coming Savior prophesied in Isaiah 53, he will never be saved.

Ac 16:30 And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

Ac 16:31 So they said, "Believe or trust on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved..."

Third, those who have truly sought out God by true repentance will eventually be led to the knowledge of the Savior and what He did on the cross. God will see to it. He will never allow them to die out of this world without knowing about Christ and what He did on the cross for them.

GOSPEL NUGGET #630

 God's Approval Rating

Duterte received a high trust and approval rating from the Filipinos. He scored an excellent 91% trust rating and approval. That's way beyond the passing mark for us.

But, you know, in God's rating, He only approves a 100% score. He isn't okay with anything less. Anything less means damnation. The only way for us to get God's approval is to get into the good of Another's excellent approval rating.

* God Highly Approved The Lord Jesus Christ

Mt 3:17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

* God Highly Approves Those Who Are In Christ

Ro 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are IN CHRIST JESUS

Get into the good of Christ's approval rating and you will receive a "No Condemnation" rating from God!

How do we avail of it?

The moment you put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross is the moment you will be in Christ and receive, along with Him, God's "I am well-pleased" and God's no condemnation.

God does not condemn His Son. He is well-pleased with Him. You are in His Son if you trust in Him and so you enjoy God's high rating approval, not in yourself but in Christ!

Come on in! Be in Christ already!

GOSPEL NUGGET #629

In salvation, a sinner is not saved by his own good works. Rather, in salvation, the sinner relies and leans on Another's Good Work, the work of Christ on the cross, for his or her salvation. 

My friend, don't rely on yours, rely on His. He did the work of dying for all your sins at Calvary. He said, "It is finished." And God said: "I am satisfied" by raising Him from the dead. 

GOSPEL NUGGET # 627

Ditching the DIY Salvation: Trusting in Christ Alone

It is through experiencing the futility of attempting to save oneself by leading a perfect life that one can truly understand the importance of having faith in Christ as the only way to attain salvation. One may strive for sinless perfection, but will inevitably realize their helplessness and powerlessness in achieving it. It is not through arguments or statements that one learns this truth, but through personal experience.

This is similar to how God gave Israel the law first, to make them aware through painful experiences that they were unable to follow it perfectly. It shattered their self-confidence and made them realize their need for a savior.

Once one recognizes their inability to save themselves, they can turn to the Bible and immerse themselves in its teachings about the sufficiency of Christ's work on the cross for their salvation. Through this, they can come to trust in Him alone for eternal life.

Those who truly desire salvation and understand their inability to achieve it on their own will find solace in Christ's work on the cross. By God's grace, they will place their trust in Him and be saved.

GOSPEL NUGGET #626

2 Co 1:8 For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life.
9 Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead,|
2Co 1:10 who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us,

Troubled. Burdened. Powerless. Desperate. Sentenced. They realized that they were Zero and so were ready to make Him their Hero. So that they should not trust in themselves but in God. And they experienced a past deliverance ("delivered") a present deliverance ("does deliver") and a prospective deliverance ("He will still deliver us"). 

God's way in dealing with man is to bring man to a desperate situation, beyond himself, above his strength, make him realize that he is zero so that he would fall hard on Him as his hero, trusting in Him alone. 

Applying this to salvation, while Paul was talking about what happened to him in the physical realm, what he said here in this verse could very well be applied to the salvation of our soul.

When God saves a sinner, He troubles him with conviction of sin, burdening his conscience as to his sinful condition before God. He makes him realize that saving himself is above his strength; that the thing is beyond him. He brings him to a desperate condition in realizing that he is helpless and powerless in himself. He becomes painfully aware of the sentence of death on him; that he is a sinner deserving judgment and condemnation. All these is God preparing the sinner to fall hard on the Savior for salvation; that he should never trust in himself for it but in Christ who died on the cross and was raised by God for his justification. 

My friend, with regard to the salvation of your soul, don't trust in yourself but trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. His salvation is three-fold. A saved sinner has a past, present, and prospective salvation:

Past --- Saved or delivered from the penalty of sin
Present --- is being saved or delivered from the power of sin
Prospective --- will be delivered from the presence of sin