Titus 1:2, God's Promise To Save Them That Believe

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” 1st Corinthians 1:21, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” Titus 1:2, “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;”

Dear friend, if you've ever paid attention and taken heed to any of my blog articles, please make it this one. My heart is broken daily because of what has happened to thousands of churches across America, especially independent Baptist churches. My favorite preacher and mentor of the faith, Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001) warned everyone repeatedly that heresy is creeping into our fundamental churches by the hour, and he was so right. I love and miss Dr. Hyles and greatly encourage you to listen to his sermons.

Please consider that the reason the Gospel of John was written was to teach men the way of salvation. John 20:31, “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” Literally, the Gospel of John is God's Gospel tract. In the book of John we find the word “believe” mentioned 85 times, but the word “repent” is not mentioned even once. There is no mention of the phrase “turn away from your sin” to be saved. There is no requirement to pray, confess Christ publicly, get water baptized, partake of communion, speak in tongues, do good deeds or anything else. We are simply taught to BELIEVE. 

How simple is that friend? I absolutely love the following passage of Scripture, which proclaims that the Gospel is simple. 2nd Corinthians 11:3-4, “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” The Apostle Paul was deeply concerned that the church at Corinth might be led astray by another gospel, another Jesus or another spirit. Little did Paul know that it was the churches at Galatia that he needed to worry about (Galatians 3:1-3). If the early churches were at risk of being doctrinally corrupted, then we are certainly at risk today in the 21st century.

Sadly, thousands of churches have been corrupted. I have been an independent fundamental Baptist all my life, since I was gloriously saved by grace through faith alone at age 13. I am familiar with Baptist circles more than other faiths. It is tragic what I see today in our religious institutions and churches. Today's apostate Bible colleges are the primary source of heresy creeping into thousands of churches, particularly Baptist churches. Maranatha Baptist University in Wisconsin, Bob Jones University in South Carolina, Faith Baptist Bible College And Theological Seminary in Iowa, Harvest Baptist Bible College on Guam—these are all Devil's colleges today, indoctrinating young people to believe that we don't have a perfect, infallible, or inspired Bible today; and preaching the Devil's lie of Lordship Salvation, which is another gospel unable to produce the new birth. It is no light matter.

Repeatedly in the Word of God eternal life is promised TO THEM THAT BELIEVE. 1st Corinthians 1:21, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.” If more than believing the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ were required to be saved, then the Bible would have said so. Jesus said what He meant, and He meant what He said. John 14:2a, “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you...” If Hell is not a real place where Christ-rejecters are tormented in fire without mercy, then Jesus lied in Luke 16:19-31. Jesus is God (John 1:1-3, 14; 8:58; 10:33), and God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). 

I am so sick and tired and upset, that the Satanic lie of Lordship Salvation is so commonly accepted in thousands of churches today. The famous preacher John Wesley (1703-1791) rightly said: “What one generation tolerates the next generation will embrace.” Instead of exposing and refuting Pastor John MacArthur, Bob Jones University, Steve Pettit, Marty Herron, Harvest Baptist Church on Guam (and other wicked people and groups today), most churches are tolerating and going along with it, which is obscuring the Gospel.

Let's pause for a moment and define what exactly is “Lordship Salvation.” First I will give you the free grace Gospel truth, and then explain the heresy of Lordship Salvation:

1. FREE GRACE GOSPEL - The inspired King James Bible teaches a free grace Gospel. The Gospel means “Good News.” It is the GOOD NEWS that Jesus died on the cross to pay your debt of sin and mine. Jesus was buried. Three days later He resurrected physically from the dead for our justification (i.e., our faith in Him is not in vain). These three things comprise the Gospel (1st Corinthians 15:1-4). Anyone who acknowledges being a guilty sinner in God's sight, and believes the Gospel is born-again immediately, irrevocably and permanently. Nothing else is required to have eternal life. Jesus paid it all, we owe Him nothing (Acts 13:39). The Apostle Paul says it is our reasonable service to lay down our lives as a living sacrifice to serve Christ (Romans 12:1), but this is sanctification and has nothing to do with justification (salvation). Once saved always saved (OSAS). You can KNOW that you are saved, even if you choose to live a lifestyle of sin which greatly displeases God (Romans 5:20; 1st Corinthians 3:11-15; 5:1-5). The free grace Gospel demands repentance (a change of mind) TO believe for salvation. Repentance and faith are two parts of one act.
2. LORDSHIP SALVATION - Faith alone is not enough to get to Heaven. If you claim to believe in Christ as your Savior, embracing the Gospel as the truth, you are not really saved if you continue living the same way you did before you were saved. Advocates of Lordship Salvation (Ray Comfort, John MacArthur, Paul Washer, Charles Lawson, Marty Herron, Steve Pettit, et cetera) all preach that if you are still living a lifestyle of willful sin you've never repented, and faith alone is not sufficient to save without repentance (turning away from your sins) to be saved. You must exchange all that you are for all that Christ is. That is the deal offered by Lordship Salvation. You must receive Jesus as your Savior and your Lord (Boss), surrendering your will to follow Him no matter what the cost. Anyone who claims to have faith in Christ, but does not faithfully run the race (live the Christian life in service to God) is denied eternal life. Lordship Salvation demands false repentance (turning away from your sins) AND faith. Repentance and faith are two separate acts.

As you can see, there are very clear and distinct differences between a free grace Gospel and Lordship Salvation. The former requires merely resting in the finished redemptive work accomplished by Christ through the cross of Calvary. The latter in addition requires human effort to reform (cleaning up one's life of sin) to be saved. The latter is another gospel, which is of the Devil, and cannot produce the new birth. Anyone who dares to allege that these two gospels both fall within the realm of orthodox theology have been inspired by demons!

The Gospel of John is our only go-to passage of Scripture necessary to show someone how to be saved. Jesus simply told us to believe on His name. John chapters 19 and 20 record the glorious death, burial and bodily resurrection of our blessed Savior. John 3:20-21 says that whosoever loves committing evil (deliberate sinning) won't come to the light of THE TRUTH to be saved. That is what repentance is about. 2nd Timothy 2:25 confirms this truth.

Nearly everyone who emails me in an attempt to justify the heresy of Lordship Salvation takes Hebrews 6, Luke 13:5 Galatians 5:4 and other passages out of context. They completely ignore the message of the Gospel of John, which is simply to believe to be saved. On the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, the Bible says 3,000 people were saved as they heard the Apostle Peter preach the Gospel, who gladly received what they heard (Acts 2:41). 

In Galatians 3:1-2, “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” I love that! Here we see the simplicity of the Gospel. Paul simply wanted to know how the Galatians got saved, was it by works or BY THE HEARING OF FAITH. When you hear the GOOD NEWS of Jesus crucified, buried and risen, all you have to do to be saved is simply BELIEVE IT! John 6:28-29, “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.”