What Must Be Believed To Be Saved?

[Singalphile]

Steve's response over in the original forum is useful. Here are some of the additional "essential" passages he lists there (and one other):

• 1 John 2:22 - "Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son." (ESV)
• 1 John 4:15 - "Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God." (ESV)
• John 20:31 - "but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." (ESV)
• Romans 10:9 - "because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (ESV)
• 1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10 - "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.", "If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us." (ESV) [Edited 2/14/2015 - This was not in Steve's list. I added it here.]

Also, we have the aforementioned Heb 11:6 (must believe God exists and rewards) and 1 John 4:2-3 (that Jesus came in the flesh).

Those are just opinions about some facts.

I agree with most of what you write here, TheEditor. (I would be interested to read more about what you think Christ's death accomplished.) I'm just hoping that we'd all agree that in order to just be considered "a Christian", a person must at least not deny the truth of any of the above, regardless of one's precise definitions of some of those phrases.

It seems that one of the easier ways to end the unnecessary division within Christianity based on various so-called essential "doctrines" (i.e., intellectual concepts) is to clearly recognize those concepts that actually do seem to be explicitly declared "essential" in the Bible.

I do realize that it can be more complicated. I agree with Homer (I think) that many creeds or "statements of faith" serve little or no purpose other than to create division (or serve as a hobby).

[Paidion]

Singalphile quoted:

1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10 - "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.", "If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us." (ESV)

How would the following passage from 1 John 2, fit into this?

No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. (1 John 2:6-10 ESV)

[Homer]

I have read that in the past persons were tried and excommunicated with nothing but a creed used to convict them, with the scriptures having no part in the process. Not good.

[Singalphile]

Singalphile quoted:

1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10 - "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.", "If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us." (ESV)

How would the following passage from 1 John 2, fit into this?

No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother. (1 John 2:6-10 ESV)

I think that he's talking about a claim to have never sinned. That statement of fact ("I have sinned.") seems like an easy one to agree to it. I can hardly imagine that anyone would disagree (though some might prefer to use a less religious-sounding word than "sinned").

[Paidion]

Steve's post of 10 years ago gets to the essential requirement—discipleship. Jesus' disciples were the first members of the Kingdom of God, the good news of which John the Baptizer, Jesus, Peter, and Paul proclaimed. This good news is the very gospel itself!

The Kingdom of Heaven --- The Kingdom of God

Mark wrote that the message proclaimed by John the Baptizer was the very beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ:

Mark1
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way;
3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight—"
4 John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forsaking of sins.

Some think “repentance” means “remorse”. Not so. The Greek word “μετανοια” literally means “a mind change.” To repent is to have a change of heart and mind, to turn around and change the direction in which one is going.

The Gospel According to John the Baptizer
According to John the Baptizer, there were two requirements necessary to become a member of the Kingdom:

1.Repent ie. Have a change of mind and heart.
2. Be baptized. The purpose of baptism was the affirmation of one’s decision, the entrance into the door of salvation, and the beginning of the process of salvation from sin, and thus the bearing of fruit that is worthy of repentance. I think of baptism as a bit like signing a contract.

The Gospel According to Jesus
Matt 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
(Matthew 24:33 so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.)
John 4:1-3 Now when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), he left Judea and departed again to Galilee.

Jesus proclaimed the same requirements!

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14,15)

To be a member of the kingdom, one must be a disciple of Christ. Jesus said, that in order to be His disciple, one must die to the self life, and become alive in Christ.

Truly, truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who discounts his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:24,25)

The Gospel According to Peter
After Peter had addressed the men of Judea, showing that God had raised Jesus from death, and that they had crucified Him, the following exchange took place:

Acts 2:36-39
“... Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified."
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"
And Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forsaking of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him."

What were Peter’s requirements to appropriate the benefits of gospel? Repent and be baptized! The only difference was that now that Jesus had been raised, the gift of His Spirit was given. Yet, even prior to this, Jesus, before sending out his disciples, breathed on his disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” But it seemed that that was only for the occasion of their ministry. After that special day of Pentecost, the Spirit was given to remain in the disciples.


The Gospel According to Paul
Acts 28:30,31 And he lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ quite openly and unhindered.

But did Paul declare the necessity of repentance, as did John the Baptizer, Jesus, and Peter? Or did he teach that all that is necessary is to believe in the atoning work of Christ? In explaining to King Agrippa his experience with Jesus on the road to Damascus he concluded by saying,

Acts 26:19,20 "Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of their repentance.

Does Paul’s gospel not resemble that proclaimed by John the baptizer?
Yes, Paul preached repentance, and doing deeds worthy of repentance. But did Paul proclaim the necessity of baptism? We read:

Acts 18: 8 ...many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized.

It was after they heard Paul that they were baptized. The necessity of baptism must have been implicit or explicit in Paul’s message. Otherwise, why would they get baptized? So Paul’s gospel not only “resembled” that of John the Baptizer. It was identical!

But is baptism really necessary in order to get right with God? Let’s look at the life of Paul himself. When were his sins washed away? Was it on the road to Damascus when Jesus spoke to him, and he submitted? That experience certainly turned him around. He was blinded, and was then ready to do what the Lord Jesus told him to do. But later, it was Ananias who counseled him to be baptized. From Paul’s own account of the matter, Ananias said:

Acts 22:16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.

So it was not when Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus, but at his baptism that Paul had his sins washed away.

Jesus taught:
John 3:5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I tell you, unless one is generated of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

Although there is much controversy about the meaning of “generated of water”, many understand it to be baptism. This view is consistent with Justin Martyr’s explanation of the ways of Christians to Augustus Caesar and to his son. Justin was born in 110 A.D. In chapter 61 of Justin’s “First Apology”, we find his explanation of Christian baptism.

I will also relate the manner in which we dedicated ourselves to God having been made new through Christ; lest, if we omit this, we seem to be unfair in the explanation we are making. As many as are persuaded and believe that what we teach and say is true, and undertake to be able to live accordingly, are instructed to pray and to entreat God with fasting, for the remission of their sins that are past, we praying and fasting with them.

Then they are brought by us where there is water, and are regenerated in the same manner in which we were ourselves regenerated... For Christ also said, “Except ye be generated again, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”... And how those who have sinned and repent shall escape their sins, is declared by Isaiah the prophet... he thus speaks: “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from your souls; learn to do well; judge the fatherless, and plead for the widow: and come and let us reason together, saith the Lord. And though your sins be as scarlet, I will make them white like wool; and though they be as crimson, I will make them white as snow. But if ye refuse and rebel, the sword shall devour you: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”...that he may obtain in the water the remission of sins formerly committed, there is pronounced over him who chooses to be regenerated, and has repented of his sins, the name of God the Father and Lord of the universe...”

What About John 3:16 and Acts 16:29-31...?

Acts 16:29-31 And he (the Philippian jailer) called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out and said, “Men, what must I do to be saved?” And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Do these passages contradict the requirements Jesus and Peter gave for becoming right with God? Do they require something less to be saved? So often today, we hear that all you have to do to get right with God is “accept Christ as your personal saviour”. That’s a phrase we don’t find in any New Testament or early Christian writing. Or all you have to do is pray “God be merciful to me a sinner” , or “I realize I’m a sinner, Jesus, and that you died to save me. I hereby accept your finished work to make me fit for heaven.” Or some other such prayer.

I recall a woman from my local area who affirmed that she would not become a Christian, because she just didn’t want to have to come to the front of a church and weep and cry. Some time later, she told me that she found out from her Christian friend that a person doesn’t have to come forward, weeping and crying. “All you have to do,” she explained, “is say a little prayer, and you’ll be a Christian.” That’s the way the woman understood the “gospel” which was presented to her. One wonders how many people have “said the little prayer” and remained unchanged, but are under the delusion that they are now “saved”, that they can go on living their lives as usual, but with the expectation that they’ll go to heaven when they die, or when they are raised again to life.

So, it is said, that all we have to do is believe in Jesus. However, the whole crux of the matter lies in that little word “πιστευω” which has been translated “believe”. Indeed, the word does mean “believe” in many contexts. But another meaning is given in John’s account of Jesus’ life:

John 2:23-25 Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.

Is not “entrust” also the way the word is used in John 3:16 and Acts 16:29-31? If we entrust ourselves to Jesus, this includes repentance and baptism.

Luke 13:5 I tell you ... unless you repent you will all likewise perish."
John 3:5 Jesus responded, "Truly, truly, I tell you, unless one is generated of water and Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.


Back to the Kingdom. Has the Kingdom of God already come? Or must we await a future coming?

Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; "nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:20,21) NKJV

How was that Kingdom within the Pharisees? A kingdom consists of a king and his subjects. Well the King and His subjects were standing right there in the midst of the Pharisees. Jesus was the King, and His disciples were the subjects. That's how the Kingdom of God was within the Pharisees. Some think Jesus meant the kingdom was within their hearts. But surely the kingdom was not within the Pharisees' hearts! Yet Jesus said to the Pharisees, “The Kingdom of God is within (or in the midst of) you."

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you shut the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who would enter to go in. (Matthew 23:13) [7 woes]

Jesus’ Kingdom Parables

Entering the Kingdom
The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.Matt 13:44-46

When a person recognizes the exceeding value of the Kingdom, and the quintessence of entering it, he will gladly let go of all of his own aims and ambitions for the sake of the Kingdom.

The Growth of the Kingdom
Another parable he put before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."
He told them another parable. "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened." (Matt 13:31-33)


The Purification of the Kingdom at Christ’s Coming (The Fulness of the Kingdom)
Another parable he put before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed darnel among the wheat, and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the darnel appeared also. And the servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it darnel?’
He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’
But he said, ‘No; lest in gathering the darnel you root up the wheat along with them.
Let both grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the darnel first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’" Matt 13:24-30

Jesus Himself explained this parable:

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the darnel of the field."
He answered, "He who sows the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world, and the good seed means the sons of the kingdom; the darnel are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the darnel are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. The Son of man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

[dizerner]

the essential requirement—discipleship.

This is an oft-neglected component of salvation. We can't forget the admonition:

Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.

[willowtree]

Steve's response over in the original forum is useful. Here are some of the additional "essential" passages he lists there (and one other):

1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10 - "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.", "If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us." (ESV)]

I am really surprised that these verses made it on to the list, but the verses that respond to these, vv 7 and 9 of the same chapter were not included.

Is the cure less essential than the disease? Walking in the light with forgiveness and cleansing less important than a life of deception and lying?

Graeme

[jriccitelli]

What must we do to be saved? Basically: Believe God.

Love is also an essential requirement: you can’t be a disciple without love. And I’m not saying that discipleship is not important, as anyone would know I am on a campaign to remind believers that the church was originally made up of Disciples. But before you can be a disciple, and before you understand love, as in ‘God so loved the world’ you must believe. I understand believing and repentance to be very synchronistic and entwined in the sense that when we truly believe: ‘God is right that we are wrong’ we realize that we ‘should’ repent. Yet no one truly repents without believing they should repent. Yet ‘why’ must we repent if you believe God is right and you are wrong? Some may find no reason is necessary to repent, but I believe ‘The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge’.

I think a basic element is that a person come to the recognition that sin is wrong, this is not simply what ‘the person’ believes is wrong, or what we ‘think’ is a sin, but a mental cognition that what God says is wrong is sin, and punishable (either a specific sin, or sins in general).

So a mental acknowledgment, confession, or prayer to God that we believe God and want to repent is elementary. It could be said, as John the Baptist said, not only ‘want and be willing’ to repent and acknowledge that God is right and true, but that we actually do works of repentance (if this means actually attempting and or actually stop sinning, is a further discussion). But I believe the mental acknowledgment that ‘we were wrong and God is right’ begins our salvation (God will answer a cry for help, when we haven’t the power to stop sinning, and thus the power comes by believing God, who saves us from sin)

What must we do to be saved? Believe God. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness.
The Israelites also were saved by faith, faith in the God that spoke to them. They were saved by faith just as we were, that is in believing God would forgive them, not because they were good, but because they believed the sacrifices they offered would provide a way of forgiveness for sins.

I would have held to the once saved always saved thing, but having been a believer for a while now, and witnessing the becoming, falling away and complacency of believers here and there, I have come to the conclusion that a person may accept some foundational concept of Jesus and God, but along the way they become aware of what and who God really is, and some no longer find they like or want to know that God or His way of salvation, or the church, or tired of life, etc, etc.

Many people essentially believe essential elements about Jesus: a warm loving benevolent character, or a Jesus who is a wise sage, or Jesus an enlightened messiah like person who spoke great wisdom, Jesus a rebel against all the institutions and oppressors of the innocent, but as they grow closer or learn more about Jesus they grow closer to God, yet some people recognize they do not like the God of the Bible, or specifically the Old Testament, yet God is God, and you cannot have One without the Other.

[Singalphile]

willowtree,

I am really surprised that these verses [1 John 1:8, 1 John 1:10] made it on to the list, but the verses that respond to these, vv 7 and 9 of the same chapter were not included.

Is the cure less essential than the disease? Walking in the light with forgiveness and cleansing less important than a life of deception and lying?

That item (along with its references) in the list was the "one other" that I added. That was not over in Steve's list. I added those verses because I am looking for verses that very pointedly pronounce that a certain fact must be affirmed (or not denied) by a person in order for that person to be considered a Christian. The statement, "I am without sin," is a simple statement of fact. Given what John says about a person who would make that statement (or deny the corollary), I think it's clear that such a person cannot be considered a Christian.

Certainly, a person must believe in (or "put his faith in" or "entrust himself to") and subject himself to the Lord and not practice sin and walk in the light (and all the other good things that you've all said related to faith and obedience) in order to be counted as a Christian (i.e., welcomed into any Christian group as a functioning part of the body of Christ), but does that mean that such a person must also necessarily affirm a certain list of facts? If so, which facts?

Besides those already listed ("God exists and rewards", "Jesus came in the flesh", "Jesus is Lord, Son of God, and Messiah", and "I have sinned"), I might add:

• "Christ has been raised from the dead" - 1 Cor 15:17-20 ("... if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile ... But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead ...."), Gal 1:3-8 ("... contrary gospel .. let him be accursed")

Are there more? The deity of Jesus or some uni/bi/tri/mod/etc. "ism"? Strict monotheism? Concepts about salvation/grace/atonement? An opinion about baptism? What passages would you reference?

Again, I'm not just looking for important ideas. I'm looking for verses that explicitly declare within the text of the verse that a concept must be affirmed/denied.

There are many other opinions that a person might have (or not have), but as long as a Christian is not divisive and courteously keeps those opinions to himself or herself, do they actually matter?

On a related issue:

Some might quote a verse like Romans 16:17 - "... watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine [didachēn]that you have been taught; avoid them." - to argue that a person ought to be probed and educated and required to affirm more comprehensive "doctrines" in order to be accepted as a Christian brother or sister.

I would respond in part that the context of that passage is more likely related to instruction/teaching related to sin and obedience, as are most (or maybe all) Biblical references to teaching/doctrine (didaché or didaskalia), I think.

It's interesting to me that the 1st or 2nd century Didache contains almost no direct teaching related to matters of fact, which is what we normally think of as "doctrine". Of course, it does assume certain facts - mostly those referenced above, such as the existence of God.

[jriccitelli]

Seems to be plain enough that we have a Lord, but I would say there probably aren't one in ten Christians who can explain the Trinity (Homer)

As far as the Trinity goes; I will turn that back to the other thread, but add here that it is not being able to explain the Hypostatic union, or dichotomy of persons, or what constitutes a human beings nature, or whether God can be two persons or indwell men’s hearts, but it is the Command to believe God and not to have other Gods (And the command to worship only God and have no other Gods before Him). It is not a doctrine, or a creed. The Oneness, sovereignty and Lordship of God, and the Deity of Jesus, is a spiritual truth and reality.

Not believing God puts us in danger, that’s how we got in this mess.
So: There is a spiritual reality that God teaches us to put our trust in no other ultimate truth but God alone He alone is LORD (We should put our ultimate trust in nothing but God). There is no one and no one else we should put our complete trust in (He is LORD). There is no other truth to put our trust in but Gods truth. And there is no other ultimate truth but Gods Word. It is dangerous to believe the bible is just too hard to understand, or we cannot perceive enough of it to come to conclusions about anything, there are some things it lays out well enough. I believe that some people just do not want to believe (everything in Gods Word). Many will fall away, they believed parts of it, and they liked the parts about the god they choose, but ultimately reject the parts they don’t like about God. God overlooks our misunderstandings, and God knows we are incapable of seeing the big picture and the true evil that lies behind deception, but not believing still does not change what and who God is. And when we meet God and when God is revealed, we will either love the True God, or love the lie. If we really do not want the God that we will meet someday, then we really need to consider it, now.

This is a spiritual world, with both good and bad spiritual beings, and doctrines. I cannot see the spiritual enemy or their doctrines, but we see the effects and we hear their doctrines all around us. We see and hear both goodness and badness, but what we see are the direct results of the spiritual beings (God, the angels and demons, specifically). Western ‘enlightened’ thinking has a materialistic perception of things, but it should not be so for the believer. The ancient world, and other religious systems do have a concept of this, where we are lacking this perspective (or deceived into believing it is not relevant). There is a spiritual world where we live, and the powers that rule it are spiritual beings. In this spirit world there are demons and Satan, they want to rule over you. These are the powers and principalities, and doctrines of demons. Just as they inspire men to rule over others (there are other spiritual entities trying to be lord over you, but God, we must hold that He is LORD). This, the believer should be aware of. It is not just doing right and wrong, but ‘who’ we believe and follow. And more precisely who we obey. It is not really about ‘what’ we are doing, but why. We have to be discerning who’s word we are following, Gods, our own, or a lie. The spiritual enemy rules through deceit, not everything he says is a lie. But he is promoting a lie, and the goal is death, intended or not intended.

Anyways, Gods Law to have no other God before Him, and the command to not follow other gods, and that God alone is LORD is something that has great relevance, and it is a very relative truth in the realm of Angels and Demons. The influence of Satan and Demons is great in this world, we as believers should be able to perceive that. I do not think God is simply trying to cause simple good deeds on earth, or simply 'saving' us, but Gods goal is to bring us further and further along in our faith, and with greater faithfulness. Not simply good works but great faith. Faith is the spiritual backbone of our existence. We must be faithful to God, meaning we must believe, love, live for, know, recognize, remember, fear, hold fast, endure, continue, to do what we did at the beginning, that is believe, trust, turn from falsehood to the Lord who is God. Meaning God is Lord, and we should have no other Lord.

God is Holy, and God wants us to be Holy, but the way to Holiness is through Him and not through our own ideas, or our own righteousness. Faithfully following God leads to Holiness. Believing God leads to Holiness. Not believing God leads us away from holiness, and away from God. God’s word is where our faith begins and ends. His Word is not a way to God, Gods Word is not going to change, it stays the same and when we depart from Gods Word we depart from God. This will always be true. Gods Word is not a way to God, Gods Word is God. I know this sounds like I am purposefully trying to make a case for the Deity of Christ, or making a case for reading and believing the bible, but no, this is just how the scriptures reason this together. If Gods Word is ‘not’ God, then His Word is not eternal, then His Word is not Holy, and then Gods word is not like God at all. If we believe He is God, then we believe His Word. His Word is Lord.