The Doctrine of Salvation

We are going through the gospel of John as we have been for a number of weeks, a number of months, but it’s a good going Dave.This is an important book of the scriptures.It’s the one we recommend that somebody who hasn’t read the Bible before, this is a good place to start.

Dave:

We’re getting close to the end of chapter five, progress!

Tom:

Right, yes, but it’s like an ongoing banquet.Why ever leave it?Take your time, enjoy things.

Dave:

This is God’s Word.

Tom:

Absolutely.But the heart of what we’re looking for here is salvation, the gospel; what must I do to be saved.These kinds of things.Who Jesus is, what he has done for us, what he continues to do for us.It’s all in this book as well as the other 65 books throughout the Bible and we couldn’t say more to encourage people.We’d like to say more, it’s a way to go.Right now we are in John:5:45Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
See All....Actually we went over this a little last week, but I think there’s plenty left for us to do here, Dave.“Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is [one] that accuseth you, [even] Moses, in whom ye trust.For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?”Dave in our earlier segment we were talking about the reliability of the Bible and prophecy.The prophets—what were they all about?Well I know that you pointed out in a book that you wrote prophecy is about Jesus and Israel.It’s about our salvation.

Dave:

Yes, it’s I am sure that these rabbis believed that the Bible was God’s Word; they would have said that.But they tried to make it say what they wanted it to say. Jesus said for example, through your tradition you have voided the Word of God.You contradict the Bible by the traditions that you develop.

Tom:

Now traditions: meaning this is what they added to the Bible.

Dave:

That’s right.What they developed.Well now this is the way we ought to do it, and that’s the way—there is so much in modern Judaism today that is tradition.And various ones even have different kinds of hats that they wear over in Israel.Some have fur hats; some have the broad rimmed black hats and so forth.The Mennonites, the Hutterites, all kinds of groups have come up with traditions with regard to what they eat their clothing and so forth.The Muslims are one of the major examples of tradition.I mean they are stuck on 7^th century Arab customs of clothing and some how they have been canonized and this is the only way to dress, the only way to conduct yourself and so forth.So on the one hand, the rabbis said yes, this is God’s Word.On the other hand, Jesus said you don’t seem to understand what it says.It’s testifying about me, and if you would believe Moses, you would have believed me.Now Tom, I want to go back just a little bit because we talked about it before.Verse 44 says, “How can you believe which receive honor one of another and seek not the honor that cometh from God only.”That really speaks to my heart every time I see it because we, I mean, I remember seeing it begin in grammar school.There are certain guys or girls that seem to have a little bit of leadership quality, and people look up to them, and then as Peter says, they have persons in admiration because of advantage.So you become a follower, or you flatter them and as you go through life, we flatter one another, we build one another up, we give our honors to one another, and somehow we have forgotten that we are all very, very tiny fish in a huge ocean.That God is so great that if we would see ourselves in the presence of God, we would see ourselves in comparison with this God.And I say that so often to him.Lord, I am nothing, how is it that I could even dare to talk to you?And the Bible says in the very first command that you are supposed to love the Lord your God with all your heart.“God how could I dare to say I love you?I mean you are so infinite.Infinite is infinite.I mean you are beyond my comprehension.Why would you even think of me?I am just a nothing.I make so many mistakes.[I am] a bumbler, you know and so slow to learn.”If we would get that perspective it would help us.Then we would seek not the praise of men, but to please God alone.His being would be so beyond, it would fill the whole horizon.There is nothing else.So then Jesus says—

Tom:

Well Dave, before you go onto that.That’s so—what you’ve lain out—that’s so contrary to what the world is telling us.And now, the church is telling us in many, many circles by many leaders.So you think you are crazy!You know sometimes along that line, when I find myself puffing myself up, in certain situations and the Holy Spirit gives me check, I think I’m a bad joke!

Dave:

Really?

Tom:

This is a bad joke!Now I’m not saying—

Dave:

We are pitiful creatures, but we get very proud.

Tom:

Yes, so how could God love us?How could he do what he has done for us?

Dave:

Well he does—it says he pities us as a father pities his children.

Tom:

But it’s not for what he sees in us.Because if we think on our best moment with an evaluation of who we are, if we think that’s pretty black, see it from God who knows every aspect of our heart.So why does he do what he does for us?It’s got to be because of Him.Because of His love which is just as you were describing: infinite, beyond our comprehension.

Dave:

And because of Jesus and who he is and what he did and this is what Jesus is pointing out.Look you couldn’t even approach God.Don’t you understand that the whole thing is about the Messiah who is going to come and who is going to pay the penalty for your sins?Without Him you couldn’t even say a word to God.You couldn’t hope for any mercy from God.This is the only way it’s going to happen.And he says look if you had paid attention to Moses, if you had understood what Moses was saying instead of putting your own ideas into this.

Tom:

And these weren’t Moses’ ideas.

Dave:

No, Moses was inspired of God.

Tom:

A prophet.Every word that he wrote down.

Dave:

And Tom, that’s another thing that really concerns me because we have the “experts.”

Tom:

The Jesus Seminar.

Dave:

Yes.We have, well in seminary we have the feeling in the church even, evangelicals.Well if you don’t know Greek, you don’t know Hebrew,—I mean you haven’t been to seminary, you don’t understand the original languages, I mean who are you to talk about this?

Tom:

I wish that were the case.I wish it was all that good and the seminarians who come out and begin to pastor were as good as they think.That would help them to be.

Dave:

See the problem is that’s not how it comes about.It comes about through a heart that is submitted to God’s will and that can be taught by God.But instead of that we get our ideas, we get our degrees—I am not putting down degrees, I’m not putting down seminaries, but the tragedy is as God had to say to his people, that’s to the rabbis, through Jeremiah, “My people have forgotten me days without number.”It’s so easy to get caught up in the world of academia—the Christian academics.And we have our ideas and somehow this is the way it’s done in this seminary, or in this church, or in this fellowship, this denomination.Instead of getting back to God’s Word—this is what we are trying to do.Search the scriptures, let God speak to your heart; don’t leave it up to the pastor.We’re not saying you should have a rebellion against the pastor, no—

Tom:

God’s raised up teachers, good teachers….

Dave:

But let us check them out as the Bereans checked Paul out.But this is what Jesus is saying.Look, you think you are the followers of Moses, you don’t even understand what Moses is saying.Moses was talking about me.Verse 46, “Had you believed Moses, you would have believed me for he wrote of me.”And you remember what Jesus said to the two on the road to Emmaus?Fools!Wow, and I often say, Lord I am such a fool, such an idiot, please help me to see something, help me to understand a little bit.But Jesus said, you fools, slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.You didn’t believe it.You’ve read the prophets, they are read in the synagogue every Sabbath, but you didn’t get it.You had your own ideas, your own preconceived notions that were the filter through which you read this.And then it says, “Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them on all the scriptures the things concerning himself.”So Jesus is saying if you’d have paid attention to Moses, if you would have really believed him, you would have known me, but if you don’t believe his writings, how shall ye believe my words?

Tom:

Right, and Dave, the response of those two as Jesus began to show them from the scriptures, their hearts burned within them.They got excited.That’s what we want for people listening as they search the scriptures.

Dave:

Amen.