SALVATION = TO LIVE FOREVER AND NEVER DIE!

I begin by discussing “Salvation” (to live forever and never die!). No subject comes near to matching this topic in importance. How do we ensure that all of us are contributing to blessing ourselves and the public with that supremely important information? First, by being certain that we have the right foundation in truth, and secondly by enduring in the face of all opposition, to the end. Not that following the lord Messiah Jesus and obeying his words is easy!

“You will be hated by all people,” Jesus said, “but the one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 10:22).

Often in theology and the Bible, it is what people don’t say, which proves to be dangerous and misleading! The following verses are shockingly absent from the mass of preaching and so-called Bible teaching currently being offered to the public:

Luke 9:11:

“Jesus welcomed them and began speaking about the Kingdom of God.”

Acts 28:23-31:

“From morning to evening Paul explained the Kingdom of God to them. Paul welcomed them [Jews and Gentiles] and proclaimed to them the Gospel about the Kingdom of God.” The same Gospel of the Kingdom was for Jews and for Gentiles!

Matthew 13:19:

 “When anyone hears the word about the Kingdom…” This is the parable of the sower, which rabbi Jesus said is the key to all the parables.

 In Mark 4:13 Jesus said:

If you don’t understand that parable of the Sower, you will not understand any of the parables.

Isaiah 59:21:

“As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says Yehovah: “My spirit which is upon you, and my words which I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says Yehovah, “from now and forever.”

Mark 8:38:

“For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful society, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

John 15:7:

 “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”

John 6:63:

“The words which I speak to you are spirit and life”

Isaiah 53:11: “By his knowledge, my righteous one will make many rights.”

Hebrews 5:9:

“Salvation is given to those who obey Jesus.”

Luke 6:47:

Jesus said, “Why do you keep calling me ‘lord, lord’ but you will not do what I say? I will show you what everyone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them…”

Luke 4:43:

 “I have to preach the Gospel about the Kingdom of God to the other cities also; that is the reason why I was commissioned.”

Let me ask this question: How is it possible to be deceived by preaching that claims to be based on Scripture? If someone claims to be teaching the Bible, this will appear to be convincing and authentic. So, what must you do personally to ensure that you are not being taken in; and that you are not being lied to? The answer is simple but requires constant effort and study. You must listen carefully to the words which are being offered to you as genuine! The only way to be sure is you compare the words you hear with the actual words teachings and sayings of Jesus and the Bible.

Just to hear the words “Jesus” or “Paul” or “a Bible writer” is not enough. You must insist on hearing the very words and teachings of the Bible. Only when you hear the precise words or teachings of Jesus can you be sure you are hearing the real, authentic Jesus, and not a counterfeit version of him!

Of course, it is essential always to understand first that the Bible is a Jewish book and that as Jesus said, “salvation is of the Jews” (John 4:22). Satan is a master counterfeiter, and he is determined to lie to you, and he labors at it! He is the great false teacher, and his methods are subtle. Satan works hard at getting you fooled.

Satan according to Luke 8:12 is fully aware of the supreme importance of believing the Gospel about the Kingdom, and so Satan does his utmost to keep people away from hearing  that Gospel of the Kingdom!

The Bible often makes this point about not being taken in by counterfeit words. Listen to what Jesus said in Mark 8:38:

“For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation [society], the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Notice the “me and my words,” not just “me.” Jesus, that is to say, the only real Jesus, and not a fake, counterfeit Jesus, is identifiable by his words, not just the name “Jesus.” No wonder then that Paul in 1 Timothy 6:3 and John in 2 John 7-9 said this:

“If anyone comes to you and does not bring the teaching of Jesus,” watch out!

The warning should be heeded by us all.

The key to good understanding is the fact that the one true Bible Gospel is called “this Gospel of the Kingdom” (Matthew 24:14)- the one we should all know about! But do we?

In our time you very frequently hear it said, massively online: “Won’t you accept Jesus?” or “Receive Jesus, and be forgiven.” “Won’t you come to him?” “Won’t you ask him into your heart?” It sounds impressive! But you are not hearing the actual words of Jesus!

So, then, how did the only real, genuine Jesus offer salvation?

Go to Mark 1:1,14, 15:

“The beginning [a very good place to start!] of the Gospel” ...Jesus then said, “Repent and believe the Gospel about the Kingdom.”

These are Jesus’ commands! Two commands: repent and believe. They must be obeyed for salvation. (Hebrews 5:9).

But are these the words you hear offered by many preachers of so-called “salvation”? If not, be warned and be alarmed. The chances of you being deceived and ultimately disappointed are huge! Jesus warned:

“Many will come in my name, saying ‘I am the Messiah’ and deceive many.”

This was the first thing Jesus said in the famous Olivet Discourse about end-time events (Mattew 24:4; Mark 13:5; Luke 21:8).

How can that be? The trick is played when you are not offered the actual words of Jesus or of Scripture! The name “Jesus” sounds fine, but without his words, the way is wide open for you to be taken in or tricked and deceived. You could be being taken in by a partial, washed-out Gospel.

Popular religion, often even backed by famous names (for example, C S Lewis who astonishingly said: “The Gospel is not in the Gospels”) invites you to “give your heart to Jesus” and thus “go to heaven when you die,” but the words of the Bible offer no such thing. No place in the scriptures says you go to heaven when you die!

In Luke 8 Jesus deals decisively with the “once saved, always saved” issue. In Luke 8:13, Jesus says:

“Some people believe for a while, and then fall away.”

The popular offer of “get saved now” says nothing about the need to endure to the end to be saved - delivered. No wonder that in Luke 8:8 Jesus customarily and regularly, habitually raised his voice to give maximum emphasis to the parable of the Sower.

Are you being told that “salvation - deliverance is now closer to us than when we first believed” (Romans 13:11)?

You also do not often hear what Paul said in 2 Thessalonians 2:10:

“Only those who have a passion for truth will be saved.”

Popular counterfeit Christianity also says nothing biblical about the ultimate destiny and purpose of being saved, which is to rule the whole world with Jesus when he comes back to the earth (1 Corinthians 6:2, Moffatt). The idea stems from Jeremiah 27:5: “God made the whole world and wants to give you the world!” Jesus echoed that stupendous truth when he said, comfortingly, “Don’t be afraid, little flock: the Father is delighted to give you the Kingdom” (Luke 12:32).

Jesus’ words Only the precise words of Jesus and the prophets will guarantee against being deceived - saved. I want to make sure that this point is clear to you all. Salvation is a question of what you are being saved for, not just what you are saved from. We know that we need to be saved from our sins, but saved for what? We know that Jesus died in our place as a sin-offering sacrifice, but what is the ultimate point of all this? Does “going shopping” mean that you just go and stand outside the shops?

What if you’re being offered a half-Gospel? Will that save you? Did Jesus “come to do three days’ work” (“to die, be buried and to rise”), as the Billy Graham organization system maintains? Are you expecting to “polish rainbows and prepare heavenly dishes in heaven”?

Or what if you are correctly being told that God is one Person, not three. But then, what if you are being told that it does not matter if you believe in a so-called pre-existing Jesus? (i.e. not a genuinely human Jesus, who had his beginning in the womb of Mary). The Bible says that a non-fully human Jesus is a false Jesus! Actually antichrist 2 John 7-9:

For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus the Messiah in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what you have worked for but may win a full reward. Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide by the teaching of the Messiah does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father - Yehovah and the Son.

So also, in Nehemiah 8:12 where it is the words that are the decisive element in salvation. We read there:

“They understood the words which had been made known to them.”

Compare Acts 8:12, the key, foundation text of faith. It was only when the audience “believed Philip as he preached the Gospel about the Kingdom of God and the things concerning Jesus the Messiah,” that they were ready to be baptized. And of course, water baptism is an indispensable requirement for all who have come to believe in the words of the lord Messiah Jesus.

A crippling theory called Dispensationalism is widespread and fearfully deceptive and very

misleading. Beware, if you have been misinformed by the so-called “Way International.”

Then also see Luke 8:12, which tells us that the crucial basis of the Gospel of salvation - deliverance is the Gospel of the Kingdom. Satan knows how dangerous and threatening that Gospel of the coming Kingdom is, to Satan’s whole fake counter campaign through his surrogate ministers.

We must therefore work within that Gospel-Kingdom plan and oppose the Devil at every point – exposing the dangerous falsity of amillennialism and also other false versions of the Great Commission (Matthew 28).

Kingdom and Millennium

The millennium of the Bible is not remotely to do with individual salvation now. It is all about those who have totally committed to dying to their own selfishness and totally committed themselves to obeying the words of the lord Messiah Jesus, and thus will be resurrected when Jesus returns to take his place on the throne of David at Zion. It is then we will co-rule the nations with the lord Messiah Jesus in his future Kingdom on this earth for one thousand years.

Amillennialism (the idea that the millennium is on now!) is a threat to the glorious future Kingdom of God to arrive when Jesus returns! Yes, Amillennialism is a threat to the Gospel of the Kingdom. Amillennialism is a threat to the future literal resurrection of the dead to immortality.

Amillennialism implies that the Devil has already been bound! The Bible says in fact that the Devil is currently the god of this present evil age and that the Devil is currently deceiving the whole world (1 John 5:19, Revelation 12:9, 1 Peter 5:8).

Amillennialism is theological fake news. Tell your Christadelphian friends that “Devil” there (Revelation 12:9), and in Revelation 20:2, without the definite article, is a proper name for a person, certainly not human nature!

The Great Commission in Matthew 28 says that we, as followers of Jesus, must preach and proclaim everything that Jesus taught, the whole message of the Gospel of the soon-coming Kingdom of God - Yehovah, and not just part of it. Jesus is not the true Jesus unless we re-attach Jesus to all his words!

“Teach them everything I taught you,” Jesus said. “He who is ashamed of me and my words, I will be ashamed of him when I come back.”

 This is fair warning because Jesus evidently thought that his version of the one true faith, his offer of salvation - deliverance, would be refused, and in fact rejected by scores of unsuspecting people, and those people Jesus said would be the majority, who sincerely thought they were saved - delivered when they were not. Jesus offered this amazing warning:

“When the Son of man comes back, will he even find the faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8).

Jesus was above all a realist and a speaker of truth!

Luke 1:32 announces that the “Lord God - Yehovah will give Jesus the throne and Kingdom of his father David,” “the coming Kingdom of God” of Mark 11:10! The Kingdom is the heart of the New Covenant message. Jesus “covenanted” (as the Greek says in Luke 22:28) the Kingdom to us, so that we should sit on thrones governing the restored tribes in the land (Matthew 19:28).

The Kingdom of God is thus all about the New Covenant.

The Kingdom is a word that must be defined from Daniel (especially 2:44 and 7:18, 22, 27). The Old Testament Scripture defines the Kingdom as a real empire that will replace the present kingdoms and empires of the present evil government system, of which the Devil is the god who deceives the whole world. If the Kingdom is not defined accurately no one can “repent and believe the Gospel of the Kingdom,” and they are left disobeying Jesus in Mark 1:14-15.

Jesus invited all to train now for rulership positions in that future Kingdom (“Training for reigning and schooling for ruling”). “Don’t you know,” said Paul, that the saints are going to manage the world? And if the world is going to be under your jurisdiction...” (1 Corinthians 6:2). All of this is found in Daniel 7, illustrating the great Truth that the New Covenant Scriptures are a commentary on the Old Covenant Scriptures. In church today the audience is given a later, misleading, Greek philosophically colored commentary on the Bible. 

We were saved when we first believed the Gospel of the Kingdom, obeying Jesus in Mark 1:15. We are currently being saved, and most importantly we will be saved – delivered when Jesus comes back.

Jesus’ Definition of God

The public in general does not hear these great Kingdom truths, and certainly, the public is not hearing that God is “one single Lord God” (Mark 12:29) and not a Trinity. Jesus called the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4 the most important command of all. The Trinity as a definition of God is never mentioned in Scripture: What do you think about this fake news offered as Christianity? How about this for a lie?

“Mark 12:29 [the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4] is a definition of God. The Bible teaches that God is one God. But why did they not tell you a word about what Jesus called “the greatest of all the commandments”? The Shema. That is the place to start in any and all discussions of whom the one true God is! And who Jesus is. Mark 12:29 defines the only true God as one single divine Person. The Greek reads, “the Lord our God is one Lord.” In Hebrew, it read, “Yehovah our God, Yehovah is one”

(Ask any child of 2, how many lords is “one lord.”) Mark brilliantly presents Jesus as entirely orthodox and Jewish in his unitarian definition of God. Jesus agrees entirely with a Jewish scribe, about who God is.

Then of course Mark goes on immediately to present Jesus as a highly skilled teacher (Mark 12:35-37). To clarify what is meant by Jesus being lord, Jesus asks his own question about Psalm 110:1: “The LORD said to my lord…” – “Adonai said to my adoni” How can David designate the Messiah as “lord,” Jesus asked. It is easy to show that the public is not being allowed to know that the second lord in Psalm 110:1 is a Hebrew word adoni, pronounced adonee, which in all of its 195 occurrences never once means God! Do your friends know that God cannot speak to God? Tell them. Do your friends know that God cannot die? He is immortal. Jesus died! Therefore, he cannot be God.

What are we doing to play our part in teaching ourselves and others these great salvation-imparting truths? Truths without which no one can be saved, i.e. live forever and ever! We all want to live forever, but we need to be sure that we are obeying Jesus and his words, without which no salvation can happen! Be warned: the possibility exists that we might “neglect so great a salvation” which “had its beginning in the gospel-preaching of Jesus” (Hebrews 2:3).

Note finally a translation trick foisted on an unwary public, creating a non-fully human Jesus! You must judge whether a pre-existing Jesus is a fake Jesus or not! Nine translations have “going back” or “returning” to the Father in John: CJB, GWN, NAB, NET, NIV, NRV, NLT, CEB, NBO.

Here is what Jesus actually said:

NAU John 14:12: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father - Yehovah.”

NAU John 14:28: "You heard that I said to you, 'I go away, and I will come to you. If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father, for the Father - Yehovah is greater than I.”

NAU John 16:10: “And concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father - Yehovah and you no longer see me”

NAU John 16:17: “Some of His disciples then said to one another, "What is this thing He is telling us, 'A little while, and you will not see me; and again, a little while, and you will see me'; and, 'because I go to the Father '?"

Finally, please reflect on and meditate on “having a passion for the truth in order to be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:10).

Written by Anthony Buzzard and edited and added to by Bruce Lyon