Bible Question:
I think I understand Christianity a little better now. :) 1) Tim, what are the conditions for being saved? e.g. Can i be a rapist who believes, or an adulterer who commits adultery, or in general a sinner who sins on an ongoing basis (hasn't given up his sins), and still go to heaven? 2) Why are you a pastor? if you are 100 percent garaunteed you are going to heaven, why work in the path of God? to be even closer to God? Yours truly, Isa |
Bible Answer: Greetings Isa! I only have a couple of minutes, I'm on my way to church. However, let me touch on your two questions quickly. 1) Ephesians 2:8-10 tells us exactly what salvation is based upon and what happens to someone after they believe. It says, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." This passage, among many others, makes it perfectly clear that salvation is not earned or unearned by what we do or do not do. It is based solely upon the grace of God as demonstrated upon the cross. Once a person is saved, his nature is changed and he no longer will live in sin. Someone who hasn't given up his sins hasn't really repented. 2) I am a pastor because God called me to be one. I have been given the privilege of caring for and teaching other believers. I have been given the privilege of sharing the good news that Jesus saves to those who haven't heard. I pastor because of what Christ has done for me, not to earn anything else. In Christ, Tim Moran |