What must I do to be saved?

The essence of “providence” in contrast with God’s miraculous works is that the latter were visible, associated with God’s spokesmen, and confirmed their word as of divine origin while the former is not visible in such a way. In other words, when God is working providentially, it is not possible to point to some act that happened and say, “God did this.”

While we were living in Romania, I received an email from a brother in Christ, J. C. Choate in Mississippi. He edited a Readers-Digest sized spiritual magazine called The Voice of Truth International (which I believe is still published). Some saint had left a copy of the VoTI on the train in Romania after their visit. A young man named Daniel, who had just finished college, was traveling back home from Bucharest to his village close to the Ukrainian border called Sighetu Mărmației. He found that magazine and read it with interest.

Daniel then wrote J. C. and told him he wanted to know more about the church of Christ. J. C. wrote me with Daniel’s contact information. I started sending Daniel Bible study material. We corresponded. When I learned he was in the Baptist Church, I sent him the copy of the Spiritual Sword issue on the Baptist Church and told him to ask me any questions. One Wednesday night after we returned home from Bible study, Daniel called and his one question dealt with the thief on the cross. I studied the question with him.

A week later, he called me wanting me to baptize him for the forgiveness of sins. It took a 13-hour train ride to get to him, and Eric, one of my coworkers, and I traveled to Sighetu Mărmației and we baptized Daniel for the forgiveness of his sins.

Was it God’s will that Daniel be baptized for the forgiveness of sins? Absolutely. The Bible teaches that. Was it God’s will that Eric and I be the ones to do it? Perhaps. It worked out that way, didn’t it? Was it God’s will that the Christian left a copy of VoTI on the train? Well, we know that neither God nor the Holy Spirit told the Christian to do that. Deity does not work that way. But it worked out well, didn’t it?

When Onesimus ran away from Philemon, he came into contact with the apostle Paul who taught him the gospel. Certainly it was God’s will that Onesimus obey the gospel. But even the inspired Paul himself said that “perhaps” Onesimus ran away and came into contact with Paul so he could learn the truth (Philemon 15).

Here is the point… when it comes to God’s providence, we ask the question: “What is God doing?” And we have to answer, “We don’t know, not exactly.” But He sure works in order to bless His children and bring the truth into the hearts and minds of those who desire to hear it.

Paul Holland

In 18th century France, the writer Voltaire despised his religious heritage and believed that common people should not read the Bible. Ironically, after his death, the house he lived in while at Geneva was sold to Colonel Henri Tronchin, who was a lay president of the recently founded Evangelical Society of Geneva and reportedly used part of the house to store Bibles and other religious materials.

While the atheist and the skeptic reject the Bible as the outdated imaginings of uneducated nomadic peoples, the Scriptures serve as a proof for God’s existence. In Romans 1:20, Paul says God’s invisible attributes are seen in the creation. From a logical perspective, if the characteristics of God may be shown from creation, and one of those characteristics is that the God who exists is a personal God, then this God should communicate since communication is essential to personality. The Bible serves as a record of this communication.

Just as Psalm 19:1–6 provided the first reason to believe in God, Psalm 19:7–11 offers the second reason to believe. God has revealed Himself in His Word. David refers to the Word in several terms: law, precepts, commandment, fear, rules, and testimony. This last speaks to the Word itself being a witness of, from, and for God. Since the biblical authors repeatedly claim their message is not their own but is from God, the Bible should demonstrate characteristics in keeping with those that may be discerned about God by looking at the creation.

The Bible speaks of God’s limitless power to create and records how He created all that exists. It records His perfection in knowledge; the wisdom and intricacies of design, evident throughout the creation, reflect these characteristics. From the creation, one may deduce that the God who exists is not limited to a particular time or place. The Scriptures also attest to these characteristics. In short, the revelation of God in the world and the revelation of God in the Word agree in their testimony.

There is a God! Believe He exists. He has revealed Himself in the world and in His Word.

Clay Leonard

One of the major philosophical debates in the world centers on the nature of truth. One side argues that truth is objective. It is discovered through rational observation and collection of data that is then processed according to established principles of logic. Since it is objective, it may be known by anyone willing to make the effort to pursue it correctly.

On the other side of the debate, some argue that truth is subjective. It is knowable only through personal experiences that are then filtered through one’s own emotions. Since it is subjective, there may be multiple “truths” in a given situation, each one equally valid, even if logically they contradict one another.

The sides of this debate weigh heavily on the discussion of God’s existence. Can a person know God exists? If it is true that God exists, is that truth subjective (possible to know personally but not universally) or objective (universally knowable)?

The inspired writers offer many reasons to believe in God. For the majority of those living throughout history, belief in God was assumed universally. “Atheism” as it exists today did not really appear in ancient cultures. The Bible’s writers present their belief in God in ways that appeal both to logic and emotion. Biblical faith in God involves accepting objective truth, but that does not mean biblical faith is impersonal.

Having established that biblical faith rests on objective truths, here is the first of seven reasons to believe in God: He has revealed Himself in the World (Psalm 19:1–6). In Psalm 19, David points to the natural world as evidence or proof of God’s glory. David’s point is not so much that God exists (this he already assumes), but that the heavens and the celestial bodies within them (sun, moon, and stars) fulfilling their purposes announce God’s glory. In Romans 1:20, Paul explicitly argues that God’s attributes, and thus His very existence, are revealed in the creation.

There is wisdom in beginning with creation when proving the existence of God. Many people do not accept the Bible as inspired. They do not believe God exists at all. Looking at the world provides an opportunity to discuss God’s existence outside of the many debates surrounding the Bible.

Order, beauty, and balance – these are but a few of the attributes of God reflected in the creation. Additionally, there are entire classes of argumentation for the existence of God that find their foundations in appealing to the creation or aspects of it. These include cosmological, teleological, and moral arguments for the existence of God. God has revealed Himself in the world; believe in Him!

Clay Leonard

First, the Bible: “Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank” (Exodus 24:9-11).

God recognizes the importance of having a meal together. Here, we see Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and the 70 elders of Israel having a meal in the presence of God. There is something about the power of eating together…

Family meals are some of the best, heart-warming memories I have growing up. My dad was too busy serving small congregations and working to support the family (Mom was a stay-at-home-mom most of my childhood) to do much with us kids. But we almost always shared our meals together. It is a time to laugh, to share events from the day, to learn how to carry on a conversation, to cry together as you share concerns… It is a wonderful time to get to know one another.

Rachel and I tried to do the same thing with Jewell and Ana. Especially while we were on the mission field, we ate all three meals together. When we moved back to the US, we ate breakfast and dinner together nearly every night. Depending on Rachel’s work schedule, we might even get the girls awake an extra 30 minutes early, just so the four of us could eat together. I strongly attribute the closeness we have now as adults to that very event and that mentality that was fostered by eating together.

Eating in front of the TV is a conversation-killer. Your focus is on the TV, not each other. You don’t talk about the day; you don’t talk about the frustrations you have experienced. You don’t share biblical teaching. Generally speaking, it’s just not as productive a way to spend time with the family.

You teach children to eat what Mom sets in front of them without being picky. Many wives today would love to have a husband who is not picky! It’s an opportunity to train the children to thank Mom for the food she has prepared, to thank Mom for the time she spent preparing it, to thank all those people who farm and bring the food to your table! I offer a caution though: Don’t force your children to clean their plates. Help them learn how to apportion their food so they can eat what they put out. But forcing a child to clean the plate creates a long-term detrimental mentality that they would be better off not having.

Children should come to the table whether they are hungry or not. As I have suggested, the dinner table is more than food. It is conversation. It is learning. It is sharing. It is praying. It is laughing. It is crying. It is telling stories. It is affirming each other. Don’t ask your children “yes / no” questions if you are wanting to learn about their day! Ask them questions that cause them to reflect and explain. Share how you have applied God’s word to your life.

Yes, God designed meals to be a special time. One day, all God’s children in Jesus Christ will assemble around a table and enjoy a “meal” (Rev. 19:9). Let’s prepare our children for that eventuality.

Paul Holland

Mario Salcedo is living what many consider to be a dream life.  For the past 25 years he has lived on cruise ships; he’s not one of the crew, but a passenger.  Recently he was recognized by Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines for his 1,000th voyage with them.  He spends about 5 hours per day working (an article in the New York Post described him as a businessman), and the rest of the day he relaxes.

Salcedo’s lifestyle comes with a downside, however: “I’ve lost my land legs. I’m swaying so much I can’t walk in a straight line. … I’m so used to being on ships that it feels more comfortable to me than being on land,’ he added.”  This is normally not an issue since he is rarely on land.  The last time he left a ship for an extended period was during the COVID crisis.

Mal de débarquement syndrome is the condition that Salcedo has to deal with, the feeling of the land swaying and heaving when stepping onto land from a ship.  Usually the syndrome is short lived, but for some it can last for long periods of time.  The human body adapts to changing environments.  We suspect astronauts likely have similar experiences after living in zero-gravity conditions.

Christians face a similar challenge when we relocate our lives.  Paul noted this “disembarking” from the earth in Colossians 3:1,2: “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.”  In Christ our focus is shifted from earthly priorities to heavenly ones.  And that can be disorienting for a time.

In Philippians 3 the apostle spoke of things that once meant everything to him: “… of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, concerning the law, a Pharisee …” (Philippians 3:5).  But when Paul stepped out of the worldly domain into the heavenly one, a change in values took place: “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13,14).

Losing our “worldly legs” is a process, and as noted in Colossians 3:2 it requires setting our “mind on things above, not on things on the earth”.  If we’re not careful to do that (through regular Bible study, prayer, worship, and service), we make ourselves vulnerable to the allurements of this life.  It can happen to us just as it happened to a former coworker with Paul: “For Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world” (2 Timothy 4:10).

One must have strength to be a disciple of Jesus: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).  Worldly legs won’t support us on such a journey.  Walking in the heavenly domain requires legs strengthened by the Lord Himself.

Come to the light God offers!  Study His word, the Bible.  Worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:24).  Get in touch with us if you’d like to discuss these ideas further.

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Copyright, 2025, Timothy D. Hall

We have two in our congregation who are named “Grace.” One is a college student and the other is in elementary school. “Grace” is a beautiful name and a beautiful concept. You might say in the Bible, it pictures the unconditional love of God.

It is true that God’s love is not based on what we do, but rather it is based on who we are. We are His by His divine act of creation. When John states that “God so loved the world that He gave His only unique Son” (John 3:16), he is sharing with us the love God has for everyone who is born into this world.

And God extends His grace in salvation to everyone who is born as well. To say that God’s love is unconditional is not the same thing as to say God’s salvation is unconditional. We still have to choose Him. We still have to choose His way. When you meditate on the “plan of salvation,” you see that it is our choice that is operative at every step of the way.

We choose to listen to God’s word with humility. We choose to trust God’s word implicitly. We choose to repent completely. We choose to confess our faith loudly. We choose to submit to immersion in water for the forgiveness of our sins reverently. To say we are saved by grace does not negate the fact that we have to choose to respond to God’s call to salvation.

We can choose to respond either with defiant disobedience or we can choose to respond with thankful obedience.

In Romans 6:15-16, the Holy Spirit says, “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?”

Paul Holland

When Jewell was in middle school and high school, it was not uncommon for her to read a book and that book get made into a movie. And then the whole family went to see the movie. The movie Life of Pi was one of those books / movie. The lone survivor of a shipwreck must find a way to survive in the middle of the Pacific Ocean all alone. Following the catastrophe at sea, in which his parents and most of their zoo animals were tragically killed, Pi, the lone survivor, finds himself on a small lifeboat, adrift at sea with a few zoo animals to keep him company. As Pi moves further from the shipwreck, he drifts into danger; whales and sharks smell blood in the water, and a hungry hyena and tiger wait to pounce.

In this month’s passage, the recipients of the letter of Hebrews are warned not to “drift away,” for, like Pi, if they do, we will drift into danger.

WE MUST PAY MUCH CLOSER ATTENTION – 2:1-4:
Hebrews was addressed primarily to Christians with a Jewish background. These early believers were being tempted to go back to Judaism and the old law. So the inspired author urges Christians to focus on the truth of Jesus Christ. The verb “to drift away” is not used anywhere else in the NT.

The author concludes by reminding Christians why we believe the gospel in the first place. The message was first preached by Christ (v. 3); then it was affirmed by his apostles (v. 3); it was accompanied by miraculous signs and wonders (v. 4); and it was finally brought to its complete end with the sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and gifts were given to the church (v. 4).

JESUS WAS SUBMISSIVE – 2:5-13:
The author quotes Psalm 8. That psalm focuses on man as the crown and jewel of God’s creation. Jesus as the new man, the ideal man. In this passage, the author sees Jesus as one who attained glory through suffering. The writer will talk a lot about suffering through his letter.

Jesus achieved glory and honor through suffering and death (v. 9). As followers of Christ, we must be ready to do the same. Suffering is a normal part of life, especially of the Christian life. Christ warned his followers that they would suffer for his name’s sake. We must accept this truth, count the cost, and bear our cross and endure our suffering patiently, like Jesus, knowing that glory awaits those who remain faithful.

SO HE COMES TO THE AID OF THOSE WHO ARE TEMPATED – 2:14-18:
The preexistent Son of God took on flesh and blood and became human in the person of Jesus Christ to redeem humanity from the curse of sin. Where Adam was disobedient concerning God’s command relative the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Christ was obedient even to death.

Just as Jesus submitted to God, let us submit ourselves to Him daily. He is always by our side in times of temptation.

Paul Holland

The British churchman Thomas Fuller (1608-1661) was a scholar and prolific author. He was recognized for his witty quotes, one of which is literally engraved in stone, that reads, “ALL THINGS BEFORE THEY WERE EASY WERE DIFFICULT.”

Life always starts out difficult. Before walking was easy, it was difficult. Learning to ride a bike was difficult before it was easy. The first college term paper, the first day on the job, the first at-bat, the first day at boot camp; everything that scared us, stressed us, and challenged us became easier as we gained skill, knowledge, and experience.

Overcoming certain temptations is difficult at first, but as our faith in Christ grows stronger, we are more easily able to “resist the devil” and see him flee from us (Jas. 4:7). Men, leading that first public prayer, or ladies teaching that first bible class, it was always difficult before it became easy. But never let us fear to do what we think is difficult. “For God gave us not a spirit of fear, but of power, love and discipline” (2 Tm. 1:7). Day-to-day life is difficult. A growing faith in God makes every day easier.

-Dennis Doughty

Dan Martin’s job as a summer intern was simple: Go through the boxes of old movie reels that had been donated to Lauro’s Historic Films Archive, and catalog the various titles.  We can imagine that is a tedious and somewhat boring job, but one day he struck gold!  He found what is thought to be the only surviving copy of Francis Ford’s 1915 silent film, “The Heart Of Lincoln”.

The movie industry began with silent films, as the technology did not yet exist to combine sound with video.  The articles describing Martin’s discovery state that about 70% of all silent films are now lost.  This one, however, has now been cleaned and digitized, and will thus be preserved for the ages.

Ford’s film, of course, does not have actual footage of President Abraham Lincoln.  The 16th President’s death happened 50 years before the film.  It’s interesting to note, too, that Ford’s younger brother, John Ford, produced his own film about Lincoln, “Young Mr. Lincoln,” which starred Henry Fonda in 1939.  “The Heart of Lincoln”, needless to say, is an important find.

The plan is to release this newly found film to the public at some point without sound but with a soundtrack, as the silent films always had.  As a longtime fan of Abraham Lincoln, I’m interested.

At various times through the years news reports have informed us that “lost books of the Bible” have been discovered.  Some of these books give startlingly different details about Jesus or other Bible figures.  One claims that Jesus had a wife and children, and died in obscurity after surviving a botched crucifixion attempt.  Could any of these reports be true?  Are other Bible books missing?

A critical claim about the Bible is made in 2 Timothy 3:16,17: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”  The fact that Scripture is “breathed out by God” is a strong statement that God wanted us to have this Book.  It’s what we normally call “inspiration of the Bible”.  And what God gave to us He can certainly preserve for future generations.

2 Peter 1:3 adds more important information on this topic: “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence.”  Peter argued that we have “all things” we need to attain life and godliness.  If there were books of the Bible that somehow went missing for centuries, what do we make of such a claim?

“The word of God is living and active,” Hebrews 4:12 tells us.  The all-powerful God is capable of preserving His Book of truth for as long as the world stands.  In this Book we have much more than the heart of a President; we have the heart and mind of Christ our Savior.  We won’t have to depend on a summer intern to unearth for us messages that the Lord wants all humanity to have.

Come to the light God offers!  Study His word, the Bible.  Worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:24).  Get in touch with us if you’d like to discuss these ideas further.

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Copyright, 2024, Timothy D. Hall