Hearing for Salvation
The Bible was written for the salvation of
man. Contained within we find all that God desires for man to do in this life.
Hidden within the book is the key to eternal life. Also within, we find the
keys to living this life to its fullest as well as the answer to the quest for
finding happiness. The word of God has been preserved for us and is now, more
than ever, available to us in a convenient format. It is interesting to notice
that the Bible has been one of, if not the, top selling books ever since it has
been put into printed form, yet it is one of the least understood works ever
presented. In our culture today, it would seem that the Bible has been
relegated to nothing more than a household fixture rather than the true Word of
God. When we read the scriptures themselves, however, we cannot help but notice
the importance that is placed on hearing the word of God.
Most people seem to have some desire for a
reward at the end of this life. It is a hopeless, lonely, and often pointless
existence that one leads when he has no hope of an afterlife whatsoever. Most
would tell us that they will be in some sort of paradise after this life,
whether they speak in plain terms of heaven or not. My question to them is
simple, why? The only source of eternal life is Jesus Christ, which He makes
very plain in His teachings (John 6:63,68; 14:1-6). Yet many think that they
will find their way to paradise without Christ. Why? Then there are those in
the religious world who are very busy, very fervent, very active, but also very
ignorant of the Word of God. They too feel that they are assured of heaven.
Again I ask the same question, why? In Matthew 7:21-23, we find that many will
claim to serve Jesus and yet be lost. Why will they be lost? They will be lost
because they do not obey the will of the Father. I ask you, how is it that I
can obey the will of the Father without first coming to know, for myself, what
that will is?
One thing that we must understand is that
not everyone will go to heaven. This is not a statement made with joy; rather
it is made with a deep sadness. This is not a statement that originates with
man; rather it comes directly from the word of God. In Matthew 7:13 the Bible
says, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that
leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.” This is a statement
made by Jesus Himself during the Sermon on the Mount. Keeping this in mind,
what becomes important is finding out how to be saved from this destruction.
Many seem to think that religious zeal, or fervor, is enough. As long as I am
trying my best and doing something of a religious nature, then I will be all
right. After all, we are all trying to serve the same God, right? So why would
a great knowledge be necessary? Paul deals with this idea in Romans 10. Notice
how he begins the chapter, “Brethren, my hearts desire and prayer to God for
Israel is that they be saved.” Now there is only one reason that Paul would
pray that they be saved, and that is because they were not. Verse two is where
this becomes very pertinent to our topic. He says that they have “a zeal for
God.” In other words, they were working and doing, making an effort. As a
matter of fact, the word zeal would indicate that they were energetic and
enthusiastic about their service to God, and yet Paul says that they were in
need of salvation. How could this be? Verse three states that they were
“ignorant of God’s righteousness. Rather than find out what it was that God
wanted from them, they were busy zealously doing the wrong thing. Notice how
Paul describes their actions; he says they “have not submitted to the
righteousness of God.” This may seem hard to fathom but here it is. Paul is
saying that I may be a very zealous worker, very religious, and still be very
lost. Verses eleven through thirteen demonstrate how to fix this problem. I
must come to a point of belief. If I believe in Him, then I can know that I
will be saved. However, this belief must be a belief in what the scriptures
say, not just what I feel. Verse seventeen tells us that “faith comes by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” I am free to believe anything I want
to about Jesus, however it is only when I come to the point that I believe what
the scripture says about Him that I can have a justified hope of salvation.
Romans 1:16 tells us that the gospel of Jesus Christ has the power of
salvation. Acts 4:12 tells us that there is salvation in no other name than the
name of Jesus. It is only when I have heard the gospel of Jesus Christ that I
can even begin to have a true hope of salvation.
This is not to say by any means that
hearing the word of God is all that is required for salvation. In Romans 10,
there are at least three other actions that Paul clearly ties to salvation, such
as belief, confession and obedience. However, none of these are possible until
and unless we have heard the Word of God. We should also be aware that this
idea of hearing the word of God is not just mindless exercise for the ears.
Instead, what we see is a study aimed at increasing our knowledge of God and His
principles. In 2Timothy 2:15, Paul lets us know that we need to study the word
of God. I need to come to a point of comprehension. In Nehemiah 8, Ezra the
scribe presented the law of God to the people. As he did this, he not only read
to them from the book, he also “gave the sense, and helped them to understand
the reading” (vs. 8). This should be our goal. After all, Paul says that we
should “understand what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:17).
By Shawn Chancellor
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