Bible Answers To
Real Questions and Comments, 117

(Bible Question) Hi. I just left ________ after being there for many years due to their erroneous teachings about salvation, conversion.... especially in regards to the role of water baptism (where the Bible & God teach that it is definitely for the remission of sins)! In fact, the only place that I found where the New Testament talks about "faith alone".... says that "faith alone" does not save us! You are probably aware that this truth can be found in the book of James.... I am 50 years old and thought I knew the truth on this. As long we are seeking the truth, we are never too old to be corrected and learn about God. Thanks.

(Bible Answer) Greetings in Jesus’ name. You have given no Scripture for your unscriptural exaltation of water baptism. Hence, your attempted correction/rebuke is immediately invalidated (2 Tim. 3:16,17). The only verses used by the water gospel people are either non related to water baptism (such as John 3:5) or twisted somehow to force out their pet false doctrine. Perhaps you are sincere, but regardless you have been deceived just like the converts to the Jehovah's Witnesses who get misled into thinking Jesus is not deity and shouldn’t be worshiped. You are now a new convert to the water gospel and think you now know the truth, but you are dangerously deceived. It is imperative (for your sake and for the sake of those who hear you) that you accurately teach them the Plan of Salvation so that they can truly benefit from Jesus' death and resurrection. So, if pride is a factor, please shelve it or any other stumbling block in your way. Do you know what is pride? For your soul’s sake carefully ponder this teaching entitled, Are You Saved At Baptism and change immediately.

A person who gets forgiven is saved at the point of a trusting and submitting faith in Jesus. Afterwards he is to be water baptized by immersion as soon as possible. The faith that saves is one which obeys and follows. Don’t slander us, like some have, by saying we believe one can be saved with demon faith. Thanks.

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(Bible Question) Eternal security explains some passages such as John 10... in the original language (Greek). Do you have any defense that explain from the Greek? I really need it. Please let me know. Thanks.

(Bible Answer) NOTE: Everything the once saved always saved teachers cite as proof for their heresy is misused somehow. Don’t be duped by their use of the word Greek as though their presentation settles the issue. You were very general about John 10. Since John 10:28 is one of their most popular proof texts I must assume that is what you are referring to. We have already dealt with the no one can pluck them argument from that verse. Please read and listen to the answer carefully. Our books refuting eternal security, especially The Believer’s Conditional Security, have more than enough Bible evidence in them. Besides that they have helped many. Have you signed up for our internet church? God bless you.

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(Bible Comment) Hello, I just finished reading your commentary on David Cloud. I don't agree with everything that David Cloud says, but to call him a wolf in sheep's clothing because he teaches correctly the doctrine of eternal security may be going a little too far....A gift is something that can not be taken back. Ephesians 2:8 and 9 sums it up pretty well. Saved by grace and we don't have to do anything to keep it. (John 10:28)....Good day.

(Bible Answer) David Cloud is more dangerous than you realize. Yet, like thousands of others, David Cloud is exalted, respected and supported while he is spreading spiritual poison to the multitudes who look to him for answers because of the insidious doctrine he loves and tries to defend called once saved always saved. He is not a reliable source to draw from. He is essentially no better than other popular teachers such as Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, Bruce Wilkinson, John MacArthur, etc. Even John Calvin himself was not what many think.

There are no Scriptures which define gift as you do. The truth is God will take away one’s salvation under certain conditions:

And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. (Rev 22:19)

You were taught a mythical god, which is not the God described in the Bible. You say, unlike the Bible, that Christians don’t have to do anything to keep their salvation. Have you ever noticed that a Christian must produce fruit or be cut off from Christ (the vine) and get thrown into the fire (John 15:6)? Have you even noticed that a Christian will be expelled from the body of Christ if he gets lukewarm and doesn’t repent from such a nauseating condition (Rev. 3:15,16)? God’s word is clear:

...Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. (Rev 3:11)

See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us--even eternal life. I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. (1 John 2:24-26)

By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. (1 Cor 15:2)

You need both of our no eternal security books: The Myth of Eternal Security and The Believer’s Conditional Security.

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(Bible Question) I need help examining matters of doctrine that I thought I had settled a good while ago....I've seen it claimed...that the soul is the result of the interaction between the spirit and body, i.e. the body gathers material information with the 5 senses and relays it to the spirit and then the spirit communicates back to the body and the interaction produces the human soul. Is there any truth in this?

...The Bible has several verses that show that the loss of the spirit means physical death for the body. If this is true, how can a sinner be spiritually dead but physically still be alive- how did Adam and Eve die when they disobeyed God when their bodies did not immediately die?

...Jesus and the thief who was crucified next to Him could both be in paradise the day their bodies died and their souls may have or may not have gone to sleep (depending on your doctrine) to await the resurrection. But what happens to a sinner’s spirit when his body dies? Where is a sinner’s soul between the death of the body and judgment day? Is a sinner given a new body and/or a new soul or is the sprit the only component that is punished? And if the spirit is punished, what form does this punishment take- eternal torment or does it simply cease to exist? Thank you,

Bible Answer: Greetings in Jesus’ name. It is good that you found us, but better for you not to search around the internet for answers! There are MANY false teachers (Jehovah's Witnesses; Adventists; etc.). The only way you will ever know about any subject is to examine all the Bible verses listed for it and check the context. If you don’t you will surely be deceived. It takes a lot of work to do that but if you just listen to a presentation you will be misled.

The soul of a man is his intellect, emotion and will. His soul is not his body, nor is the body the spirit of man:

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Mat 10:28)

An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit....(1 Cor 7:34)

The word both in each passage shows they are different. The soul and spirit are different too:

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Heb 4:12)

The slight difference is similar to the joints and marrow, which isn’t much! The body is like a tent (or house) which we are living in now. It is not the real us! That is why God looks on the heart, not the outward appearance of a person. An unsaved person is physically alive but spiritually dead. When he gets born again, his spirit becomes alive:

But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. (Rom 8:10)

The body referred to there obviously is not the physical body because Christians are not physically dead. It refers to something different, which is not related to your questions. But at salvation, one’s spirit becomes alive. His spirit remains alive because of righteousness. Unrighteousness (sin) can and will bring about spiritual death, if a Christian lives according to the sinful nature. [Sin is the issue]:

Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, (Rom 8:12,13)

That refers to spiritual death too. NOTE: When Adam and Eve sinned they died spiritually and lost their salvation over ONE sin, but all sins aren’t sins that lead to death (1 John 5:16,17). All sins are not equal.

An unsaved person (sinner), at the point of physical death will go to fiery torment. There is no annihilation for the wicked. He will, in the end, be thrown into the lake of fire. It will be eternal torment, according to the Biblical evidence. The righteous go directly into the presence of God after death:

We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. (2 Cor 5:8-10)

He will get a new body similar to Jesus' resurrected body:

who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. (Phil 3:21)

MOST IMPORTANT: The issue is putting into practice God’s word, not understanding every detail about every issue. Do you know the plan of salvation?

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(Bible Comment) How good must I be to get to heaven? How many times must I ask for forgiveness? How many times must our Lord die and rise from the grave? For the sake of love I wish you His peace. Stop trying to scare people into submission to your system of belief. Satan does a fine job of that. Jesus was and is the perfect sacrifice. My salvation is not based on my being perfect...that's impossible! I hope you read the attached document and it gives you peace and the true knowledge that it is finished we just need to accept what He has done for us because He loves us unconditionally through no merit of our own. It's called GRACE.

(Bible Answer) Jesus taught the pure in heart will see God (Mt. 5:8). How many times must he teach it before you will believe it? How many times has God brought his truth to you and you have rejected it as you embrace the security in sin gospel? Your heresy, taught as part of the gospel by false teachers, declares you can disown Jesus but he won’t disown you. Why are you calling Jesus a liar by contradicting him (Mt. 10:33)? Why are you acting like an antichrist in opposing his teaching, yet claiming to be a Christian? Stop trying to convince people on the road to hell in sins that they are really on the road to heaven with salvation. You are speaking for the devil and repeating his first lie to mankind (Gen. 3:4) about spiritual death for the righteous. The Christian life is not as you present it. What you call grace is not Biblical grace at all. It is a license for immorality (Jude 3,4). As an obedient Christian, I will contend against your beloved grace for the sake of truth and souls. God’s love for man is not the issue. Instead it is our love for God, which equals obedience. I hope you read the love chapter and many of our teachings refuting your errors for your sake and the sake of others you will and are influencing. You are taking people to hell with you through your teachings, as you mention Jesus’ redemptive death on the cross, and unscripturally label it grace. True grace has nothing to do with eternal security and/or Reformed theology.

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, (Titus 2:11,12)

Rev. 21:27 says:

Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

That’s how pure in heart we must be. To reject the clarity of that won’t change anything. You must change or be damned.

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(Bible Question) Hello there, actually I am not really surprised there should be false teachings in Dave Hunt and logical fallacies. There are so many times when he writes as though he's the only man in town with logics and regard for scriptures.... His writings about self-confidence, and self-love (to him, someone slashing their wrists would still be loving themselves, Eph 5.29) and self-esteem did me considerable harm at a time when I was so very self-confident I had to call my younger brother for help because I didn't think myself fit even to do my shopping in a supermarket. Regards,

(Bible Answer) Greetings in Jesus’ name. This life is filled with danger, trouble and woe. There are many voices and concepts which will enter our minds. Most will be spiritually poisonous! The one sure way to safeguard our path is to follow the teachings of the Bible. To learn them correctly, one must go directly into the Scriptures for himself. Because there are so many false teachers in influential positions we better not just trust another’s interpretation, even if he is popular. This is too important. Our souls are too valuable.

A basic general safeguard is to ponder the spiritual good in our circumstances and encourage yourself in the Lord. Try to do that.

Regarding the berean call Dave Hunt, he has many sound teachings, but his plan of salvation and corresponding grace message includes once saved always saved. Therefore, he is misleading souls on the road to hell to think they are heaven bound. He believes (like many eternal security teachers) that the 1 Cor. 5:1-5 sexually immoral man was saved! Imagine that! To bite into that lie is also to distort the holy image of a Christian into a mere form of godliness. To his credit, Dave Hunt changed from his former stand on Catholicism years ago, but continues to embrace eternal security even after hearing the truth. It is very sad. Sad for him and sad for others because he has great influence over eternal souls. Have you signed up for our internet church? GOD BLESS YOU.

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