NEW by Gary Rose

Gigantic Jet Lightning over China

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

Well, here is something NEW!!! Lightning that goes vertical; even towards the ionosphere!!! I can hardly even THINK of the word NEW without thinking of the following from the book of Hebrews...

Hebrews, Chapter 8 (WEB)

 ¹ Now in the things which we are saying, the main point is this. We have such a high priest, who sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,  ² a servant of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.  ³ For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this high priest also have something to offer.  ⁴ For if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, seeing there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law;  ⁵ who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, even as Moses was warned by God when he was about to make the tabernacle, for he said, “See, you shall make everything according to the pattern that was shown to you on the mountain.” ⁶ But now he has obtained a more excellent ministry, by so much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant, which on better promises has been given as law.  ⁷ For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second.  ⁸ For finding fault with them, he said, 
“Behold, the days come”, says the Lord,
“that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah;  ⁹ not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers,
in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt;
for they didn’t continue in my covenant,
and I disregarded them,” says the Lord.
  ¹⁰ “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel.
After those days,” says the Lord;
“I will put my laws into their mind,
I will also write them on their heart.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
  ¹¹ They will not teach every man his fellow citizen,
and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’
for all will know me,
from their least to their greatest.
  ¹² For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness.
I will remember their sins and lawless deeds no more.”(emp. added, GDR)

The fault of the first was not in the covenant itself, but rather in the people who refused to know God and keep his ways. So, God made a new covenant, with a new priesthood, a new high priest and an emphasis on a heart relationship with the Almighty. All this should have been no BIG"SURPRISE" as the quote from verse 8ff is from the prophet Jeremiah (31:31-34).

Is all this NEW to YOU? Fine, investigate further- start with the book of ACTS, Chapter 2 and see where that leads you...

Bible Reading August 23 by Gary Rose

Bible Reading August 23  (WEB)

Aug. 23

Job 27-29

Job 27:1 Job again took up his parable, and said,

Job 27:2 "As God lives, who has taken away my right, the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter.

Job 27:3 (For the length of my life is still in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils);

Job 27:4 surely my lips shall not speak unrighteousness, neither shall my tongue utter deceit.

Job 27:5 Far be it from me that I should justify you. Until I die I will not put away my integrity from me.

Job 27:6 I hold fast to my righteousness, and will not let it go. My heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

Job 27:7 "Let my enemy be as the wicked. Let him who rises up against me be as the unrighteous.

Job 27:8 For what is the hope of the godless, when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?

Job 27:9 Will God hear his cry when trouble comes on him?

Job 27:10 Will he delight himself in the Almighty, and call on God at all times?

Job 27:11 I will teach you about the hand of God. That which is with the Almighty will I not conceal.

Job 27:12 Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves; why then have you become altogether vain?

Job 27:13 "This is the portion of a wicked man with God, the heritage of oppressors, which they receive from the Almighty.

Job 27:14 If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword. His offspring shall not be satisfied with bread.

Job 27:15 Those who remain of him shall be buried in death. His widows shall make no lamentation.

Job 27:16 Though he heap up silver as the dust, and prepare clothing as the clay;

Job 27:17 he may prepare it, but the just shall put it on, and the innocent shall divide the silver.

Job 27:18 He builds his house as the moth, as a booth which the watchman makes.

Job 27:19 He lies down rich, but he shall not do so again. He opens his eyes, and he is not.

Job 27:20 Terrors overtake him like waters. A storm steals him away in the night.

Job 27:21 The east wind carries him away, and he departs. It sweeps him out of his place.

Job 27:22 For it hurls at him, and does not spare, as he flees away from his hand.

Job 27:23 Men shall clap their hands at him, and shall hiss him out of his place.

Job 28:1 "Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold which they refine.

Job 28:2 Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted out of the ore.

Job 28:3 Man sets an end to darkness, and searches out, to the furthest bound, the stones of obscurity and of thick darkness.

Job 28:4 He breaks open a shaft away from where people live. They are forgotten by the foot. They hang far from men, they swing back and forth.

Job 28:5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread; Underneath it is turned up as it were by fire.

Job 28:6 Sapphires come from its rocks. It has dust of gold.

Job 28:7 That path no bird of prey knows, neither has the falcon's eye seen it.

Job 28:8 The proud animals have not trodden it, nor has the fierce lion passed by there.

Job 28:9 He puts forth his hand on the flinty rock, and he overturns the mountains by the roots.

Job 28:10 He cuts out channels among the rocks. His eye sees every precious thing.

Job 28:11 He binds the streams that they don't trickle. The thing that is hidden he brings forth to light.

Job 28:12 "But where shall wisdom be found? Where is the place of understanding?

Job 28:13 Man doesn't know its price; Neither is it found in the land of the living.

Job 28:14 The deep says, 'It isn't in me.' The sea says, 'It isn't with me.'

Job 28:15 It can't be gotten for gold, neither shall silver be weighed for its price.

Job 28:16 It can't be valued with the gold of Ophir, with the precious onyx, or the sapphire.

Job 28:17 Gold and glass can't equal it, neither shall it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.

Job 28:18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal. Yes, the price of wisdom is above rubies.

Job 28:19 The topaz of Ethiopia shall not equal it, Neither shall it be valued with pure gold.

Job 28:20 Whence then comes wisdom? Where is the place of understanding?

Job 28:21 Seeing it is hidden from the eyes of all living, and kept close from the birds of the sky.

Job 28:22 Destruction and Death say, 'We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.'

Job 28:23 "God understands its way, and he knows its place.

Job 28:24 For he looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole sky.

Job 28:25 He establishes the force of the wind. Yes, he measures out the waters by measure.

Job 28:26 When he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder;

Job 28:27 then he saw it, and declared it. He established it, yes, and searched it out.

Job 28:28 To man he said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom. To depart from evil is understanding.' "

Job 29:1 Job again took up his parable, and said,

Job 29:2 "Oh that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me;

Job 29:3 when his lamp shone on my head, and by his light I walked through darkness,

Job 29:4 as I was in the ripeness of my days, when the friendship of God was in my tent,

Job 29:5 when the Almighty was yet with me, and my children were around me,

Job 29:6 when my steps were washed with butter, and the rock poured out streams of oil for me,

Job 29:7 when I went forth to the city gate, when I prepared my seat in the street.

Job 29:8 The young men saw me and hid themselves. The aged rose up and stood.

Job 29:9 The princes refrained from talking, and laid their hand on their mouth.

Job 29:10 The voice of the nobles was hushed, and their tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth.

Job 29:11 For when the ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it commended me:

Job 29:12 Because I delivered the poor who cried, and the fatherless also, who had none to help him,

Job 29:13 the blessing of him who was ready to perish came on me, and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy.

Job 29:14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me. My justice was as a robe and a diadem.

Job 29:15 I was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame.

Job 29:16 I was a father to the needy. The cause of him who I didn't know, I searched out.

Job 29:17 I broke the jaws of the unrighteous, and plucked the prey out of his teeth.

Job 29:18 Then I said, 'I shall die in my own house, I shall number my days as the sand.

Job 29:19 My root is spread out to the waters. The dew lies all night on my branch.

Job 29:20 My glory is fresh in me. My bow is renewed in my hand.'

Job 29:21 "Men listened to me, waited, and kept silence for my counsel.

Job 29:22 After my words they didn't speak again. My speech fell on them.

Job 29:23 They waited for me as for the rain. Their mouths drank as with the spring rain.

Job 29:24 I smiled on them when they had no confidence. They didn't reject the light of my face.

Job 29:25 I chose out their way, and sat as chief. I lived as a king in the army, as one who comforts the mourners.

Aug. 23

Romans 4

Rom 4:1 What then will we say that Abraham, our forefather, has found according to the flesh?

Rom 4:2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not toward God.

Rom 4:3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."

Rom 4:4 Now to him who works, the reward is not counted as grace, but as debt.

Rom 4:5 But to him who doesn't work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.

Rom 4:6 Even as David also pronounces blessing on the man to whom God counts righteousness apart from works,

Rom 4:7 "Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man whom the Lord will by no means charge with sin.

Rom 4:9 Is this blessing then pronounced on the circumcised, or on the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness.

Rom 4:10 How then was it counted? When he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.

Rom 4:11 He received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while he was in uncircumcision, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they be in uncircumcision, that righteousness might also be accounted to them.

Rom 4:12 The father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had in uncircumcision.

Rom 4:13 For the promise to Abraham and to his seed that he should be heir of the world wasn't through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

Rom 4:14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void, and the promise is made of no effect.

Rom 4:15 For the law works wrath, for where there is no law, neither is there disobedience.

Rom 4:16 For this cause it is of faith, that it may be according to grace, to the end that the promise may be sure to all the seed, not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.

Rom 4:17 As it is written, "I have made you a father of many nations." This is in the presence of him whom he believed: God, who gives life to the dead, and calls the things that are not, as though they were.

Rom 4:18 Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, "So will your seed be."

Rom 4:19 Without being weakened in faith, he didn't consider his own body, already having been worn out, (he being about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb.

Rom 4:20 Yet, looking to the promise of God, he didn't waver through unbelief, but grew strong through faith, giving glory to God,

Rom 4:21 and being fully assured that what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

Rom 4:22 Therefore it also was "reckoned to him for righteousness."

Rom 4:23 Now it was not written that it was accounted to him for his sake alone,

Rom 4:24 but for our sake also, to whom it will be accounted, who believe in him who raised Jesus, our Lord, from the dead,

Rom 4:25 who was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.

The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin! Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/blood.html

The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin!1 John 1:5 -- 2:1

“If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

To understand this verse, we must know what sin is, what its consequences are, how the blood of Christ can cleanse us from sin, and what it means to walk in the light.

What is sin?

Sin is a thought, attitude, action or inaction contrary to the will of God. “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Such statements are not popular! Most people tend to think that sin is actually not all that bad, especially their own sin!

How often is the word “sin” found in magazines and newspapers? The bad consequences of sin are described in great detail, but (except in churches) sin is almost never acknowledged as a cause of human suffering. Sin has to do with one’s responsibility to God, and people prefer not to think about that.

A man went to church alone because his wife was ill. When he came home, she asked: “What did the preacher talk about today?” “Sin,” he replied. “And, what did he say about it?” “Well, he was against it!”

Although there is a conspiracy of silence in the press about sin, God has much to say about sin. When we study the Scriptures we discover how sinful we are!

Jesus teaches us to look at the inner causes of sin: “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man” (Mark 7:20-23).

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus emphasized that external sins begin with internal sins, for example, when He said: “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).

In a popular song in the fifties there was a line, “You can’t go to jail for what you’re thinking.” On hearing the song my father commented, “But you can go to hell for what you’re thinking!”

In the New Testament there are several lists of sins that show us how sinful we are.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like” (Galatians 5:19-21).

“Being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful” (Romans 1:29-31).

“For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God” (2 Timothy 3:2-4).

“If you show partiality, you commit sin” (James 2:9). This means that looking down on poor people, racism, and all forms of prejudice and discrimination are sin, including favoritism, cronyism, tribalism, and blind patriotism.

And what about sins of neglect? “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin” (James 4:17). There are so many good things that we ought to do that we fail to do!

Even our good deeds are tainted by our sins: “But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).

Even those who sincerely want to do what is right, fall far short in actual practice, as Paul says: “For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do” (Romans 7:15).

The Bible is a spiritual mirror that shows us our sins (James 1:23, 24).

What are the consequences of sin?

“The righteous judgment of God” (Romans 2:5) requires the death penalty for sin. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). After listing a series of sins, Paul says that “the righteous judgment of God” is “that those who practice such things are deserving of death” (Romans 1:32).

In addition to bringing dishonor to God, our sin causes immeasurable pain, heartache and suffering to others. Only God knows how much harm is done by our sins and “each of us shall give account of himself to God” (Romans 14:12).

Jesus warns us about eternal punishment in hell as the ultimate consequence of sin: “And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire - where ‘Their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched’” (Mark 9:47, 48).

God provides salvation through the blood of Christ.

When we realize how sinful man is, and how destructive sin is, we could easily conclude that there is no hope for mankind.

But there is hope because God, in His great love and mercy, has provided the blood of Christ as the means of salvation. God is willing to forgive: “‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the LORD, ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land’” (Isaiah 1:18, 19).

Water and many other solvents are used to wash away physical dirt, but only the blood of Christ can cleanse us from sin.

Many people do not understand how blood can take away sins. Briefly stated: Since death is the just penalty for sin, the only way God can preserve His righteousness when He forgives sin is if someone else, who is without sin, bears this punishment in the place of the one forgiven (see Romans 3:24-26).

Thus, God has given blood as the means of atonement by which sins are forgiven. In Leviticus 17:11 He explains: “The life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.” Atonement is satisfaction for an offense, resulting in the restoration of a broken relationship.

“According to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22).

Under the Old Covenant there was atonement through the blood of sacrificial animals. This prefigured the blood of Christ, who would bring the ultimate sacrifice for sin. “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4).

High priests in the Old Testament offered the blood of animals. Our High Priest, Jesus Christ, gave His own life as a sacrifice for sin: “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:12-14).

Christ could pay the penalty for our sin because He was without sin. Since He was not under the same condemnation, He could voluntarily take our place, He “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness” (1 Peter 2:24).

Thus God’s grace is granted through the blood of Christ. We are “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith” (Romans 3:24, 25). “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7).

The blood of Christ is the blood of the New Covenant.

Jesus said something that was hard for His hearers to comprehend: “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:54).

This mystery was unveiled when Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper: “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’ Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins’” (Matthew 26:26-28).

The blood of Christ shows God’s love.

“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him” (Romans 5:8, 9). Jesus “loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood” (Revelation 1:5).

God proves His love by the high price He was willing to pay for our salvation. “Conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:17-19).

As John the Baptist testified of Jesus: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

Cleansing by the blood of Christ is offered to all.

The Old Covenant was given to the people of Israel. The New Covenant is for the whole world. To non-Jewish Christians Paul wrote: “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:13).

The blood of Christ is for everyone: “And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation’” (Revelation 5:9).

The blood of Christ enables us to stand before God’s throne in white.

“Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, ‘Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?’ And I said to him, ‘Sir, you know.’ So he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb’” (Revelation 7:13, 14).

Now we can better understand John’s statement: “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

How do we walk in the light?

“God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Through the blood of Christ, God has freed us from the power of darkness so we can walk in the light: “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13, 14).

We begin our walk “in the light of the gospel” (2 Corinthians 4:4) when we believe in Jesus (Mark 16:16), repent of our sins (Luke 24:47), confess our faith in Christ (Romans 10:10) and are baptized for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). We then rise from baptism to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). We strive not to sin, but when we fall short “we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1).

Thus, to walk in the light does not mean “that we have no sin” (1 John 1:8) because then a continual cleansing by the blood of Christ would not be necessary. It does mean, however, that we are not walking in darkness!

We walk in the light by following Christ day after day and by coming together on the first day of the week to commune with the body and blood of Christ at the Lord’s table.

Let us walk in the light!

“If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Amen.

Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982,
Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers unless indicated otherwise.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

"Calling on the Name of the Lord" by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=775&b=Luke

"Calling on the Name of the Lord"

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Considering how many people within “Christendom” teach that an individual can be saved merely by professing a belief in Christ, it is not surprising that skeptics claim that the Bible contradicts itself in this regard. Although Peter and Paul declared, “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21; Romans 10:13; cf. Joel 2:32), skeptics quickly remind their readers that Jesus once stated: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21; cf. Luke 6:46). Allegedly, Matthew 7:21 clashes with such passages as Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 (see Morgan, 2003; Wells, 2001). Since many professed Christians seem to equate “calling on the name of the Lord” with the idea of saying to Jesus, “Lord, save me,” Bible critics feel even more justified in their pronouncement of “conflicting testimonies.” How can certain professed followers of Christ claim that they were saved by simply “calling out to Christ,” when Christ Himself proclaimed that a mere calling upon Him would not save a person?

The key to correctly understanding the phrase “calling on the name of the Lord” is to recognize that more is involved in this action than a mere verbal petition directed toward God. The “call” mentioned in Acts 2:21, Romans 10:13, and Acts 22:16 (where Paul was “calling on the name of the Lord”), is not equated with the “call” (“Lord, Lord”) Jesus spoke of in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:21).

First, it is appropriate to mention that even in modern times, to “call on” someone frequently means more than simply making a request for something. When a doctor goes to the hospital to “call on” some of his patients, he does not merely walk into the room and say, “I just wanted to come by and say, ‘Hello.’ I wish you the best. Now pay me.” On the contrary, he involves himself in a service. He examines the patient, listens to the patient’s concerns, gives further instructions regarding the patient’s hopeful recovery, and then oftentimes prescribes medication. All of these elements may be involved in a doctor “calling upon” a patient. In the mid-twentieth century, it was common for young men to “call on” young ladies. Again, this expression meant something different than just “making a request” (Brown, 1976, p. 5).

Second, when an individual takes the time to study how the expression “calling on God” is used throughout Scripture, the only reasonable conclusion to draw is that, just as similar phrases sometimes have a deeper meaning in modern America, the expression “calling on God” often had a deeper meaning in Bible times. Take, for instance, Paul’s statement recorded in Acts 25:11: “I appeal unto Caesar.” The word “appeal” (epikaloumai) is the same word translated “call” (or “calling”) in Acts 2:21, 22:16, and Romans 10:13. But, Paul was not simply saying, “I’m calling on Caesar to save me.” As James Bales noted:

Paul, in appealing to Caesar, was claiming the right of a Roman citizen to have his case judged by Caesar. He was asking that his case be transferred to Caesar’s court and that Caesar hear and pass judgment on his case. In so doing, he indicated that he was resting his case on Caesar’s judgment. In order for this to be done Paul had to submit to whatever was necessary in order for his case to be brought before Caesar. He had to submit to the Roman soldiers who conveyed him to Rome. He had to submit to whatever formalities or procedure Caesar demanded of those who came before him. All of this was involved in his appeal to Caesar (1960, pp. 81-82, emp. added).

Paul’s “calling” to Caesar involved his submission to him. “That, in a nutshell,” wrote T. Pierce Brown, “is what ‘calling on the Lord’ involves”—obedience (1976, p. 5). It is not a mere verbal recognition of God, or a verbal petition to Him. Those whom Paul (before his conversion to Christ) sought to bind in Damascus—Christians who were described as people “who call on Your [Jehovah’s] name”—were not people who only prayed to God, but those who were serving the Lord, and who, by their obedience, were submitting themselves to His authority (cf. Matthew 28:18). Interestingly, Zephaniah 3:9 links one’s “calling” with his “service”: “For then I will restore to the peoples a pure language, that they all may call on the name of the Lord, to serve Him with one accord” (emp. added). When a person submits to the will of God, he accurately can be described as “calling on the Lord.” Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 (among other passages) do not contradict Matthew 7:21, because to “call on the Lord” entails more than just pleading for salvation; it involves submitting to God’s will. According to Colossians 3:17, every single act a Christian performs (in word or deed) should be carried out by Christ’s authority. For a non-Christian receiving salvation, this is no different. In order to obtain salvation, a person must submit to the Lord’s authority. This is what the passages in Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 are teaching; it is up to us to go elsewhere in the New Testament to learn how to call upon the name of the Lord.

After Peter quoted the prophecy of Joel and told those in Jerusalem on Pentecost that “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:21), he told them how to go about “calling on the name of the Lord.” The people in the audience in Acts 2 did not understand Peter’s quotation of Joel to mean that an alien sinner must pray to God for salvation. [Their question in Acts 2:37 (“Men and brethren, what shall we do?”) indicates such.] Furthermore, when Peter responded to their question and told them what to do to be saved, he did not say, “I’ve already told you what to do. You can be saved by petitioning God for salvation through prayer. Just call on His name.” On the contrary, Peter had to explain to them what it meant to “call on the name of the Lord.” Instead of repeating this statement when the crowd sought further guidance from the apostles, Peter commanded them, saying, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (2:38). Notice the parallel between Acts 2:21 and 2:38:

Acts 2:21	Whoever	Calls	On the name of the Lord	Shall be saved
Acts 2:38	Everyone of you	Repent and be baptized	In the name of Jesus Christ	For the remission of sins

Peter’s non-Christian listeners learned that “calling on the name of the Lord for salvation” was equal to obeying the Gospel, which approximately 3,000 did that very day by repenting of their sins and being baptized into Christ (2:38,41).

But what about Romans 10:13? What is the “call” mentioned in this verse? Notice Romans 10:11-15:

For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” (emp. added).

Although this passage does not define precisely what is meant by one “calling on the name of the Lord,” it does indicate that an alien sinner cannot “call” until after he has heard the Word of God and believed it. Such was meant by Paul’s rhetorical questions: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?” Paul’s statements in this passage are consistent with Peter’s proclamations in Acts 2. It was only after the crowd on Pentecost believed in the resurrected Christ Whom Peter preached (as is evident by their being “cut to the heart” and their subsequent question, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”) that Peter told them how to call on the name of the Lord and be saved (2:38).

Perhaps the clearest description of what it means for an alien sinner to “call on the name of the Lord” is found in Acts 22. As the apostle Paul addressed the mob in Jerusalem, he spoke of his encounter with the Lord, Whom he asked, “What shall I do?” (22:10; cf. 9:6). The answer Jesus gave Him at that time was not “call on the name of the Lord.” Instead, Jesus instructed him to “arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do” (22:10). Paul (or Saul—Acts 13:9) demonstrated his belief in Jesus as he went into the city and waited for further instructions. In Acts 9, we learn that during the next three days, while waiting to meet with Ananias, Paul fasted and prayed (vss. 9,11). Although some today might consider what Paul was doing at this point as “calling on the name of the Lord,” Ananias, God’s chosen messenger to Paul, did not think so. He did not tell Paul, “I see you have already called on God. Your sins are forgiven.” After three days of fasting and praying, Paul still was lost in his sins. Even though he obviously believedat this point, and had prayed to God, he had yet to “call on the name of the Lord” for salvation. When Ananias finally came to Paul, he told him: “Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (22:16). Ananias knew that Paul had not yet “called on the name of the Lord,” just as Peter knew that those on Pentecost had not done so before his command to “repent and be baptized.” Thus, Ananias instructed Paul to “be baptized, and wash away your sins.” The participle phrase, “calling on the name of the Lord,” describes what Paul was doing when he was baptized for the remission of his sins. Every non-Christian who desires to “call on the name of the Lord” to be saved, does so, not simply by saying, “Lord, Lord” (cf. Matthew 7:21), or just by wording a prayer to God (e.g., Paul—Acts 9; 22; cf. Romans 10:13-14), but by obeying God’s instructions to “repent and be baptized…in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins” (Acts 2:38).

This is not to say that repentance and baptism have always been (or are always today) synonymous with “calling on the name of the Lord.” Abraham was not baptized when he “called upon the name of the Lord” (Genesis 12:8; cf. 4:26), because baptism was not demanded of God before New Testament times. And, as I mentioned earlier, when the New Testament describes people who are already Christians as “calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 9:14,21; 1 Corinthians 1:2), it certainly does not mean that Christians continually were being baptized for the remission of their sins after having been baptized to become a Christian (cf. 1 John 1:5-10). Depending on when and where the phrase is used, “calling on the name of the Lord” includes: (1) obedience to the gospel plan of salvation; (2) worshiping God; and (3) faithful service to the Lord (Bates, 1979, p. 5). However, it never is used in the sense that all the alien sinner must do in order to be saved is to cry out and say, “Lord, Lord, save me.”

Thus, the skeptic’s allegation that Matthew 7:21 contradicts Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 is unsubstantiated. And, the professed Christian who teaches that all one must do to be saved is just say the sinner’s prayer, is in error.

REFERENCES

Bales, James (1960), The Hub of the Bible—Or—Acts Two Analyzed (Shreveport, LA: Lambert Book House).

Bates, Bobby (1979), “Whosoever Shall Call Upon the Name of the Lord Shall be Saved,” Firm Foundation, 96:5, March 20.

Brown, T. Pierce (1976), “Calling on His Name,” Firm Foundation, 93:5, July 20.

Morgan, Donald (2003), “Biblical Inconsistencies,” [On-line], URL: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/donald_morgan/inconsistencies.shtml.

Wells, Steve (2001), Skeptic’s Annotated Bible, [On-line], URL: http://www.Skepticsannotatedbible.com.