I was married at 18 and a father before my 20th birthday. I learned responsibility quickly; I had to, for people were depending on me. There was no study, all of life was a “pop-quiz”.
After a few years, I felt the need for something more in my life, so I began reading and then studying the Bible. The denominational world taught me that all I had to do was really believe and that alone would save me. They were wrong, for it is one thing to know something (that is, believe that it is true) and quite another to do something.
Thinking about this, I thought of the book of James, where it says…
James 2 ( World English Bible )
14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man says he has faith, but has no works? Can faith save him?
15 And if a brother or sister is naked and in lack of daily food,
16 and one of you tells them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled;” and yet you didn’t give them the things the body needs, what good is it?
17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead in itself.
18 Yes, a man will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works, and I by my works will show you my faith.
19 You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe, and shudder.
20 But do you want to know, vain man, that faith apart from works is dead?
21 Wasn’t Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?
22 You see that faith worked with his works, and by works faith was perfected;
23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness;” and he was called the friend of God.
24 You see then that by works, a man is justified, and not only by faith.
25 In the same way, wasn’t Rahab the prostitute also justified by works, in that she received the messengers, and sent them out another way?
26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, even so faith apart from works is dead.
Obviously, one needs to believe in Jesus, but having believed, one needs also to obey all that Jesus said. Chief among those things was to be baptized and become a child of God. Jesus said…
Matthew 28 ( WEB )
19 Go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
(see also, Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; Acts 22:16; Rom 6:3-6; 1Cor 12:13; Gal 3:27; Eph 5:26; Col 2:12;)
Jesus taught many things… Belief, confession, repentance and baptism, to name only a few, but many people have a problem with baptism. Yes, we have to know God’s word, but the testing of our knowledge will be in the situations that we encounter in life. Life is continually changing and from time to time we will have to ask ourselves: What would Jesus do? Now, that is the real test; will we turn to Jesus for the answers or not!
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