General Articles

Spread The Tidings :: By Dennis Huebshman

Published on: by RR10

Romans 10:14; “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” (ESV – all emphasis mine)

Romans 10:17; “So Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Joel 2:32; “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Acts 2:21; “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:13; “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

The Heavenly Father gave these words to three different messengers at three different times to show that His word does not change. He is not affected by our human time schedules, and He does not change His mind.

Matthew 28:19-20 gives the Great Commission; “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Luke 3:16; “John answered them all saying, ‘I baptize you with water, but He who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.'”

Acts 1:4-5; “And while staying with them, He ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which He said; ‘You heard from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.'”

These verses tell of the coming “Pentecost” and the disciples being filled with the Holy Spirit just as the Savior promised.

Numbers 23:19; “God is not man, that He should lie; or a son of man that He should change His mind. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not fulfill it?”

Titus 1:2; “in hope of eternal life, which God who never lies, promised before the ages began.”

Hebrews 6:18; “so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the Hope set before us.”

For the believer, our Hope lies in the fact that Jesus is the Son of God, and therefore is God (John 10:30). He has promised a Home in Heaven for all who will receive and accept His wonderful gift that He gave for us. Although He is speaking to the apostles prior to His crucifixion, His promise to go and prepare a place for them applies to everyone who has Him as their Savior (John 14:1-3).

Looking at John 10:9 and 14-16, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” “I am the Good Shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice! So there will be one flock, One Shepherd.”

With this statement, Jesus was telling us that the gift He was about to provide would be available to every soul that would live on this earth. For that gift to have meaning, it must be received and accepted by each person. Those who pass from this earth without having Jesus as their Savior will never enter Heaven but will be in the lake of fire forever.

Romans 10:12; “For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him.”

With all this information that has been given to us by our Heavenly Father through His precious Word, would it not be reasonable to say we want this gift and would love for all of our loved ones to receive it as well?

While some “religions” are forceful in recruiting members, our Father will never force anyone to receive and accept Jesus. He expects us to get the message out to all who would receive it, as given in 1 Peter 3:15; “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as Holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the Hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”

And yes, this is all leading up to a great Christian Hymn. Priscilla Jane Owens (1829 – 1907) wrote songs for her Sunday school ministry, and in 1882 “Jesus Saves” was published.

1.) We have heard the joyful sound; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Spread the tidings all around; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Bear the news to every land; climb the mountains, cross the waves; Onward tis our Lord’s command; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves!

2.) Waft it on the rolling tide; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Tell to sinners far and wide; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Sing, you islands of the sea; echo back you ocean caves; earth shall keep her jubilee; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves!

3.) Sing above the battle strife; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! By His death and endless life; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Shout it brightly through the gloom, when the heart for mercy craves; sing in triumph o’er the tomb; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves!

4.) Give the winds a mighty voice; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Let the nations now rejoice; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! Shout salvation full and free; highest hills and deepest caves; this our song of victory; Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves!

For me, it’s nearly impossible to listen to this song without having the urge to “Spread the tidings all around.” The messages that the Father puts in my heart and on my mind would never be written without the help of the Holy Spirit. This is my “pulpit,” and the audience is any who will take the time to read the words.

Some find it “hard” as Jesus said they would in Matthew 7:13-14, but only because they believe there must be more to Salvation than what is actually required.

First the “A”; admit we’re all sinners (Romans 3:23), and confess to the Lord that we cannot save ourselves.

Then the “B”; believe that Jesus is the Son of God who came to earth and willingly allowed Himself to be sacrificed in our place (John 10:18) for our sins. He is the only sinless, pure-blood sacrifice that the Father could ever accept. Also, believe that He truly died on that cross, and God raised Him from the grave to conquer sin and death for all who would accept Him.

Finally, the “C”; as per the verses given earlier, all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.

A, B, C is the true pathway to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. No special works, no special rituals with long drawn-out recitals, and no price could ever be paid by anyone for this gift. Jesus paid for our Salvation in full, and what we must do is receive the gift and accept that it is complete.

Ephesians 2:8-9 plainly states we’re saved by Grace through Faith, and not as a result of any works that we could do.

Jesus made the statement in Revelation 3:20 that He is waiting for us to open our hearts to Him. When we do, He will be our Savior forever and will have the Holy Spirit live within us while we’re still here.

It’s each person’s choice. Jesus and a forever Home with Him in Heaven, or Satan and a forever horrible existence in hell. No matter what false prophets will or will not tell you, there is no other option available. Choose today; it’s the absolute most important decision you will ever make. Our Heavenly Father will turn no one away who truly calls on Jesus to save them.

Shalom Aleichem! (Peace be with You)

huebshman46@gmail.com

 

 

Hebrews Study: The Need for Discernment :: By Sean Gooding

Published on: by RR10

Hebrews 5:12-14

“12 For though by this time, you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

Today, someone posted the story of the ‘Thief on the Cross’ (Luke 23:32-43). This is the simplicity of the Gospel. And God, in His eternal wisdom, made sure that one of the last things we see and deal with in the crucifixion is that the Gospel is simple. This thief could not be baptized; he was a thief, so we know he broke the Law. He began the fateful morning as a heckler, making fun of Jesus as He was dying for his sins. He never joined a church, never handed out a Gospel tract, never even knelt to pray. No, no, no. He simply believed that Jesus was who He said He was; he addressed Him as Lord; and he, the thief, believed in the resurrection: “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”

This simple act of faith of belief in Jesus was all that was needed. Jesus assures him that He would be in Paradise that very day. He will be there to greet us when we arrive as well. This is why it is so important to know the truth of the Gospel and to vigorously defend the simplicity and purity of the Gospel. People will go to Hell when we complicate it and allow it to be polluted. It is important for a local church to repeat the simplicity of the Gospel as often as possible. It is essential that every leader, every Sunday School teacher, and even the very greeters at the doors (if your church is that big) be fluent in the simple Gospel, the pure Gospel of Jesus’ complete and utter sacrifice for my sins and yours.

  • First Principles, verse 12

Someone told me a long time ago, or I heard it as an old wives’ tale, that you can judge the cleanliness of the kitchen in a restaurant by how clean the washrooms are. Some of you know that I work in the car business, and I can tell you that often one can determine the way that people kept their cars by looking in the trunk. For some reason, people will clean the whole car and often forget the trunk. In a similar manner, one can judge the scriptural footing of a person or a church by asking about the Gospel.

As we have discussed over the past few weeks and will continue for some time, the Gospel is ONLY about Jesus. We accept by faith all that Jesus has done, and nothing else. Too many people, like the religious leaders who added a myriad of man-made ‘rules and laws’ to Moses’ Law, think that the Gospel is too simple and that somehow we need to prove our worth to attain it. So, we need to jump through the right number of hoops and perform the right amount of penance to be accepted. We must say this prayer, repeat this phrase, and on and on. We have to show the fruits of salvation; we have to cry and be emotionally sorrowful to be saved. But this is not the case.

The Bible is very clear that all that is required is that we accept, put our faith in, believe that Jesus is who He says He is, and we will be saved. In Acts 8:37, the Ethiopian Eunuch says the following (this verse is removed from some Bibles. This is a litmus test for your Bible. If it is not there, you should get a Bible that has it).

“Then Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God'” (NKJV).

The man is told about Jesus by Philip, and they come to a body of water, and he asks to be baptized. Philip asks him about his belief in regard to Jesus, and we can see his reply above. He is then baptized and goes on his merry way. No sinner’s prayer, no emotional meltdown, just a simple acknowledgment that Jesus is God. John 5:18 tells us that Jesus, by saying he was the ‘Son of God,’ was making Himself equal with God. Keep the Gospel simple and pure. In John 12:42, we see many of the council who believed in Jesus, but they kept it a secret. We do not know for how long they kept it a secret, but they believed; that is as simple as it gets.

  • Discerning good and evil, verse 14

When the Gospel is wrong, so will the stand be on other doctrines. Make no mistake; a corrupt Gospel is a sign of other doctrinal corruption, and this is why it is so important to build the right foundations. Be wary of those that pollute the Gospel; they do not do so for your benefit. Either they are seeking more power or more money. They seek to control the free will that God has given man. They seek to curtail what God is allowed to do when people obey Him but not them. They tell you that you are not saved because you did not do this or that. They are lying. If a person denies that Jesus is the Christ, he is not of God. In deliberate contrast, no one can declare that Jesus is the Christ except that it has been revealed by God through the Holy Spirit.

Yes, the devil believes too, but he refuses to acknowledge Jesus as God. Satan is actively seeking to dethrone God. So, yes, there are people who will come to know who Jesus is and then refuse to acknowledge Jesus as God. They are lost; that simple.

As a defense, it is important that we equip people to know and discern the truth. This is why I try to get these lessons out and why I stress that you read and study the truth of the Bible. There is only one truth, God’s truth; all else are lies. It is His truth that sets us free, His truth is the light in a dark world, and His truth is the pure source of eternal life; all else is death. Read and study, ask questions, write verses down, and put them on your walls. Memorize them and speak them out loud. Always answer with ‘the Bible says,’ never ‘I think.’ It is the Bible that has the power and the truth.

The devil is the father of lies (John 8:44), and all who pervert the Gospel are a part of the lies. You should be diligent in seeing where the other lies will be; there will be others. This is what being a mature Christian is; one who is secure in the truth is able to defend it, and one who knows what the Bible says. The muscle of correct doctrinal discernment is essential as we approach the end of the age, and the devil in his death throes tries to take as many to Hell with him as he can. Let us rescue as many as we can with the simple, pure, perfect Gospel of Jesus.

God bless you,

Dr. Sean Gooding
Pastor of Mississauga Missionary Baptist Church

How to Connect with Us

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MississaugaMissionaryBaptistChurch
Online: https://www.mississaugamissionarybaptistchurch.com/ (under construction)
Email: missionarybaptistchurch76@yahoo.ca