I just concluded this inter-religious quiz programme designed to aid spiritual understanding and practical life.
I invite you to CLICK HERE to try it out now! It’s free and you stand to win prizes too!
Substituting Lie for Truth
We have substituted relativity for reality, psychology for prayer, an inferiority complex for sin, social control for family worship, autosuggestion for conversion, reflex action for revelation, the spirit of the wheels for the power of the Spirit. –Hugh Thomas Kerr
Free Grace vs. Lordship Salvation
I recently had occasion to communicate with a brother over the issue of the so-called Lordship Salvation. Since then I have been burdened to share my position with more people. The following is a summary of my views on some of the issues at stake. I hope to present more detailed presentations on each of these (and other areas not yet covered) later. I hope you are blessed by this.
I should start by declaring that I don’t like labels, especially for things that cannot be precisely defined. The issue of Free Grace Vs. Lordship Salvation is one of such things (just like Calvinism Vs. Arminianism) Therefore, I am not speaking in support or defense of either position, which to me are not very meaningful, but to state a few points about what I believe
1. Christ is not a con-man and His promises are not scams designed to lure sinners into servitute/slavery with a deceptive “carrot” of heavenly abode. This is the view of some people about what is termed Lordship Salvation. Well, anyone actually holds such a view on the promises of God, then it is not just heresy but blasphemy. Every promise of God is sincerely made and everyone who accepts the promise receives it. This is not to deny the truth that the relationship of God with man, more so the salvation (adoption) relationship is a covenantal relationship and must be seen in that context, within which the promises are also made.
2. I believe that spiritual salvation is by grace alone. Yet, that grace is “through faith” (Ephesians 2: 8). It is NOT by FAITH but by grace through faith. It is already totally given by unconditional grace of God. But we (man) must receive it by faith. If faith as the “contribution” or “role” of man is now a reason why some Christians call any other Christian heretic because they feel man has absolutely no role, then it is unfortunate and I have no further reply.
3. I believe spiritual salvation is salvation from sin. Therefore any talk about salvation through Christ which does not address the issue of sin is not salvation at all. God’s solution is for Jesus to be atoning Lamb for our sins AND for us to receive THIS work, repenting of our sins (thereby acknowledging that we indeed had sins and Jesus did not die unnecessarily. Anyone who does not have a sin does not need salvation.)
4. Jesus Christ is undoubtedly the Lord of believers, the Church. However, technically, an appreciation and acknowledgement of this fact is not necessary for spiritual salvation (justification) to take place. It is like a President granting pardon to some men on the death row and the inmates being required to sign the pardon papers. Whether they personally know the guy giving them pardon as President does not affect the efficacy of the pardon. When asking people to trust Jesus as Saviour, I usually also introduce Him as the Lord. My purpose is for “full disclosure”. I believe that the earlier a Christian is made to know the type of relationship he is getting into – and not just the basic requirements for getting in, the better.
5. I believe the conversion experience actually changes our spiritual nature and we are really “new creation”. This new nature enables us to live the spiritual life both privately and in service to the Lord. No one, absolutely no one, can do this by personal zeal. It is the loving promptings of God, working on our new nature that makes it possible. We thus become willing and able. Therefore, whenever there is someone supposedly a Christian, who is not willing to live PRACTICAL spiritual life and service, I question if indeed there is a new nature at all. I will doubt if the person actually encountered Christ. No one can encounter Him and remain entirely unaffected.
6. But if there is one who sincerely wills, and makes the move to do but repeatedly fails to achieve, then I say such a person is at such-and-such level spiritually/carnally. And we are ALL like that! The only difference is our carnality-spirituality ratio. No real Christian is 100% carnal and none is 100% spiritual regardless of our pretensions. Those with very low carnality-spirituality ratio will appear essentially like those who have not encountered Christ (they may even appear worse!) but the truth of the matter is that they are genuine children of God and God will not refuse them a place in heaven solely on account of their carnality. Nevertheless, their lack of good works will not be without repercussion because though salvation is by grace, judgement and reward is by WORKS, but only those who are not listed in the Book of Life are exempted from heaven.
7. Whether a person, once saved, can later on suffer the removal of His name from the Book is another matter entirely which I am not going into now. Suffice to say that God will not remove someone’s name for practical imperfection while serving with a perfect heart (e.g. David) just as He will not spare any child who willfully from the heart rejects Him and denies the faith.
8. So, in summary, Christ expects His saved ones to live out the lives He has already enabled them to do, and I believe every genuine Christian has been doing just that though with varying levels of success, which will not deprive them of getting the promise (i.e. getting to heaven) but will count on their judgment toward their reward.
God bless you.
www.fikayoadeyemo.org
Day by Day
Perhaps you can remember this little gem from decades ago. Or perhaps you have received the grace to be living by its tenets even right now. Or perhaps you never addressed your heart to such matters. Whatever the case may be with you, it is my pleasure to present this treasure to you – with love.
“Day by day dear Lord God,
These three things I pray:
To see Thee more clearly
Love Thee more dearly
Follow Thee more nearly
Day by day.”
Busstop for Whitney
I saw a newspaper picture of Whitney Houston some years back showing a quite pitiable drug-ravaged sight. I actually thought she was going to die soon. I felt it would be a monumental waste for all that talent to just go like that. I did not think she had fulfilled God’s plan for her life. I was quite moved. And I prayed for her. Whitney did not die when I thought she would die. She went on to recover and even produce “I look to you”. Now, out of the blues (at least to me), she is gone. I’d very much like to believe she was at peace with God. It is well.
Do not be spoilt!
Some people think it is nice to be “spoilt” by those who have responsibility towards and/or authority over them. Well, let such people remember that there are only two options available to spoilt things – either to be discarded as useless or to undergo serious treatment with antiseptics (or other forms of panel-beating) to remove their rottenness. I doubt if either is a “nice” experience! Therefore, to the spoilers and the spoilt, I say BEWARE!. Spoiling is not a show of love.
National democracy or Western hegemony?
Let the UK, US and others decide what is important to them and face it squarely. The democratic representatives of Nigerians have legislated against homosexuality as a valid sexual expression within their territory. Any attempt by foreigners to kick against it is a loud testimony that such foreigners do not respect, nay, believe in democracy. But if they are more concerned with hegemonic coercion, let them say so clearly. This is one of the few legislations that the Nigerian populace has welcome from its largely disconnected leadership.
Between the Bible and the newspaper
I read my Bible to know what people ought to do, and my newspaper to know what they are doing. -Newman
Show me your love when it’s useful to me
If my friends have alabaster boxes laid away full of fragrant perfumes or sympathy and affection that they intend to break over my dead body, I would rather they would bring them in my weary and troubled hours and open them that I might be cheered and refreshed by them when I need them. I would rather have a plain coffin without a flower, a funeral without a eulogy, than a life without the fragrance of love and sympathy. -Watterson
www.fikayoadeyemo.org
The True Facts Challenge is now Live!
Believers can be lost via being cut-off by God
The argument that no believer can become finally lost BECAUSE no one can snatch him/her out of God’s hand (who is the Almighty) is another example of a fundamental error arising out of misapplication of spiritual truth. While it is absolutely true that no one can snatch us away from God, The application misses the point that the issue of eternal salvation and perseverance is not primarily about God’s power (to hold) but about His righteousness and justice.
To argue a doctrinal position solely from a single (or few) divine attribute(s) such as God’s infinite power, and therefrom draw general conclusions is to join the ranks of those who say that there can not be God who is good (they mean “nice”) and powerful because if such a God existed, He would have employed His great power to prevent/stop all the evil in the world. Such people thus become atheists!!! They are ignorant of the truth that God is one in totality.
The Bible clearly teaches that a believer who is lost would not have been lost because of God’s weakness not to be able or willing to keep, but because of His righteousness and justice by which HE HIMSELF WOULD CUT OFF any believer who refuses to abide in Him. He just cannot mix with unrighteousness, which is what happens when a believer turns his back on Christ, our righteousness. (John 15:1-6, etc)
