Bob Cassell, Messenger
Man by man’s best efforts can never contribute to his own salvation as all that he is and has is a gift from God that can only be accepted. Nevertheless, his inborn imputed sinful nature causes him to believe the best he can do should be accepted by a fair minded and Righteous God. After all he has tried his best and has given all that he knows to give. What else is he supposed to do but give his best efforts. He has heard so many state, “well, if you have done your best, that’s all you can do.” If anyone is depending on their best efforts “they will be in for a damning shock” because in spite of anyone’s most diligent efforts, they fall far short of the perfection that is required to enter heaven and live forever. The word of God clearly declares that what has been accomplished to provide salvation is of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. How can it be clearer? Salvation is of Him, by Him, and through Him alone!
No one can be reconciled to God and possess his perfect righteousness by anything they can do or contribute. Sin imputed from Adam caused a wide gulf of separation between humans and God. Nothing less than God’s work in planning His so great salvation can span that wide chasm.
To embrace the deluded possibility that man can contribute anything toward God’s so great salvation is to fail to understand that that which is finite cannot contribute or sustain the infinite. Such shallow thinking is to fail to realize the utter helpless and sinful condition of fallen man.
David wrote the majority of the Psalms, and in them there is clarity regarding the source of salvation. Salvation belongs to the Lord -not to man- (Psalm 3:8). The Lord is my salvation (Psalm 27:1). He only is my salvation (Psalm 62:2).
Have you ever given any thought to the source of God’s plan of salvation? God is the initiator of this non meritorious plan. It is perfect because God is perfect, and in executing this plan all of man’s needs for eternity are met. God gives or provides and man receives… man does not and cannot contribute to any degree in meriting this eternal salvation. He needs what is offered by God and cannot provide it by means of or from himself. Man does not possess that which may start, continue or complete eternal salvation. He must be the receiver and not the developer. He needs what God provides but he cannot produce or provide it himself! He is the needy one, but it is impossible for him to provide what he needs. It is outside of himself. This is why the word of God declares salvation is a non-meritorious gift that must be received.
But as many as received Him, to them gave he the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name (John 1:12).
The scripture further declares that no matter how great the works of man may be, he must first understand that he has already earned wages that must be paid! He is already bankrupt and has no way to pay.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Ephesians 2:8,9).
Notice this offer of eternal life is a gift from God and is clearly not something that is earned or deserved because of the best and most sincere efforts or works from man.
If men were allowed to do anything from their sinful flesh to procure this perfect gift of eternal life, their meager efforts would nullify the definition of eternal life as a gift from God. This eternal gift can only be received.
If eternal life could be appropriated by man’s best efforts, the gift would be something earned by him and would not be gratuitous.
A justification provided by God that is not subject to human merit can never be subject to human demerit. This is very good news!
I respectfully ask … how can such a statement be declared? The answer is because of his amazing salvation offer that … 1) is not an experience, 2) is not progressive, 3) is eternal in nature, 4) is wrought only by God and, 5) is not wrought by man.
To truly know God is to know the only source of eternal life. To have and possess forever this eternal life is to know His Son, who is our life. This is the only way… this is God’s way.
By totally trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ the believer by grace partakes of all that Christ is, and all of what He has done on his behalf.
In Him was life; and the life was the light of men (John 1:4).
At the moment of salvation God does many permanent things for the believer. All of those things are completely outside all of the actions, behaviors, and abilities of man. In spite of the helplessness of man, God loves him; however, this love for man comes from the impeccable character of God and most certainly not from the unmeritorious and flawed character of man.
God loves man because God is perfect love, and this love is only one dimension of His marvelous character. He knows what love is and also what it is not. It comes from Him as the object and not from man.
He that loves not knows not God: for God IS LOVE (1 John 4:8).
It is only by means of a perfect and loving God that salvation is wrought. His salvation is the expression of his love, and it is repeated over and over in his word.
How amazing He is! God never acquired love, neither does He need to maintain it by any kind of effort, nor does His love depend on conditions, circumstances, or people as He is the author of all things.
God does not give His love because people are good, nor does He withdraw it because they are bad.
God does not love people less when they do wrong, nor does he love them more when they do right.
God is perfect love, and that unconditional love emanated from His perfect character long before ANYTHING was created. He was perfect love when there was nothing other than His own triune Being. He loved Himself on a plane far above anything lowly man can even imagine. God’s love is as unchangeable and enduring as His own existence. It is difficult for limited humans to comprehend that in the incomprehensible past God loved the humans he had not yet created. Carefully consider the marvelous grace of God that springs from his amazing character. God’s love is not triggered by the desperate needs of man, but it springs from the love He has for His creatures that can only be satisfied by their being conformed to the image of Christ. Humans needed to be conformed to His image because they were enemies and faced the wrath of God.
Much more then, being NOW justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life (Romans 5:9,10).
The justifying power of God is not subject to human merit; therefore, it cannot be subject to human demerit. Think carefully on this. It is critical.
Please notice, what He does for the believer is not a process; it is being, at a point in time, fully reconciled by the Lord Jesus Christ and not by the futile self-efforts of man.
God’s justification is not related to man’s best behavior. It emanates directly from the matchless grace of God and is secured on the ground of the imputed righteousness of the Son of God. It is the believers standing and state as he is positioned forever in The Lord Jesus Christ.
The perfect love of God removed every barrier that sin erected. Further, His love will forever keep all believers who have accepted the sinless Son of God as their only hope of salvation.
Good master what must we do that we might work the works of God? This is the work of God that you believe on Him whom He has sent (John 6:28,29).
The following scriptures declare that salvation is because of God’s love for man and not man’s love for God, nor man’s greatest and best works or intentions.
But God commended his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).
But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith he loved us, hath quickened (made alive) us together with Christ (Eph. 2:4,5).
Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4,9,10).
Paul declared in the most dramatic terms that, nothing can separate those who have been justified, from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. No power in all the heavens or in the earth below…nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38,39).
Salvation is a work of God for fallen man and is not a work of fallen man for God. This work of God is prompted by His infinite love. It is an insult to God’s love to think that man must do something, however little, to contribute to the perfection in salvation that has been wrought exclusively by God Himself.
This so great salvation is of God exclusively and is not connected in any way to the contributions of man. This is evident from an understanding of the source and execution of God’s plan of salvation.
Salvation was planned and purposed before the earth was created, and that was long before God brought man into being. Believers were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the earth (Eph.1:4). Eternal life was promised before the world began (Tit.1:2). The death of Christ on the cross as the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29) was ordained before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 1:20). Salvation was decided upon in the councils of God long before man came into existence.
Is it not clear that lowly man had nothing to do with those plans?
Regeneration, or being born again, whereby man receives eternal life and enters into the Royal Family of God is totally of God (John 3:3,5).
This life is defined as those which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God (John 1:13).
We all understand that man has never contributed to his physical birth in any way; also, no man can contribute to his spiritual birth. But when he is born spiritually, he is saved for all eternity simply because God gives to him eternal life. Because of this eternal life, believers are kept safe by the power of God and by means of His own name (1 Pet. 1:5, John 17:11).
If man had anything to do with God’s so great salvation, it would result in instant contamination that would require redemption. This is why God separated His so great salvation from man and all of his non meritorious efforts and left man to look only to Him.
Furthermore, the Lord Jesus Christ will change the bodies of all believers so that they will be fashioned like unto His glorious body (Phil 3:21). Thank God we will finally be truly free and secure forever.
Other passages may be quoted, but these clearly show God’s own declaration that He is the exclusive savior of mankind. Where, may I ask, is any room left for man to contribute anything to this complete, perfect, and finished work? By the very nature of these eternal accomplishments a human being could never add their works to appropriate what is provided so completely by God through Jesus Christ and is finished. Jesus said to His disciples, you believe in God, believe also in me (John 14:1). It is not enough to believe in God or to acknowledge that there is a God who created the universe or that exists somewhere. It is of critical necessity to believe in His Son Jesus Christ. This is true because no one can come to the Father except by Him.
I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man comes unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6). When you look to Him, you have come to the right place, as He is the exclusive and only Savior!
He most certainly is the exclusive way to heaven; therefore, no human can know God apart from Jesus Christ. No man has ever seen God, except the Son of God! When He lived on earth as a man among men, He declared God to mankind and He is the truth, and the life. To reject Him is to reject both the truth and life and the only way to God.
He that believes on the Son has eternal life and he that believes not the Son of God shall not see life (1 John 5:12).
You have a choice! To believe on Him is to have eternal life! To reject Him is to be eternally condemned! Be wise, be alert, be aware, and be saved by receiving the gift of eternal life that comes only from the Lord Jesus Christ.
But as many as received Him to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name (John 1:12).
Eternal life is a gift from God! It cannot be the result of works from any needy human. The acceptance of man centered works would negate God’s free gift of salvation and convert it into a system of merit. This gracious gift from God is free. It does not come from you; It comes from the outside of you! It is from him to you and not from you to Him.
Think on these things, because if you have never heard of such amazing grace from the hand of God, this could be the last truth you will ever know before you depart from this earth.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved (Acts 16:31).
Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13). This could be you… why delay and overlook this eternal and free gift from someone you can trust… GOD!
