CHRISTIAN: CAN YOU HELP RESTORE OUR COUNTRY?

 

“Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country”

 

(This tract does not promote any religious organization at all.)

 

We can no longer save our country by voting, petitions, and courts. As it says in 2 Chron 7:14 below, we need a one by one personal Christian revival. This is the only thing that will save us. Christian surveys are troubling. We need to abhor evil (even on TV), fervently seek God in Bible study & prayer, and reach and help people, especially our neighbors.

 

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

 

Even besides helping our country, God says you must repent for Him to save you. Popular modern Christian teaching has made heaven seem easy using a few out-of-context verses. Be careful because throughout history popular beliefs are often in error (slavery, racism, killing Jews). The road to heaven is actually narrow and sadly most will miss it. Please read on.

 

 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For I tell you many will seek to enter and will not be able. Luke 13:24 (read the whole chapter)

 

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matt. 7:13-14 (read the whole chapter)

 

Jesus told these terrifying stories where people get to judgment day and find out too late that they are going to hell. This is very serious. Be careful not to listen to popular opinion but read the Bible faithfully, asking God to lead you in that narrow path. You will find that you can come to God just as you are with no works and He will save you and make you all new and give you a new heart. And with this new heart you will gladly obey him. But to just say a prayer to get “fire insurance” and then not follow Him won’t work. This tract will show that. The true Christian life is fairly simple and can be summed up in two commands: Love God and love people (Matt 22:36-40). So you will live your life loving God, avoiding evil and helping people, all with His help. It’s a very rewarding life.

 

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

 

So, Just HOW DO YOU BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON THE ROCK??

 

Everybody has heard of this famous children’s song. But no one knows how to “build your house on the rock” because the song doesn’t say. It just says to do so. So I’ve found that about 75% of people answer something like “have faith in Jesus”. But here’s the answer from Jesus Himself:

 

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock (Matthew 7:24)

 

This is a very important parable because Jesus is telling us how to go to heaven. Faith in Jesus is very important, but so is obeying Him. Some people use “faith alone” and take obedience to God lightly. We want to show that this is not Biblically sound. You can’t believe in Jesus and then refuse to do what he says. As Jesus Himself said: Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? (Luke 6:46) Obedience combined with Faith is consistently taught in the Bible. John the Baptist said: Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. (Matthew 3:8) Paul said: … prove their repentance by their deeds (Acts 26:20). But James makes it crystal clear:

 

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? … faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead  … ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. ²⁰ You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? ²¹ Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. … ²⁴ You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. … ²⁶ As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. (James 2:14-25, shortened for space, please read the whole section)

 

Even Martin Luther, the originator of the “faith alone” movement said: “To think, ‘If faith justifies without works, let us work nothing,’ is to despise the grace of God. Idle faith is not justifying faith.”

 

John Calvin also agreed in obedience after salvation: “… as often as we mention Faith alone in this question, we are not thinking of a dead faith, which worketh not by love … It is therefore faith alone which justifies, and yet the faith which justifies is not alone:

 

We are not saved by works. We have to come to God without any works for salvation. But the issue is what we do after that. We should have a new heart that wants to obey God. Working for God is encouraged in the Bible. The Bible actually doesn’t have a negative connotation of the word “work” as we do today. 90% of the time “work” is used positively. The only time the Bible condemns works is when you are relying on the works instead of faith in Jesus, usually relying on the Old Testament Law. God is very pleased with our works, when we do them with His help after we are saved.

 

GOD CAN HELP. So rely on God for salvation by keeping your focus on Him and not the works. But be very fervent in seeking to know His will and do it. Maintain a father/child relationship by frequent prayer and Bible study. If you seek Him, He will fill you with the Holy Spirit which gives you a heart to obey joyfully. Read Romans 7 and 8 to discover Paul’s victory in this. More on our website: http://www.libertyoftruth.com/spirit.html

 

For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. (Rom. 8:13)

 

²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:22-24)

 

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³ for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. (Philippians 2:13)

 

The Biblical case for required obedience. See website for more verses.

1 John 2:3-6, 15-17, 28-29 1 John 3:4-10, 16-24 1 John 5:1-5 1 Peter 4:1-5 2 Cor 5:9-10, 14-15 2 Cor 9:8 2 Thes 1:7-9 Acts 10:34, 35 Acts 20:20-21 Acts 26:19-20 Ephesians 2:8-10 Ephesians 5:5-6 Ephesians 4:17-25 Ephesians 6:7,8 Gal 5:6, 16-25 Gal 6:7-10 Hebrews 3:12-14 Hebrews 5:8-9

Hebrews 6:7-11 Hebrews 10:26-31 Hebrews 12:14-29 Isaiah 58:5-9 James 1:22-27 James 2:14-26 James 4:4-10 Jeremiah 17:10 John 12:25-26 John 14:12, 21-24 John 15:1-10 John 21:15-17 John 3:19-21 John 5:28-29 Luke 13:22-27 Luke 14:28-35 Luke 6:43-49 Luke 8:15 Luke 9:23-26

Matt 13:18-23 Matt 15:8-9 Matt 16:24-27 Matt 18:6-9 Matt 22:37-40 Matt 24:36-25:46 Matt 3:8-10 Matt 7:13-23 Matt 21:28-32 Matt 5:20-24 Phil 2:12-13 Rev 2:2, 19 Rev 20:11-12 Rev 22:9 Rev 3:1, 7-8, 14 Romans 11:22 Romans 2:5-13 Romans 6 Titus 1:16 Titus 2:11-15

 

PARABLES: After the man with 5 talents went out and worked with His master’s money, the master responded with “well done my good and faithful servant.” But the one who refused was thrown into hell. Of 37 parables that Jesus told, 17 of them (below) were clearly about our actions (the others are about God’s love, etc). Not a single one of them was only about believing. Belief is not an issue in any parable; everyone in the parables believe in the Master. The parables in bold additionally state that the subjects received dire punishment because of their inaction.

Parable	Matthew	Mark	Luke
The Lamp under a Bushel	5:14–15	4:21–25	8:16–18
Good Samaritan			10:25–37
The Friend at Night			11:5–8
The Rich Fool			12:16–21
Wise & Foolish Builders	7:24–27		6:46–49
Parable of the Sower	13:3–9	4:3–9	8:5–8
The Barren Fig Tree			13:6–9
Parable of the Pearl	13:45–46
Drawing in the Net	13:47–50
The Hidden Treasure	13:44
Counting the Cost			14:28–33
The Unforgiving Servant	18:23–35
The Master and Servant			17:7–10
The Wicked Tenants	21:33–41	12:1–9	20:9–16
The Faithful Servant	24:42–51	13:34–37	12:35–48
The Talents or Minas	25:14–30		19:12–27
The Sheep and the Goats	25:31–46

 

 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. (1 John 2:3-6)

 

  They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good (Titus 1:16)

 

…“If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. (John 14:23)

Don’t believe in God? See other articles here for common misconceptions and why you can.