If we believe that Yahweh wants everyone to be saved, then it would not make sense for Him to have man jump through endless hoops, scale impossible cliffs, and/or solve quantum physics mysteries . . . while standing on our heads . . . and singing opera . . . in Danish . . . while making a cheese soufflé . . . .
In other words, He would try to make it simple enough that most everyone could do it. So anyone telling you it is too hard to do God’s Will has their own agenda, not Yahweh’s
He would also set a fair standard for everyone and not require different groups of people to have different requirements at different times (how would you know what you were doing was right if it changed periodically, without notice). So anyone telling you that salvation is different today than it was 2000 years ago (or 4000 years ago) has their own agenda, not Yahweh’s.
So, how easy did He make it?
Why, as easy as A, B, C (1, 2, 3, or do, re, mi?)
- Acknowledge there is a one, true, moral, God – maker of Heaven and Earth.
The Roman gods . . . the Greek, Egyptian, Hindu, or Mesopotamian gods (and all the rest) are not known for being moral and having consistent standards of behavior. For example, in the Gilgamesh epic, Anu and his fellow gods destroyed mankind in a flood because they were too noisy, and the gods couldn’t sleep (Epic of Gilgamesh).
The idea of a moral and just God, who sought after morality and justice, is/was completely divergent to the profusion of gods worshipped throughout history (even unto today).
Belief in THE God is the important first step, because we need someone who has power over death, and will use that power in our favor, if we are to overcome the grave. Belief, of course, is not enough:
19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
James 2:19-20
2. Behave as instructed in His Word
I can hear the nay-sayers, already, screaming that I am teaching salvation through works. Salvation is through faith (#1) and is evidenced through works (#2).
If you tell me you are going to take me to a hockey game if I get to your home by 6:30, my arriving at your home is an action that evidences my belief that you are taking me to a game. I can say I believe you, but if I do not take steps to get to your home, did I really believe it?
You’ve heard the adjunct to the “Golden Rule”: “He who has the gold makes the rules”. Power comes with privileges – one of the privileges is that you get to dictate what people need to do if they want to partake of your power.
If you want to use Facebook (or any other social platform), you must agree to their terms and conditions, which generally means they can use the information that you post to become fabulously wealthy.
If you want to use a bank, you agree to allow the bank to use your deposits to invest and make huge sums of money while paying you a pittance for that use.
As a parent, we make rules for our children to live by so there is safety, equity, respect, and decorum in the home. The Heavenly Father does similarly.
No parent ever set down rules that they thought were important for their children and then later determined that the rules should be ignored because they were difficult for a toddler to keep.
‘It’s too difficult to keep them from playing in the street, I’ll just say it is now okay to play in traffic.’
The rules never go away, either. When does it become permissible to hit a sibling? Take their stuff? Lie? If you are 75 years old and playing in the street, your 95 year old parent will tell you to ‘quit playing in the street’.
Yahweh has a series of laws that provide for the safety, equity, respect, and decorum of His people. There are 613 “Laws” in the Word (though several are repeated so there are actually much less than 600 unique laws – e.g., the Word says to not commit incest, prohibiting eighteen specific forms of it) which are listed at jewfaq.org and in my book GRAFTED: Embracing Torah (I examine many of the Laws that apply to us on a regular basis and differentiate between the ones we can keep today and the one’s Yahweh said were conditional and are unavailable to keep today).
Meanwhile, the Federal Register lists over 3000 codified laws and over 197,000 rules and regulations that must be adhered to (Code of Federal Regulations). The short list of Torah requirements is not the problem and anyone telling you it is has their own agenda.
3. Cast away your former life (as necessary).
When a child unprovokedly strikes a sibling, we make them apologize and then we forgive them. If they continue to strike the sibling then their apology was insincere and we seek to stop the inappropriate behavior with ever escalating severity. If we cannot stop the continued assaults, over time, then we have to separate the two to prevent increasing and possibly more violent attacks. If we don’t, then the authorities will, if they become aware of a pattern of abuse.
As we learn what Yahweh considers unacceptable, we repent of our former behavior that violates His Torah (Instructions). Continued commission of sin belies that we are committed to obeying the Father.
If you are an adulterer and seek to follow the one, true God, you will learn quickly that adultery is prohibited (7th Commandment – Exodus 20:14). If you continue in adultery, you reject the authority of the one you claim is your God.
If you are married and commit adultery, there is the possibility that your spouse could forgive you, but it would involve a change to acceptable behavior on your part. There is probably zero probability of forgiveness if the adultery continues. What spouse ever confessed, “It is too hard for my husband to stop having extra-marital affairs, so we will just ignore that part of the marriage vows”? Your spouse will not be mocked, nor will Yahweh.
If one wants to stop the drunken abuse of their spouse, a good first step is to stop hanging out with their old friends who tie one on every weekend. Changing our established behavior that is leading us to sin is vital. We must want to make the change and act on it or the old, learned, abhorrent behavior will manifest itself again.
We may need to change where we live (even in America, some places are anti-Christian); change who our friends are (friends who are also seeking a relationship with Yahweh and Yeshua are important – “iron sharpeneth iron”); change the way we dress; but, most importantly, we need to change how we see ourselves as believers.
The Mega-churches are teaching an all-inclusive, non-judgmental, sin-less Christianity that millions are flocking to. It has zero relationship to the Word’s dictates. It does not matter whether the pastors are misleading people on purpose or through ignorance, the result is the same. Christians are being led away from the Word
13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Matthew 7:13-15
Christians teach that to be “born again”, one must confess Jesus as Lord and believe that God rose him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10):
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
What does it mean to confess someone as “Lord”? It is much more than mere words (see my blogs, Born Again? and Born Again? Part 2). You are voluntarily submitting your will and values to a ‘superior’ will and values.
If you seek a position on the campaign of a political candidate, you agree to publicly endorse the positions of the candidate. If the candidate is pro-life, you cannot publicly advocate for ‘abortion on demand’ and expect to remain a part of the campaign or to receive a position in the candidate’s cabinet if they win.
Christ says as much when he discusses those that follow him with mere lip-service:
21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Matthew 7:21-23
He did not make salvation hard . . . we did. Us and the folks we appointed as our ‘spiritual leaders’.
- Anyone advocating that God’s ways are too hard has their own agenda.
- Anyone advocating that God doesn’t mean what He says has their own agenda.
- Anyone telling you that ‘God loves you just the way you are’ (see my blog, Come as You Are) or tells you that you are ‘courageous’ for violating his Word has their own agenda.
Have your own agenda. Be the person that Yahweh wants you to be. Be the person that confesses Yeshua as Lord and emulates his walk (1John 2:6). Be the person that studies God’s Word “to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (1Timothy 2:15).
- Acknowledge there is a one, true, moral, God – maker of Heaven and Earth;
- Behave as instructed in His Word; and
- Cast away your former life (as necessary).
It’s as easy as A, B, C.
The transition takes time (Acts 15), but it is easy.
