The Doctrine of Salvation of the Soul

www.salvationofthesoul.org

Introduction

Introduction

This message is addressed to all born-again Christian believers who comprise today's Church.

This book, at least its subject matter, carries the possibility to the serious reader of saving him from surprise when the Lord comes, and from the tribulations which shall try the indifferent; as well as a passport to admit him to the marriage supper of the Lamb, and to the highest awards of eternity. Consider it carefully. Not all things are as you have been taught.

There is a huge body of truth that, for reasons later revealed in this discussion, has been lying almost totally buried in the whole of God's Word, the Bible. It is found in both testaments, Old and New. In the Old Testament, it is seen in shadows and types; but in the New Testament it is specifically revealed. It has for the most part been totally ignored, or at least, misunderstood, because it does not fit our own treasured doctrines.  If your eyes can be opened to this truth, you may stand in amazement that you have gone so long in total ignorance of a vitally central doctrine which is taught openly on nearly every page of the New Testament.  But as Scripture states:

John 10:10

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

This huge treasure of wisdom lies veiled, or hidden in the gospel: not because the Lord wills it so, but because men prefer their own doctrines, and because the "god of this world hath blinded their eyes".    Satan is only too happy to promote the doctrines of men (called "leaven" in Scripture), since he knows this will ultimately cause the believer untold grief.  Since he cannot snatch believers out of the Father's hand, he at least gets great satisfaction in destroying their lives and rendering them unqualified to receive rewards.

This doctrine, The Salvation of the Soul (also called in Scripture the "Gospel of the Glory of Christ"  and the "Word of the Kingdom") is today almost totally unknown in the Body of Christ, and this is to the utter detriment of the hearers of today's false teachings.  Detriment is perhaps too mild a word to use, since the false teachings being perpetrated on today's gullible sheep (who all too often fail to read the Bible for themselves) will result in horrendous loss to themselves personally, not only in the coming 1,000 year reign of Jesus Christ, but also throughout the eternal ages to come.

I cannot stress too heavily that every Christian brother and sister reading these pages should consider what the Spirit is saying to the Church in these end times.  Without reservation, I can state that this message stands apart as the most vital of any you may have heard in your Christian lifetime - second only to the first call each of you heard to "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved".  This is not a message to the lost world - this is a cry from the heart of God to all who have been born again from above and who hope for the glory of the Lord's soon-coming Kingdom.

I am well aware that what I have written is in open opposition to much of the teaching that is current both in religious literature and in the representative pulpits of the land. I freely grant that the underlying postulate of the Sovereignty of God with all its corollaries is at direct variance with the opinions and thoughts of the natural man, but the truth is, as fallen men we are quite unable to think upon these matters: we are incompetent for forming a proper estimate of God's character and ways, and it is because of this that God has given us a revelation of His mind, and in that revelation He plainly declares, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isa. 55:8-9).

In view of this Scripture, it is only to be expected that much of the contents of the Bible conflicts with the sentiments of the carnal mind, which is enmity against God. My appeal then is not to the popular beliefs of the day, nor to the creeds of the churches, but to the Law and Testimony of Jehovah. All that I ask for is an impartial and attentive examination of what I have written, and that made prayerfully in the light of the Lamp of Truth. May the reader heed the Divine admonition to "prove all things; hold fast that which is good" (1 Thess. 5:21).

We must remember that we, the whole Body of Christ, today live in a time that most Bible commentators, in spite of a multitude of other differences, will usually agree can be designated as the time of the Laodicean Church – the Church which the Lord stated in rather startling language that He will "vomit out of His mouth" at some point in the future.  How can any Christian brother or sister hear those words and not wonder to whom the Lord is speaking? 

Surely, not my Church: for, "Lord, Lord, have we not done many wonderful works in thy name?"  Or, "Lord, You must have had in mind those Methodists down the street, or perhaps those 'faith teachers' up in Tulsa and Fort Worth.  Surely I am not in that group?  So maybe it's even those in England, or Germany, or some other country.  Not us; no way!"

There is a beautiful old hymn I am sure most of you are familiar with, the chorus of which goes like this:

            "It is well, it is well, with my soul".

I, too, rejoice in the comfort that this beautiful old song brings.  But I also see written in Scripture:

2 Corinthians 13:5

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.

Let me suggest to you that it is very possible that it is certainly not well, especially with your souls.  Because one of the most important doctrines in the Bible has been almost totally ignored - and that is, the doctrine of the Salvation of the Soul.  To our own peril, we in the Body of Christ have long held to this doctrine of men instead:

"Anything good in the Bible must be for Christians, and anything bad in the Bible must be for unbelievers".

For lack of a better term, I (and others before me) call this the "doctrine of greasy grace".  It is surely a false doctrine, for God is not only a God of Grace (for which I am eternally grateful; for we are all saved by grace through faith), but He is also a God of Righteousness. He will render a "just recompense of reward"; and He will render to every man according as he has done, whether good or bad, for surely it is also written,

2 Corinthians 5:10

For we must all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

And it is written,

Hebrews 10:30

For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

Too long has the Church of today rejoiced in an improper interpretation of Romans 8:1 which states, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus ...."  They blithely believe that because of this verse, a Christian may go on his merry way, and live his life as he or she chooses, with no consequences of such a walk, because after the Judgment Seat of Christ, won't we all be equal in Heaven except perhaps for a few more or less jewels on our crowns?  The answer is a resounding: Absolutely Not!  This is the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication (Rev. 2:14).

And those who ignore the clear teachings of the Holy Spirit otherwise do so totally oblivious of their own impending disaster – an awesome event where there shall be much weeping and gnashing of teeth among born-again Christians.

It is my hope that I can teach this truth in love; perhaps some will hear, and repent.  This is not a message to the lost – this is to God's own people.  Those few that do hear this message, and repent, and purposely strive to do the Lord's will, will be blessed. It is not too late.  I feel in my heart an urgency to repeat this vitally important warning:

Matthew 4:17

Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

I gratefully acknowledge that I am standing on the shoulders of a few giants of the faith who have gone before me. I humbly acknowledge that much of what I have learned from the Holy Spirit has already been written by a few who dared, and I have drawn heavily and without reservation from their labors. I don't think it is necessary that I should "reinvent the wheel"; i.e., that I should invest more time in that which has already been written by others who also saw these truths long before I did.  I also admit that some have already said it in clear words that need no improvement.  So I will present some of the teachings in this book in words they have already used.  However, at times I will carry the doctrine even deeper than they have, and perhaps to different conclusions.

I have no pride of authorship in this book, and nowhere does my name appear as author. Some of the writing is mine; some came from others. Where others said it well, I used their writings verbatim; however, at times I changed their writings where I thought they were in error. I do not believe that God honors copyright laws as concerns His truth; His truth is higher than man's laws. This book is not copyrighted, and all should feel free to use any part of it as they will – I freely received it, and I freely give it.  As concerns this book, the Lord has laid on my heart:

John 4:38

I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours.

Because I firmly believe that this is the last generation before the coming of the Lord, I believe the Lord is emphasizing these truths to those who are facing His now imminent return, and the Kingdom of Heaven He will then establish; and in His infinite wisdom He knows some will hear, and repent before it is too late.

Many hold to the doctrine that the Kingdom of Heaven is already here, and that it exists only in the hearts of saved men. While this is true in one sense, I pray you would not just stop there. There is more; I pray you would not miss the whole truth of the Word of God. The whole truth is that there is not only a present Kingdom of Heaven which we as Christians presently experience, but also there is the Kingdom of Heaven which is coming - the millennial reign of Christ. It is vital that a believer rightly divide the Word of God, and determine by context to which period the Scripture you read is referring.

2 Timothy 2:15

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

I pray that God would peradventure grant you repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; I pray the Holy Spirit may awaken some of you, that you may repent and not only begin doing the will of God, but also do it through His power and Spirit, rather than through the efforts of your own labors.  It's no wonder that so many offer their own sacrifices to God; did not Cain do just that in the very beginning?

I humbly beseech you to lay down the doctrines of men, and to consider the truth of God's Word that I have presented in the following pages.  Much of what I have written may offend your sacred cows - for that I offer no apology.  You must not come to the Word of God and interpret it in accordance with your own preconceived notions - for if you do, you will surely continue in error.  I pray you will allow the Holy Spirit to attest to the Truth, and that you will set aside your initial reaction to views that may offend your cherished traditions.  For it may be even as our Lord stated to the Pharisees, "Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." (Matt. 15:6)

Of course, I do not make any claim that the teachings and interpretations I present before you are infallible. But I do believe that the overall doctrine is sound, and is supported with Scripture in every detail. Such supporting Scripture is hopefully presented without any need to "stretch" it to make it fit. Furthermore, the doctrines presented here are coherent – they fit together without conflict with Scripture as a whole. It is with these hopes in mind that I offer, "come, let us reason together" in the awesome truth of God's precious Word.  It is your future that is at stake.