The Plan of Salvation:

*God will save and heal all who trust Him.*

“From the beginning, God chose you to be saved
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit
and through belief of the truth.”
                      2 Thess. 2:13

The work of the Holy Spirit (aka the Counselor) “will teach you all things and will remind you of everything that Jesus says” according to John 14:26, and will also “give peace.”

This Spirit is described as “the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, of counsel and of power, of knowledge and of fear of the Lord.”   Isaiah 11:2

During the week of Creation, “In the beginning,…the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.”    Genesis 1:2

The Book of Job records these words: “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”    Job 33:4

This Spirit, this Counselor, “will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment.” John 16:8.

This Spirit of Truth “will guide you into all truth.”    John 16:13

 

The Holy Spirit is indispensable. He is eternal in nature and identical to God the Father and to Jesus Christ, God’s Son. The Gospel of John 6:45 records Jesus saying: “It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God’.” John’s verse is a reference to Isaiah 54:13: “All your sons will be taught by the Lord, and great will be your children’s peace.” Universal unity and complete agreement exists between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Their sanctifying work is to present truth to all who will listen, and for those who are willing to listen and trust God, and who believe that truth, those people become known as God’s understanding friends. (John 15:15).

The Plan: God will save and heal all who trust Him.

The Plan is not complicated or hard to understand. It is not necessary for Jesus to die on the Cross in order for him to give us Eternal Life, or for God to forgive us our sins. Eternal Life is a gift from God that is freely given, and it is our choice whether to accept it or reject it. God will honor either decision equally.

Acts 2:22-24. (Peter speaking to the crowd):

“Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This man (Jesus) was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the Cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.”

God’s Set Purpose and Foreknowledge: For Jesus to represent and testify about God.

Heb. 1:3 The Son (Jesus) is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.

John 18:37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

Jesus and the Cross

The death of Jesus on the Cross reveals that Jesus didn’t just die,
because Jesus did not climb up on the Cross all by Himself.
The death of Jesus on the Cross proves that insane religious people
hated Jesus with such intensity that they wanted him dead,
and that they actually killed Him.
“They hated me without reason,” said Jesus. (John 15:25).

The Cross reveals that God doesn’t want to kill people.
The Cross proves that people want to kill God.
What person in his right mind would want Jesus dead?
Why would anyone seek the death penalty for
The Creator of the Universe, the Author of Life, the Maker of All Things?

Jesus Christ is not a blood sacrifice to appease a vicious God.

Some six or seven hundred years before Jesus was born, the Prophet Hosea wrote these words: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” Hosea 6:6. Jesus himself quoted those same words twice in Matthew 9:12 and 12:7 to make the point even more important. And even prior to Hosea, the Prophet Isaiah wrote in Isa. 1:11-14 “The multitude of your sacrifices – what are they to me?” says the Lord. “I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. When you come to appear before me, who asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New moons, Sabbaths and convocations – I cannot bear your evil assemblies. Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them.”

It’s obvious: ritual sacrifices had become corrupt and meaningless as Jesus said through the Prophet Isaiah, long before Jesus was crucified on the Cross. Instead of sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jesus desires mercy as Hosea wrote in his book. Jesus cautioned about sacrifices: “Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong. Learn to do right! Seek justice.” Isaiah 1:16, 17.

Why Did Jesus Have to Die?

Freedom of Choice is the foundation of God’s government
and the way He runs his Universe.
God is fully committed and will defend everyone’s right to
Freedom of Choice.
He will even die, if necessary!

If we choose to love and admire God, we like him and want
to become his understanding friend.
If we choose to be indifferent and don’t care about God,
He will respect that decision.
If we choose to hate and despise God, we become his
enemy and want to kill him.

Jesus died to protect and guarantee everyone’s Freedom of Choice.

“It is for freedom (of choice) that Christ has set us free (to choose).”
                                        Galatians 5:1

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