As you probably know, I receive dozens and dozens of e-mails daily and I can’t necessarily respond to every one individually. I get many messages of thanks and good wishes, and sometimes I get e-mails from people who want to argue. I know that I have the Holy Spirit to guide me when it comes to Holy Scripture, so I do my best to guide those who are still lost and try to insist that my “interpretation” (I don’t interpret Scripture, it isn’t meant to be interpreted) is wrong — when I know, because I have The Comforter with me, that the message I get out of the Gospel is from the author Himself.

Today I received another joyful e-mail from someone who has visited my site:

It is not through my words, but through the power of the Holy Spirit that stories of repentance like these occur all the time. Through the Grace of God these people’s eyes are opened and when they Trust in Christ Alone they are able to escape the clutches of a false church and move from darkness into God’s wonderful Light. I am so very joyful that this man’s wife is now a part of Christ’s One True Church.

Indeed, I echo this e-mailer’s closing statement: all praise, honor, and glory to God.

In a previous post I talked about the correct meaning behind the message James was sharing with the Saved regarding how to behave and to display their faith so that it is not separated and set apart. To read the entire post, visit “Faith without Works is Dead“.

Now how can we be SURE that James is NOT saying that works are required for Salvation? Very simply (and this is the beauty of Holy Scripture) we know, FOR SURE, that James is NOT saying that works are necessary for Salvation because he specifically references Abraham. And, since Scripture is always read in light of Scripture, we can easily see the reference that James is making…

Romans 4:
“WHAT shall we say then that Abraham hath found, who is our father according to the flesh. For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory, but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was reputed to him unto justice. Now to him that worketh, the reward is not reckoned according to grace, but according to debt. But to him that worketh not, yet believeth in him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reputed to justice, according to the purpose of the grace of God. As David also termeth the blessedness of a man, to whom God reputeth justice without works: Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord hath not imputed sin.”

Holy Scripture is not meant to be interpreted. That’s why all Bible translations are flawed (even the King James Version which is my preferred version) and why the Lord sends to us who are Saved the Holy Spirit to help us understand His Word. Since there are so many out there reading my site who need a more “plain English” version of Scripture to help them until they have received the Gift of Eternal Salvation, I’ll share the NIV version of Romans 4, which should make it VERY clear…

“Abraham Justified by Faith: What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter? If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. What does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’

‘Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him.’”

Had James intended to say that works are required for Salvation, he would have never referenced Scripture which says exactly the opposite.

Isn’t Faith amazing?

God’s salvation plan is a very simple one, yet many “organized religions” try to make it overly complicated. There may be a number of reasons for that, it could be ignorance, it could be tradition, it could be that some groups are actually trying to lead people away from Christ by muddling and confusing God’s message.

As a catholic who later learned that I was on the wrong path, following the wrong church, I first came to understand the salvation plan of my Heavenly Father and then, through that understanding, received the gift of Eternal Salvation.

It is as simple as simple can be. It isn’t complicated, His plan doesn’t have a lot of conditions imposed on it, His salvation plan is one that anyone can achieve through one simple and completely straightforward method:

Trust in Christ Alone.

It sounds much too simple, and in many cases that leads people to look for a more complicated means of achieving Eternal Life. God never intended for His Salvation to be something you had to EARN, but rather it is meant to be a GIFT that you may freely receive, simply by taking that one, simple step. God never, ever wanted you to have to do any works, to behave in any particular way, to have to labor in any fashion, or to make any special self-sacrifice to receive His salvation. That’s what He sent his Son here to do for us. That’s the whole reason that Christ died on the cross for us, for all of our sins: so that they would ALL be forgiven, once and forever.

So to receive God’s Gift of Eternal Salvation, to fulfill His Salvation Plan, there is nothing more for you to do than to Trust in Christ Alone. Trust that His sacrifice is the one and only sacrifice that can ever be made for our sins, that we cannot save ourselves, trust that it is only through His death on the cross that our sin debt was paid in full.

That means letting go of human teachings, letting go of organized religions and their man-made rules, it means letting go of traditions and interpretations of Holy Scripture and it means, once and for all, placing ALL of your Trust in Christ.

If you can do that, right now, then you can receive the Gift of Eternal Life.