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Is believing in Jesus enough for salvation according to John 3:16?


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2 hours ago, George said:

I cleaned a few posts out of this thread.  Be careful of making direct accusations.  If you want to discuss a topic, by all means do so ... without it being personal.

It's very simple and not to hard to understand ... and the real question ... asked at the beginning of this thread ... Is believing described in John 3:16 enough to save?   The real question is this ... is BELIEVING enough?

The word believe is MUCH different today ... than how it was written and intended in Greek.  I share this illustration often when discussing what it means to believe.

This is a lesson I've not yet published ... but working on.

Joh 3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 
Joh 3:17  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 
Joh 3:18  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 

So what does it truly mean to believe?  Words often lose meaning over time and at times it's best to explain the ancient understanding with a story.

Imagine for a moment, that you are sitting at Niagara Falls.  You can see the enormous amount of water going over the falls, you've heard the stories of people going over the falls in a barrel, and the legends that make the falls famous.

When watching, you see a high wire being established over the falls ... stretching over the mile or so across the Niagara River.

A man appears and announces -- I'm going over the FALLS on this tightrope!  So the man walks across the tightrope, and walks back and forth.  People are gathering all around ... watching him and seeing if he plunges to his death!

After he returns, he asks -- Do you want to see more?  The crowd starts gathering ... chanting -- Yes! Yes!  So he goes across, and this time he starts doing flips, starts doing cartwheels, all kinds of acrobatic tricks!  He returns after a few minutes.

Upon returning -- He looks down and sees a dog -- and not just a dog -- it's a GREAT DANE.  Apparently its his Great Dane.  You look at the size of this dog -- it's a huge dog .. and he picks up his dog!  The dog is whimpering ... and scared to death ... and he gets up on the high wire ... and walks across the Falls with the dog in his arms.  He goes across and drops him off on the Canadian side of the falls!  He returns ...

So he says upon his arrival, Does anyone believe that I can take a man going across these falls?  The crowd is chanting, Yes! Yes! You've just seen the most incredible feats displayed before your eyes ... and you say, YES! YES!

The man looks down toward you, and says -- GREAT, GET UP and CLIMB ON MY SHOULDERS!

Now the MOMENT of TRUTH has come ... Because if he falls, it's death!  You're now placing your entire life, your existence into his hands ... and now the question is, Do you really believe?

To believe is trusting your entire life, your entire existence in what God has done, and is doing for you! 

So this is the belief that saves!  Do you believe?  If so, then the answer is YES!  :)

God bless,

George

 I am a one- fingered typist and I  typing this as fast as I can before I possibly get ejected .....lol

I heard a similar analogy that I though was pretty good.....

A person is working his way across a set of monkey bars.....below him is a pit of fire.....If he lets go of any of the rings he is doomed forever....EXCEPT......There is Someone on a ledge between the struggling man and the fire that can reach out and grab him and save Him if the man will only let go of the rungs.....yet the man feels so safe and secure holding on by himself......he just does  not trust letting go.One of the rungs is the Law, Another rung is living a good life, another rung is going to church on the True Sabbath, Another rung is doing the best you can, Another rung is not to die before repenting of all your sins.The Person willing to save him from his death grip on the bars is saying “ If you will trust me  ( believe in Me) I will save you” The mans arms are going to tire eventually and by then ,the offer to catch him will not exist unless he lets go on his own- showing trust or lack of it. “ Let go and let God” is what one will do if they truly “ believe” .Faith is 90% courage—- courage based on God and His promises.David,Gideon,Moses, and many others “ believed God” and if God Did not keep His Word, they were doomed— all the Heroes in Hebrews “ Faith Hall Of Fame” had this in common.God pulls through or they were doomed. Perhaps God will not test our faith to the extent that he did these Giants of Faith, but the principal is the same.While millions fiddle- faddle with “don't do this and do do that” they miss the whole point of Belief and Faith.There is no “ Biblical Hall Of Fame for the best Law Keepers” or “ The Lucky Men that repented right before they died” It takes real courage- real faith to put your Eternal Existence into trusting The Blood Of The Saviour , Jesus Christ and that ALONE. God has promised to “ Save to the uttermost, ALL that come to Him through His Son” No other conditions demanded.Do you trust Him to do what He promised or are you and your “ rungs” going to a place you don’t want to experience? The Blood Of Jesus and it ALONE for your Salvation.

 

 

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2 hours ago, Billiards Ball said:

Help me understand what you believe:

1) The OT was written to different people groups

2) The NT was written only to Christian believers

3) This is true, though 75% of the NT or more is explaining/expanding on the OT

4) You are not willing to believe that Matthew 24/25, where, for example, Jesus says the Jewish people will meet His Return in person, could possibly be written to Jews

5) You are willing to say OSAS is wrong because of parables and other sections that people have debated for years, but will not support a clear doctrinal statement like, "He who trusts God HAS eternal life and does NOT get judged, but has ALREADY passed out of death into ETERNAL life." -- John 5:24

Please have the last word here--I don't think I can help because rather than explain the Bible back to me, you keep saying I'm a false teacher. I will, however, continue any discussion that is better than "you have to understand the whole Bible, not just the 150 verses you mentioned to me."

I know what is right and I don't have to challenge you 

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On 6/18/2019 at 9:31 PM, Lee_ said:

Is believing in Jesus enough for salvation according to John 3:16?

Those that love Jesus will obey his teaching and those that don't will not. Gospel of john speaks about this.

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To answer the OP. YES.

Believing Loyalty as displayed by Naaman and the Widow. Yeshua gave those two as examples when in His home town He was confronted by unbelief.

There is NOTHING you can do to merit salvation. Just BELIEVE said the Lord. Do not let anyone add to this, because if they do, they are saying the Gospel of Christ is not quite enough..  to save you.

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