I’m not a priest, pastor, elder or deacon. I’m simply a student of the Bible who desires to tell others the good news about how to become a Christian and how a Christian should live. This is something I’ve wanted to share for many years, but didn’t know what forum would work best. However, in late 2013, I decided that a blog would work well, so here it is. Since then, I’ve written more than 180 posts, and have drafts of another 150.
In order to write about how a person becomes a Christian, and how a Christian should live, I read every book in the New Testament three times, and focused on each verse that related to salvation. Since then, I’ve read most of the Old Testament three times to better understand God’s character and what He expects from His creation. To search for and understand key terms, I use Bible Works software and Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Bible Words. To help me understand the meaning of Bible verses, I use four different Bible translations (New King James, Christian Standard Bible, New Living Translation and the Amplified Bible) and read the notes in these Bibles, plus I consult several commentaries. In addition to the above, I’ve read a number of books on other religions (see list at the end of this page) to compare them to Christianity. Based upon this, I believe I’m in a good position to write about how a person becomes a Christian and how a Christian should live.
Also, I do not allow the teachings of any one denomination to influence my views. I’ve attended a variety of church denominations in the past – Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, non-denominational, etc. – and I’m against the idea of simply agreeing with the beliefs of a founder (whether it be John Calvin, John Wesley, Martin Luther, or the “church fathers,” etc.), for they do not all agree with each other on every issue, and they too may have been influenced by others.
Speaking of denominations, if you are attending one whose views and interpretation of the Bible have changed so that they are more compatible with the views of our world (e.g., there are more than two genders, marriage is not limited to one man and one woman, homosexuality is an acceptable and normal lifestyle, transgenderism is acceptable, evolution is a fact while God’s creation is a theory, abortion is simply a woman’s right to choose what she does with her body and is therefore acceptable, the Bible has too many inconsistencies and contradictions to be taken seriously, the Bible is filled with stories that are unbelievable and should not be taken or read literally, etc.), then my recommendation to you is to get out! Find a different denomination whose interpretation of Scripture has not changed, and whose beliefs and views are at increasing odds with those of an increasingly immoral and ungodly world (Romans 12:2).
I believe salvation is the most important topic people should know, as it affects every person on the face of this earth. The effect has eternal consequences too – with one being very good, and the other very bad. Yet, salvation is not a topic of conversation for many, and it’s not even discussed in some churches. There isn’t much in print on this subject either. There are hundreds of books on how to become wealthy and successful, how to lose weight, etc., but very few on salvation.
Frankly, I’m amazed and saddened by the number of people I’ve met with a lukewarm attitude towards Christianity. There is no zeal to study Scripture. No desire to seek and find God. And no time to earnestly pray. Instead, too many seem content with a “check the box” approach of attending church and saying a few prayers, yet continue to live the same way they did before and rarely receive answers to their prayers. How much are we, as Christians, missing out – in terms of blessings from God and a relationship with His Son – by our apathy and indifference? Why can’t we take sin and Jesus and how to live as Christians more seriously? If you want to experience answers to prayer, if you want powerful and effective prayers for your loved ones, and if you want God to change your mind and behavior more and more so that you sin less and less, it takes time, effort and discipline. That is why I’ve written many posts, and will continue to write more, as I feel compelled to help people determine if a) they are a true Christian and b) living how a Christian should. I truly believe that there are many people who consider themselves to be a Christian, but in reality are not, and will be shocked when they are judged by Jesus as a non-believer and not permitted entrance into heaven. I don’t want this to happen to anyone, and especially not to any of my relatives who are not saved. Don’t you feel the same way?
For those who may want to know a little more about me, I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado and work for a brokerage firm where I analyze and evaluate numbers and people rather than interact with clients and sell products (I’m an introvert, so selling is not something I’d want to do or be good at). In my spare time, I used to enjoy running on trails, as the scenery here is quite good with tall mountains and sunny days, but my knees no longer cooperate, so reading Christian books, golfing and completing items on my to do lists are what I do for stress relief. I have a weird interest in keeping our cars clean (frequent washing, cleaning the inside, waxing), and want to be able to do more mechanical work for the satisfaction (and cost savings) of it. I recently bought a 1992 Mercedes Benz 300D (diesel) that needs some help, so I’ve been working with a mechanic on it. I’m happily married and have three kids. We have a six year old yellow lab named Riley who has brought much joy to our family.
What are my favorite salvation verses you ask?
- 1 Corinthians 9:22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.
- Matthew 16:24-26 24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. 25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
What do I do to grow spiritually you also ask?
- I wake up each day around 4:30 am and make an espresso, go to my desk, say (usually) a short prayer and then begin to read Scripture (though at times I might skim through some emails first or take a quick look at a news website). In my prayers, I regularly pray for my family, and I also ask God to reveal Himself to me in a way that I can understand. I often wonder, if today were my last day on this earth, how would I feel about dying? While I’m confident of my salvation, I don’t want to base my entrance into heaven solely on that. I want a relationship with God, where I know Him and He of course knows Me, and base what happens next on that relationship, thus leaving no doubt or anxiety. I typically read and study Scripture for an hour, taking notes along the way.
- If I’m conducting research on a topic for a post, I might study scripture some in the evening too.
- On Sundays, I attend Rocky Mountain Calvary Church with my wife. During the first 25-30 minutes when the worship team leads songs, I typically go up to the second level and study Scripture instead. While this may not be the right thing to do, as worship is important, I seem to have little patience in singing songs that last 5-7 minutes and contain a lot of repetitive phrases (Oh, how I wish we sang the old hymns…).
- When I travel in my car, I typically listen to a combination of contemporary Christian music and sermons.
- In the evenings when I go to bed, I read Christian literature on Kindle Unlimited for 20-30 minutes.
Thank you for reading my blog. Feel free to leave comments or pose questions, and I’ll do my best to address them. And may God richly bless you for your desire to know Him better and live in a way that pleases Him.
Scott
Other religious books I’ve read at the time of this writing
– Islam: The Qur’an, the Gospel According to Muslims. See my posts on Witnessing to Muslims.
– Mormonism: Half of the Book of Mormon, the Book of Moses, the Book of Abraham, The Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Joseph Smith’s Commentary on the Bible, Speaking the Truth in Love to Mormons, Is the Mormon my Brother, Unveiling Grace. See my post on My Experience in Witnessing to Mormon Missionaries (one of my most popular posts).
– Hinduism: An introductory book on Hinduism, parts of the Hindu scriptures (portions of The Four Vedas and the Bhagavad Gita).
– Buddhism: Part of an introductory book on Buddhism (The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh). I have A Buddhist Bible but not read it yet.
– Atheism: The Making of An Atheist, I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist, Unimaginable, On Guard, part of Bertrand Russell’s book Why I Am Not A Christian, part of Christopher Hitchens’ book god is not Great. In the future I plan to finish these books, and read The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins and Darwin’s Black Box by Michael Behe.
From my review of other religions (and Atheism) thus far, I truly believe that Christianity does the best job in addressing the inherent problem we all have – which is a sinful nature – and offering a long-term solution for it. I also believe it well answers the fundamental questions each of us asks at some point in our life, which are, Why am I here? What is my purpose in life? How should I live my life? and What will happen to me when I die?
Salvation Summaries 