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.
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 relates to salvation. I’ve also read most of the Old Testament four times, in part to better understand God’s character and what He expects from His creation.
As part of my research, I use Bible Works software to search for key terms and phrases, and Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Bible Words to understand key words in the Hebrew and Greek. I typically read three different Bible translations (Christian Standard Bible, New Living Translation and the Amplified Bible) and the notes in these Bibles to help me understand the meaning of certain verses. Also, I consult several Bible commentaries.
Also, I think it’s important to note that I do not allow the teachings of any one denomination to influence my views. I’ve attended a variety of churches in the past – Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, non-denominational, etc. – and I’m not a fan of simply accepting the beliefs of the founder, whether it be John Calvin, John Wesley, Martin Luther, or the “church fathers,” for they do not all agree with each other on every issue, and they too were likely influenced by others (and not simply the Bible) in developing their views. Instead, I believe each person should read the Bible for themselves, study it, ask God for wisdom to understand it, and use resources such as those I mentioned above to develop their own beliefs and conclusions. If God holds me accountable for my beliefs and actions when I’m being judged by Him, I want this to based upon what I believed to be true, and not what a church founder or father said.
I really believe that salvation is the most important topic every person should know about, as it affects everyone 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. That’s why I created this blog – to educate you on this issue, so that your eternal consequence is very good.
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 many sunny days, but my knees no longer cooperate, so reading Christian books, golfing (trying to) 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 frequent 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.
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 