Dr. John R. Rice Refutes Lordship Salvation

Galatians 3:1-2, “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?”

I was recently reading one of Dr. John R. Rice's books titled: “Dr. Rice: Here Are More Questions,” in which he beautifully refutes the heresy of Lordship Salvation. The following is a question submitted to Dr. John R. Rice concerning professed Christians who live in sin:

Dr. John R. Rice

A concerned woman in a church made these comments to Brother Rice:

We have young folks in our church who are supposed to be saved and who giggle and whisper all during church services and who say they 'just hate' church and 'can't stand' to listen to our pastor preach. They attend movies and worldly amusements. I feel that as pastors and Sunday school teachers we do not warn those enough who think they are saved but are not born again. Shouldn't we plead with them to go to the alter again?”

SOURCE: Dr. Rice... Here Are More Questions, by John R. Rice, pg. 76, Sword of the Lord Publishers; ISBN: 0-87398-157-X

The following is Dr. Rice's response to the preceding question...

“Being saved, born again, is one thing; learning to live a consecrated Christian life is an entirely different thing. There is not any way you can judge whether people are born again except as you take their testimony that they have put their trust in Jesus Christ and depended on Him for salvation. Some of these young people indeed may not have been taught to trust in Christ. If they were looking for "an experience," a certain kind of feeling or emotion, then they may have been misled. But if they honestly turned their hearts to Christ and depended on Him for salvation, they were saved.

Now a Christian should live a consecrated Christian life but that does not automatically follow. People who are saved will find, like Paul, "When I would do good, evil is present with me . . . . So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin" (Romans 7:21,25).

Every saved person still has the old carnal nature and often-times has the same kind of temptation he had before. Some people who have truly been born again have a desperate fight to quit tobacco, and some have never seemed to get the victory over that or other bad habits. Some Christians have never learned to trust the Lord enough to bring tithes and offerings, and some have never learned to win souls. When a baby is born, he is not born grown. Being born is one thing; growing is another thing entirely.

So the thing to do is to take for granted that people are saved when they trust Christ for salvation. Then one should set out to teach them to read the Bible daily, to learn to pray about their daily needs, to confess their sins and failures and grow in grace day by day. It is as foolish to expect young Christians to be good Christians by themselves as it is to expect a child, born in the family, to automatically be a great credit to the family without any rearing—whether they are spiritual babes or physical babes. I assure you that unless people are taught to be consecrated Christians, taught to read the Bible and pray, they are not likely to be good Christians, even if they are truly born again.”

SOURCE: Dr. Rice... Here Are More Questions, by John R. Rice, pg. 76,77, Sword of the Lord Publishers; ISBN: 0-87398-157-X.

Dr. Rice is 100% correct: "Being saved, born again, is one thing; learning to live a consecrated Christian life is an entirely different thing." A changed life comes from growing in grace as a result of genuine repentance; and not as a part of saving-faith itself. Salvation is receiving; NOT giving. There are many ministers today, such as John MacArthur, who falsely teach that one's salvation is CONDITIONAL upon the life we live. MacArthur states:

“Submission to the will of God, to Christ’s lordship, and to the guiding of the Spirit is an essential, not an optional, part of saving faith.” (EPHESIANS, p. 249)

“Salvation isn't the result of an intellectual exercise. It comes from a life lived in obedience and service to Christ as revealed in the Scripture; it's the fruit of actions, not intentions. There's no room for passive spectators: words without actions are empty and futile...The life we live, not the words we speak, determines our eternal destiny.” (Hard to Believe, p. 93)

The Word of God calls John MacArthur a liar in Romans 4:5, "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Could the Bible be any plainer? The Scriptures speak plainly that we are saved by Jesus' righteousness (Romans 10:3-4; 2nd Corinthians 5:21); and not any self-righteousness of our own (Isaiah 64:6; Ephesians 2:8,9; Titus 3:5). We are sinners; Jesus is the Savior.

John R. Rice is correct: "So the thing to do is to take for granted that people are saved when they trust Christ for salvation." Proponents of the Lordship Salvation heresy expect new believers to live a consecrated Christian life from the get-go of salvation. This is not reasonable nor Biblical. New believers need to be taught and discipled.

Dr. Rice states in his excellent book, Dr. Rice... Here is My Question...

“When you get saved, you get saved not because you deserve it, but because you simply let God save you and because you confess your own poor sinful state and your inability to save yourself.”

SOURCE: Dr. Rice... Here is My Question, by Dr. John R. Rice, pg. 304; 1962, Sword of the Lord Publishers; ISBN: 0-87398-158-8

I couldn't agree more. This is what the Bible teaches. Dr. Rice also states in his Gospel tract, What Must I Do To Be Saved:

“The change in your heart, sinner, is God's part and you may be sure He will attend to that. Your part is to simply believe in Him. Whatever else is necessary in your eternal salvation, the Lord attends to when you trust in Him, or believe in Him.”

SOURCE: What Must I DO To Be Saved, by Dr. John R. Rice

Amen! Dr. Rice is correct. Who are we to judge whether or not a person is sincere. There's a self-righteous group today in our churches, who demand a changed-life as a prerequisite for salvation. This is unbiblical, a heresy, and a perversion of the simple Gospel of Christ Jesus. The thing to do is to take for granted that people are saved when they simply trust Jesus Christ for salvation.

The Bible Encourages Us To Invest In Heavenly Riches

Matthew 6:16-21, “Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Someone asked me today about investing in Bitcoin. My honest answer is that I don't understand it enough to really give good advice on the matter. But I did find this article.

I have always been leery of investing in anything that I cannot see, touch, eat, physically possess or live in. I can live in a home or rent it to someone. I can eat food in a restaurant business. These are tangible investments. I could be wrong, but to me Bitcoin is similar to the stock market, where you have tens of billions of dollars being invested into something that only exists on paper (or in the case of Bitcoin, a computer file). Here's some more information and a warning about Bitcoin...

My opinion is that believers are wise to invest in heavenly eternal rewards (Matthew 6:19-20). This world is full of greedy thieves, liars and cheats. In our text Scripture passage, Jesus encourages us to lay up treasures in Heaven, knowing that thieves cannot steal them, rust cannot corrupt them, moths cannot eat holes in them, and we have a sure investment. We can earn rewards in Heaven by helping spread the truth of the Gospel, which will lead others to Christ (Daniel 12:3). Also, by doing good deeds (Matthew 5:16). We can invest in eternity by laboring in prayer (Colossians 4:12). And by giving to the poor (Proverb 19:17). Even giving a cup of water in a disciple's name will be rewarded by the Lord (Matthew 10:42). Everything that we do as Christians to further the Kingdom of God, help others, honor God and sacrifice for Jesus Christ will be rewarded. Every keystroke of my keyboard and click of my mouse will be rewarded in eternity by God (1st Corinthians 3:8-9). That is why I work so hard day and night. It is 4 am now.

I personally do not think it is a sin to invest in Bitcoin. Again, I have limited knowledge, so I am cautious in my humble opinion. I think Las Vegas style casino gambling is unethical for various reasons. I don't think Bitcoin is a crapshoot, but I am not too familiar with it. I have no desire to learn about it either, I am busy investing in eternity. I think something that is unethical (not the honorable thing to do) is a sin. I think our greedy American society is a sin. You cannot eat at a restaurant anymore without them forcing you to pay them 10%, because they feel like you owe them for waiting on you. It is unethical. They have no regard for customers anymore in the United States, they just take advantage of people. I deplore forced gratuity.

The people who own the casinos don't do any labor. It is filthy lucre. The House always wins! Casinos provide illicit entertainment for thrill seekers, who blindly gamble away money. In many cases people lose their homes, cars and end up in court. The book of Proverbs has much to say about wealth obtained shadily. I think lotteries are unethical, which is gambling. I think anyone or anything that preys upon addicts, covetous people, thrill seekers and hurting people in desperation for riches, is immoral. I hate casinos! They are cesspools of immorality, substance abuse, homosexuals and all manner of wickedness.

Having said that, investing in the stock market is a calculated move. That is quite different than merely throwing some dice on a roulette table. There are many different ways to invest in stocks. At one time between 1995 and 2000, I was heavily involved in the stock market. I made 130 call option trades in one year. I paid Charles Schwab about $6,000 in commissions just in 1999. I made $140,000 and then lost all of it! But I was a nervous wreck, losing sleep when my trades declined, and felt euphoric when my positions rose. It was an emotional rollercoaster. In the year 2000 when George W. Bush became U.S. President, the ".com" years of "irrational exuberance" (as Fed chairman Alan Greenspan called it) all came to a crashing end. I ended up losing $50,000 in the stock market. I was working midnight shift between 1993 to 2000 and hated my life. In 2000 I changed to an afternoon shift. I had forgotten how good life could be. Working the graveyard shift was one of the worst decisions I ever made! It adversely affected me physically, mentally and spiritually. I wasn't investing to get rich, I just wanted a way out of Sodom and Gomorrah at the U.S. Postal Service where I worked in Chicago at O-Hare Airport.

I decided to get out of the stock market for good in 2000. I have not bought a stock or call option since. By God's grace I began my website ministry in 2002, choosing to spend the rest of my life laying up treasures in Heaven. I have never regretted that decision. Thousands of people who come to Jesus as their personal Savior over the years because of this ministry, to God alone by the credit, praise and glory. I am just some clay, but God is my dear Potter Whom I serve and love. I don't regret my 5 years of investing between 1995 and 2000, because it taught me the value of a dollar, the vanity of earthly riches that disappear, and the great peace and joy of knowing that I have treasures laid up beyond the blue skies. It is a matter of living by faith. I have faith that God will keep His promises in His Word. 2nd Peter 1:4, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

I hope you don't mind that I shared my philosophy of wealth a bit with you. I love to be helpful. Having said all that, I think it is acceptable with God to invest in things, just so long as it is not immoral (booze, casinos, abortion, LGBTQ, et cetera). Also, it is important that no one suffer as a result of our gain. The state lotteries are evil. In many cases the states promise to use the money for public schools, but then spend the money elsewhere and the children suffer. The states lie and steal the money. I think that is evil. Donald Trump is a brilliant and admirable business man. I love the guy and miss him as U.S. President. However, Pastor Jack Hyles is right that Mr. Trump's success is not "good success." Donald Trump made his billions from strip clubs, gambling casinos and houses of sin. If you'd like to hear the sermon by Dr. Hyles, it is called: "I Don't Want To Be A Success."

There is nothing more repulsive than a money hungry believer. Psalm 62:10, “Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.” My former landlord was always thinking about money, money, money. He disgusted me. No matter what went on, he saw money! Get the hell away from me! I detest money and those who relish in it. I love to give, without expecting anything in return. Very few believers are like that. When you truly love God, money means nothing to you anymore. The Harvest Baptist Church on Guam is all about money. They live for it! They relish in it! That is why I have been denied permission to even attend church services since 2014, because Harvest sees me as a threat to their money, because I am conte0versial in my King James Bible only beliefs. My website ministry is well known worldwide and makes them uncomfortable. 

My only fault is that I loved them enough to TELL THE TRUTH. Like the Apostle Paul, I am counted as their enemy at Harvest Baptist Church of Guam because I told them THE TRUTH (Galatians 4:16). I did the right thing! I was the only one who cared enough to agree with God (Romans 3:4). Lordship Salvation is not the Gospel of free grace. The Westcott and Hort Bible revisions are all corrupted by the Devil, not inspired by God. The requirement to repent and turn away from one's sins to be saved is nowhere taught in the King James Bible. Yet, for exposing these untruths I have been blacklisted, shunned, avoided, ignored and cruelly ostracized by Harvest Baptist Church of Guam for the past 7 years!

It is my prayer that God would avenge me for their cruelty. I pray that God would avenge me of their wickedness, for them siding with error instead of truth. I pray that God would make Harvest's pastors sorry, regretful and wishing they had never been born. I want divine justice! Help oh Lord, for the godly man ceaseth! I am laying up treasures in Heaven, while Harvest Baptist Church of Guam continue to dig their own grave. This Bible, that Bible. This Gospel, that gospel. Nothing really matters at Harvest except their paychecks. Follow the money! I will be avenged someday, God promises it. Romans 3:4, “God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.”

These Bob Jones liars and deceivers will attempt to defend themselves by saying that salvation is only by grace. Yet I can take you to the Catholic Vatican and show you where they say salvation is only by God's grace. Harvest's pastors have much blood on their hands, including mine. They have hurt an innocent man, who in fact told them THE TRUTH, but they rejected that truth. Pastors' Marty Herron and Gary Walton have my blood on their hands. These men in the clergy don't deserve any honor in any church! They do not teach the Word aright, but cast stumbling blocks before the people, by confusing sanctification with justification.

There is no greater way to lay up treasures in Heaven than to go soulwinning. But to do that we must also contend for the faith, exposing the enemies of soulwinning that hinder men from coming to THE TRUTH of the Gospel to be saved. Misunderstood repentance is an enemy of soulwinning. Lordship Salvation is an enemy of soulwinning. False Bibles are an enemy of soulwinning. Sadly, the Bob Jones crowd today are guilty of all three of these evils, working against the cause of Christ to get men saved! For exposing these evils I have been banned from attending church. I haven't had a church family in 7 years, because of Marty Herron and Gary Walton, and the Harvest Baptist Church of Guam. Bob Jones University is cult headquarters, leading the way into apostasy! They have no treasures in Heaven!!!

We Are Saved Because The Holy Spirit Endures, Not Us

Matthew 24:11-13, “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”

This is one of the most controversial passages in the Bible, the phrase: “He that shall endure unto the end shall be saved.” Pastor Curtis Hutson (1934-1995) wisely once said: “A good rule to follow when interpreting the Bible is to never use an obscure passage to contradict a clear one.” I couldn't agree more! Having said that, I want to share the following helpful quote from Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) explaining the meaning of Matthew 24:13...

“But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” (vs. 13). What does it mean? Arminians have often insisted that it meant people would be saved or kept saved by their own enduring, by their holy living. But that interpretation would contradict some of the plainest statements in the Bible like, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8, 9). Again it is promised, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24). Clearly one who trusts in Jesus Christ is saved. not by works, but by God's grace.

The Scripture makes clear that our salvation is solely on the merits of Jesus Christ and His atonement. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (I Pet. 1:18, 19). How could I ne saved by enduring to the end, and at the same time be saved by the precious blood of Christ? How could I be saved by enduring, yet be saved by grace and without works?

No, the word saved here has a different context. Here in Matthew 24:13 Jesus is not speaking of the redemption of a soul. He speaks rather of the rescue of Jews  in the midst of the tribulation. That tribulation is plainly described in verses 15 to 21, and verse 22 says, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved.” So the word “saved” in verse 13 and the word “saved” in verse 22 refer to the same thing: the salvation or rescue of the flesh of Jewish people during the tribulation. In mercy God will cut short the tribulation time and will rescue Jews out of the tribulation. Surely some Jew, greatly tempted and threatened with death in the tribulation time, will read this promise of Jesus with joy and faith. He will hold on to his faith, will not renounce the Saviour, and the time will be cut short and he will be rescued.

It would be a serious mistake to make verse 13 refer to the great plan of salvation for the soul, for thus it would contradict many other plain statements in the Bible showing that salvation is not by works, not by man's goodness or faithfulness or endurance, but by virtue of the blood of Jesus Christ. That salvation is received by penitent faith.

SOURCE: Dr. John R. Rice, “Matthew,” pp. 377-378; Sword Of The Lord, ©1955

I have three comments to make regarding what Dr. Rice just taught:

1. I agree 100% on his interpretation of Matthew 24:13, that “saved” refers to the saving of human flesh during the Tribulation period, and not the saving of the soul. 
2. I totally disagree that this passage refers to the Jews. What saith the Scripture? Matthew 24:22, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” The elect (or chosen) refer to born-again believers, not Jews. God does not choose anyone to salvation, but for those who choose Jesus Christ, they are the chosen of God. Romans 2:28-29, “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.” This passage plainly teaches that Physical Jews are not the recipient of God's promises, but saved Jews, which promises have also been extended to the Gentiles by faith. Galatians 3:7, “Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.”
3. Nowhere does the Bible require “penitent faith” to receive the free gift of salvation. Respectfully, Dr. Rice is adding to the Scriptures! I don't like when preachers use language that are not found in the Bible. I triple-dog dare you to show me where the Bible speaks of “penitent faith.” It does not! But I can show you hundreds of passages which plainly teach salvation by “faith” (Ephesians 2:8-9; Galatians 3:26; Romans 4:5-6). There is no mention of having a certain remorseful attitude toward sin. Evangelist Alexander Marshall (1846-1928) gets it 100% correct!!! Sorrow for sins may accompany repentance, but sorrow itself is not repentance. Judas felt sorrow for his sins, but it was a false repentance which did not lead to salvation (Matthew 27:3). Repentance is a change of mind unto the Gospel itself, so that the man who believes has repented, and the man who repents (i.e., changes his mind) has believed. Preachers must be extremely careful not to require what God does not require. The only “change of mind” which God requires to be saved is the acknowledgment of THE TRUTH (2nd Timothy 2:25), that one is a guilty sinner in the sight of God (Romans 3:19-20), in need of the Savior (Galatians 3:24-26). Dr. Rice further states:

There are those hyper-dispensationalists who think that John the Baptist preached a different Gospel from Christ when he commanded repentance (Matt. 3:2). But it is the same repentance Jesus commanded in Matthew 4:17, in Luke 13:3 and 5, and the same repentance that Paul preached in Athens that God “now commandeth all men every where to repent” (Acts 17:30 31). Repentance is not a different plan of salvation from having faith: it is part of the same plan of salvation. Or rather repentance is simply another way of describing or looking at the plan of salvation. One who turns from sin to God has done so by trusting in Jesus Christ. A change of mind toward sin is necessarily involved in saving faith.

SOURCE: Evangelist John R. Rice, “Acts: Filled With The Spirit,” pp. 250-252; Sword Of The Lord, Murfreesboro, Tennessee; ©1963

I am far from done dear friend. Matthew 24:13 is a highly tortured Scripture! That is what the word “wrest” means in 2nd Peter 3:16, “to torture” the Scripture! 2nd Peter 3:16, “As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.” One of my favorite Bible teachers is Pastor Harry Ironside (1875-1951), but he utterly made a grave error in his commentary on Matthew 24:13, applying it to the great plan of salvation...

People say, "I see you believe in that old Baptist doctrine of 'once in grace, always in grace.'" Or another says, "I understand you hold that old Presbyterian idea of 'the final perseverance of the saints.'" I do not know why this should be called either Baptist or Presbyterian, only to the extent that Baptists and Presbyterians agree with the Book, and the Word of God clearly shows that once God takes us up in grace nothing can separate us from the love of Christ so that evidently the expression, "once in grace, always in grace," is a perfectly correct one. But, on the other hand, I am not so enthusiastic about the other expression, "the perseverance of the saints." I believe in it; I believe that all saints—all really belonging to God—will persevere to the end, for the Book tells me, "He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved" (Matthew 24:13), and if a man starts out and makes a profession but gives it all up, he will never be saved, because he was never born again to begin with, he was never truly changed by grace divine. On the other hand, the reason he endures to the end is not because of any particular perseverance of his own. What I believe in, and what the Word of God clearly teaches, is the perseverance of the Holy Spirit. When He begins a work, He never gives up until it is completed. That is our confidence. [emphasis added]

SOURCE: The Eternal Security Of The Believer

I have two things to say about Dr. Ironside's teachings above:

1. He is very mistaken to even cite Matthew 24:13 as pertaining to the great plan of salvation, which is obtained solely on the merit of Jesus' precious blood and not human endurance to the end. No preacher ought ever even mention Matthew 24:13 when teaching salvation, unless you are exposing Calvinism.
2. I fully agree with Dr. Ironside that if a person who once professed Christianity, now denies Christianity altogether, they never experienced the new birth in the first place. There is no such thing as: “I used to be a Christian.” You either are one now and always will be; or else you are not a Christian today and never have been. Christianity is not a philosophy, organization, culture or business, it is a NEW BIRTH! Just as the physical birth is irreversible, so also is the spiritual birth (John 1:12-13; 1st Peter 1:23). Albeit, Moody Bible Institute today falsely claims that Dr. Ironside moved toward “a position of moderate Calvinism” toward his latter ministry, based on nothing more than the preceding comment I shared with you from his book. Dr. Ironside plainly stated that he does not believe in the Perseverance Of The Saints heresy, except that he believes the Holy Spirit will persevere in every believer, if one is truly born-again. I fully agree! This has absolutely nothing to do with the believer's dedication, faithfulness or holiness; but rather, God's faithfulness to never leave nor forsake any believer (Hebrews 13:5). 

By foolishly citing Matthew 24:13 in reference to the great plan of salvation, Dr. Ironside gave reprobate Calvinists an inch, so they took a foot! Although wrong in his application of Matthew 24:13, it is clear from Pastor Ironside's own words that he did not like nor teach the heresy that any believer must “persevere” in holiness and service to Christ to be saved. This is a very big deal dear reader, because wicked false teachers like Dr. Steve Pettit (president of Bob Jones University since 2014) are preaching that... well, read his heretical words for yourself:

“You can't just speak about getting saved, and you accepted Christ, and then that's it! There is a justification; There is a sanctification; There's ultimately a glorification, and though there are three parts, they are all part of the whole, and you cannot separate them. In order for you to qualify for the award, you have to get into the race, you have to stay in the race, and you have to finish the race. If you want to win, you have to run to the end; and winning in the Christian life is everything, because if you lose—if you don't finish—you lose everything—you lose your SOUL. And so, the Christian race is the life of faith that begins, is run, and is finished when we cross over into Heaven!” [emphasis added] —Dr. Steve Pettit (“What Does It Mean To Run 'The Race'?” - 11:34)

Ephesians 1:13-15 teaches that every believer is sealed with God's Holy Spirit at the time of salvation. The Holy Spirit will NEVER leaves the Christian, not for any reason (Hebrews 13:5). When we sin, grace more abounds (Romans 5:20). The believer is no longer under the curse of the law, but is now under God's grace forever. Once saved, always saved (OSAS). Anyone who denies OSAS is NOT saved, because they are requiring more than God does for redemption. 

Adding even the least human effort to faith cancels grace. Dear reader, God is faithful (1st Corinthians 3:9). We are kept saved because God is faithful, not because we are faithful. If we have to live a holy life to prove that we are saved, then faith is not enough. We are saved because the indwelling Holy Spirit endures, not because we endure! When we got saved, we accepted a free gift, and that gift is eternal life. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Rotten Fruit So Bad You Cannot Eat It

Jeremiah 24:1-3, “The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad.  Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.”

I am listening to the Old Testament book of Jeremiah today. When I heard this passage it caught my attention. Jeremiah 24:3, “One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad.” This passage refers to the Israelites. Some were good (obedient) and some so bad (disobedient) that God compared them to rotten fruit (figs) that cannot be eaten. 

This Scripture passage reminded me of America today. We have much rotten fruit in our country. And we also have much good fruit. The Bible says that God actually sent the good fruit into 70 years of captivity in Babylon “FOR THEIR GOOD.” Jeremiah 24:5, “Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good.” Sometimes our great God will allow or cause suffering in our life for our own good, to conform us further into the image of His dear only begotten Son, Jesus.

The Israelites had become lackadaisical in their prosperity, much like the United State today. They had forgotten the Lord. In fact, for 490 years the Jews had stopped observing the Sabbath Day, one of their most important ceremonial laws which they were required to keep by God. Consequently, God chastised them with one year of captivity for every seven years they had refused to keep the Sabbath (hence, 490 years divided by 7 equals 70 years). Jeremiah 25:11, “And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.” After 70 years of captivity, the Jews returned broken, healed and humbled to the land of Israel. Jeremiah 24:7, “And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.”

Most people learn from their sins, crimes and failures in life, but some people are rotten and refuse to submit to the truth, learn and obey God. Jeremiah 24:8-10, “And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt: And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.”

If We Obey, It Will Be Well; It We Disobey, It Will Be Hell

These “EVIL” men which God refers to include king Zedekiah, the princes, and the false prophet Hananiah, to name but a few. Jeremiah 28:12-13, “Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the prophet, after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt make for them yokes of iron.” Jeremiah the prophet came before the king wearing a yoke of wood upon his shoulders, illustrating God's commandment for Israel to yield to the king of Babylon. The Lord had assured the Jews, through Jeremiah's preaching, that if they submitted themselves to Babylon to reign over them, they would be allowed to stay in their own houses and live in Israel for those 70 years. But if they refused and disobeyed God's instructions, then Babylon would annihilate Jerusalem, kill many of them, ravish the women, butcher pregnant women, and carry away the surviving Jews into 70 years of captivity in a foreign land.

As Jeremiah spoke these words, the false prophet Hananiah broke the yoke of wood off his shoulders, rejecting Jeremiah's truthful preaching. In so doing, Jeremiah warned that they had made YOKES OF IRON for themselves. One of my favorite MP3 sermons by Pastor Jack Hyles, based upon this Bible passage, is called: “IRON YOKE MAKERS!” 

Zedekiah didn't listen to God's man, Jeremiah. What happened to king Zedekiah is horrifying. When Babylon invaded Jerusalem they captured Zedekiah. Babylonian soldiers executed all 70 of the king's sons while he was forced to watch, and then they put out his eyes. This was done so that this horrific scene would be the last thing Zedekiah ever saw. 2nd Kings 25:7, “And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.” All Zedekiah had to do to avoid this was obey God. I want to quote this important Scripture passage to you, because it applies to America today:

Jeremiah 27:9-15, “Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets (e.g., Steve Pettit, Ray Comfort, John MacArthur, Marty Herron, Gary Walton, Billy Graham, Jesse Jackson, et cetera), nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: For they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out, and ye should perish. But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein. I spake also to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live. Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? Therefore hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you.  For I have not sent them, saith the LORD, yet they prophesy a lie in my name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you.”

God gave His Word to His people that everything would be fine, and there would be peace in the land, ONLY IF Zedekiah simply submitted under the yoke of Babylon. But men are sinfully proud by nature. That is why I have been banned and ostracized by the Harvest Baptist Church of Guam since 2014, because their pastors are sinfully proud, full of arrogance and stiff-necked resistance to THE TRUTH. I say that kindly in love (Ephesians 4:15). I am just a humble broken sinner, A VOICE proclaiming the free grace Gospel of the inspired King James Bible. I am just A VOICE crying in the wilderness of cyberspace upon dear ears among the Bob Jones University crowd. Jeremiah 4:22, “For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.”

Jeremiah 5:3, “O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.” I am just a mortal man. I am not an apostle; but I was saved, called to preach, trained and ordained as a minister of the Gospel in a New Testament church. God is on my side for one reasons, and one reason only, and that is because my preaching is in agreement with His Word. Romans 3:4, “God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.”

Dear reader, we have a bunch of Hananiah's in our Bible colleges and churches today, who speak untruths they ought not. Titus 1:10-14, “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake. One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.” 

Please notice the reason why we as believers are exhorted to “REBUKE THEM SHARPLY.” It is because they are teaching “Jewish fables” (manmade traditions) and “commandments of men” instead of the inspired Word of God. We are exhorted to REBUKE THEM SHARPLY so that they may be sound in the faith, because they are wrong in their doctrine. But even if they don't listen to heed THE TRUTH, it is good so that others who are simple people will learn. 1st Corinthians 11:19, “For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.” I was amazed and happy when I first found this Bible verse. The Bible literally says that we need heresy and false teachers, so that they can be used as a blank canvas upon which to paint THE TRUTH. I love that!

Beware Of False Teachers Bearing Rotting Fruit

We've got a bunch of Hananiah's today at Bob Jones University. Their Bible professors brainwash their students to deny that we have an infallible, perfect and inspired English Bible today. That is so tragic and sad. You'd think that the one place in the world where someone's faith would be strengthened in the Word of God would be a “Bible college.” Unfortunately that is not the case. Just as a mother's womb statistically is the most dangerous place on earth to be, so also are today's apostate Bible colleges the most dangerous place for young people to be! Pastor Jack Hyles explains how theologians had him messed up in the early years of his 55 years of ministry, because he was corrupted in Bible seminary! 

Brother Hyles shares his unpleasant experience, how he went into Bible college believing his mother that every Word in the Bible is inspired by God; but years later when he graduated from East Texas Baptist College, he no longer believed that we have an infallible, perfect, inerrant and inspired Bible today. Thankfully, it was around the year 1982 right after Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) went to Heaven, that Dr. Hyles woke up and became a new champion of the inspiration of the King James Bible. You can hear Dr. Hyles proclaim this great truth in a positional sermon from 1994 titled: “THE BATTLE OF THE AGES.” 

Please beware of false teachers today like Hananiah who have crept into our Bible colleges and churches unawares. I guarantee you that every pastor who denies the inspiration and inerrancy of the King James Bible attended Bible seminary (which really ought to be called “preachers cemeteries” instead of preacher's seminaries). If even one portion of God's Word is corrupt today, then it could be any portion, and we have no way of knowing what is true or false, except that so-called Hebrew and Greek scholars tell us what is true or false.

Do you really think that God would leave the simple person at the mercy of manmade scholars? Did the omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing), and omnipresent (all present), God of the universe fall short when it came to preserving His very pure inspired Words, unable to give us a perfect Bible in the English language in 2021? Most Christians believe God can do anything except give us a perfect Bible. Go figure! I love the folks at Bob Jones University. God knows my heart. The reason why I preach against them so much is because at one time, back in 1950, they were THE fundamentalist Bible college in the world. Dr. Bob Jones Sr. (1883-1968) had the Gospel correct.

The Gift of Eternal Life Comes Wrapped In Jesus

The gift of eternal life comes wrapped in the wonderful wrapping of Jesus. If you don't want the wrapping of Jesus, you don't get the gift inside. I have witnessed to lost people who said they loved God, but cursed at the very mention of the precious name of Jesus. The Bible says they cannot go to Heaven with that horrible attitude. 1st John 2:23, “Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.” Many lost sinners think they love God, while at the same time vehemently hating the Son of God. The Bible calls them “antichrist” in 1st John 2:22, “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.”

There is much rotten fruit in Neo-evangelical churches today, corrupting the Gospel. Kindly said, Dr. Steve Pettit (president of Bob Jones University since 2014) is rotten in his theology, teaching a Calvinist false plan of salvation that denies an instant new birth. This is bad, really bad! Steve Pettit says, quote: 

“You can't just speak about getting saved, and you accepted Christ, and then that's it! There is a justification; There is a sanctification; There's ultimately a glorification, and though there are three parts, they are all part of the whole, and you cannot separate them. In order for you to qualify for the award, you have to get into the race, you have to stay in the race, and you have to finish the race. If you want to win, you have to run to the end; and winning in the Christian life is everything, because if you lose—if you don't finish—you lose everything—you lose your SOUL. And so, the Christian race is the life of faith that begins, is run, and is finished when we cross over into Heaven!” —Dr. Steve Pettit (“What Does It Mean To Run 'The Race'?” - 11:34)

Dear friend, that is very rotten fruit! There is nothing in the Bible taught about having to get into a race, run the race, and faithfully finish the race to get to Heaven. Dr. Pettit heretically says if you fail to run the race, you lose everything including your soul. That is NOT the free grace of God that brings salvation. What Mr. Pettit is teaching (and he even uses the word in the preceding quote to condemn himself) is an “AWARD.” Dear friend, eternal life is a gift, not an award which you must qualify for. Pettit even uses the word “qualify.” The only qualification for receiving God's free gift of eternal life is that of being an UNGODLY SINNER! ...

Romans 5:6-9, “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”

God only saves bad people!!! Did you know that Christ died for your righteousness too? My dear non-feathered friend, you and I have no righteousness to offer God. My best is filth to a holy God (Isaiah 64:6). God is incapable of sinning or even being tempted (James 1:13-14). That is why we need HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS! Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” That Scripture speaks of the imputed righteousness of Jesus. Philippians 3:9, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:” What a beautiful Bible verse and truth.

I can play many stringed instruments. I love the 5-string banjo. I like the style of Dave Hum, who plays by following the chords and his heart, not limiting himself to mere Bluegrass style. next to Lloyd Green on pedal steel guitar, next Dave Hum is my favorite musician. I love playing this song on the banjo. Lately I haven't done much with my music, sad that I cannot find a wife, so I pray and work night and day on my website ministry (James 5:14). 

I love music. At many times over the years, when I finally figured out how to play something or a new technique, whether it be on pedal steel guitar or banjo, I cannot explain the exuberant feeling of joy. That is exactly how I felt when I learned the beautiful doctrine of the imputed righteousness of God. Dear friend, you and I are saved by GOD'S RIGTHEOUSNESS! Faith is the only righteous thing I can do!!! The very idea that someone needs to be willing to forsake their sinful bad habits to be saved is of the Devil. Who can forsake their sins? Jeremiah 48:10, “Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.” 

Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9). We have no part in God's salvation of our soul except the sin we contributed that made it necessary. Please don't eat the rotten fruit! Please don't eat Evangelist Ray Comfort's or Kirk Cameron's rotten fruit. Please don't eat Pastor John MacArthur's or Dr. Sam Horn's rotten fruit. Please don't eat Pastor John Piper's rotten fruit. Once food has turned rotten it cannot be made fresh again. Corrupt Bibles cannot be made incorrupt. A perverted Gospel cannot be made true again. The only remedy is to throw away the rotten fruit and eat only fresh and healthy fruit. Throw away your modern Bible versions. Abandon your Neo-evangelical cult that masquerades as a New Testament church.

Restoring one's spiritual health is no different than one's physical health. You've got to get rid of the junk food and start eating beans, vegetables, seeds, fresh meats and lots of mineral water. I am learning to make websites with CSS, which is fascinating to me. I love code. I am already skilled at HTML. I was watching some videos today (and there are some awesome free tools online to teach yourself how to make websites), but I needed to hear from my God. So I turned on the book of Jeremiah. I heard Proverbs yesterday. I strongly encourage you dear reader to start listening to the King James Bible daily if you have not been doing so. It will change your life. You'll start remembering things you heard earlier, life-changing beautiful truths. As I grow older, I find myself running to the Word of God like a starving man toward food. The Bible is not merely another book, it is a LIVING BOOK (Hebrews 4:12).

Every False Teacher Still Insists Salvation Is By Grace

Galatians 1:6-9, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”

If you go examine the plan of salvation of Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-Day Adventists, Church of Christ, Calvinists, proponents of Lordship Salvation, and Roman Catholics, you'll find that they all deceitfully claim salvation in by “God's grace.” 

For example: I went to the Roman Catholic Vatican's website, and here is a quote:

1996 - Our justification comes from the grace of God. Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life.

SOURCE: Catechism Of The Catholic Church

Yet, upon further inspection, Catholics are required to observe Seven Sacraments to get to Heaven, the first of which is water baptism. Clearly, this is not the Gospel taught in the Bible. What saith the Scripture? ...

1st Corinthians 15:1-4, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

There is nothing in THE GOSPEL about getting water baptized, repenting or turning from sins, nor about keeping Seven Sacraments to be saved. Therefore, Roman Catholics are cursed by God for adhering to another Gospel of faith plus works. 

Sadly, this is the SAME sin of the Lordship Salvation crowd today, adding works to faith. This is the sin of the Moody Bible Institute crowd. This is the sin of Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago and their 'UNSHACKLED' radio series. This is the sin of the ungodly Bob Jones University crowd. This is the sin of the Harvest Baptist Church of Guam. On their church's website, Harvest says that they believe salvation is by “God's grace.” Yeah, and so does the Catholic Vatican, as I just showed you! It doesn't mean anything anymore for someone to profess to believe in salvation “BY GRACE,” because if the truth be told, they are trusting in MORE! Adding anything to faith cancels grace! 

I wrote this article to point out that Satan has crept into most of our Baptist churches today, including independent fundamental Baptist churches, propagating a false gospel of partial faith in Christ plus works (aka, the “turn from your sin” to be saved garbage theology). This heresy is spreading like cancer. The Bible says in 2nd Timothy 2:17 that their word is like “canker” (i.e., gangrene). Harvest Baptist Church is like gangrene on Guam, eating away at healthy tissue, killing it with their heresy of Lordship Salvation. Harvest broadcasts Dr. Steve Pettit's daily chapel sermons at BJU throughout Micronesia, on KHMG 88.1 FM radio, poisoning people's minds with deadly Calvinism. God's curse is on them all (Galatians 1:8).

On January 26, 2015, Dr. Steve Pettit preach this damnable teaching to 2,700 Bob Jones University students and faculty...

“You can't just speak about getting saved, and you accepted Christ, and then that's it! There is a justification; There is a sanctification; There's ultimately a glorification, and though there are three parts, they are all part of the whole, and you cannot separate them. In order for you to qualify for the award, you have to get into the race, you have to stay in the race, and you have to finish the race. If you want to win, you have to run to the end; and winning in the Christian life is everything, because if you lose—if you don't finish—you lose everything—you lose your SOUL. And so, the Christian race is the life of faith that begins, is run, and is finished when we cross over into Heaven!” —Dr. Steve Pettit (“What Does It Mean To Run 'The Race'?” - 11:34)

Dr. Steve Pettit is a false prophet! What he is preaching is NOT God's grace dear reader! Dr. Pettit plainly says you MUST run to the end to be saved. Galatians 1:6-7 pronounces God's CURSE upon Bob Jones University today, for perverting the Gospel of grace. When you attack the grace of God, you attack the God of grace. The attack the gift of grace, which is eternal life! You attack the guardian of grace, which is the local New Testament church. You attack the goal of grace, which is to preach the Gospel (not false doctrine) throughout all the world. It is no light thing to God to add to faith, which is to corrupt grace. 

Kindly said, Dr. Steve Pettit is an incompetent preacher! So also is Dr. Marty Herron at Faith Baptist Bible College And Theological Seminary. These men sinfully ADD to faith—requiring people to run the race, turn from their sins, and forsake a sinful lifestyle—which is a gross perversion of God's grace and the true Gospel. Here are some helpful quotes from various preachers, refuting the Bob Jones' crowd on their heresy of Lordship Salvation:

"It is an inexcusable error to confront sinners with problems that concern the Christian life and call upon them to make promises regarding them. An unsaved person is never called upon to surrender himself to God. The saving act is in no instance represented as our 'giving ourselves to God'; it is, on the contrary, taking His Son as our Savior." —Pastor Charles Ryrie, "Balancing the Christian Life"; Moody Press, Inc., 1969 (p. 170).

"The second approach finds faith in the gospel alone an 'easy Believism' and seeks to add something to faith in order to accomplish salvation. To repent is to 'change one's mind,' and to believe is to remove one's trust from that in which it has rested and place it in Christ." —William Howard, "Is Faith Enough to Save?" Bibliotheca Sacra. January-March, 1942 (p.99).

"This kind of faith is not 'easy believism'. It is not easy to say, 'I can't save myself, I must recognize that there is something wrong with me, and I must seek help from someone else.'" —Dr. H. Phillip Hook, "A Biblical Definition of Saving Faith"; Bibliotheca Sacra. April-June, 1964 (p. 133, 138).

"Eternal life is free. Discipleship is immeasurably hard. The former is attained by faith alone, the latter by a faith that works... the former brings with it the righteousness of God so that a man is 'justified freely by his grace' (Romans 3:24). The latter develops a personal righteousness, based on good deeds, so that a man was also 'justified by works' (James 2:24). The former constituted the believer God's workmanship, the latter fulfilled the wonderful purpose for which he had been created. The former cost man nothing, the latter could cost him everything, including life itself." —Dr. Zane C. Hodges, "The Hungry Inherit"; Moody Press, Inc., 1972 (p. 114, 115).

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —Dr. M. R. DeHaan, "Hebrews"; Zondervan Publishing House, 1959 (p. 117).

"For the unregenerate man, repentance is the change of mind whereby he turns from unbelief to faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ." —Roger Post, "The Meanings of the Words Translated 'Repent' and 'Repentance' in the New Testament"; Master's Thesis, Wheaton College, June 1972 (p. 80).

"There are those who, in their zeal to get people to turn from their sinful ways and receive the Lord, almost put repentance on a par with believing... Repentance, as it relates to Christ, means to change our minds about Him, who He is and what He's done to provide forgiveness and deliverance from our sins. When we place faith in Jesus as having taken our place personally on the cross and borne the penalty due our sins, then we're automatically repenting, because we couldn't accept Him in this way without having had to change our minds in some way concerning Him." —Hal Lindsey, "The Liberation of Planet Earth," Zondervan Publishing House, 1974 (p. 136, 137).

"Discipleship is frequently equated with salvation and often erroneously made a condition for becoming a Christian". —J. Dwight Pentecost, "Design for Discipleship," Zondervan Publishing House, 1971 (p. 11).

"Certainly discipleship is a most important aspect of our relation to Christ, but it belongs to the sphere of Christian life rather than entrance upon that life... One does not become a disciple in order to become a Christian, but because he has become a Christian by faith in the Savior, it is fitting that he embark upon a life of discipleship". —Everett F. Harrison, "Must Christ be Lord to Be Savior?—No."; Eternity, September 1959 (p. 14).

"There is no more piously subtle abrogation of the Gospel than to tell a Sinner that he must not only believe in the Savior, but dedicate himself to do God's will, crown the Savior Lord of his life, etc., etc. Obviously, dedication and service are highly desirable, but they are the privilege and the duty of the saved, never a condition of salvation for the unsaved (cf. Romans 12:1, 2)." —Dr. Merrill F. Unger, "God is Waiting to Meet You," Moody Press, 1975 (p. 117, 118).

"People are sometimes led to believe that there is saving value in some public confession of Christ, or profession of a decision. "With the heart man believeth unto righteousness." This is salvation. "With the mouth confession is made unto salvation." This is the voice of the newborn child speaking to and of its father. The only condition on which one may be saved is to believe." —Lewis Sperry Chafer, "Salvation," Dunham Publishing Company, 1917 (p. 46).

The Bible says eternal life is a free gift (Romans 5:15-18, 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9), that you simply receive BY FAITH (Galatians 3:26). You certainly CAN speak about “GETTING SAVED, AND YOU ACCEPTED CHRIST, AND THEN THAT'S IT”!!! That is why it is by grace alone, and not by works. It is a free gift! A gift is a receive proposition, not a give proposition. Salvation is received, not achieved. Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith. God will not save anyone who is trying to be saved, He will only save those who are trusting to be saved. Religion is man trying to reach God through human effort, but Christianity is God trying to reach man by the sacrifice of His only begotten Son on the cross.

Dear reader, if someone proclaims to believe that salvation is by God's grace, you put them to the test like the Bible says. 1st John 4:1, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” Salvation by grace can only mean salvation BY FAITH ALONE, and nothing else. This faith automatically includes repentance (which Biblically is a simple “change of mind”). No one has ever come to Christ by faith, who hasn't also repented toward God. Repentance does NOT mean to turn from your sins, and anyone who says it does is perverting grace. They are corrupting the Gospel. If turning from sins were required to be saved, then the Apostle Paul would have mentioned it when he DECLARED THE GOSPEL in 1st Corinthians 15:1-4. But Paul DIDN'T declare any such thing!!! Simply believe the Gospel and you are saved.

I am much hated, despised, criticized and ostracized by churches, especially the popular Harvest Baptist Church on Guam, whom I love with God's unconditional love enough to “REBUKE THEM SHARPLY” as the Bible commands. ...

Titus 1:10-14, “For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake. One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.” 

The Bob Jones' crowd hate me and count me as their enemy because I told THE TRUTH. They are the one's who are saying things they shouldn't be saying, not me. They are the one's who need to be rebuked in love, not me. It is Dr. Sam Horn who needs to be rebuked. It is Pastor Marty Herron who needs to be rebuked. It is Dr. Steve Pettit who needs to be rebuked. It is Pastor John MacArthur who needs to be rebuked. It is Bob Jones University that needs to be rebuked. These religious leaders and groups all preach the Devil's lie of Lordship Salvation. I am in agreement with the King James Bible (Romans 3:4). It is the ungodly Lordship Salvation camp who must to be rebuked sharply. Eternal life is a free gift, which you simply receive with childlike faith in Jesus as your personal Savior. That's it! We are the sinners, and Jesus is the Savior! 

The reason why Bon Jones University, Master's University, Faith Baptist Bible College And Theological Seminary, and Moody Bible Institute have become so theologically corrupt and sinfully indifferent is because of the Devil's Bible revisions. They use, sell and promote umpteen Bible versions, confusing everybody. God only authored ONE BOOK, not two, not 256, not 900. The King James Bible is God's unbroken Scripture, as Jesus promised in John 10:35. As long as these reprobate religious leaders and apostate institutions continue to teach their damnable heresy, by God's grace I will continue to faithfully REBUKE THEM SHARPLY!!! Oh, dear reader, I love you enough to tell you THE TRUTH. I hope you love Jesus and care enough to take heed.

Evangelist Steve Pettit DOESN'T Preach The Gospel

Galatians 1:6-9, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”

I am so sick and tired of hearing theological fools like Dr. Kevin Bauder, claim that Lordship Salvation still falls within the realm of orthodox Christianity. The Apostle Paul plainly warned in Galatians 1:6b-7a of “another gospel: Which is not another...” Kindly said, Steve Pettit is a brother from another mother! We weren't born of the same seed! I was born again at age 13 of incorruptible seed, by the inspired Word of God, which is the King James Bible (1st Peter 1:23). In contrast, Dr. Steve Pettit has never been born-again at all. He is merely living the Christians life, as per his own very disturbing statements:

“You can't just speak about getting saved, and you accepted Christ, and then that's it! There is a justification; There is a sanctification; There's ultimately a glorification, and though there are three parts, they are all part of the whole, and you cannot separate them. In order for you to qualify for the award, you have to get into the race, you have to stay in the race, and you have to finish the race. If you want to win, you have to run to the end; and winning in the Christian life is everything, because if you lose—if you don't finish—you lose everything—you lose your SOUL. And so, the Christian race is the life of faith that begins, is run, and is finished when we cross over into Heaven!” —Dr. Steve Pettit (“What Does It Mean To Run 'The Race'?” - 11:34)

Ladies and gentlemen, that is the Devil talking! That is not the Gospel of free grace, not even in the ballpark. Mr. Pettit is focusing on YOU, not JESUS! Pettit requires YOU to run the race faithfully, which is not wholly resting in JESUS' name for salvation. “The true Gospel always points you to Christ; a false gospel always points to you.” —Pastor Dennis Rokser

Steve Pettit is the infidel that Dr. Bob Jones Sr. (1883-1968) warned everybody about in 1945, and of whom he said he blow the college to smithereens with a stick of dynamite if he could. Bob Jones College is of the Devil. BJU no longer preaches sound doctrine; but rather, the Calvinist ranting of a theological madman behind the pulpit. Shamefully, Harvest Baptist Church of Guam IDOLIZES this wicked false prophet, bidding him Godspeed. Pastor Gary Walton needs to be fired. All of their pastors at Harvest are bad seed! They should all be fired, and bring in genuine men of God who are sound in the Christian faith. Anybody who thinks that you must turn away from sin to be saved is a theological fool.

Tragically, Dr. Pettit shares the SAME flawed unbiblical view of repentance as does Seventh-Day Adventist prophetess Ellen G. White (1827-1915). They wrongly think that salvation requires a personal attempt to turn away from committing sinful behavior. This is mandatory! In their flawed thinking, salvation cannot come to anyone who does not commit to depart from continuing in a sinful lifestyle. They falsely assume this to mean Bible repentance. Oh how wrong they are! Salvation is wholly by God's grace, through faith alone, in the Good News of Christ crucified, buried and risen. Nowhere in the Scriptures are we pressured, coerced or required to reform (turn from our bad behavior) to be saved. Eternal life is a free gift, paid for in full by the precious blood of the Lamb of God. John 1:29, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” What a beautiful proclamation!!!

Perhaps you would like to know why I incessantly preach against Dr. Steve Pettit these days. The answer is simply because Harvest Baptist Church of Guam, and Pastor Marty Herron in Iowa, idolize the man like a rock star!

Dr. Pettit is the Wayman Mitchell (1929-2020) of Calvary Chapel:

...he's the Bill Hamon of Christian International Ministries
...he's the Jack Hyles of fundamentalism
...he's the Ronald McDonald Of McDonald's
...he's the Pied Piper and he's coming to steal your children!

Kindly said, Steve Pettit is a dangerous man theologically. Don't you send your young people to that hellhole at Bob Jones University today! Don't you dare! The female BJU students wear cotton tighties in gym, literally displaying the crevice in their buttocks. Go look at their Facebook page. That is shameful! Christian colleges ought to set their standards high, not low. The sinful world has low standards! 

Sadly, most professed Christian parents and young women today laugh at modesty, just as they take the accuracy of the Gospel lightly, and the purity of the Holy Bible lightly, which is why they follow ungodly heretics like Marty Herron, Gary Walton, Steve Pettit, Sam Horn and John MacArthur!!! Hey, I didn't pick this fight, Marty Herron did, and Gary Walton is pouring gas on the fire by ignoring it. As a soldier of Jesus Christ I am fighting as a soldier does. I don't get paid to do this. I am not sucking a salary like the parasites from BJU are doing! Since I am at home without a church to attend, because Harvest Baptist Church on Guam continues to ostracize me for TELLING THE TRUTH, I'll write a thousand articles exposing their wickedness instead. What religious hypocrites!!! 

God knows my sincere heart in this matter, that all I ever humble requested was to quietly sit in church and not cause trouble. But those religious hypocrites refused. No true Christian that is right with God bans someone from church, and refuses to allow them to join in their church family. God's curse is on Harvest Baptist Church of Guam and Bob Jones University, as they continue to hurt people like me, spread corruptible seed (the Devil's Bibles), preach another gospel (Lordship Salvation), and disregard the hundreds of warnings I have given them as a caring Christian who loves them enough to TELL THE TRUTH (Ephesians 4:15). My preaching will be 100% vindicated someday (Romans 3:4). Proverbs 12:17, “He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit.”