The Bible Answers

Isn't a good life lived, better than a sermon preached?

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As this question would be commonly understood, the answer is No.

Note the following Scripture:

Romans 10:17: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

Faith comes because we hear the message of the Gospel, not because we acknowledge or dream up anything in ourselves. The Gospel concerns the life and death of Jesus Christ, who suffered for the sins of His people. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, but no one will call if they do not believe, and no one can believe in something they have not heard about. {Romans 10:9ff]

1Corinthians 1:18: "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God."

It is not foolishness to preach, but it appears foolishness to those who are lost, because the Gospel always appears to be foolishness to those whoa re lost. The natural man does not receive the things of God because are foolishness to him.

1 Corinthians 1:21: "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe."

Are you wiser than God? Shall you reject the way that He has provided for you and imagine that you have a way that is superior to His? He calls you to come by the door He provide; shall you presume to try to tear a hole in his house, to get in some other way?

1 Timothy 1:1: "Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour...."

Our salvation was conceived in eternity before the world began, but it is revealed in time through the preaching of the Gospel.

1 Corinthians 2:12,13: "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual."

The spirit of the world looks for the causes for things in the world itself, but our salvation does not have its cause in the world, but in the decree of God from eternity. The means that God has ordained is through the preaching of the Gospel, so that it might be by faith. It is through faith that God is most honored, for those who believe the promise of Gospel glorify God in two things: His power and His integrity. Therefore faith is most honoring to God and is the only means for salvation. But faith that has nothing to believe is not faith at all, so saving faith must be faith in the promise of God in Jesus Christ.

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" [Acts 4:12].

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Whether or not you will go to heaven when you die is such a critical question that it deserves a good bit of your time and attention. There are many churches that would answer the question the same way that it is answered at this web site, but we would love to have you invest some time and effort to come to Trinity Covenant Church and learn from the Holy Scriptures about these very important things.

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