SWM 05 - Lordship Salvation

SWM 05 - Lordship Salvation

The Soul Winner’s Manual

CHAPTER V (PART 1 of 3) OUTLINE BY RALPH “YANKEE” ARNOLD

LORDSHIP SALVATION

There is a message being preached today in many "Bible believing churches" by born again pastors that goes something like this: "Believe on Jesus Christ and make Him Lord of your life and you will be saved. You must make Him Lord of all, and if He is not Lord of all, then He is not Lord at all!" This doctrine has been termed “Lordship salvation” and has absolutely no support from the Word of God.

CHRIST, the SAVIOR

When you mix the grace of God with the efforts of man, you rob the Gospel of its power to save.

Man needs salvation. He cannot save himself; he needs a Savior. Jesus Christ is the Savior. The people of Samaria "said unto the woman, “Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world" (John 4:42). Is the whole world saved? No. Christ can be a Savior without being your Savior. There is only one Savior for the world and that is Christ, but it's up to each individual whether or not he or she will trust him for their salvation.

When He was born, the angel declared, “Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2: 11). The prophet Isaiah quotes God as saying, “I, even I, am the LORD; and beside Me there is no Savior” (Isaiah 43: 11). The Scriptures are emphatic that God took on flesh in the person of the Son, Jesus Christ, and became man's Savior (John 1:1-3, 14, 29).

Christ the Lord is who He is; it is his title. Savior refers to what He does; He saves. When you trust the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior, He saves your soul from the PENALTY OF SIN in Hell that very moment. After salvation, your yielding to the Lordship of Christ will save your life from the POWER OF SIN; but it cannot save your soul from hell. (at the rapture or when we die-we will be saved from the PRESENCE OF SIN).

"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). There is no Savior outside of Jesus Christ. Christ IS the Savior, you can choose whether or not to accept Him as your Savior. Accepting him as MY Savior does not make Him A Savior. He already is.

Man's belief or lack of belief in the “Savior-ship” of Jesus does not change the fact that Jesus Christ is truly the Savior. When a man recognizes the fact that Jesus Christ is truly the Savior; and trusts Him to be his Savior, then-and only then-does that man receive the benefits of Christ's saving power.

Christ died and rose again for all (Hebrews 2:9; I John 2:2), but He saves only those who trust Him. That is to say, even though He is the “Savior of the world,” He saves only those in the world who personally and individually receive Him by faith. God invites “whosoever will” to trust in His Son, but it is an amazing truth of God's Word that men can forbid the Savior to save them. Such men die without a Savior, though One was available to them all the time (John 3:16-18; I John 5:10-12; Revelation 22:17).

Just as you receive the Savior by faith and He becomes YOUR Savior, when you allow Christ to control your life, He becomes YOUR LORD. There is an increasing number of “evangelicals” today who are preaching that in order for a man to be saved he must not only receive Christ as his Savior, but also must make Him absolute Lord and Master of his life.

CHRIST, the LORD

(Jesus IS the Lord (Jehovah; God in the flesh. Lord can also mean master.)

Mark 12:28-33 (KJV)

28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. 32 And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: 33 And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.

Lordship Salvation is totally the keeping of the law, (Lord of ALL or not Lord at all) which is shown to be impossible to perform.

He is the Savior and He is the Lord. You may or may not accept Him as YOUR Savior. You may or may not accept Him as YOUR Lord. What you do or don’t do does not change who He is.

What we have seen about Christ being the Savior also applies to His Lordship. He IS the Lord, whether men believe it or not. Whether or not a man allows Christ to be his Lord is something else again.

Jesus Christ is the all-knowing, all-powerful Creator and Controller of the universe. Colossians 1:16 says, “All things were created by Him and for Him.” Verse 17 adds, “. . . by Him all things consist . . . (or, are held together).” God led Paul to write that Jesus Christ is the “blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords” (I Tim. 6:15) . The One who was crucified on Calvary was none other than the Lord of Glory (I Cor. 2:8).

Some may ask if Jesus was really LORD when men “by wicked hands crucified” Him. Absolutely! For He said, “. . . I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself, I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again . . .” (John 10:17, 18).

Is He Lord now, though some men refuse to let Him rule in their lives? Certainly! The Bible says in Acts 2:36, “. . . know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ (Messiah).” Their unbelief did not change the fact about who is or what He had done.

The time is coming when EVERYONE will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Phil. 2:10, 11).

The Soul Winner’s Manual

CHAPTER V (PART 2 of 3) OUTLINE BY RALPH “YANKEE” ARNOLD

LORDSHIP SALVATION

When you trust Him to take you to Heaven, He becomes YOUR SAVIOR. This is Salvation! When you allow Him to control your life, He is YOUR LORD. This is Service!

YOU MUST KEEP THE TWO SEPARATE! Scripture separates the two, and so must you. One is salvation; the other is service. Service involves works, and works cannot save you. Service is NOT a part of salvation; it is an ENTIRELY SEPARATE ISSUE to be dealt with only after a person has trusted Christ as Savior. It is only after a person is saved that the Holy Spirit will give him the power to control his old nature and live a life pleasing to the Lord (Phil. 2:13).

The false doctrine that you must accept Christ as your Savior and make him Master (Lord) of your life at the same time to be saved mixes salvation with service. This doctrine is called "Lordship Salvation." If you must let Christ be Master of your life to be saved, then when He is no longer your Master, are you no longer saved? Do you now see how "Lordship Salvation" adds works to the gospel message? OBEYING CHRIST AS YOUR MASTER IS A WORK!

Adding works to the gospel takes away the power of the gospel for then it becomes a false message that cannot save.

The truth of the matter is that salvation is not a “give” proposition at all; it is a “take” proposition. We don't give our hearts, lives, wills, or anything else to God in order to get Him to save us. This would be a form of bribery, a way of meriting or deserving to be saved-but God says salvation is “NOT OF OURSELVES”-and especially, it is not offering anything to God.

• Ephesians 2:8-9: 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.

Salvation is receiving! We simply receive His Son. John 1:12 says, “But as many as RECEIVED Him, to them gave He power (the right) to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name.” God does the giving. We do the receiving.

Romans 10:9 is often used in an attempt to support the idea of Lordship Salvation. "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." When studying this verse keep in mind that:

1. In the beginning of this chapter (Romans 10:1) Paul says, "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for ISRAEL is, that they might be saved." Paul was talking about the Jews. "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth" (Romans 10:3,4). The Jews were trying to earn God's righteousness by the works of the law. The purpose of the law was to reveal that they were all sinners and lead them to Christ for righteousness. However, the Jewish people did not acknowledge that Christ was God, their Savior! Once they told Christ, "For a good work we stone Thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God" (John 10:33).

2. If Jesus is not God, He cannot save us! Only the perfect, holy, righteous God could pay for man's sins. "I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye BELIEVE NOT THAT I AM HE ye shall die in your sins" (John 8:24). "I AM" is a name of the eternal God (see Exodus 3:14). Jesus told the Pharisees (the Jewish religious leaders) that if they did not believe that He was the; I AM (God), they would die in their sins.

3. Jesus told another group of Jewish people, "I am the good shepherd" (John 10:11). Psalms 23:1 says, "The LORD (Jehovah) is my shepherd."

To acknowledge Jesus as Lord in Romans 10:9 means to acknowledge that He is GOD! To the unbelieving Jews, Paul says that Jesus is the LORD (Jehovah); He is the LORD GOD of Israel! Unless the Jewish people acknowledge that, they cannot be saved. If Jesus were only a man, He could not save us. Only GOD can save us. What does this mean? "Confess" (homologeo) means "to assent, i.e. covenant or acknowledge" (Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible).Therefore the verse is saying, "That if thou shalt acknowledge with thy mouth Jesus as God." God is our Savior (Titus 2:10). Jesus Christ is our Savior (Titus 3:6). Our Savior is Jesus Christ, God in the flesh!

ALWAYS bring out in your witnessing that Jesus Christ is God!

Romans 10:9 DOES NOT SAY, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord of your life." That is adding to scripture. That would mean we would have to work our way to heaven! Romans 11, goes on to say that the Jewish people are not cast away. They can still be saved by grace through faith. Verse 6 says, "And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work." To say a person must trust Christ as his Savior (grace) AND make Christ Lord (Master) of his life (works) to be saved is a GRACE AND WORKS MESSAGE; a false message that cannot save! Salvation cannot be of grace and works. The one excludes the other. Scripture clearly teaches salvation is BY GRACE! (Ephesians 2:8-9).

• Ephesians 2:8-9: 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.

There are many sincere, born again Christians who teach this false message! Remember, if Satan cannot destroy your zeal, he will seek to destroy your message. He will seek to get born again Christians who are saved by grace to preach a works message! This is not just a confusing message; it is a false message.

When the apostle Paul saw the sin and corruption in the lives of the Corinthian believers, did he change the gospel message? When Paul wrote “I Corinthians,” he was writing to a very carnal assembly of believers that desperately needed to be “straightened out.” So what did Paul do? Did he change the gospel message in hopes that it would result in "better behavior?" No, Paul taught them correct doctrine to meet their need; i.e. if they did not live for Christ they would forfeit rewards in heaven NOT if they did not live for Christ they would not be saved, or that it was a sign they were not truly saved.

Some think that if Christ is not Lord of a Christian's life, then he is not really a Christian, he never really trusted Christ. They preach, "When you trust Christ, there will be an automatic change in your life. You'll want to pray. You'll want to read God's Word. If you are a genuine Christian you won't want to do things wrong anymore!" Yes, you still have your old sin nature, and yes, you will still desire to do wrong things. A believer may be "carnal" (live according to his old flesh nature). "And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?" (I Corinthians 3:1,3). Paul spoke to them as brethren; his brothers and sisters in the Lord. However, they were carnal brethren. Every Christian has a new nature with the right desires, but just because you have a new nature is not a guarantee that you will have an automatic change for the better in any area of your life!

The Soul Winner’s Manual

CHAPTER V (PART 3 of 3) OUTLINE BY RALPH “YANKEE” ARNOLD

LORDSHIP SALVATION

Whether or not there will be a change in a believer’s life depends upon that Christian's own choice. There is a battle raging within, and he must fight and win it in the strength of the Lord.

If every believer automatically has a changed life the moment he is saved, then it would appear that Lot never was saved. He lived in the wicked city of Sodom, got drunk and committed fornication with his own daughters (Genesis 19). Was he saved? "And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked. (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds)" (II Peter 2:7,8). The Bible calls Lot "just" and "righteous" and so he was in the eyes of God! A man receives God's righteousness by faith in Christ. Yet there was no outward change for the better in Lot's life. God says he was still saved. However, he reaped the consequences of his sin he lost all he had on earth and ended his life in misery.

YOU MUST keep salvation and service separate. If you don't, you will be very “confusing” to the lost when you attempt to speak to them. It is also very confusing for a Christian to witness when he doesn’t know for sure if his own life measures up to this high standard of self-righteousness.

A Christian, of course, should serve the Lord, but he is still a Christian if he does not serve the Lord. SALVATION IS FREE. Stand strong for the Gospel of Grace. You will be glad you did; now, and at the judgment seat of Christ!

REASONS FOR NOT TEACHING “LORDSHIP SALVATION”

1. It contradicts Scripture; therefore, it cannot be true. This one reason should settle the matter completely. If a doctrine is contrary to what God says, then it should be discarded immediately. See Rom. 3:4; Titus 2:7; Gal. 4: 16.

2. It causes confusion and frustration to the unbeliever because it leaves the impression that salvation is by works. Therefore, the lost person often puts off accepting Christ until he is “ready” to turn his entire life over to the Lord. If the truth were presented to such a person, that salvation is free, but that after we are saved the Lord would work in our lives, perhaps he would trust Christ. Because of a “grace plus works” message he might NEVER trust Christ (I Cor. 14:8,9).

3. This message CANNOT SAVE. If anyone gets saved during such a message, it will be because God has honored a portion of His Word IN SPITE of the unscriptural teaching brought into the message (Rom. 4:5; Gal. 5:1-4; Rom. 11:6; Isa. 55:8-11; Rom.10:17).

4. This message is cursed of God. Any message, no matter how “good” it may sound, is condemned by God unless it is His own salvation message. God curses all other messages (Acts 4:12; John 14:6; Gal. 1:6-9; II Cor. 11:13 15; Gal. 3:1-3).

5. The person who preaches such a message is also cursed of God. Strong statement? Yes, but it is what God says. A man who preaches man's efforts have a part in salvation is leading people to hell, not heaven. Even if a man believes he is sincere, a wrong message still has the effects of the wrong message. Sincerity is no substitute for truth (Deut. 27:18; Prov. 17:15; 19:5; Jer. 23:1).

6. If salvation really does come to those who turn over their lives to Christ, then God has been wrong all the time, throughout the entire Bible, because salvation is taught from Genesis to Revelation to come only through faith (Titus 1:2, 3; Romans 3: 4).

7. It causes even Christian preachers to further the error by thinking it might have some merit and preaching it themselves. One well-known Christian returned to America from some meetings he held in a foreign country and made a statement like this: “I really made it difficult for them to accept Christ over there. In America it's too easy to become a Christian, so I made it hard for them there. I told them accepting Christ meant turning from their sins, reading their Bibles, praying every day, giving up bad habits, and going to church regularly. And in spite of such a hard message hundreds made decisions for Christ.”

   1. WHAT A TRAGEDY! When people hear the true gospel after hearing this type of message, they are often unable to distinguish what is truth from what is error, and so many are left confused and unsaved.

8. The preaching of this error robs the one preaching it of reward. Paul said, “What is our . . . crown? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?” The more we are able to win to Christ, the more souls will be in heaven, and so the more reward we will have. But those who preach a confused message hinder people from trusting Christ as their Saviour. Therefore, many souls are left unsaved, and so these preachers will not have the reward that they could have had (I Thess. 2: 19, 20; II John 8; I John 2:28; I Cor. 9:18).

9. It confuses “laymen” believers and causes them to be ineffective in their witness. A girl recently asked, “I know that you are sincere and seem to have Scripture to back up what you teach, but my pastor is also sincere and teaches differently about salvation than you do. How do I know which one of you is right? How can I witness when I don't know what to tell people?”

   1. A confused believer will probably give out some mixture of “grace and works” that will not only confuse the lost person, but will also bring discouragement to the believer when he doesn't find people responding to his witness. When the gospel is given out, pure and simple, there will be results. The gospel is good news, and people respond to it.

10. It hinders the growth of the body of Christ. This is one of the results of the above (#9). When the believer's mouth is stopped, (regardless of the reason), then, the natural flow of fruit-bearing is also stopped. Since Christ's body is composed of believers, the growth of His body is hindered when souls are not won (John 15: 8, 16).

    1. Incidentally, this will also stop the growth of the local church as well. It is so obvious when you stop to think about it. Why any preacher thinks this accursed “grace and works” message would in any way benefit anyone is a puzzle to me. Let's learn to THINK THINGS THROUGH!

11. It brings persecution to the believers who stand firm for the Scriptural message of “justification by faith.” Those who are clear on the gospel are often accused of preaching “easy believism” or “cheap grace.” Nothing could be further from the truth! Tell me, is a person ever saved by “hard” believism? Certainly no Christian I know believes in “cheap” grace! This is absurd. God's grace is precious. The blood of Jesus is precious (I Peter 1:18, 19). Salvation is anything but cheap. God has gone through so MUCH to provide redemption for us!

    1. No one is ever saved by “cheap grace.” They are saved by PRICELESS, AMAZING GRACE! We have a miracle salvation-provided and preserved by God Himself! Let's give out the good news of this salvation simply and faithfully for His glory.