The Lord Himself said Satan was the father of the lie: “…When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” John 8:44. Satan lied to Eve in the garden (Gen. 3:4) and continues to lie through his agents and their doctrines today. Which would you consider the biggest lie?

Man Is Saved By Faith Only?

Satan has deceived the denominational world into believing man is saved when he confesses a belief in Jesus and when he acts on that belief to ask Jesus to “come into his heart.” Thus, all man has to do is have faith (Belief) and he will be saved. The Bible says: “Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only” James 2:24. The only time these words are used together in the Bible and they condemn, not condone, faith only. Jesus said: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” Matt. 7:21. Jesus said we had to do some things. Saul of Tarsus was told what he had to do to be saved (Acts 9:6; 22:16). Cornelius was told words whereby he and his house could be saved (Acts 11:14; 10:48). It is a lie to say we can be saved by faith only.

Once Saved We Can Never Fall?

            Satan has also eased the consciences of many by deceiving them into believing that they can never fall. However, the Bible disputes this a countless number of times. Paul warned the Galatians: “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace” Gal. 5:4. It IS possible to fall from grace according to Paul.

Notice what Paul wrote: “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things ye shall never fall” 2 Peter 1:10. Notice falling is conditional; if we add the graces (5-8) then we will not fall. The opposite would be true: if we do not add the graces we will fall.

Baptism Doesn’t Save?

The father of the lie has convinced the masses baptism is non-essential to salvation. Jesus said: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” Mark 16:16. Peter wrote: “The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the) putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ” 1 Peter 3:21. Jesus said whosoever was baptized would be saved and Peter said baptism saved. Whom will YOU believe? Satan? Jesus and Peter?

One Church Is As Good As Another?

Satan says one church is as good as another because the church has nothing to do with salvation anyway. The apostle Paul said: “There is one body…” Eph. 4:4. He had earlier written the church was the body (1:22-23). He later wrote “For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body” Eph. 5:23.  Thus Jesus is the Savior of the body which is the church and there is only one body. This means there is one church and Jesus will save ONLY that church—the church of Christ (Rom. 16:16). Whom will we believe?

-David B. Jones, Stage Road church of Christ, Memphis, TN as published in Bulletin Digest, Oct. ‘05

Jesus said, “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” (Matthew 6:19-21).

The desire to make lasting investments that will tremendously benefit us in the future is a goal of all forward-thinking individuals.  What we accumulate in our lives must be properly managed.  Jesus gives us wonderful guidance in making the proper investments now so as to yield the maximum benefits in the future.  His instructions, however, are entirely different from investment plans that are confined to this life.

Jesus shows us that earthly wealth is insecure.  As moth and rust corrupt costly clothing and precious metals respectively, so the value of many earthly possessions decreases.  Even markets have bubbles that burst and leave investors with much less than they presumed.  Add to that depreciation the fact that others are out to take what is ours and you have a very insecure situation in regard to physical wealth.  The common way of storing treasures in the first century was not in a vault, but hidden in one’s house, the walls of which were often made of mud.  Thieves could literally dig through the wall to steal valuables.  The twenty-first century has seen the rise of thefts that are committed not with the display of a weapon or the use of physical force, but from behind a computer screen through the anonymity of the Internet.  The means have changed but the effects are the same: thieves will take what you have legitimately earned and saved.  In contrast, heavenly treasures are immune to corruption and secure from theft (Lk. 12:33-34; 1 Pet. 1:3-4).

All of us need a certain amount of earthly wealth to live.  If we are fortunate enough to avoid huge losses to what we have accumulated, there is still the danger of what wealth may do to our hearts.  It can easily enslave us (1 Tim. 6:9).  Our heart will be where our treasure is.  How sad is the life of one who places his only hope in this world.  If this life alone is all there is, then one’s efforts and investments will ultimately come to a tragic end.  We leave it all to someone else.  However, the prospect of a future life provides a hope for which the human heart yearns, especially in the moments of loss that are part of this life.  Jesus says to be only earthly-minded is foolish.  We must be forward-thinking enough to prepare for heaven.  Heaven will not be ours by default, but only after a life of proper preparation.  “No man ever went to heaven whose heart was not already there.”  There are tremendous joys and wonders that this life has to offer, but if we aim only for them we will come up short, wanting something more, something permanent.  Aim for earth and get nothing; aim for heaven and get its joys with what earth has to offer thrown in.

Am I investing in the life to come?  Does heaven occupy a prominent place in my heart?  Or do I have too much of this dying world in me?  Beware of banking in the wrong place.  You can come up very short when the bill comes due.

-Mark Day