Zechariah prophesied many details of the coming Messiah. In Zechariah 13:1, he spoke of the era when the Messiah would come, saying, “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.” The Messiah quoted from Zechariah 13 when He approached the final, culminating hours of His earthly life. In Mark 14:27, Jesus quotes from Zechariah 13:7, in His last meeting with His disciples before the crucifixion, to indicate that very soon, in fulfillment of prophecy, the shepherd would be smitten, and sheep scattered. What to the disciples seemed as the most unimaginable, ungodly deed, utterly against the will of God, was in reality a divine appointment for the cleansing of mankind (Acts 2:23). Thus the Father speaks in personification to the sword, an instrument of death, to awake against His shepherd, “the man that is my fellow,” indicating the human and divine natures that Christ possessed while here on earth (Zechariah 13:7).

God became a man in order to die for us (Philippians 2:5-10). He was named “JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). His forerunner identified Him as “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). He Himself declared that He came for those who were sin sick (Mark 2:17). When the murder of God’s innocent lamb was finished, the soldier took a spear and opened up the cleansing fountain of blood and water (John 19:34). From that time forgiveness of sins has been preached (Luke 24:47). Jesus loves us and washes us from our sins in His own blood (Revelation 1:5). Jesus commissioned water baptism as the means by which men can be washed in His blood and be saved (Mark 16:16). In baptism, sins are remitted (Acts 2:38), blotted out (Acts 3:19), and washed away (Acts 22:16). The marvelous characteristic of the new covenant is that Jesus’ blood has been shed so that sins can be remitted (Matthew 26:28) and remembered no more (Hebrews 8:12).

How could the murder of His only begotten Son be part of God’s plan? It is because He loves us and desires to show mercy to us through His Son (1 John 4:9). For this reason, “it pleased the Lord to bruise him” (Isaiah 53:10). With such a wonderful spiritual blessing before us, we can join in with Micah and say, “Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:18-19).

All praise to God for opening up a cleansing fountain through His Son’s blood. Will you be washed in it?

There is a fountain filled with blood

drawn from Emmanuel’s veins;

and sinners plunged beneath that flood

lose all their guilty stains.

-Mark Day

Every year we see and hear them during the holiday season. You hear their bells ringing, you see them standing in front of stores with a collection pot hung from a tripod for people to drop in their money. They call themselves the Salvation Army.

As I was sitting in a Bible Study recently, reference was made to the Salvation Army. At which point I made the comment that they were, in fact a denomination. Many folks associate the Salvation Army with the charitable works they engage in yet just as many people do not realize that they are also a religious organization.

So, due to the time of year we are seeing the collection pots and hearing the ringing of the bells, consider a few points regarding the Salvation Army from their own website (http://www.salvationarmy.com) as we revisit this topic.

1. “The movement (The Salvation Army – JDS), founded in 1865 by William Booth, has spread from London, England, to many parts of the world.”

The Bible teaches that the Lord Jesus Christ built His church on Pentecost in 33 AD in Jerusalem. Jesus said “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Matthew 16:18

On the day of Pentecost the Bible says in Acts 2:47, “…And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

2. “We believe that our first parents were created in a state of innocency, but by their disobedience they lost their purity and happiness, and that in consequence of their fall all men have become sinners, totally depraved, and as such are justly exposed to the wrath of God.”

This is from the Calvinistic doctrine of Total Hereditary Depravity. The Bible teaches that sin is something we do, not something we inherit. 1 Jn. 3:4, “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.” Man is responsible for his own sin, not the sin of others. Ezekiel 18:20, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”

3. “We believe that repentance toward God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and regeneration by the Holy Spirit are necessary to salvation.” “We maintain that no external observance can rightly be said to be essential to salvation or to the receiving of divine grace and that the biblical truth is that we can meet with God and receive his grace anywhere at any time through faith.”

The Bible teaches the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. Mark. 16:16, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

1 Pet. 3:21, “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”

Space prevents us from further examination; however it is clear that to support the Salvation Army is to support a denomination and the Biblical error they teach. “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” – Ephesians 5:11.

– Jerry Sturgill