“The Great Equation of Scripture in this Age of Grace, as we commemorate Easter, is SALVATION = FAITH + NOTHING.”
It is in fact, the greatest equation of Scripture, and is the equation above all equations.
Faith + nothing is a universal truth and ‘ground zero’ reality in its application.
It’s Faith in the finished works of the cross of Christ Jesus, His death, burial and resurrection, coupled with nothing else.
And the resurrection of Christ Jesus, is the ‘Crowning Glory’ of that finished work on the Cross.
It is the very ‘capstone’ on the greatest turning point in human history and this is what Easter is really all about.
It’s why we can so confidently say, the moment we believe, “because HE lives, I will also live”.
“….For I know (we can say with whole-hearted assurance), Whom I have believed” [2 Timothy 1:12].
These great statements of faith, would just remain powerless and meaningless, had it not been for the resurrection of Christ Jesus.
This indisputable and historically known resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave proves and validates ‘two points’ beyond any shadow of doubt.
THE FIRST
The first, is that Christ Jesus was indeed ‘the only begotten Son of God!’
That is, He was truly born of God.
Here is how Scripture, speaking of God, puts it in [Acts 13:33], “in that HE hath raised up Jesus”.
That is, God raised Him from the dead, the resurrection.
And being totally in line with Old Testament Scripture, it continues:
“….as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.
When the Scripture says, “this day”, which day is it referring to?
Well, Christ’s day of resurrection, after having died on the cross and laid in the tomb for three days.
Now this fact gets a rock-solid backing and confirmation from the Apostle Paul in [Romans 1:4]:
Watch this👇🏽 carefully!
Speaking of Jesus Christ:
“And declared to be (what?) the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness,……..”
And how was that declaration made?
It wasn’t by empty words, but by a supernatural and Sovereign ‘Act of God’, and here we have it:
“…..by the resurrection from the dead:”
Not Bethlehem
When Scripture speaks of Jesus Christ being ‘the only begotten Son of God’, it’s not making reference to His birth at Bethlehem.
Now this could well sound shocking to many, and specially within Christendom.
For that’s how most of us were traditionally raised up to understand.
And Scripture does not put it that way.
On the other hand, it has ‘EVERYTHING’ to do with His ‘Resurrection’.
Scripture makes that so clear, it’s as plain as day in [Romans 1:4].
It was the Resurrection that ‘validated’ Jesus Christ as being the ‘Son of God’.
This is the ‘Truth of Scripture’ as against the traditional beliefs of men that has come down through the centuries.
This is the Truth of Heaven!
Jesus Christ had a lot of trouble with the so-called religious men and their traditions during His days on earth.
And HE still does today!
The ‘traditions of men’ vs the ‘commandment of God’, is clearly indicated by the Christ Jesus Himself in [Matthew 15:3-6].
Their traditions were transgressing the commandments of God and nullifying the Word of God.
And it still does today!
What is it that we would really want? Truth or Tradition?
For The Bible never looks on tradition in good light, and neither must we.
Religious tradition has consistently proved itself to be an enemy and blinder of Divine Truth.
Hence tradition and Truth can just never walk together.
And we must seriously decide, for our eternal destination is at stake here.
THE SECOND
The second crucial point is that the resurrection of Jesus Christ validates what took place on the cross.
The sin debt of every human being past, present and future was paid for ‘in full’ on that cross.
It was totally accomplished with no stone left unturned, and Christ’s resurrection validated that fact beyond any shadow of doubt.
For if Christ had not been raised from the dead, the cross would be null and void.
Christ Jesus would have died just as a martyr and that’s it.
Our faith would be in vain and it would all be a waste of time.
We would yet be in our sins with no hope whatsoever, facing only an eternity of awful judgement.
Scripture confirms that in [1 Corinthians 15:17].
“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.”
After all, we can no longer put confidence and hope in something or someone that is dead.
And that stands to reason, at least it should.
But the great news is that, “But now Christ is risen from the dead…….”, Scripture declares in [1 Corinthians 15:20].
So, our hope is well alive and kicking!
And the greatest equation of Scripture and the universe is embedded unshakeably in this solid Rock of Christ.
Salvation = Faith + Nothing!
The Bliss Of Eternal Salvation
The bliss of eternal salvation, an eternity glorious in heaven lies right here in this equation alone.
And it’s one that every one of us without exception, so desperately need.
With men, that is with our human efforts, irrespective of how far reaching it may be, this is impossible.
Because, “all (men and women alike) have sinned and fallen short of God’s Glory”, says the Scriptures in [Romans 3:23].
And in our own personal experience of day to day living, we know that to be the truth.
It may be a hard truth for many, but it is still the truth and also an irrefutable one.
We have all sinned in one way or another, by thought, word and deed, without comparing ourselves to anyone.
We have all, without exception, fallen short and we know we have.
SO why deny it, at least to our own selves?
And God is certainly not finger pointing anyone in any way whatsoever.
That’s what the religious minded legalists falsely teach.
HE’s just laying it out as it is, for what it is.
And we’re NOT laying our heads on the chopping board of God’s judgement by acknowledging this truth, hard though it be.
Far from it!
Rather, on the other hand, it throws the door of God’s Grace wide open to step into His salvation.
This too is an irrefutable truth.
Judicially And Freely
We can now unconditionally lay hold that eternal salvation both ‘Judicially’ and ‘freely’ offered to us by Him.
It’s God’s ‘free gift’ to all without exception, and we don’t get to work for something that is truly free.
We appropriate it by faith alone!
We NEVER stop stressing the fact that what took place on the cross, was a ‘Judicial Act of God’ .
And because it was judicial, God in His Sovereignty, could legally and unconditionally, release His Grace to all men.
It’s freely there for the taking, whosoever will, by faith.
For after all, what is faith but simply taking God at His Word!
It’s simply relying and completely trusting whole-heartedly that which we know and believe to be absolutely, truthfully and perfectly solid.
Nothing can be added to it, and nothing can be taken away from it!
And that is exactly what the cross is, and so is the resulting equation.
SALVATION = FAITH + NOTHING!
Religiosity of any kind, with all of its demands, including religious Christianity, will never even come close to cutting it.
What heaven offers us today is totally void of religiosity and legalism, it has no place and we cannot express that enough.
Only God’s Grace which He judicially wrought through the finished works of the cross will do so.
This is the Truth of Scripture and the Grace of God.
And the moment we bring ‘works’ in any form into the picture of God’s blood bought Salvation, Grace gets nullified.
“Grace cannot be earned, that’s why it’s called Grace.”
Grace Alone Formulates The Equation
It’s only this Grace, that has come via the way of the cross that formulates this incredible equation.
Salvation = Faith + Nothing!
Mathematically, we all understand what an equation is.
It is a statement that shows that two mathematical expressions are equal, indicated by the sign =.
So we can say that an equation is a statement of equality, and one that has absolute precision.
And that is exactly what the cross, bringing salvation to all men is, a work of absolute precision.
Religiosity in any form or shape does not even come into the equation, it has no place whatsoever.
Not even within Christendom!
Religion, even within Christendom, makes salvation the hardest thing to get.
It always banks on traditions rather than doctrinal truths.
Whereas God, in fact, has made eternal salvation the easiest thing to get.
You don’t even have to lift a finger!
Heart- believing is the only criteria, and how much effort does that take?
NONE!
Just one simple conscious decision, with no strings attached.
The Evidence Of Resurrection
The evidence of the resurrection concept is all around us all the time to see.
God has made sure of that!
All the food on our table that we eat every day is because of the power and truth of resurrection.
Wheat grain and every other grain and vegetables comes from the seed that is planted in the ground.
But before that seed germinates and comes to life in order to mass produce, it has to die first.
And out of that death comes new life and multiplication by the billions.
It’s then harvested and goes through the process before landing up on our table.
That it turn, finds it’s way into our bellies giving us strength, nourishment and growth for every single day.
And this cycle never stops.
Every living form all around us all the time is because of the wonderful resurrection concept and truth.
A Springtime Season Of Beauty
For those us who live in the Bangalore, are seeing the amazing pink beauty of the city in this springtime season.
The city goes through the bustling grime, dust and hard grinding labour of the year.
But come springtime, we see the refreshing pink beauty, and evidence of new life.
It’s no coincidence that Easter falls in the springtime season, sending a wonderful yearly message to us all.
An infallible hope of new life eternal, bodily, for all those who choose to be ‘in Christ’.
For “….in Christ shall all be made alive” , says God’s Word of promise in [1 Corinthians 15:22].
And we get ‘in-Christ’ by simply heart-believing the Gospel, the good news of our salvation.
It is so simply, beautifully, specifically and clearly laid out in the Scriptures in [1 Corinthians 15:1-4].
“How that Jesus Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again according to the Scriptures.”
That’s it! That’s all that God wants and expects any of us to heart-believe.
HE’s already judicially done what needed to the done for our redemption.
And this what Easter is, to remind us and tell those of us who don’t really know, what it’s really all about.
Truly, the best that is beyond the realms of our human imagination, is yet to come if we want it!
We wish you a very Happy Easter.
May it give you the infallible hope that it brings in the midst of a world saturated with pain and sorrows.
