Dear Friends,

I’d like to begin talking today about chapter 1 of The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona. I pray to God that this would be an edifying study.

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Begging to differ

My first comment on this chapter is a note of respectful disagreement with the authors. In describing the importance of sharing the gospel, they state:

“Through Jesus one can have sins forgiven and receive eternal life.”

Now, I want to stay focused on the main topic, i.e., the resurrection, as much as you do. But I feel compelled to at least briefly address this claim, since they make several statements of this sort throughout this chapter, and this is a foundational issue that every Christian must confront in one way or another.

So, let’s think about this hugely important claim that they (and most well-known conservative Bible teachers today) are making. They’re saying you have to make a decision to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior in order to escape the lake of fire (if I’m misinterpreting them, I apologize in advance…please let me know!).

This is the Scriptural evidence they provide for their claim, at least in the vicinity of their quote I provided above:

[Rom 10:8-9 KJV] 8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, [even] in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 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.

I don’t think this is a good text to prove their claim because Romans 10 nowhere says anything about eternal damnation, hellfire, or everlasting punishment.

Saved from what?

Yes, Romans 10 does talk about getting saved, but wait…the Bible speaks of many different kinds of salvation, even in the context of gospel preaching! Here’s an example:

[Act 2:40 KJV] 40 And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, SAVE yourselves from this UNTOWARD GENERATION.

See what I mean?

So, you can’t just assume “save” in the Bible is referring to salvation from the lake of fire. So, what kind of salvation is Paul talking about in Romans 10? Just back up a few verses from where the authors were quoting:

[Rom 10:4 KJV] 4 For Christ [is] the END OF THE LAW FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS to every one that believeth.

So, I believe Paul’s talking about salvation from the futile quest to achieve a righteous status in God’s eternal courtroom through law-keeping. He’s not talking about how to escape the lake of fire; he’s talking about how to escape a lot of misery in the here and now by embracing the fact that Jesus has already saved us from the lake of fire!

Ah, what a hopeless, exhausting endeavor the gospel saves us from if we believe it! If you’re still mystified about the type of salvation I’m discussing, read Margo Wieschhaus’s gripping personal testimony, check out this “press conference”, or drop me a line.

God bless you!

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