Bargain Basement Salvation

By Ralph Shead

How good a deal did you get on salvation?

Maybe you”ve already heard and chuckled about the woman who went through the phone book and called all the churches in town. According to the story, supposedly true, she concluded her survey with the proud announcement: “I have found the best deal on salvation in town!”

Our capitalistic society seems to value the product offering the biggest bang for the buck. When choosing a church, that can translate to brief but entertaining teaching, fun for the entire family with no volunteering, all for a small offering. How little can the church require while still providing the full salvation package?

Buy and Sell

What does salvation cost? I think about what it costs me. I need a church that understands I am not available every weekend for work days and prayer breakfasts, and I cannot always help with cleanup after every . . . STOP!

Salvation did not start with you or me. Salvation belongs to God and the Lamb (Revelation 7:10). Churches do not buy it in bulk to resell in individually wrapped portions at a profit. Salvation is for the purpose of transforming your life, not for taking your precious time away from those you love. Salvation is free””Jesus paid for it.

Buy and Give

Salvation is the most expensive purchase ever made. It cost the life of the only person who by rights did not have to submit to that ancient principle, “The soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:20, New King James Version). That is why Jesus is called the Lamb of God. He took the place of the sacrificial animal and died to pay for the sins of guilty people.

Redeemed means bought. Singing “I”ve been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb” celebrates that someone has bought and paid for me. I no longer have the right to disregard what is right and do whatever feels good (1 Corinthians 6:18-20).

Pick and Choose

So whoever has considered the world”s great religious founders in order to pick the best one should think again. It does not matter what you have heard from the world”s ideas. Everyone has to say yes or no to Jesus. He claims to be the way, the truth, the life, and the only way to the Father (John 14:6). He forces you to turn your back on all pretenders to the throne of the universe, or to turn your back on him.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). Was he right? Can he be trusted? You can bet your life on him! And that precisely is what he requires.

“Anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27). Jesus challenged his would-be followers to be like a builder about to construct a tower. Either commit to see the project through, or do not start (Luke 14:28-30). Jesus spoke to potential disciples and urged them to consider carefully, as a king with 10,000 troops considers if he can defeat the army of 20,000 coming against him. Those who want to quit following when they face adversity would do well not to start (Luke 14:31-33). You could get into more than you bargained for, so think it through ahead of time.

When the woman who found the best deal on salvation was talking on the phone, do you suppose anyone told her that Jesus said, “Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:33)?

No church gets to set the price on salvation. God”s plan of salvation is being carried out, and with great success. He planned to pay the unbelievably high price, and it is paid. He planned for people to enter into his offered salvation by becoming disciples of his Son, and they are coming.

There were no discounts when Jesus paid with blood. There are no discounts for those who would like to be 75 percent disciples. If you are a disciple, you are a member of God”s church. If you are a member of a church, but not a disciple . . . well, you tell me. Where does that leave you?

Discern and Choose

Church people need to take this all-important role of the church seriously. Are the requirements of the church the same as the requirements of Jesus? Does he really have all authority in Heaven and on earth? Do the promises of the church coincide with the promises of Jesus?

“Come, follow me. You will have a great time.” That is a friendly promise and one a seeker might like to hear. If Jesus did not promise it, we had better not either.

“Come, follow me. It is easy.” Contrast that to the line about carrying your cross.

“Come, follow me. You will never have another hard problem.” Do people believe they have such a promise when they join a church?

In contrast, we should offer what Jesus offers, and on his authority, not the church”s. “Come to me . . . and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me” (John 14:1). “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division” (Luke 12:51). “I will come back and take you to be with me” (John 14:3). “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also” (John 15:20).

And even if you do not know all the promises, you need not worry about whether you will get your fair share for following Jesus. The reward will outweigh all earthly experiences (2 Corinthians 4:17).

Seek and Find

Was Jesus “seeker friendly”? He most certainly was! His personal treatment of people placed them close enough to be open and frank with him. Check out his encounters with Nicodemus, the woman at the well, the rich young ruler, and Zacchaeus. These are characteristic of how Jesus related to people. Are we disciples as approachable as our Master? Traditions that would have kept Jesus away from people were traditions he did not keep.

Since Jesus was friendly to seekers, surely we must also be. But the purpose of being seeker friendly is not so the uninitiated will feel warm and fuzzy about the church. Our objective is not to have friendly seekers who never find. The purpose is to bring the seeker face-to-face with Jesus, the one who told us to make disciples.

Let us not be like the congregations that John Caldwell visited during his sabbatical that prompted him to ask, “Whatever Happened to Jesus?” (Christian Standard, December 26, 2004). Salvation is not about which church can outdo the other to attract the unsaved.

Since the church is not in charge of planning God”s salvation or making it come true, do not take a survey asking, “How much does salvation cost at your church?” Ask Jesus. If you ask a church at random, it may be one that does not listen to Jesus, and you may find “a good bargain” that is false.

 

 

Ralph Shead writes from his home in Carl Junction, Missouri.