SALVATION IS A "GIFT," AND CANNOT BE EARNED BY WORKS OR BY OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW, BUT IS RECEIVED BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH IN THE LORD JESUS, THE CHRIST

[The problem of man is sin, and the ONLY SOLUTION to sin is death, the death of the PERFECT SACRIFICE, the Lord Jesus (Hebrews 9:22)]

ALL HAVE SINNED (Gen. 3:1-7; Rom. 3:23; Rom. 5:12)
The Law (Exo. 20:1-17; Jas. 2:10; Rom. 3:19; Rom. 10:5; Gal. 3:10-24)
Penalty (Rom. 6:23)

SOLUTION TO SIN:

1] Perfect Sacrifice (Gen. 3:21; Lev. 5:17; 2Cor. 5:21; Heb. 7:25,26; 
1Pet. 1:18,19)

2] Death of the Perfect Sacrifice (1Cor. 15:1-4; Rom. 5:6-11; Heb. 7:27; 
Col. 1:22; 1Pet. 2:24)

3] Resurrection of the Perfect Sacrifice (The Perfect Sacrifice must resurrect Himself (John 10:17,18; John 2:19-21; 1Cor. 15:14-17)

SALVATION IS A GIFT
(Eph. 2:8,9; Tit. 3:5; 2Tim. 1:9)

RECEIVING THE GIFT OF SALVATION
1] Repentance (Acts 3:19; Acts 20:21)
2] Faith (John 3:16; Acts 16:29-34)
3] Confession (Rom. 10:9-13)

WHAT ABOUT GOOD WORKS?

(James 2:14, 20-24)
James is not saying that a person is saved by works and not by genuine faith. Rather, he is saying that people are JUSTIFIED (declared righteous before God) by faith alone, but not by faith that is alone. Genuine faith will produce good deeds, but only faith in the Lord Jesus will save the human soul. In addition, James was addressing Christians in this epistle, and not unbelievers (1:2; 2:1; 2:14; 5:7,8).
The verse that James cites (Gen. 15:6) to substantiate his point occurred before Abraham offerred up Isaac, which was only a proof of the genuineness of his faith.
Good works are the fruit of salvation, not the cause of it (2Cor. 5:17); considering the theme of James: “JUSTIFICATION BEFORE MEN"

THE WORLD IS ON THE BRINK OF A NUCLEAR WAR, FOLKS

(Possibly before December, to prevent Donald Trump from occupying the White House)

(ISAIAH 17:1) is the most logical trigger to this Great War, since it has been in the making for 5 years now, and is in its final stages of fulfillment; that is, the TOTAL DESTRUCTION of Damascus, the capital city of Syria.

The next possible scenario will be the destruction of the United Sodomite States of America (particularly NYC) by Russia et al, and in just one day, even one hour (as claimed by Putin).

And why will the U.S. be destroyed? Because her sins are piled up to heaven (murder of babies, sodomy, drug trafficking, meddling into the affairs of sovereign nations, among other iniquities); and God has remembered her crimes (REV. ch. 18).

Oh, Christian, repent, put your house in order, for the window of opportunity to do so is nearly closed.

To our American brethren, come out of NYC at least, the east and west coasts. Seek God in prayer for instructions.

Amen.

(NOTE: Russia can protect 1/3 of its citizens, approx. 40 million, in bunkers in case of a nuclear attack. The U.S. has none.)

Colossians 1:16

Title:  By him and for him

According to Solomon, "a man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work," which was all Adam and Eve had in the garden (Gen. 2:15,16), and the daily communion with God.  And God saw that it was very good.

Many elements had been introduced into our lives at the turn of the century via advertisement/propaganda which are all meaningless and unnecessary: fashion, sports, entertainment, affluent real estate, etc.; things we can live without and are actually preventing us from worshiping God in a daily audience with Him.

Anything added to the design of God (food, work, worship) is of the fallen world and will only lead to envy, wars, destruction, as we can verify in our days.

God owns everything; and all things for His glory.  A wise man will be satisfied with his food, his work, and the daily interview with the Creator; and will use everything in his possession for the advancement of the gospel (1Cor. 15:1-4) and the kingdom.

Eternal pleasures and joy come later, in the kingdom, with the Lord Jesus, not under this evil-infested world system.

Revelation 18:4

Title: Come out of her, my people

From what I read in the Scriptures, the U.S.A., the Mystery Babylon the Great of (Rev. chs. 17 & 18), contrary to the hope of many Christians in America, will not repent of her sins: abortion, promotion of LGBT agendas, same-sex abomination, oppression of weak nations, toppling of sovereign governments for the purpose of exploiting the natural resources of their lands, to name a few of the abominations of the U.S.A. that have reached to the skies, challenging the very throne of God.

And the final straw that would break America’s back might well be the expected decision in June 2015 by the U.S. Supreme Court clearing the way for the legalization of same-sex abomination in all 50 states of the Union.

Since America will continue down the path of destruction by war, famine, calamities, pestilences, and slavery, the last call is for Christians to “come out of her,” while there is still time; and the legalization of sodomite union may be a good indicator of when to leave.

[Isa. 47; Jer. 50; Jer. 51]

Romans 8:21

Title:  Glorious liberty

The common definition of liberty is: “the freedom to do whatever one wants, and often without restraint.”  Basically, those who would demand freedom would assert control over their lives for the purpose of fulfillment and enjoyment.

Primarily, freedom is a Biblical concept, but defined differently as: “the liberty to do or to omit things having no relationship to salvation, that is, to spiritual concerns.”  True freedom is living for the pleasure of God by eliminating things, concepts, ideals, etc., that would hinder us from dedicating our lives to the service of our Creator and Savior.

Freedom starts with knowing the Lord Jesus who is the Truth that sets us free, by giving us the ability to live not as we please, but instead to follow in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus which ultimately lead to the hill of sacrifice outside the city walls.

Liberty, to the world, is a path of life away from God; genuine liberty, which brings eternal joy, is a narrow path of surrender to God through the Word and by the Holy Spirit, to the cross of sacrifice, to the hope of eternal rest at the resurrection.

Matthew 6:9

Title: After this manner therefore pray ye

Whenever we pray, we are actually rehearsing to ourselves the worldview a Christian should take before we even consider asking for our daily bread.

We are to be sustained only for the purpose of worshiping and serving God, preparing for the kingdom, and seeking the will of God for our lives in general, and in every circumstance in particular; other than these, there are no purpose we can relate to that will bring fulfillment and joy that would be relevant up to the moment of death and beyond.

Man is not the focus of his existence;

Man was created to worship and to serve God on earth and in the kingdom for all eternity.

2 Peter 3:9

Title: Not willing that any should perish

To interpret (3:9) as being directed to unbelievers is erroneous.

(2 Peter) was addressed to Christians (1:1), those who have received faith (1:1) and have been cleansed of their past sins (1:9); and this disposition remains for the rest of the letter.

God is patient with those who have been called (1:10) through the foreknowledge of God (1Pet. 1:1), but have left the straight way and have become...

1) (1:8) ineffective and unproductive

2) (1:9) nearsighted and blind
3) (1:10) those who stumble
4) (2:2) those who follow false prophets

And we must understand God's patience gives believers the chance to repent of their sins, because only those who are spotless, blameless, and at peace with the Lord Jesus at his return are truly saved and will receive a rich welcome into the everlasting kingdom.