Who is saved and who is not?

Most Christians today can recite John 3:16

• For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
  that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life
  

but do we truly understand what it means? Is it simply confessing the belief and then we get a "Get Out of Hell" card?

• James 2:18-19
  Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that and shudder.
  

What is implied, of course, is that the demons' belief would not save them.

• Luke 13:23
  Someone asked him, Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?
  
  He said to them, Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, Sir, open the door for us.
  
  But he will answer, I dont know you or where you come from.
  
  Then you will say, We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.
  
  But he will reply, I dont know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!
  

Jesus was talking about people who ate and drank with Christ (The Church is the Body of Christ - Corpus Christi), people who come to church and partake of the last supper.

So what belief is saving belief?

• Matthew 6:31-33
  So do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
  

Charles Blondin (real name: Jean François Gravelet) was a tight-rope walker who performed around the previous turn of the century (late 1800s). He would walk on a rope strung between two skyscrapers, on a rope hung over Niagara Falls, ....

At the beginning of his act he would always ask his audience if they believe he can do it.

Usually, there is silence.

He would walk across and back.

Then he would attempt doing it again but with a more complicated task like walking the rope while rolling a wheel barrow. And before he does, he would ask the audience if they believe he can do it.

He would walk across and back with the wheel barrow.

Then he would attempt doing it again but with a even more complicated task like having a 200 pound sack of potato in the wheel barrow.

Just as before, he would ask the audience if they believe he can do it.

By this time, the audience was sure he can do it and expressed themselves appropriately.

He would walk across and back with a wheel barrow containing the sack of potatoes.

Finally, he would attempt doing it again but carrying a person (200 lb or less) across.

Just as before, he would ask the audience if they believe he can do it.

By now, I can imagine the audience screaming, "We believe! We believe! We believe!"

Then, Blondin would turn to one member of the audience and say, "Get on!"


How many of us trust Jesus to provide for all our needs? to be willing to get on and let Jesus take us across on the tight rope? To give to Jesus until we don't know from where our next meal is coming and assuming that Jesus would provide?

Never, in Blondin's tight rope walking career, did any member of the audience get on. But Blondin always carried a person across. He always carried his agent across.

A believer is redeemed to be God's agents here on earth. How well would our job performance appraisal go?