I'm a little late to the party.  I try to stay out of the 2ndlight NSR basement.  It's good for my health, haha.

I'm not picking on you Quicksilver, but going to use your post as a great example of something.  So far I've heard in this thread that there is no God, God can be  any god you want, God will accept you if you repent, God will save you if you repent and be baptized, God will save you if you repent and are baptized and live according to His word, etc.  

The problem with all of the "Christian" variations above is that they detract from the beauty, glory, power, and love of Jesus Christ Himself.  The Gospel is that by grace we're save through faith and that NOT of ourselves.  Even with repentance and baptism we don't really know what that is when we talk about that.  If baptism was a requirement for salvation then Jesus was lying when He told the theif on the cross that he'd be with Him in paradise.

When you look at the verse in Peter about baptism you'll see at the end it says "through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."  Here again the central Person is God Himself as revealed through the Son and His finished work on the cross.  He accomplished way more than we realize in His death, burial, and resurrection.  He performed a baptism that saves us.  Colossions calls it a circumcision performed by Christ Himself that took place spiritually.  It's a great mystery but we've been crucified with Him, buried with Him, raised with Him, and seated with Him.  Christ has brought us into right standing with the Father.  He redeemed the world and all of mankind through His blood.  

So is water baptism and repentance and good works important?  Sure but they don't save us.  Christ saves us.  He is the human response to the Father.  When I see His perfect love and the salvation He won for us it makes me want to repent (which literally means to change my mind), be water baptized (so my senses and conscience can be clear to enjoy the right relationship I already have with God becasue of Christ), and do good works (because he made us good and created us for good works and to make the world and others better).  All of these things flow out of seeing the majesty of God, who He is, and who I really am.  

At the end of Paul's ministry he put it very clearly and simply, "for I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified."  Why?  Becasue it was all wrapped up and acomplished in Him.  There's no addding to the simplicity and power of what Jesus did.  It's foolishness to the wise. 

I'm tired of hearing Christians slamming other Christians, non-Christians, and being an all around terrible example of what God is like.  A woman was brought to Jesus who was caught in adultery and He dismissed all of her accusers and said neither do I condemn you.  Then he told her to go and sin no more.  Only until we realize that grace is so amazing, so undeserved, that it reaches us in our darkest and lowest hour, can we then be empowered to go and sin no more.  I'm tired of Christians being accusatory, judegemental, and getting the gospel backwards.  It's another gospel. 

God is love.  Period.  That's what He says in His word about Himself.  Someone on there needs to know this is the Truth.  Jesus is the Truth.  Don't take anyone else's word for it including my own.  Get to know Jesus and you get to know the Truth.  Someone out there... it's time to simply rest in this Truth and accept your acceptance in Christ.  He loves you and that is enough.  The more you believe and rest in His love, the more you start enjoying this life He's given you and start looking like the son or daughter of God you really are.  

Blessings!

Jesus invented surfing...
Matthew 14:22-33

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