Section 5
ROADBLOCKS TO SALVATION
The major section of this book has addressed the question, “What must I do to be saved?” Now we look at the opposite question, “What must I avoid to be saved?”
There are definite behaviors that, unrepented, will keep a person out of the Kingdom of God:
And God spoke all these words, saying,
“I, the LORD, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. You shall not have other gods besides me. . . .
“You shall not take the name of the LORD, your God, in vain. . . .
“Remember to keep holy the sabbath day. . . .
“Honor your father and your mother. . . .
“You shall not kill.
“You shall not commit adultery.
“You shall not steal.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife . . . nor anything else that belongs to him” (Exodus 20:1-3,7,8,12,13-17 NAB).
Can you not realize that the unholy will not fall heir to the kingdom of God? Do not deceive yourselves: no fornicators, idolaters, or adulterers, no sexual perverts, thieves, misers, or drunkards, no slanderers or robbers will inherit God’s kingdom (1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NAB).
It is obvious what proceeds from the flesh: lewd conduct, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hostilities, bickering, jealousy, outbursts of rage, selfish rivalries, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I have warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God! (Galatians 5:19-21 NAB).
For those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey wickedness, there will be wrath and fury (Romans 2:8).
There are six things which the LORD hates, yes, seven are an abomination to him; haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood; a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet that run swiftly to evil, the false witness who utters lies, and he who sows discord among brothers (Proverbs 6:16-19 NAB).
Jesus speaks in the strongest language against those who lead the innocent astray:
“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung round his neck and he were thrown into the sea. And if your hand causes you to sin, cut if off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands go to hell, to the unquenchable fire” (Mark 9:42-43).
Sins against God Himself are the worst:
Whoever sacrifices to any god, save the LORD only, shall be utterly destroyed (Exodus 22:20).
You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and also the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and likewise the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21 NAB).
Jesus hates hypocrisy—sin-blindness which prevents people from coming to Him for salvation, healing and restoration:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity. You blind Pharisee! first cleanse the inside of the cup and of the plate, that the outside also may be clean” (Matthew 23:25- 26).
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil, who change darkness into light, and light into darkness, who change bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter! (Isaiah 5:20 NAB).
Speaking of the scribes and Pharisees on another occasion, Jesus said, “They are blind guides. And if a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit” (Matthew 15:14).
Sin is the major cause of spiritual blindness. To refuse to worship the true God is to invite disaster:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. . . . Although they knew God they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:18-19,21- 22).
If we are only going through the motions in our worship, our spiritual vision will dim. Inspiration from the LORD will vanish:
Stupefy yourselves and be in a stupor, blind yourselves and be blind! Be drunk, but not with wine; stagger, but not with strong drink! For the LORD has poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes, the prophets, and covered your heads, the seers. . . . “Because this people draw near me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me” (Isaiah 29:9-10,13).
When we fail to worship the only true God, it is because we have become hypnotized by a false god. What is apparent to the little children (see Luke 10:21), is hidden from those who do not believe:
If our gospel can be called “veiled” in any sense, it is such only for those who are headed toward destruction. Their unbelieving minds have been blinded by the god of the present age so that they do not see the splendor of the gospel showing forth the glory of Christ, the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:3-4 NAB).
Even among those who appear to be living Godly lives, the possibility of self-deception exists. In fact, we cannot know our own hearts:
More tortuous than all else is the human heart, beyond remedy; who can understand it? I, the LORD, alone probe the mind and test the heart, to reward everyone according to his ways, according to the merit of his deeds (Jeremiah 17:9-10 NAB).
St. Paul, whom we would certainly judge to be a holy man, does not claim so for himself:
I do not even pass judgment on myself. Mind you, I have nothing on my conscience. But that does not meant that I am declaring myself innocent. The Lord is the one to judge me, so stop passing judgment before the time of his return. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and manifest the intentions of hearts. At that time, everyone will receive his praise from God (1 Corinthians 4:3-5 NAB).
St. Paul encourages us to have a healthy concern for our spiritual well-being and warns us against complacency:
Let anyone who thinks he is standing upright watch out lest he fall! (1 Corinthians 10:12 NAB).
We have an enemy whose most effective weapon against us is deception. This, combined with our inclination to wander from the truth, is enough reason to live a life-style of continual turning back to the Lord:
The coming of the lawless one by the activity of Satan will be with all power and with pretended signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are to perish, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10).
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