When I read the Bible, I try to honour the Biblist creed as I know the Bible will not contradict itself nor will God lie. If I find a passage that seems to conflict with my beliefs, I must better understand the verses, or alter my belief to match the word of God. In the past, I have had to alter my beliefs about what Jesus taught. Although salvation came to mankind through Jesus, Jesus did not urge the crowds to accept, or teach them about his salvation, seemingly content to let most of those people not understand or receive forgiveness. From the beginning of his ministry, the Bible describes Jesus letting only a few follow him. Jesus layered his message like a parfait. There was a broad message for everyone to understand, as well as its deeper private message that he shared with only a few. Jesus only gathered his followers from those who God called to him. The deeper knowledge Jesus taught was reserved only for his close followers.

      Jesus delivered his main messages publicly to the crowds. He taught them to live a good life by serving and forgiving others, loving their neighbours and enemies as themselves, developing their faith in God, stories about God’s kingdom, and rebuking self-righteous leaders. These lessons are universally needed to live a loving life and learn about the Kingdom of God. Jesus delivered them openly to the crowds so everyone could hear and understand them. The public sermons Jesus delivered are recorded in the Book of Matthew and have become known as his discourses. They include the famous Sermon on the Mount, the End Times, and the Parabolic discourses. Just as the top layer of a parfait can be enjoyed by all, a loving personality should be developed by everyone so they can live a Godly life. Mark 4:10-18 Easy-to-Read Version 10 Later, Jesus was away from the people. The twelve apostles and his other followers asked him about the stories. 11 Jesus said, “Only you can know the secret truth about God’s kingdom. But to those other people I tell everything by using stories. 12 I do this so that ‘They will look and look but never really see; they will listen and listen but never understand. If they saw and understood, they might change and be forgiven.’”

      Besides teaching through parables and stories to the crowds, Jesus purposefully limited one of his other messages. By sending his disciples only to people from the nation of Israel, Jesus cut the Gentiles off from his widely proclaimed good news of the coming Kingdom of God. Matthew 10:5-8 GOD’S WORD Translation 5 Jesus sent these twelve out with the following instructions: “Don’t go among people who are not Jewish or into any Samaritan city. 6 Instead, go to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel. 7 As you go, spread this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ 8 Cure the sick, bring the dead back to life, cleanse those with skin diseases, and force demons out of people. Give these things without charging, since you received them without paying.

      Still held responsible for their choices, the Israelites who would not accept the message Jesus sent will be judged for their actions later. Matthew 10:11-19 Evangelical Heritage Version 11 Whenever you enter a town or village, find out who is worthy and stay there until you leave. 12 As you enter the household, give it your greeting. 13 If the household is worthy, let your peace rest on it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone does not receive you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet as you leave that house or that town. 15 Amen I tell you: It will be more bearable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

      Although Jesus only brought his messages to the Israelite nation, he left room for helping exceptional Gentiles. These following verses describe Jesus helping an extremely faithful Gentile. Matthew 15:22-28 English Standard Version 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

      Although they may have found it impractical and strange, most people who heard parts of the discourses understood what it meant to love your neighbour as yourself and to treat others the way you want to be treated. Messages about living a peaceful, loving life are for everyone. I believe the deeper answers for the who, what, when, where, and why questions are found in the Bible. They are for those who God has called to follow Jesus. Led by the Holy Spirit, only those called by God to follow Jesus, then and now, can learn the secrets of God by faithfully studying his word. John 6:44 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition 44 No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me attracts and draws him and gives him the desire to come to Me, and [then] I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.

      Knowing that only those who were called by God could faithfully follow him and that salvation from sin could only come to humanity through his death, Jesus did not publicly proclaim a salvation from sin gospel. The Old Covenant of sacrifice was still in effect until Jesus fulfilled it with his blood. Jesus replaced the old and established a new and better covenant of faith and love with his sacrifice. Jesus taught the crowds to live a loving, God-honoring life, for that is the kind of life that will develop the Godly character needed within the Kingdom of God. When only those who are called by God can come to Jesus, and salvation is only reserved for those who accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation, then God is the one responsible for where and when humans are educated about Jesus. The Bible declares the depth of love God has for the world and it also provides us with the answers about mankind’s salvation. God loves all of mankind and did not sacrifice his only son to just save a few of them. John 3:16-17 New International Reader’s Version 16 God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life. 17 God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world. He sent his Son to save the world through him.

      The unambiguous language of John has probably made these next verses the most frequently quoted Bible verses of the last century. As a Biblist I believe them to be God’s truth, his whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I also believe it is important for those truths of God to be understood as the Bible defines them. God sent his son Jesus to fulfill the sacrifice required to cover mankind’s sins. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus, any human that has ever lived will have their sins forgiven if they accept Jesus as their Saviour. Those who accept Jesus will not die, rather they will gain eternal life. Jesus and God’s motives were not to condemn or punish the world in judgment, rather their motives came from a loving concern for all of humanity and a desire to save them from certain death.

      To accept Jesus and salvation, humanity must first learn about Jesus and accept him. It is impossible to follow Jesus if you don’t know about Jesus. Since it is up to God to draw people to Jesus, it is also up to God to provide the opportunity for all of mankind to learn about Jesus.Romans 10:13-15 Evangelical Heritage Version  13 Yes, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14 So then, how can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one about whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without a preacher? 15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news of peace, who preach the gospel of good things!”

      It is often believed that God has already provided mankind an opportunity to know Jesus and receive his salvation. Some Christians interpret Romans 1 for that proof. Here, Paul’s letter to the Romans is chastising those who think they are wise for not knowing, thanking, or glorifying their creator God. They claimed to know God but they did not have a clue. Instead of being wise, they displayed their ignorance by gladly giving their worship over to worthless idols. They traded away the glorification of their true creator God for idolatry. Romans 1:18-23 International Children’s Bible 18 God’s anger is shown from heaven against all the evil and wrong things that people do. By their own evil lives they hide the truth. 19 God shows his anger because everything that may be known about God has been made clear. Yes, God has clearly shown them everything that may be known about him. 20 There are things about God that people cannot see—his eternal power and all the things that make him God. But since the beginning of the world those things have been easy to understand. They are made clear by what God has made. So people have no excuse for the bad things they do. 21 They knew God. But they did not give glory to God, and they did not thank him. Their thinking became useless. Their foolish minds were filled with darkness. 22 They said they were wise, but they became fools. 23 They gave up the glory of God who lives forever. They traded that glory for the worship of idols made to look like earthly people. They traded God’s glory for things that look like birds, animals, and snakes.

      Some Christians believe these verses from Romans 1 prove that mankind has already received their opportunity for salvation. They forget that knowing there is a God is different from accepting the sacrifice Jesus made for them. People from many religions other than Christianity know there is a creator God and do their best to worship the creator God they know. But just knowing there is a creator God alone is insufficient to gain salvation and eternal life. There is only one way to receive salvation. Humans can only receive salvation by accepting Jesus as their saviour. If examining creation alone was sufficient to provide salvation, there would be no need for evangelists or missionaries to proclaim Jesus to the world. The Bible tells us that in order for anyone to receive salvation, they must first consciously choose to declare Jesus as their saviour, accept his atoning sacrifice, and follow him. Acts 4:11-13 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition 11 This Jesus is ‘the stone that was rejected by you, the builders; it has become the cornerstone.’ 12 “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.” Romans 10:9-10 International Standard Version 9 If you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For one believes with his heart and is justified, and declares with his mouth and is saved.

      God’s plan for mankind’s salvation is recorded within the pages of his Bible. Embedded throughout the Old and New Testaments, God’s plans can be discovered by carefully employing the Berean study methods. Maintaining the Biblist creed while incorporating those proven study practices will lead to a deeper understanding of Bible scripture. The when, where, and why answers about God’s coming Kingdom and mankind’s salvation have been recorded within his word, for those who look.