Frequently people ask, what is it that a person must do to be saved?  According to the Bible salvation is based solely on Faith in Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah.  Salvation is by grace through faith, and that is the only condition for salvation.  In the New Testament, there are more than 200 places where the condition for salvation is spelled out.  In all of these cases faith or belief is given as the one and only condition for salvation.

Q...  As believers, are we commanded to gather for worship on the Sabbath or on Sunday? When did Sunday become a day of worship?

A...  If you look up every passage on the Sabbath in the Mosaic Law, the one thing you will not find is Moses commanding the people to gather together for corporate worship on the Sabbath day. What Moses did tell people to do is to stay home and rest on the Sabbath day. In fact, it was forbidden to travel more than a Sabbath day's journey from your home, which was roughly one kilometer (.62 miles). The only ones commanded to meet regularly for corporate worship on the Sabbath day was the priesthood, and that was for the purpose of offering special Passover blood sacrifices. However, for the rest of the Jewish people, they were simply to stay at home and rest.

Corporate worship was required only three times a year: Passover (Pesach), Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), and Tabernacles (Sukkoth). Therefore, the Sabbath was simply a day of rest and staying home. Also, there is not a command to have corporate worship on Sunday either. That was the practice of the early church as early as Acts 20:7. That is an example of what they chose to do but no biblical command was given to follow it. The fact is in the Mosaic Law the Sabbath was strictly a day of rest and to stay home, and for that reason Jewish believers had their corporate worship on Saturday night (which is already the first day of the week), in order to worship with fellow believers. Gentiles also met on the first of the week but it was Sunday morning. Neither one was commanded so they both are equal options.

What the Bible commands is that believers gather together regularly for corporate worship but the day of the week is strictly optional. My messianic congregation chooses to meet on Saturday afternoon, other groups meet on Friday night and other groups meet on Sunday and all of these are valid options. One is not more biblical than the other. That is why it is so important to "rightly divide the word of truth." The Bible definitely provides a valid roadmap, but we have to make sure what commandments are applicable to what group of people. The Mosaic Law was given to Jewish people only, and only until Messiah died. The commandments you are obligated to obey today are the commandments of the Law of the Messiah and that is the law code you need to learn to follow and not the law code that was intended for different people for a different period of time.

More On Salvation

by Arnold Fructenbaum
Ariel Ministries

Q... Can a person who denies that the Scriptures are 100 percent the Word of God be born again?

A... It might be possible for someone to deny certain things in the Bible and still be saved. The crucial question here, however, is what the person believes about Yeshua. As a general rule, people who deny that the whole Bible is the Word of God usually end up denying certain key things about Christ, such as His virgin birth and deity. Once they deny these things, then they no longer hold to the gospel which was being preached by Paul.

Q... If you were a rabbi in Judea in the first century and I asked you how I might obtain eternal life, what Scripture would you show me? In other words, what was the difference between a "believing" and a "non-believing" Jew, both attempting to follow Mosaic Law?

A... The difference between a believing Jew and a non- believing Jew (assuming we are not dealing with idolatry, which was no longer a Jewish problem in the first century B.C.) would be recognizing the true purpose of the Mosaic Law. The believing Jew would put his faith in the God of Israel, trusting Him for his salvation as did Abraham, when God reckoned it to him for righteousness (Gn. 15:6). Once the believing Jew put his faith in the God of Israel, trusting Him alone for salvation, he would then view the Law as a rule of life for one already saved rather than a means of salvation. The unbelieving Jew, however, would view the Law as a means of salvation, thus trusting in his own works. That is why Paul spent so much time in the Book of Romans distinguishing between salvation by works of the Law versus grace through faith. The unbelieving Jew has put his faith in his own works to (try to) earn salvation, whereas the true believer realizes that he can do nothing to commend himself before God, thus resting and relying upon God's mercy.

Q... I feel very desperate, alone and afraid. I wonder if the Lord still accepts me. My fear is that I may not be saved. Is there any way to know for sure?

A... Concerning your fear that you may not be saved, I can assure you that unbelievers do not worry about such things. This is a type of concern that is usually expressed only by believers, and that tells me you are truly saved. The manuscripts (#102: Eternal Security and #135: The Five Warnings of the Book of Hebrews) that are being sent to you will also help you to see clearly that our salvation is truly complete and not something that we can lose.

Q... My mother recently died, and to the best of my knowledge, she never accepted Christ. Does this mean that she was not among the elect, and what is her responsibility in terms of her eternal destiny?

A... Let me begin by expressing to you my deepest sympathy and condolences for the loss of your mother. I can honestly say that I empathize with you, because my father passed away nearly five years ago, also as a confirmed nonbeliever. It was not easy to accept the fact that he is lost forever, but the fact of the matter is that if the Bible is true, I must accept what it says.

In dealing with the issue of election, it should be noted that while it is true that those who come to believe have been elected by God, it is not true to say that others have been elected for damnation. The biblical picture is something like this: All humanity is dead in their trespasses and sins; therefore, left on their own, they are incapable of believing. So, God initiated His own actions and chose those whom He would save. However, the elect will not be saved in just "any way," but through a certain way – and that is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. To those whom God elects, He gives the grace to believe, but they must still exercise their faith to receive salvation. The point is that those who receive the grace of God to believe will then exercise their will to believe. But until that day comes, they are just as lost as the non-elect. While those who are saved are so because of God's election and grace to believe, it is not correct to say that people are lost because they have not been elected. Rather, people are lost due to their own sin and failure to believe on Messiah. It is their own sin nature that keeps them from believing on Yeshua, and this failure is not due to God keeping them from believing. When Paul talks about the vessels of mercy and vessels of wrath in Romans nine, he switches between the middle and passive voices in the Greek. For the vessels of mercy (those who are saved), he uses the passive voice, which means, "God makes them fit for salvation." For the vessels of wrath (those who are lost), he uses the middle voice, which means, "they fit themselves for destruction." They do so because their own sin keeps them from believing. God, on the other hand, does not keep them from believing.

The individual is responsible to either believe or not believe, and the choice not to believe apparently made by my father and your mother was their own. God did not force them to make such a choice, nor did He prevent them from believing. If neither accepted the Lord at the last minute, I must say biblically that neither was elected to believe.

This is basically what the Scriptures teach on this matter. I don't believe that it is totally satisfactory for any of us who have experienced this kind of loss, but I can only relate what the Bible teaches, and I can do no more than that. I do not understand every detail about the issue and do not expect to until I see the Lord face-to-face. Then, I know that all my questions will be answered to my total satisfaction. For now, our peace can only come when we understand that, indeed, "the judge of all the earth shall do right" (Gen. 18:25).

Q... My sister recently committed suicide after about 15 years of being in and out of psychiatric hospitals. What is the Bible's stand on suicide?

A... Please accept our deepest condolences for the passing away of your sister. To answer your question, the Bible does not actually pass a moral judgment on suicide but only records those events in which people took their own lives.

Q... I have been taught that it is our duty to give precisely one tenth of our gross income to the church. Under this teaching not doing so is thought to be robbing God of what is His. What are your views on tithing?

A... Concerning your question on tithing, what you have been told is a good example of what happens when people pull certain verses out of context and then misapply what they have pulled out of context.

First of all, the actual Mosaic tithe was not 10 percent but 22-23 percent. That is because there were two annual tithes of 10 percent each and a third tithe every third year. The total averages out to 22-23 percent.

Second, the tithing itself was aimed strictly at the farming community, which most Jews were a member of at that time. They had to tithe from what was grown and what was raised such as flocks. Anyone else outside the field of farming would simply pay the annual half shekel at Passover.

Third, tithing was part of the Mosaic Law and therefore was only in force as long as the Mosaic Law was in force. The Mosaic Law came to an end when Messiah died on the cross.

Fourth, the biblical principle for today's giving is not based upon tithing but based upon giving as the Lord has prospered. From week to week the percentile might be different depending on the obligations we might have.

Fifth, the Bible nowhere says we are to give our entire offering (not tithe) to the local church. On the contrary, we are told that we should lay it in private deposit and strictly distribute our giving as necessary. The certain things we are required to support would include the local church, but that does not mean they get the entire amount of our offering. There are other ministries we are obligated to support such as whom we learn the Word from (Galatians 6), Jewish ministries (Romans 15:25-27), and others we give to as we are led to give. There is no need to feel guilty if somebody tries to get on your case for not tithing specifically to the church. The verses they use are verses that deal with the Mosaic Law. The storehouse was in the Temple Compound where the food was stored and not the church treasury.

Q... Based on Paul's teaching about those observing the Law being under a curse (Gal. 3:10-14), does this mean that churches and believers who believe they must follow the law of tithing are under a curse?

A... Paul's basic teaching throughout Galatians is that Gentile believers who wished to submit to the Law through circumcision were, in turn, obligated to keep the entire Law (613 commandments). By so doing, they placed themselves under a curse – the disciplines of God detailed in several Torah passages (Lev. 26; Deu. 28-29; etc.) – as they would find it impossible to keep the whole Law.

I would not say that modern-day "Law-keepers" are necessarily under a curse, but the fact remains that it would be impossible to keep the tithe exactly as Moses commanded: a largely agricultural, annual rate of 23 percent. Though they would not necessarily suffer any special judgment from God, I do believe they rob themselves of His blessings that come through the teaching of grace-giving.

Q...  I know water baptism does not save a person. Yet why does Peter tell the Jews in Acts 2:38 to "repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit?" Those that believe in baptismal regeneration cite this scripture as proof that baptism is what causes your sins to be forgiven. However, it is clear in Acts 10 when Cornelius believes he is instantly baptized by the Holy Spirit and then gets water baptized. Acts 2:41 seems to indicate that only those who believed Peter's message were baptized. But I would appreciate your Hebrew insight into what you think is happening in Acts 2:38.

A... Concerning your question about Acts 2:38, it should always be kept in mind that this statement is being made to the same Jewish generation guilty of the unpardonable sin and facing the judgment of A.D. 70. While the coming judgment of A.D. 70 was by now unavoidable, individuals could escape the judgment if they would do two things.

First, they would have to repent, change their mind about Jesus, and that act of repentance would save them spiritually, but by itself would not save them physically.

The second thing they would have to do is undergo water baptism that will separate them from the Jewish generation guilty of the unpardonable sin and therefore, they would escape the judgment of A.D. 70.

This becomes especially evident if you also look in verse 40 where he admonishes them to "save yourselves from this crooked generation". It is obvious they could not have saved themselves spiritually, because spiritual salvation is a result based upon their faith in Christ. But they could save themselves in another way. He specifies they could save themselves "from this crooked generation" and that is what water baptism will do for them: It will separate them from the generation guilty of the unpardonable sin.

So taken in context, he is dealing here with physical salvation and not spiritual salvation.

Q...  The last time we met, I asked you about the meaning of the recurring numbers in the bible, like 3, 7, 9, 12, etc., and you told me some of them had meaning. Can you elaborate on that please?

A...  To answer your question, not all numbers in the Bible have special meanings, only certain numbers have special meanings and this does not mean that anytime that number is used it has that meaning in that context, but if it is used symbolically it would.

For example, the number 6 emphasizes something in the human sphere. Number 7 is the number of completion or totality. It also sometimes carries the concept of perfection. The number 12 also has the concept of completion or totality without any implications of perfection.

The same applies to multiples of these same numbers such as 144,000 is a multiple of the number 12 and that would also be true for the multiples of 7, and some other numbers.

It is dangerous to look for a meaning for every number and that is where people will apply guess work and go beyond what the text says.

It is true that every letter in Hebrew is numbered and therefore, every word in Hebrew has a numerical value and every name in Hebrew has a numerical value but that is about how far you can go with the text of Scripture. Trying to find a hidden meaning in all of these numbers goes a bit beyond what the Bible allows.

Q...  How do we know we have the Bible as it was originally written... the original Scriptures?

A...  God has preserved numerous Greek texts, and by virtue of these, it is possible to clearly determine what the original Greek New Testament was.

Before 1947, the oldest Hebrew manuscript was known as the Masoretic Text, which dated from about 1,000 A.D. Numerous critics of the Scripture poked fun at it and questioned how it is possible to believe that the Old Testament has remained pure. Then in 1947, the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered. At least one scrap of every book of the Old Testament was found, except for the Book of Esther. If one compares the Hebrew of the Dead Sea scrolls, which date from 100 B.C. to 100 A.D., with the Hebrew of the Masoretic Texts, there is virtually no variation, even though the Dead Sea scrolls and the Masoretic texts are at least a 1,000 years apart from each other! Where there is a variation, there is absolutely no change of meaning.

Bible Summary from Genesis to Revelation