The Whole World is Righteous ... Or is it?

It has really been bothering me lately, how easy it is for so many to throw out scripture that contradicts their doctrine, based on personal opinions.
I have heard so many report of people who are teaching universalism, but under the "Grace" umbrella. Teaching that the whole world is already saved and everyone is already righteous, but some haven't fully realized it yet and so their fruits are the result of condemnation. Some are teaching that being "born again" is not a biblical term and is simply something fabricated to put people under the Law. Such teaching is so far out of the bounds of sound bible doctrine that it isn't even funny, it is sad to be honest. It is sad that many promoting this have been in church, been to bible school, and heard teachings from some excellent bible scholars from the Word and STILL believe in their doctrine so much that they want to seek out arguments and debates with those who don't see things the way they do.

I've really been thinking along these lines and I really been taking personal time to study things out, to see exactly what the Word says with my eyes. In regards to "everyone already being saved" that is simply inaccurate scripturally. The truth is that God has PROVIDED salvation to all mankind through His son Jesus, but they have to BELIEVE to receive that gift. It is like if someone gave you this beautifully wrapped box and inside was, oh a check for a million dollars. The gift is yours if you'll receive it, but the million dollars isn't in your possession for you to access and apply to your financial life until you actually unwrap the gift and access it. The same is true with salvation, it is provided freely, it is waiting for you to unwrap it and access it and apply it to your life... But you have to review an unwrap it first! Believing in our heart and confessing with our mouth that jesus Christ is Lord is our way of unwrapping the beautiful gift of salvation!

"If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved." (Romans 10:9, 10 NLT)

In that scripture the greek word for "right" in verse 10 is dikaiosynē which is the same as righteous, so by believing in your heart that He was raised from the dead is when you access righteousness! Righteousness was provided to all when Christ rose from the dead, but not all mankind was made righteous in that moment, it provided and made righteousness available, but we have to reach out and accept it! In reality, if you take this universalist teaching to the extreme, you are teaching that there is no hell, there are no consequences for any sins committed pre- or post-salvation, and really there's no point or purpose for evangelizing or doing missions work around the world.... If you are going to teach that you've got to be willing to follow that argument to the end, and if that is so, then the Muslims and Buddhists are just as righteous and in as much right/standing with God as You and I are right now. Funny, but if that is so how do you explain some verses a little further down in that same chapter of Romans?

"For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord [invoking Him as Lord] will be saved. But how are people to call upon Him Whom they have not believed [in Whom they have no faith, on Whom they have no reliance]? And how are they to believe in Him [adhere to, trust in, and rely upon Him] of Whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher? And how can men [be expected to] preach unless they are sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings! [How welcome is the coming of those who preach the good news of His good things!] But they have not all heeded the Gospel; for Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed (had faith in) what he has heard from us? So faith comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the preaching [of the message that came from the lips] of Christ (the Messiah Himself)." (Romans 10:13-17 AMP)

Obviously, those in darkness have to BELIEVE and they have to have faith in what Jesus provided through His death, burial, and resurrection in order to access the gift of salvation and walk in right-standing with God.

"Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies. For anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God, and have treated the blood of the covenant, which made us holy, as if it were common and unholy, and have insulted and disdained the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to us." (Hebrews 10:26-29 NLT)
"For if we go on deliberately and willingly sinning after once acquiring the knowledge of the Truth, there is no longer any sacrifice left to atone for [our] sins [no further offering to which to look forward]. [There is nothing left for us then] but a kind of awful and fearful prospect and expectation of divine judgment and the fury of burning wrath and indignation which will consume those who put themselves in opposition [to God]. Any person who has violated and [thus] rejected and set at naught the Law of Moses is put to death without pity or mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse (sterner and heavier) punishment do you suppose he will be judged to deserve who has spurned and [thus] trampled underfoot the Son of God, and who has considered the covenant blood by which he was consecrated common and unhallowed, thus profaning it and insulting and outraging the [Holy] Spirit [Who imparts] grace (the unmerited favor and blessing of God)?" (Hebrews 10:26-29 AMP)

Then those teaching that "born again" isn't a biblical principle are outside the bounds of true bible-based doctrine. In John Chapter 3, Jesus spoke prophetically to Nicodemus about the way to salvation. He wasn't speaking to Nicodemus "under the law", as Many love to proclaim when the words of Christ contradict their doctrine of "extreme grace", He was speaking to him prophetically that the Son of Man (Jesus, the Messiah) WOULD BE (future tense) lifted up like the bronze serpent was by Moses for salvation (an old testament type and shadow of the cross). In John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus that you must be BORN AGAIN, that is not and was not an Old Covenant belief, you couldn't be born again under the Old Covenant, but it was something tht was to come, an now in our time has come. The passage states it very plainly....

"Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”
Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
“How are these things possible?” Nicodemus asked.
Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony. But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” (John 3:3-21 NLT)

So, from the scriptures I have listed and studied, it is pretty clear that hole salvation has been PROVIDED to all mankind, it is not automatically on all mankind. It is something that is freely provided, but must be accessed by faith! And We an see that being "born again" is a biblical principle, taught in the new testament! I am so saddened by the absolute rejection of truth under the guise of "newer, better revelation" ... When the Holy Spirit reveals things to us from the Word and brings revelation and understanding, it will ALWAYS line up fully with the full counsel of the scriptures, if it doesn't it is not a heavenly revelation, but a mere doctrine of devils, full of falsities to knock into error. If you have people in your life who are blinded by such untruth, pray for them. Because in many cases that's all you can do if you are going to maintain your love walk. Pray for them (the Ephesians prayer is a great one to start with) and when given the opportunity to speak into their life, speak the truth in LOVE, don't be rude or argumentative about it, speak it in love.

"Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.” (Galatians 2:16 NLT)

"Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law." (Romans 3:31 NLT)

Til Next Time,

JRT