Is It Really That Hard to Understand?

When discussing God’s instruction concerning how one is saved, many people will say, “I just can’t understand it that way. If this describes you, which of the following statements do you think you might have difficulty in understanding?

“He who believes and is baptized shall be promoted to a better job with a better salary.”

“He who believes and is baptized will be given a new automobile of his/her choice.”

“He who believes and is baptized will be given an extra month’s vacation.”

“He who believes and is baptized will be paid five million dollars.”

“He who believes and is baptized shall be saved.”

Which one did you have trouble with? The first four we all can and do understand. We know that certain rewards are promised to those who believe and are baptized. If we are honest with ourselves, we know that we could not expect to receive the reward until the requirements were met.

Yet, when Jesus promises salvation to any who believes and are baptized, folks just cannot understand it. Honestly now, is the last one any more difficult to understand that the other four. Surely not! We are only lying to ourselves to say that it is.