I think I was about five years old the first time I heard Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” It made a great impression on me. I recall associating it with a picture of Peter drowning in the stormy sea because he had taken his eyes off Jesus. He called and Jesus grabbed his hand and together they walked over to the boat. I am awed by this now, let alone the impression it made on me at five. I determined right there that I would always be ready to call to Jesus. It wasn’t until I went to an academy (high school) in Bible classes that I unlearned Romans 10:13. What I mean by unlearning is my Bible teacher added a lot of “buts” to the promise. According to him, while it was true I was saved by calling out to Jesus I then had a list of do’s and don’ts if I was going to stay saved. It was most depressing. I almost gave up on the whole thing. Sadly to say many of my classmates did give up.
Fortunately, I went on to college and I am so grateful that once again I relearned Romans 10:13 along with some accompanying verses like verse 9. “If thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shall be saved.” I also learned that Paul wrote in Galatians that the moment anyone adds a ‘but’ he has negated the cross.
I think some people fear this will lead people to live a self-centered life of sin. But it is just the opposite. Because I have been given such a gift I don’t want to sin. I want to be like my hero – Jesus. That’s the way it works.
Written by Roger Bothwell on September 17, 2009
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org