How does God save sinners?

“Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: (28.) For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. (29.) Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. (30.) And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. (31.) And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” Luke 16:27 – 31

God has one form of saving the lost sinner, and it is through the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul told us in 1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” The preaching of the gospel for salvation is foolishness to them that believe it takes more than the simple preaching to save the lost because they know not the way of salvation. The word “power” in 1 Corinthians 1:18 means – force or miraculous power – which is what it takes to save the lost, it takes the power of God. Now this does not mean that we as pastors or ministers have the power to save the lost but that God CHOSE to use this preaching to save the lost sinner. It is the message of the gospel that pricks the heart and causes one to accept the gospel; however this is only possible because the Holy Spirit of God causes the heart to be pricked.

In our text scripture we see the rich man speaking to Abraham, the rich man being in hell and Abraham being in his bosom. The rich man was so tormented that he wanted Abraham to send Lazarus from the dead to cause his father and brothers to believe. However Abraham said “…If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” In other words nothing outside of the gospel has the power to cause a sinner to repent and believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. God has a system, and that system is the only one that will work because it is the way that God has chosen to save the lost sinner. Man can invent millions of different ways to cause a sinner to repent, but the only sure way that works is by hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore all these invented ways of causing one to be saved are in vain. All the hell movies, scare houses, hell fire sermons and etc. are useless and in vain, and yes this includes the decision and choice myth also. You will never find any preacher that can out do one rising from the dead and if that will not work than nothing else man can invent will work.

Salvation only comes from the simple message of the gospel of Jesus Christ, therefore some preachers need to stop attempting to show how powerful they are and simply preach the Gospel. Every time in the scriptures you find someone witnessing to a lost sinner they are simply telling them about Jesus Christ and nothing else. This is because this is the path that God has chosen to save the lost sinner. How simple, and how wonderful, God saves sinners and uses His word to do it. Abraham said “…They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.” Because nothing, even the dead rising from the grave will cause them to repent. So if you are going to be saved you will hear the message of the pastor or minister because they are Gods sent men with the message from God. So in conclusion, to them that invent other ways to prick the heart of the lost sinner, God has a message for you, “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:20 AMEN!