哪一個教會能救我? by Oswald J. Smith
“我是不是一定要加入你的教會才能得救?”
“不,我絕不會浪費時間勸你轉到我的教會來。”
“你相信羅馬天主教會能使人得救嗎?”
“絕對不能!”
“我是個天主教徒,而你說天主教會不能救我?”
“沒錯。”
“你也不要我改信你所信的基督教(東正教)?”
“我從未叫人信基督教以得救。”
“那我就不懂了,難道你不相信你的教會可以救人嗎?”
“我並不這麼想。”
“哦?”
“我的教會和你的教會都一樣無法救人。”
“那麼人怎麼能得救呢?究竟哪一個教會才能救人?”
“我再說一次,不論是天主教會或基督教會,都一點也不能拯救人的靈魂。”
“可是…”
“我還沒說完,沒有一個教會能救人,但耶穌基督卻可以。”
“耶穌?”
“是的,人得救不是因為參加任何教會,而是藉着主耶穌基督--上帝的獨生愛子。你了解嗎?你現在改信基督教對你一點好處也沒有。有數以萬計的人自稱歸信基督教,但卻沒有真正接受耶穌基督,因此,他們仍未得救。”
“我想這就是為何我心中沒有永恆平安的原因了。我的教會也沒有平安嗎?”
“沒有,很抱歉。朋友,平安不在教會裡,平安只在耶穌里。宗教不能救人,唯有耶穌基督帶來救恩。”
“你確定嗎?”
“百分之百確定。聖經說:「除他(耶穌)以外別無拯救,因為在天下人間沒有賜下別的名(天主教或基督教都不是)我們可以靠着得救。」(使徒行傳四章12節)。「你要給他起名叫耶穌,因他要將自己的百姓從罪惡里救出來。」”(馬太福音一章21節)
“那麼我應該怎麼做呢?”
“「當信主耶穌,你就必得救」,因為「凡接待他(耶穌)的,就是信他名的人,他就賜他們權柄,作上帝的兒女。」”(使徒行傳十六章31節,約翰福音一章12節)
“這樣就夠了嗎?”
“是的,聖經說:「他救了我們,並不是因我們自己所行的義,乃是照他的憐憫。」”(提多書三章5節)
“感謝上帝!”
“是的,感謝上帝,因他愛我們,差遣他的愛子耶穌基督為我們而死。聖經彼得前書二章24節說,耶穌被掛在十字架上,親身擔負了我們的罪,他又從死里復活,將救恩賜給你。你為什麼不接受他,並相信他寶血贖罪之功呢?耶穌應許:「凡到我這裡來的,我總不丟棄。」(約翰福音六章37節)接受耶穌的應許,並全然相信他吧!”
“我要相信他--就在此刻!過去我以為成為教會的一員就得救了。現在你開了我的眼睛,讓我曉得,只有耶穌是唯一的救主。”
“你要接受他作你的救主嗎?”
“我要,我當然要!”
朋友,你呢?
Which Church Saves? Oswald J. Smith
“Must I join your church in order to be saved?”
“Not at all. I wouldn’t waste my time trying to convert you to my church.”
“Do you believe that the Roman Catholic Church can save?”
“Certainly not.”
“I am a Roman Catholic, and you say my church can’t save?”
“That’s correct.”
“And you--you attend a Protestant church. So don’t you want me to turn Protestant?”
“I have never asked anyone to turn Protestant to be saved.”
“You haven’t? I don’t understand. You believe that your church can saaaave, don’t you?”
“No, I do not”
“You don’t?”
“My church has no more power to save than your church.”
“Then how can a man be saved? Which church saves?”
“I repeat. Neither the Roman Catholic Church nor any Protestant church can in any way save your soul.”
“But…!”
“Wait a minute. No church can save, but Jesus Christ can.”
“Jesus?”
“Yes, you are saved, not by any church, but by a Person--the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son. So you see, it would do no good for you to become Protestant right now. There are millions of Protestants who are not saved, who have professed Christianity but have never accepted the Christ of Christianity.”
“Is that why I have not found lasting peace? Is there no peace in my church?”
“No, my friend, and none in any other church either. Peace is only found in Jesus. Religion cannot save, but Christ can.”
“Are you sure of this?”
“Absolutely. The Bible says, ‘Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name (Catholic or Protestant) under heaven given to men by which we must be saved’ (Acts 4:12). ‘You are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:21)
“Then, what should I do?”
“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, ‘for ‘to all who received Him to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God’ (Acts 16:31 and John 1:12)
“But is that enough?”
“Yes, the Bible says. “He saved us not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy’ (Titus 3:5)
“Thank God!”
“Yes, thank God, for He loves you and sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you. The Bible says that Jesus bore your sins in His own body on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). Then he rose from the dead to offer you salvation. Why not accept Him and trust His atoning death? He has promised ‘Whoever comes to Me I will never drive away’ (John 6:37), so take Him at His word and rely wholly on Him.”
“I will trust Him-right now! I thought that I was saved because I was a good church member. But you have opened my eyes, and I see now that Jesus is the only Savior.”
“And you now accept Him as your Savior?”
“I do! Yes, I do!”
Do you?