Kept Blameless, How?

“May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

Kept blameless, how is this possible?

Some say it is because of a choice we make. But I think it is because of a choice God made to send his Son into the world to save it, not just to offer salvation, nor just try to save…but to actually SAVE all “ungodly” “sinners”.

“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world…you see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly…God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us…Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially those who believe…” (John 1:29; 1 John 4:14; Romans 5:6, 8; 1 Timothy 1:15-16; 4:9)

Faith is believing the gospel and it is the means by which mankind can enjoy the good news. But whether sinners have faith in this life or not, God will save all according to the Bible it seems clear to me. 

Maybe the confusion is that some people do not know what they are to be saved from. That too is pretty simple to me. We will be saved out of death, the result of sin, when Jesus returns to resurrect the dead.

“The wages of sin is death...The last enemy to be destroyed is death…Behold I show you a mystery…the trumpet shall sound and the dead will be raised…death has been swallowed up in victory.” (Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:26, 51-54)

Very few Christian leaders agree with me, but nevertheless it is my conviction that the Bible is clear in teaching the ultimate salvaton of all mankind.  

So what about being "kept blameless"? We are kept that way because after we are "transformed" we in fact will be blameless citizens of heaven, just like Jesus.

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to subject all things to himself, will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body." (Philippians 3:21)

According To His Mercy He Saved Us

"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us" (Titus 3:5)

Think about that in light of what you have been taught. Compare it to the traditional teaching that “He saved us” when we accepted His offer of salvation, or when we repented of our sins, etc.

The Mercy from God is NOT conditional. It is freely poured out on all sinners from the boundless and unending love of God, Who, in His omnipotent wisdom, has determined that it was good for all mankind to become disobedient. Why? In order that He may demonstrate that He is merciful. Paul was addressing the disobedience of Israel when he said…

“From the standpoint of the gospel they (Israel) are enemies for your (Gentiles) sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all.” (Romans 11:28-32)

Note it is “God’s choice” to “shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all”. It is also “God’s choice” as to whom He will save.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” (Ephesians 1:3-4)

There is nothing clearer in Scripture to me than that the salvation of the sinner is “God’s choice” and it is “according to the kind intention of His will”. It is also clear to me that the institutional churches of Christianity do not believe God when they insist that salvation is the “free choice” of the individual. That does not make them bad people, but it does make them unbelievers as to how many people will be saved. Christian unbelievers…go figure.