Prerequisite Knowledge

Due to great changes between seventeenth century Scotland and twenty-first century America, it is necessary to put forth some necessary assertions, lest some modern readers reject, perhaps unconsciously, the vital truths expressed in this book or even fail to comprehend what they are reading.⁴ The Lord Jesus castigated those who obscured knowledge that is essential to understanding how to enter into eternal life. “Woe to you lawyers!⁵ For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering” (Luke 11:52 ESV). Likewise, there are many of Satan’s slaves today who labor vigorously to so confuse, obscure, and distort God’s truths, that those who seek God and His salvation in Jesus Christ are kept from the truth and perish eternally in Hell. In the spirit of this Sum, the following items are brief and without proof except for a few Scripture⁶ references. In many cases, an appendix is cited which gives further information. Further study, especially of the Holy Bible, is much encouraged.

You already know, if only hidden deep in your heart, that Almighty God exists and that He will call you to account for your sins,⁷ “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:18–22 ESV).

In this Sum, the reader will notice that the Bible is assumed to be true and authoritative. This assumption is correct because the Holy Bible is the Word of God, Who created each of us and the universe in which we live in six days, and God cannot lie or be mistaken. If we consider human frailty and limitations next to the power, majesty, skill, and wisdom of a God Who can create this entire universe in six twenty-four-hour days, with all its intricacies of physics, mathematics, life, and humanity, it is clear that humans are woefully unqualified to evaluate or pass judgment on God or His Word, the Holy Bible. Therefore, the only rational response is to trust God and His Word. Any teaching, religion, philosophy, or ideology that contradicts the Holy Bible is thus necessarily false and must be rejected lest such take away the key of knowledge. More information on this topic is in Appendix 4.

Any supposedly “Christian” sect that rejects the doctrine of the Trinity or denies one or more of the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit is false. Such teachings take away the key of knowledge. “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 2:23 NKJV).

All religions do not lead to God, but to Hell. There is one exception: biblical Christianity that trusts in Jesus Christ alone.

A person lives only one life on earth. Upon death, the soul goes either to Hell or Heaven (see Appendix 4 for more information).

The laws of nature are fixed and unchanging because God operates the universe in detail in a manner consistent with His perfect wisdom and faithfulness. Miracles are just when God does something different for some good reason. Just as God’s faithfulness ensures that natural laws do not ever change, so God’s faithfulness and perfect holiness ensures that His moral laws never change and are not subject to human opinion. Engineers who design aircraft or rockets must give careful attention to the laws of nature. Or else. The same inflexibility is even more true with regard to God’s moral laws (see Appendix 4 for further explanation).

It is not judging or judgmentalism for a person to speak or write against sins, immoral behavior, or wickedness, or to warn of God’s wrath against violations of God’s commands. Such a one is merely a messenger of the Judge before whom all of us will one day stand.

God’s Moral Law forbids lying and commands truthfulness and diligent effort to maintain truth and sift out falsehoods. This is in great contrast to false religions such as Islam and Communism, which require and encourage lying in order to advance their causes. Further, no lie is either “little” or “white.”

Due to the above three points, the inanity of, “That is your truth, but not my truth,” relativistic thinking is just as absurd in the realm of truth, knowledge, religion, and philosophy, as it is with respect to the law of gravity. The law of gravity cannot be broken, but many bones have been broken by gravity. Likewise, many humans will be eternally broken in Hell by God’s Law; in this life, people only think they are breaking God’s Law with impunity.

Hell is eternal, horrendous, extreme torture of soul and body; its horror is beyond the worst we can imagine. The horror of Hell should drive us straight to Jesus Christ for forgiveness. Instead, many pretend Hell does not exist, or blaspheme God as vicious in sending people to Hell. Both false ideas stem from thinking that our sin does not matter much and from not recognizing the infinite value of God’s glory and holy Name—value that is hideously besmirched by even “little” sins. God’s perfect holiness, glory, and justice require Him to punish all sin. And humans naturally and sinfully think way too highly of themselves.

Hell and its horrendous tortures of body and soul are real and eternal, and most people go there. Is there some valid reason why you think you are not also on the road to Hell? How to be saved by Christ is the topic of this Sum. Please take it personally and extremely seriously. God does not want to have to send you to Hell. But if you insist on rejecting the Lord Jesus that is where you are going!

4 When this book was first written, knowledge of the Holy Bible was general and substantially complete among all the population, even among those who lived lives contrary to its teachings or intentionally rejected Christ. In addition, succeeding centuries saw the introduction of immensely destructive false philosophies and attacks on the Holy Bible.

5 These lawyers were supposed experts in the Law of Moses.

6 The terms Bible, Holy Bible, Scripture, the Scriptures, the Word, the Law, the Law of God, and the Word of God are basically synonymous, but have slightly different connotations.

7 Sin is any violation of God’s Law, even if the sinful act is against a human, and whether or not it violates civil law.