Welcome and thank you for taking a bible break to test your knowledge of God's word. This week's question:

Throughout life we encounter many different experiences and come upon different crossroads with decisions that must be made that ultimately will alter the next set of experiences and involve another set of crossroads and decisions. This sounds exciting, and it can be, and at other times very difficult, and it also can be as our very lives may depend on a split second decision that may determine if we continue to live or die upon this earth! That may jolt the thinking process to ponder the thought, "What would have happened if I had not lived through that? Would there truly be life after death?".

Talk about the meaning of life, for that brings us to our very question: "How is a soul saved from death?". Jesus proved that He is the Christ (John 20:30-31) by the miracles He performed, such as the physical healings (Matthew 20:29-34), casting our the demons (Luke 8:26-39), and even raising people from the dead (John 11:all). Jesus told His disciples, "Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many dwelling place; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you." (John 14:1-3). So Jesus is preparing a place for us and that place would be a, "…new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells." (2 Peter 3:13), for the current one would be melted with intense heat (2 Peter 3:10).

If we were to ask for a show of hands of those who would want to remain upon the physical earth as it melted away, I doubt a lot of hands would go up, but the majority would, no doubt, go up for the alternative that we will explore next. And we begin that search by exploring the words that Jesus gave us to find the way to that eternal abode, "You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me." (John 5:39). The rich man thought that if someone were to come back from the dead, then his five brothers would be warned and turn their lives from just pleasing selves to become more compassionate to others and please God. "But Abraham said, "They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them. But he said, 'No father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!' But he said to him, If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even is someone rises from the dead." (Luke 16:29-31).

Is there any difference for us today? We have the scriptures of the New Testament given by Jesus through the Holy Spirit to give us faith, "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17). Jesus says the one who "does the will of My Father" "…will enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 7:21) and not just hearers who "delude themselves" (James 1:22). We must abide by the "law of liberty" (James 1:25), who study the word of God to be approved before him (2 Timothy 2:15), to be washed of our sins so that we may stand before Him at the end of time in good conscious (Romans 6:1-6 & 1 Peter 3:21), after the good confession (Romans 10:8-10), then repentance (Acts 2:37-38), and of course to continue to grow in the grace of Him as we move on from the milk of the word to full maturity (Hebrews 6:1) and to walk as He walked (1 John 2:1-6) so that we may receive the promise, (and the answer to our question has been given!): eternal life (James 2:25)! There we have it-our souls are saved from death as we heed the authority of Him who gave us the word's of life for life and that will keep us unstained by the world (1 John 1:5-7) and keep us from a collision course with eternal destruction or death (1 John 2:15-17)!

Many say they love the Lord, but let us prove our love to Him by our heartfelt actions to save ourselves and as many as we have influence in this life for life, "For this is the love of the Lord, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome." (1 John 5:3) "By this we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, 'I have come to know Him' and does not keep His commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has been perfected. By this we have come to know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked." (1 John 2:3-6).