Judas was the greatest of traitors because he betrayed the very Son of God, but there are many traitors among us. Every person you trust, whether leader, brother, friend, or even someone in your family, who creates obstacles for you not to obey the commandments revealed by the prophets before the Messiah and by the Messiah Himself is, in God’s eyes, a traitor. It does not matter the bond, the emotion, or the apparent intention; whoever draws you away from obedience draws you away from salvation. And whoever tries to prevent your faithfulness to the Most High is working against God’s plan, repeating the same role as the serpent in Eden. Salvation is individual. Obey while you are still alive. | Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord! will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven (Matthew 7:21)
Salvation is in living exactly as the original apostles of Jesus lived. Jesus was with them all the time, teaching them how to live in a way that pleased the Father and attained salvation. They believed that Jesus was the Messiah sent by the Father and obeyed all the laws that God gave to Israel: they kept the Sabbath, were circumcised, wore the tzitzit, did not eat unclean foods, and kept the beard. If we want to live as the apostles did and be saved as they were, we must follow these same commandments. At no time in the Gospels did Jesus teach that gentiles could live differently. Obey while you are alive. | “I have revealed your name to the men you gave me out of the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me; and they have obeyed your word [the Old Testament].” (John 17:6)
All events related to salvation that were to happen after Malachi were prophesied in the Old Testament, including the birth of the Messiah, John the Baptist, the mission of Christ, and His innocent death. There is no prophecy mentioning anyone after the ascension of Jesus, inside or outside the Bible, bringing the doctrine of “unmerited favor.” Yet millions of Gentiles live in open disobedience to God’s laws and still expect to be welcomed into heaven based on this human teaching. No Gentile will ascend without seeking to follow the same laws given to Israel, laws that Jesus Himself and His apostles followed. Do not follow the majority because they are many. The end has already come! Obey while you are alive. | “Surely the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7)
The devil is a specialist in the use of words to direct people to his usual goal: disobeying God. The expression “unmerited favor,” used in churches, is one of his masterpieces. In every language, this expression seems to convey humility before the Lord, but in practice, it leads to the conclusion that salvation is not linked to obedience to the laws of God given to the prophets and to Jesus. Thus, obedience is seen as something extra, but not essential. This is a diabolical teaching, with no support in the words of Jesus. No gentile will be taken to heaven without seeking to follow the same laws that Jesus and His apostles followed. Do not follow the majority because they are many. The end has already come! Obey while you are alive. | “Here is the perseverance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and the faith in Jesus.” (Revelation 14:12)
It is impossible to escape the contradictions of the doctrine of “unmerited favor.” When confronted about whether it is necessary to obey any commandment to attain salvation, its defenders are left without an answer. If they say it is not necessary, then any Christian could steal, kill, and still enter heaven. If they say it is necessary, then salvation is no longer unmerited. They try to escape the contradiction by talking about rewards in heaven, but that does not concern salvation. The truth is that Jesus never taught this. He taught that it is the Father who leads us to the Son, and the Father only sends those who follow the laws given to the nation He set apart for Himself with an everlasting covenant. God does not send declared disobedient people to the Son. | “You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently.” (Psalm 119:4)
Jesus never said, in any of the Gospels, that after Him someone would come with new teachings about salvation. On the contrary, He stated that He would send the Holy Spirit, not to reveal something new, but to remind us of everything He had already taught. God’s plan has always been the same: the Father sends to the Son only those who please Him, and the Father is pleased with those who faithfully obey all the commandments revealed in the Old Testament. The apostles learned everything directly from Jesus and lived exactly as He lived, obeying the holy Law of the Father in everything. Do not follow the majority, obey while you are alive. | “I have revealed your name to the men you gave me out of the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me; and they have obeyed your word [the Old Testament].” (John 17:6)
The prodigal son recognized that he did not deserve his Father’s forgiveness, but this was after his repentance and confession of his sins. The doctrine of “unmerited favor,” on the other hand, teaches that salvation happens even while continuing in open disobedience to the laws God gave us in the Old Testament. It is with this false security that many in the churches ignore the commandments of the Lord. Jesus never taught this in the gospels. What Jesus taught is that it is the Father who sends us to the Son. And the Father only sends those who follow the same laws given to the nation He set apart for Himself with a perpetual covenant. God watches us and when He sees our obedience, even in the face of opposition, He unites us to Israel and delivers us to Jesus. | “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:44)
God has always made it clear, both through the prophets and through Jesus, that the invitation to the Kingdom of God would extend beyond the Middle East, but always emphasizing that the eternal covenant with Israel would never be broken. This means that the teaching that gentiles obtain salvation outside of Israel is false, for it finds no support in the prophets nor in the words of Christ. Our salvation comes by following the same laws that the Father gave to the chosen nation. The Father sees our faith and courage, even when facing great opposition, unites us to Israel, blesses us, and sends us to the Son for forgiveness and salvation. This plan of salvation makes sense because it is true. | “Just as the laws of the sun, the moon, and the stars are immutable, so also the descendants of Israel will never cease to be the nation before God forever.” (Jeremiah 31:35-37)
The true path that leads to salvation in Christ must be backed by the words and example of Christ Himself. If a doctrine is as central as they claim, why does it not appear on the lips of Jesus in the four gospels? The answer is simple: because it did not come from the Father. The false doctrine of “unmerited favor” arose years after the ascension of Jesus, when the serpent inspired men to create a religion that supposedly exalts God, but leads its followers to ignore His powerful and eternal Law. Just like Jesus and the apostles, we must obey God in everything: the Sabbath, circumcision, forbidden meats, the use of tzitzits, the beard, and all the other statutes of the Lord. Do not follow the majority; obey while you are alive. | “Here is the perseverance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” (Revelation 14:12)
A great success of the serpent is the lie that the gentiles have a plan of salvation especially for them, without the need to obey the powerful and eternal Law of God. The truth is that the Most High chose Abraham and all his household, and made an eternal covenant with him. Not even remotely, in the four gospels, did Jesus say He was creating an “easier” religion for gentiles. For more than three years, the Savior trained apostles and disciples to obey in everything. Jews or gentiles, we must live as they did, keeping the Sabbath, circumcision, the forbidden meats, the tzitzits, the beard, and all the other statutes of the Lord. Salvation is individual: obey while you are alive. | “The assembly must have the same laws, which will apply both to you and to the gentile who lives among you; this is a perpetual decree.” (Numbers 15:15)
