Tag: Southern Gospel Radio

Understanding salvation through faith and God’s grace

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TEXAS GOSPEL VOLUNTEER

I did my best to boil this down to “just the facts,” and this is not intended to be anything more than getting quickly to the point: Faith is a gift. When a person dies, their time on earth ends and they face what comes next. The apostle Paul taught that death happens once to each person, and after that comes judgment. This means every human being will eventually stand before God who created them.

At this judgment, theologians explain that people will be in one of two positions. The first position is being found in Adam, which means standing in your own sin and facing the full weight of that sin yourself. The second position is being found in Christ, the second Adam, where a person is covered by Jesus who has already borne the full weight of sin on their behalf.

Humans exist in a state of spiritual death because of their wrongdoing. People are naturally inclined toward anger and follow the impulses of their sinful nature. This is the condition everyone is born into. God requires complete holiness, and no amount of human effort can reach that standard. People cannot earn their way to salvation because their best attempts will always fall short of what God demands.

God offers salvation as a gift. This gift comes through faith and grace rather than through anything a person does on their own. Nobody can claim credit for their salvation or take pride in earning it themselves. While salvation does come through works, these are not human works. Instead, salvation comes through the perfect works of Jesus Christ. His actions, not ours, make salvation possible.

This does not mean that what believers do has no importance. People are not saved by their good deeds, but they are saved for good deeds. Those who believe are God’s creation, made new in Christ Jesus for the specific purpose of doing good works. God prepared these works in advance for believers to do. What people do in their lives matters as a demonstration and expression of their faith. Faith is not just a pass to enter heaven but something that shows itself through actions.

God gave the law to serve a particular function. The law works like a mirror that reflects God’s holiness and shows people their sinfulness. When someone looks into this mirror, they see how unclean they are. A common mistake is trying to clean yourself with the mirror itself. The law reveals the problem but cannot fix it. Just as a mirror shows dirt on your face but cannot wash it away, the law shows sin but cannot remove it. To become clean, a person needs something external to the law, something that can actually cleanse them, much like a shower washes away dirt that a mirror only reveals.

The foundation of salvation rests on three essential truths. Salvation happens through faith alone, not through any human achievement. It comes through Christ alone, not through any other means. And it exists for the glory of God alone, not for human pride or accomplishment. These pillars support the entire understanding of how God saves people.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” – Ephesians 2:8-9

Eighteen Mile’s debut album ‘Peace Be Still’ set for June 12 release

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TEXAS GOSPEL VOLUNTEER

Eighteen Mile, the bluegrass gospel group that emerged after years backing evangelist Steve Pettit, will release its debut album for Mountain Home Music Company on June 12. Peace Be Still is now available for pre-save and pre-add on streaming platforms.

The album marks a creative turning point for the group. All but two of its tracks are original compositions, a first for the band.

“As a band of songwriters, this album is special,” said guitarist and vocalist Carson Aaron. “It’s the first project we’ve worked on where we’ve written almost every song.”

The two covers are a reading of Kristyn and Keith Getty’s “Living Waters” and a rendition of Ron Block’s “He’s Holding on to Me.”

The 12-track project was produced by Andy Leftwich and moves between straightforward bluegrass and arrangements drawn from contemporary folk. Themes centre on doubt, faith, fear and the certainty of salvation.

Eighteen Mile has steadily built an audience since releasing its first single, “Above the Clouds,” written by bassist Hallie Ritter. The track has appeared on the Bluegrass Today gospel chart for more than six months. Subsequent singles “What Mercy Means” and “Living Waters” have continued to draw attention to the group.

The title track, written by Aaron and sung by multi-instrumentalist Jack Ritter, features resonator guitarist Rob Ickes, a frequent collaborator of Leftwich’s.

“We know the stories behind each song because they are our stories,” Aaron said. “The common thread through all these songs is the grace of God that has transformed our lives.”

Peace Be Still is available for pre-save now ahead of its June 12 release on Mountain Home Music Company.

Yes, sinners appear in Jesus’ family line

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JEFF TURNER

The Gospel of Matthew contains a genealogy that lists the ancestors of Jesus. Within this family record appear some surprising names. Tamar had an incestuous relationship with her father-in-law Judah. Rahab worked as a prostitute in the city of Jericho. Bathsheba committed adultery with King David. These three women all engaged in conduct that brought scandal and shame. Their presence in this ancestry raises an important question about why God would include such troubled history in the lineage of Christ.

The answer reveals something essential about our relationship with God. Every person has different failures and wrongdoings in their past, but ultimately God must choose from among sinners because that describes all of humanity. Nobody comes to God with a clean record.

These women appear in the genealogy. Their inclusion demonstrates grace. The family line also contains Abraham, who displayed his sinfulness through his failure to trust God. David appears as well, and his actions as both an adulterer and a murderer mark him as someone who committed serious wrongs. Yet these women carry particular significance because they illustrate how God’s plan to redeem humanity moves forward through people who have received grace rather than earned their place.

If God’s purposes depended on people who deserved to participate in them, nothing would ever happen. Everyone who receives anything from God receives it through grace, not merit. The apostle Paul described himself as a murderer and someone who spoke against God, yet he received grace and God placed him in ministry. This pattern shows how God works.

God accomplishes his remarkable plan to rescue and restore people by working through individuals who are what they are solely because of grace. Their presence in scripture shows us that God’s redemptive work does not require perfect people. It requires people who acknowledge their need for mercy and receive what God offers freely.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9, ESV).

Westward Road’s ‘He Knew’ tackles shame head-on with message of grace

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TEXAS GOSPEL VOLUNTEER

Nobody gets through life without regret. Westward Road’s latest single, “He Knew,” speaks directly to that feeling, and offers something better on the other side.

The song opens with a line that pulls no punches: So ashamed of my past, didn’t even want to look back. It’s the kind of lyric that lands because so many people have lived it.

Scott Roberts of Westward Road says that vulnerability was entirely intentional.

“How many times have we felt that? How many times have we felt ashamed?” Roberts said. “And Satan just points it out, especially in our quiet times.”

But the song doesn’t stay in that dark place. The title itself, “He Knew,” is the turn. Roberts says the message is about a grace that doesn’t wait for perfection.

“He didn’t save us because we were perfect or we were trying to be perfect,” Roberts said. “He saved us because he wanted to extend his perfect grace and mercy.”

It’s a straightforward message delivered without pretense, which is exactly what makes it connect. “He Knew” is on regular rotation now, and it’s worth a full listen, especially on a day when the past feels a little too loud.

Understanding the unforgivable sin

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JEFF TURNER

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus speaks about forgiveness and warns about a sin that will not be forgiven. This has raised concern and questions for many readers. The warning focuses on what is called blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and what it meant in its original setting. What is it? I can only tell you what I understand the Bible to say. Let’s start with some background.

This sin took place during the time when Jesus lived and taught in Israel. The people involved were not hearing stories passed down over time. They were seeing events with their own eyes. They listened to Jesus speak, watched how he lived, and saw the power shown through him. During his ministry, sickness was driven away across the land. This happened in an age without medical cures or clear diagnoses. The events pointed to a power that could not be explained by human means.

Jesus explained that everything he did was carried out by the power of the Holy Spirit. He chose to obey the will of the Father and relied on the Spirit while living among people. This was part of his mission and how God’s work was shown through him.

Some people who witnessed these acts refused to accept what they saw. Instead of recognizing God’s work, they claimed that Jesus was acting by the power of the devil. By doing this, they did not simply doubt or misunderstand. They took the work of the Holy Spirit and said it came from Satan. Jesus said this was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and that it could not be forgiven.

The heart of this sin was a full rejection of the truth about who Jesus is. The people involved decided that he was not sent by God but was working for evil. This was not said in ignorance. It was a settled judgment made while clear evidence stood in front of them.

Consider, forgiveness is found through accepting Jesus Christ. To reject him is to turn away from the only path God has provided for forgiveness. Salvation does not come through other means. If someone refuses Christ, forgiveness is not possible, because the offer of grace has been rejected.

This teaching is not meant to trap people in fear. It explains the seriousness of rejecting what God has made known.

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” — John 3:36