2026 #1
Twitter. There’s a part that’s good. There is a part that is bad, and there is a part that you wouldn’t believe. Twitter, along with other social media platforms can be used for good. But there are a lot of things you can find on Twitter’s Christian circles that are not that good. Perhaps you have seen comments on social media that are contrary to the Christian worldview. I’d like to take a look at those statements and comments to see if we can give an answer.
Let me get this straight. You’re saved by grace, but it was up to you?
In times of conflict, opposing parties can enter into negotiations to resolve their differences. The writer of this post seems to take the Christian doctrine of salvation by grace and converts it into negotiation between two parties, God and us.
Consider what might happen if this premise were correct. God would bring the possibility of salvation to the table. Mankind brings assurances of worship, devotion, and asks for allowances for a few sins per day. Both God and man agree to those terms. That sounds like a negotiation.
There are a couple of obvious problems with this scenario. First, it assumes that God and mankind are equals in nature. God is the Greatest Conceivable Being, in the words of Anslem. It is a category error to assert that God and man are equal parties in a negotiation. Second, God is the One who makes the standard by which we can come into a relationship with Him. He has decided that the sacrifice blood brings about the remission of human sin (Heb. 9:22). A negotiation implies that both sides lack something the other can provide. What does the Greatest Conceivable Being, God, lack that we can provide? The God who created the universe and mankind lacks nothing (Jam. 1:17).
The Christian doctrine of salvation asserts that God initiated salvation based on His plan and His love from all eternity. Jesus the Son is central in executing salvation through His incarnation, life, sacrificial death, and bodily resurrection. The Holy Spirit convicts humans of sin, leads them to repentance, and regenerates the hearts of people (John 16:8). The plan and work of salvation is the unified work of the Triune God.
What is our part in this? What part is “up to us?”
We bring nothing in and of ourselves to God that would make us worthy of His attention. Salvation is presented to us by God. He makes the offer of forgiveness of sins and a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. What God requires of us is humble confession of our need for His provision and acceptance of His free gift. Anything else would be a work, which we cannot do (Eph. 2:8-9).
In writing this response, I realize that there may be someone out there who needs salvation through Jesus Christ. If so, respond to Him today. If there is someone who needs to hear this, share it with someone.
Mark Riser - Apologist 