Anthony, Cornelius, and the Blind Man of Bethsaida

"Anthony, I think this is the most important question I can ask you. Are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation; or are you trusting in Jesus Christ and Anthony for your salvation?"

"Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually" (Acts 10:1-2).

"And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, 'Do you see anything?'

"And he looked up and said, 'I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around.' Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly" (Mark 8:22-25).

My team (my family) spent the morning at the Annual Santa Clarita Arts & Crafts Fair. We did very little shopping. Our real purpose for being there was to share the Law and the Gospel with the hundreds of people buying and selling handmade and other kinds of treasures. In the few hours we were at the park, we distributed hundreds of gospel tracts.

I saw one lady walking through the park, reading the back of a million dollar bill, given to her by someone else on the team. It was fun to walk around the park and see million dollar bills and other gospel tracts sticking out of shirt pockets or in people's hands. Well, I remarked to the lady that I saw that she received a million dollar bill. She, said, "Oh, I know I'm going to heaven." Her tone oozed with self-righteousness.

"On what basis?" I politely asked.

"Oh, I'm not talking about this. I'm walking that way." Pointing in a direction away from me. "Everyone goes to heaven."

"That's not true. Everyone does not go to heaven. I hope you read the tract."

I did have one conversation while we were at the park. "Just one conversation?" You ask. Well, it was a conversation that lasted 90 minutes. And it was one of the most extroardinary witnessing encounters I have ever experienced.

As I walked behind a row of vender tents, I noticed a young man sitting on a picnic bench. An open book lay on the bench, just left of his elbow. In his hand was a pen. I watched him as he glanced at the book, maybe flip the page once or twice, and then feverishly write in a spiral-bound notebook. The open book was a Bible.

I walked up behind the young, Hispanic man. He was so engrossed in what he was doing that he didn't hear me come up behind him. I stood behind him for a moment or two.

His Bible was open to 2 Samuel 12--the death of David's baby. The Bible he was reading was a parallel Bible, with both the KJV and Spanish translations. The Bible looked the way the Bible of a lover of God's Word should look. It was worn. The pages were yellowed. Many of the pages appeared torn, creased, and wrinkled. The empty borders of the pages to which his Bible was opened were filled with handwritten notes. Verse references were circled. Specific words were underlined.

This young man's Bible was more than a decorative item, a status symbol, or an idol. It appeared as a hungry, young man's plate of food--a plate half empty, a meal half eaten. It appeared as a tall glass with little water in it--the rim of which bearing the stains of dry, dirty, thirsty lips, having been pressed against it in order to drain the glass of its refreshing contents. His Bible looked the way a Christian's Bible should look.....used.

"What are you studying?" I asked.

Even though I took him by surprise, he looked up at me and smiled. Without hesitation, he began to tell me what he was gleaning from the Word of God. "You know, even though God told David that his baby wouldn't live, and even though he was mourning the death of his baby, he didn't curse God. He worshiped God."

We spent a few minutes talking about David's sin and the faith with which he approached and submitted to his God.

"Would it be all right if I sat down?" I asked.

"Sure."

"My name's Tony."

"My name's Anthony." (Anthony was 22.)

"Well, I guess I won't forget that." We laughed.

"Where do you go to church?" I asked.

"Oh, I don't go to church. I haven't found the right one yet."

"Are you a Christian?"

"Yes."

"How long have you been a Christian?

"That's all I've ever known. My dad was a pastor. I've only read a couple of books in my life. I really don't like to read. But this book--well, this book I have read my entire life."

"Where does your father pastor?"

A look of hurt and disappointment covered his face like the shadow cast by a thick cloud moving in front of the sun. "He's not a pastor anymore."

Something I have learned over the years--something I wish had never been necessary for me to learn--is that I cannot believe a person is a Christian simply because they say, "I'm a Christian." The false conversion rate in the American Church is far too high.

I will never again say, "That's nice," when someone tells me they are a Christian. It is not a judgmental spirit that fuels this mindset. Rather it is concern, fear, and a sense of urgency that fuels it--concern that the person in front of me might be a false convert; fear that the person in front of me will one-day stand before the Lord only to hear Him say, "I never knew you; depart from Me;" and a sense of urgency that the person might die today and spend eternity in hell.

"Anthony, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Let's say that I am not a Christian...."

"You're not a Christian?"

"No. I'm a Christian. But let's pretend that I wasn't and I sat down next to you. If I asked you what I had to do to go to heaven, what would you tell me?

"I would say that you would have to read the Bible, obey His commandments, and be filled with the Holy Spirit."

"Would I have to be a good person to go to heaven?"

"Well, I think if you follow the Bible, you will be a good person."

"Would you consider yourself to be a good person?"

"I think so. I'm trying to be."

"Can I ask you a few questions to see if that's true--to see if you are, in fact, a good person?"

"Okay." He answered with a curious look on his face.

"Have you ever told a lie?"

His countenance fell as if I had just caught him in the act of lying. It was remarkable to see.

"Yes."

"If you tell a lie, what does that make you?"

"A liar."

"Have you ever stolen anything?"

"Yes."

"If you steal what does that make you?

"A thief." He said, dropping his head.

"Have you ever taken God's name in vain?"

"Oh, yes."

"And you understand that when you do that you commit the sin of blasphemy against God."

"Yes."

"Have you ever looked at a woman to lust after her?"

"Yes."

"Then you have committed adultery in your heart."

"But doesn't the Bible say that it is only adultery if you have sex with a married or divorced woman?"

"No. Let me show you what Jesus said." I turned to Matthew 5:27-28. I read it aloud, moving my finger across the page as I read, so he could see what I was reading. Anthony wrote the Scripture reference in his notebook.

"Oh. I'm guilty of that, too."

"Have you ever murdered anyone?"

"No." He said, his countenance brightening ever-so-slightly.

"Have you ever been angry with someone, without cause? Have you ever harbored anger, resentment, bitterness, or even hatred in your heart toward someone?

"Yes I have." I couldn't help but wonder if he thought of his father, as he answered the question.

"Anthony, are you aware of what 1 John 3:15 says. It says, "Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer." Once again, he wrote the Scripture reference in his notebook.

"Have you obeyed your parents perfectly all of your life?"

"No."

"Then you've dishonored your parents. So, Anthony, by your own admission, you are a lying, thieving, adulterous, murderer, who disobeys his parents. Does that sound like a good person to you?"

"No it doesn't."

"We've only looked at five of the Ten Commandments. If you were to die and stand before God, and He judged you on the basis of His Law, do you think He would find you innocent or guilty?"

"I would be guilty."

"Do you think you would go to heaven or hell?"

He hesitated. I knew he was thinking about Jesus. He was raised in a home in which Jesus was at least talked about, if not followed in a genuine way. "Are you thinking about Jesus?"

"Yes."

"We're not talking about grace, right now. On the basis of His Law and the fact that God is a holy and righteous judge, should you go to heaven or hell if He finds you guilty of breaking His Law?

"Hell."

"Does that concern you?"

"Yes it does. I've been struggling for the last couple of weeks. I've been trying my best to live a righteous life. But I'm just not sure. Can we be sure?"

"Sure about our salvation?"

"Yes."

"Oh, I think a Christian can have assurance about their salvation. But hold on to that thought, for a minute. Have you ever been to court?"

"Yes. I've done some--I've done some stupid things."

I took Anthony into the courtroom . . . "And that's exactly what God did, Anthony. God came to earth in the person of Jesus Christ--fully God and fully man. He lived a perfect, sinless life. He died a horrible, bloody death on the cross to take upon Himself the punishment you and I deserve for breaking His Law, for sinning against Him. Three days later, He rose from the dead and forever defeated death.

"But it's not enough to believe what I've shared with you, in your head. It's not enough to say you believe these things and try to live a righteous life. Have you ever been on a plane?

"No."

Well, let's say we were on the same flight, heading to Hawaii." I shared the parachute analogy with him . . . "Saving faith is believing in your heart--believing to the point that you turn from your sin--that's called repentance--and put your trust and faith in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation, the same way you would put on a parachute and trust it will open and save your life when you jump out of the plane. Does that make sense?"

"Yes it does."

"Anthony, Ephesians 2:8-9 says, 'For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.'"

After writing the Scripture reference in his notebook, he turned to me and asked, "Could you, please, say that again?"

"Ephesians 2:8-9 says, 'For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.'"

"Anthony, do you understand what that means? There is nothing you can do to save yourself. Your good works will never be enough to earn your salvation. In fact, the Book of Isaiah tells us that 'all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment' (Isa 64:6b).' Did you know that a more literal translation of that verse says that our good works are like a dirty menstrual rag to God?"

"Whoa!"

"That's right. On our very best day, our very best works, look like dirty rags to the Lord. If we stand before Him on the Day of Judgment with nothing more than our good deeds to show for ourselves, then we will face eternity in hell as the just punishment for our sins against God. But if we turn from our sin and receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, then instead of seeing our filthy self-righteousness, we will be clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. God will grant us eternal life, not on the basis of anything we have done; but entirely on the basis of what Jesus Christ accomplished through His death and resurrection."

"Anthony, do you have a good relationship with your father?

"No." He said, bowing his head.

"How about with your mother? Do you have a good relationship with her?"

"Yes. That's why I'm here, today. My mom couldn't be here to work her booth, so I came to help out."

"Do you help you mother because you think by doing so you will earn your mother's love? Or do you help your mother simply because you love her and you are so grateful for the love she has given you?"

"I do it because my mother loves me and I love her."

"And that's the way our relationship with God should be. There is nothing we can do to earn God's love. There is nothing we can do to earn salvation. We should do good works, not because it earns us anything, but because we love our heavenly Father and we are so grateful to Him for giving us the free gift of eternal life. A Christian loves God because He first loved us; not because we want to try to earn God's love or our salvation. Does that make sense?"

"Yes it does."

"Anthony, I think this is the most important question I can ask you. Are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation; or are you trusting in Jesus Christ and Anthony for your salvation?"

As I talked to Anthony, I was reminded of Cornelius the Centurion (Acts 10). Cornelius was a gentile who had apparently abandoned the pagan Roman religions and became a devout follower of Judaism. He was a man who, while not yet circumcized according to Jewish custom, followed the ethics of the Old Testament Law. Cornelius would eventually come to faith in Jesus Christ, but not until Peter came to his house and preached the gospel.

Anthony was trying desperately to live a life pleasing to God. Sin was becoming increasingly sinful to him. The ungodliness of the world was becoming offensive to him. He broke up with his girlfriend because their relationship was not pleasing to the Lord. While all of this behavior can be signs of fruit brought forth in keeping with repentance, Anthony's answer revealed that he was holding on to a works righteousness formula as his means of salvation.

"I think I have been trusting in Jesus Christ and Anthony for my salvation."

Anthony and I continued to pour over the Scriptures together. It was funny to watch members of my family walk by, from time to time. This was a long conversation, even for me; and it was obvious that they were all dying to know what was going on.

Every time I mentioned a verse, passage, or Bible story, Anthony diligently wrote it in his notebook. We looked at verses that talked about repentance, faith, grace, works, and salvation. Periodically, I would ask Anthony the same question: "Are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation; or are you trusting in Jesus Christ and Anthony for your salvation?"

This reminded me of the great story about the way Jesus healed the blind man from Bethsaida. "And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, 'Do you see anything?'

"And he looked up and said, 'I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around.' Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly" (Mark 8:22-25).

I found it fascinating that although Anthony said he has read the Bible most of his life, most if not all of the verses and passages I shared with him from the New Testament were entirely new to him. Each verse or passage I shared with Anthony was like each time the Lord laid hands on the blind man's eyes. Each time the Lord touched the man, his vision became clearer. With each verse and passage, Anthony's spiritual vision became clearer.

"Anthony, are you trusting in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation, or are you trusting in Jesus Christ and Anthony for your salvation."

"I think I am trusting in Jesus Christ alone for my salvation."

"Anthony, I believe in a sovereign God, the Creator of the Universe, who is in complete control of everything. I do not believe in coincidences. It's not a coincidence that you came to the arts and crafts fair, today. It's not a coincidence that I came here, today, to share the gospel with people. It's not a coincidence that I walked by and saw you reading the Bible. It's not a coincidence that we've had this conversation.

"Look, I may never see you again. I hope I do, but I may not. I care about you, and I don't want to see you go to hell. You seem very sincere. As I've talked to you I have not heard any arrogance or pride come out of your mouth. And I have no doubt that you believe in Jesus.

"But, Anthony, there are likely millions of people around the world who read the Bible, believe in Jesus, and try to live a life pleasing to God. Yet they are not going to heaven. They are trying to get to God by their works and not by faith in Christ alone. In the end, they are no different than the person who spent a lifetime denying God's existence and lived in open rebellion against Him. Both are bound for hell apart from repentance and faith in Jesus Christ alone.

"Anthony, I told you a while ago that a Christian can be assured of his or her salvation. I know I am going to heaven. But that assurance comes not from anything I have done. I am not a good person. What I deserve is hell. What I deserve is to be punished for my sins against God. I cannot do anything to make myself right with God, and I cannot do anything to earn the free gift of eternal life. 'For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord' (Romans 6:23)

"No. I am sure I am going to heaven, not on the basis of anything I have done, but entirely on the basis of what Jesus Christ accomplished on my behalf, through His death on the cross and His resurrection. I am saved by the grace of God alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. I have repented of my sins against God and I have believed the gospel. I have received Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. And I believe what the Bible says in Romans 8:38-39: 'For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.'

"If you have truly turned from your sins and, by faith, have placed your trust in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation, then you, too, can have this assurance.

"Anthony, have you turned from your sins and placed your trust in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation; or are you still trusting Jesus and Anthony for your salvation?"

"I am trusting Jesus Christ alone for my salvation."

"Is there anything you can do to save yourself?"

"No."

"Is there anything you can do, like good works, to help Jesus save you?

"No."

We continued to talk for a while. Now the conversation turned to matters of Christian living and some of the wrestling matches that have recently taken place in his conscience. It was as if discipleship had already begun.

I didn't lead Anthony in a "sinner's prayer;" and I didn't declare to Anthony that he was a Christian--two practices that have been responsible for the creation of an unknown number of false converts. But I did put my arm around him and pray for him. I prayed that the Lord would reveal to Anthony whether or not his profession of faith was genuine. I prayed that if Anthony was born again that he would bring forth fruit in keeping with repentance. I prayed that Anthony would grow in his faith, in Christ, and that the Lord would use him for His glory. I also prayed that Anthony would be like the Bereans of old who returned to the Scriptures to make sure everything Paul had told them was true."

While only God knows Anthony's heart, I believe that I saw this young man come to repentance and faith during our conversation. I hope to one-day see him in heaven. In fact, I hope I see him before then. If this young man truly came to repentance and faith, today, I would love to disciple Him in the faith. I gave him all of my contact information and a business card with information about our church. I do hope I see him, again.

Please pray that Anthony's profession of repentance and faith is genuine; and, if it was, that the Lord would allow me to disciple him. If that is not the Lord's will, then pray that the Lord will direct Anthony to a solid, Bible-teaching, Bible-believing church and that the Lord would bring godly men into his life who will help him grow in his faith.

I thank God for the remarkable opportunity he gave me today to share His gospel and, I believe, to watch Him work in a young man's life.

All for His glory!