I'm thinking of a word. It could rightly be described as one of the strongest words in the English language. It is also one of the most powerful words in the Bible. I know that doesn't narrow it down enough, so let me give you a hint. This strong, powerful word is used in Hebrews 11:6 - "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
Now I know what you're probably thinking: "Stephen, the key word in Hebrews 11 is 'faith,' so that must be the word you're thinking of." No, that's not it. The word "faith" (or "believe") is certainly important and could rightly be called one of the most important words in the Bible, but the word I'm referring to is also a very strong word in general English usage. Here's another hint: It's a four-letter word, but there is nothing profane about it. In fact, it is the first four-letter word used in Hebrews 11:6. Do you see it?
The word I'm thinking of is "must." Isn't that word a strong one? When we use the word must we are talking about something that is mandatory, something that is absolutely necessary, and something that ought to be done.
Parents tell their children: "You must clean your room before you can play with your friends." Now, if those parents mean what they say, then it is imperative that that child cleans his room if he hopes to play with his friends later. In politics, in order to vote you must be a U.S. citizen of at least 18 years of age. These requirements are absolutely necessary; without meeting them, you cannot vote. We could go on and on with examples of this sort.
"OK, Stephen, I can see that the word must is a very strong English word, but how is it one of the most powerful words in the Bible?" That's what I want to explore in this feature lesson and in our next feature lesson. We will be considering a total of 14 different New Testament passages, all of which make use of the word must. The plan is to briefly explain the verses in their context and try to point out why these verses are important to us today. This exercise will clearly demonstrate the power and importance of the word must. When we see the word must used in the Scriptures we need to realize that something absolutely necessary is being discussed. God isn't just making suggestions; something that is mandatory is being considered. Of course, even when the word isn't used explicitly, there are still many things in the Scriptures that are absolutely required for us to understand and practice today. Jesus used the word must often to refer to what He would do here on Earth and also to what true disciples of His would do after He departed. The word must is used frequently in reference to certain things that man must do to be saved and also to a couple events that eventually all will experience.
Let us begin by considering the word must as it pertains to...
JESUS' MISSION
Now ultimately we know that Jesus' mission was "to seek and to save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). In order for Him to accomplish that goal there were several things that He had to do; there were certain things He said that must be done. For instance, Jesus said in...
John 9:4 - "I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work." Jesus said He had work to accomplish and that He must fulfill it during the day; that is, He desired to accomplish the Father's will but He was limited in the amount of time He had in which to fulfill it. That's what Jesus meant by using the word "day." He was referring to the amount of time that the Father had given. The mentioning of "night" means, of course, the end of the day; that is, the end of the time in which God had allotted.
Several things should be noted: (1) If Christ had work to do for the Father, what about us? What things are we doing to help accomplish the Father's will? and (2) The responsibilities and duties that God has charged us with must be fulfilled during the time that God has given us on this earth. Of course, none of us knows how much time we have, so we must take advantage of every opportunity for the Lord (cf. Gal. 6:10) and we must redeem the time (cf. Col. 4:5). In talking more about His earthly work, Jesus also said...
John 3:14 - "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up" (cf. John 12:32,33; Heb. 9:16). Do you remember when Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness? The event is recorded in Numbers 21:4-9. The children of Israel had become discouraged from their difficult journey and began murmuring again. Consequently, the Lord sent fiery serpents to punish them. Many people were bitten and died. The people confessed their sin, and God instructed Moses to make a fiery serpent of bronze and put it on a pole. When one looked at this serpent after being bitten, he would live, but that was the only way to survive their bite--one must look at the bronze serpent to be healed. Jesus refers to this incident because there are many points of resemblance between it and what He had to do. As the serpent of bronze was raised up a pole, likewise Jesus must be raised up on a cross. Without the serpent of bronze, all who were bitten would have died; without Jesus dying on the cross, all those "bitten by sin" would die eternally condemned. He had to die for the sins of the world if He intended to accomplish His goal of seeking and saving the lost. It was a must! But, in conjunction with His death, what else must take place? Listen to...
John 20:9 - "For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead." Matthew 16:21 also teaches this point - "From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed, and be raised the third day" (cf. Luke 24:44-46; Acts 17:3).
For Jesus to die on the cross is one thing, but without His resurrection from the dead we would have no hope (cf. I Cor. 15:12-19)! Many religious folks today can take you to where the founder of their religion is buried, but we cannot do that for Jesus Christ is alive and well and reigning at the right hand of the Father in heaven (cf. Acts 2:32,33). He isn't still buried for Psalm 16:10 prophesied that He must be risen from the dead, and we know that is exactly what happened!
So, Jesus had to accomplish the Father's work while here on Earth. That included teaching and performing miracles; it also included dying on the cross and being resurrected. But these aren't the only things that Jesus had to do...
John 10:16 - "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." Jesus didn't just come to save the Hebrew people. It is true that His earthly ministry was focused upon them, but His ultimate intention was to make salvation possible for all. I John 2:2 states - "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." Jesus died for the whole world and His plan was to bring the Jews and Gentiles together into one body, His church. This was something He must do, and He did do it (cf. Eph. 2:11ff).
Now let's shift gears a little bit and consider the word must as it pertains to...
MAN'S SALVATION
When studying the Scriptures, it becomes evident that there are several things that must be done in order for one to be saved. Consider...
Acts 16:30 - "And he brought them out and said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'" Here the Philippian jailer asks what he must do to be forgiven of his sins. No doubt the faith and joy that Paul and Silas demonstrated, in the midst of their terrible suffering and persecution, overwhelmed this man. Although they were in stocks in prison, Paul and Silas were able to save this man's physical life, and shortly thereafter, his spiritual life. They kept him from killing himself, for he mistakenly believed that the prisoners had escaped. This was the turning point in his life where voluntarily he fell down before them and asked what he must do for salvation. Paul and Silas gladly told him that he must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and then they went on to explain exactly what it meant to truly believe in Jesus.
After washing their stripes, he and all his family were baptized into Christ that same hour of the night. Paul and Silas told this man to believe, and that most certainly included repenting and being baptized (cf. Acts 2:38). Being immersed was something he had to do to be saved; otherwise why else would they get up and do it in the middle of the night? Similar thoughts are expressed regarding Saul's conversion to Christ...
Acts 9:6 - "So he, trembling and astonished, said, 'Lord, what do You want me to do?' Then the Lord said to him, 'Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.'" When he went into Damascus, he waited three days to be told what he must do. All that time he fasted and prayed. When Ananias came to him, he restored his sight and only told him to do one thing--be baptized to wash away your sins (cf. Acts 22:16). That was something Paul had to do. We could make similar comments regarding Cornelius' conversion (cf. Acts 10:6,48), but let's instead focus upon what Jesus Himself said that man must do in order to be saved...
John 3:7 - "Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'" Earlier in that passage Jesus had said - "Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). The New Testament teaches that one is "born of water and the Spirit" when he believes the word which the Spirit gave and is immersed in water for the forgiveness of his sins (note the parallel passages of Eph. 5:26 and Titus 3:5). Jesus made it plain--one must be born again to be saved. Let's briefly note one last verse regarding what man must do to be saved...
Acts 4:12 - "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Jesus is the only answer to man's sin problem. Salvation is only found in His name. Jesus Himself said - "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). Jesus also said, "If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins" (John 8:24). Salvation is impossible outside of Christ. If one is going to be saved, he must find salvation in Jesus!
We will conclude this study in our next feature lesson. Thank you for listening, and may the Lord bless you as you strive to do His will.