The church, salvation in Christ, and the seed of the kingdom
Claim examined: Baptism and conversion
Scriptural Answer
You said, "I am a 'Pentecostal', yet you will never find me saying, "To be saved you must belong to the Pentecostal denomination." In order to be a member of the church in which Christ built, the church of Christ, one MUST obey the gospel. There are NO if's, and's or but's to this requirement. If the gospel is God's power to salvation (Romans 1:16) and it is, then those who do NOT obey the gospel will be lost. (2 Thessalonians 1:8). The Pentecostal Church was formed by men and those who are in this denomination are NOT Christians because they are taught to obey Pentecostal doctrine which is NOT in accordance with the word of God. You wrote, "I tell you the blessed truth that salvation is not found in a church or a(any) religious system, but in the person of the Beloved Son of God, Jesus Christ. For a sinner to be saved, he must turn to HIM and trust completely and only in HIM." Yes, salvation is "IN CHRIST", and it is Christ who ADDS one to the church, however, the ONLY way to get "IN CHRIST" is to be baptized INTO Christ. (See Romans 6:3-4; Galatians 3:26-27). Those who claim that one is saved by FAITH ONLY and that baptism does NOT SAVE do ERR not knowing the truth. There are NO Christians outside of the body of Christ, and the body of Christ is the CHURCH. The Bible teaches that salvation is "IN CHRIST" (2 Timothy 2:10) and that to be "IN CHRIST" is to be in the body of Christ, which is the church of Christ (Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22-23; Acts 20:28; Hebrews 9:22; Romans 5:8-9). It is the word of God [the seed of the kingdom] which produces Christians, and NOT the teaching of the Catholic Church NOR any of her Protestant denominations that all came from her. (Luke 8:11). When the seed of God [His word] is planted on GOOD SOIL, the one who BELIEVES AND OBEYS the TRUTH of God's word [they obey the gospel], then [and ONLY then] can that person become a child of God and is ADDED by Jesus to His church, the church of Christ. There is NO other way one can be saved except by OBEDIENCE to the word of God. There are NO Christians who are NOT members of the church for which Jesus died [His church - the church of Christ]!!!
KJV Scriptures Used
Read each passage in its chapter and compare the Scriptures together.