Wednesday, March 28, 2007
"How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?" (Tara's post)
During one of years I was a nanny, I helped the kids prepare gift packages for soldiers overseas. I wanted them to understand what was going on and that these soldiers are real people. Our soldier wrote back through email, and the conversation turned spiritual. The following is really a series of emails pasted together from that conversation. The man professed Christ a few weeks later. I lost touch with him over a year ago. I saved the emails hoping I could share it with others. It's not exhaustive, nor may all of it be true, but it's candid and personal.
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My goal in writing this out is not to "convert" you. That is contradictory to salvation--it is the work of the Holy Spirit that draws a heart to faith, it is Christ who carried out that work (in its intirety), and it is God the Father who, out of love, does the saving. Man could never boast in the matter of salvation--we are simply told to tell it because nobody needs to hear it any more or any less than we did. But the common factor is that we ALL need to hear it. "How then shall they call upon Him in Whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a *preacher?" (Romans 10:14). (* "preacher" meaning someone to tell them. I'm definitely NOT an ordained preacher!)
My father was the one who led me to the Lord as a child. He didn't HAVE to teach me what the Bible says. He could have let me explore the world and its religions and churches on my own (which, knowing my inquisitive personality, would have left me pretty messed up!). But he didn't. He cared enough to sit down with me and read to me passages of God's Word and to tell me that its possible for a little sinner like me to be absolutely certain about my salvation. Jesus said, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that you have eternal life, and that you may believe on the name of the Son of God" (I John 5:13). I am thankful my dad shared with me that I might have that assurance.
You can have that assurance, too.
Just know that these words and efforts to help you understand are from my heart. Not to blame or criticize or accuse. That is not my job. I see I'm already starting to ramble, so forgive my introduction/disclaimer and all I ask is that you read this with an open heart.
When it comes down to it, we are ALL in the same boat. We are all human--more alike than different--and I believe that deep down, we are all DESPERATE to know the truth. Pontius Pilate asked that very question in "The Passion of the Christ". I realize it is a movie, but there was a line where he said, "What is truth?" Well, I tell you today that Jesus made a bold claim in John 14: 6 when He said, "I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life..." This truth leads us to a crossroads. We can either accept it or deny it. Believing in God is easy. Even Satan believes in God--and the Bible says that he shudders at the name of Jesus. We can have all the facts, but the truth must be clung to--trusted in. That is a HUGE distinction.
Now, because I do not know your spiritual condition (a.k.a., whether or not you are saved according to the Bible) I must tell you what it says about salvation and what a Christian is really about. Like I said, there are a multitude of misconceptions, and I hope this letter dismantles all of the unbiblical "Christian" influences you might have come across. You have made it clear that you have some doubts and/or uncertainties about your faith. How about this--would you be able to tell me you know for certain where you will be the moment you die? This is hard-core stuff, I know! Yet putting these questions out of consideration until we lie stricken like my grandma did at age 89 is cutting it a bit too close, wouldn't you say?
I mean, none of us has a clue what tomorrow holds for us. Proverbs 27:1 says this, "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth." I'm sure you understand this all too well. I have watched too many of my peers slip into eternity at the drop of ahat to ignore the reality of that verse. Sometimes it is easy for me to take for granted all the simple necessities GOd has given to sustain me--traveling mercies on the road; healthy, working organs; fresh, clean air to breathe, etc. It is only because God is gracious to us that such needs are met. However, these and other provisions may be taken away in the blink of an eye and, probably sooner than we think , our hour of decision will be over.
I know what you are thinking--"She said she wasn't going to judge my spiritual condition!" You are right. Only God can judge a heart and, believe me, He knows our hearts better than we ever could. That's why He was so gracious in giving us His Word. In the Bible we see just how short we fall in comparison to God's holiness and righteousness. It is impossible to live above sin, and the person who claims he does is to claim he is a sinner. It is a lie, but we are good at deceiving ourselves that way. I know I am. I tend to justify wrong actions because the cause is "good". Well, that don't cut it in God's eyes. Let me tell you why. Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The heart is DECEITFUL above all things, and desperately WICKED: who can know it?" Ouch. That means we don't even realize the full extent of our imperfection. We deceive ourselves into thinking we are pretty good individuals. I John 1:8 says, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive our own selves, and the truth is not in us." I don't think I have to prove this point any longer.
The good news is that God gave us a Book that reveals this to us! Otherwise we'd be a hopeless cause. Take the 10 commandments, for example. God didn't give us the law so that we would be a slave to that law. He gave it to us so that we might be FREE from it! Free, first of all, from the BONDAGE TO sin (unable to do right) and, second, free from the PENALTY FROM sin (which is spiritual death, which we will see in a minute). The passage of Galatians 5:1-5 talks in detail about this.
I don't have to tell you that, while freedom is glorious, it doesn't come free. It costs people their lives. It is the same with God. Freedom came to us by the shed blood and finished work of Christ. That was a high price! You also know that in America, our freedom does not exist without limitations. We cannot go out and kill someone, exceed the speed limit, or rob a bank. Likewise, freedom in Christ is just as glorious and liberating, but there are limitations. Just let you find those limitations in God's Word--don't let man tell you what is right or wrong. Who is holy, after all?
So you see, by looking into the mirror of Scripture, we see who we are. It is not difficult to see our sin. The Bible explains that sin is defined as anything, either an outward act or an inward thought and/or motive, which goes against the very moral nature of God. And we established that His ruler is pretty high. He is absolute perfection. In Hebrew the word sin means "to miss the mark". The fact that we have but one selfish bitter or untruthful (just to name a few) bone in our body bears strong witness to the fact that we are indeed sinners. James 2:10 provides this sobering truth, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in ONE point, he is guilty of ALL."
I mean, think about it. I've never killed anyone. I've never robbed that bank, used drugs, nor have I committed adultery. I've kept the law, right? W-e-e-e-ell, I suppose I might have lied a few times...a-a-and I've cheated once or twice (*gasp*).....a-a-a-and I admit I've had some shameful thoughts and motives--more like on a daily basis. (Ok, we can stop there!) All I konw is that I fall short of keeping God's commands. For all have sinned and have fallen short of God's glory" (Romands 3:23). Even if I lied but ONE time or conjured up but ONE selfish thought, I would be a condemned sinner and on my way to hell.
However, consider this... Not only are we sinners by our actions, thoughts, and motives, Friend, but we are essentially BORN with a SIN NATURE. Even little toddlers do not need to be told how to lie, steal, etc. I work with children--I know this all too well! "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that ALL have sinned." (Romans 5:12). Our sin nature is passed down to us from Adam, but we can't just blame the "first guy"--we are each just as responsible for and are as much at the mercy of sin's consequences as Adam was when he ate the forbidden fruit.
Since I have already delved slightly into the question of whether or not man is inherenly evil, lets go there next. I guess we'll start with the Moody's Handbook of Theology brief discription of total depravity: As a result of Adam's fall, the entire human race is affected; all humanity is dead in trespasses and sins. Man is unable to save.
Ok, so when Adam sinned, all future humanity was plunged into sin. Not only did sin effect the created world (death, disease, deterioration, weather, animal preditors, etc.), but it affected man, who became enslaved to his sin nature. He still had a free will but was only able to freely choose what was consistent with his fallen nature. "What then? are we better than they? no, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no not one: There is none who understands, there is none who seeks after God. They are all gone out of the way. They are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no not one" (Romans 3:9-11).
Now, sin permeates every part of man's being. In other words, man is totally depraved. *In the BODY: "And if Christ be in you, the BODY is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness" (Romans 8:10). *In the MIND: "And be not conformed to this world: but be you transformed by the renewing of your MIND, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God" (Romans 12:2). *In the WILL: "There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God" (Romans 3:11).*In the HEART: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it" (Jeremiah 17:9).
Total depravity does NOT mean that unsaved man has no desire to do right or can do nothing considered good, nor does it mean that he is as wicked as he can be. Total depravity means that sin has corrupted every part of man's being so that he can do nothing that pleases God. He us unable to love God, he does not seek God, he cannot choose God, and can do nothing that merits his salvation. (See Romans 3:9-23 for some characteristics of the inherently sinful man.)
Every member of the human race experiences the impact of sin. There is not a single human that has not been affected by sin. "For God so loved THE WORLD" (John 3:16). "And as it is appointed unto man once to die, and after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).
There might be a question about Isaiah 64:6, "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." The point of that verse is not to say that everything we do is worthless. It is saying that the unsaved person's righteousnesses are worthless in terms of satisfying God's payment for sin. This does not mean that God does not use our sinful actions, though they may appear good through man's eyes, to carry out His providential plan for the ages (which in turn gives them some value). Don't let the "filthy rags" comparison fool you. I'm not saying that there are some good things are happening in the world, but society is not looking through the eyes of a holy and righteous God. While these positive contributions are used by God in a physical sense, they don't score any "points" with Him spiritually. That's because the power of sin is separating us from an all-holy God who will not commune in the fellowship of sin/sinners.
To me that just makes God all the more loving and compassionate for sending His Son Jesus to pay the penalty for our sins--so that we wouldn't have to. God wouldn't let us continue in our broken relationship with Him. He wants our friendship and love, and He doesn't want to have to force us to give it, either. God loves every one of His creation, but without that PERFECT, SINLESS sacrifice to make atonement for our sins, we cannot be justified in God's eyes and we would ALL perish and be forever separated from God if He didn't. Jesus was the go-between. If we don't claim the blood to cover our sins, our works (at least works to please God) are still in vain.
Those who you say are doing such and such for the cause of God are not being truthful IF they have not had Christ's blood to their account. We are enemies of God before we are saved--we cannot do ANYTHING for the God's causes if we have not first placed our trust in Christ's finished work on the cross. They may do much for society, they may love their family, and they may serve this country with utmost dedication, but they don't please God. "But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). See also Romans 6:18, "Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness.
When God looks upon a person who has not placed their faith in Christ for salvation, He still sees their sin. On the contrary, when they trust Christ, God sees the sacrifice of Christ as a veil between Himself and the individual. He sees that they have been justified by grace through faith. Someone can say they are living for God, but if Christ is not in the picture, it all goes back to "the heart is deceitful...who can know it?" The passage of Matthew 7:21-23 is a wake-up call to those who call themselves "religious" or think they are "a-ok" with God. "Not everyone that will say unto me, 'Lord Lord', shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, 'Lord Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? and in Your name have cast out devils? and in Your name done many wonderful works?' And then will I profess unto them, 'I never knew you: depart from Me, you that work iniquity."
What IS the consequence of our sin? Separation from God, which is eternal spiritual death in hell. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is DEATH..." Then there's Epesians 2:1, which says, "..."without Christ we are dead in [our] trespasses and sins." We need God to quicken our spiriits to reveal our need for a Savior and to then give us spiritual birth. "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of heaven." It's that simple.
Did you know that any prayer we pray to God before placing our faith in Christ is NOT HEARD?! Did you catch that? Prayer is utter vanity without Christ as our mediator. God cannot be in the presence of sin. But if we have Christ's righteoueness (perfection) to cover that sin, God is satisfied by Christ's atoning sacrifice and only then does he hear our prayers. But before then, "Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty regrad it" (Job 35:13). That is a scary thought. But once again, John 14:6 ends with this statement, "...no one comes to the Father except through Me (Jesus)." It's the truth.
Our problem: We are enemies of God because of our sin and, therefore, condemned.
His solution: Faith in the saving work of Christ on the cross to provide forgiveness and new life to all who will claim it through Him!
So now we know that we are sinners and, therefore, in BIG trouble without Divine help. We cannot do it on our own. We are not good enough, and we could never be on our own. So many people think that if they do enough good things then God is obligated to let them into heaven. Think about this, if salvation had to be earned by good works or by living morally, doing so would take the glory away from God. He alone is the one who saves. We CANNOT save ourselves. Doing good works in order to merit eternal life is BRIBERY. It is like telling God that He doesn't have the power or resources to save us and that, somehow, WE do. GOD is GOD, for goodness sake--He spoke this intricate and marvelous universe into creation and in a WEEK without our help. Surely he can save us apart from our help. As if we possess some spiritual ability to deceive God by covering up our sin with outward cheritable and righteous acts! God is not and will not be fooled. The Bible says that "Without FAITH it is IMPOSSIBLE to please [God]" (Hebrews 11:6). Until God saves us, "All our righteousness are as filthy rags" Isaiah 64:6). Did you get that? Before we place our faith in Christ for salvation, anything good that we do, no matter how noble or seemingly selfless, God views as WORTHLESS as FILTHY RAGS. This is a humbling concept, but they are God's words, not my words, nor anyone else's. And when God speaks, we'd better listen!
So we are dirty, rotten sinners. We cannot save ourselves. We are separated from God because of our sin and on our way to hell. What a great life! Well, thank goodness God made a way to redeem us from our sloppy mess. I don't have to tell you that God sent His Son Jesus to the earth to die for our sins. So we ARE ok, then, right? Well, yes and no. Yes, because of Christ's sacrifice as the ONLY worthy sacrifice to cover sin because He was perfect. So here's the question: Since Jesus died for the whole world, shouldn't every person, then, be saved? Especially if it is not based on the works of man?? The Bible says no. Yes, John 3:16 is true with it says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son..." The cross is the extension of God's INVITATION to salvation to the whole world. We are all the same at the foot of the cross, regardless of nationality, race, or gender. But as the verse continues, ..."that WHOSOEVER BELIEVES..." It's true that Jesus' blood covered the sins of the whole world--past, present, and future, in fact. (thank goodness, because I have a lot of them!
In a nutshell, God is holy, that is fact. "Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (I Peter 1:16). Man is evil, regardles of what he may think himself to be or how society views him. (See Jeremiah 17:9 again.) God sees this dilemma and offers Christ's righteousness to man so that man can have a new nature. Man must accept that righteousness personally to be holy in God's eyes. To accept is more than just an intellectual knowledge. "Sure, I believe Jesus died for my sins." It is an act by which he places his trust in the work of Christ for his salvation, not in anything he has ever done or will do. There's a verse that says, "..."without the shedding of blood there is no remission (forgiveness of sins)" (Hebrews 9:22).
Yet here's the important difference in the form of two questions:
1. Did Christ's death and resurrection PROVIDE salvation for all men? YES! "...behole the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the WORLD" (John 1:29).
2. Did Christ's death and resurrection APPLY salvation to all men? NO! "...and to give His life a ransom for MANY" (Matthew 20:28).
This last verse doesn't say that ALL will be ransomed. God does NOT automatically grant salvatoin to every person, but it certainly is AVAILABLE and FREELY OFFERED to those who accept Jesus' blood for the cleansing of their sin. We are justified "freely by His grace" (I John 12:1-2). It must be personally accepted. It is ours for the claiming, but so many do not receive it.
You might ask, "How do I know if God chose me?" Isaiah 44:2a says, "I am your Creator. You were in my care even before you were born." The Bible says that we were not only created BY Him, but we were created FOR Him. Ephesians 1:5 & 14 tell us that individuals God chooses to save are saved "according to the good pleasure of His will...to the praise of His glory." We are saved for no other reason, Friend, than to GLORIFY GOD, which is why we are here in the first place. It's why God created this world at all. God gives us all the choice to accept or reject Him, and just in our sin nature we have rejected God. John 3:17 says, "For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved." Verse 18 goes on to tell us why, "He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but HE THAT BELIEVETH NOT IS CONDEMNED ALREADY, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." The default mode of a person is to reject Him. So is it mean of God to let so many die in their sins? No, for the reason that He gave them the choice, they failed. Christ isn't in the condemning business because there isn't a person who ever lived that hasn't already condemned himself by his nature. The fact is, GOD DOESN'T HAVE TO SAVE ANYONE. That's why what He gives us is called grace: undeserved merit. God's Riches At Christ's Expense.
It's a wonder that God would choose to save me. Why?? I don't understand it because I have nothing to offer to Him except my "filthy rags". But we just cannot fully understand the amazing and infinite wisdom of God. He has a purpose for every single act. But I'm not going to question a good thing, that is for sure! Consider this verse about God's wisdom. This is an amazing verse. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9).
Get this: "[God] isn't willing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance" (II Peter 3:9). Christ WANTS to save you.
I can sense that you probably have a million questions, this letter just adding to that list, so I will expound more on what exactly Christianity means. Simply put, Christianity is about a RELATIONSHIP with the God of the Universe. As we have seen, we cannot gain access to God without Christ. You might have heard that "relationship" phrase before but maybe wondered what it meant. Christianity is about FAITH--not in a priest, or pastor, or Jim Caviezel--but in Christ's work on the cross as the ONLY and NECESSARY and SUFFICIENT way to merit that relationship with God. You don't have to know all the facts in the Bible to be saved, I promise you! Hey, I was 5!!! However, no one can rely on another's decision of faith, and that includes family members. God judges us as individuals, and saves us as individuals. We will have to answer for ourselves. We must each accept that our access to God is granted by no other means than through His Son.
Why? I Timothy 1:5 says, "For there is one God, and ONE mediator between God and men, the man, Christ Jesus." That puts to rest any other religious figures as a means to salvation.
I would say that the majority of they that call themselves Christian "know" that Jesus died for their sins. I'm sure you do, too. Yet, I ask this question: Is that an intellectual knowledge or a personal claim??? There is a crucial distinction there, and I dare say that far too many who call themselves Christians are hoping with just an empty "head knowledge" of the gospel message. They don't let its message reach their hearts. I don't kow how you would answer that question, but I hope and pray that you will at least consider these truths for your own heart and life. I can't stress the simplicity enough! "...believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you SHALL be saved..." (Acts 16:31).
Important to note: While salvation IS simple, it is NOT what some call "easy believism". This philosophy of salvation dares takes advantage of God's ample supply of grace. Others refer to this type of salvation as "earning fire insurance from hell". How morbid! Easy believism involves quoting a "magic" prayer of sorts that supposedly serves as the pray-er's ticket into heaven. Life thereafter is typically lived without regard to God or the Bible. Remember, freedom does have limitations. I say this just to caution you...
On the other hand, salvation really is FREE! Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that NOT of yourselves. It is a GIFT of GOD; not of works, lest anyone should boast." There is nothing more we can do to receive salvation than to........receive it!! Think about this: a birthday gift isn't yours until you take it. Claim it. Accept it. You do not receive it on the basis of merit. It's your birthday, for goodness sake, and the giver is extending the gift to you because he LOVES YOU. Likewise with God and his gift of salvation. "But God commendeth His own love toward us that, while we were yet sinners (now that's amazing grace!) Christ died for us" (Romand 5:8). It would be pretty sad if we had to work a number of hours or days in order to EARN a BIRTHDAY GIFT! It certainly wouldn't be a gift then, no matter how attractive the wrapping! See my comparison? Nobody receives your gift for you; YOU don't receive anyone else's gift for them. No, you claim it FOR yourself, BY yourself. And no one claims it for you. God is extending His gift of salvation. All we have to do is receive it into our hands and open it, free of charge! God will save whom He wills, and when He gives us the opportunity, we should take it!
BUT before we can receive God's gift of salvation, we must first realize that we NEED it. If it's not our birthday, why would we receive a gift that was meant especially FOR our birthday? Each one of us must come to a point in our lives when we put our life on trial; when we examine our heart. However, we cannot discover the depths of our sinfulness and merely shrug it off. When God reveals our sin to us, we MUST do something with the verdict!
That's why it is SO important to stress the PERSONAL aspect of faith. We can watch "The Passion of the Christ" and feel bad that the Son of God had to endure such brutal and unjust torture. (He was found without guilt, right?) But we MUST realize that each one of OUR sins were heaped upon Christ at the moment He cried from the cross, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me" (Matthew 27:46)? In that dreadful, but actually bittersweet moment, every sinful action or thought of ours was placed upon Jesus, causing Him to become the filthiest liar, dirtiest adulterer, most horrendous murderer, most senseless thief, craftiest cheat, ugliest idolator, and the list continues. (See I Peter 2:24.) He CHOSE to do that so that we wouldn't have to! Amazing love!
In my own life, I had to come to grips with the intensity and extent of my sin that so directly contrasted the holiness of God. God and sin don't mix, by the way. That's why God turned His face away from Jesus on the cross, and which is why sinners cannot enter heaven unless they have the blood applied to their souls. God cannot stand to even look upon sin. It cannot be in His presence. Because Christ took upon Himself and paid its penalty (death, separation from the Father), God is able to apply Christ's righteousness (sinlessness) to our account. He stamped His approval on us with Jesus' wounds! After we place our faith in Christ, God no longer sees our sin, but His son's righteousness given to us. That's called JUSTIFICATION, or to be justified. I like to remember it this way: "Just-if-I'd never sinned." God then hears our prayers and Hebrews 4:16 says that we can "come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." My friend, this concept is not only a thrill when grasped, but a relief also!
That is why there is NO MORE GUILT for the Christian. All our guilt and shame fall upon Christ. We are given a new nature through the righteousness of Jesus. Our SIN IS GONE. Now, please understand, we will never be entirely rid of our old sin nature as long as we live on this earth. The Christian life is a battle. (This is boot camp! :) ) BUT with the Holy Spirit in our lives to help us and to convict us when temptations and trials come, we are no longer SLAVES to that sin nature. Hallelujah! We no longer HAVE TO sin. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, whoseover commits sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34). Jesus says that when we are saved, "old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new!" God removes us from that bondage. The Holy Spirit helps us resist temptation. Just as Christ had victory over in, so can we--but only if we have been saved. That doesn't mean resisiting temptation comes easily for the believer. It still takes work and is a struggle that is part of a lifelong process called SANCTIFICATION (the continual conforming into the image of Jesus Christ). However, we have GOd on our side to help us progress in our growth, and then to be there for us in our darkest hours of trials, troubles, disappointments, fears, etc. "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able; but with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it" (I Corinthians 10:13). What a reassuring verse!
Now, a word about churches, if I may. There are definitely many good churches out there that clearly teach what the Bible says. But I am sorry to say that there is a lot of JUNK in many other churches today. I mean, there are some CRAZY things going on that God never intended, and that is never taught in Scripture! Trust me...these types of churches do NOT set the standard for true biblical Christianity. They give not only Christians, but Christ a bad testimony. The Bible says to "BEWARE of false prophets (teachers), which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are raveging wolves" (Matthew 7:15). A good rule of thumb is to find a church that presents TRUTH, the WHOLE TRUTH, and NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH.......which is ONLY found in the Bible.
God did not intend people to base their doctrine on a man-invented interpretation of the Bible. They don't need one because the Bible is quite clear. It is sufficient for EVERY life-encounter, situation, and problem. It ALONE holds the answers. Many churches do not declare the Bible as the highest authority for faith and practice. That's where all the denominational variation comes into play. Which one is right? Well, I'll leave that up to you, but I will say this very important statement: Cchurches that elevate ritual , tradition, good works, writings of man, man's own interpretation, OR, God forbid, man himself above the Bible are NOT presenting Scriptural truth. II Timothy 3:16 says, "ALL SCRIPTURE is given by inspiration of God, and is PROFITABLE for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."
I don't claim to have all the answers. You want to know a secret? CHURCHES don't have all the answers, either! The fact is, Christianity ISN'T about church. Oh, it is very important, as I stated. I attend regularly and teach primary Sunday School, but that doesn't make me more spiritual. It won't get me a bigger mansion with an ocean view! To reiderate, Christianity isn't about infant baptism (which is not even doctrinal to begin with!), nor is it about ritual, tradition, morality, or a certain prayer, either. Christianity isn't about feeling imprisoned, or miserable, or bored, or guilty, or unfulfilled. (It is quite the opposite!) Christianity isn't even about religion! This might sound oxymoronic, but it's true in the biblical sense!
Please note: Christ is KEY to life. He is not just a historical figure or symbol or a concept we take a moment (if even that) to think about at Christmas and Easter. Christianity is not some game, some worship concert that sets us on a spiritual high, only to drive us to rock bottom once we snap back to the real world. The apostle Paul confessed, "For to me to live is CHRIST, and to die is gain" (Phippians 1:21). Through Christ we have a reason for living. We have purpose in the little, mundane, routine activities of the day when we stop to consider that God has placed us on this earth at this tie in this place for reasons He wants to reveal to us if we just let Him. He did this NOT by chance, but but by Divine appointment. We are all meant to live for SO much more than the vanity of living for ourselves. What is life if all we do is get married, have kids, make money, grow old, and die? Christ came that we "might have life, and that [we] might have life more abndantly" (John 10:10). And then, after we've breathed our last, to die will TRULY be GAIN. I cannot begin to fathom the splendor of heaven!
Do you have abundant life, Friend? Do you live with the joy of knowing your work, your efforts, yor daily activities are not in vain, but that you are part of God's plan for the Ages? Are you satisfied with where your life is right now? Do you feel fulfilled? Are you sick and tired of the sugar-coated lies this world tries to sell to us? Have you found that too many "Christians" are hypocrites, really no different from the rest of the world? Have you discovered "organized religion" to be nothing but empty, heartless ritual? Do you wish you had an unshakable peace when the storms of life blow through? Now I ask not if you HAVE abundant life, but do you WISH you had abundant life?
I implore you today, Christ died for YOU, Friend, because He loves YOU. God konws all about our bumps and scars and weaknesses and inadequacies....and yet, He displayed HIs love for us to the utmost. "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). I find it hard to believe that God could love someone like me, as I continue to fail Him time and time again. You know, there are people we will fail in this life that just can't overlook our mistakes and faults, no matter how sorry we are. God knows when we are about to fail Him even before it is a thought and yet, His love remains constant. Knowing that fact overwhelms me with gratitude! He's always waiting with open arms for me to come back to Him. God knows us, who we really are, and He still wants to give us His every possession. I don't konw about you, but NO ONE has ever loved me like that before!
Christianity isn't about religion...it's about Christ. Christianity isn't about "fitting in" at a church. Christianit isn't about duty or obligation. It IS, however, about God's grace that can find the worth in the worthless. It IS about discovering that there is more to this life than JUST this life. I'll say it again--Christianity isn't about religion....it's about Christ.
Remember that birthday gift? Well, once we've received it, it's ours. To keep. We get to reap all the wonderful benefits of what's inside the wrapping. Likewise, when we accept God's gift of salvation, we get to reap the benefits. Remember this acrostic? God's Riches At Christ's Expense. His riches are free.
Salvation can really be understood with childlike simplicity. I know because God saved me when I was a little girl. I don't boast in that like it was my doing, but God's timing is as much mystery as His wisdom. At the time I was saved, I had no idea what doctrine meant. I only knew that I was a sinner and that I needed a Savior. That God sent His Son Jesus to be that Savior. That's it. I believed. I trusted. I placed my faith in HIS work on the cross. However you want to say it. I was just as completely saved that day as I am today. It took no less of God's grace to save me from the sins of a child--but remember, past, present, and FUTURE sins, too--as it takes for a mass-murderer to be saved. My testimony may not be as interesting or gripping as some of the sob-story-conversions I hear at church or on the radio, but my story is just as beautiful a picture of God's love as anyone's story....even yours.
Do you want to be saved, Friend? I would be happy to answer any more questions you want to fire at me. I don't care what they are. You might ask, HOW DO I GET SAVED? Well, I'm glad you asked! :) Having realized you are a sinner, as we all are, the Bible says, "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, YOU SHALL BE SAVED. For with the HEART man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:9). Faith grows in the heart, and you express it with words. (I personally believe that in order for salvation to not be a work of man, the faith we place in Christ has to be the gift of God. That's because I know I could never muster up enough faith on my own!) This verse in Romans does not say that you MIGHT be saved...if you say the right words. NO! It says that you SHALL--you WILL--be saved. It's a promise, and one thing God can't do is break a promise! "These things I have written unto you--that you may KNOW that you have eternal life" (I John 5:13). As we ackknowledge Jesus' work on the cross as payment for our sins, we receive the cleansing and forgiveness from His blood sacrifice.
Don't worry that you feel you have to totally clean up your life before coming to Christ. He asks that we come as we are. Let the Holy Spirit do the rest. It has been said that "God loves us just the way we are..." which is true! He does! The quote finishes, "...but He loves far too much to leave us that way." It is God who helps us to live right. Remember, we are insufficient of ourselves.
Now that you have read how to place your faith in Christ (I told you it was simple! And it doesn't involve works), you might wonder, SHOULD I GET SAVED RIGHT NOW? Yes! "Behold, NOW is the accepted time; NOW is the day fo salvation" (II Corinthians 6:2b). Why wait when life is so uncertain? Settle it now and find peace you never knew existed. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have PEACE with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). As you read this, you have THIS moment, this one opportunity to receive Christ. It may be your last. As a demonstration (but NOT as a means to your faith), why don't you call upon the Lord in prayer and trust Him NOW. Talk to Him like the "Friend" He wants to be in your life. Trust that God WILL save you because He promises to. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord SHALL be saved" (Romans 10:13).
Placing one'sr faith in Christ is THE most imporant event in anyone's life. I just cannot adequately describe the peace and the joy and the hope that salvation brings! Let me say again that you are not saved by praying a prayer. Faith must be an outgrowth of a heart drawn by the Holy Spirit to the truth of Christ. Trusting Jesus is a ONE TIME DECISION in your life. The moment you believe in Christ, God will give you eternal life!! Once you have believed, God accepts you as His child!! Friend, with that faith, you need to believe that you do not measure up to God's standard of righteousness and that you cannot get rid of your sin on your own. Believe that Jesus is, as He claimed, the only one who can save you from your sins. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that hears My word and believes on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto LIFE" (John 5:24). Turn from your sins and invite Christ into your life. To "repent" is a turning FROM somethig and a turning TO something. FROM sin TO God. "If we confess our sins, He is FAITHFUL to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness" (I John 1:9).
All I know is that nothing I have to say that sounds impressive or believable will make up your mind about this matter of salvation. I'm simply relaying God's invitation to you. In other words, He wants you to RSVP...ASAP. "Behold, NOW is the accepted time, behold NOW is the day of salvation" (II Corinthians 6:2). Why not settle the issue this very moment, Friend? Not just for peace of mind, but for a life of purpose and for a heavenly Father who wants to use you in ways you could never imagine. Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). If you trust Christ today, this will be the start of abundant life in Christ! "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundandtly" (John 10:10).
If you are sincerely ready to take this important step, just talk to God right now and express your faith in His Son and that you need His forgiveness. That's all there is to it! In the event that you find a SAMPLE prayer helpful, here is one. Remember, this it is not the words expressed that matters, it is the FAITH.
The following comes from a booklet by Max Lucado called, "Give it All to Him":
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).
"What was Jesus thinking when He made this comment? Was He offering a chiched response to someone's need? 'Hey, whatever I can do. Give me a call.'Was He kidding? Or was He serious?Jesus appeals to us to bring Him those things that burden us and weigh us down. We weren't made to live with sin but designed to live forever. We think we can do it for a time, then realize it's just too heavy. The wight of our sins, our failures, and our worries is too much for one person to carry alone. Jesus wants them all.During this simple prayer, it's time to take your bags to the street. It's Friday morning. Trash day. And soon, it will all be gone.
"Dear God,I have been carrying around sacks of shame, worry, pain, resentment, and failure for too long. I have tried to live with the guilt and hurt, but they've grown heavy. My arms ache. My heart grieves. I can't move forward any longer. I realize that freedom begins not only by confessing my sin but by giving it to You. Once my sins are released from me to You, then You take my burden to the cross and there dispose of it. Forever. I once carried failure, but now I have forgiveness. I once carried hate, but now I have hope.I once carried fear, but now I have freedom.Thank You for removing the garbage of my life. No longer is my life the same ol' story. Now there is a new beginning. I am free because it is all in Your hands. Amen."
Here is a more direct prayer, but don't say it unless you mean it....
Dear God, I admit that I have sinned. I believe that You sent Your Son, Jesus, to take the punishment I deserve. Then You raised Him to life again, so that I may have eternal life. I turn now from my sins and ask You to firgive me. Please come into my life and be my Savior and Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen."
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Chrst, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an inheritance, incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last day" (I Peter 1:3-5).
WHAT A PROMISE!
You might have just prayed a prayer of faith. If you did accept Christ, you might now ask, HOW CAN I BE SURE I AM SAVED FOREVER? God said so. "God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: He has said, and shall He do it? Or has he spoken, and shall he not make it good (Numbers 23:19)? In the next verse, Jesus is referring to Himself as the Shepherd, and His children, the sheep: "My sheep hear my voice, and I knew them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish; NEITHER SHALL ANY MAN PLUCK THEM OUT OF MY FATHER'S HAND" (John 10:27-29). Now THAT'S assurance! Here's another kicker, "...for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that HE IS ABLE to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day" (II Timothy 1:22b). That is because we aren't trusting in ourseves to keep our salvation. We are trusting in God. Some days, Friend, you are not going to feel saved. You might feel like the whole world is against you or you will be physically worn or especially troubled about something...but take heart, if you place your faith in Christ, you are saved forever!
If you have NOT responded to God's offer of salvation, I again encourage you to let me know how else I can help. If you HAVE accepted Christ, you might ask, WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE? God is not going anywhere, and He isn't in a hurry. He will teach you more about Himself as you read His Word. I would be happy to suggest some specific passages of Scripture or even send you some great biblically-based outside material. The Christian life is a journey, to put it in a nutshell. At times I still take baby steps in my faith and walk with God, and once in a while I need to check to see if I am even going in the right direction!
Proverbs 3:5-6 says,"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Growing in the likeness of Christ is a process, and one that will take the rest of our lives. God knows we aren't perfect and that we aren't goingto be in this life. While Christians are not exempt of the hardships and troubles of life, it is SO comforting to konw that God is right there with us, both in cheering us on to victory, and in picking us up and brushing us off when we fall. "Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).
"And He said, I will NEVER leave you, nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
I appeal to you, "Seek the Lord whie He may be found, call upon Him while He is near" (Isaiah 55:6).
*****
There's no greater peace than having assurance of one's position in Christ and eternal destiny. Since I was saved at such a young age, for the longest time I didn't know if I had really been old enough to realize what I was doing. Questions of doubt would plague my mind. What if I wasn't truly sincere? What if I said the wrong words? I was only 5, so maybe I didn't understand what I was doing!
It wasn't until junior high at family camp when the youth evangelist spoke on assurance of salvation. One comment he made hit me hard. He challenged us to stop asking ourselves whether or not we really had trusted Christ back then. Instead, to ask ourselves the question, "Am I trusting NOW?" And, "Do I see the fruit of the Spirit in my life to evidence that salvation?"
That moment of realization was monumental in my life as a Christian. It was imperative for me to remember that it is NOT up to ME to seal my eternal destination. All Christ asks for is a mustard seed of faith and He promises that no one can pluck me out of the Father's hand. NOTHING can separate me from the love of God. God's grace is not conditional to my feelings. If it was, I would need to be saved every single day...because some days I don't "feel" saved, as Mark Lowry would put it.
After hearing that message as a pre-teen emotional rollercoaster I realized that I was indeed trusting Christ alone for my salvation. And when I drift away from Him (as I do on occasion) I KNOW I am still saved because it is not I who has done the saving and securing, it is GOD. (Thank goodness for that, huh!) During times of rebellion or spiritual lethargy I know that it is only a matter of fellowship with the Lord that needs addressing, NOT eternal security. (See John 15 concerning the admonition to abide in Christ.) When I stray, it is that heavenly lifeline that has been severed and merely needs to be reconnected through confession and repentence. Yet, if I never confess of another sin to my death (although intimacy with God ought to be more highly desired!), because of CHRIST and HIS righteousness, my soul will ever be with the Lord. Praise God!!
Satan would have us doubt...that way we won't do anything great for God. But like that old Imperials song goes, "Satan is a liar, and he wants to make us think we are paupers...when he knows himself that we're children of the King! So lift up the mighty shield of faith for the battle must be won. Jesus Christ is risen and the work's already done so praise the Lord!"
*****
My goal in writing this out is not to "convert" you. That is contradictory to salvation--it is the work of the Holy Spirit that draws a heart to faith, it is Christ who carried out that work (in its intirety), and it is God the Father who, out of love, does the saving. Man could never boast in the matter of salvation--we are simply told to tell it because nobody needs to hear it any more or any less than we did. But the common factor is that we ALL need to hear it. "How then shall they call upon Him in Whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a *preacher?" (Romans 10:14). (* "preacher" meaning someone to tell them. I'm definitely NOT an ordained preacher!)
My father was the one who led me to the Lord as a child. He didn't HAVE to teach me what the Bible says. He could have let me explore the world and its religions and churches on my own (which, knowing my inquisitive personality, would have left me pretty messed up!). But he didn't. He cared enough to sit down with me and read to me passages of God's Word and to tell me that its possible for a little sinner like me to be absolutely certain about my salvation. Jesus said, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that you have eternal life, and that you may believe on the name of the Son of God" (I John 5:13). I am thankful my dad shared with me that I might have that assurance.
You can have that assurance, too.
Just know that these words and efforts to help you understand are from my heart. Not to blame or criticize or accuse. That is not my job. I see I'm already starting to ramble, so forgive my introduction/disclaimer and all I ask is that you read this with an open heart.
When it comes down to it, we are ALL in the same boat. We are all human--more alike than different--and I believe that deep down, we are all DESPERATE to know the truth. Pontius Pilate asked that very question in "The Passion of the Christ". I realize it is a movie, but there was a line where he said, "What is truth?" Well, I tell you today that Jesus made a bold claim in John 14: 6 when He said, "I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life..." This truth leads us to a crossroads. We can either accept it or deny it. Believing in God is easy. Even Satan believes in God--and the Bible says that he shudders at the name of Jesus. We can have all the facts, but the truth must be clung to--trusted in. That is a HUGE distinction.
Now, because I do not know your spiritual condition (a.k.a., whether or not you are saved according to the Bible) I must tell you what it says about salvation and what a Christian is really about. Like I said, there are a multitude of misconceptions, and I hope this letter dismantles all of the unbiblical "Christian" influences you might have come across. You have made it clear that you have some doubts and/or uncertainties about your faith. How about this--would you be able to tell me you know for certain where you will be the moment you die? This is hard-core stuff, I know! Yet putting these questions out of consideration until we lie stricken like my grandma did at age 89 is cutting it a bit too close, wouldn't you say?
I mean, none of us has a clue what tomorrow holds for us. Proverbs 27:1 says this, "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth." I'm sure you understand this all too well. I have watched too many of my peers slip into eternity at the drop of ahat to ignore the reality of that verse. Sometimes it is easy for me to take for granted all the simple necessities GOd has given to sustain me--traveling mercies on the road; healthy, working organs; fresh, clean air to breathe, etc. It is only because God is gracious to us that such needs are met. However, these and other provisions may be taken away in the blink of an eye and, probably sooner than we think , our hour of decision will be over.
I know what you are thinking--"She said she wasn't going to judge my spiritual condition!" You are right. Only God can judge a heart and, believe me, He knows our hearts better than we ever could. That's why He was so gracious in giving us His Word. In the Bible we see just how short we fall in comparison to God's holiness and righteousness. It is impossible to live above sin, and the person who claims he does is to claim he is a sinner. It is a lie, but we are good at deceiving ourselves that way. I know I am. I tend to justify wrong actions because the cause is "good". Well, that don't cut it in God's eyes. Let me tell you why. Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The heart is DECEITFUL above all things, and desperately WICKED: who can know it?" Ouch. That means we don't even realize the full extent of our imperfection. We deceive ourselves into thinking we are pretty good individuals. I John 1:8 says, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive our own selves, and the truth is not in us." I don't think I have to prove this point any longer.
The good news is that God gave us a Book that reveals this to us! Otherwise we'd be a hopeless cause. Take the 10 commandments, for example. God didn't give us the law so that we would be a slave to that law. He gave it to us so that we might be FREE from it! Free, first of all, from the BONDAGE TO sin (unable to do right) and, second, free from the PENALTY FROM sin (which is spiritual death, which we will see in a minute). The passage of Galatians 5:1-5 talks in detail about this.
I don't have to tell you that, while freedom is glorious, it doesn't come free. It costs people their lives. It is the same with God. Freedom came to us by the shed blood and finished work of Christ. That was a high price! You also know that in America, our freedom does not exist without limitations. We cannot go out and kill someone, exceed the speed limit, or rob a bank. Likewise, freedom in Christ is just as glorious and liberating, but there are limitations. Just let you find those limitations in God's Word--don't let man tell you what is right or wrong. Who is holy, after all?
So you see, by looking into the mirror of Scripture, we see who we are. It is not difficult to see our sin. The Bible explains that sin is defined as anything, either an outward act or an inward thought and/or motive, which goes against the very moral nature of God. And we established that His ruler is pretty high. He is absolute perfection. In Hebrew the word sin means "to miss the mark". The fact that we have but one selfish bitter or untruthful (just to name a few) bone in our body bears strong witness to the fact that we are indeed sinners. James 2:10 provides this sobering truth, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in ONE point, he is guilty of ALL."
I mean, think about it. I've never killed anyone. I've never robbed that bank, used drugs, nor have I committed adultery. I've kept the law, right? W-e-e-e-ell, I suppose I might have lied a few times...a-a-and I've cheated once or twice (*gasp*).....a-a-a-and I admit I've had some shameful thoughts and motives--more like on a daily basis. (Ok, we can stop there!) All I konw is that I fall short of keeping God's commands. For all have sinned and have fallen short of God's glory" (Romands 3:23). Even if I lied but ONE time or conjured up but ONE selfish thought, I would be a condemned sinner and on my way to hell.
However, consider this... Not only are we sinners by our actions, thoughts, and motives, Friend, but we are essentially BORN with a SIN NATURE. Even little toddlers do not need to be told how to lie, steal, etc. I work with children--I know this all too well! "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that ALL have sinned." (Romans 5:12). Our sin nature is passed down to us from Adam, but we can't just blame the "first guy"--we are each just as responsible for and are as much at the mercy of sin's consequences as Adam was when he ate the forbidden fruit.
Since I have already delved slightly into the question of whether or not man is inherenly evil, lets go there next. I guess we'll start with the Moody's Handbook of Theology brief discription of total depravity: As a result of Adam's fall, the entire human race is affected; all humanity is dead in trespasses and sins. Man is unable to save.
Ok, so when Adam sinned, all future humanity was plunged into sin. Not only did sin effect the created world (death, disease, deterioration, weather, animal preditors, etc.), but it affected man, who became enslaved to his sin nature. He still had a free will but was only able to freely choose what was consistent with his fallen nature. "What then? are we better than they? no, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no not one: There is none who understands, there is none who seeks after God. They are all gone out of the way. They are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no not one" (Romans 3:9-11).
Now, sin permeates every part of man's being. In other words, man is totally depraved. *In the BODY: "And if Christ be in you, the BODY is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness" (Romans 8:10). *In the MIND: "And be not conformed to this world: but be you transformed by the renewing of your MIND, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God" (Romans 12:2). *In the WILL: "There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God" (Romans 3:11).*In the HEART: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it" (Jeremiah 17:9).
Total depravity does NOT mean that unsaved man has no desire to do right or can do nothing considered good, nor does it mean that he is as wicked as he can be. Total depravity means that sin has corrupted every part of man's being so that he can do nothing that pleases God. He us unable to love God, he does not seek God, he cannot choose God, and can do nothing that merits his salvation. (See Romans 3:9-23 for some characteristics of the inherently sinful man.)
Every member of the human race experiences the impact of sin. There is not a single human that has not been affected by sin. "For God so loved THE WORLD" (John 3:16). "And as it is appointed unto man once to die, and after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27).
There might be a question about Isaiah 64:6, "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." The point of that verse is not to say that everything we do is worthless. It is saying that the unsaved person's righteousnesses are worthless in terms of satisfying God's payment for sin. This does not mean that God does not use our sinful actions, though they may appear good through man's eyes, to carry out His providential plan for the ages (which in turn gives them some value). Don't let the "filthy rags" comparison fool you. I'm not saying that there are some good things are happening in the world, but society is not looking through the eyes of a holy and righteous God. While these positive contributions are used by God in a physical sense, they don't score any "points" with Him spiritually. That's because the power of sin is separating us from an all-holy God who will not commune in the fellowship of sin/sinners.
To me that just makes God all the more loving and compassionate for sending His Son Jesus to pay the penalty for our sins--so that we wouldn't have to. God wouldn't let us continue in our broken relationship with Him. He wants our friendship and love, and He doesn't want to have to force us to give it, either. God loves every one of His creation, but without that PERFECT, SINLESS sacrifice to make atonement for our sins, we cannot be justified in God's eyes and we would ALL perish and be forever separated from God if He didn't. Jesus was the go-between. If we don't claim the blood to cover our sins, our works (at least works to please God) are still in vain.
Those who you say are doing such and such for the cause of God are not being truthful IF they have not had Christ's blood to their account. We are enemies of God before we are saved--we cannot do ANYTHING for the God's causes if we have not first placed our trust in Christ's finished work on the cross. They may do much for society, they may love their family, and they may serve this country with utmost dedication, but they don't please God. "But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him" (Hebrews 11:6). See also Romans 6:18, "Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness.
When God looks upon a person who has not placed their faith in Christ for salvation, He still sees their sin. On the contrary, when they trust Christ, God sees the sacrifice of Christ as a veil between Himself and the individual. He sees that they have been justified by grace through faith. Someone can say they are living for God, but if Christ is not in the picture, it all goes back to "the heart is deceitful...who can know it?" The passage of Matthew 7:21-23 is a wake-up call to those who call themselves "religious" or think they are "a-ok" with God. "Not everyone that will say unto me, 'Lord Lord', shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, 'Lord Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? and in Your name have cast out devils? and in Your name done many wonderful works?' And then will I profess unto them, 'I never knew you: depart from Me, you that work iniquity."
What IS the consequence of our sin? Separation from God, which is eternal spiritual death in hell. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is DEATH..." Then there's Epesians 2:1, which says, "..."without Christ we are dead in [our] trespasses and sins." We need God to quicken our spiriits to reveal our need for a Savior and to then give us spiritual birth. "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of heaven." It's that simple.
Did you know that any prayer we pray to God before placing our faith in Christ is NOT HEARD?! Did you catch that? Prayer is utter vanity without Christ as our mediator. God cannot be in the presence of sin. But if we have Christ's righteoueness (perfection) to cover that sin, God is satisfied by Christ's atoning sacrifice and only then does he hear our prayers. But before then, "Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty regrad it" (Job 35:13). That is a scary thought. But once again, John 14:6 ends with this statement, "...no one comes to the Father except through Me (Jesus)." It's the truth.
Our problem: We are enemies of God because of our sin and, therefore, condemned.
His solution: Faith in the saving work of Christ on the cross to provide forgiveness and new life to all who will claim it through Him!
So now we know that we are sinners and, therefore, in BIG trouble without Divine help. We cannot do it on our own. We are not good enough, and we could never be on our own. So many people think that if they do enough good things then God is obligated to let them into heaven. Think about this, if salvation had to be earned by good works or by living morally, doing so would take the glory away from God. He alone is the one who saves. We CANNOT save ourselves. Doing good works in order to merit eternal life is BRIBERY. It is like telling God that He doesn't have the power or resources to save us and that, somehow, WE do. GOD is GOD, for goodness sake--He spoke this intricate and marvelous universe into creation and in a WEEK without our help. Surely he can save us apart from our help. As if we possess some spiritual ability to deceive God by covering up our sin with outward cheritable and righteous acts! God is not and will not be fooled. The Bible says that "Without FAITH it is IMPOSSIBLE to please [God]" (Hebrews 11:6). Until God saves us, "All our righteousness are as filthy rags" Isaiah 64:6). Did you get that? Before we place our faith in Christ for salvation, anything good that we do, no matter how noble or seemingly selfless, God views as WORTHLESS as FILTHY RAGS. This is a humbling concept, but they are God's words, not my words, nor anyone else's. And when God speaks, we'd better listen!
So we are dirty, rotten sinners. We cannot save ourselves. We are separated from God because of our sin and on our way to hell. What a great life! Well, thank goodness God made a way to redeem us from our sloppy mess. I don't have to tell you that God sent His Son Jesus to the earth to die for our sins. So we ARE ok, then, right? Well, yes and no. Yes, because of Christ's sacrifice as the ONLY worthy sacrifice to cover sin because He was perfect. So here's the question: Since Jesus died for the whole world, shouldn't every person, then, be saved? Especially if it is not based on the works of man?? The Bible says no. Yes, John 3:16 is true with it says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son..." The cross is the extension of God's INVITATION to salvation to the whole world. We are all the same at the foot of the cross, regardless of nationality, race, or gender. But as the verse continues, ..."that WHOSOEVER BELIEVES..." It's true that Jesus' blood covered the sins of the whole world--past, present, and future, in fact. (thank goodness, because I have a lot of them!
In a nutshell, God is holy, that is fact. "Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy" (I Peter 1:16). Man is evil, regardles of what he may think himself to be or how society views him. (See Jeremiah 17:9 again.) God sees this dilemma and offers Christ's righteousness to man so that man can have a new nature. Man must accept that righteousness personally to be holy in God's eyes. To accept is more than just an intellectual knowledge. "Sure, I believe Jesus died for my sins." It is an act by which he places his trust in the work of Christ for his salvation, not in anything he has ever done or will do. There's a verse that says, "..."without the shedding of blood there is no remission (forgiveness of sins)" (Hebrews 9:22).
Yet here's the important difference in the form of two questions:
1. Did Christ's death and resurrection PROVIDE salvation for all men? YES! "...behole the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin of the WORLD" (John 1:29).
2. Did Christ's death and resurrection APPLY salvation to all men? NO! "...and to give His life a ransom for MANY" (Matthew 20:28).
This last verse doesn't say that ALL will be ransomed. God does NOT automatically grant salvatoin to every person, but it certainly is AVAILABLE and FREELY OFFERED to those who accept Jesus' blood for the cleansing of their sin. We are justified "freely by His grace" (I John 12:1-2). It must be personally accepted. It is ours for the claiming, but so many do not receive it.
You might ask, "How do I know if God chose me?" Isaiah 44:2a says, "I am your Creator. You were in my care even before you were born." The Bible says that we were not only created BY Him, but we were created FOR Him. Ephesians 1:5 & 14 tell us that individuals God chooses to save are saved "according to the good pleasure of His will...to the praise of His glory." We are saved for no other reason, Friend, than to GLORIFY GOD, which is why we are here in the first place. It's why God created this world at all. God gives us all the choice to accept or reject Him, and just in our sin nature we have rejected God. John 3:17 says, "For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved." Verse 18 goes on to tell us why, "He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but HE THAT BELIEVETH NOT IS CONDEMNED ALREADY, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." The default mode of a person is to reject Him. So is it mean of God to let so many die in their sins? No, for the reason that He gave them the choice, they failed. Christ isn't in the condemning business because there isn't a person who ever lived that hasn't already condemned himself by his nature. The fact is, GOD DOESN'T HAVE TO SAVE ANYONE. That's why what He gives us is called grace: undeserved merit. God's Riches At Christ's Expense.
It's a wonder that God would choose to save me. Why?? I don't understand it because I have nothing to offer to Him except my "filthy rags". But we just cannot fully understand the amazing and infinite wisdom of God. He has a purpose for every single act. But I'm not going to question a good thing, that is for sure! Consider this verse about God's wisdom. This is an amazing verse. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9).
Get this: "[God] isn't willing that ANY should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance" (II Peter 3:9). Christ WANTS to save you.
I can sense that you probably have a million questions, this letter just adding to that list, so I will expound more on what exactly Christianity means. Simply put, Christianity is about a RELATIONSHIP with the God of the Universe. As we have seen, we cannot gain access to God without Christ. You might have heard that "relationship" phrase before but maybe wondered what it meant. Christianity is about FAITH--not in a priest, or pastor, or Jim Caviezel--but in Christ's work on the cross as the ONLY and NECESSARY and SUFFICIENT way to merit that relationship with God. You don't have to know all the facts in the Bible to be saved, I promise you! Hey, I was 5!!! However, no one can rely on another's decision of faith, and that includes family members. God judges us as individuals, and saves us as individuals. We will have to answer for ourselves. We must each accept that our access to God is granted by no other means than through His Son.
Why? I Timothy 1:5 says, "For there is one God, and ONE mediator between God and men, the man, Christ Jesus." That puts to rest any other religious figures as a means to salvation.
I would say that the majority of they that call themselves Christian "know" that Jesus died for their sins. I'm sure you do, too. Yet, I ask this question: Is that an intellectual knowledge or a personal claim??? There is a crucial distinction there, and I dare say that far too many who call themselves Christians are hoping with just an empty "head knowledge" of the gospel message. They don't let its message reach their hearts. I don't kow how you would answer that question, but I hope and pray that you will at least consider these truths for your own heart and life. I can't stress the simplicity enough! "...believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you SHALL be saved..." (Acts 16:31).
Important to note: While salvation IS simple, it is NOT what some call "easy believism". This philosophy of salvation dares takes advantage of God's ample supply of grace. Others refer to this type of salvation as "earning fire insurance from hell". How morbid! Easy believism involves quoting a "magic" prayer of sorts that supposedly serves as the pray-er's ticket into heaven. Life thereafter is typically lived without regard to God or the Bible. Remember, freedom does have limitations. I say this just to caution you...
On the other hand, salvation really is FREE! Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace are you saved through faith, and that NOT of yourselves. It is a GIFT of GOD; not of works, lest anyone should boast." There is nothing more we can do to receive salvation than to........receive it!! Think about this: a birthday gift isn't yours until you take it. Claim it. Accept it. You do not receive it on the basis of merit. It's your birthday, for goodness sake, and the giver is extending the gift to you because he LOVES YOU. Likewise with God and his gift of salvation. "But God commendeth His own love toward us that, while we were yet sinners (now that's amazing grace!) Christ died for us" (Romand 5:8). It would be pretty sad if we had to work a number of hours or days in order to EARN a BIRTHDAY GIFT! It certainly wouldn't be a gift then, no matter how attractive the wrapping! See my comparison? Nobody receives your gift for you; YOU don't receive anyone else's gift for them. No, you claim it FOR yourself, BY yourself. And no one claims it for you. God is extending His gift of salvation. All we have to do is receive it into our hands and open it, free of charge! God will save whom He wills, and when He gives us the opportunity, we should take it!
BUT before we can receive God's gift of salvation, we must first realize that we NEED it. If it's not our birthday, why would we receive a gift that was meant especially FOR our birthday? Each one of us must come to a point in our lives when we put our life on trial; when we examine our heart. However, we cannot discover the depths of our sinfulness and merely shrug it off. When God reveals our sin to us, we MUST do something with the verdict!
That's why it is SO important to stress the PERSONAL aspect of faith. We can watch "The Passion of the Christ" and feel bad that the Son of God had to endure such brutal and unjust torture. (He was found without guilt, right?) But we MUST realize that each one of OUR sins were heaped upon Christ at the moment He cried from the cross, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me" (Matthew 27:46)? In that dreadful, but actually bittersweet moment, every sinful action or thought of ours was placed upon Jesus, causing Him to become the filthiest liar, dirtiest adulterer, most horrendous murderer, most senseless thief, craftiest cheat, ugliest idolator, and the list continues. (See I Peter 2:24.) He CHOSE to do that so that we wouldn't have to! Amazing love!
In my own life, I had to come to grips with the intensity and extent of my sin that so directly contrasted the holiness of God. God and sin don't mix, by the way. That's why God turned His face away from Jesus on the cross, and which is why sinners cannot enter heaven unless they have the blood applied to their souls. God cannot stand to even look upon sin. It cannot be in His presence. Because Christ took upon Himself and paid its penalty (death, separation from the Father), God is able to apply Christ's righteousness (sinlessness) to our account. He stamped His approval on us with Jesus' wounds! After we place our faith in Christ, God no longer sees our sin, but His son's righteousness given to us. That's called JUSTIFICATION, or to be justified. I like to remember it this way: "Just-if-I'd never sinned." God then hears our prayers and Hebrews 4:16 says that we can "come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." My friend, this concept is not only a thrill when grasped, but a relief also!
That is why there is NO MORE GUILT for the Christian. All our guilt and shame fall upon Christ. We are given a new nature through the righteousness of Jesus. Our SIN IS GONE. Now, please understand, we will never be entirely rid of our old sin nature as long as we live on this earth. The Christian life is a battle. (This is boot camp! :) ) BUT with the Holy Spirit in our lives to help us and to convict us when temptations and trials come, we are no longer SLAVES to that sin nature. Hallelujah! We no longer HAVE TO sin. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, whoseover commits sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34). Jesus says that when we are saved, "old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new!" God removes us from that bondage. The Holy Spirit helps us resist temptation. Just as Christ had victory over in, so can we--but only if we have been saved. That doesn't mean resisiting temptation comes easily for the believer. It still takes work and is a struggle that is part of a lifelong process called SANCTIFICATION (the continual conforming into the image of Jesus Christ). However, we have GOd on our side to help us progress in our growth, and then to be there for us in our darkest hours of trials, troubles, disappointments, fears, etc. "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able; but with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it" (I Corinthians 10:13). What a reassuring verse!
Now, a word about churches, if I may. There are definitely many good churches out there that clearly teach what the Bible says. But I am sorry to say that there is a lot of JUNK in many other churches today. I mean, there are some CRAZY things going on that God never intended, and that is never taught in Scripture! Trust me...these types of churches do NOT set the standard for true biblical Christianity. They give not only Christians, but Christ a bad testimony. The Bible says to "BEWARE of false prophets (teachers), which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are raveging wolves" (Matthew 7:15). A good rule of thumb is to find a church that presents TRUTH, the WHOLE TRUTH, and NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH.......which is ONLY found in the Bible.
God did not intend people to base their doctrine on a man-invented interpretation of the Bible. They don't need one because the Bible is quite clear. It is sufficient for EVERY life-encounter, situation, and problem. It ALONE holds the answers. Many churches do not declare the Bible as the highest authority for faith and practice. That's where all the denominational variation comes into play. Which one is right? Well, I'll leave that up to you, but I will say this very important statement: Cchurches that elevate ritual , tradition, good works, writings of man, man's own interpretation, OR, God forbid, man himself above the Bible are NOT presenting Scriptural truth. II Timothy 3:16 says, "ALL SCRIPTURE is given by inspiration of God, and is PROFITABLE for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness."
I don't claim to have all the answers. You want to know a secret? CHURCHES don't have all the answers, either! The fact is, Christianity ISN'T about church. Oh, it is very important, as I stated. I attend regularly and teach primary Sunday School, but that doesn't make me more spiritual. It won't get me a bigger mansion with an ocean view! To reiderate, Christianity isn't about infant baptism (which is not even doctrinal to begin with!), nor is it about ritual, tradition, morality, or a certain prayer, either. Christianity isn't about feeling imprisoned, or miserable, or bored, or guilty, or unfulfilled. (It is quite the opposite!) Christianity isn't even about religion! This might sound oxymoronic, but it's true in the biblical sense!
Please note: Christ is KEY to life. He is not just a historical figure or symbol or a concept we take a moment (if even that) to think about at Christmas and Easter. Christianity is not some game, some worship concert that sets us on a spiritual high, only to drive us to rock bottom once we snap back to the real world. The apostle Paul confessed, "For to me to live is CHRIST, and to die is gain" (Phippians 1:21). Through Christ we have a reason for living. We have purpose in the little, mundane, routine activities of the day when we stop to consider that God has placed us on this earth at this tie in this place for reasons He wants to reveal to us if we just let Him. He did this NOT by chance, but but by Divine appointment. We are all meant to live for SO much more than the vanity of living for ourselves. What is life if all we do is get married, have kids, make money, grow old, and die? Christ came that we "might have life, and that [we] might have life more abndantly" (John 10:10). And then, after we've breathed our last, to die will TRULY be GAIN. I cannot begin to fathom the splendor of heaven!
Do you have abundant life, Friend? Do you live with the joy of knowing your work, your efforts, yor daily activities are not in vain, but that you are part of God's plan for the Ages? Are you satisfied with where your life is right now? Do you feel fulfilled? Are you sick and tired of the sugar-coated lies this world tries to sell to us? Have you found that too many "Christians" are hypocrites, really no different from the rest of the world? Have you discovered "organized religion" to be nothing but empty, heartless ritual? Do you wish you had an unshakable peace when the storms of life blow through? Now I ask not if you HAVE abundant life, but do you WISH you had abundant life?
I implore you today, Christ died for YOU, Friend, because He loves YOU. God konws all about our bumps and scars and weaknesses and inadequacies....and yet, He displayed HIs love for us to the utmost. "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). I find it hard to believe that God could love someone like me, as I continue to fail Him time and time again. You know, there are people we will fail in this life that just can't overlook our mistakes and faults, no matter how sorry we are. God knows when we are about to fail Him even before it is a thought and yet, His love remains constant. Knowing that fact overwhelms me with gratitude! He's always waiting with open arms for me to come back to Him. God knows us, who we really are, and He still wants to give us His every possession. I don't konw about you, but NO ONE has ever loved me like that before!
Christianity isn't about religion...it's about Christ. Christianity isn't about "fitting in" at a church. Christianit isn't about duty or obligation. It IS, however, about God's grace that can find the worth in the worthless. It IS about discovering that there is more to this life than JUST this life. I'll say it again--Christianity isn't about religion....it's about Christ.
Remember that birthday gift? Well, once we've received it, it's ours. To keep. We get to reap all the wonderful benefits of what's inside the wrapping. Likewise, when we accept God's gift of salvation, we get to reap the benefits. Remember this acrostic? God's Riches At Christ's Expense. His riches are free.
Salvation can really be understood with childlike simplicity. I know because God saved me when I was a little girl. I don't boast in that like it was my doing, but God's timing is as much mystery as His wisdom. At the time I was saved, I had no idea what doctrine meant. I only knew that I was a sinner and that I needed a Savior. That God sent His Son Jesus to be that Savior. That's it. I believed. I trusted. I placed my faith in HIS work on the cross. However you want to say it. I was just as completely saved that day as I am today. It took no less of God's grace to save me from the sins of a child--but remember, past, present, and FUTURE sins, too--as it takes for a mass-murderer to be saved. My testimony may not be as interesting or gripping as some of the sob-story-conversions I hear at church or on the radio, but my story is just as beautiful a picture of God's love as anyone's story....even yours.
Do you want to be saved, Friend? I would be happy to answer any more questions you want to fire at me. I don't care what they are. You might ask, HOW DO I GET SAVED? Well, I'm glad you asked! :) Having realized you are a sinner, as we all are, the Bible says, "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, YOU SHALL BE SAVED. For with the HEART man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" (Romans 10:9). Faith grows in the heart, and you express it with words. (I personally believe that in order for salvation to not be a work of man, the faith we place in Christ has to be the gift of God. That's because I know I could never muster up enough faith on my own!) This verse in Romans does not say that you MIGHT be saved...if you say the right words. NO! It says that you SHALL--you WILL--be saved. It's a promise, and one thing God can't do is break a promise! "These things I have written unto you--that you may KNOW that you have eternal life" (I John 5:13). As we ackknowledge Jesus' work on the cross as payment for our sins, we receive the cleansing and forgiveness from His blood sacrifice.
Don't worry that you feel you have to totally clean up your life before coming to Christ. He asks that we come as we are. Let the Holy Spirit do the rest. It has been said that "God loves us just the way we are..." which is true! He does! The quote finishes, "...but He loves far too much to leave us that way." It is God who helps us to live right. Remember, we are insufficient of ourselves.
Now that you have read how to place your faith in Christ (I told you it was simple! And it doesn't involve works), you might wonder, SHOULD I GET SAVED RIGHT NOW? Yes! "Behold, NOW is the accepted time; NOW is the day fo salvation" (II Corinthians 6:2b). Why wait when life is so uncertain? Settle it now and find peace you never knew existed. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have PEACE with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). As you read this, you have THIS moment, this one opportunity to receive Christ. It may be your last. As a demonstration (but NOT as a means to your faith), why don't you call upon the Lord in prayer and trust Him NOW. Talk to Him like the "Friend" He wants to be in your life. Trust that God WILL save you because He promises to. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord SHALL be saved" (Romans 10:13).
Placing one'sr faith in Christ is THE most imporant event in anyone's life. I just cannot adequately describe the peace and the joy and the hope that salvation brings! Let me say again that you are not saved by praying a prayer. Faith must be an outgrowth of a heart drawn by the Holy Spirit to the truth of Christ. Trusting Jesus is a ONE TIME DECISION in your life. The moment you believe in Christ, God will give you eternal life!! Once you have believed, God accepts you as His child!! Friend, with that faith, you need to believe that you do not measure up to God's standard of righteousness and that you cannot get rid of your sin on your own. Believe that Jesus is, as He claimed, the only one who can save you from your sins. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that hears My word and believes on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto LIFE" (John 5:24). Turn from your sins and invite Christ into your life. To "repent" is a turning FROM somethig and a turning TO something. FROM sin TO God. "If we confess our sins, He is FAITHFUL to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness" (I John 1:9).
All I know is that nothing I have to say that sounds impressive or believable will make up your mind about this matter of salvation. I'm simply relaying God's invitation to you. In other words, He wants you to RSVP...ASAP. "Behold, NOW is the accepted time, behold NOW is the day of salvation" (II Corinthians 6:2). Why not settle the issue this very moment, Friend? Not just for peace of mind, but for a life of purpose and for a heavenly Father who wants to use you in ways you could never imagine. Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). If you trust Christ today, this will be the start of abundant life in Christ! "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundandtly" (John 10:10).
If you are sincerely ready to take this important step, just talk to God right now and express your faith in His Son and that you need His forgiveness. That's all there is to it! In the event that you find a SAMPLE prayer helpful, here is one. Remember, this it is not the words expressed that matters, it is the FAITH.
The following comes from a booklet by Max Lucado called, "Give it All to Him":
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).
"What was Jesus thinking when He made this comment? Was He offering a chiched response to someone's need? 'Hey, whatever I can do. Give me a call.'Was He kidding? Or was He serious?Jesus appeals to us to bring Him those things that burden us and weigh us down. We weren't made to live with sin but designed to live forever. We think we can do it for a time, then realize it's just too heavy. The wight of our sins, our failures, and our worries is too much for one person to carry alone. Jesus wants them all.During this simple prayer, it's time to take your bags to the street. It's Friday morning. Trash day. And soon, it will all be gone.
"Dear God,I have been carrying around sacks of shame, worry, pain, resentment, and failure for too long. I have tried to live with the guilt and hurt, but they've grown heavy. My arms ache. My heart grieves. I can't move forward any longer. I realize that freedom begins not only by confessing my sin but by giving it to You. Once my sins are released from me to You, then You take my burden to the cross and there dispose of it. Forever. I once carried failure, but now I have forgiveness. I once carried hate, but now I have hope.I once carried fear, but now I have freedom.Thank You for removing the garbage of my life. No longer is my life the same ol' story. Now there is a new beginning. I am free because it is all in Your hands. Amen."
Here is a more direct prayer, but don't say it unless you mean it....
Dear God, I admit that I have sinned. I believe that You sent Your Son, Jesus, to take the punishment I deserve. Then You raised Him to life again, so that I may have eternal life. I turn now from my sins and ask You to firgive me. Please come into my life and be my Savior and Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen."
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Chrst, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an inheritance, incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last day" (I Peter 1:3-5).
WHAT A PROMISE!
You might have just prayed a prayer of faith. If you did accept Christ, you might now ask, HOW CAN I BE SURE I AM SAVED FOREVER? God said so. "God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: He has said, and shall He do it? Or has he spoken, and shall he not make it good (Numbers 23:19)? In the next verse, Jesus is referring to Himself as the Shepherd, and His children, the sheep: "My sheep hear my voice, and I knew them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish; NEITHER SHALL ANY MAN PLUCK THEM OUT OF MY FATHER'S HAND" (John 10:27-29). Now THAT'S assurance! Here's another kicker, "...for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that HE IS ABLE to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day" (II Timothy 1:22b). That is because we aren't trusting in ourseves to keep our salvation. We are trusting in God. Some days, Friend, you are not going to feel saved. You might feel like the whole world is against you or you will be physically worn or especially troubled about something...but take heart, if you place your faith in Christ, you are saved forever!
If you have NOT responded to God's offer of salvation, I again encourage you to let me know how else I can help. If you HAVE accepted Christ, you might ask, WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE? God is not going anywhere, and He isn't in a hurry. He will teach you more about Himself as you read His Word. I would be happy to suggest some specific passages of Scripture or even send you some great biblically-based outside material. The Christian life is a journey, to put it in a nutshell. At times I still take baby steps in my faith and walk with God, and once in a while I need to check to see if I am even going in the right direction!
Proverbs 3:5-6 says,"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Growing in the likeness of Christ is a process, and one that will take the rest of our lives. God knows we aren't perfect and that we aren't goingto be in this life. While Christians are not exempt of the hardships and troubles of life, it is SO comforting to konw that God is right there with us, both in cheering us on to victory, and in picking us up and brushing us off when we fall. "Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).
"And He said, I will NEVER leave you, nor forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5).
I appeal to you, "Seek the Lord whie He may be found, call upon Him while He is near" (Isaiah 55:6).
*****
There's no greater peace than having assurance of one's position in Christ and eternal destiny. Since I was saved at such a young age, for the longest time I didn't know if I had really been old enough to realize what I was doing. Questions of doubt would plague my mind. What if I wasn't truly sincere? What if I said the wrong words? I was only 5, so maybe I didn't understand what I was doing!
It wasn't until junior high at family camp when the youth evangelist spoke on assurance of salvation. One comment he made hit me hard. He challenged us to stop asking ourselves whether or not we really had trusted Christ back then. Instead, to ask ourselves the question, "Am I trusting NOW?" And, "Do I see the fruit of the Spirit in my life to evidence that salvation?"
That moment of realization was monumental in my life as a Christian. It was imperative for me to remember that it is NOT up to ME to seal my eternal destination. All Christ asks for is a mustard seed of faith and He promises that no one can pluck me out of the Father's hand. NOTHING can separate me from the love of God. God's grace is not conditional to my feelings. If it was, I would need to be saved every single day...because some days I don't "feel" saved, as Mark Lowry would put it.
After hearing that message as a pre-teen emotional rollercoaster I realized that I was indeed trusting Christ alone for my salvation. And when I drift away from Him (as I do on occasion) I KNOW I am still saved because it is not I who has done the saving and securing, it is GOD. (Thank goodness for that, huh!) During times of rebellion or spiritual lethargy I know that it is only a matter of fellowship with the Lord that needs addressing, NOT eternal security. (See John 15 concerning the admonition to abide in Christ.) When I stray, it is that heavenly lifeline that has been severed and merely needs to be reconnected through confession and repentence. Yet, if I never confess of another sin to my death (although intimacy with God ought to be more highly desired!), because of CHRIST and HIS righteousness, my soul will ever be with the Lord. Praise God!!
Satan would have us doubt...that way we won't do anything great for God. But like that old Imperials song goes, "Satan is a liar, and he wants to make us think we are paupers...when he knows himself that we're children of the King! So lift up the mighty shield of faith for the battle must be won. Jesus Christ is risen and the work's already done so praise the Lord!"
# posted by jeromy & tara @ 12:35 PM 
