Post by Cindy on Oct 22, 2015 11:24:39 GMT -5
For many years I've struggled to really understand the issue of salvation and how a person is really and truly saved. I knew that it had to be more then simply saying a prayer, no matter how heart felt and asking God to save you. I'd done that probably hundreds of times over the years, and meant it each time, yet nothing changed. What I mean is that I didn't change. I continued to live my life the exact same way I always had. I was no different then before. I see this in the vast majority of "Christians" today as well, and sadly most of them, like me, think they're saved and will go to heaven. I don't think so though. It doesn't mesh with what the Bible says about those who are really saved. Nor does it go along with the descriptions of the lives of the early Christians who were really saved, or the disciples themselves. So there had to be more to it then just the prayer.
I knew the moment I really was saved however and that was during the time that I began searching for God with all my heart, mind and strength. I was no longer looking for a quick fix or any fix for that matter. I wasn't looking to go to heaven even. I simply wanted to know Him and know His Truth regardless of anything else. It was then that He opened my eyes and my mind to the meaning of the scriptures and I was saved. I knew for sure I was saved because I did in fact change - drastically! It wasn't a change that I worked for or had anything to do with. God changed me on the inside and it was reflected in my thinking and behavior. After that initial change, I continued to grow and change but at a much slower rate. Afterward, the Lord showed me in His Word how this did line up with what the bible said about salvation and with the descriptions of the lives of the early Christians and disciples.
I still wanted to understand it better though and kept searching and praying about it over the years. What really shocked me though was when I realized that the easiest way to show that simply believing in Jesus wasn't enough to be saved was because Satan and demons believe in Him and they most certainly are not saved! They not only believe in Him, but they tremble at His Word and know it's true. On top of that, they obey His Word, unlike many of us! So those things alone can't make someone really saved. Look at what James says: “But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” (James 2:18–19) So faith that includes just the intellect, and faith that includes both the intellect and emotions are not real saving faith! Many people "believe in God" and/or "believe in Jesus" but they are not saved. Many more believe and feel a great love for God, and yet they are not saved. I know that for sure because I was one of them. I loved God all my life, but I wasn't saved. True, saving faith involves something that can be seen and recognized by others: a changed life.
When someone trusts Jesus, they are created in Him to do good works that God prepared for them to do. We're told this in Ephesians 2:10 as well as others. Being saved involves trusting Christ AND living for Him. Anything less then that is not a saving faith, it's the "dead" or "useless" faith like James talks about: “You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?” (James 2:20) James shows us 3 kinds of faith: dead, useless faith which is faith of the intellect alone; demonic faith, which is a faith involving just the intellect and emotions, and finally true saving faith, a dynamic faith that is real, has power and results in a changed life.
He tells us this real faith is based on and received through God's Word and when we receive the Word we are saved: “He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.” (James 1:18) “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) “Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” (James 1:21) This true saving faith involves all of us, not just our minds/intellect (dead faith) and heart/emotions (demonic faith). True saving faith involves the will as well. The mind understands the truth, the heart desires it and the will acts on it. So true faith leads to obedience, not just the first day but for the rest of our lives. That's what leads to our works that the Lord planned for us to do. Notice what Jesus tells us in John: (as wall as in many other places) “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.” (John 15:16) Just before that He said: “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.” (John 15:10) This shows us that the kind of love He is talking about is like God's love, not the human definition of love. It's a love that wants to obey and does so. That kind of love bears fruit for the Father, fruit that will last, and that is all the results of a saving faith.
I am not saying that a person cannot say what we call "the sinners prayer" and not have a real saving faith. I'm sure that does happen. What I'm saying is that the vast number of people who say that prayer and think they're now saved, are not. Theirs is what many have come to see and call, "easy believism" and it's worthless as far as God is concerned. Having said that though, this does not mean that if we sin sometimes that we aren't really saved. We will all sin daily until we receive our new bodies. What this means is that we won't continue to sin once we realize that something we've done or said is a sin. Instead we will confess it and repent of it and do our best with His help not to repeat it. This also doesn't mean that if a person isn't signed up on all kinds of church programs to help the poor or go on missions etc that they are not saved. God has different things for each of us to do and they may or may not involve the local church or it's programs or any program for that matter. God isn't interested in us showing off how spiritual we are by being in church every time the door opens. Again, I'm not saying we shouldn't be there, only that it's not required for salvation.
True salvation comes from the love, mercy and grace of God. None of us can be saved without God initiating it. Once He has though, it requires a response of true faith which embraces the whole person, the mind, heart and the will. God demands this from the start and continually thereafter. Being truly saved does not allow us to continue in our old way of life. It demands constant growth in our faith through daily being in His Word and studying it with Him. When we are truly saved though, we can know for sure that nothing and no one can ever take it away from us; not even we ourselves! For this, the Father has promised so we would not have to worry ourselves about it. Those who are really saved, can know it and be at peace, just as His Word says. We can rely on His promises to us and rejoice that He is indeed conforming us to the image of His Son! Let me leave you with just a couple of them which also show the whole process of salvation from start to finish:
“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” (Romans 8:29–30)
I knew the moment I really was saved however and that was during the time that I began searching for God with all my heart, mind and strength. I was no longer looking for a quick fix or any fix for that matter. I wasn't looking to go to heaven even. I simply wanted to know Him and know His Truth regardless of anything else. It was then that He opened my eyes and my mind to the meaning of the scriptures and I was saved. I knew for sure I was saved because I did in fact change - drastically! It wasn't a change that I worked for or had anything to do with. God changed me on the inside and it was reflected in my thinking and behavior. After that initial change, I continued to grow and change but at a much slower rate. Afterward, the Lord showed me in His Word how this did line up with what the bible said about salvation and with the descriptions of the lives of the early Christians and disciples.
I still wanted to understand it better though and kept searching and praying about it over the years. What really shocked me though was when I realized that the easiest way to show that simply believing in Jesus wasn't enough to be saved was because Satan and demons believe in Him and they most certainly are not saved! They not only believe in Him, but they tremble at His Word and know it's true. On top of that, they obey His Word, unlike many of us! So those things alone can't make someone really saved. Look at what James says: “But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” (James 2:18–19) So faith that includes just the intellect, and faith that includes both the intellect and emotions are not real saving faith! Many people "believe in God" and/or "believe in Jesus" but they are not saved. Many more believe and feel a great love for God, and yet they are not saved. I know that for sure because I was one of them. I loved God all my life, but I wasn't saved. True, saving faith involves something that can be seen and recognized by others: a changed life.
When someone trusts Jesus, they are created in Him to do good works that God prepared for them to do. We're told this in Ephesians 2:10 as well as others. Being saved involves trusting Christ AND living for Him. Anything less then that is not a saving faith, it's the "dead" or "useless" faith like James talks about: “You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?” (James 2:20) James shows us 3 kinds of faith: dead, useless faith which is faith of the intellect alone; demonic faith, which is a faith involving just the intellect and emotions, and finally true saving faith, a dynamic faith that is real, has power and results in a changed life.
He tells us this real faith is based on and received through God's Word and when we receive the Word we are saved: “He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.” (James 1:18) “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) “Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” (James 1:21) This true saving faith involves all of us, not just our minds/intellect (dead faith) and heart/emotions (demonic faith). True saving faith involves the will as well. The mind understands the truth, the heart desires it and the will acts on it. So true faith leads to obedience, not just the first day but for the rest of our lives. That's what leads to our works that the Lord planned for us to do. Notice what Jesus tells us in John: (as wall as in many other places) “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.” (John 15:16) Just before that He said: “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.” (John 15:10) This shows us that the kind of love He is talking about is like God's love, not the human definition of love. It's a love that wants to obey and does so. That kind of love bears fruit for the Father, fruit that will last, and that is all the results of a saving faith.
I am not saying that a person cannot say what we call "the sinners prayer" and not have a real saving faith. I'm sure that does happen. What I'm saying is that the vast number of people who say that prayer and think they're now saved, are not. Theirs is what many have come to see and call, "easy believism" and it's worthless as far as God is concerned. Having said that though, this does not mean that if we sin sometimes that we aren't really saved. We will all sin daily until we receive our new bodies. What this means is that we won't continue to sin once we realize that something we've done or said is a sin. Instead we will confess it and repent of it and do our best with His help not to repeat it. This also doesn't mean that if a person isn't signed up on all kinds of church programs to help the poor or go on missions etc that they are not saved. God has different things for each of us to do and they may or may not involve the local church or it's programs or any program for that matter. God isn't interested in us showing off how spiritual we are by being in church every time the door opens. Again, I'm not saying we shouldn't be there, only that it's not required for salvation.
True salvation comes from the love, mercy and grace of God. None of us can be saved without God initiating it. Once He has though, it requires a response of true faith which embraces the whole person, the mind, heart and the will. God demands this from the start and continually thereafter. Being truly saved does not allow us to continue in our old way of life. It demands constant growth in our faith through daily being in His Word and studying it with Him. When we are truly saved though, we can know for sure that nothing and no one can ever take it away from us; not even we ourselves! For this, the Father has promised so we would not have to worry ourselves about it. Those who are really saved, can know it and be at peace, just as His Word says. We can rely on His promises to us and rejoice that He is indeed conforming us to the image of His Son! Let me leave you with just a couple of them which also show the whole process of salvation from start to finish:
“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” (Romans 8:29–30)
!!
