Am I Really Saved?
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Am I Really Saved?
Although Salvation is a gift, the question "Am I Really Saved" can be difficult because Salvation is given by promise and the evidence the promise is believed is a new heart. One may say they believe in Christ, but if their faith does not produce the good fruit of a new heart, then it is not the kind of faith that saves. Salvation is by faith alone, in Christ alone, but it is a faith that produces a changed life....every time. First faith, then fruit, faith and fruit being two sides of the one coin of Salvation.
Matthew 13 teaches the parable of the soils.
The message of the soils is that if good seed is planted in good soil it will produce a good crop. When Seed of the Word of God is planted in a heart of genuine faith the result is a changed life. Good seed plus a good heart equals good fruit. Bad soil never brings forth good fruit. The seed can be good but if the soil is bad it will not bring forth good fruit; the conditions needed for a good crop are corrupted by the bad soil. The message is clear - the Salvation that saves also changes one's life. One who is born of the Spirit is also empowered to walk in the Spirit.
A faith that does not produce a changed life is a faith that cannot save. The faith that saves, works by love, and always produces a changed life. This is the clear teaching of Scripture and a truth we must not give away!
Ephesians Chpt 1 tells us the Lord, prior to Creation, determined to have a people who were holy and without blame and who would love Him. The love we have for God and for others is the good fruit produced by good seed planted in good soil and is the evidence that we have come to know the Lord. The real test of our Salvation is not what we say but do we love others the way Jesus loved us. Has our faith in Christ produced genuine heart change? Do we have the kind of love that turns one from a taker into a giver? God's love never fails but enables one to stop their self-centered way of living and start a new God-centered way of living. If our love for God is greater than love for our own way, then our life will be a reflection of who God is. We will love others in the same way God has loved us!
Not Everyone who Says Lord, Lord Will Enter The Kingdom of Heaven
Jesus, in Matthew Chpt 7, states that not every person who refers to Him as Lord will be saved. His exact words are “not everyone who says Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” They list the reasons why they should be saved - they cast out devils, they exercise spiritual gifts, and they perform many wonderful works. What they do not say reveals their heart. They do not say they loved and obeyed Him! They were simply religious people with no heart for God, and no relationship with Jesus at all. This is a sobering truth for anyone who thinks salvation is found in a relationship with their church or with their own religious works but have no relationship with Jesus Himself! Jesus bluntly tells these people, “I never knew you, and get away from me, you that work lawlessness!”
The second lesson to be learned from this portion of Scripture is the unsaved, though religious, overlook their own sinful behavior. Ongoing sinful behavior ought to be a warning that all is not right with them. But the unsaved have a way of justifying their disobedient life. We're not talking about an occasional mistake, but a lifestyle that habitually overlooks sinful behavior. Jesus paid a terrible price to deliver His people from the power of sin, and if they will not possess this precious victory, it is because they love their sin. Jesus has given His people everything they need for life and godliness. They are given victory over their old nature, victory over the devil, and victory over the World. The Scriptures clearly state that sin will not have dominion over us for we are not under law but under grace. If we will not possess and live out the victories Christ has won for us, then we show Christ has no place in our heart at all.
The world is filled with religious people who do not love Jesus. They're outwardly kind, good, caring, they do many good works, but they will not master sin, they will not change their behavior. They love their freedom, they love to voice their opinions, they love their lifestyles, and most of all they love choosing whom they will serve! Obedience to God is not who they are, they love doing what is right in their own eyes.
We are called to do the will of God, but if we prefer our own will then the day will come when we will hear these words, “depart from me, I never knew you.”
- Mat 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
- Mat 7:22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, and drive out demons in Your name, and perform many miracles in Your name?’
- Mat 7:23 Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’”
Isn't it amazing that one can address Jesus as Lord and do mighty works in His Name, and not know Him! We see the blindness that rests in the heart of a religious person who calls Jesus "Lord" but will not serve Him. They draw near with their mouth, but their heart is far from Him.
- Luk 13:25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open for us,' and He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know you, where you are from,'
- Luk 13:26 then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.'
- Luk 13:27 But He will say, 'I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.
I never knew you! We have heard a thousand times that serving God is "relationship and not religion!” It is easy to believe that the faithful practice of religion is relationship with God. But relationship with God is knowing Him, which means we love and obey Him. The whole of Scripture assigns Salvation, not through the practice of one's religion, but through a heart of genuine love that that obeys God. Anybody can be religious but obedience that works by love is a work of the Holy Spirit and evidence that our Salvation is real!
If You Love Jesus You Will Obey Him!
- Joh 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
- Joh 15:14 You are My friends if you do what I command you.
Jesus will reject every person who does not love Him! He will say, depart from me I never knew you, get away from me all you who work iniquity (lawlessness). Those who do not love God give themselves to their own way because they love their own way; people give themselves to who they love the most. Putting myself first will always prevent me from putting God first. Good Seed planted in a selfish heart will not grow good fruit!
It is true that self-centeredness is required to live a life of lawlessness. It is also true that God-centeredness leads one in the way of righteousness. Love of sin is rooted in a lack of love for God. Words are cheap, anyone can say they know and love God, but real love "seeketh not her own", meaning real love will not lead one into self-centered living.
Jesus said we would recognize those who do not love Him by their fruits. It is not those who say they love God, but those who, by their behavior, show their love for God. Fruit proves the root!
Jesus Came To Destroy the Works of the Devil!
Jesus said the devil sinned from the beginning and He, Jesus, came to destroy the works of the devil. Any person who loves God will see self-centered living as what Jesus came to destroy. In the same way, those who love God see God-centered living as their new way of life. Jesus said anyone who makes sin a lifestyle is of the devil.
- 1Jn 3:2 Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
- 1Jn 3:3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
- 1Jn 3:4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.
- 1Jn 3:5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.
- 1Jn 3:6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him.
- 1Jn 3:7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous.
- 1Jn 3:8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
Love is How We Know We Are In Him!
- 1Jn 2:4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him,
- 1Jn 2:5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:
- 1Jn 2:6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
Whoever Loves Abides in the Light
- 1Jn 2:9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.
- 1Jn 2:10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling.
- 1Jn 2:11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
Do Not Love the World
1Jn 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Whoever Loves Has Been Born of God
- 1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
- 1Jn 4:8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
People who love God always find a way to overcome their sins. They are willing to fight every demon in Hell to be the person God has called them to be. They have meaning and purpose and will let nothing stop them from living the life they are called to live. Those who do not love God see no need to fight sin and always find a way to continue their behavior. In their mind, they have perfectly good reasons for the way they live. Those in Matthew 7 who say "Lord, Lord" had good reasons for the way they lived! They did many good works and they exercised spiritual gifts, but at the same time, lived a lifestyle of lawlessness! There is something perverse, even serpent-like, in the heart of a person who honors Jesus with their mouth but will not give Him their heart!
Those who Overcome Will be Saved
- Rev 21:7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.
- Rev 21:8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
Confess and Forsake
The Lord is merciful. He says that if we cover our sins we will not prosper but if we confess and forsake our sins we will have mercy. This is a powerful promise for it shows the hopeless person God's way of mercy. In every case, those who confess and turn from their sins find mercy!
The Narrow Road
Jesus said Salvation is found by following the narrow road. Many are on the broad road that leads to eternal destruction. Both roads have a sign that says "This is the Way to Eternal Life". Jesus said, "don't follow the crowd, follow Me!" The wise have a discerning heart and they keep themselves in the love of God. They understand the promised blessings are given to those who overcome. They that are saved hear the voice of the Lord, and have respect for His Word that says, "follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man will see the Lord".
God bless you,
Jim
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