“These things I have written
to you who believe
in the name of the Son of God,
so that you may know
that you have eternal life.” – 1 John 5:13
Post Directory…jump links
Introduction: Get it Straight from The Source
Faith has a big “IF”
Why does God reject anyone?
What saves. What does not.
The Basis of His Judgement
Saving knowledge
The Source
Sealed in Him
Traps on the Broad Road
What God accepts and what God does NOT accept
Confirmed Salvation
Wrap Up
FOR MORE
Introduction
Get it Straight from The Source
__________
I would really really like to get to Heaven when I die. I say, “Hell no! Heaven YES!” You agree?
With that in mind, the key is to know what God accepts, and what God rejects. And: Has He accepted you?
- What if Jesus has rejected your confession of faith?
- 1 Corinthians 4:4: You may not know yourself as well as you think. God is the One who examines you. What do you think? On that final day of judgement – will He accept you or reject you?
“4 For I am not aware of
anything against myself;
however I am
not vindicated by this,
but the one who examines me
is the Lord.“
- What if you made your “decision” for Christ with a “cracked heart“, thus making what you did – invalid logically inconsequent or null and void? Think about it!
What good would it be
to live all my life “for Jesus”
… and then discover
on Judgement Day
that Jesus
had rejected
my confession of faith?!
The early church Apostle Paul was concerned enough about our deceptive heart that he exhorted us all: “examine yourselves. Paul asked: Are you unapproved? Are you “in the faith” or outside, in the cold?
“5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? [a: are unapproved]”
– 2 Corinthians 13:5
James was really harsh, saying:
“Fool! When will you ever learn that “believing” is useless without doing what God wants you to? Faith that does not result in good deeds is not real faith.
– James 2:20 TLB
James comes right out with it: You foolish person! See it in the AMP version:
“But are you willing to recognize,
you foolish
[spiritually shallow] person,
that faith
without [good] works
is useless?”
– AMP version
Grace alone for salvation… is not biblical. You can’t just say “I believe”. James 2:20 does not teach “grace alone” as what saves you. To the contrary. That stance is a loser in God’s Court.
His grace requires we accept Him with all our heart. We believe in vain if we believe “just superficially and without complete commitment” (1 Corinthians 15:2).
Faith has a big “IF”
You are saved “unless you believed in vain [just superficially and without complete commitment]”. A shallow belief does not become the deep flowing river of living waters that Jesus gives (John 7:38). How deep, and wide, is your faith?
Now brothers and sisters,
let me remind you
[once again] of
the good news [of salvation]
which I preached to you,
which you welcomed
and accepted
and on which you stand [by faith].
– 1 Corinthians 15:1
But don’t stop there. Paul adds an “IF” clause:
2 By this faith you are saved
[reborn from above
—spiritually transformed,
renewed, and
set apart for His purpose],
if
you hold firmly
to the word
which I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain
[just superficially and
without complete
commitment].
– 1 Corinthians 15:2
See:
| Romans 6:4-7 “walk habitually in newness of life [abandoning our old ways]
| Colossians 3:1-4.”Therefore, if….” |
You negate your declaration of “faith” IF you were superficial, or holding-back somehow. Jesus called it “one thing you lack“. Way too many have not abandoned “old ways” and are still behind the “if” factor: The Moment of IF.
There is still “one thing” lacking. It is a tragic error. 1
Going to Hell… how very huge the bummer.
Why does God reject anyone!?
The Bible does not teach “inclusivism“. God rejects any confessor who does not have what saves – because that confessor only has what does not save! (How simple can it be?!) Do you have what it takes for Him to save you, or merely what it takes to be rejected?
What is it? 1) What saves you, and 2) what does not save you from anything? That is the question.
“Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday, today, and forever”
– Hebrews 13:7-9 WEB
So since He never changed (but stays the same)… we know that what He rejected before today — He will certainly reject after today, today and later — on That Day of Judgement. Ready for that?
Don’t want to be there on that day! The Judgement of God is sure. Will you be on His right, or on His left. Will you be one of the sheep of His fold, or one of those damn goats?
Separating the sheep from the goats
31 “But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. 32 And all the nations will be gathered before Him;
and He will separate them from one another, just as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; 33 and He will put the sheep on His right, but the goats on the left.
– Matthew 25:31-33
__________
What saves. What does not.
__________See: What saves you
(ie: What saves you from damnation, and what does not save you at all.)
The issue is your heart
“The issue of sin, which eternally separates all mankind from God – was, in that moment [when He resurrected from the dead], totally “taken care of legally“.
By Jesus, through His Perfect Sacrifice on the cross, and by His victorious resurrection, we can now be saved.
Sin damns you to Hell, but it is your heart that keeps you there, God damned on earth. Therefore your need for salvation is not a sin issue technically (because Jesus took care of that “once for all”) — but rather a heart issue.
Change your heart – change your destiny
If you change your heart, you change your destiny. You will stay damned forever if your heart stays the same. If you die that way, you stay that way – forever damned, forever without the goodnesses of God. That is what Hell is all about.
Each of us must change our heart, turn to Jesus in repentance and accept Him. With THAT ACT Jesus saves.”
– Source: The one-off offer Jesus makes to everyone
True faith “adheres to, trusts in, and relies on” Jesus. That type of faith should be easy to spot.
“He who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Me], as the Scripture has said, ‘From his innermost being will flow continually rivers of living water.’” – John 7:38
That is actually what it means to believe in the biblical sense, to “believe in the name of Jesus”. The wonder of that is that even the “faith” to believe Him is not from us – it is from Him.
The Basis of His Judgement
So, getting back to the main topic here: I want to know on what basis He will judge us.
Let’s delve into what Jesus Himself said about the salvation He offers us. Effective salvation is only what He said, and what came to us directly from His disciples… taught to them personally by Jesus. Put aside all your pet thots on this. Let’s go for the gold: Get down to God’s meaning.
I want God’s message – clean and unadulterated. And, because He is all-knowing, He does not change his mind. No word of today can ever change His Word already given. The Bible is solid ground. “All other ground is sinking sand.”
– Source: Getting down to God’s meaning
Saving knowledge: Capture it afresh, or realize what it is for the first time.
“There is a saving knowledge of Christ, and there is a false knowledge about Christ. One connects you to God and saves you. The other does not lead to Creator God. Do you know the difference?
Which type of knowledge do you have? Do you know the difference between the two? Can you discern between what the Bible teaches is the “yes-so-saving” type, and the “not-so-saving” type of knowledge of Christ?”
– Source (adapted): Saving knowledge
1 Timothy 2: verses 3-4
3 …God our Savior…
4 …desires all men
to be saved
and
to come to
the [a recognition] knowledge of the truth.
The Source
After all, you want this knowledge directly from The Man Himself, the Godman who suffered and died for this “salvation”. Don’t you? I do. I want what Jesus offers us. Jesus is The Source! (Revelation 1:1-3)
I for one, sure as Hell, and Heaven — do not care one ioda what any apostle or prophet or NAR-type teacher teaches about salvation. Too many are messing it up nowadays.
The many false teachers teach their own way, denying the Old Testament, preaching the “anything goes gospel, a re-created errant gospel that does not save. Do you look to them for your eternity? Scary thought!
I don’t even care what you think about it! You may have perverted your faith with an idol in your heart!
Ezekiel 14:3-4
“Son of man, these men have set up [and honored] their idols in their hearts and have put right before their faces the [vile] stumbling block of their wickedness and guilt; should I [permit Myself to] be consulted by them at all?
4 Therefore speak to them and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Any man of the house of Israel who takes his idols [of rebellion] into his heart, and puts the [vile] stumbling block of his wickedness and guilt [images of silver and gold] before his face, and yet comes to the prophet [to ask of him], I the Lord will answer him, [but I will answer him] in accordance with the number of his idols….” – Ezekiel 14:3-4
Mere humans get in the way of Truth too often. No. Don’t want them. No mere opinions. No colliding human interfere-ers allowed. Give me Jesus! Let’s go to the Bible for His Truths. Stay away from those with strange doctrines and strange practices. They will not be taking you anywhere you want to be!
I want my salvation parameters straight from the source, not some preaching intermediary. Jesus was so very easy to understand when it came to how to get into My Holy Kingdom. In fact, His salvation is so simple that some people stumble away ridiculing it!
None of us needs some so-called spiritual “expert” to explain it to us. (Jesus is not like these computer gurus that are so smart they are absolutely useless when it comes to dumbing it down for normal earthlings to understand.) God truly “gets us”! He has made salvation very easy to understand.
There will be no ticket agent angel at the Pearly Gates checking your credentials. Imagine that kind of chaotic scene:
“You Sir are cleared to go. To your right.”
“Ah, you Madam… no. Step aside.
“And you too, youngster – to your left”.
“You ..Imam! What the! What are you doing here at the Pearly Gates? To your left! To your left!
“Joseph Mormon Smith! Good grief. Who’s doing the pre-credentialling anyway! Step aside.
No. No such scene in the Bible.
Sealed in Him
The Holy Spirit Himself seals our salvation instantly in that moment in time when we truly get saved. He alone is our “ticket to Heaven”, so to speak. No actual ticket needed, of course.
God requires more than a ticket. The Holy Spirit Himself resides in every single individual who gets redeemed (ie: “born again”, justified, “made brand new”).
No Holy Spirit in you? Then, no entrance granted either! Our salvation is sealed by the Spirit of God. No Spirit – no salvation. He seals us.
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Traps on the Broad Road
__________
Salvation is not a works thing, where you must do a bunch of holy things to get saved. No. It is a faith thing. We simply believe God at His Word, and then, because He Himself made us “born again” – we follow Him.
Getting saved is an act of faith, where we “turn from – turn to“. If you don’t turn – you burn.
When you turn from your sinfulness
(true “repentance“),
and turn to Christ for His forgiveness
(“accept Christ” and His ways),
He then recreates you in that instant
and you become “born again“.
– Source: About past sins and being forgiven now
The sins around us – and the sins we do
The mesmerizing, tantalizing, sins we love — are the vandalizing traps along the road to destruction. They promise joy, but …no. No joy there!
Do you know
“what is what”
in God’s eyes?
Or do you make weak arguments
for keeping your sin?
– Source: The sins around us and the sins we do
__________
What God accepts and what God does NOT accept
__________
9 about sin [and the true nature of it], because they do not believe in Me [and My message];
10 about righteousness [personal integrity and godly character], because I am going to My Father and you will no longer see Me;
11 about judgment [the certainty of it], because the ruler of this world (Satan) has been judged and condemned.” – John 16:7-11
Confirmed Salvation
There are many biblical examples of confirmed salvation. We know they are saved because of what God had written about them. There is no doubt about the salvation of these people. Scripture sometimes does not say flat-out they are bound for Heaven, but the context is clear: they are His.
Is it clear in your context that you are His?
Stephen was stoned to death for His audacious belief that the carpenter Jesus was the Godman Messiah. Prior to the stoning Stephen was preaching when suddenly Jesus (after His death and resurrection) appeared to him in the sky:
“…he, being full of the Holy Spirit and led by Him, gazed into heaven and saw the glory [the great splendor and majesty] of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; 56 and he said, “Look! I see the heavens opened up [in welcome] and [b]the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” – Read Acts 7:54-57
Abraham (Acts 7:2-8) had an extreme experience showing God’s approval of him:
“2 The God of glory [the Shekinah, the radiance of God] appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran….”
King David (Acts 7 verse 46) “46…found favor (grace, spiritual blessing) in the sight of God“. Though frequently fallen into sin, David was called by God, “…a man after my own heart.”
“21 Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 And when He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king: of him He testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart [conforming to My will and purposes], who will do all My will.’ 23 From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel a Savior, [in the person of] Jesus, according to His promise.” – Read Acts 13:21-23
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Wrap Up
__________
Goats are not the sheep of His pasture.
“These things I have written
to you
who believe
in the name of the Son of God,
so that you may know
that you have eternal life.”
– 1 John 5:13
I suspect that most self-proclaimed “Christians” are NOT saved. The stats are truly alarming. Very scary.
Many false christians are the tare next to the true wheat in churches nowadays. Don’t be a God Damned Christian – be the real thing.
* Don’t waiver because of how the many phoney baloney believers live-out their faith …the “unrepentant” and confounded, the chaff, the weeds, the “tares” growing right alongside the good wheat, content in their wayward thought. [See: Matthew 3:12, Matthew 13:verses 24-30]
– Source: The Apostle Paul’s Criticisms
It’s the most scary thought ever, this: that so many are NOT truly saved. They think they are, but they are not.
Were you truly saved?
Beyond the shadow of a doubt — THIS is the biggest question for all professing believers: Were you truly saved, actually redeemed by the blood of the Lamb? Or not.
-
- Did you “become one with Him [permanently united]”? (Romans 6:5)
- Were you truly saved in your professed “salvation moment“?
- Have you been “raised with Christ”? (Colossians 3:1)
- Have you died (spiritually) and now “your life is hidden with Christ in God”? (Colossians 3:3)
- Did you “become one with Him [permanently united]”? (Romans 6:5)
Only you know and God knows. Don’t fool yourself. Jesus will most certainly say to many: “You are NOT of My household” (Matthew 7:20-24, Luke 13:22-30). The worst moment ever, that.
– Source: The Moment of IF
– Excerpt from Receiving the forgiveness of God through Jesus the Messiah:
Are you seeking God?
Hell is for those who reject Jesus and His one-off offer to enter His Holy Kingdom. Even the most vile sinner can bow the knee …now. But beyond the veil? Not a chance in Hell for the unbeliever.
Flesh and blood absolutely cannot inherit the Kingdom of God
Jesus said, “You must be born again….” (verse 7)
See: John 3:1-21
Salvation in Christ is simple: a sinner must absolutely believe in the Name of Jesus – with all you are, with 100% given over to Him.
On which side of eternity’s dividing line are you on? …the Legally damned or the Legally forgiven? I pray you choose Jesus.
– Source: Receiving the forgiveness of God through Jesus the Messiah
FOR MORE:
Getting into Heaven requires that Jesus, the Gatekeeper, opens the door. Will Jesus open for you? Have you made the proper arrangements with Him to get in?
___________________
Jesus saves and Jesus condemns
The one-off offer Jesus makes to everyone
Salvation and Receiving the Gift of the Holy Spirit
Want it – to know it… God’s message to us
Want to be wise? Exerpt: Many of today’s multiple cultures lead folks into believing: I was born smart. The majority believe they are living the better way, that they are “in the know”
No Sin – No Problem …in response to those who say there is no “sin”
Acknowledge God and consider Him worth knowing
Teaching about Jesus the Messiah
Jesus saves and Jesus condemns
The Inclusive Yet Exclusive Salvation of Jesus
Legally Damned – Legally Forgiven
Freed from a righteous “God Damn”
Was your confession accepted by God?
Is Belief in Jesus Necessary? The Answer to Religious Inclusivism | Author: Ronald H. Nash | Article ID: JAJ772 | Updated: Apr 24, 2024 | Published: Jun 11, 2009.
Positive Confession: The Misunderstanding of Faith | Author: Brian A. Onken | Article ID: DF030| Updated: Jun 22, 2023 | Published: Apr 20, 2009.
Living between two opinions – 1 Kings 18:21
Are Mormons Christians? | Author:Gordon R. Lewis | equip.org | Published: Jun 9, 2009 | Updated: Aug 4, 2023.
Receiving the forgiveness of God through Jesus the Messiah
The sins around us and the sins we do
Keeping sin AND getting God’s Holiness also
Waiting for “the real real” Excerpt: He is greater than all our fears. The God of the Ages has a plan that He assures us is being worked-out. In Him we have a hope.
The Overcoming Faith of Christ Followers
Seven Signs You Know Jesus How to know for sure you’re not a false Christian | By Jimmy Evans | Sep 25, 2022.
Fake faith gets you nowhere you want to be
No New Revelations in these End Times
“By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error” Excerpt: Test for truth 1 Thessalonians 5:21 There is a simple test John puts forward here in 1 John 4:1-6. We can easily test those who teach the Bible. We must – to know if they are of God or actually a wayward heretic apostate.
Making God speak Excerpt: Believers in the Church have the responsibility to test for fakes when people say they speak from God. Are they really words from God? Or are they proclaiming words of mere humans (2 Peter 1:20-21)?
Why Jesus will say to some “I don’t know you”
Practicing sin – not following Christ
Who In Hell Do You Think You Are?
Flesh and blood absolutely cannot inherit the Kingdom of God
Could it be true that today only 6% of “Christians” are truly born again?
Footnotes
- Anyone
Actually — anyone (Romans 3:23), everyone, will be ceremoniously “thrown out” into “the abyss” (the bottomless pit, the dwelling place of demons), into Hell — if they reject Christ Jesus. He will not just reject — “the sons and heirs of the kingdom [the descendants of Abraham who will not recognize Me as Messiah]” (Matthew 8:11-12). He will reject all “rejectors” (Romans 3:23).“Rejectors” (those “who will not recognize Me as Messiah”, Jesus said) will not be in God’s Home Heaven. How very huge the bummer.
– Source: Jews and anyone who rejects Jesus.
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