Sunday, July 7, 2013
Can a Christian Lose His Salvation?
That is a question that has led to many an argument over the years.
Can a Christian lose his salvation?
Further questions must be asked to get to the answer.
On whose work are you relying or depending. Yours or God's?
Are you relying on something YOU DID to be saved, or on
what GOD DID to save you?
YOUR WORK
Are you depending on a "decision" you made years ago, when you
studied the evidence that Jesus was who He said He is, and you
"decided to invite Him into your heart?"
Did you walk the aisle at church and repeat the sinner's prayer,
and "accept Jesus as your Savior?" Now, you're told you're saved
because of the decision you made.
Say the prayer and BOOM! You're in!
Are you saved because you finally after years of putting if off,
"LET Jesus come into your heart," and gave Him "permission" to
save you?
Are you hoping that the saying, "once saved, always saved," is true,
because you've made a "public profession of faith in Christ?"
Do you have to keep yourself saved by doing something, or does God
safely preserve you in Christ?
Are you the "ultimate decider," or is God?
GOD'S WORK
Or, are you relying and placing your hope in what God has done to save you?
"Through Him (Jesus) you believe in God,
who raised Him from the dead and glorified
Him, and so your faith and hope are in God."
1 Peter 1:21
Is your salvation a miracle wrought by God: the rebel sinner and enemy of God
(Romans 5:10), a God-hater (Romans 1:30), who hears the gospel and is totally
transformed into a God-lover, adopted into His family (Ephesians 1:5) as a
joint-heir (Galatians 4:4-7; Romans 8:16-17), with Christ as your brother
(Hebrews 2:11,17)?
Hearing the Gospel (Romans 1:16), have you been convicted of your sin, and
granted repentance (Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians 7:10) and faith (Philippians 1:29)
in Christ?
Once alienated from God (Colossians 1:21), are you reconciled (Colossians 1:22)
by Christ's death, and now seen as holy and blameless (Ephesians 1:4)?
THE WORK OF THE TRINITY
All three Persons of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) are intimately
involved in the salvation of His people.
"Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To God's elect, strangers in the world,
... who have been chosen according to
the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,
for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling
by His blood."
1 Peter 1:1-2
God the Father chooses and calls His people for salvation before the foundation
of the world (Ephesians 1:4), The Holy Spirit sanctifies and sets apart His people
for good works (Ephesians 2:10), and the Son redeems them by His blood,
shed on the cross (Revelation 1:5), and justifies them (Galatians 2:16)
before the Father.
THE WORK OF JESUS (A PERFECT SAVIOR)
"For it was fitting that He, for whom and
by whom all things exist in bringing many
sons to glory, should make the founder
(Jesus) of their salvation perfect through
suffering."
Hebrews 2:10
("In His divine nature, Christ was already perfect.
However, His human nature was perfected through
obedience, including suffering in order that He
might be an understanding high priest, an example
for believers, and establish the perfect righteousness
to be imputed to believers."
John MacArthur)
" ... He holds His priesthood permanently,
because He continues forever.
Consequently, He is able to save to the
uttermost those who draw near to God
through Him, since He always lives to
make intercession for them."
Hebrews 7:24b-25
Not only is Jesus a perfect Savior, but He perfects the believer's
standing before God in righteousness, by offering Himself in
their place, paying the debt for their sin against the Father.
"For by a single offering HE HAS PERFECTED
FOR ALL TIME those who are being
sanctified."
Hebrews 10:14
Jesus is seated AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD THE FATHER,
and has the power to save His people perfectly through His death.
" ... looking to Jesus, the founder and PERFECTER
of our faith, who for the joy that was set before
Him endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."
Hebrews 12:2
PERSEVERANCE (OR PRESERVATION OF THE SAINTS)
Enduring in faith to the end of life on earth is evidence of the believer's
salvation, and is the work of God.
" ... According to His great mercy, HE HAS
CAUSED US TO BE BORN AGAIN, to a
living hope through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead, TO AN INHERITANCE
THAT IS IMPERISHABLE, UNDEFILED,
AND UNFADING, KEPT IN HEAVEN FOR YOU.
WHO BY GOD'S POWER ARE BEING GUARDED
THROUGH FAITH FOR A SALVATION, READY
TO BE REVEALED IN THE LAST TIME."
1 Peter 1:3b-5
True believers endure to the end because of their hope in God and His work.
"And we are His house if indeed we hold fast
our confidence and our boasting in our hope."
Hebrews 3:6
"For we have to come to share in Christ, if indeed
we hold our original confidence firm to the end."
Hebrews 2:14
God the Father establishes His people in Christ, and the Holy Spirit
seals us and guarantees our salvation for eternity.
"And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ,
and has anointed us, and who has also put His seal
on us and given us His Spirit in our hearts as a
guarantee."
2 Corinthians 1:21
Jesus will sustain to the end those who have been called by God into
fellowship with Him.
"I give thanks to my God always for you
because of the grace of God that was given
you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you
were enriched in Him in all speech and all
knowledge -- even as the testimony about
Christ was confirmed among you -- so that
you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as
you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus
Christ, WHO WILL SUSTAIN YOU TO
THE END, GUILTLESS in the day of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful by whom you were called into
the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord."
1 Corinthians 1:4-9
Jesus always does the Father's will, and His will is that Jesus lose
none of those given to Him by the Father, but that they be given
eternal life, and raised up on the last day.
"Everyone that the Father gives will come to me,
and EVERYONE WHO COMES TO ME I WILL
NEVER CAST OUT.
For I have come down from heaven, not to do my
own will but the will of Him who sent me. And this
is the will of Him who sent me, THAT I SHOULD
LOSE NONE OF THOSE GIVEN ME, BUT RAISE
THEM UP ON THE LAST DAY.
For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who
looks on the Son and believes in Him should have
eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."
John 6:37-40
Everyone given to the Son by the Father, belongs to the Son, and receives
THE PROMISE OF ETERNAL LIFE. NO ONE CAN SNATCH
THEM OUT OF HIS HAND OR THE FATHER'S HAND.
"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me. I will give them eternal
life, and THEY WILL NEVER PERISH,
and NO ONE CAN SNATCH THEM OUT
OF MY HAND.
My Father, who has given them to me. is
greater than all, and NO ONE IS ABLE TO
SNATCH THEM OUT OF THE FATHER'S
HAND. I AND THE FATHER ARE ONE."
John 10:27-30
Nothing can separate from the Father, anyone, who is in Christ Jesus.
"For I am sure that neither death nor life,
nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present
nor things to come, nor powers, nor height
nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from the love
of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 8:38-39
GOD SAVES! WE DON'T SAVE OURSELVES!
Did you choose yourself for salvation?
No, God did that!
Did you call yourself to be holy and blameless?
No, God did that!
Did you "born again" (regenerate) yourself?
No, the Holy Spirit did that!
Did you convert yourself?
No, God did that!
Did you adopt yourself as a child of God?
No, God did that!
Did you justify yourself?
No, God did that!
Did you redeem yourself?
No, the blood of Jesus did that!
Did you purchase yourself?
No, Jesus did that!
Did you save yourself?
No, God did that!
***************
Will God, who has adopted you, if you trust in Him, ever kick you out
of His family?
Will anyone who "is the righteousness of God," (2 Corinthians 5:21),
ever be damned to hell?
WILL ANYONE WHO HAS BEEN CHOSEN, CALLED, REGENERATED,
CONVERTED, JUSTIFIED, ADOPTED, REDEEMED , PURCHASED,
SANCTIFIED, PERFECTLY SAVED, AND PRESERVED IN CHRIST FOR
ETERNITY, EVER BE LOST?
The answer to these questions is NO!!!!!
OF COURSE NOT!!!!
If you have truly repented and trusted in Jesus Christ, then you have been saved,
and nothing can ever change that!
Because of the work of God, you have eternal security!
God is the "Ultimate Decider!"
*****************
DOXOLOGY
"Now to Him who is able to keep you from
stumbling and to present you blameless
before the presence of His glory with great
joy, to the only God, our Savior, through
Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty,
dominion, and authority, before all time
and now and forever. Amen."
Jude 24-25
Friday, July 5, 2013
The Glory of Christ
"If we regularly beheld the glory of Christ,
our Christian walk with God would become
more sweet and pleasant, our spiritual light
and strength would grow daily stronger and
our lives would more gloriously represent
the glory of Christ. Death would be most
welcome to us."
John Owen
*************
CHRIST'S GLORY
Jesus has the right to divide the sheep from the goats, the
righteous from the unrighteous. The unrighteous will go
away to eternal punishment and the righteous to eternal life.
[Jesus said], "When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with Him, He will sit on
His throne in heavenly glory.
All the nations will be gathered before Him,
and He will separate the people one from another
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will put the sheep on His right and the goats
on the left."
Then they (the ones on the left) will go away to
eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
Matthew 25:31-33,46
The glory of Jesus will be made evident when Jesus returns
with His angels, who will gather His elect from the earth and
heaven.
[Jesus said], "At that time men will see the Son of Man
coming in clouds with great power and glory.
And He will send His angels and gather His
elect from the four winds, from the ends of
the earth to the ends of the heavens."
Mark 13:26-27
Jesus is worthy of our praise because of His salvation
and glory and power.
"After this I heard what sounded like the
roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:
'Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power
belong to our God.' "
Revelation 19:1
OUR WALK
Those who know Jesus will not walk with Satan,
but will follow the Lord and live for Him.
"When Jesus spoke again to the people,
He said,
'I am the light of the world.
Everyone who follows me will
never walk in darkness, but will
have the light of life.' "
John 8:12
Jesus' blood purifies His people, and they walk in
fellowship with one another.
"But if we walk in the light,
as He is in the light,
we have fellowship with one
another, and the blood of Jesus,
His Son, purifies us from all sin."
1 John 1:7
Jesus commands His people to love others.
"And this is love: that we walk
in obedience to His commands.
As you have heard from the
beginning, His command is
that you walk in love."
2 John 6
DEATH
God's people need not fear death, for Jesus has given
us victory over sin and the grave, through His death
and resurrection. In an instant, we will receive our
new imperishable bodies, when Jesus returns.
"For the trumpet will sound,
the dead will be raised imperishable,
and we will be changed.
For the perishable must clothe itself
with the imperishable, and the mortal
with immortality.
When the perishable has been clothed
with the imperishable, and the mortal
with immortality, then the saying that
is written will come true:
'Death has been swallowed up
in victory.''
'Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?'
The sting of death is sin, and the power
of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ."
1 Corinthians 15:52b-57
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Two Presidents - Two VERY Different Messages
Just another example of how far we as a nation
have fallen away from God.
"As Commander-in-Chief, I take pleasure in commending
the reading of the Bible to all who serve in the armed forces
of the United States.
Throughout the centuries, men of many faiths and diverse
origins have found in the Sacred Book, words of wisdom,
counsel and inspiration.
It is a fountain of strength and now, as always, an aid in
attaining the highest inspirations of the human soul."
Very sincerely yours,
Franklin D. Roosevelt
(A message found in the front cover of New Testaments
the U.S. government issued to soldiers in World War II).
********
Now, contrast that, with this message from another president.
"Retweet if you believe everyone should be able to
marry the person they love."
Barack Obama
************
"But mark this: There will be terrible times
in the last days. People will be lovers of
themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud,
abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful,
unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous,
without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,
treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure
rather than lovers of God -- having a form of
godliness but denying its power.
Have nothing to do with them."
2 Timothy 3:1-5
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
The Wicked Strut - For Now!
"Help, LORD, for the godly are no more;
the faithful have vanished from among men.
Everyone lies to his neighbor;
their flattering lips speak with deception.
May the LORD cut off all flattering lips
and every boasting tongue
that says, 'We will triumph with our tongues;
we own our lips -- who is our master?
Because of the oppression of the weak
and the groaning of the needy,
I will now arise, says the LORD,
'I will protect them from those
who malign them.'
And the words of the LORD are flawless,
like silver refined in a furnace of clay,
purified seven times.
O LORD, you will keep us safe
and protect us from such people forever.
The wicked freely strut about when what
is vile is honored among men."
Psalm 12:1-8
****************
It seems almost every day lately, those who are wicked, those who oppose God,
and mock Him and His Word, have prospered more and more.
Even many churches are embracing immorality, consciously disobeying God,
and bringing condemnation on themselves.
The righteous, those who are in Christ, appear to be on the losing end of each
important issue that comes up.
The evil refuse to give the honor and glory He deserves, while promoting every
wicked behavior imaginable.
However, it won't always be that way!
God will punish the mockers and reward those who have trusted in Him.
******************
"Then I saw a great white throne and him who
was seated on it. From his presence earth and
sky fled away, and no place was found for them.
And I saw the dead, great and small, standing
before the throne, and books were opened.
Then another book was opened, which is the
book of life.
And the dead were judged by what was written in
the books, according to what they had done.
And the sea gave up the dead who were in it.
Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them,
and they were judged, each one of them, according to
what they had done.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.
This is the second death, the lake of fire.
And if anyone's name was not found written in the book
of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:11-15
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man.
He will dwell with them, and they will be his
people, and God himself will be with them as
their God.
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,
and death shall be no more, neither shall there
be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore,
for the former things have passed away.
But nothing unclean will ever enter it (the city),
nor anyone who does what is detestable or false,
but only those who are written in the Lamb's
book of life.
They will see his face, and his name will be on
their foreheads. And night will be no more.
They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the
Lord God will be their light, and they will reign
forever and ever."
Revelation 21:3-4,27
22:4-5
Monday, July 1, 2013
God Never Changes
"Though we changeth every day, He changeth not.
Could any kind of provocation turn it away, it had
long ceased."
John Owen
****************
We, as believers, change in our faithfulness to God throughout our lives.
Sometimes, we feel as if we have all the faith in the world, and can make it
through any situation as long as God is there to help us.
Other times, we get down and worried, and our faith seems very small.
Where is God when we really need Him?
Of course, He is always ready to help us when we call on Him.
He never changes. God is always holy, good, forgiving and loving,
righteous, faithful and true.
"And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying.
'Speak to all the congregation of the people
of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy,
for I the LORD your God am holy.' "
Leviticus 19:1-2
"For you, O LORD, are good and forgiving,
abounding in steadfast love to all who call
upon you."
Psalm 86:5
"Then I saw heaven opened, and behold,
a white horse! The one sitting on it is
called Faithful and True, and in righteousness
He judges and makes war."
Revelation 19:11
GOD NEVER CHANGES
God never lies or regrets anything He does, because His purpose will always
prevail (Isaiah 46:8,11), and what He purposes is always right (Deut. 32:4).
"Samuel said, ... 'He who is the Glory of Israel
(God) does not lie or change His mind;
for He is not a man, that He should change
His mind."
1 Samuel 15:29
God will not change His mind.
"The LORD has sworn and will not
change His mind ..."
Psalm 110:4a
God does not change as the sun, moon, and stars change.
"From man's perspective, the celestial bodies have different phases
of movement and rotation, change from day to night, and vary in
intensity and shadow.
But God does not follow that pattern -- He is changeless."
John MacArthur
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father
of lights with whom there is no variation
or shadow due to change."
James 1:17
"For I the LORD do not change;
therefore you. O children of Jacob,
are not consumed."
Malachi 3:6
"Contrary to God's having become unjust and thus not acting on
behalf of Israel, in light of their history of rebellion, Israel's
existence was due only to the Lord's unchanging character
and unswerving commitment to His covenant promise with the
patriarchs.
They may experience God's goodness again, and be blessed -- if
they repent."
John MacArthur
We are always changing, but God never changes!
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