All Discussion PAGE 2309

Salvation (part 4)

John also states in John 10:27-29, "My sheep hear my voice and I know them; and they follow me. And I give to them eternal life; and they will never perish forever and not anyone will seize them from out of my hand. My Father who has given them to me is greater than all, and no one is able to seize them from out of the hand of my Father."

Jude states in his doxology in verse 24, "But to the one being able to keep you without stumbling and to set you before His glory blameless in exultation."

Paul in his writings emphasized the keeping power of God's Spirit in Ephesians 1:13-14: "In whom also after having heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also, after having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance, for redemption of the possession, for the praise of His glory."

He states again in Ephesians 4:30, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." Probably one of the most powerful Scriptures of God's keeping power is Romans 8:38-39: "For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor powers, nor any thing which has come, nor things coming, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

The only way a person can be saved is by a spiritual birth from God; and the only way a person can keep his salvation is through the keeping power of God.

Many scriptures were written to show believers that some among them, who professed to be Christians, were actually not saved. John wrote I John so those who were saved would know that they have eternal life ( 1 John 5:13). In this letter, he listed many evidences, so that salvation could be proven among genuine believers.

Salvation (Part 3)

These scriptures show that believers cannot be taken away from Christ by the flesh, because the Spirit of God is dwelling within to prevent that from happening.

Jesus Himself said, as recorded in John 6:37, "All that the Father gives to me will come to me; and the one coming to me I will never cast out." He goes on to say, in John 6:39, "And this is the will of the Father who has sent me, in order that of all which he has given to me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up in the last day."

Also, in His prayer to the Father, as recorded in John 17:11-12, Jesus said, "And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep through your own name those whom you have given to me, in order that they may be one, as we are. When I was with them in the world, I was keeping them in your name; the ones who you have given to me I kept, and none of them perished, except the son of perdition; in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled."

I emphasize the permanency of salvation because the bible teaches that God is the one who saves and He does so from out of His mercy. According to Paul, in Ephesians 2:8, grace, faith, and salvation are gifted from God.

John says, in John 1:13, believers "were born, not from blood, nor from the will of the flesh, nor from the will of man, but from God." Therefore, according to Scripture, a human being cannot save him/herself.

We also know from Scripture that no one can keep himself saved. John teaches, in 1 John 5:18 (as recorded in the oldest Greek manuscripts), "We know that everyone who has been born from God does not practice sin; but the one who has been born from God, God is keeping him and the evil one does not touch him."

Salvation (part 2)

In the early Church, the requirement for salvation was the presence of God's Spirit dwelling within a person. Paul instructed, in Romans 8:9, "Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this one is not of Him." In Romans 8:14, he wrote, "For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God."

And again, in Romans 8:16, he instructs that "The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God." Also, in 2 Corinthians 13:5, Paul challenged the church at Corinth: "Examine yourselves, if you are in the faith; prove your own selves, or do you not know your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you, except you are reprobates?"

John, writing in 1 John 3:24 supported this same understanding: "And in this we know that He abides in us, from the Spirit whom He has given to us."

He repeats this same truth, although worded somewhat differently, in 1 John 4:13, "In this we know that we dwell in Him, and He in us, because He has given to us of His Spirit."

From the preceding scriptures, we see that salvation happens only when God's Spirit enters and remains in a person's spirit, thereby causing spiritual birth. Nothing in the Bible teaches that salvation is accomplished by the repetition of the Sinner's Prayer or through the performance of any other kind of human formula.

In addition to teaching that God is the sole source of salvation, the Bible also teaches that every saved person is kept by the power of God. Peter writes, in 1 Peter 1:5, that believers are, "The ones who are being kept in the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."

Paul writes on the same subject, in Galatians 5:17, "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are opposing to one another; in order that you should not do what you want."

Herman,

I will have to break this up into more than one post. I will list each post as Part 1, Part 2, etc. I hope that you will read through this. Salvation is a very important issue, and we need to have assurance one way or another.

(Part 1)

You have touched upon a very important issue. Over the last 30 years or so, emphasis on the ability to save has been shifted from God to man. As a result, the permanency of salvation has been called into question, because this approach to salvation emphasizes that believing certain truths can save a person, and then that same person can subsequently lose his/her salvation by disbelieving those same truths.

However, the Bible clearly teaches that salvation is based solely on God's Spirit coming into the spirit of a human being; and in so doing, causing that person to become a new creation, a new person. A person's experience of regeneration by the Holy Spirit is an act of God, not of man.

Biblically, the salvation process begins with God the Father. Jesus said, in John 6:44, "No one is able to come to me unless the Father who has sent me should draw him; and I will raise him up in the last day." In John 3:3, Jesus says, "Unless anyone should be born from above, he is not able to see the kingdom of God."

Consequently, if the Father does not draw a person to Christ, that person cannot be saved. It is only after the Father has drawn someone to Christ, that the Spirit of Christ enters into the spirit of that person and spiritual birth takes place.

These same truths are taught by the Apostles. Paul, in Titus 3:5 wrote, "Not out of works in righteousness which we did, but according to His mercy He saved us, through washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit."

Peter said, in 1 Peter 1:3, "Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the One who according to His great mercy has regenerated us again into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."

Hey, Skip this is Ron I am new to this site, I love the peaceful conversations that are on this site that you don't find on many others but sometimes it is hard to know who is talking to who. When you click on view thread some post does not go with the conversations in the thread. If your reply was to me, I don't quite understand your post, I don't believe I made any remarks of OEC or did I say you were a Darwinian evolutionist. I thought this post started with 24 hour days or 1000 year days so I don't feel I changed the subject. Many fill the earth is older than the time calculated from Adam, but few explain why they believe that. I would like to hear the reason which would be a good conversation. Thanks, Ron

That verse is not in the Bible ,it is a man made proverb and it couldnt be further from the truth , if you read the Bible you will see that God Himself is the breath in our nostrils and none of us would last one second without Him ,He is always telling us that we need to help the most vulnerable in our society and i belive as far as i can remember without checking ,that the name Lazarus means some thing like 'without help '. Make of that what you will ,may God bless you .

Deuteronomy c.23 v21-23,is talking about a vow to god. Ecclesiastes c.5-v 4-5. Questions here's the Old Testament time, can you break a vow, we are living in the New Testament time, Jesus came to bears our sin on the cross. I need your feedback on this. Thanks.

Karen,

S Spencer has given you a great answer. I would like to touch a little on something that was mentioned, which is "habitual sin". A believer who has been born of the Spirit of Christ (Born-Again) no longer has the capacity to live a continuous lifestyle of habitual sin, the lifestyle they once lived before coming to know Christ.

A believer can commit single acts of sin, but can no longer sin habitually because God's Spirit lives in the believer, convicts the believer of sin, and brings the believer to repentance. If a person can continue to sin with no conviction in their heart, then that person needs to take inventory of their life, even if they claim to be Christian.

It is God's Spirit (Holy Spirit) who convicts a person of sin, and it is His Spirit who keeps us from sinning (Habitually).

If you are saved, you will go to heaven. God promises you that. But please keep in mind that we do not go to heaven based on what we do or don't do, but what Christ has done for us. Getting into heaven has nothing to do with human performance. When we stand before God, we are going to know that we are guilty. God is not going to look at our human effort and say "You've done far more good than bad, so come on in."

What God is going to see in us is His Son, Jesus Christ. And that's the only basis for us entering in. Jesus has promised to NEVER leave us, and as long as He lives in us, which He has promised to never leave, we are secure in Him!

As for backsliding, it is not found in the New Testament and is never applied to the believer in Christ. It is strictly an Old Testament term describing the Children of Israel.

Hi Sacha, that's very nice of you. I'm feeling a little better, praise God.

john 3:16

If you ask the Lord to forgive you of your sin cause all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, once you ask Jesus to come in your heart and save you, that's it nice and simple. Then ask God to fill you with the Holy Ghost. He will help you grow stronger each day as you read the bible and pray to Him.

Luke 19:27 is a warning to those who would oppose Jesus Christ. The parable illustrates Jesus ascension to his Father's throne until the time he returns to establish his kingdom. In verse 14 he said, "But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us." Likewise most of our world stands in rebellion against the coming Lord and King Jesus Christ.

Psalm 2 prophesies, "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." (v2:9) and, "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him." (v2:12)

David and Solomon were both human beings ,they were at times weak and sinfull ,just like the rest of us human beings ,even the best of us is still just a human being .

Numbers 15:30

"But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people."

Hey Sandra

There may be several opinions on this, so keep studying to be confident in your own heart, but this is what I see. God had already blessed Noah and his sons. Noah could not curse what God had blessed. So Noah cursed Hams son whether God had told him is not written. Canaan the son of Ham, after the dividing of the people and the lands after the tower of Babel, Canaan's descendants would occupy the lands God would give the house of Israel for a possession.

Genesis 9:1 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.

Genesis 9:22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.

Genesis 12:6-7 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him.

Hope this helps Ron

Amen brother, you are right on, for 30 years I believed in a pre trib. rapture because that's what the preacher told me and since my eyes have been opened it could not be clearer that the rapture will be a post trib. rapture, ( Matt. 24:29, Mark 13:24 and Mark 5 thru 23 says you ,ye,& your, over and over(describing what "WE" will be going through, and he is talking to who, Christians, he's not talking to the world, he is talking to his disciples, referencing them , Christians as a whole, and yes, its hard to get past a belief that you was taught especially when you believe the person teaching you is a true man of God so I had to come to this conclusion, if God says it, IT'S TRUE period, I don't care if everybody on the planet disagrees with me, have a great day brother!

First of all I want to say that I appreciate your willingness to talk about it without getting upset, most Christians can't seem to do that these days, and yes, I don't want to cause hard feelings as it don't really matter as to weather were going to heaven or not, but this is what I want to say, In Genesis between verse's 1 & 2 Or 2 & 3, 1 &2 both end with the word "AND" , if I go the the restaurant and order bacon & eggs, I don't mean bring me the bacon now and a year later bring the eggs! My question to you would be simply, where is the scripture that shows anything other than the possibility of a 6 literal day creation & what negates the word "beginning"? Here's another thought, I feel like many old earthers get confused a little between 6000 years & 6000$, 6000 dollars ain't much these days but 6000 yrs!!!is a long long time, think of how far we have come as a people in just the last 120 yrs! We have went from horseback to jet airplanes, from almost 0 technology to almost infinite, from bow & arrow to nuclear weapons, if we can go that far in the last 120 yrs, why is it so hard to believe that this earth was created when God said it was a little over 6000 years ago? My friend, you seem to be well versed in scripture & obviously a Christian, however when you have been fed the dinosaur's could not have been made with man for 40 or 50 yrs. its hard to break that thought process, to me its very simple, if God said it, its true, period!

Mark 5: 43. He commanded them strictly that no one should know it,

Why Jesus told them not to tell anyone? Is it because, of His purpose of timeline or the timing need to follow God's way to reach his mission by cross. or. Allow us to believe in him cuz of our sins..

What if he allowed for the to disclose it... then. people will continue to seek him...which might have slowed him down?

The word you are describing is "covet," not covenant.

Covet: yearn to possess or have something or someone that belongs to someone else.

Covenant: a usually formal, solemn, and binding agreement: compact. How to use covenant in a sentence.

Good question, I have exactly the same question

In you, Lord our God, we put our trust. Trust and Obey

please in can you send me the bible verse that says "Heaven helps does that helps their self.

what were the Names of Noah's children and wife?

I love this tool to help me read and understand bible verse by verse, thanks.

Hi Adam ,good to have you back ,you werent gone long but your absence was felt .

Hahaha well done darren ! I swear in my head all the time ! Occasionally it slips out and i always apologize if theres some one around ,mostly if i swear im in my own home, i never swear in the street or any one elses home ,most of my friends and family swear occassionally ,for most people its just a habit ,lots of people havewords and phrases they use habitually ,obviously its best not to in case you offend some one but i dont belive swearing is the worst sin a person can commit and im very much hoping that God agrees with me or very many of us will be in big trouble i think !

Praise God, Brother or Sister. When may faith is in question I pray to regain it and ask others to assist with their prayers. This has served me well.

Lol i didnt say i would not go to the bathroom or wash.

And I did read what jesus seid, but I didn't understand it hence the reason for me asking for some wise counsel on it?

I made a choice to not eat on a Sunday as a sacrifice to the most high.

What I ment is what dose God mean by works.... And are we supposed to do things like we deam as luxury on the sabbath? Like art... Poetry music or do we use this day to prey, and give thanks to jesus and God.

If we don't ask questions we don't learn.

But thank u for attempting to er answer me.

God bless x

Thank you i will check it out.

X

Greetings.

I am truly grateful to be able to listen to the Word as I follow due to my current blurred vision. I thank God for its availability, and thank your organization for making this feature free to listeners.

I pray and believe that the Lord will continually bless you for your commitment and service, and provide the resources necessary to sustain the service.

In Genesis chapter 9, why was Canaan cursed for what Ham, his father did against Noah?