“He will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21
Many people, if asked what they understand by the term salvation, will reply, “Being saved from hell and taken to heaven.” This is one result of salvation, but it is not one-tenth of what is contained in that blessing. It is true that our Lord Jesus Christ does redeem His people from the wrath to come; He saves them from the fearful condemnation that their sins had brought upon them. But His triumph is far more complete than this. He saves His people “from their sins.” Oh, what a sweet deliverance from our worst enemies. Where Christ performs a saving work, He casts Satan from his throne and will not let him to be master any longer. No person is a true Christian if sin reigns in his or her body. Sin will be in us—it will never be utterly expelled until the spirit enters glory—but it will never have dominion. There will be a striving for dominion, a lusting against the new law and the new spirit which God has implanted—but sin will never get the upper hand so as to be the absolute ruler of our nature. Christ will be master of the heart, and sin must be subdued. The Lion of the tribe of Judah will prevail, and the dragon will be cast out. Professing Christian, is sin subdued in you? If your life is unholy, your heart is unchanged—and if your heart is unchanged, you are an unsaved person. If the Savior has not sanctified you, renewed you, given you a hatred of sin and a love of holiness, then He has done nothing of a saving character in you. The grace which does not make a person better than others is a worthless counterfeit. Christ saves His people not in their sins, but from them. “Without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity” (2 Timothy 2:19 ESV). If we are not saved from sin, how will we hope to be counted among His people? Lord, save me now from all evil, and enable me to honor my Savior. - C.H. Spurgeon Morning and Evening
My Dear Reader, please take special note of this portion from Spurgeon:
"If your life is unholy, your heart is unchanged—and if your heart is unchanged, you are an unsaved person. If the Savior has not sanctified you, renewed you, given you a hatred of sin and a love of holiness, then He has done nothing of a saving character in you. The grace which does not make a person better than others is a worthless counterfeit. Christ saves His people not in their sins, but from them."
There, right there, is how you can see and know that you are saved. If there's no struggle within concerning sin then, my Friend, you have a significant problem.
If you are so comfortable with the world that sin doesn't bother you, then my Friend, you have a problem.
If the things of God, the love of God, the Word of God are of little importance to you, then my Friend, you need to reexamine your thoughts on Salvation. In all likelihood you are not saved.
In the book of Matthew Jesus spoke of the Parable of the talents. One slave was given 10, one 5 and one received 2. The first two immediately invested and doubled the money in the time their Master was away. The third, more fearful of loss versus gain, did nothing with what he was given besides burying it in the ground until the Master returned. Didn't even try to invest it. He was rebuked for his behavior and cast to the outer darkness in judgment. His money given to another.
If you claim th ed name of Jesus and have done nothing with what you have been given, you are that last slave in that parable. When Jesus does come, as Scripture says that He will, you can see what the outcome will be. Turn and repent! While a breath remains within you, repent!
I will share something of me in this plea. Quite a long time ago I really felt like that 3rd slave. I was afraid of stepping out and doing anything for Jesus. I still, to this day, remember the cruelty that those other children did towards me when after I came to Christ and I tried to share it. I shrank back and was living in fear of sharing. Oh I was serving in the Church but I was afraid to talk to people about Christ. It's taken decades for God to work His miracle in me to get me to where I am today. I no longer remember how many times I have read through my Bible. But I can tell you there had been a time when I hadn't even read it once. The Bible is God's love letter to mankind and everyone needs to read it.
I read it anew each day because I want to not because I have to.
God has indeed been proving His Word in that I am His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works that I might walk in them. This blog is a significant leap forward in obedience for me to my Savior. I have always aspired to be a writer, but it wasn't until I was writing for Jesus that what I was writing ever went anywhere. God told me when this notion of writing something for Him came that writing a book was small potatoes compared to where He would take this blog idea. It's been read in over 40 countries. No book, written in my power, would ever reach so many places or people. That's a God thing.
Are you a changed life? Is there enough evidence to convict you of being a Christian in God's Court? Forget the world's court. In the court of the living God would He proclaim that you are one of His?
Does the life you live contain more of this world than it does faith and obedience to Jesus Christ?
Do you fear the world more than you fear the confrontation you will have when the Master returns to settle accounts?
Is the idle speech from your lips at all about the things of God? Is prayer at all important to you as is breathing? If a stranger were to hear you throughout your day would they at all see Jesus in you or would they only see the world?
Christ saves His people not in their sins, but from them. A changed life is what happens when a person comes to Christ.
Sin is acknowledged as sin. It's not to be embraced and accepted.
Read this again: "If your life is unholy, your heart is unchanged—and if your heart is unchanged, you are an unsaved person. If the Savior has not sanctified you, renewed you, given you a hatred of sin and a love of holiness, then He has done nothing of a saving character in you. The grace which does not make a person better than others is a worthless counterfeit."
My Friend stop with the games. Get serious, while there is still time, and get right with God. You can fool yourself, you cannot fool Jesus. Many billions of people will be cast away from Jesus who thought they were saved and were not, no change happened in their hearts and minds. They said a few words, prayed a prayer, but didn't mean it. Went on living with the world rather than for Jesus.
Be sure today. Be sure. Millions entered into eternity last night and will throughout today who thought they had a today to live. They missed their chance, you, my Friend still have one.
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