Scripture for the Day Dec 22nd 2020: Salvation Is Free, but You May Lose It

God saves anyone who confesses Jesus Lord and Savior with his mouth. But that's a conditional promise. Please know we can lose our salvation by not following the Word of God. Now, there is a misconception out there that works will save you. No, brothers and sisters. No works can save us. If it did, then Jesus' sacrifice would have been in vain and we would call God a liar. Only the blood of Jesus with which He purchased and freed us from our sins can save us. Jesus took God's punishment for the sins of very human.

Is this not contradictory? It isn't.

The logic is that when we are born again, the Spirit of God dwells in us. Because of the Spirit in us, we won't have a desire to sin. But if we trip, and we all do, the Holy Spirit instantly convicts us, and we repent. There is no temptation before us we cannot withstand.

The Spirit of God is NOT in us if we continue to lead a sinful life. 

Difference Between Sinning and Living a Sinful Life

The following is not an encouragement to sin. Living a sinful life means to change little or nothing from the way we lived before we called ourselves a Christian. 

No, I am NOT a sinner, because I have given up the sinful life I once led. Do I trip up occasionally? Sure. But when I do, I KNOW it, because the Holy Spirit in me grieves. If we violate the Holy Spirit severely enough, He will leave us, and with Him gone, our sinful nature takes over again. It's a reality that I would not want to test. Without God, we are nothing. With God, we are His children.

John 15:5 (ESV)
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Being born again means we have received a completely new DNA. The old one is gone. A new person was born. We are now dual citizens, expats on earth, and permanent residents in Heaven. So, lp. it IS permanent? No, God will revoke your visa to Heaven if you violate the Law of God.

2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new [a]creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Losing Salvation Applies to Two Categories of People:

The Christian who never has read the Bible. 

How can you understand God if you have not read His Word in its entirety? How can you know God's will if you only know the most famously quotes verses, often out of context? I always recommend reading at least seven verses before an after the quoted Scripture to get a sense of its true meaning. The best, of course, read all 66 books two to three times a year. Doing so will change your life. The Word of God is living; it does His Work in you.  

Many Christians do not change their lives, their friends, their goals. They go to church on Sunday to appease their conscience. They believe the world instead of staying in His Word. They do not understand Spiritual warfare. They do not know the power Jesus has delegated to them.

Consider Matthew Chapter 13:1-29

Jesus Teaches in Parables

1 On that day Jesus had gone out of the house and was sitting by the sea. 2 And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.

3 And He told them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; 4 and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. 5 Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and they sprang up immediately, because they had no depth of soil. 6 But after the sun rose, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7 Others fell [a]among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. 8 But others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much. 9 The one who has ears, [b]let him hear.”

An Explanation for Parables

10 And the disciples came up and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11 And [c]Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12 For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 And [d]in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

‘[e]You shall keep on listening, [f]but shall not understand;

And [g]you shall keep on looking, [h]but shall not perceive;

15 For the heart of this people has become dull, With their ears they scarcely hear, And they have closed their eyes, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, Understand with their heart, and return, And I would heal them.’

16 But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17 For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Sower Explained

18 “Listen then to the parable of the sower. 19 When anyone hears the [i]word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one sown with seed beside the road. 20 The one sown with seed on the rocky places, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution occurs because of the [j]word, immediately he [k]falls away. 22 And the one sown with seed among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, and the anxiety of the [l]world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it [m]becomes unfruitful. 23 But the one sown with seed on the good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much.”

Weeds among Wheat

24 Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven [n]is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed [o]weeds among the wheat, and left. 26 And when the [p]wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident. 27 And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? [q]How then does it have weeds?’ 28 And he said to them, ‘[r]An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he *said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Apostate

The one who went to college and got dragged away from God's Word by ungodly influences. 

The ones who blame God and others for their circumstances and mistakes. Their faith was never strong enough to withstand the storm of the world. This categody includes every Christian who supports the democrat party, globalism, liberalism, or other terror organizations. The Book of Jude is for you. Here it is, it's not long, but full of meat! Have a read. It's revealing uncomfortable truths.

Book of Jude

The Warnings of History to the Ungodly

1 [a]Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ and brother of [b]James,

To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ: 2 May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith that was once for all timehanded down to the [c]saints. 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand [d]marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into indecent behavior and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

5 Now I want to remind you, though you know everything once and for all, that [e]the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, [f]subsequently destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And angels who did not keep their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling place, these He has kept in eternal restraints under darkness for the judgment of the great day, 7 just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these angels indulged in sexual perversion and went after [g]strange flesh, are exhibited as an [h]example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.

8 Yet in the same way these people also, dreaming, defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak abusively of angelic [i]majesties. 9 But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him an abusive judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” 10 But these people disparage all the things that they do not understand; and all the things that they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed. 11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay [j]they have given themselves up to the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. 12 These are the ones who are [k]hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, like shepherdscaring only for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, [l]doubly dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, churning up their own shameful deeds like dirtyfoam; wandering stars, for whom the [m]gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.

14 It was also about these people that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord has come with [n]many thousands of His holy ones, 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” 16 These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; [o]they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.

Keep Yourselves in the Love of God

17 But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, 18 that they were saying to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.” 19 These are the ones who cause divisions, [p]worldly-minded, [q]devoid of the Spirit. 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. 22 And have mercy on some, who are doubting; 23 save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.

24 Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, beglory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time and now and [r]forever. Amen.

Heavenly Father, glory and praise belongs to you, and you only! 
I pray that those among us who needed to read this Scripture have read it. That they let it sit and do Its work within them. Let it guide them to make the changes they must make to be saved, for there is only a one-way-ticket to eternity.

In Jesus' name
Amen

#Devotional #Scripture4TheDay #Salvation #LosingSalvation #ChristianWarning