| JESUS IS GOD | home |
 |
| Lordship of Christ |
There are multitudes of people today who say they are Christians but are not. The purpose of this page is to open the eyes of professing believers and encouragement to examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. Jesus said in John 14:15, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
The problem with modern day professing Christianity is that it is "lukewarm." It is very difficult to tell the true born-again Christians from the hypocrites. Many people think they can just "accept" Jesus, or "make a decision for Christ" or "invite Christ into your life." These phrases are the product of a watered-down gospel, not based on biblical terminology.
Jesus calls us to discipleship, to submissive obedience, to turn from sin and embrace God's righteousness. The gospel invitation is an appeal and a command to repent and follow Christ, not just passive acceptance of Christ, but active submission to Him. True salvation occurs when God changes the heart and the unbeliever turns from sin to Christ.
Matthew 7:13,14 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
James 2:14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
James 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
TRUE SAVING FAITH IS ALWAYS EVIDENCED BY WORKS!
Demons have all the right theology but they will not bow to the lordship of Christ
Jesus is Lord! The Bible says that salvation is granted only to those who acknowledge Jesus as Lord and are willing to submit their life to Him.
Christ has the sovereign right to rule our lives. If Jesus is not your Lord, He is not your Saviour either.
Those who would tell us that a person can become a Christian without becoming a disciple do a great disservice to Scripture and they do a great disservice to people who then live under the illusion that they can be saved without following Christ in obedience. That is tragic!
Salvation is not an experiment, it is a life-long commitment. Salvation is not, "try Jesus," see if He works, salvation is a life-long transformation.
No one can be saved who is either unwilling to obey or consciously rebellious against the lordship of Christ.
Saving faith involves repentance and commitment to Christ. This is not a human work as some would say. "Modern easy believism" has made faith itself a human work because that so called "faith" may or may not endure.
The faith that God grants is not temporary, it is enduring and it is not subject to a whim of man.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
(Acts 16:31)
When a man obeys God, he gives the only possible evidence that in his heart he believes God.
TO BELIEVE IS TO OBEY
To say you believe and don't desire to obey is to say you don't believe, because if you believe, you'd want to do what you believe.
You don't say you believe in gravity and then walk off the top of 10 story building, you actually believe that gravity will cause you to hit the ground, so you don't do it. You do what you believe.
Hypocrites need to realize they are hellbound sinners.
Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
Repentance, confession, and submission to Christ as Lord are necessary elements of true saving faith.
The gospel calls for a surrender of the heart, mind, and will- the whole person to Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:3,4 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.
The cross: Christ’s death on the cross paid the full penalty for our sins and purchased eternal salvation. His atoning sacrifice enables God to justify sinners freely without compromising the perfection of divine righteousness. His resurrection from the dead declares His victory over sin and death.
Justification by faith: Salvation is by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone- plus and minus nothing.
Good works: Sinners cannot earn salvation or favor with God.
Prerequisites for salvation: God requires of those who are saved no preparatory works or prerequisite self-improvement.
Eternal life: Eternal life is a gift of God.
Immediate justification: Believers are saved and fully justified before their faith ever produces a single righteous work.
Believers and sin: Christians can and do sin. Even the strongest Christians wage a constant and intense struggle against sin in the flesh. Genuine believers sometimes commit heinous sins.
Repentance: The gospel calls sinners to faith joined in oneness with repentance. Repentance is turning from sin. It is not a work but a divinely bestowed grace. Repentance is a change of heart, but genuine repentance will effect a change of behavior as well.
Faith: Salvation is all God’s work. Those who believe are saved utterly apart from any effort on their own. Even faith is a gift of God, not a work of man. Real faith therefore cannot be defective or short-lived but endures forever.
Faith’s object: The object of faith is Christ Himself, not only a creed or promise. Faith therefore involves personal commitment to Christ. In other words, all true believers follow Jesus.
Faith’s effects: Real faith inevitably produces a changed life. Salvation includes a transformation of the inner person. The nature of the Christian is different, new. The unbroken pattern of sin and enmity with God will not continue when a person is born again.
Salvation’s extent: The "gift of God," eternal life, includes all that pertains to life and godliness, not just a ticket to heaven.
Christ’s lordship: Jesus is Lord of all, and the faith He demands involves unconditional surrender. He does not bestow eternal life on those whose hearts remain set against Him.
Holy desires: Those who truly believe will love Christ. They will therefore long to obey Him.
Assurance: Behavior is an important test of faith. Obedience is evidence that one’s faith is real. On the other hand, the person who remains utterly unwilling to obey Christ does not evidence true faith.
Perseverance: Genuine believers may stumble and fall, but they will persevere in the faith. Those who later turn completely away from the Lord show that they were never truly born again.
CAREFULLY COUNT THE COST OF FOLLOWING CHRIST
Luke 14:26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.
33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
Matthew 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Matthew 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Matthew 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
In these verses, Jesus does not say that a few misguided souls have a false hope of heaven. He says MANY. He is talking to people who think they are Christians. Nowadays there are a lot of people who say that they are Christians who will not enter heaven. These are people who think that they are going to make it in to glory on their lip service. But when they stand before the King and Judge, they will be rejected. When Jesus says "Depart" you can't appeal and try to get a second chance, you got to go. I KNOW they will be terrified. Included here? All those who choose to "worship" God according to their own beliefs and not God's word. This includes, cultists who claim a Jesus/gospel different from the Bible, e.g., Catholics, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, Christian Scientists, hypocrites along with every Protestant denomination follower who puts their trust in their denomination, and church attendance.
Galatians 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
To be a Christian, you must repent of your sins and believe on the Lord Jesus.
REPENT means saying, "I'm sick of sin and living my own way. I want to live under God's commands!" Repentance is a change of mind toward God and sin that results in a changed life.
BELIEVE means believing that Jesus died for your sins, was buried and rose on the third day and accepting His sacrifice for you. It means saying "Yes Lord! I love you! I want to serve you!" James says the devils believe and tremble--saving belief is more than acknowledging that the claims of Christ are true.
The following is excerpted from the book, "How Can I Except Some Man Should Guide Me? A Plan and Program for Bringing Children to Faith in Jesus Christ," Pastor Kerry James Allen, Copyright 1996, Fox River Baptist Church, Box 1094, Oswego, IL. 60543. This gives some good, solid evidences of a person who has been born again. Jesus said, "By their fruits ye shall know them." Examine yourself against these criteria.
We are not saved by our works, but when we are saved, our life will certainly reflect that decision by our good works. ("Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone" James 2:17.) Do you have total 100% assurance that you possess eternal life, and if someone asked you to prove it to them from a Bible, could you do it?
I. SUBMISSIVE RESPECT
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8)
Do you respect God? Is your opinion just as important or even more relevant than His? Are God's pronouncements authoritative in your life? Is Jesus Christ your Lord?
II. SCRIPTURE OBEDIENCE
"But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him" (1 John 2:5)
Do you read the Bible daily? Do you read the Scriptures seeking to obey what you find? Are you in rebellion against God's Word or in submission to it? Do you love the Bible?
III. SOCIETAL REJECTION
"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15)
Do you love the world, your money, and your possessions? Do they mean more to you than Jesus Christ and His approval? Would you be willing to give up all for Christ?
IV. STEADFAST FAITHFULNESS
"They went out from us, but they were not of us: for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us" (1 John 2:19)
Are you faithful in regular fellowship with God's people in a local church? Are you able to be sparse in church attendance for weeks at a time without any real guilt about it? Do you long for fellowship with the saints in the assembly?
V. SECOND COMING ANTICIPATION
"When he shall appear, we shall be like him: for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (1 John 3:2-3)
Are you living in the daily awareness that Jesus Christ will return for His own? Are you eagerly looking forward to His coming for you? Does your daily life reflect the fact that He may come today? Are you ready to meet Him at any time?
VI. SIN SENSITIVITY
"Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God" (1 John 3:9)
Does your sin bother you? Do you wish you sinned less than you do? Are you sinning less now than when you first made a profession of faith in Christ? Do you enjoy your sin, or does it affect your happiness? Do you realize God sees all sin?
VII. SIBLING LOVE
"We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death" (1 John 3:14)
Do you love other believers in Jesus Christ? Do you enjoy being in their company, or would you rather be with the people of the world? Are Christians your dearest friends?
VIII. SUPPLICATIONS ANSWERED
"And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight" (1 John 3:22)
Do you pray? Can you point to specific answers that could have come from no one but God? Do you find yourself conversing regularly with God as a trusted friend?
IX. SHARP DISCERNMENT
"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (1 John 4:1)
Do you find it easy to sort out the claims of various religions? Do you see all religions as the same? Do you understand the doctrine of Christ? Do you believe Jesus Christ is God?
X. SPIRIT AWARENESS
"Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit" (1 John 4:13)
Do you have a conscious awareness that the Holy Spirit of God lives in you? Does He teach you things from the Scriptures on a regular basis? Does the Holy Spirit convict you when you sin, or can you sin with abandon?
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
GENUINE SAVING FAITH
1. evidences that neither prove nor disprove one’s faith
A. Visible Morality: Matt. 19:16-21; 23:27
B. Intellectual Knowledge: Rom. 1:21
C. Religious Involvement: Matt. 25:1-10
D. Active Ministry: Matt. 7:21-24
E. Conviction of sin: Acts 24:25
F. Assurance: Matt. 23
G. Time of Decision: Luke 8:13,14
2. the fruit/ proofs of authentic/ true Christianity
A. Love for God: Ps. 42:1; 73:25; Luke10:27
Rom. 8:7
B. Repentance from Sin: Ps. 32:5; Prov. 28:13;
2 Cor. 7:10; 1John 1:8-10
C. Genuine Humility: Ps. 51:17; Matt. 5:1-12;
James 4:6,9
D. Devotion to God’s Glory: Ps. 105:3;115:1; Is. 43:7
1Cor. 10:31
E. Continual Prayer: Luke 18:1; Eph. 6:18
1Tim. 2:1-4; James 5:16-18
F. Selfless Love: 1John 2:9, 3:14, 4:7
G. Separation from the World:1Cor. 2:12; James 4:4
1John 2:15-17, 5:5
H. Spiritual Growth: Luke 8:15; John 15:1-6
Eph. 4:12-16
I. Obedient Living: Matt. 7:21; John 15:14; Rom. 16:26
1Pet. 1:2,22; 1John 2:3-5
If list 1. is true of a person and list 2. is false, there is cause to question the validity of one’s profession of faith. Yet if list 2. is true, then the top list will be also.
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
(Matthew 11:28-30)
 |
| JESUS IS GOD | home |
|
|
|