Posted on 09/04/2019 2:04:22 PM PDT by pastorbillrandles
This is a series... I plan to go to all of those places and more, hang in there with me....
If they’re not ever “saved” then how are they getting the salvation “experience?”
Remember Hostage, Paul called several carnal Churches and their congregants ‘Brothers and Sister in Christ’ He did not call them “Former brothers and sisters in Christ”- these were Christians living hedonistic lifestyles- Carnal lifestyles- They were still saved, but were living outside the will of God and their closeness with God suffered as a result- but again, they were still saved- Paul admonished them to change, for their own good- and encouraged them in the faith-
There are all kinds of levels of Christian maturity in Christ- from babes to mature Christians- We’re all begin constantly conformed into the Image of Christ in one degree or another- some quicker than others- some resist hardily- but it’s all a walk and progression- We aren’t all Pauls, or King Davids- Charles Spurgeons or or or-
Will do, Pastor.
Thank You!
they live a life LIKE a Christian- they may even witness to others about Christ- but they have never accepted Christ personally- they are ‘religious’ - like the pharisees actually- they have a ‘form of religion’ but no salvation-
So if you become a Wiccan priest, you can still to Heaven and spend eternity with a God you don’t believe in?
But that still doesn't explain how they had "the experience."
Chtristians can fall into sin- The church of corinth fell into very serious sins- Paul still called them brothers and sisters in Christ- They were still saved-
Can someone fall so badly they go into satanism or witchcraft? Yes they can- they can get so screwed up in the head that they don’t even know any better- but as sum point- they did get to know Christ in Salvation- and they are stil slaved- even though they may think they no longer believe in Him-
Now- God may call them home, much sooner than they would have if they had obeyed Him and not fallen into sin- We are ALWAYS responsible for our actions- and must suffer consequences- both earthly and heavenly consequences-
For instance, a born again person can, and sadly do, fall into drugs and sexual immoralities- They end up getting STDs- even aids- and when caught by law- end up in prison- We all must face the consequences of our actions- Go’s ultimate is to protect us from all that- that is why He implores us to ‘toe the line’ so to speak- but don’t forget, we STILL have free will- and sometimes make horrible choices-
PBR,
I always appreciate your posts.
Kind regards
Thanks Bob434,
I always need to remember there was a criminal that people wanted to spit on at his execution. He had been crucified right next to Our Lord who he asked to remember him in His Kingdom.
And Our Lord said to him that on that very day he would be with Him in Paradise.
And I need to remember that guaranteed salvation does not allow us to carry on in sinful ways without consequence. We suffer for our sins in this world but our souls will be forgiven and cleaned when we enter Heaven.
Yes it does- my original post shoudl have said “Religious experience’ not ‘salvation experience’- I tried to clear that up in later posts-
I’ll try to explain better here- Thse folks ‘Get Close to’ Salvation, but never get ‘all the way there’ ie make that final decision to accept Christ as Savior- they may live the ‘Christian lifestyle’ by going to church, doing good deeds- even witnessing in His name0 but again- they never accepted Christ- they then turn from ‘Religion’ Altogether, blaspheming the Holy Spirit- and there is never again any chance for them to be saved as explained by Paul in one of His books-
Only unsaved people can become apostates- Apostates are people who have lived the ‘Religious life’ but never accepted Christ, and then turn and blaspheme the Holy spirit- only these folks can becoem apostates- there is no longer any redemption possible for them- they essentially take the urgings of the Holy spirit to get5 saved, and turn their back on it at hte last minute- this is the point the Holy spirit stops working in their consciences ot urge them unto salvation- this is when they become apostate-
...................
If you had saving faith, the righteousness of Christ is imputed to you - His righteousness is credited to you.
All your sins were forgiven on the cross - past, present, and future.
You are sealed with the Holy Spirit now, in view of the full redemption in the future.
You are placed into the body of Christ as His Bride.
Christ will lose none of these - including those who commit hideous sin.
They will suffer the effects of their sins now on earth, may sin unto death, and they will suffer loss at the Bema Seat when their life is judged for rewards. About that, God says this...
"If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as if through the flames." (I Cor 3:14,15)
The question is, have you trusted Christ alone for salvation... or are you trusting your own efforts, religion or rituals?
best
There is also this, that God will take a person earlier than He would have if they continue in blatant, unrepentant sin.
I believe Paul referenced that in one of the Corinthian letters.
Then they were never born again.
If they didn’t have the “Salvation experience” then on what grounds does the apostle condemn them for turning away, and forbid them from “the real McCoy?”
Further, while I understand your inferences based on your doctrine, you should recognize they ARE inferences and not found in Scripture.
And that's where so many who rail against the security of the believer miss the mark widely.
They seem to think that someone can sin with impunity and that God will let it go, that there will be no consequences.
He doesn't.
He works to bring that person back to a place or repentant and right living. And NOT because the person lost their salvation, but because...... He's God and that's what He does.
Absolutely. And I commended you for examining this sore topic, at least in our day. In times past, I believe Christians took it for granted they had to behave as such. I also believe by not doing so today, it's a big reason the world is in the shape it's in.
I will be looking forwarding to your next edition. :)
Blessings to you. And as Christians, gathered together on these threads, may we all increase our knowledge of scripture in a spirit befitting our namesake.
I tell ya, blue runs faster than Boardwalk.
The security of the believer is assured and rooted with certainty IN the believer’s God..not the believer.
For.... “I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me” (2 Timothy 1:12).
God is able to ‘securely guard the salvation He gives’ to believers, from the first moment of faith until the Day of Judgment and entrance into heaven. For... Scripture reminds us, “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19)
Understanding that Faith in Christ means trusting that the perfect life of God’s Son Jesus ‘satisfies all the requirements’ for being acceptable to God forever, and that His death ‘satisfies all the righteous wrath of God’ upon our sinful failure to keep those requirements.....If any person–regardless of how sinful, weak or disappointing–trusts in these promises about who Jesus is and what He has done to make him or her right with God, but then is eventually rejected by God, God would be a liar.
'You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
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