ARE YOU REALLY SAVED?

If you feel that you are saved, I'm sure that you know the few verses that seem to imply this. Such as (l Corinthians 1:18) "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God and (2 Corinthians 2:15) "For we are unto God a sweet savor of Christ in them that are saved, and in them that perish." both of these scriptures are true, but when, how, and what will be saved?

Remember these verses mentioned those that perish as well as those that are saved, and if you are saved then at the same time someone is to perish. If this is the case, we have been judged, and I'm sure we all would remember standing in front of a white throne looking at Jesus and the saints.

Seeing that Jesus is your Lord, then you must confess and confirm (Saint John 5:22) "For the Father judges no man, but has committed all judgment unto the Son." This leaves judgment in Jesus hands only. Now we understand (2 Timothy 4:1) "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom."

I'm sure some will say, "What does this have to do with me? I'm saved now.

Well consider this (James 4:12) "There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who are thou that judgest another." Now if Jesus is your Lord, he is the only one who can judge whether you will be saved or destroyed and this happens at his appearing and his kingdom.

Then, after 1,000 years of peace, the Judgment day (where all that have ever lived will be judged, by Jesus and his saints) (1 Corinthians 6:1-3); (Revelations 20:4); (Genesis 22:18) says, "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou has obeyed my voice." We know that this particular seed is Christ, so if we believe God, as Abraham did in (Genesis 26:5), and obey his voice, then are we Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise (to possess the land forever). In order for us to receive this promise, we must be able to live forever, but this aging body does not allow us to live that long.

But Jesus does, (Philippians 3:20-21), "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the savior, the Lord Jesus Christ" (verse 2), "Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body according to the working where by he is able even to subdue all things unto himself." This is the perfect heavenly body we shall bear in (1 Corinthians 15:49) "and as we have borne the image of the earthly, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." At this time you can say," I am saved."

If you are going to inherit the land forever, then you must have a body that is able to live forever. This is simple. This is the word of God. How else are salvaged from this death that Adam put us in?

Now, we see when we will be saved, how we will be saved, and what will be saved. I know some will still persist in calling themselves saved. Consider (St. Matthew 24:13), out of Jesus own mouth "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." The end is when the Lawgiver appears, who is able to save, or destroy you at his coming. If Jesus is your Lord, who are you to take judgment from him and say you are saved, or destroyed?

Being saved or destroyed is at God's discretion. If you think you are saved now, then you have taken the time of judgment away from Jesus Christ, and given it to the other Christ that Paul warned us of, saying "for if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus” (2 Corinthians 11:4). In (Ezekiel 28:14-16), he calls him "the anointed cherub that coverth." (This is Satan).
We have shown you when you will be saved, which won't be until the appearing of Jesus. This is shown throughout the Bible.

We will end this article with (Psalm 98:9) "Before the Lord: for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity." This is prophecy and it cannot be broken!

Now how will you be saved, and what is saved? We know that we must have faith in God, and believe him, as Abraham did. As a matter of fact, "they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." (Galatians 3:7). Also, "if you be Christ's then, are ye Abraham's seed, and heir according to the promise.”

What a promise? In (Genesis 17), the Lord told Abraham that he would be a father of many nations, and that he would establish an everlasting covenant between him (The Lord), and his seed after Abraham to be a God to them. But read (verse 8) "and I will give unto thee (Abraham) and to thy seed after thee, the land where in thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God."

Now in order for Abraham to possess this land forever, he must be alive forever to receive it. The Lord did not say through your seed, he said, "to thee and thy seed after thee." There is joint ownership of this land forever.

http://www.theisraelofgod.com/

Okay, Bro Ozell, you said you wanted comments... so here is my point of view, and my opinion as I was taught SCRIPTURALLY.

I was taught that salvation is the saving of the soul from sin and death and is not an act, it is a process. The Bible teaches us that we are not saved but that we are being saved (the process), we grow into redemption. There is also something called sanctification which is not the same as salvation but part of that same process.

We are being saved from sin and death. Death is not the end of life, because life itself is continuous and eternal. There is nothing we can do to add to our salvation, it is upon faith alone.

1 John 3:14 says: "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.

James says, "faith without works is dead." Works cannot save, but it is included in our Christian walk or how can we truly say that we have been truly saved? If we give food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, welcome to the stranger, clothes to the naked, relief to the sick, kindness to the prisoner, then we are being saved (again a process or journey). When we fail to live as if the family of God is a present reality we are being lost or separated from God.

Watchman Nee (one of my favorite Christian authors) said: "Thus in the first eight chapters of Romans two aspects of salvation are presented to us: firstly, the forgiveness of our sins, and secondly, our deliverance from sin. It seems to take longer, however, for us as saints to be saved from ourselves, to be emancipated from our own self-righteousness - in a word, to unlearn self."

I pray this edifies... I am not an expert, I do enjoy the subject of salvation though... and all will be saved eventually... it's just a process, some very long, and a personal one, and we need to come to the knowledge of the heighst and depths and the mysteries of God.

God bless, bro Ozell!

I too believe that salvation is a process. A process which is in God's hands...yet we have our part to play as well. I agree, Ozell, that we should leave the final say to God.

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John

Hebrews 2 English standard version


1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard lest we drift away from it




1 peter 3 English standard version

15 but in your hearts honor christ the lord as holy always being prepared to make a defence to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you yet do it with gentlness and respect

16 having a good conscience so that when you are slandered those who revile your good behavior in christ may be put to shame



when i was a young christian i sat in on two bible studys



our eternal salvation

Gods warning


what i also observed is this some christians seem to think they have to work for their salvation its as if they cant understand what christ had to say

and as i sat in on the bible study due to wanting to learn and get a better understanding also for my self i began to see why jesus would constantly challange the pharisees and sadducees

the pharisees were placing heavy burdens on those who would come to them for guidance but the pharisees them selves would not put into practise to what they were preaching

i might be wrong by what i am saying hear but this is how i observed what i was going over


i also looked at the gospel of John


John 3 English standard version

31 He who comes from above is above all he who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way he who comes from heaven is above all

32 He bears wittness to what he has seen and heard yet no one receives his testimony

33 whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this that god is true

34 for he whom god has sent utters the words of god for he gives the spirit without meassure

35 the father loves the son and has given all things into his hands

36 Whoever believes in the son has eternal life whoever does not obey the son shall not see life but the wrath of god remains in him


i do not want to trash what ozell is leaving hear as its his post and he is giving us what he has been going over like a study


when i went over this for my self i found it hard to accept what i left especialy the last verse those who believe in the son have eternal life but those who do not believe in the son gods wrath will remain on them


as i looked into this i noticed that this is hear as a warning as there are christians who will not walk into this eternal life that john is talking about

i cant look to you or have you walk the walk for me i need to focus on what god brings up in my life for me to deal with and i need to stay on the path he has me on i have also observed that there are christians who think they have a free pass this pas wil get them to heaven and some think because they belong to a certain denomination the barrier the denomination goes under will get them into heaven for exampl hillsong Assemblys off God Church of christ and Christian out reach center

my partner has told her members just because they think they belong to dunamis living praise dont think for one moment that you wil get a free pass into heaven


its something we have to work on making sure we stay on the path god has us on


as i said i could be wrong but this is how i see this for my self with out fighting with ozell or trying to high jack his topic he has set up



i know i am saved as long as i stay on the path god has me on and dont stray to the ways of this world or go back to who i use to be


God bless from damo

Damo, excellent... for sure, we just stay on God's path and do His will.. it's a process... not by works but we are to work out our salvation, which is action. We are not to do it with a Pharisee like doing, but with peace, and joy! AMEN Bro. Damo!!! xo

Sister Rose

I can't figure you out

you are playing us here.

you understand God's word more than you let on.

now continue to teach the words of truth

lets put a end to this foolishness that once saved always saved

lets continue to put the Lord foot on these false prophets neck

and renew the mind of of the people, lets wash the brains of the people with God's truth and remove the filth that these pastors have fed the children of God with.

brother John

you are in agreement with the word of God, then OUR part to play is teaching the truth.

the People are naked when it comes to the truth.

lets feed God's sheep

1Pt 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

do you Love Jesus? YES

THEN

Jn 21:15 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

Jn 21:16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

lets go brother John

lets feed God's sheep

Bro Ozell,

You make me blush. I really give no credit to myself.

I just studied and have listened in church.

I will continue to post later. Today is Saturday and

shopping day for me. I will be back later. Thank you for

the ability to speak to you and with love.

XO Rose

Hi Ozell, (normally my posts are not this lengthy because I have found that most will not read them; this is a rare exception):

Lord willing, I'll be reading and replying to many of the threads presented on "Christin-forum.net" Hence, in order to understand a brief view point of my understanding of salvation.... here it is.

Firstly, I do NOT believe in Universalism, the scripture is clear, many will be finally lost, yet the good news, many will be ultimately saved.

The Bible speaks of salvation in three tenses, the past, present, and future. Let’s examine a few examples.

Future Tense

“Ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved” (Matt. 10:22).
“He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16).
“I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9)
“We believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, …” (Acts 15:11).

Many more texts refer to this phase of the plan of salvation. Most of the verses in the Bible that use the word “saved” are in the future tense. Perhaps because of this, Seventh-day Adventists have generally failed to acknowledge the other two phases.

Present Tense

“The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18, NKJV).
“For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing” (2 Cor. 2:15, NKJV).

The translation presented in these verses may be somewhat surprising to those accustomed to the King James Version, which does not make it clear that the term “save” is in the present continuous tense. However, a check of the Greek reveals that the New King James Version is accurate. There are other verses that speak of the second phase of salvation without using the word “save.” For example:
“Now unto Him that is able to keep [save] you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24).
“The Lord knoweth how to deliver [save] the godly out of temptations …” (2 Peter 2:9).

Past Tense

Now we need to examine examples of the tense that have proven to be the most controversial. The Bible clearly teaches salvation in the past tense as an already accomplished reality. For example:

“Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim. 1:8-10, NKJV).

“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Titus 3:5-6, NKJV).

Both passages present very clearly that salvation is an already accomplished reality. The Greek tense is aorist. It refers to an event that happened once for all at a specific point in time in the past. These passages apparently apply to the believer as well as the unbeliever. For example, 2 Timothy says God “saved us,” then it says He “called us.” The salvation was accomplished for all and all are therefore “called.” “Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17). The reason all are called to take “freely” is because all have already been saved. Yet some may not be ready to acknowledge that these verses apply to everyone. Some will insist on applying these texts only to the believer. Fortunately, there is yet one more reference. Ephesians chapter two provides the clearest statement of all:

“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others” (Eph. 2:1-3, NKJV).

Here Paul describes the miserable plight of all humanity. We were all “dead in trespasses and sins.” Then he announces the good news of what God did for us, entirely apart from our awareness, or participation, permission, request, or faith. That’s right. Faith is not mentioned in the verse.

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Eph. 2:4, 5, NKJV).
When we realize what Paul was actually saying, it is astonishing to our naturally legalistic, old covenant mind set, which feels we must initiate the process of salvation. The context is very clear. Paul is not speaking of the believer. He also makes it clear that God did not do this because of our faith. He did it only “because of His great love.” Paul is speaking of those who are “dead in trespasses,” and he says they were “made … alive”! He sums it up: “by grace you have been saved.” It was not through our faith, it was “by grace.” Clearly, the Bible teaches salvation in the past tense. It is not speaking only of the believer; it is speaking of all men, every human being.

"The grace of God has appeared bringing salvation to ALL men." Titus 2:11.

It is true that Ephesians speaks of salvation by faith, later in chapter two (see verse 8). A close examination of the text reveals that the faith spoken of is primarily a reference to the faith of Jesus, and in a secondary sense to our faith. Believing the good news in verses 1-7 initiates the second phase of salvation, which is through faith. But we dare not get the cart before the horse and attempt to enjoy the fruit of salvation in the second phase, or the hope of the gospel in the third phase, apart from believing the “Good News” of the gospel, which concerns what God has already done for everyone in the first phase. That would be like building our houses on sand.

Salvation in Three Phases

If this concept of salvation in three phases is correct, it would be reasonable that we should expect to find all three phases clearly presented in the word of God. That is exactly what we find in 2 Cor. 1:10, but let’s begin at verse 9:
“We had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered [saved] us from so great a death, and doth deliver [save]: in whom we trust that He will yet deliver [save] us.”

All three phases of salvation, past, present, and future, are clearly articulated in one verse of scripture, although the word “save” is not used in the passage. Paul says that God saved us from “so great a death,” and that “great death” is the second death. Then we’re told He does save, in the present continuous tense. And finally, we trust that when He comes again He will yet save us. Here we have a hint as to why the process of salvation has three phases. Sin involves a threefold problem, and each problem begins with the letter “P”: The Penalty, the Power, and the Presence.

All men have been saved from the penalty of their sin. The penalty is death. Jesus tasted “death for every man” (Heb. 2:9). That’s how He “delivered us from so great a death.” That is salvation in the past tense. Were it not for this phase of salvation, which is effective for everyone, not one of us would be alive. Next, in the second phase of salvation, those who believe the good news about salvation in the past, are being saved from the power of sin, that is temptation and slavery to sin, in the present tense. Finally, those who endure (i.e., keep the faith, Rev. 14:12), shall be saved, from the presence of sin, at the second coming of Christ. So God has saved us. He does save us. And we trust that some day He will save us. These are three phases of one salvation, a threefold solution to a threefold problem. Christ is a “complete Saviour.”

We cannot begin to fully appreciate the grand dimensions of the plan of salvation until we accept the biblical view of the first phase, which is the foundation for the other two. “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). It is the law of God that demands the death of the sinner (see 1 Cor. 15:56). Therefore, when Jesus “tasted death for every man” (Heb. 2:9), He met the just demands of the law for everyone. He paid every man’s debt to the law of God. Thus, Christ’s death accomplished the legal justification of all men. He thereby “abolished death” for “all men” (see 2 Tim. 1:10 and Heb. 2:9). This is why no one has ever truly died, except Christ.

Embracing the Full Plan of Salvation

Many refuse to embrace this truth, in part because of a failure to recognize the three phases of the plan of salvation. Those who understand only the third phase, which is final and irrevocable, assume that any claim of salvation having been accomplished for anyone in the past necessarily demands that the individual will ultimately be in heaven. Therefore the teaching of salvation in the past tense, especially for all men, is frequently rejected as universalism.

In spite of this prevailing misconception, it is clear that the Bible states that Jesus has saved the whole world. This is not the heresy of universalism, because the Bible also makes it clear that we can reject the gift of salvation which Christ has accomplished and ultimately be lost. Jude verse 5 is a poignant statement of this truth: “I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.”

Israel’s experience is an illustration or type of salvation. All of Israel was “saved” from Egypt, which represents the bondage of sin. This salvation was accomplished only through the cross represented by the Passover lamb. Through the death of the lamb, all the candidates for deliverance, represented by Israel, were “saved.” Israel in this type of salvation represents the whole world helplessly enslaved and in need of salvation. Christ, through His death, saved us all from the penalty of our sin. Yet after the mighty deliverance from Egypt, those who did not believe, failed to appreciate the redeeming sacrifice and were destroyed in the wilderness. Thus they never reached the promised land, which represents heaven.

In the antitype, which is the actual plan of redemption, Jesus has done something for the whole world. He redeemed Adam’s disgraceful fall, and saved the world. This is the good news of the gospel for all men. And it is the power of God unto salvation [the second phase] for all that believe (see Rom. 1:16). None will be lost because of their sins. “Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3). Those who are finally ultimately lost, will be lost, because they refused to believe the gospel, which teaches they have been saved (see Mark 16:16).

Christ: A Complete Saviour

Therefore we can conclude that Jesus is a complete Saviour. He is a complete Saviour because He has saved the whole world. He is also a complete Saviour because He is our Saviour in the past, the present, and the future. He came into this world, for what purpose? “To seek and save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). He ascended back to heaven, for what purpose? “To be a Prince and a Saviour” (Acts 5:31). He is coming again, for what purpose? The waiting saints will understand and declare, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us” (Isa. 25:9). He came to earth to save. He went back to heaven to save. He is coming again to save. Christ is a complete Saviour.

blessings in Christ,
Jake W.

This scripture goes by people head like a bullet, Matthew 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Now lets go to the last book of the Bible and see what people did to have the right to the tree of life, which is Jesus.
Revelation 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

Now if you keep the Lord"s law and come up in first resurrection, that a beautiful thing.
People that keeps the commandments are call saints, lets look at that.....Revelation 15:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus

Now lets look at the second death, those that didn"t keep the commandments, but are being judged by thier
works. Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.