How saved are you?

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How saved are you?

What kind of a savior is Jesus Christ? Can our works or anything for that matter be put in the same scale as His sufferings? Or are we warned knowing that the ungodly will not inherit the kingdom of heaven, and therefore not to be partakers with them?


If we could meet the Righteous demands of God the Father, because He gives us His Spirit, the Helper, then why did Jesus need to die? Couldn't we just live perfectly by His Spirit, or maybe at least good enough? We commit sin by falling short of the glory of God, by what we've thought, by what we've said, what we've done, and what we've failed to do. Although washed, there is nothing good in us, in the flesh that is. Paul said he didn't have a righteousness of his own, nor had he become perfect, but he pressed on towards the upward call of Christ Jesus. Or did He need our help? Did Jesus die for me when i was dead in my sins, when i was good enough, or when He was good enough to die for me? I think it was this: God took me, formerly the vilest blasphemous wretch, a dead evil sinner, and brought me face to face with my sins - made to feel them, and i was made aware that hell was before me, that my soul was in the hands of God Almighty, that He knew everything - including al the thoughts i was having about Him at the time. As it is written 'It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God.' I was also shown mercy and brought to Christ for mercy and forgiveness, and God shone into my heart the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is my Lord, who became to me Wisdom from God, sanctification, and redemption, so, just as it is written, let him who boasts, boast in the Lord. He specializes in taking heavy burdens. God showed me Jesus and i wept in repentance and faith that the Lord my God suffered so much at the hand of God to pardon me. I know He was crushed as the Only Perfect Sacrifice to atone for my sins, satisfying the Righteous Just demands of God the Father on my behalf, and purchasing my soul with His blood. I know that His Resurrection proves it. I know He covers me in a Robe of His Righteousness and He has set me free from the power of sin, and He has sent His Holy Spirit to empower Holy living and service and worship to my God. He will never leave me nor forsake me. I am grateful that He has not destined me for wrath but for obtaing salvation. I thank God that He purposed to save me before the world began, that Jesus accomplished redemption for me at Calvary on the Cross, and that the Holy Sprit has applied that to my heart and sealed me with His promise. I am saved, being saved, and eagerly awaiting salvation at His appearing. May I be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, and He is faithful, He who began a good work in me: He will do it. And He will carry it on until the day of Christ Jesus. Jesus who prayed not for the world, laid His life down for His sheep which His Father gave Him, that no one will snatch me out of His hand, there is no condemnation in Him, and that nothing will separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, even before the world began, for i was always with Him, and this is love, not that we loved God, but while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. I thank God He opened my eyes. May i not sin against my Lord, and i know it is only by His Spirit that i may not, and this is because He set me free. One who is born again is a lost sheep that must be saved. Those who are not his sheep cannot hear His voice. Many are called but few are chosen...according to the foreknowledge of God, and not because of me, but because of His Mercy. We are justified by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone.

Why would i rejoice in His Victory if maybe He really didn't mean it when He said 'You are Mine!’ or ‘So it is not of him that wills or him that runs, but God who has mercy,’? God is active in regeneration and passive in reprobation. His warnings will judge the dammed and persevere the elect. He did not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance, it is not the healthy who need a Physician but the sick...He will not have sacrifice but mercy. Those who say this doctrine means we should sin more so that grace may abound are just in their condemnation as those who are marked out from long before for this; all those who turn the grace of God into a license to sin. You will know them by their fruits. Not that the tree can save themselves because they produce fruit, rather we are saved to bear fruit,

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Eph 2:11


And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; 30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? 33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written,
“FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG;
WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.”
37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8

that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, Colossians 2:2

Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; II Peter 1:10

Rejoice brother, don’t doubt, but see His Hands and His feet,

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. I John 4:18

and keep yourself unspotted from the world

It is good that you grasp one thing and also not let go of the other; for the one who fears God comes forth with both of them. Eccl 7:18

May God richly bless you and keep you; His is the Power and the Glory and the Honor forever, in Christ's Name, amen

May the Love and Peace of Christ be with you and with your spirit
 
#2

Clouds without water
Professores without the Spirit/ ‘Devoid of the Spirit’
‘Lord, Lord’ Fig three green leaves/no fruit/they ‘knew,’ He ‘never knew’
Virgins without the oil/ ‘I do not know you, Synagogue of Satan, False Apostles’

Twice dead
Dead here and dead hereafter

Did they lose their salvation of were they really virgins without the oil? Can a leopard change his spots? Can bad soil become good? Only if God changes it. Can the wheat born of the good seed be transformed into tares? Or can a tare become a wheat? A grain of Wheat dies and falls into the soil and produces many seeds, the Good Seed, imperishable, if it falls on good soil the good seed bears fruit, but ‘there is none good,’ so …




Ezekiel 36:22-29


EZEKIEL 37:1-28


If we could save ourselves then Christ died in vain, it is passive ‘be saved [by God]’

If we could keep ourselves saved, why does Christ make intercession for us before the Throne?

If we are kept by the Power of God, who keeps us?

If a born-again Christian could sin away grace [I do not dare tell you to be presumptuous or put the Lord to the test] why did ‘grace abound all the more?’

We are told ‘blessed are the poor in spirit’-those who know they are poor, spiritually bankrupt

If Christ died once for our sins, how could we come under condemnation of them? The blood of bulls merely covered over them, Christ took them away, as far as the East is from the West.

If we can sin away our salvation, at what point? How many sins, how often, what knid, just your acttons or your sinful thoughts, too? Christ didn’t come to fix the flesh, but to condemn sin in it and nailed it to the cross. Does God’s grace run short for those who are saved by it through faith, not of themselves, but the gift of God. If it was of themselves, of works, of the exertion of the will, of the righteous runner, and not of God, wouldn’t there be plenty of room for merit and boasting? Who gets to boast the most…

For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS." Romans 4:2-3

Does God justify the godly or the ungodly? What about in the Old Testament…

Jacob He loved, Essau He hated
Jacob He knew, Essau He never knew


for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, Romans 9:11-33

for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.” Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.”
What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.” So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH.” So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.
You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. As He says also in Hosea,
“I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE, ‘MY PEOPLE,’
AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED, ‘BELOVED.’”
“AND IT SHALL BE THAT IN THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS SAID TO THEM, ‘YOU ARE NOT MY PEOPLE,’
THERE THEY SHALL BE CALLED SONS OF THE LIVING GOD.”
Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, “THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA, IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED; FOR THE LORD WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH, THOROUGHLY AND QUICKLY.” And just as Isaiah foretold,
“UNLESS THE LORD OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY,
WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM, AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH.”
What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written,
“BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”


In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge.
Proverbs 14:26

If I could save myself Christ wouldn’t have died for me.

Romans 5:1-11
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Wow….READ I Peter 1, wow

If Christ needs my help to help save me then that would be to man glory, honor and boasting,-which is excluded.



Did God reveal Christ to our hearts? Did He call us? Did we come? Then He drew us and gave us ears to hear.






If a dog returns to his own vomit then be sure it was a dog, not a born-again of imperishable seed incorruptible.
 
Ransom its meaning!

The Ransom—God’s Greatest Gift

What is the ransom?

How was it provided?

What can it mean for you?

How can you show that you appreciate it?

WHAT is the greatest gift you have ever received? A gift does not have to be expensive to be important. After all, the true value of a gift is not necessarily measured in terms of money. Rather, when a gift brings you happiness or fills a real need in your life, it has great value to you personally.

2 Of the many gifts you could ever hope to receive, there is one that stands out above all others. It is a gift from God to mankind. Jehovah has given us many things, but his greatest gift to us is the ransom sacrifice of his Son, Jesus Christ. (Matthew 20:28) As we will see in this chapter, the ransom is the most valuable gift you could possibly receive, for it can bring you untold happiness and can fill your most important needs. The ransom is really the greatest expression of Jehovah’s love for you.

WHAT IS THE RANSOM?

3 Put simply, the ransom is Jehovah’s means to deliver, or save, humankind from sin and death. (Ephesians 1:7) To grasp the meaning of this Bible teaching, we need to think back to what happened in the garden of Eden. Only if we understand what Adam lost when he sinned can we appreciate why the ransom is such a valuable gift to us.

4 When he created Adam, Jehovah gave him something truly precious—perfect human life. Consider what that meant for Adam. Made with a perfect body and mind, he would never get sick, grow old, or die. As a perfect human, he had a special relationship with Jehovah. The Bible says that Adam was a “son of God.” (Luke 3:38) So Adam enjoyed a close relationship with Jehovah God, like that of a son with a loving father. Jehovah communicated with his earthly son, giving Adam satisfying assignments of work and letting him know what was expected of him.—Genesis 1:28-30; 2:16,*17.

5 Adam was made “in God’s image.” (Genesis 1:27) That did not mean that Adam resembled God in appearance. As we learned in Chapter*1 of this book, Jehovah is an invisible spirit. (John 4:24) So Jehovah does not have a body of flesh and blood. Being made in God’s image meant that Adam was created with qualities like those of God, including love, wisdom, justice, and power. Adam was like his Father in another important way in that he possessed free will. Hence, Adam was not like a machine that can perform only what it is designed or programmed to do. Instead, he could make personal decisions, choosing between right and wrong. If he had chosen to obey God, he would have lived forever in Paradise on earth.

6 Clearly, then, when Adam disobeyed God and was condemned to death, he paid a very high price. His sin cost him his perfect human life with all its blessings. (Genesis 3:17-19) Sadly, Adam lost this precious life not only for himself but also for his future offspring. God’s Word says: “Through one man [Adam] sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.” (Romans 5:12) Yes, all of us have inherited sin from Adam. Hence, the Bible says that he “sold” himself and his offspring into slavery to sin and death. (Romans 7:14) There was no hope for Adam or Eve because they willfully chose to disobey God. But what about their offspring, including us?

7 Jehovah came to mankind’s rescue by means of the ransom. What is a ransom? The idea of a ransom basically involves two things. First, a ransom is the price paid to bring about a release or to buy something back. It might be compared to the price paid for the release of a prisoner of war. Second, a ransom is the price that covers, or pays, the cost of something. It is similar to the price paid to cover the damages caused by an injury. For example, if a person causes an accident, he would have to pay an amount that fully corresponds to, or equals, the value of what was damaged.

8 How would it be possible to cover the enormous loss that Adam inflicted on all of us and to release us from slavery to sin and death? Let us consider the ransom that Jehovah provided and what this can mean for you.

HOW JEHOVAH PROVIDED THE RANSOM

9 Since a perfect human life was lost, no imperfect human life could ever buy it back. (Psalm 49:7,*8) What was needed was a ransom equal in value to what was lost. This is in harmony with the principle of perfect justice found in God’s Word, which says: “Soul will be for soul.” (Deuteronomy 19:21) So, what would cover the value of the perfect human soul, or life, that Adam lost? Another perfect human life was the “corresponding ransom” that was required.—1*Timothy 2:6.

10 How did Jehovah provide the ransom? He sent one of his perfect spirit sons to the earth. But Jehovah did not send just any spirit creature. He sent the one most precious to him, his only-begotten Son. (1*John 4:9,*10) Willingly, this Son left his heavenly home. (Philippians 2:7) As we learned in the preceding chapter of this book, Jehovah performed a miracle when he transferred the life of this Son to the womb of Mary. By means of God’s holy spirit, Jesus was born as a perfect human and was not under the penalty of sin.—Luke 1:35.

11 How could one man serve as a ransom for many, in fact, millions of humans? Well, how did humans numbering into the millions come to be sinners in the first place? Recall that by sinning, Adam lost the precious possession of perfect human life. Hence, he could not pass it on to his offspring. Instead, he could pass on only sin and death. Jesus, whom the Bible calls “the last Adam,” had a perfect human life, and he never sinned. (1*Corinthians 15:45) In a sense, Jesus stepped into Adam’s place in order to save us. By sacrificing, or giving up, his perfect life in flawless obedience to God, Jesus paid the price for Adam’s sin. Jesus thus brought hope to Adam’s offspring.—Romans 5:19; 1*Corinthians 15:21,*22.

12 The Bible describes in detail the suffering that Jesus endured before his death. He experienced harsh whipping, cruel impalement, and an agonizing death on a torture stake. (John 19:1, 16-18,*30; Appendix, pages*204-6) Why was it necessary for Jesus to suffer so much? In a later chapter of this book, we will see that Satan has questioned whether Jehovah has any human servants who would remain faithful under trial. By enduring faithfully in spite of great suffering, Jesus gave the best possible answer to Satan’s challenge. Jesus proved that a perfect man possessing free will could keep perfect integrity to God no matter what the Devil did. Jehovah must have rejoiced greatly over the faithfulness of his dear Son!—Proverbs 27:11.

13 How was the ransom paid? On the 14th day of the Jewish month Nisan in 33*C.E., God allowed his perfect and sinless Son to be executed. Jesus thus sacrificed his perfect human life “once for all time.” (Hebrews 10:10) On the third day after Jesus died, Jehovah raised him back to spirit life. In heaven, Jesus presented to God the value of his perfect human life sacrificed as a ransom in exchange for Adam’s offspring. (Hebrews 9:24) Jehovah accepted the value of Jesus’ sacrifice as the ransom needed to deliver mankind from slavery to sin and death.—Romans 3:23,*24.

WHAT THE RANSOM CAN MEAN FOR YOU

14 Despite our sinful condition, we can enjoy priceless blessings because of the ransom. Let us consider some of the present and future benefits of this greatest gift from God.

15 The forgiveness of sins. Because of inherited imperfection, we have a real struggle to do what is right. All of us sin either in word or in deed. But by means of Jesus’ ransom sacrifice, we can receive “the forgiveness of our sins.” (Colossians 1:13,*14) To gain that forgiveness, however, we must be truly repentant. We must also humbly appeal to Jehovah, asking his forgiveness on the basis of our faith in the ransom sacrifice of his Son.—1*John 1:8,*9.

16 A clean conscience before God. A guilty conscience can easily lead to hopelessness and make us feel worthless. Through the forgiveness made possible by the ransom, though, Jehovah kindly enables us to worship him with a clean conscience despite our imperfection. (Hebrews 9:13,*14) This makes it possible for us to have freeness of speech with Jehovah. Therefore, we can freely approach him in prayer. (Hebrews 4:14-16) Maintaining a clean conscience gives peace of mind, promotes self-respect, and contributes to happiness.

17 The hope of everlasting life on a paradise earth. “The wages sin pays is death,” says Romans 6:23. The same verse adds: “But the gift God gives is everlasting life by Christ Jesus our Lord.” In Chapter*3 of this book, we discussed the blessings of the coming earthly Paradise. (Revelation 21:3,*4) All those future blessings, including life everlasting in perfect health, are made possible because Jesus died for us. To receive those blessings, we need to show that we appreciate the gift of the ransom.

HOW CAN YOU SHOW YOUR APPRECIATION?

18 Why should we be deeply grateful to Jehovah for the ransom? Well, a gift is especially precious when it involves a sacrifice of time, effort, or expense on the part of the giver. Our heart is touched when we see that a gift is an expression of the giver’s genuine love for us. The ransom is the most precious of all gifts, for God made the greatest sacrifice ever in providing it. “God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son,” says John 3:16. The ransom is the most outstanding evidence of Jehovah’s love for us. It is also proof of Jesus’ love, for he willingly gave his life in our behalf. (John 15:13) The gift of the ransom should therefore convince us that Jehovah and his Son love us as individuals.—Galatians 2:20.

19 How, then, can you demonstrate that you appreciate God’s gift of the ransom? To begin with, get to know more about the Great Giver, Jehovah. (John 17:3) A study of the Bible with the aid of this publication will help you to do that. As you grow in knowledge of Jehovah, your love for him will deepen. In turn, that love will make you want to please him.—1*John 5:3.

20 Exercise faith in Jesus’ ransom sacrifice. Jesus himself said: “He that exercises faith in the Son has everlasting life.” (John 3:36) How can we exercise faith in Jesus? Such faith is not shown by words alone. “Faith without works is dead,” says James 2:26. Yes, true faith is proved by “works,” that is, by our actions. One way to show that we have faith in Jesus is by doing our best to imitate him not just in what we say but also in what we do.—John 13:15.

21 Attend the annual observance of the Lord’s Evening Meal. On the evening of Nisan 14, 33*C.E., Jesus introduced a special observance that the Bible calls “the Lord’s evening meal.” (1*Corinthians 11:20; Matthew 26:26-28) This observance is also called the Memorial of Christ’s death. Jesus instituted it to help his apostles and all true Christians after them to bear in mind that by means of his death as a perfect human, he gave his soul, or life, as a ransom. Regarding this observance, Jesus commanded: “Keep doing this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19) Observing the Memorial reminds us of the great love shown by both Jehovah and Jesus in connection with the ransom. We can show our appreciation for the ransom by being present at the yearly observance of the Memorial of Jesus’ death.

22 Jehovah’s provision of the ransom is indeed an invaluable gift. (2*Corinthians 9:14,*15
 
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