Forgiveness, An Undeserved Gift.

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Rom 6:15  What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. 

Rom 6:16  Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 

Rom 6:17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. 

Rom 6:18  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 

Rom 6:19  I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. 

Rom 6:20  For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. 

Rom 6:21  What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. 

Rom 6:22  But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. 

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The wages of sin will always be death, whose death is what matters.

The death for sin will either be on us or Christ.  Christ already died, but His death was for those who choose to accept His sacrifice. He died to save us from our sins. If we ask for forgiveness for our sins- in truth- not in some haphazard, flippant, by rote manner, we will be forgiven and if we are forgiven the wages for our sins have been paid. If we do NOT accept Christ's sacrifice then the wages of sin will be paid by us, and the wages for all sin is death- eternal death.

Do we deserve to be saved from eternal death? No. There no deserving involved. If we wait until we feel as if we deserve to be saved we will never be saved, never. You never deserve forgiveness, it is a gift. Even when we forgive someone, it is a gift we are giving them. When we are in need of being forgiven and someone forgives us, they've given us a gift.  Forgiveness, even when we think someone should forgive us for something we may have done- perhaps our offense was committed unwittingly, through ignorance, or forgetfulness- so we may truly want forgiveness for our unintentional slight against someone, but that does not mean we deserve it. For whatever reason we've sinned, or slighted someone no matter the cause we've committed the act and the action has consequences and the consequences remain and have to be endured by the offended party. How often have we cried out the words- "I didn't mean it!"  In anguish we may wail our remorse. Still- we do NOT deserve forgiveness. We can't EARN forgiveness though a lot of people think they can. We can make restitution for our wrongs in any number of ways, and yes, that helps, but that restitution is not a payment for forgiveness. Forgiveness is a gift given from the heart, not forced from the heart, not bought from the heart.

We do not deserve forgiveness here and now from others, and we do not deserve forgiveness from God. We are blessed with the gift of forgiveness. 

We are told to forgive others- even our enemies, and we will be forgiven.

Mat 6:12  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 

Mat 6:14  For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: 

Mat 6:15  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

We forgive, we give this gift to others who do not deserve it, and shouldn't have to work to deserve it, and our Heavenly Father forgives us - who do not deserve it, and cannot buy it, or work for it in any way. Forgiveness by its very nature is not work- in fact if we forgive simply to be forgiven without any heart-truth forgiveness being involved, then it's not forgiveness at all.

What is forgiveness exactly- more on this tomorrow by the grace and mercy, the will of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, now and forever!!!!!!!

We fight sin because we love, not to be loved.

In various movies/books etc, we've all read tales about a person saving the life of someone and then that someone whose life was saved goes on to live their life in service to the person who saved them. Sometimes they do this until an opportunity arises for that indebted person to redeem themselves by saving the life of their savior, other times they simply remain in their servitude to their savior forever - until they die or their savior dies. 

I'm not sure how likely this is occur today in any circumstance, it seems unrealistic at best. Let's say I go to cross the street and a person pulls me out of the way of a car about to hit me. Do I drop everything and offer my servitude to the person? No. It's just not done.

Doctors save patients all the time- and their patients don't offer their life in turn to serve the doctor.

Why do you suppose people have done this though, it real life and in stories?

Because they are so grateful for the chance to live all because someone saved them. They would no longer be living if that person hadn't saved them and this to those people means their saved life belongs to that person. The gratitude is overwhelming. The realization they live because of another is overwhelming. 

We who are born again, live a new life, with a spiritual birth given to us by a Savior who DIED so we could get this chance.

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 

Rom 6:13  Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

We are called to YIELD ourselves to God once we accept Him into our lives, and believe in His sacrifice for us. We are called to yield our members as instruments of righteousness to God. We are called to NOT let sin reign in us, not obeying sin's lusts.

We are given the GREATEST GIFT that exists- God's Love and from that love eternal life!  Jesus preached of eternal life knowing how precious this gift is for us, all of us!

Is this gift wrapped in a bow and set in a box as something we can pull out and touch, see? No.

This gift is a promise.  We've all given promises before, haven't we? We've given our word on something even as simple as telling someone we promise to be somewhere at a certain time. There is NOTHING to touch, nothing to see when we make such a promise, it's by our word only- it's a promise. God has given us a promise and God will NOT go back on His word. God will NOT break His promise.

The promises Jesus made are real!

We know that eternal life in the love of our Heavenly Father, our loving Savior, and the Holy Spirit is a gift we will receive, a gift we have received.  The promise is, that when we die we will sleep and when our Savior returns He will call us from the grave, or if we are still alive when He returns we will rise to meet Him in the air- changed, immortal. 

We are sin prone and engage in spiritual warfare against sin. We are sin fighters, not sin accepters, not sin users, not sin excusers. Where there is sin in our lives we have to war against it, spiritually, through the grace of our LORD.  If there is ANY sin in our lives striving to separate us from God we go to battle we don't let it reign in us. Even if we have to daily wrestle with the sin, we fight!  We don't give in and despair of ever being sinless, that is why we have a sinless Savior, He is sinless for us. We are to fight, not despair. We are to trust, not despair. We are to believe, not despair. Some days the battle will be so fierce despair will be right in front of us, but we cannot grasp it! We must hold fast!  Our fight against sin isn't to save us, we'll say that over and over again. Our fight against sin is because we are saved already.

If you are married then you'll fight for your loved one. You are already married, you aren't fighting to get married, you fight because you love them. When you have children you fight for them, you don't fight to get them you have them, they are yours and you love them!  God loves us! We love God! We fight sin because we love, not to be loved!

All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, NOW and FOREVER!!!!!!!

Yielding.

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 

Rom 6:13  Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Yielding ourselves to God.

Our members instruments of righteousness unto God.

Let not sin therefore reign in our mortal bodies- obeying it's lusts.

Let not sin have dominion over us.

Sin will rule us if we let it. Seriously, sin will overcome us if we aren't yielding ourselves to God. You say sin isn't overruling you even though you don't yield to God. You say you're a really great person, loving others, doing great things, feeding the poor, clothing the destitute, giving generously and more to charities. I say, God bless you! However, none of those things comes with a ticket to heaven. Are they amazing things, yes! I will never say they aren't. But if you aren't yielding yourselves to God, who are you yielding yourself too? No one? Well, that’s not possible. You might think it is, but it's not. There are only two sides in this war of humanity - God and Satan. There are no in-betweens and there is no abstaining. Your choice if you choose neither is choosing Satan by default because You have never given your heart to God, and you've never sought forgiveness, never searched for salvation. If you've never yielded yourself to God then you've yielded to yourself and you have no power to save yourself. Satan sweeps up the self-yielding guiding them silently into his fold. He won't make waves, he'll let all the self-yielding live happily in their delusions.

People want to claim a higher power, an unseen power in their lives as coincidences, and happenstances of good fortune occur. They'd rather call the power by some cute pet name, or chalk things up to mysterious odd invisible acting intelligences- but NOT call the power- God.   God calls out for us to yield to Him and He reaches out to us all the time. The Holy Spirit will nudge people hoping they'll yield to God.

Sin will rule us - and it could be the sin of self, the sin of denial, the sin of a heart hardened to God, yet open it so many other ways.

We have to be instruments of righteousness unto God.

We can't let sin reign in our mortal bodies, obeying our lusts.

We can't let sin rule over us.

We MUST yield to God.

More on this tomorrow by the GRACE and MERCY the WILL of our LORD!

Made Perfect Through the Spirit.

Gal 3:3  Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

It is by the SPIRIT we are born again and isn't that our beginning as Christians, our true beginning?

Joh 3:1  There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 

Joh 3:2  The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 

Joh 3:4  Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 

Joh 3:5  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 

Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 

Joh 3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 

Joh 3:8  The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. 

Joh 3:9  Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? 

Joh 3:10  Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 

Joh 3:11  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 

Joh 3:12  If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? 

Joh 3:13  And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. 

Joh 3:14  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 

Joh 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 

Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

Joh 3:19  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 

Joh 3:20  For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 

Joh 3:21  But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

We MUST be born again.

There isn't any other option.

Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 

So, how…

How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 

We KNOW that’s impossible, NO ONE can go back into their mother's womb. Totally impossible!

So, how…

Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. 

We have to be BORN of WATER and the SPIRIT.

We are to BELIEVE to be born of the Water and the SPIRIT.

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 

That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 

We cannot see the kingdom of God unless we are born again by water and the Spirit… AND whoever believes in JESUS will not perish, but have eternal life.

They go together!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Unless we have eternal life we will NOT see the kingdom of heaven, it's impossible.

Our new birth into the Spirit come when we BELIEVE.

Mar 1:6  And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey; 

Mar 1:7  And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. 

Mar 1:8  I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. 

Rom 6:3  Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 

Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 

Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 

Rom 6:7  For he that is dead is freed from sin. 

Rom 6:8  Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 

Rom 6:9  Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 

Rom 6:10  For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 

Rom 6:13  Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Born of WATER - baptized, and born of the Spirit- raised from the water into the Spirit - new life- born again.

And that leads us back to this--

Gal 3:3  Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

If we begin with BELIEF in CHRIST and HIS power to save us through His sacrifice we must CONTINUE with that BELIEF ALWAYS. Like it was mentioned a few days ago….

Salvation is a gift, and keeping the commandments make that gift more and more precious to us. Keeping the commandments isn't a way to earn salvation, it's a way to love and live the salvation given to us.

We love and live the gift of eternal life by keeping the commandments, but we can't earn or keep salvation by keeping the commandments.  If we spend our lives thinking we are being good enough for salvation, we are doing it all wrong. We are trying to use our flesh to be saved, and it will never save us, never.

Lord, help us. Father, keep us in YOU. Holy Spirit live in us bringing us a newness of life endlessly all through the gift of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

The KINGDOM.

Php 2:4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. 

Php 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 

Php 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 

Php 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 

Php 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

We aren't supposed to be solely concerned with ourselves. In fact, we aren't even supposed to come first in our consideration. How does this make those who are chronically sick feel? The people who are in need of help? There is a whole lot even chronically ill people can do depending of course on their illness and what it affects in their bodies and minds.  It has to be awful to feel as if you've nothing to offer others because you're so incapacitated in so many ways. I believe- and I could be wrong- that even the tiniest things done for others- sparing a few seconds of thoughts to say a prayer for someone else, is a huge thing.

God isn't telling us that we all have to be preachers, teachers, outgoing caregivers, endless volunteers, in fact if we were ALL those things, we would have no one to preach to, no one to teach, no one to care for and nothing to volunteer about. Seriously, we all have our individual idiosyncrasies, our own situations that are completely unique to us in emotion, in mental status, in physical being, and even spiritually.  No two people will ever experience these things the same because that's not how we were made.

Maybe you're the one in need of teaching, of being preached to, of being cared for, of needing the help of a volunteer- but even in that you are serving others by blessing them with their ability to help you. I know it's not much consolation and when we read about not looking on our own things but those of others- we can do that in this way that isn't very popular. We teach people to feel ashamed of their being in need beyond the normal course of needing upbringing and such. 

Those who can and are called to preach, teach, care give and volunteer (among the many other things not listed here) should do so. But those who are called to another path needn't feel despair over their situation. You can PRAY, you can THINK about others, these are very valuable things to do rather than turning thoughts solely inward- lamenting the life you think would be so much better, the life you should have had, the life of others with their good health, with their lack of screwy genetics, their better story than your own. 

We each have our own stories and the healthiest in all ways person won't necessarily have a better life than the most sickly in all ways person- because our lives are measured spiritually in our walk with Christ and that walk is a very personal thing.

You may think I don't know what the heck I'm talking about and if I were in the shoes of the needy/sickly person I wouldn't feel as I do- well let me tell you, I have my share of abnormalities that make me able to speak from this point of view.  No, I don't have it as bad as a lot of others, by the grace of God, but when is it ever wrong to live in action, in thought, that we are all temporary to eternity and it is eternity that we need to focus on? 

Satan would have us trapped in the here and now, never looking beyond to eternity. Satan loves us being caught up in all our many problems as long as it keeps our focus off eternity.

Our prayers must be for the KINGDOM to COME- and we often forget that KINGDOM, shoving it behind life right now- every aspect of this life.

Do we live for the KINGDOM of HEAVEN?  Do we live to tell others of the KINGDOM of HEAVEN?

Father- who art in HEAVEN.

Thy KINGDOM come.

Thine is the KINGDOM.

Mat_4:23  And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

PREACHING the gospel of the KINGDOM.

Mat_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.

This gospel of the KINGDOM shall be preached…

Luk_8:1  And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him

…glad tidings of the KINGDOM of God…

2Th_1:5  Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer

…worthy of the KINGDOM of God…

Jas_2:5  Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

…Heirs of the KINGDOM…

The KINGDOM.

Do we live for the KINGDOM?

All by the grace and mercy of our LORD may we live for the KINGDOM of GOD!

All through the love of our LORD and SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST. All by the power of the HOLY SPIRIT in us!

Now and forever!!!!!!!

'He that believeth on me....'

Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 

Joh 14:8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 

Joh 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? 

Joh 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 

Joh 14:11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 

Joh 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. 

Joh 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 

Joh 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

"Believe me"

"He that believeth on me"

If you believe in someone that means they are a reality to you. You can't believe in something that is not reality to you. If you say you believe in fairies that means you believe in their reality. Are fairies real? No. However angels are real and they minister to us. People who believe in things that aren't real- such as the sun being green and the moon being made of cheese- they are called delusional.

My son and I recently watched a movie called- 'A Case for Christ.'  It is a bit old fashioned, but overall a good movie. As the title reveals someone is going to make a case for Christ and His existing, His reality. A husband is very upset when his wife turns to religion after they establish a marriage without any religion at all. The husband sets out to prove Christ did not rise from the dead, if he can prove this then the whole Christian religion falls apart. He goes to great lengths to prove his case 'against' Christ, and ends up not succeeding.  There is just too much evidence for Christ and the fact He rose from the dead. 

There are quite a few people who do not believe Christ rose from the dead, they call him fictional or merely a prophet, a teacher but that He didn't rise from the dead.

One quote from the movie which actually written by C.S. Lewis-

'Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance.'

In the verses above our Savior is talking about believing and how incredibly important it is to believe.

Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 

Joh 14:8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 

Joh 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? 

Joh 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 

Joh 14:11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 

Joh 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. 

Joh 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 

Joh 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

We must believe that Jesus is in the Father, and the father in Him, that the very words Jesus speaks are not of Himself but of the Father in Him, it's the Father that does the works Jesus performs.

How is it possible for someone to perform the work of another? We see it all the time don't we? We have no trouble at all watching actors and actresses as they perform the work of another. We know the actor is acting out the actions another has written down, we've no trouble comprehending how that is done. Not all actors can be script writers themselves, they must have another write down what they are going to do. Taking this sort of analogy  we have to be able to comprehend that our Savior was letting the Father work through Him. There was no script to follow, Jesus wasn't an actor to God's script writing, but rather a Son knowing the Father's will and doing that will. A Son who knew that He had given up His divinity to take on flesh, lowering Himself, taking on the form of a slave.

Php 2:5  For think this within you, which mind was also in Christ Jesus, 

Php 2:6  who subsisting in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, 

Php 2:7  but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, having become in the likeness of men 

Php 2:8  and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, having become obedient until death, even the death of a cross. (LITV)

Jesus had to rely on the power of the Father working in Him, all He did He was able to do through the Father and it was very important people knew and understood this fact.

We through our Savior are able to live our lives as He wills, all we do for Him, He will give us the power to do and all this because of the Father!

Jesus wants us to pray to the Father and we do- in Jesus' name and the FATHER is glorified in the SON.

We choose to believe, by the grace of our Savior, we believe and ask Him to help any unbelief in us changing it all to belief!

All through His love and mercy! By the Father, through the Son, of the Holy Spirit, now and forever!!!!!!!

Living Salvation.

Joh 8:34  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. 

Joh 8:35  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. 

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. 

We are all servants of sin as we live in this world. But we are not going to live in this world forever.  What is forever is the Son of God and the Son of God can make us free from sins, no longer servants to sin.

Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 

Joh 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. 

The Son of God can make us free. We need to continue in the Word of the Lord, knowing the truth, because it is God's truth that will set us free.

We need to be free, because to be captive to sin is to be a part of the world, and to be a part of the world is to be conformed to the world, and being conformed to the world is to belong to Satan.

This needs to be our prayer--

Psa 19:12  Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. 

Psa 19:13  Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. 

Psa 19:14  Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. 

We need to be kept from willful sinning. Sin can have dominion over us, but through our Savior it can be overcome.  Are the words of our mouth, and the meditation of our hearts acceptable to God? We need to examine ourselves--

2Co_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

When we examine ourselves we can tell whether we are in the faith- and if our words and heart are not acceptable to God, to our Savior then we are not in the faith, we are not living in the truth of our LORD.  We don't like thinking about this kind of stuff though because the weight of our sin is so incredibly heavy as we realize how far we are from where we should be. To shrug it off, to deny it, to hide from it, to pretend that it doesn’t matter is to live in ignorance and it's in ignorance that our Savior is going to tell many that He doesn't know them. They will be ignorant of the truth because they don't want to face the truth at all, the lies are so much easier to live.

Our Savior will set us free through His truth, and that truth has commands.

Our Savior has commands.

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

Joh_14:15  If ye love me, keep my commandments.

Yet, we ignore that last part because we pit it against salvation being only found in Jesus through grace and not works, it's a gift.  We equate keeping the commands of our God with works.

An analogy might be as follows-

Your father tells you that he has a gift for you and he gives it to you, no strings attached, the gift is yours. You take the gift and it's yours for as long as you desire to keep it, you can't trash the gift unless you really want to. Your life continues and you go on as usual and your father tells you that if you love him you'll listen to him and what he tells you to do because he only has your best interests at heart in all he commands you. He continues on and tells you all sort of things that he'd like you to do which ultimately stem from loving him and loving others. Now you have to choose always, in all you do, if you are going to do the things he's told you or not. It will be something you'll have to choose all the time, all your actions stemming from these commands he's given you.  He also tells you that if you love him and follow his commands then you will be living in love. When you choose not to follow the commands and you let yourself stray, you are choosing to turn from Him and that gift He gave you will become less and less a gift you want to keep.

Salvation is a gift, and keeping the commandments make that gift more and more precious to us. Keeping the commandments isn't a way to earn salvation, it's a way to love and live the salvation given to us.

All by the grace and mercy, the love of our SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD now and forever!!!!!!!