Tag: Holy Spirit

 

Someone once wrote, “In this day and age, MOST professing Christians are too proud and stubborn to consider the fact that the religious teaching they have grown to love Are All a Lie…and have NO IDEA about the darkness that has taken over the organized church.”

The enemy has long ago entered the visible church and propagated the lie that if a Christian has faith, speaks positively, and gives donations to religious causes, that financial blessings, “health and wealth, “ is assured as the will of God and that material wealth would even increase.  Many Christians continue to chase this carrot while the enemy laughs.  This is actually very simplistic and childish thinking.

And that isn’t the only or worst of false doctrines that have taken over the visible church.  The single most damaging practice that has even spread throughout the world is, “praying to accept Jesus and asking Him into one’s heart.”  This is otherwise known as the, “sinner’s prayer. ”Yes, that’s right.  Please take a moment to consider, (throughout this article, all references to, “Jesus,” refers only to Jesus Christ who was born in Nazareth .”  If that seems odd, it will be explained in a future article.),  Jesus is actually, now, in His physical body, sitting at the right hand of the Father.  He cannot enter any one’s heart.  And the critical, “work,” of salvation is in no one’s hands but God Himself who draws one to their salvation.

 On the contrary,  the following scriptures appear to dictate that He already knows who will be His.  And at any time during one’s lifetime, even to the last breath, one would have their time of visitation by the Holy Spirit.  I site the following verses: Romans 8:29–30; Ephesians 1:5, 11; Colossians 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:4; and 2 Timothy 2:10.

Also know that the most important point in the understanding of the salvation experience is in understanding that without the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus into immortality—there is no salvation. One must know  and understand that it isn’t just His suffering on the cross that is critical, but His being raised up into immortality in His actual physical body.  Remember, upon His return to His disciples, He spoke with them, ate with them, and Thomas was even able to physically touch Him to enhance his belief that this was truly Jesus.  To further advance the monumental occasion of His resurrection was the fact that at that time, as we now read in Matt. 27:51-53:

…“Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.”      As Paul warned the Corinthians, if one has a wrong belief, or does not believe in His resurrection or the resurrection of the dead, then there is no salvation. As Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:17,  And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

Also, consider that anything monumental that had ever been done for the ultimate benefit of man was done by God Himself. Refer to His leading Israel out of Egypt;  His crafting His covenant with Abraham—remember, He gave Abraham instructions, but then put him to sleep while He cut the covenant (Gen. 15:9-18); and for us, salvation in Christ Jesus of Nazareth through the visitation of the Holy Spirit who convicts us of sin and gives us the faith to believe in the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He, “calls,” us by the Holy Spirit, who chooses the time of His visitation and convicts us to repentance in much sorrow for who we ourselves are by our sin-nature that put Jesus on the cross.  Again, He, “convinces,” us that we are sinners deserving of punishment but soon afterwards also brings our spirit to life with absolute joy in Him giving us the necessary faith to believe in His bodily resurrection. So praying to accept Jesus is an offense to God Himself.

This great work is done by Him, not us.  We cannot convict ourselves nearly to the extent that the Holy Spirit does. We cannot produce our own faith as the Holy Spirit gives.  This is totally His work.  Not ours. Anything critical to man He does Himself so that—if you will—man would not mess it up.

My next post will further illustrate this point with my own testimony. But here now, please know that my own Pastor was an atheist from the word, “go.” And did not attend any house of institutional religion but one time in 33 years.  For as long as she could remember she was an atheist until the Holy Spirit came upon her, quite out of the blue and convicted her of her sin-nature, gave her the faith to believe in Jesus’ suffering and bodily resurrection, and she became born again.  What I didn’t say was that at the time she was deep into the occult!  He saved her without a sermon, tract, or anything else but Himself.  

Me, I was a false conversion, believing that I was, “saved, born again, etc.” because I repeated a, “sinner’s prayer.  I “parroted,” a prayer based on intellectual knowledge, no true faith required, no true, through and through, into the marrow of my bones realization or acknowledgement of my sin nature, so did that count?  No.  But I went through all of the motions, attended a house of worship, did what I was told, etc., and was not, as I came to learn, was not born again.  That came much, much later…

Finally, , take a moment and do as Paul had admonished, examine your salvation to see if you truly are in the faith. (2 Corinthians 13:5)