HOW CAN I KNOW IF I AM SAVED?  

See  www.justbible.com  for an online bible to check the below scriptural passages at.  Much of the  below was taken from the website  http://www.cuttingedge.org/index.html  which covers much current information about bible prophesy and the new world order.

Also see  http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/tract1.html
A great explanation of being "born again" to be saved. 

Also see saved 2  for a great explanation and 
companion page to  this one of how you know you are saved.

Is it possible to believe in Jesus and NOT be saved? 

The question Is not as simple as it first appears
There is much disagreement among clergy today on this issue and  there are two separate schools of thought on the "saved" issue.   The one thing everybody DOES agree on is that we cannot get to heaven on our own works or by our own deeds because in amongst our good deeds are  sinful ways. So do we get to heaven by grace alone or a combination of grace along with works?  To put it more plainly, if I say I believe that Jesus died for my sins but continue to commit the same old sins and breaking the commandments, never go to church, never tell others about God, and  don't keep his Sabbath; can I still get to heaven?  If you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, called Salvation, so that you will be saved - will you be saved? How can you obtain this free gift of eternal life? The Bible is not silent. In Acts 16:25-33, the jailer anxiously asked Paul, "What must I do to be saved"? Paul answered "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved ..." verse 31".  Sounds simple enough; but is it?

Logically, eternal salvation is provided for man solely by God's grace through the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ. Man is saved through faith alone in Christ alone, independant of his works, but good works are a necessary result of true faith;   i.e. keeping the Saturday Sabbath, keeping the ten commandments, witnessing your faith to others, & being baptized.

Or besides believing that Jesus died for my sins, do I need to get baptized, keep the ten commandments as best I can,  perform no work and worship God on the true Saturday Sabbath, and witness to others about God's Salvation - in other words "doing the will of the Father" as is required in Mathew 7:21 which says ," Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." ?  Or James 2:17
"In the same way, faith by itself, if not accompanied by action; is dead". 

Some look at "grace only" versus "grace with works"  as the "highly probable" versus  "surest method" of getting to heaven; when really it may boil down to "whoever has the faith can't help but show it by his/her actions".  If this were a cut and dried situation then everyone would agree; right?   But they don't; it's not that easy an issue as you will find as you read on. 

Encouragingly for those of you not wanting to put forth much effort here, the official position of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, which is a  church organization  that goes strictly by scripture and even keeps a Saturday Sabbath, is that "grace" alone will get you to heaven.  The catch 22 is, however, if you do not have a commitment to God in your life as shown by your actions; do you really believe in your heart the concept of Salvation? The following attempts to address that important issue. This is not a short page, but if you make it all the way to the end and pay a little bit of attention along the way to the concepts presented, you should pretty well have it figured out what you need to do to be saved. 

Since the evidence of genuine salvation is the presence of the Holy Spirit within the individual, how can this be verified? How can we be reasonably certain about ourselves, as well as others, without being guilty of judging? To answer this, let's take our own case first. There are several "tests" that we can take to determine His presence within us: (all Scripture quotes from Parallel Bible,
KJV/Amplified Bible Commentary). 

1. Romans 8:16 tells us: "The Spirit Himself [thus] testifies together with our own spirit, [assuring us] that we are children of God." First and foremost, we have the unshakable testimony from within us! The indwelling Holy Spirit of God constantly reassures us that we belong to Jesus Christ.

2. The entire book of First John was written as a "test" for determining the reality of salvation. Verse three of Chapter one tells us: "What we have seen and [ourselves] heard we are also telling you, so that you too may realize and enjoy
fellowship as partners and partakers with us. And [this] fellowship that we have (which is a distinguishing mark of Christians) is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ, the Messiah." The fellowship enjoyed by genuine Christians is
proof positive of salvation. Those who claim Christ, but yet rarely attend church to worship God and associate with other believers, are possibly fooling themselves! A  Christian can stay out of church and away from other believers, but I can guarantee you  that there will never be a time when you will be comfortable with it! On the other side of the coin, 1John1:8  teaches us that if we deny the existence of sin within us, the Truth is not in us. First John 2:3,  two teaches us that we are genuine and "growing in grace and knowledge of Christ", if we keep His commandments. 1John2:10  teaches us that we are of Christ if we love the brethren. Again, those who habitually absent themselves from God's house and do not make it clear that they love being around God's children, are very likely to be tares and not wheat. 1John2:15  teaches us that if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. "Worldly Christians"
is almost a contradiction in terms and those who claim Christ, but yet cling to the value system of this world-are suspect.

3. 1 John 5:13 informs us that the entire Book of 1 John was written so that we can know that we possess eternal life in Christ. Do you know for absolute certainty that, if you were to die tonight, you would go to Heaven?

4. The Word of God teaches that the Bible is incomprehensible to the "natural man" -the unsaved individual. It is a spiritual book and the unsaved person is not only spiritually blind, but 1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us that he "is incapable" of knowing that which is spiritually discerned. Do you understand the Bible? Does it make sense to you and speak to your heart? Does it convict you of your sin and teach you the right way? 

5. The Bible is very clear that an unregenerate individual will not seek God (Rom.3:11). Are you painfully aware of your sinful nature and cry out to God from your heart for forgiveness when you sin? If so, this is one of the signs of having been born again. 

6. The Bible says that an unregenerate individual is a slave of Satan and incapable of doing anything about it (Eph.2:2). Have you been able to turn your back upon this world and its sinful ways? Are all of your close friends Christians? If you have been born again, your unsaved friends will drop you like a bad habit! (Just as an illustration, spray a small amount of "WD-40" lubricant on a surface wet with water and watch how fast the water retreats! A genuine dose of salvation is like the WD-40 where reprobate buddies are concerned.) 

7. Do you love--really love--Christians and would rather be with them than anyone else? Can you meet a total stranger, find out that they are a believer, and then have instant fellowship with them? Is there "something" in your heart that draws you to them and establishes a closeness which cannot be explained any other way? [We alluded to this feature in Paragraph 2, above] 

8. Do you actually enjoy giving to the Lord's work? Do you give generously of your time, talent, and treasury? 

9. Do you sin less now than you did prior to receiving Christ? 

10. Have other people seen the "fruit of the Spirit" at work in your life? That is, can they see genuine love, joy, peace, long-suffering, etc., (Gal.5:22), being wrought in and through you by God's Holy Spirit? Do they sense that you are a
different person from the one you used to be? 

11. Have you experienced persecution because of your faith in Christ? (Former friends who back away because of your testimony for Christ, are a subtle form of persecution). 

12. Are you eagerly expecting and anticipating the any-moment return of Jesus Christ for His Church? 

If you can truthfully answer "yes" to these questions, you are a child of God and the Holy Spirit dwells within you! If you cannot truthfully answer "yes" to these questions, then you are probably not saved and you need to go to the bottom of this page to the Salvation message and go through the steps in honesty and sincereness of heart so you can be saved! 

"You must be born again"

The Bible is very clear on the necessity of a person being "Born Again" if they are to receive eternal life. Jesus coined this term, in John 3:3-7, when he told Nicodemus, "You must be born again" to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. Since this necessity is so critical, Satan has attacked it with all his might for two thousand years, causing most "Christian" churches to stop teaching this
doctrine, even though no one can be saved without undergoing this wondrous spiritual conversion. However, Satan's most effective weapon against being Born Again has been, and still is, confusion. 

Fortunately, Jesus lovingly made this transformation process very simple, so simple that even those who are retarded or not educated can understand. There are several steps to becoming Born Again, listed below:

1. Understand that ALL men ever born are sinners. Romans 3:23, says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." This message that all men are sinners is amply repeated through Scripture . This means you are a sinner in the eyes of an angry God, Who must punish all sin. Do you believe you are a sinner?

2. Since man is an imperfect sinner, and God is a perfect God, no man can save himself. Jesus made this fact very plain in Matthew 5:48, when He said, "Be ye, therefore, perfect, even as your Heavenly Father is perfect."!!! 
If we all have to be perfect in God's eyes, how can there be anyone in Heaven, especially since the Bible declares, repeatedly, that ALL people are sinners? Obviously, no one is going to get to Heaven this way, by trying to be 'good enough' to merit Heaven. Since the Bible says there are going to be untold millions of people in Heaven, there must be some other way to get there, other than by trying to be 'good enough'. 

You must also be very sorry for your sins, and want to have them forgiven. This is known as Repentance. The word Repent means to both be very sorry for your sins, and to want to not sin anymore. Repentance means the desire to turn your life around 180 degrees. This does not mean you will never sin again, but it does mean that sin will become the exception in your life, not the rule. 

3. When the sinless Son of God, Jesus Christ, shed His precious blood on the cross at Calvary, He died for the sins of His people in their place as a sacrificial substitute. And in doing so, He suffered the wrath of God the Father upon their sin. He paid the penalty for that sin in His own body and purchased their eternal redemption. This enables Him to give as a free gift His own holiness and
righteousness to those who believe in Him and trust Him for salvation. making them absolutely perfect in God. s sight! Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." None of us deserve to be saved; in His love and mercy God extends grace to those who will believe. Grace is defined as "undeserved favor" and perhaps this
little acrostic will help you to remember its meaning: God' s Riches At Christ' s Expense. [The true meaning of GRACE]

4. In Ephesians 2:8-9, the Apostle Paul reiterates this teaching that eternal life with God is a free gift. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; Not of works, lest any man should boast." No man can stand before God in eternity, and boast that they 'earned' their way to Heaven. All people in Heaven will be there only because of Jesus' FREE
Gift, which He obtained from God because of His substitutionary death sacrifice on the Cross. Rather than punishing each person's individual sins, God heaped all those sins on Jesus on the Cross Isaiah 53:2-12] 

Now, you are probably thinking, 'How can I obtain this free gift of eternal life'? Again, the Bible is not silent. In Acts 16:25-33, the jailer anxiously asked Paul, "What must I do to be saved"? Paul answered "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved ..." verse 31". You must BELIEVE on Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. To truly believe, you must place your
complete faith and trust in Christ and rely upon Him as your only hope of salvation and eternal life. This is a matter of the heart and you cannot hope to deceive God by putting on an act because He knows everything about you. Many people mistakenly think that by merely believing the facts concerning Jesus Christ' s death, burial, and resurrection, they will be automatically be given the gift of eternal life. But such is not the case. Preachers call that a "head knowledge and not a heart knowledge." Salvation is freely given, but only to those who are genuine believers. 

5. In John 1:1-14 (not 1John but John 1) we see that Jesus Christ is God, equal with God, present with God from before the beginning of time, and the actual Creator of the Universe. He is 100% God and 100% human at the same time, which is why He used both titles during His ministry, Son of God and Son of Man. To become Born Again, you must believe this doctrine about Jesus Christ.

John1:14 is most important, the teaching that Jesus God became man. This teaching becomes a point of separation between the followers of Christ and Antichrist. In 1John 4:1-3, we see that anyone who denies that Jesus has come in the flesh is the spirit of antichrist. That is just what the Gnostics of that day were saying, i.e., that Jesus the human was not God Messiah come in the
flesh; rather, the 'Christ Consciousness' the 'Messiah' Consciousness, came on Jesus at His baptism and left Him on the Cross; they believe Jesus was not God and Man. The New Age Movement and Freemasonry have resurrected this blasphemy with a vengeance.

6. Isaiah 53:6 foretells exactly what Jesus Christ did for us on the Cross; "the Lord [God the Father] has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Praise God!! Only the Wisdom, Grace, and Power of God Almighty could conceive of such a gracious Plan of Salvation!! God's Nature is such that sin must be punished. Period! But, God set up a Plan whereby an innocent substitute was to be
punished instead of the guilty person. In the Old Testament, God allowed the lamb to be the substitute sacrifice for sin; Jesus then became the ultimate substitute sacrifice, for all the sins of the world. His was the Perfect sacrifice, that never needs to be repeated, and that saves all people forever more.

You must believe in, and understand, this principle of Substitute Punishment, before you can become Born Again. And, you must believe that Jesus Christ became the Perfect Substitute Punishment for YOU, before you can become Born Again.

Now that you understand these Truths, and believe them for your life, you now need to understand how you can obtain this FREE Gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. After all, if I were to attempt to give you a FREE gift, that gift would not become yours if you were to refuse to reach out and take that gift from my hand. So it is here. You must reach out and take this FREE Gift of Eternal Life
from the hand of Jesus Christ. How is this done?

Through Saving Faith . 

Notice I said Saving Faith . There are types of faith that will not get you saved. You may have 'head knowledge' faith that merely intellectually assents to the facts of Jesus Christ's person, but that is not Saving Faith. You may be in a 'church' or a cult that teaches many truths about Jesus Christ, but who teach that you must do many things to earn your way to Heaven. This is not Saving Faith.

Saving Faith is trusting in Jesus Christ, and Him alone, for your Salvation. 

If you think you need to do anything for Salvation except trust in Jesus work on the cross, you are guilty of violating Ephesians 2:8-9 and Isaiah 53:6b. Most cults and false Christian religions err at this point; they add things that are "necessary" for Salvation, or they offer a counterfeit way to Heaven, i.e., Salvation by Baptism. 

Do you want this Gift of Eternal Life that Jesus left Heaven and died on a cross to give you? If your answer is, 'Yes', you can immediately have Eternal Life. 

Let me clarify exactly what this involves. First, you are going to transfer your trust, your hope of eternal life from what you have been doing to what Jesus Christ has done for you on the cross. Jesus will take your sin and transfer TO YOU His right standing with God the Father, what we call His righteousness . This means that though we have failed repeatedly to keep God's commandments, Christ perfectly obeyed all the laws of God. He lived the perfect life, so He could be the perfect, innocent substitutionary sacrifice
that God would accept for your sins, and the sin of the entire world, for all who will believe. 

Are you willing to repent of your sins right now, and become a responsible member of God's forever family, following Him and serving Him as a member of His forever family, following Him and serving Him as a member of His body, the Church? If your heartfelt answer is, "Yes", then we can go to Him now in prayer, and we can tell Him that you want to cease trusting in anything else for Eternal
Salvation, especially in what you can do for yourself. You can place your trust in Him and Him alone for salvation. Before we pray this simple prayer, I need to point our that the Lord Jesus Christ is looking at your heart more than His is listening to your lips. As He promised, "Ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when [after] ye shall search for Me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13).

If this is what you mean, then the Lord will hear your prayer and grant you eternal life, right now, in the privacy of your home. Let us pray.

"Father, I pray that You would grant the FREE gift of eternal life. May thy Holy Spirit draw him or her unto Thyself. Grant him faith to believe Thy wonderful promises. Grant him or her repentance to turn from his sins. Reveal unto him Jesus Christ crucified as the perfect substitutionary sacrifice, today."

Jesus Christ is right with you right now. You are not talking to anyone now, but to Him. If you really want to be Born Again, into the Eternal Family of God through Jesus Christ, pray this prayer, from your heart.

"Lord Jesus, I want you to come in and take over my life right now. I am a sinner. I have been trusting in myself and my own good works, and in other things. But, now I place my trust in you. I want You as my own personal Savior. I believe You died for me. I receive You as Lord and Master of my life. Help me to turn from my sins and follow You. I thank you for Your offer of the FREE gift of eternal life. I am not worthy of it, but I thank You for it. Amen." 

Now, allow me to pray. "Father, you have heard the prayer which has been prayed. I ask that in this quiet moment, Thy Holy Spirit will grant unto him Your absolute assurance of life eternal; grant unto him the certainty that his sins are forgiven. Grant that he may hear, in the depths of his soul, Thy voice saying, 'Thy sins be forgiven thee. Go in peace'. Grant, O Jesus, that he may hear Thy
voice saying, 'As far as the east is from the west, so far have I put thy sins from thee, never to remember them against thee anymore. [The person] that believeth on Me shall not come into condemnation . He that trusts in Me is passed from death unto life. He that believeth on Me shall not perish but has everlasting life [paraphrased from Psalm 103:12; John 3:1 8; 5:24; 3:16]. In
Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen."

You have just prayed the most important prayer you have ever prayed in your life. If you were sincere in this prayer, I want you to see what Jesus says about what you have just done. In John 6:47, Jesus says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on Me has everlasting life." In your prayer, you didn't hear any angel choirs or see any visions; however, by a simple act of faith, you have
placed your trust for your eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. 

Saving Faith is trusting in Jesus Christ ALONE for your salvation . If you meant with your heart what you just said with your lips, you have the promise of Jesus Christ that He has forgiven your sins, and has adopted you into the kingdom, and has given you eternal life in Heaven with Him.

If this sounds so simple you have trouble believing that it could be true, the Bible assures you that it is most definitely true. Over the centuries, man has deliberately complicated this simple Plan of Salvation that most people simply do not know how simple and uncomplicated God has planned Salvation through Jesus Christ to be!! If you were genuine in your prayer, you now have eternal life, and are as assured of it as if you were already there!! This is why Jesus said, that no person can ever take any of His who are Born Again out of the Father's hand. 

How can you know for sure that you have been born again? Please do not expect any "earth-shaking" experience, because in the majority of cases it comes about in a rather peaceful way, a sense of relief and a load lifted. There will be no fireworks or brass bands playing, just a wonderful calm that is deep down inside. But with the passing of time, I have found that one of the best
indicators of the New Birth is a genuine understanding of the Word of God. Prior to being Born Again, the "natural man", as the Bible calls him, (a lost person), cannot understand the Bible because it is spiritually discerned (1 Corinthians 2:14). Indeed, it is foolishness to him! So when the Word begins to make sense, to speak to your heart, and convict you of sin in your life, it is a very
good indicator that you have the Holy Spirit of God residing within you. You see, a Christian obtains a new spiritual nature by the New Birth, but he does not get rid of the old nature he was born with. That is why it is so vitally important that we "grow in grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit as we walk through this sinful and spiritually
defiling world around us. The Holy Spirit literally takes up residence within us when we are Born Again and will never leave us nor forsake us. 

Another wonderful evidence of genuine salvation is found in the "fruit of the Spirit" (Galatians 5:22) that will take place in our daily lives as the Holy Spirit works within us. His presence will be manifested to the outside world by means of the love, joy, peace, longsuffering, faith, etc., they see in us! Then, the Bible tells us in Romans 8:16 that, "The Spirit itself (lit. Himself) beareth witness
with our spirit, that we are the children of God." In other words, the Holy Spirit living deep within us tells us that we belong to God. 

But, He has done much more!! In Revelation 3:20, Jesus promised, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. He has been knocking at the door of your heart, and you have just opened that door to let Him in; if anyone hears and listens and heeds My voice, and opens the door I WILL come in to him and will eat with him, and he will eat with Me." Jesus Christ has just entered INTO YOUR HEART
through the work of the Holy Spirit, to live in your heart for the rest of your life!! What great news, for now we have the same Holy Spirit power within us that raised Jesus from the dead [Romans 8:11]. In fact, read Romans 8 to see all the advantages we have because the Holy Spirit indwells us daily.

Salvation through Jesus shed blood on Calvary gives you a deep, abiding Personal Relationship with His Holy Spirit while you live on this Earth!! As you read the Bible, especially the New Testament, you will come to understand the wonderful depth you can reach between you and your Creator!! Salvation produces a relationship that will deeply enrich your life daily!! You will never have believed, prior to becoming Born Again, what kind of life you have been missing out on for so long!

We love you in the Lord. Pray for us in this ministry, in warning people all over the world about the impending New World Order. Satan has been so strong in attacking this ministry.

Because of His Love On Calvary,   David Bay


What Happens After You Believe?

God wants to lead you on a journey designed to completely transform you
Once you log on with God, He'll take you on a journey much more exciting
than surfing anywhere on the Internet.  The journey begins when you
believe.  As you grow in love for God, you also share His love with
others, helping them join the network of people being transformed into
new creations. Here are some ways you can build deeper relationships with God and others after you believe:

*  Confess your thoughts, feelings, and actions to God; not to Mary, or the saints, or some priest as the first commandment tells us we only pray to Yahweh (the Father)  or Yashua (the Son) one and the same; NO ONE ELSE.   The ONLY acceptable intercessor to Yahweh the Elohim (God himself) is Yahshua the Messiah (his Son); period. The bible tells us in the first commandment that "You shall have no other God's before me".   First Timothy 2:5 "For there is ONE God and ONE mediator between God and men; the man Christ Jesus".
God  knows your thoughts , feelings and actions  anyway, but wants to hear you speak the truth about them and invite Him to transform them.  Be honest with others, too, allowing them to see who you truly are.  Allow God's power to operate in every aspect of your life, and let other people see that happening.

*  Ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit.  Then listen for the Spirit's voice, and obey it.

*  Read the Bible daily, and ask God to let the words permeate your
being, accomplishing the creative work they are designed to do in His people.

*  Be willing to let go of all you hold closely and all that makes you comfortable.  Embrace God's vision for your life, and realize that it will probably include sacrificing some of your own agendas for the greater good of His all-knowing vision.

*  After God reveals His will for a particular situation, take whatever steps you can take in that direction to demonstrate your faith.  Then rest and watch God act to enable you to move forward even farther.  Look beyond just what you can see in the natural realm; act on what you discern in the spiritual realm.

*  Trust God to take broken pieces of your life and transform them into
something much greater and stronger.  Expect Him to work wonders in your life.

*  Praise God for who He is, and thank Him for the ways He's working in your life.

*  Humble yourself, and allow God's greater power to work through you rather than relying on your own strength to accomplish things.  You'll achieve far more that way.

*  Confidently and firmly resist evil by drawing on God's strength to combat it whenever you encounter it.  Pray specifically and often, then watch God act.

*  Seek to grow in the fruits of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Let those fruits operating in your daily life show people what God's Spirit in action looks like.  Communicate the gospel through the way you live.

*  Love people, realizing that God wants Christians to be known by their love.

*  Understand that God changes people's hearts and lives through a process.  Don't become frustrated when you don't see immediate results after you share the gospel with people.  Pray for them, trusting God to nurture the seeds you plant. All you have to do is sow, it is God who gives the harvest.

*  Ask God to replace any fear you have of reaching out to certain people with His love that casts out fear.

from Eddy's Ministry   http://www.angelfire.com/de3/eaglenet/index.html 

What about the issues of baptism and what Mathew 7:21 has to say??

Mathew 7:21  "Not everyone who says to me "Lord" "Lord", will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven".   There's more to it than just saying "Lord, Lord;  I believe" and thinking you are going to scoot through the pearly gates on grace. This is where the "knowledge" issue meets the "sincerity" component.  This is a matter of the heart and you cannot hope to deceive God by putting on an act because He knows everything about you. Many people mistakenly think that by merely believing the facts concerning Jesus Christ' s death, burial, and resurrection, they will be automatically be given "grace",  the gift of eternal life. But such is not the case. Preachers call that a "head knowledge and not a heart knowledge." Salvation is freely given, but only to those who are genuine believers.  Would it not make sense that he who truly believes in his heart would also want to "walk the walk" instead of just "talk the talk"?   It's only "he who does the will of my Father in heaven"  that will get to go.   You need to believe in your heart that Yahshua DID die on the cross for your salvation AND you need to do the will of the Father to the best of your ability in your daily actions. What is the will of the Father?    Duh!!  Keeping the ten commandments - Yup! They still apply; didn't go out with the cross as many think. See www.detailshere.com/tencommandments.htm  for more than you will ever want to know about the ten commandments and www.detailshere.com/twocovenants.htm for why they still are enforced. 

Keep praying to Mary and the saints, angels, the Pope  and anyone else except Yahshua and Yahweh and prepare yourself for the 7 plagues after the rest get raptured.  Praying to anyone else is  against the will of Yahweh.   We don't need intercessors to speak to Yahweh or Yahshua. The ONLY acceptable intercessor to Yahweh the Elohim (God himself) is Yahshua the Messiah (his Son); period. The bible tells us in the first commandment that "You shall have no other God's before me".  
First Timothy 2:5 "For there is ONE God and ONE mediator between God and men; the man Christ Jesus". Do you see Mary or St Peter or St Christopher or an angel  or the Pope mentioned anywhere there?   I don't. 

Try  John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me". 

or Mathew 4:10 "Though shalt worship Yahweh thy Elohim, and Him only shalt though serve".

or Acts 4:12 (Speaking of Yahshua); "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name (singular) under  heaven given among men by which we must be saved".

 Don't waste your time praying to anyone else except Yashua or Yahweh direct. Everything else is Satan's handiwork designed to keep you praying to people and objects that don't count except to wrack up demerits in the book of deeds.

Keep going to church on Sundays instead of making Saturday your day of rest and worship.   Keep thinking you ought to get baptized with a full water submersion but never get around to it.

Keep saying you believe in Yahshua but never tell anyone else to spread the good news.  Pass the beggar on the street with lots of change in your pocket and go spend it on an icecream instead of giving some of it to the beggar.  Watch the woman two cars down struggling to get a big package into her car and just keep going on about your business because you don't want to take the time to help her.  Keep letting something else be more important in your life than keeping the ten commandments and applying the golden rule (do unto others as you would have them do unto you). and you will be lost; for eternity .   
___________________________________

Is Baptism a requirement to go to heaven besides grace? 
Again, it is an issue that deals with your degree of submission to Yahshua. Baptism demonstrates true repentance. Such repentance is a turning to believe, follow, and obey the Lord Jesus Christ (Yashua  is his proper name) , and is the only kind of repentance that will save us. A repentance which refuses the command to be baptised in water is unknown in the Bible. To mentally assent to the claims of the Lord Jesus Christ, but refuse to obey His words is mock repentance which will not save anyone. True repentance must lead a person to the waters of baptism. Thus we see the saving importance of a believer's baptism. In baptism we identify ourselves with the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Jesus died, bearing our sins and paying the penalty for them in Himself. He was buried, taking our old life into the tomb with Him. He was raised from the dead, that He might give to us by the power of God, His new life, a supernatural resurrected life of peace and joy and victory over all that previously bound us.
Colossians 2:12   Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

By baptism we confess our faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and testify of our death to sin and of our purpose to walk in newness of life. Thus we acknowledge Christ as Lord and Saviour, become His people, and are received as members by His church. Baptism is a symbol of our union with Christ, the forgiveness of our sins, and our reception of the Holy Spirit. It is by immersion in water and is contingent on an affirmation of faith in Jesus and evidence of repentance of sin. It follows instruction in the Holy Scriptures and acceptance of their teachings. (Rom. 6:1-6; Col. 2:12, 13; Acts 16:30-33; 22:16; 2:38; Matt. 28:19, 20.)  

Why gamble??   How hard is it to get baptized if you are not already and realign your commitment to following the ten commandments and the golden rule to show God that you really are repentant and submissive to his laws. We understand that without his grace we can't get through the gate on our own merits.  No matter what the degree; we are ALL sinners. But we have to show more than "head knowledge" if we are going to truly receive that grace.  

Well, if you don't end up in heaven what's the alternative?   Is hell really real??   See www.detailshere.com/hellisreal.htm   for that issue with a couple different perspectives.

Scriptural passages involving grace

What does the scripture say about our righteousness, of good works.

Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. Galatians 2:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

Most ancient and recent religions teach that salvation is obtained in part or whole by works. That makes sense; but what does pure scripture say? This issue is in debate by many constantly. Perhaps we feel God just can't let us into heaven on grace alone. We really shouldn't deserve it. But most recognize that  a heartfelt belief in salvation through Jesus cannot be maintained along with a continuously sinful life. Lip service and head knowledge don't come from the heart. Actions which come from the heart become the proof of the pudding and are where the pedal may meet the metal in the end.

I CAME ... because of "your" sin.

"As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: " Romans 3:10

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" Romans 3:23

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners;" I Timothy 1:15a

I DIED ... to pay for "your" sin.

"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, heing now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him." Romans 5:8 & 9

"In whom we have redemption through his blood? even the forgiveness of sins:" Colossians 1:14

I AROSE ... to keep "you" saved eternally.

"Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them." Hebrews 7:25

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." John 10:27 & 28

"And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son." I John 5:11

YOU MUST REPENT ... admitting you are guilty, that you cannot do "anything" to save or help save yourself, and that you need Jesus Christ.

"I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Luke 13:3

"Let the wicked forsake his way. and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God. for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord." Isaiah 55:7 & 8

"Not by works of righteousness which we have done. but according to his mercy he saved us," Titus 3:5a

"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Romans 4:5

YOU MUST TRUST ... putting your "complete" faith in Jesus Christ to save you.

"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." John 3:16

"He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God. And being fully persuaded that. what he had promised, he was able also to perform." Romans 4:20 & 21

"To declare, I say at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Romans 3:26

"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." Romans 3:08.

WHAT IS YOUR DECISION?

I CHOOSE TO TRUST JESUS AS MY SAVIOUR.

"He that believeth on him is not condemned:" John 3: 18a

"For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Romans 10:10

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13

I CHOOSE TO REJECT JESUS AND KEEP MY WAY.

"... but he that believeth not is condemned already. because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." John 3 :18b

"And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Revelation 20:15

Is It Possible To Believe In Jesus ...
And NOT Be Saved?
by Sandy Simpson, 5/8/02  http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/notbesaved.html 

I'm sure some of you are reading this thinking: "Has Sandy finally gone heretical?"  But before you drop the gavel on this one, let's step through this subject carefully.  This will not be an exhaustive paper (as if there is such a thing) and we all have a lot to learn on this subject.  But I have been doing some thinking about these things because of all the heretics and false prophets that have gone out ... so many of them claiming to "believe in Jesus" or to "love Jesus".  But claiming to love Jesus Christ without obeying His commands is a lie:

John 14:21  Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."

John 15:10  If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

1 John 5:3  This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,

1 John 1:6  If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.

THE ANSWER

The answer to the title of this essay is "yes".

Okay, I did pose a bit of a trick question.  Those of you who are astute will have noticed that I purposely didn't say "Lord Jesus Christ" in the title.

Many cults claim to believe in Jesus, and this brings up my first point.  Is there any condition on salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone?  There must be if you believe that there are cults, because by definition cults teach against one or more of the core doctrines of the Faith.  You cannot be saved unless you believe in the TRUTH about Jesus Christ.

2 Thessalonians 2:10  and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

2 Thessalonians 2:13  But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.

1 Timothy 2:4  who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.

You cannot be saved and believe in another "Jesus" (2 Cor. 11:4, Gal. 1:6) as do the cults.  Virtually every cult denies the doctrine that Jesus Christ is 100% man and 100% God for all eternity.  They teach He is a man only, or Spirit only, or that he was an anointed man and is now Spirit, or some other nonsense.  Why do orthodox biblical Christian believers consider cult members to be unsaved and in need of having the Gospel preached to them?  Because to be saved it matters what you believe ABOUT Jesus Christ and the plan of salvation, and not just that you believe that Jesus existed (eg. Bahai), was a prophet (eg. Muslims), was only Spirit (eg. Gnostics), was only an anointed man (eg. Word-Faith), or anything else.  This is one key to this whole topic I will be coming back to.

One more important point we need to consider before we get into biblical examples.  I know you are probably saying: "But doesn't the Bible simply say 'Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved - you and your household?' (Acts 16:31) Isn't belief the only criteria there is for salvation?"  You are absolutely right.  But look at this verse closely, one among many that talk about the terms of salvation, and you will begin to get a better picture about what "belief" in Christ is really all about.

"BELIEVE"

The word "believe" in this and many verses, is the verb pisteuo derived from the noun pistis meaning "faith, assurance, belief".  But a verb is an action word.  The usage of the word pisteou means "commit unto, commit to (one's) trust, be committed unto, be put in trust with, be committed to one's trust."  It's defined by Strong as being in the "aorist tense, active voice, imperative mood".  This word is used 375 times in the KJV.  So "believe" not only means to believe once but to commit to believing, to continue to believe.  The word is translated "believing" in one of the most literal English translations from the Greek, namely Young's Literal Translation, which is more literal than the KJV, NASB, RSV, etc.  Compare this translation with your favorite one and you will begin to see that belief is more than a one time event in a person's lifetime. Look at the verses listed below briefly to see that to "believe" is to continuously believe and keep believing.

You can see by the examples that many verses regarding salvation use the phrases "is believing", "those believing", "are believing".  A person must not only believe once but continue to believe on through to the end.  Belief is a commitment to believe.  In fact the one who overcomes the world is one who "is believing" that Jesus is the Son of God.

1 John 5:5  who is he who is overcoming the world, if not he who is believing that Jesus is the Son of God? (YLT)
"LORD JESUS CHRIST"

Acts 16:31 says that we must believe in the "Lord Jesus Christ".  This is a very telling statement.

We must first believe and continue believing that Jesus Christ is LORD.  He is God.  He is the Only Son of God, yet is also the One Almighty God.  He is not the Father but is the exact image of the Father.  He is part of the one "What" and three "Whos" with each "Who" possessing all the attributes of Deity and personality that make up the Trinity.

The Lord Jesus Christ is also sovereign.  When we believe on the "Lord" Jesus Christ we lay down our rights and our very life, nailing them to the cross of Christ, and He becomes the complete King, President, Boss, Director of our lives.

He is also "Jesus" "Christ".  He is the Redeemer and He is the Messiah, the Anointed One of God.  He is the only one Who can deliver us from our sins.  In this one statement we can see the 100% humanity and 100% Deity of Christ.  And we must keep believing that!

1 John 5:1  Every one who is believing that Jesus is the Christ, of God he hath been begotten ...
"WILL BE SAVED"

The last important aspect of this verse is to notice that Paul did not say "you are saved" but "you will be saved".  Salvation is not only the moment when the Holy Spirit seals and baptizes the believer but, more importantly, it is the end.  The same word pisteuo is used in Acts 16:31. We must continue to believe, keep believing in the Lord Jesus Christ for our ultimate salvation.  We must overcome by faith, which means that we continue to believe in the true Jesus, the true Gospel, the true Spirit till the end.

Matthew 24:13  but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

Mark 16:16  Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Romans 10:9  That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Why would Paul not proclaim that the jailer and his household were immediately saved like we often hear preached today?  It is because Paul was teaching truth.  Paul knew he was not omniscient.  He didn't know the ultimate condition of any person.  God does.  God knows whom He has justified.  But we must continue to believe!  A person has free will and, as such, they are fully capable and fully free to either submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit in their life, or they can be "not believing" or "unbelieving".  If a person is unbelieving, notice how John warns the Church, to whom Revelation was written:
Revelation 21:8 "But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars— their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
Unbelief is obviously the state of a person before they first believe.  But unbelief can also become the state of a person who shipwrecks their faith (1 Tim. 1:19) or falls away (Luke 8:13) into unbelief after they initially "believe".  That's the way I read the Scripture, and Scripture is what I base my doctrines upon, not Calvinism or Arminianism.  We'll look at some prime examples from the Bible on this issue later.

Let's look at one more verse for a few more necessities for belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:9  That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
The Father raised the Son from the dead.  God Himself died physically to pay the penalty of death for your sins.  We must believe that Jesus Christ died as a substitutional sacrifice for our sins, and that He rose again as a guarantee of our resurrection to everlasting life.

There are many more verses regarding salvation, but suffice it to say that we must believe in the real Jesus, the real Gospel, the real Spirit to have the assurance of salvation.

Now let's look at some biblical examples of people who "believed" but were not saved.  I could go back to the Old Testament and look at the lives of those who believed in God but ended up in unbelief like Saul, Solomon, and many in Israel but because of the New Covenant I will use New Testament examples.

BIBLICAL EXAMPLES

SIMON MAGUS

Probably one of the prime examples for our purposes is Simon Magus, or Simon the Sorcerer.

Acts 8:9-24

Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, "This man is the divine power known as the Great Power." They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

Simon was called "The Great Power".  He was a sorcerer who used many tricks to convince people he was someone of authority.  But when he saw the miracles being done through Philip and heard the Good News, the Bible states that he believed and was baptized.
When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, "Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit."
Notice that this is still during the Pentecostal period when the Holy Spirit was first being given to the Jews then the Gentiles.  This is not normative for our age because now EVERYONE who believes is immediately sealed (Eph.1:13-14, 2 Cor. 1:21-22) and baptized (1 Cor. 12:13-13, Gal. 3:26-28) in the Holy Spirit.  Notice also that the apostles prayed that they might receive the Holy Spirit, and that the Holy Spirit baptized the believers AT the laying on of hands, not BY them.  So Simon, being a magician and used to buying his magic tricks as magicians have for millennia, tried to buy this ability.  This was a wrong view of the laying on of hands just as it continues to be today.  The baptism of the Spirit is not based on an anointing or ability, but based on belief, submission and a relationship to the will of the Father.
Peter answered: "May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin." Then Simon answered, "Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me."
Peter judged Simon Magus rightly and saw that his heart was no longer right with God.  This is AFTER HE HAD BELIEVED!  He tells him to repent.  But what does Simon do?  He doesn't repent himself but asks the apostles to pray for him.

The end of the story of unrepentant Simon Magus can be found in the historical records of the early church fathers.  Irenaeus, about 180 AD, wrote one of the earliest Christian refutations of Gnosis, entitled ADVERSUS HAERESES. His view of the history of Gnosticism begins with Simon Magus. Simon is said to have been one of the primary founders of Christian Gnosticism!

JUDAS ISCARIOT

Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve original disciples.  We don't know for sure if he believed in Jesus Christ, but he certainly followed him and was one of the twelve.  I personally believe that Judas started out on the road to belief and then, through consistent disobedience, greed and disbelief, fell away.

Acts 1:16-17  and said, "Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus—he was one of our number and shared in this ministry."
How could Judas have "shared in this ministry" and not been a follower of Christ?  Isn't that the definition of a "Christian"? Judas was called out and he followed Christ.
Luke 6:16  Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
So apparently Judas, mentioned as one of the twelve in Matt. 26:14, 47 and Mark 14:10, BECAME a traitor.  Is it possible he was not a traitor to begin with? Somewhere in the middle of Jesus' ministry Judas started taking money that he was entrusted with. By this time he obviously no longer loved the Lord with a pure heart:
John 12:3-6  Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages." He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.
So we see the pattern of disobedience and sin taking over Judas' life.  This is the road he continued down all the way to betrayal of Christ. Satan entered Judas and he fell away, never to be redeemed.
Luke 22:3  Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve.

Matt. 26:14-16  Then one of the Twelve— the one called Judas Iscariot— went to the chief priests and asked, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Judas then followed through on his bargain for money.  The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil!
Matt. 26:47-50  While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: "The one I kiss is the man; arrest him." Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed him. Jesus replied, "Friend, do what you came for." Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him.
With this act of betrayal Judas sealed his judgment.
Matt. 27:3-5  When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. "I have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood." "What is that to us?" they replied. "That’s your responsibility." So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.
Judas did recognize his sin before he hung himself, but notice in the preceding verses that he called Jesus "Rabbi" or Teacher. Amazingly, after all the time he had spent with Christ, Judas still did not recognize that Jesus Christ was God or that He could save him, thus he perished unsaved. Yes, Judas did "believe" in Jesus enough to be his disciple and follow Him, but not enough to acknowledge that He is the Lord and Messiah.  This is a lesson for us.  We can recognize our sin, but without recognizing that Jesus Christ is God and that He can save us, that recognition of sin is not enough to save us.  Recognition of sin must be accompanied by repentance and turning from sin, belief in the LORD Jesus Christ, and a continued obedience to walk in His commands.

MANY DISCIPLES

Many disciples turned back from Jesus Christ because they did not believe that He was the Son of God.

John 6:66  From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
After Jesus gave the hard teaching about drinking His blood and eating His flesh, many disciples turned their back on Him.
John 6:60-65  On hearing it, many of his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?" Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, "Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, "This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him."
Jesus knew who would turn back, but did they know?  No, they didn't know until they were confronted with truth they were unwilling to accept, the cost of discipleship.  These disciples who turned back believed for awhile and followed Jesus Christ, perhaps as a great teacher or prophet, but they did not have enough faith in Christ to accept His words as truth, which they would have if they had believed that He was God. Notice that the Twelve did believe. Nonetheless, these "many disciples" who turned back did so because they did not ultimately recognize Jesus Christ as Lord.  If they had they would have entrusted themselves into His care like the Twelve did.

MODERN EXAMPLES

Though I have my serious doubts whether or not the following people have ever truly believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, the fact is that they claim to be shining examples of belief that "Jesus Is Lord" and claim they are the "anointed ones" and "holy men of God".  These are examples of people who may never have been true believers, and though they claim to believe in Jesus, they teach false doctrines, make false prophecies and do not exhibit the fruit of the Spirit.  The most important point, however, is that they have proven by what they say and do, that they do not believe in the TRUTH about the Lord Jesus Christ.

KENNETH COPELAND

The big logo on Kenneth Copeland's television program reads "Jesus Is Lord".  Many would infer from this statement that since Copeland is confessing that "Jesus Is Lord" that he is saved.  But the problem is that the "Lord" of Copeland is ultimately himself.  He has said that Jesus Christ is the "high priest of his (Copeland's) words" (Kenneth Copeland, TBN). This means that though he regards Jesus Christ as his high priest, he is a "high priest" who must do what Copeland proclaims and immediately grant him his every wish when he declares something "into existence".  How can Jesus Christ be the Lord of Copeland when Copeland is the one doing the bossing around?  Kenneth has also claimed many times to be "God":

"You don't have a god in you, you are one." (Kenneth Copeland, "The Force Of Love" tape # 02-0028)

"You are not a spiritual schizophrenic -- half-God and half-Satan -- you are all-God" (Kenneth Copeland, Now We Are in Christ Jesus (Fort Worth: KCP Publications, 1980), 16-17)

Who has the Lordship over whom?  The "Lord" of Word-Faith is a "lord" who is at their beck and call for anything they want, especially money, who can be thrown around a room at will, and who loves to put people into trances and make them act like animals.  This is clearly not the Lord Jesus Christ we are talking about.
"Jesus had to go through that same spiritual death in order to pay the price. Now it wasn't the physical death on the cross that paid the price for sin,  because if it had of been any prophet of God that had died for the last couple of thousand years before that could have paid that price. It wasn't physical death anybody could do that." (Kenneth Copeland, "What Satan Saw on the Day of Pentecost" (Kenneth Copeland Ministries, audio tape #020022)

Jesus had to "accept the sin nature of Satan." (Kenneth Copeland, What Happened from the Cross to the Throne, side 2.)

"... He (Jesus) was the first man to every be born from death to spiritual life ... if He hadn't been spiritually born
again, how in the world do you think you ever got it?..." (You need Internet Explorer to hear this file.  Go to this page, read the instructions, then click on "Jesus Was The First Born Again Man!").

The "Jesus" of Kenneth Copeland and ALL Word-Faith teachers including Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn, Creflo Dollar, and many more is a "Jesus" whose physical death on the cross did not pay for our sins, who accepted the nature of Satan on the cross, and who had to be born again spiritually.  This is not the Lord Jesus Christ we are talking about.  So when Kenneth Copeland displays his logo "Jesus Is Lord" he is talking about another "Jesus", a "Jesus" who is not 100% God and 100% human for all eternity, was not sinless, and therefore cannot save.

BENNY HINN

As mentioned above, Benny Hinn also claims he believes in Jesus Christ, but his "Jesus" is not the Jesus of the Bible, nor is He the Son of God.  Hinn also asserts that he is a "little messiah", a "god", the "I AM":

"Christians are "Little Messiah's and "little gods" on the earth. Thus [Encouraging the audience]...say "I am a God-man....This spirit-man within me is a God-man..." say "I'm born of heaven-a God-man. I'm a God man. I am a sample of Jesus. I'm a super being. Say it! Say it! Who's a super being? "I walk in the realm of the supernatural." Say it!...You want to prosper? Money will be falling on you from left, right and centre. God will begin to prosper you, for money always follows righteousness....Say after me, "everything I ever want is in me already." (Benny Hinn, TBN, 1990)

"Are you ready for some real revelation knowledge....you are god" (Benny Hinn, "Our Position In Christ", tape # AO31190-1)

"Don't tell me you have Jesus. You ARE everything He was, and everything He is and shall be." (Benny Hinn, TBN)

Let's look at what Hinn has taught about the Lord Jesus Christ:
"He [Jesus] who is righteous by choice said, 'The only way I can stop sin is by Me becoming it. I can't just stop it by letting it touch Me; I and it must become one.' Hear this! He who is the nature of God became the nature of Satan where He became sin!" (Benny Hinn, TBN, 12/1/90).
What more needs to be said?  Benny Hinn claims he is a Christian and believes in Jesus Christ, but his "Jesus" became one in nature with Satan.  Hinn says that he and other Christians are "little gods".  I have one video where he gets the audience to chant that they are the "I AM".  This is blasphemy and it proves that Benny Hinn cannot be saved unless he repents of these beliefs.

WARNING

Be careful of those who claim to believe in Jesus Christ yet teach against His dual nature.  Be sure to check what is being taught both explicitly and implicitly regardless of doctrinal statements and position papers.  When the Godhead is denied, there is no salvation.  When the dual nature of Christ is denied, there is no salvation.  When salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone is denied, there is no salvation.  When the Word of Truth is denied, there is no salvation.  When Jesus' second coming bodily to rule and judge the earth is denied, there is no salvation.

The point is that it matters what a person believes!

We are not saved on the basis of simply saying we believe Jesus existed, was a great guy, was a prophet, was a wonderful teacher ... but on the basis of our continued belief that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He will ultimately save us and give us eternal life.

 



VERSES ON "BELIEVING"
Note: All the following verses are from the Young's Literal Translation (YLT).

Mark 9:23  And Jesus said to him, ‘If thou art able to believe! all things are possible to the one that is believing;’
John 1:12  but as many as did receive him to them he gave authority to become sons of God—to those believing in his name,
John 3:15  that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during,
John 3:16  for God did so love the world, that His Son—the only begotten—He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during.
John 3:18  he who is believing in him is not judged, but he who is not believing hath been judged already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
John 3:36  he who is believing in the Son, hath life age-during; and he who is not believing the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God doth remain upon him.’
John 5:24  ‘Verily, verily, I say to you—He who is hearing my word, and is believing Him who sent me, hath life age-during, and to judgment he doth not come, but hath passed out of the death to the life.
John 5:46  for if ye were believing Moses, ye would have been believing me, for he wrote concerning me;
John 6:35  And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of the life; he who is coming unto me may not hunger, and he who is believing in me may not thirst—at any time;
John 6:40  and this is the will of Him who sent me, that every one who is beholding the Son, and is believing in him, may have life age-during, and I will raise him up in the last day.’
John 6:47  ‘Verily, verily, I say to you, He who is believing in me, hath life age-during;
John 6:64  but there are certain of you who do not believe;’ for Jesus had known from the beginning who they are who are not believing, and who is he who will deliver him up,
John 7:38  he who is believing in me, according as the Writing said, Rivers out of his belly shall flow of living water;’
John 7:39  and this he said of the Spirit, which those believing in him were about to receive; for not yet was the Holy Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
John 11:25  Jesus said to her, ‘I am the rising again, and the life; he who is believing in me, even if he may die, shall live;
John 11:26  and every one who is living and believing in me shall not die—to the age;
John 12:11  because on account of him many of the Jews were going away, and were believing in Jesus.
John 12:37  yet he having done so many signs before them, they were not believing in him,
John 12:44  And Jesus cried and said, ‘He who is believing in me, doth not believe in me, but in Him who sent me;
John 12:46  I a light to the world have come, that every one who is believing in me—in the darkness may not remain;
John 14:12  ‘Verily, verily, I say to you, he who is believing in me, the works that I do—that one also shall do, and greater than these he shall do, because I go on to my Father;
John 17:20  ‘And not in regard to these alone do I ask, but also in regard to those who shall be believing, through their word, in me;
John 20:27  then he saith to Thomas, ‘Bring thy finger hither, and see my hands, and bring thy hand, and put it to my side, and become not unbelieving, but believing.’
John 20:31  and these have been written that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing ye may have life in his name.’
Acts 2:44  and all those believing were at the same place, and had all things common,
Acts 10:43  to this one do all the prophets testify, that through his name every one that is believing in him doth receive remission of sins.’
Acts 13:39  and from all things from which ye were not able in the law of Moses to be declared righteous, in this one every one who is believing is declared righteous;
Acts 18:8  and Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue did believe in the Lord with all his house, and many of the Corinthians hearing were believing, and they were being baptized.
Acts 22:19  and I said, Lord, they—they know that I was imprisoning and was scourging in every synagogue those believing on thee;
Acts 28:24  and, some, indeed, were believing the things spoken, and some were not believing.
Romans 1:16  for I am not ashamed of the good news of the Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation to every one who is believing, both to Jew first, and to Greek.
Romans 3:22  and the righteousness of God is through the faith of Jesus Christ to all, and upon all those believing, —for there is no difference,
Romans 4:5  and to him who is not working, and is believing upon Him who is declaring righteous the impious, his faith is reckoned—to righteousness:
Romans 4:11  and a sign he did receive of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith in the uncircumcision, for his being father of all those believing through uncircumcision, for the righteousness also being reckoned to them,
Romans 4:24  but also on ours, to whom it is about to be reckoned—to us believing on Him who did raise up Jesus our Lord out of the dead,
Romans 9:33  according as it hath been written, ‘Lo, I place in Sion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence; and every one who is believing thereon shall not be ashamed.’
Romans 10:4  For Christ is an end of law for righteousness to every one who is believing,
Romans 10:11  for the Writing saith, ‘Every one who is believing on him shall not be ashamed,’
Romans 15:13  and the God of the hope shall fill you with all joy and peace in the believing, for your abounding in the hope in power of the Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 1:21  for, seeing in the wisdom of God the world through the wisdom knew not God, it did please God through the foolishness of the preaching to save those believing.
Galatians 3:22  but the Writing did shut up the whole under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ may be given to those believing.
Ephesians 1:19  and what the exceeding greatness of His power to us who are believing, according to the working of the power of His might,
1 Thessalonians 1:7  so that ye became patterns to all those believing in Macedonia and Achaia,
2 Thessalonians 1:10  when He may come to be glorified in his saints, and to be wondered at in all those believing—because our testimony was believed among you—in that day;
2 Thessalonians 2:11  and because of this shall God send to them a working of delusion, for their believing the lie,
1 Timothy 4:3  forbidding to marry—to abstain from meats that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those believing and acknowledging the truth,
1 Timothy 4:10  for for this we both labour and are reproached, because we hope on the living God, who is Saviour of all men—especially of those believing.
1 Timothy 4:12  let no one despise thy youth, but a pattern become thou of those believing in word, in behaviour, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity;
1 Timothy 5:16  If any believing man or believing woman have widows, let them relieve them, and let not the assembly be burdened, that those really widows it may relieve.
1 Timothy 6:2  and those having believing masters, let them not slight them, because they are brethren, but rather let them serve, because they are stedfast and beloved, who of the benefit are partaking. These things be teaching and exhorting;
Hebrews 10:39  and we are not of those drawing back to destruction, but of those believing to a preserving of soul.
1 Peter 1:8  whom, not having seen, ye love, in whom, now not seeing and believing, ye are glad with joy unspeakable and glorified,
1 Peter 2:6  Wherefore, also, it is contained in the Writing: ‘Lo, I lay in Zion a chief corner-stone, choice, precious, and he who is believing on him may not be put to shame;’
1 Peter 2:7  to you, then, who are believing is the preciousness; and to the unbelieving, a stone that the builders disapproved of, this one did become for the head of a corner,
1 John 5:1  Every one who is believing that Jesus is the Christ, of God he hath been begotten, and every one who is loving Him who did beget, doth love also him who is begotten of Him:
1 John 5:5  who is he who is overcoming the world, if not he who is believing that Jesus is the Son of God?
1 John 5:10  He who is believing in the Son of God, hath the testimony in himself; he who is not believing God, a liar hath made Him, because he hath not believed in the testimony that God hath testified concerning His Son;
1 John 5:13  These things I did write to you who are believing in the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that life ye have age-during, and that ye may believe in the name of the Son of God.

WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED

1).

Believe God's word

Mark 1:15 "And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."; 2Chronicles 20:20 ";... Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper." ; Mark 9:23 "Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.";   John 1:12 "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:"

2).

Realize that sin is the transgression of God's laws.

1John 3:4 "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. ";   Psalm 119:172 "My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.";   Deuteronomy 5:29 "O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!";   Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

3.)

Understand and come to realize that you are a sinner

Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God"; 1John 1:10 "If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.";  Ps 32:5 "I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah."; Psalm 51:3 "For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.";  Psalm 41:4 "I said, LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee."

4.)

Repent (turn from your sinful ways)and be Baptized.

Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.; " Jer 26:13 "Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the LORD your God; .."; Ezekiel 18:30 "Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin." Mark 1:4 'John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." ; Acts 3:19 "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;"

5.)

Live by setting a good example

Matthew 3:8 "Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:"; Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."  Phillipians 2:14 "Do all things without murmurings and disputings:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; "1Timothy 4:12 "Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.";  1Peter 2:21 "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:"; 1Peter 5:3 "Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock."  

6.)

Continue overcoming sin and being obedient to God so you may have the gift of eternal life.

Romans 12:21 "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.";  Deuteronomy 11:22" For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him; " Revelation 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. Re 2:11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.Re 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.Re 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:Re 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.Re 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.Re 3:21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. Re 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.


Now That You Are Saved...

Seven Steps In The Right Direction.

By Thomas J. Mowery (avswordfighter@elltel.net)

"Shew me thy ways, O LORD;  teach me thy paths." (Psalm 25:4)



The day that you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior was a day of rejoicing in heaven and on earth. The truth is that it was the beginning of a new life for you! Jesus said, "…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10) In 2 Corinthians 5:17, the Bible says that when you were saved you became a new creature and all things became new. The old is past and now you have a new beginning. Regardless of where you were when you accepted Jesus, you now have a new life and a new opportunity to start fresh.

Christianity is like a journey. There are certain obstacles along the way that you will certainly face, but Jesus came not only to give you life, but also to give you an abundant life. Here are seven tools that will aid, comfort and strengthen you as you travel this journey…

1). Realize That Your Salvation is Secure!
"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." (1 John 5:13)
Jesus Christ came into the world on a mission to "seek and to save" the lost. He said that there are many mansions in His Father’s house and He is preparing a place for you there. He said that He is the "way, the truth, and the life" and no one could get to the Father except through Him. He also said that He would return and gather those who were His and would take them to be with Him forevermore. (John 14:1-6)

After hearing these truths, many times people reply that they "hope" they are saved or that they "think" they are saved or even worse that they "believe" they are saved with the "hope" that they don’t backslide. Regardless, these beliefs are filled with doubt and insecurity and can be cleared up through the "sure word of prophecy" in God’s Word.

The Scriptures say in John 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." Jesus also said, "Come unto me... and I will give you rest." Those who cannot affirm that they are eternally secure in their salvation have no rest. The Scriptures say, "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment." (1 John 4:18)

Since John 3:16 says, "God so loved the world...", then the born-again, blood-bought, Bible-believing Christian ought not to be afraid of whether or not he will make it to heaven in the end. "There is no fear in love..." God loved the world enough to send His "only begotten Son" that all those who would come could become the "sons of God" (John 1:12) and no longer have any fear of hell’s torments.

Jesus came to be the Savior of the world and to bring peace (John14:27) to the hearts and minds of all those who would "confess with their mouth and believe in their heart that God raised Jesus from the dead." (Romans 10:9-10) Jesus came because of love and His love is perfect, bringing peace not fear or doubt. "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us." (1 John 4:14-19)
Not only is Jesus the Savior, He is the protector of your salvation and soul. The Scriptures say that the born-again believer is "kept by the power of God," (1 Peter 1:5) that "Salvation belongeth unto the LORD," (Psalms 3:8) and He is "able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy." (Jude 1:24)

The Scriptures say that nothing can separate you from the love of God. "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)

Understand this one concept: nothing means nothing! In four different languages nothing means nothing; absolutely nothing can separate you from the love of God. So a person might say, "Well God hates sin and so if we sin we are separated from God by our sin." My friend, Jesus died and paid for your sins and He came to forgive you for your sins if you will only accept His salvation. Salvation is of God, paid for by God, and kept by God. It is free to those who will accept.

2). Read God’s Word Daily!
"This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success." (Joshua 1:8)
The Word of God is His road map to guide you in all matters of life. It contains every necessary tool, strength and inspiration to help you along the road that at times may be up and at other times may be down. It alone contains the wisdom that man has sought for in every other place except for the place where true wisdom comes. God is the author and creator of all things that exist and He has given you His Word (the Bible) to answer your every need.

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." (Psalms 119:105) The Scriptures are there for all people regardless of their social status or educational level. "The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple." (Psalms 119:130) However, like a flashlight in your pocket in a dark place, God’s Word will do you no good unless you use it, learn it, love it and memorize it.

God’s Word is "true from the beginning." (Psalms 119:116) It is "quick, and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword." (Hebrews 4:12) His Word is "given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." (2 Timothy 3:16) His words are "pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times [and He will] preserve them from this generation forever." (Psalms 12:6-7)

The Bible says that if you will meditate on God’s Word day and night and follow its instruction, then you will be prosperous and live a life of victory and peace. (Joshua 1:8) The key to God’s Word is to read it and follow it. "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." (James 1:22)

If you will read God’s Word for 20-30 minutes every day you can read the Bible from cover to cover in one year!

3). Pray Daily!
"And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed." (Mark 1:35)
A preacher once said, "Before prayer we can do little, after prayer we can do much. Much effort without prayer often results in failure. The same effort with prayer may result in great success."

The Bible says, "Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face continually." (1 Chronicles 16:11) Jesus said that "men ought always to pray" and in another place He explained that you ought to "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation." (Luke 18:1, Matthew 26:41) You will find from Jesus’ own human life that He often prayed in the midst of difficult situations and many times before miracles or blessings. If the Savior found it worthwhile to pray, how much more should you find it necessary?

The Bible says that in heaven there are "golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of the saints." (Revelation 5:8) and that these prayers will ascend up before God as an offering. (Revelation 8:3-4). The prayers of God’s children are precious to Him just as a mother saves the love notes from her child. Your prayers are important enough to Him to save them so they ought to be important enough to you to send them. Any time spent in prayer is not time spent, it is time invested!

God said, "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not." (Jeremiah 33:3) Over and over God has invited you to call on Him for strength and wisdom and He will hear you and help you. (Psalms 34:17, Zechariah 13:9, Isaiah 65:24, and Psalms 91:15)."If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God…" (James 1:5)

There are two conditions that are required for effective prayer. The first is the fact that sin in your life will hinder your prayers and must be confessed. Isaiah 59:1-2 says, "Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." There is a remedy to this problem. The Scriptures say, "If we confess our sin, he [Jesus] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)

The second condition is that you pray in obedience to God’s will. Jesus said, "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." (John 15:7). You cannot expect for God to answer your prayers unless you are obedient to His Word and seek His glory. Everything in a believer’s life ought to glorify God and therefore you should pray for things that you know will glorify Him. "And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight." (1 John 3:22)

4). Make a Public Commitment to Follow Jesus and be Baptized!
"Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy." (Psalms 107:2)
The Bible says that you should not "…be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord." (2 Timothy 1:8) Salvation is the first step toward a Christian life, but the name Christian itself implies that you are trying to be Christ-like. It is important that you make your commitment public first for the sake of a testimony to others and also as a measure of accountability before others. The person who makes his commitment publicly is less likely to stray away from his dedication. When others know that you are a Christian some may criticize, but there are many others who will be willing to support and encourage your new commitment.

Jesus said, "If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you." (John 15:18,20)

The Bible teaches that there are four purposes for the ordinance of baptism. At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry He was baptized by John the Baptist and it was at this time that God said: "This is my beloved Son." The apostle Peter said, "Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps." (1 Peter 2:21) Following the example of the Savior in obedience is the first reason for baptism.

Secondly, baptism is symbolic of the death, burial and resurrection of the Savior Jesus Christ. Not only is it an act of obedience and commitment to follow Jesus, but it is symbolic of the substitution that took place at Calvary. It was at Calvary that Jesus Christ died taking upon himself the sins of the world. After paying for those sins, He rose victorious over death and hell to return to the right hand of the throne of God in a glorified estate. So it is in the physical act of immersion that Jesus’ death and burial is symbolized. When you are brought up from the water is a sign of the resurrection of Jesus. "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 6:4)

Thirdly, the act of baptism is an outward sign that "our old man is crucified with him, [Jesus] that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." (Romans 6:6) "For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." (Galatians 3:27) Baptism is an outward and visible sign to those around you that you are a different person than before salvation and that you are committed to a Christ-like life.

Fourthly, baptism is a commitment to holiness and a fulfillment of the "Great Commission" that says, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." (Matthew 28:19)

5). Attend a Bible Believing Church!
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25)
All the way back to the days of Moses, the people were commanded to come to the "place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name." (Deuteronomy 12:5) The church is a place where you can come to worship God, to receive encouragement, and to gain instruction from His Word. The Scriptures say, "Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee." (Psalms 122:4)

You can also find from the testimony of Jesus and His apostles that the "house of God" is the place were they went on a regular basis. (Matthew 12:9, Mark 1:21, Luke 4:16, Acts 13:14, and Luke 24:52,53) Just as the apostles spent time with Jesus outside of the house of God, you can do the same. However, it is important that you spend time with Him at church. There is a certain value and strength that comes from gathering together with other Christians in God’s house. Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20) The Bible also says, "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Heb 10:25)

The church is something that God instituted and loves dearly. Ephesians 5 says that Christ loved the church enough to give His life for it. In Acts 20:28 the Scriptures say that God purchased the church with His own blood! There is no greater love than one worth dying for. The Bible describes the church as the "apple of God’s eye," (Deuteronomy 32:10, Zechariah 2:8) "a crown of glory… and a royal diadem," (Isaiah 62:3) and it is likened unto the stones and jewels that are in a crown! (Zechariah 9:16, Malachi 3:17).

Jesus gave instructions to the Apostle Peter and all pastors to "feed the flock." (John 21:15-17 and 1 Peter 5:2) You can learn and grow from your own personal devotions and time spent with God, but there is a certain amount of instruction that God has ordained our pastors to teach. One would be foolish not to take advantage of this opportunity.
 
 
 

6). Get Involved In the Church!
"And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." (Ephesians 4:11-12)
Attending and being a member of a local church are good steps, but these are not nearly as meaningful to the Christian as being actively involved in a church. The church is made up of many members that are all different but necessary to the growth and effectiveness of that church. No one person can run the church or fulfill all the responsibilities of that church. God has given every person a different talent and He did this with the intent that all might come together collectively to complete the task.

The reason for the explanation of the spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12 is to emphasize the importance of each member. The body is not complete without all of its faculties and so the church is not complete without all of the talents of its members. The church will only be effective when it follows the will of God and when its members surrender their all to God’s work.

Getting involved in the church will also help you keep the freshness and zeal of your new commitment. Titus 2:14 says that Jesus gave His life for you to save you from your sins and also that he might "purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." One way to stay excited about God’s work is to get involved!

Getting involved will also help you to increase your talents and abilities. In Matthew 25 Jesus told a parable concerning talents which explained that one who uses his talents wisely will be called a "good and faithful servant." Whereas one who fails to use or increase his talents will be called "wicked and slothful." God has given you a talent to do something for Him and forbid that you should stand before Him ashamed at the judgement day.

Jesus said of those who are involved in His work, "Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing." (Luke 12:43) No matter how great or small your ability may seem, Jesus will call you blessed when He sees you using it for His glory!

7). Tell Others About Jesus!

"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." (Mark 16:15)

If you were walking down the street and met a man who was offering $100.00 dollar bills to anyone who asked for one, you would be faced with a few options. First, you could tell him you are not interested. You could take the $100.00 dollar bill and keep it to yourself, or you could go and tell all your friends about the opportunity that they might have if they will simply go ask.

It is much the same way with Christianity. Jesus has given you eternal life, a mansion in glory and all the blessings that go along with salvation simply because you came to Him asking for His free gift of salvation. (Ephesians 2:8-9) Now the choice is up to you. Will you keep this wonderful gift to yourself or will you tell others around you?

1 Peter 3:15 says to "…be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you." The world is without hope and Jesus Christ offers hope to the lost and despairing. God has commanded that after accepting His free gift of salvation you should go out into the world and "be ready always" to give people an answer to their hopeless life. That answer is Jesus!

Jesus likened Christianity to a light which must be held high for the world to see. If you hide that light, then the world will be lost in darkness and may never know of the saving grace and love of our Savior. "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16)

"But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:" (2 Corinthians 4:3)

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