Test your salvation!
Down to business. I felt the Holy Spirit laying this message on my heart so heavily that I just could not ignore it. It took no effort and little thought to write, and was truly breathed by God alone. I cannot possibly take credit for it.
Friends, and all who will hear me, I would like to tell you something that I feel the spirit of God
has been urging me to share. I'm letting Him speak through me right now. I feel that we (the one
true church of God) are in a state of falling away right now.
(Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes
first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 2 Thessalonians 2:3)
The Christian way of life is become "unpopular", "unpleasant", a "myth" that only the uneducated
masses believe in. It saddens me greatly to see this happening in my life. I know, though, that
these things must come to pass as it is the will of God to bring his plan to completion. So I can
only pray for myself and others as each day passes that as we spiral farther and farther down, that
the Lord will reach down and hold on to us as tightly as he can.
All of you whom are even the slightest bit familiar with the bible know a few things that I'm about
to speak of below. First: The great commission.
( 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded
you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matt. 28:19-20)
We are told to make disciples of all the nations. What, exactly, IS a disciple? A disciple is a
student, who follows his master, and once he has learned, teaches, himself, a student as to what he
has learned. We are to learn from Christ, to allow his teachings to fill our lives, and not be
afraid to proclaim them to others. We are told in Matthew 10 about what the apostles (whom were the
first disciples and are even called such) were commanded to do by Christ. He gives them many
warnings about taking possessions, working for their keep, and etc. Now if God is the same yesterday,
today, and tomorrow, why should this change now? Why would God want us to live any differently?
Second: Lukewarmness.
We are, as a church, "lukewarm". We truly reflect the Laodicean church that is spoken of in
Revelations 3:14-22. To paraphrase, he says that they were lukewarm, neither hot nor cold. So,
Yeah, they went to church, yeah, they were good people, and they weren't "cold". Yet they had no fire of God in their lives. They lived comfortable lives. Laodicea was a wealthy commerce town. So
everything these people "NEEDED" was readily available to them. Yet God tells them that they have
nothing! They are naked, blind, and shamed. They need to start purchasing from him that which is
refined in the fire, and white garments to cover their nakedness lest they be shamed. We live in a
society where everything is "so convenient". Need something? Run to the store and buy it. Yet in
the early days of the church in the book of acts, we see people giving up EVERYTHING they owned to
follow this church. ( The "true" church of God. I'm not talked Baptist, Catholic, Nazarene, or
Pentecostal. God doesn't discriminate no matter what men may tell you. ) Yet now, it is nearly a
sin to give even 10% in the offering plate!
I'm afraid for the salvation of my friends. I truly fear for all of your souls. It is not my
decision, nor my business if any of you have "TRULY" accepted Jesus. But let me tell you, I am one
who was living a lie for many years. I became a "Christian" in about 2003, right after graduating
high school. I thought I was the bees knees in God's eyes. I went to church, I read my bible, I
prayed. I was good. Right? Wrong. I never felt very "assured" of my salvation. I always had
this lingering doubt. I still feared things of this life, like not having money, dying, pain. Yet
one day, just a few months ago, I truly gave it to God. No playing. No "Church" involved. No
pastor. Just me and God. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I had been following a lie. A
deception. The wills of men. So I asked God to save me. To help me follow him, because I couldn't
do it on my own. I truly submitted to him as my Lord, and asked him to help me, to forgive me for
my sinfulness and ignorance, and to show me the way. He has done this. My life has forever been
changed. Now I would have said the same thing a few years ago, but I was deceived. Satan can lead
you far far away from home. He is the father of lies. Honestly, I could tell you "I love broccoli!"
and not mean it. If you were serving it to me for dinner, I would probably say it to you though. Just to
make you feel good and not hurt your feelings. (God doesn't want children who just are "playing church" He want's faithful servants!) Anymore, that is what church has become all about. Feeling Good. Searching for a spiritual high (one that just probably isn't there)... It parallels the actions of the modern churchgoer. Sitting, and waiting for "God to deliver what we deserve", some "blessing from Heaven" (Don't you understand? We all DESERVE Hell's fire for all eternity!) I would love the be able to hear the thoughts of some of my brethren as they are sitting through worship. Too afraid of what people might think if they "raise a hand in worshipful submission". wondering what's for dinner. Whats coming on TV. Did I remember to turn off the stove? When's the last time they dusted in here? There is a lack of true worship and submission to God. This is a celebration time! A time to let God know how thankful we are of him. NOT a time to expect some magical present in the form of blessings to fall in our lap. If it is God's will to deliver to us, he will! (on a quick aside, I'm sick of pastors constantly preaching new-agey feel good, escape the stresses of life, happy happy joy joy bs. How do you win souls with that attitude? The first time a little turbulence occurs, you've lost them, and possibly for good! And why, because you LIED about the TRUTH that is GOD!!! He's not here to make our lives fun and easy, and we have no right to expect that out of Him. We are supposed to submit to his wills NOT the other way around! ) Back on subject now, I'm not saying the only time we should worship is on Sunday. Heck, if we are told to pray without ceasing, we should probably be worshiping without ceasing about 7 times that much! Don't just go through the motions of church.
Let God's holy spirit fire fall on you! Let yourself be anointed! Dive in headfirst! If people
laugh at you, let them! Laugh with them and tell them "Yeah, guess I am stupid, huh?" The true children of God are not of this world. We shouldn't fear the things of this world. We have another home
waiting on us. Trust me, when the time comes, and those who mocked you stand before the throne of judgment without sins that have been atoned, they are gonna be regretting that laughter, and they are gonna feel the weight of their sin bearing down like a block on their chest. Don't be afraid to separate yourself from sinfulness.
Now keep in mind you will never be perfect until that day. So if you fall, ask Christ to pick you
back up. Don't dwell on it, you will be forgiven. The cross is truly sufficient. (Don't take this as a
get out of "Hell" free card though! It's not a license to sin. If you have truly accepted Christ,
the very "thought" of sin will utterly repulse you. The fact that you have disobeyed God will
deeply sadden you to the core (EVERY SINGLE TIME). You WILL feel the conviction of the Spirit whispering to you that you have done wrong. Sound harsh? We all know that any good Father does discipline his children!)
Feeling good. I laugh at this mindset. If it doesn't make us feel "warm and fuzzy" it's not God. That seems to be a lot of people's mindset on Christianity. I feel like this blasphemous mindset has not only driven away many saints, but also created many atheists. How could an all loving God allow pain and suffering? You think Job was feeling warm and fuzzy (Lost everything, sores and sickness)? How about Noah(Built an ark for years and was ridiculed for it)? Moses(Led a bunch of griping whiners out of Egypt for years so that God's will could be fulfilled)? Jonah(Belly of the big fish was his home)? Exactly. When you let God take over in your life, it's gonna make Satan MAD. He will continually try you. God will
too,though. This is a necessary "evil" of a loving Father. If you touched a hot stove burner, and
it didn't hurt, there is a chance you would keep doing it. Repeatedly. You may even hold your hand
on it until you seared the flesh clean off of the bone. It is the pain that lets you know "I
shouldn't do that, it hurts." The same is true with the lessons that God sends us. If they didn't
hurt once in a while, what would we learn from them? If we didn't humble ourselves, how close would
we be with God? And how much more do we know that he loves us once we reach the end of that dark
storm cloud and see the rainbow shining in the sky and we are assured that we have been victorious.
Take a long hard look at your salvation. Have you truly given it all to God? Am I saying that
since you gave it all to God, you have to give up everything that you have? Of course not! God
gave them to you! Count them as blessings! I'm simply stating that you should have the willingness
to give them up if that is what God calls you to do. A broken spirit is truly humbling and when we
can learn the most and hear that "still small voice" the clearest.
Now I say all this above because, while men have said it for years and years, probably since the
book of revelation even was first read, I truly believe we are approaching the end of this age at an
alarming pace. The socializing of nations (ours included), the falling away of the church, the
increasing "equality" rules that put the feelings of the flesh above God's holy and anointed
scripture, they are all signs. It's coming and it's coming FAST! Now friends, let me tell you,
right now, we live in a pretty calm age. You aren't going to get your head chopped off, or hung on
a cross for preaching Jesus. You won't even get put up in prison. It is not impossible though.
Look at what Hitler did to the jews, God's very elect, only 50 or so years ago. It is NOT
IMPOSSIBLE for the same to happen to the Christian faith! Now answer me this: If you were
confronted by a soldier with a gun, and told that if you didn't deny the faith in Christ, you would
be shot to death, would you deny him? How about if he threatened torture? Now let me ask you this:
Did Christ deny you? Did he NOT take on your sin, and mine? Was he not SO burdened with all the
sins of the world that even the Father had to turn away from him? Was he not forced to go to Hell
on our behalf? So why would you dare deny him? Times are going to get tough in the end of the age
for us. We are going to be tested heavily. What is more important though, this vapor of a life
that is gone in a blink, or eternity? There are only two choices for eternity. I know where I'm
going beyond the shadow of a doubt. Do you? Put on your Holy armor. Get ready. For as Paul put
it, much better than I can myself:
Phillipians 1:20-21
20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all
boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
God bless and keep you all, in the name of Christ Jesus, amen.
Friends, and all who will hear me, I would like to tell you something that I feel the spirit of God
has been urging me to share. I'm letting Him speak through me right now. I feel that we (the one
true church of God) are in a state of falling away right now.
(Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes
first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 2 Thessalonians 2:3)
The Christian way of life is become "unpopular", "unpleasant", a "myth" that only the uneducated
masses believe in. It saddens me greatly to see this happening in my life. I know, though, that
these things must come to pass as it is the will of God to bring his plan to completion. So I can
only pray for myself and others as each day passes that as we spiral farther and farther down, that
the Lord will reach down and hold on to us as tightly as he can.
All of you whom are even the slightest bit familiar with the bible know a few things that I'm about
to speak of below. First: The great commission.
( 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded
you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matt. 28:19-20)
We are told to make disciples of all the nations. What, exactly, IS a disciple? A disciple is a
student, who follows his master, and once he has learned, teaches, himself, a student as to what he
has learned. We are to learn from Christ, to allow his teachings to fill our lives, and not be
afraid to proclaim them to others. We are told in Matthew 10 about what the apostles (whom were the
first disciples and are even called such) were commanded to do by Christ. He gives them many
warnings about taking possessions, working for their keep, and etc. Now if God is the same yesterday,
today, and tomorrow, why should this change now? Why would God want us to live any differently?
Second: Lukewarmness.
We are, as a church, "lukewarm". We truly reflect the Laodicean church that is spoken of in
Revelations 3:14-22. To paraphrase, he says that they were lukewarm, neither hot nor cold. So,
Yeah, they went to church, yeah, they were good people, and they weren't "cold". Yet they had no fire of God in their lives. They lived comfortable lives. Laodicea was a wealthy commerce town. So
everything these people "NEEDED" was readily available to them. Yet God tells them that they have
nothing! They are naked, blind, and shamed. They need to start purchasing from him that which is
refined in the fire, and white garments to cover their nakedness lest they be shamed. We live in a
society where everything is "so convenient". Need something? Run to the store and buy it. Yet in
the early days of the church in the book of acts, we see people giving up EVERYTHING they owned to
follow this church. ( The "true" church of God. I'm not talked Baptist, Catholic, Nazarene, or
Pentecostal. God doesn't discriminate no matter what men may tell you. ) Yet now, it is nearly a
sin to give even 10% in the offering plate!
I'm afraid for the salvation of my friends. I truly fear for all of your souls. It is not my
decision, nor my business if any of you have "TRULY" accepted Jesus. But let me tell you, I am one
who was living a lie for many years. I became a "Christian" in about 2003, right after graduating
high school. I thought I was the bees knees in God's eyes. I went to church, I read my bible, I
prayed. I was good. Right? Wrong. I never felt very "assured" of my salvation. I always had
this lingering doubt. I still feared things of this life, like not having money, dying, pain. Yet
one day, just a few months ago, I truly gave it to God. No playing. No "Church" involved. No
pastor. Just me and God. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I had been following a lie. A
deception. The wills of men. So I asked God to save me. To help me follow him, because I couldn't
do it on my own. I truly submitted to him as my Lord, and asked him to help me, to forgive me for
my sinfulness and ignorance, and to show me the way. He has done this. My life has forever been
changed. Now I would have said the same thing a few years ago, but I was deceived. Satan can lead
you far far away from home. He is the father of lies. Honestly, I could tell you "I love broccoli!"
and not mean it. If you were serving it to me for dinner, I would probably say it to you though. Just to
make you feel good and not hurt your feelings. (God doesn't want children who just are "playing church" He want's faithful servants!) Anymore, that is what church has become all about. Feeling Good. Searching for a spiritual high (one that just probably isn't there)... It parallels the actions of the modern churchgoer. Sitting, and waiting for "God to deliver what we deserve", some "blessing from Heaven" (Don't you understand? We all DESERVE Hell's fire for all eternity!) I would love the be able to hear the thoughts of some of my brethren as they are sitting through worship. Too afraid of what people might think if they "raise a hand in worshipful submission". wondering what's for dinner. Whats coming on TV. Did I remember to turn off the stove? When's the last time they dusted in here? There is a lack of true worship and submission to God. This is a celebration time! A time to let God know how thankful we are of him. NOT a time to expect some magical present in the form of blessings to fall in our lap. If it is God's will to deliver to us, he will! (on a quick aside, I'm sick of pastors constantly preaching new-agey feel good, escape the stresses of life, happy happy joy joy bs. How do you win souls with that attitude? The first time a little turbulence occurs, you've lost them, and possibly for good! And why, because you LIED about the TRUTH that is GOD!!! He's not here to make our lives fun and easy, and we have no right to expect that out of Him. We are supposed to submit to his wills NOT the other way around! ) Back on subject now, I'm not saying the only time we should worship is on Sunday. Heck, if we are told to pray without ceasing, we should probably be worshiping without ceasing about 7 times that much! Don't just go through the motions of church.
Let God's holy spirit fire fall on you! Let yourself be anointed! Dive in headfirst! If people
laugh at you, let them! Laugh with them and tell them "Yeah, guess I am stupid, huh?" The true children of God are not of this world. We shouldn't fear the things of this world. We have another home
waiting on us. Trust me, when the time comes, and those who mocked you stand before the throne of judgment without sins that have been atoned, they are gonna be regretting that laughter, and they are gonna feel the weight of their sin bearing down like a block on their chest. Don't be afraid to separate yourself from sinfulness.
Now keep in mind you will never be perfect until that day. So if you fall, ask Christ to pick you
back up. Don't dwell on it, you will be forgiven. The cross is truly sufficient. (Don't take this as a
get out of "Hell" free card though! It's not a license to sin. If you have truly accepted Christ,
the very "thought" of sin will utterly repulse you. The fact that you have disobeyed God will
deeply sadden you to the core (EVERY SINGLE TIME). You WILL feel the conviction of the Spirit whispering to you that you have done wrong. Sound harsh? We all know that any good Father does discipline his children!)
Feeling good. I laugh at this mindset. If it doesn't make us feel "warm and fuzzy" it's not God. That seems to be a lot of people's mindset on Christianity. I feel like this blasphemous mindset has not only driven away many saints, but also created many atheists. How could an all loving God allow pain and suffering? You think Job was feeling warm and fuzzy (Lost everything, sores and sickness)? How about Noah(Built an ark for years and was ridiculed for it)? Moses(Led a bunch of griping whiners out of Egypt for years so that God's will could be fulfilled)? Jonah(Belly of the big fish was his home)? Exactly. When you let God take over in your life, it's gonna make Satan MAD. He will continually try you. God will
too,though. This is a necessary "evil" of a loving Father. If you touched a hot stove burner, and
it didn't hurt, there is a chance you would keep doing it. Repeatedly. You may even hold your hand
on it until you seared the flesh clean off of the bone. It is the pain that lets you know "I
shouldn't do that, it hurts." The same is true with the lessons that God sends us. If they didn't
hurt once in a while, what would we learn from them? If we didn't humble ourselves, how close would
we be with God? And how much more do we know that he loves us once we reach the end of that dark
storm cloud and see the rainbow shining in the sky and we are assured that we have been victorious.
Take a long hard look at your salvation. Have you truly given it all to God? Am I saying that
since you gave it all to God, you have to give up everything that you have? Of course not! God
gave them to you! Count them as blessings! I'm simply stating that you should have the willingness
to give them up if that is what God calls you to do. A broken spirit is truly humbling and when we
can learn the most and hear that "still small voice" the clearest.
Now I say all this above because, while men have said it for years and years, probably since the
book of revelation even was first read, I truly believe we are approaching the end of this age at an
alarming pace. The socializing of nations (ours included), the falling away of the church, the
increasing "equality" rules that put the feelings of the flesh above God's holy and anointed
scripture, they are all signs. It's coming and it's coming FAST! Now friends, let me tell you,
right now, we live in a pretty calm age. You aren't going to get your head chopped off, or hung on
a cross for preaching Jesus. You won't even get put up in prison. It is not impossible though.
Look at what Hitler did to the jews, God's very elect, only 50 or so years ago. It is NOT
IMPOSSIBLE for the same to happen to the Christian faith! Now answer me this: If you were
confronted by a soldier with a gun, and told that if you didn't deny the faith in Christ, you would
be shot to death, would you deny him? How about if he threatened torture? Now let me ask you this:
Did Christ deny you? Did he NOT take on your sin, and mine? Was he not SO burdened with all the
sins of the world that even the Father had to turn away from him? Was he not forced to go to Hell
on our behalf? So why would you dare deny him? Times are going to get tough in the end of the age
for us. We are going to be tested heavily. What is more important though, this vapor of a life
that is gone in a blink, or eternity? There are only two choices for eternity. I know where I'm
going beyond the shadow of a doubt. Do you? Put on your Holy armor. Get ready. For as Paul put
it, much better than I can myself:
Phillipians 1:20-21
20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all
boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
God bless and keep you all, in the name of Christ Jesus, amen.
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