Recently I was
reading a post
on the Rapture
Ready Bulletin
Board where
someone was
attempting to
argue that God
is not a
merciful and
loving God.
After several
replies from
other forum
members this
person
apparently
realized that he
was getting
nowhere with his
argument and he
signed off
saying “You guys
enjoy your
delusion.” My
reply to that
post was “The
delusion is
yours, not
ours.”
That started me
to thinking that
there might be
“Christians” who
really are
living a
delusion. I
think
“deception”
would be a
better word to
use here, for
I’m thinking of
those who
believe they are
“Christians”
because someone
told them that
they would be
“saved” if they
would say a
prayer or
confess sin, or
promise to
follow Jesus, or
accept Jesus as
their Lord, etc.
But they were
not presented a
full-explanation
of the gospel
message. Or
maybe they were
presented the
gospel but
failed to
completely
understand the
way of
salvation. In
other words,
they are really
trusting in what
they did instead
of trusting in
the gospel.
These
“Christians” are
content to
believe that all
is well in their
relationship
with God, when
actually they
have been
deceived and
their faith is
misplaced─meaning
that they are
not genuine
Christians.
Another group I
am thinking of
are those, who
like myself, had
a salvation
experience, but
for some reason
are doubting
their salvation
and cannot find
a lasting
comforting
assurance of
being saved. For
many years I
struggled with a
lack of
understanding of
what “believing
in Jesus” means.
Therefore, I
lived in a
miserable state
of uncertainty
about ever being
saved.
I was “saved” in
church at age 13
and baptized.
Several years
later I started
to question
whether or not I
was really
saved. After
about 7-8 years
of living
without any
assurance of
salvation, I
found myself in
a state of fear
and misery. I
had no peace. I
went to the
altar at church
several times to
make sure that I
was saved. I
repented of my
sins. I
confessed my
sins. I accepted
Jesus as my
Savior and Lord.
I committed my
life to Christ.
I confessed
Jesus publicly.
I said the
sinners’ prayer.
I believed in
Jesus. I
believed He was
God’s only Son
who was virgin
born. I believed
He died for my
sins. I believed
He was raised
from the dead. I
believed He went
to heaven. I
believed that He
is coming back
someday. I
promised to
serve Him the
rest of my life
and I believed
all the things
that I was told
that I needed to
believe. Each
time I went to
the altar I was
looking for some
kind of “sense”
of assurance of
being saved. I
would feel saved
for a while but
soon the doubts
and fears
returned and the
misery started
all over.
I still had no
peace.
I began to
question myself
about whether or
not I had really
repented, or if
I really commit
my life to
Christ, if I had
really accepted
Jesus as my Lord
and Savior, if I
had really
committed to
serve Him, and
if I really
believed in
Jesus. I
questioned all
of the things
that I had done
to get saved.
One of the Bible
verses I was
trusting in was
Romans 10:13,
“Whosoever shall
call upon the
name of the Lord
shall be saved.”
I had heard that
preached as part
of a salvation
message many
times. I would
reason with
myself that
since the Bible
says it, then if
I called on
Jesus’ name that
I would be
saved.
Then God showed
me that, Romans
10:14 explains
verse 13 as it
says, “How then
shall they call
on Him whom they
have not
believed, and
how shall they
believe in Him
of whom they
have not heard,
and how shall
they hear
without a
preacher?”
Therefore,
meaning that I
have to
“believe” before
I call on His
name. The real
question, then,
became: “What is
the meaning of
“believing?” I
was confused
that Acts 16:31
says, “ Believe
on the Lord
Jesus and you
will be saved.”
But then James
2:19 says, “You
believe that
there is one
God; thou doest
well: the devils
also believe,
and tremble.”
So, my
understanding of
“believe” was at
the center of my
confusion.
During the time
that I was
seeking the
truth about
being saved I
talked to my
Sunday school
teacher and to
our pastor about
believing in
Jesus. Through
them I found
some good books
to read about
how to have
assurance of
salvation by
some well-known
Christian
authors: Dr.
Harry Ironside,
Dr. J. Vernon
McGee, and Dr.
John R. Rice. I
read those books
over and over
and over.
Each book
referred to
Scriptures about
salvation. Some
I had already
heard and some
were new to me.
I found myself
saying a sinners
prayer many
times, each time
finding relief
from the fear
and misery for a
while. But the
relief would
last for only a
brief period of
time and the
misery would
return, only now
it was becoming
more of a
fearful dread or
a sense of doom.
I thought that I
would never know
if I was saved.
To make a long
story a short,
I’ll get right
to the point.
After several
years of living
in this
miserable
condition I
finally just
gave up on
everything I was
trying to do,
and out of
desperation I
turned to God
for help. One
night as I lay
down in bed to
try and get some
sleep I looked
up at the
ceiling and said
a simple prayer,
“God, will you
show me what I
need to know
about believing
in Jesus?”
The next night I
got the big
family Bible and
opened it to the
Gospel of John.
That was the
first time I had
ever read in the
Bible except at
church. As I
started to read
John 1:1,
immediately I
recognized that
God was showing
me the truth
about His Word
and about Jesus,
that I had not
seen before.
This time was
different
because I was
seeking answers
from God
Himself, and I
turned to Him
with the
attitude that He
was my only
hope. I
desperately
wanted whatever
He had for me.
God did not
disappoint me.
As I read
through the
Gospel of John,
God showed me
the true grounds
for having a
settled peace
with Him. He
showed me that
all of my
efforts of
repeating the
prayers,
confessing sin,
making promises
to Him, etc.
were not faith
in Him but faith
in myself. He
showed me that I
must cease from
all of my
efforts to find
the assurance I
was so
desperately
seeking and to
just trust in
what Jesus had
already done.
When God’s
Spirit opened my
spiritual eyes
to the truth of
the gospel and I
saw that my
salvation rested
only in the
finished work of
Jesus at the
cross, that my
sins were nailed
to the cross
with Him, and
that when He
said “It is
finished” that
He meant that my
sin debt to God
was “paid in
full” with His
blood that He
shed there. Then
an enormous
sense of relief
immediately
filled my
troubled soul.
Basically, God
showed me that
He wanted me to
turn from
myself, to Him.
That I must
simply give-up
on “self” and
transfer my
trust to the
finished work of
Jesus at the
cross; that to
“believe in
Jesus” means to
believe that He
will do what He
says He will do
when we place
our trust in
Him. Believing
means that we
rely on Jesus,
that we leave it
up to Him, that
we put our
eternity in His
hands, that we
just believe Him
without
questioning Him.
You see, my
problem was that
I thought that I
had to do
something like
say a prayer in
order to get God
to save me; I
was trusting my
actions, my
efforts, and my
understanding
based on what I
had heard from
Man. Therefore,
I was very much
confused and my
faith was
misplaced. But
when I turned to
God by reading
His Word, God’s
Spirit showed me
the truth of His
way of salvation
and He
immediately
cleared up all
of my confusion.
So, for me, the
lesson I learned
applies to any
and all acts of
“self” to get
saved, which
fail every time.
I like to say it
this way: “If
your faith is in
your
faith then your
faith is not in
Jesus.”
If anyone
reading this
should make the
all-important-decision
to come to Jesus
to receive His
gift of
forgiveness of
sin and eternal
life, please
remember to be
careful about
your faith. Be
sure your faith
is in Jesus and
not in anything
you do. He
doesn‘t need you
to help Him. He
wants you to
trust in Him as
the one who paid
your sin debt
“in full” at the
cross. If you
say a prayer for
salvation, be
sure that you
are trusting, in
Jesus and not in
the prayer you
just said. Your
prayer doesn‘t
save you; only
Jesus saves.
If you go to the
altar to accept
Jesus as your
Lord and Savior,
be sure you are
trusting in
Jesus’ death at
the cross and
not in your trip
to the altar. If
you promise to
follow Jesus
remember you
have to receive
His free gift of
salvation before
you can follow
Him. He paid for
it with His
blood. If you
turn from your
sin, remember to
turn from
yourself to
Jesus first,
then He will
give you power
to turn from
your sin through
the Holy Spirit.
If you
accept Jesus as
your Savior,
remember that
before you could
do so that God
accepted Jesus’
death, as
“payment in
full” for your
sin.
Following are
some of the
Scriptures that
God’s Spirit
used to show me
the truth of His
Word that I
needed so that I
could understand
the true grounds
for having a
settled peace
with Him:
John 6.29:
“Jesus
answered and
said to him,
“this is the
work of God,
that you believe
on him whom he
hath sent.”
John 5:39 “Jesus
said to them,
‘Search the
scriptures, for
in them you
think you have
eternal life:
and they are
they which
testify of me.’”
John 5.40:
“And you
will not come to
me that you
might have
life.”
John 6.37:
“Jesus said,
‘All the Father
gives me will
come to me and
anyone who comes
to me I will not
turn away.”
John 19.30:
“When Jesus
therefore had
received the
vinegar, he
said, ‘It is
finished: and he
bowed his head,
and gave up the
ghost.’”
ljohnson3954@att.net