Well hello Scarfin. I hope you are well. thanks so much for asking such a great question. I am honored and hope you will consider what He and I are saying.
I am going to use His words as I talk because it is He that saves. I struggle finding a way to keep it short, so will you please bear with me, reading all the way?
It is a gift from Him. Ours is to believe in the Lord Jesus, and we will be saved.
that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
Romans 10:9 NASB
But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts , boast in the Lord .”
1 Corinthians 1:30-31 NASB
Our sins separate us from God and His will for our lives. But we need help, because wanting to do right isn't possible for us, not on our own. We need His help.
So how do we believe?
And how do we know we believe?
Such good things to ponder.
It is trusting in His cleansing blood that saves, leaning in and on His love and mercy. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
We call on the Lord, repenting fully, with all our hearts and minds that we need Him and His presence in our lives.
Scarfin, He is the truth that sets us free.
We are fully justified in Him.
He works within, ours is to respond to His Holy presence by putting our trust fully in Him.
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
John 3:16
I hope you are still with me here.
He and His words are such precious gifts.
Look at this...
Your words were found and I ate them, And Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; For I have been called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts.
Jeremiah 15:16 NASB
O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
Psalms 34:8 NASB
Scarfin, those verses are true,100%. I have come to know Him, in such a way that fills my heart with joy and rejoicing, such peace that surpasses understanding.
While we are "Saved" the moment we first believe, our character takes awile to really know and practice what it means to Love Him and others. I personally struggle forgiving myself, from time to time. He has given me the truth in Luke 7:36-50. I meditate on those verses in seasons when my mind and heart needs renewing.
And He said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind', This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Matthew 22:37-40
He is a blessing that keeps on giving. I am moved to tears, thinking about all that He does for us, what He has done. Pleasing Him is such a blessing, such an honor. His work within has made this true.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put M y laws into their minds , A nd I will write them on their hearts . And I will be their God, And they shall be My people .
Hebrews 8:10 NASB
He saves us, forgives us, inspires and empowers us, uses us. He gives us guidance, strength in our weakness, and He gives us family in Him. He gives us His Holy Self!!!
i don't know about you, but I am eternally grateful!!
I have gone on long enough but in closing, I want to share one of my most favorite passages.
I pray you read them and take them in as your own.
The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me. I will bless the Lord who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night. I have set the Lord continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely. For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
Psalms 16:5-11 NASB
I love you Scarfin, but He loves you so MUCH more.
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