The Scritures have declared that even satan believes and trembles; however genuine believing, as God has called us to, is faith in Jesus Christ and the work He accomplished at the cross. Satan believes by knowing the facts that Jesus is Lord. Believers believe by surrendering to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Authentic believers have lived the signpost set in God's Word.
Sign Post of Authentic Believers
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Genuine faith in Christ Jesus and the work He accomplished at Calvary is the only way to salvation. Jesus came to save His people from their sin!
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Matthew 1:21 "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins."
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John 8:34 Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 "And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
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Whoever commits sin is a slave of sin; however if the Son makes you free you are free indeed! This is not an elusive promise of God! Slaves do not abide in the house forever but a son abides forever! This freedom from sin is to the true believer. Do we dare believe that Jesus makes us free from the bondages of sin? Some believers have never experienced this total freedom. Some who call their self believers have never had an authentic conversion. One of satan’s greatest ploys is to convince a sinner he has become a saint. It is proper to examine oneself and see if you are truly in the faith. The measuring stick is found by the Word of God. The Word has clearly defined those who have an authentic salvation experience.
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John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 "For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 "But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."
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Genuine faith in Jesus Christ eliminates the condemnation; those who do not truly believe in Jesus are condemned already. What you believe about Jesus Christ determines your destiny. Jesus Himself brought great clarity to authenticity of faith. Everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light. He who comes to the light has shown his deeds that have been done in God. Men who glory in their own works, done in their own strength, remain in darkness. Those whom the Son has sets free, their deeds are clearly seen as they have been done in God. Genuine faith in Jesus brings great change to the man who believes in the completed work of Christ in His death burial and resurrection. He who believes in Jesus is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already. True authentic believing brings such transformation the believer comes to the light. If you claim to believe in Christ and continue in darkness your faith is not authentic.
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Romans 6:6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
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True believers have died to self. The old man being crucified with Christ was in order that the body of sin might be done away with. One who is saved has died to the sin nature that he was born with! That which was inherited from the first Adam is put to death. That is why verse 7 declares he who has died has been freed from sin! There is not uncertainness in this truth. If you have been born again you past the sign post and died to self rule and surrendered to Jesus authority of setting you free.
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Romans 6:11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.
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Many believers have never been taught to reckon themselves dead to sin and alive unto God! Many believers have walked in sin because they allowed sin to reign in obeying its lust. It's time for the believer to be settled in the word of grace. As Christ died to sin once and for all but the life He lives is unto God, likewise the believer dies once and lives his life unto God.
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Romans 6:8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.
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1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life; is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
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True believers will love what God loves and hate what God hates. It is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life which are all centered in self will. It is sin itself that we need to hate. John, the beloved, pulled no punches, he who does the will of God abides forever! Some who call themselves believers and are in full pursuit of the things of the world will not abide forever! The sign post of the Word of God says if you are truly in the faith your life pursuit is doing the will of the Father.
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2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
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If the love of God has truly touched our lives it puts us on a journey of living for Jesus. Authentic believers spend the remaining of their lifetime living no longer for self but for the one who died for them and rose again.
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Romans 12:9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;
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Love with out hypocrisy is to abhor what is evil! That is stronger than hate. Let the evil be detestable to you and cling to what is good! God help us hate evil the way God does. Genuine believers are moved to abhor the evil; pseudo believers have no problems putting evil before their eyes.
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1 Peter 2:1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
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Authentic believers crave the pure milk of the word; those who have tasted that the Lord is gracious have a hunger and desire for God’s word.
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1 Peter 4:1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
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Galatians 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!" 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
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True children walk in the freedom Christ has provided; true children can cry out Abba Father!
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