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There is no reason to be scared or confused. But I on the other hand understand why you would be afraid scared, and confused.
We live in a world where many religions use fear tatics to control others. These methods can confuse us and leave us afraid, scared and confused.
The Bibel tells us that we are Created by God. He is our heavenly Father. Just like we obey our fleshly father, because we love him and want to gain his approval, we also obey God because we Love him and want to gain his approval.
As far as sinning, we all will reap what we sew. However we first must truly learn the truth about God. He is a loving and merciful heavenly Father, and if we sin he will forgive us. We though must try to not comitt the same sin again and again. We can pray for forgiveness and work towards showing God we are truly sorry.
This scripture comes to mind. “He will remember their error; he will give attention to their sins.” Hos. 9:9.
There was a major problem with Israel’s repentance. The people were continuing to practice sin. At Hosea 7:4, the people are likened to “a furnace,” or baker’s oven, evidently because evil desires were burning within them. In view of such a deplorable spiritual condition, did the people deserve mercy? Certainly not! What do we learn about repentance and mercy?
The warning example of the faithless Israelites teaches us that in order to benefit from God’s mercy, we must demonstrate heartfelt repentance. How is such repentance manifested? God is not deceived by tears or mere words. Genuine repentance is made apparent by actions. In order to receive mercy, a wrongdoer must completely abandon his sinful course and bring his life into harmony with the high standards of God’s elevated worship.
If your friend continues to sin willfully, then he really is not sorry for his sins. If someone came and continually lied on you and slapped you in the face, then turned around and apologized and two hours later came back and did the same thing over and over again. Would you truly feel in your heart he/she is sorry??
Enough said about that.
Now let’s talk about being saved. As might be expected in a world that thinks too highly of human philosophy, there are many views regarding human salvation. There are, for example,
1) Religious persons that think belief in Jesus Christ is practically all that is necessary for salvation.
2) Another view of salvation is that held by those who believe in universal salvation.
3) Finally we come to those persons that reject man’s need for salvation. In their eyes the shedding of Christ’s blood as a ransom sacrifice had no value. Not only is this view held by atheists but also by persons that claim to be Christians.
God’s written Word reveals that more than profession of belief in Jesus is required for salvation. Just saying that one believes is not enough. When Paul and Silas told the Macedonian jailer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will get saved,” Acts 16:31 they were not limiting salvation to belief that Christ is the Redeemer. They knew that more was involved. Besides believing that Christ is God’s Son and mankind’s Redeemer, knowledge of the Scriptures is necessary as well as a willingness to follow Christ’s example. How can one know how to follow Jesus’ example without studying his birth, life, ministry, and death?
His faith in the heavenly Father was shown by his works of public teaching of spiritual truths that brought honor to his Father and comfort to the people. This fine example must be followed by those who say they believe in Christ. Their faith must be accompanied by similar works. This is pointed out by the Bible writer James, who said: “Show me your faith apart from the works, and I shall show you my faith by my works.” Jas. 2:18.
When a person, on the basis of the Scriptural knowledge he has gained, has belief in Christ as the Savior whom God provided and shows that faith by his works, he can consider himself as being on the way to salvation. It would be a mistake for him to think that he is now saved and cannot fall. He must show by his endurance in the Christian faith that he is worthy of salvation. “Let him that thinks he has a firm position beware that he does not fall.” 1 Cor. 10:12.
What he is on the way to being saved from is not the torments of a fiery hell, for such a place exists only in the imagination of misinformed persons. God’s Word says nothing about eternal torment of lost souls in a fiery hell as being the punishment for wickedness.
Instead, it simply says: “The wages sin pays is death.” “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” “All the wicked ones he will annihilate.” Rom. 6:23; Ezek. 18:4, AS; Ps. 145:20
This means their punishment is non-existence. Just as a person before they are born are non-existent. God’s loving provision is salvation from eternal death. It means freedom from the curse of death that comes because of Adam’s sin. We who are truly repentant will display the qualities of repentance by not willfully sinning but yet if we do sin we can ask for forgiveness of our sins.
Salvation from death is a gift from God to those that obey him, not to those that disobey.
We will all reap the rewards of our actions. Remember it is what God says
that we must all believe, not what men say.
There are though principles and requirements that we must obey in order to receive salvation. For a person to gain salvation God requires that he exercise faith in Him and Christ Jesus. A person cannot expect God’s favor when he refuses to exercise faith in the Father as a Savior and in the One whom the Father sent to make salvation possible. It is written: “For ‘anyone that calls upon the name of Jehovah will be saved.’” Rom. 10:13
This has to be done by faith, not only in Jehovah and his Son, but also in the truthfulness of his Word. “Moreover, without faith it is impossible to win his good pleasure, for he that approaches God must believe that he is and that he becomes the rewarder of those earnestly seeking him.” Heb. 11:6.
The faithless person does not change reality by his denying the existence of sin and the need for salvation. Although he may refuse to recognize it, he is still a sinner. “If we make the statement, ‘We have no sin,’ we are misleading ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:8
When a person exercises faith in God’s written Word as being true he will acknowledge that he is in a sinful state because of Adamic sin and is in need of a Redeemer. He will show repentance for his sins against God because of his imperfection. “True, God has overlooked the times of such ignorance, yet now he is telling mankind that they should all everywhere repent.” Acts 17:30.
It is only right that the Creator should require obedience from man. In times past those that obeyed him were the ones that he favored. It is no different today. Salvation through the coming war of Armageddon and from death depends upon obedience to God and to His son, Jesus Christ, whom he has anointed to be earth’s ruler. This is shown at Hebrews 5:9, which says regarding Christ: “After he had been made perfect he became responsible for everlasting salvation to all those obeying him.” Here again the Scriptures show that salvation is limited and not universal.
Endurance in the way to life is also a requirement for salvation. It does no good if a person starts out on a faithful course of obedience to God but fails to continue on it. He must remain faithful as long as he lives, even when his faithfulness brings the threat of death. “But he that has endured to the finish is the one that will be saved.” Matt. 24:13.
A person must manifest his faith in the manner Christ did by dedicating himself to God, symbolizing that dedication by water immersion, and making public proclamation of the truth. He must be a teacher of God’s Word and purposes as Jesus was. If you say you follow Jesus then we must do the work that Jesus did. We must tell others and teach others God’s way, just as Jesus himself did. He cannot remain silent, thinking that belief alone is sufficient for salvation. Silence is not God’s way to it.
“For with the heart one exercises faith for righteousness, but with the mouth one makes public declaration for salvation.”—Rom. 10:10.
Remember, think about this, and then ask yourself, was my friend ever really saved? Did he really have salvation? If not, then what you first need to do is show him the truth of God’s word and show him that “Once saved always saved” Does not stem from the word of God but from man’s idea’s or private interpretations of what God’s word says. I personally do not believe in the practice of “once saved always saved.”
That is why you friend feels he can do whatever he chooses to do and he is still saved. If that were the case then a person can be saved and then go steal and kill and still be saved. No it does not work that way. There are definite requirements that we all must meet in order to receive the salvation. I hope you will truly sit down and read these scriptures I have quoted from your own copy of the Bible and see for yourself, that one needs to do much more then say they are saved because they believe in Jesus Christ as their savior. Also willful sin never goes without reaping it’s consequences.
Take care,
Hope12
Just my understanding of what the scriptures say.
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