“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”
–Hebrews 11:6
One almost NEVER knows what will cause consternation among the readers.
A few days ago, while expounding upon “Saved By God’s Mercy (Grace),” the following statement apparently stirred up a commotion among some readers.
“Having faith and believing are prerequisites to being saved–not salvation itself.”
The statement was made while commenting about the deceptive practice of begging people to “make a decision for Christ.”
NO ONE makes a ‘decision for Christ.’
“Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.”
–John 15:16
A great many apparently feel that IF they say “I believe” out loud, that is quite enough and they are now eternally saved, thank you very much.
Apparently, many believe that God will get lonely in heaven and needs to welcome anyone who SAYS they have faith and believe.
The Bible is very clear: one must believe in his heart in order to be saved.
His whole heart.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
–Romans 10:9
What does it mean to ‘believe in the heart?’ The following will serve as a good working definition of ‘believe in the heart.’
To believe in your heart means to believe apart from your mind and your body. Thinking is of the mind; believing is of the heart. Believing in your heart means believing independent of what your five physical senses may indicate.
—What does it mean to Believe in Your Heart?
When the Ethiopian eunuch asked Philip ‘what hindered him [the eunuch] from being baptized,’ Philip told the eunuch:
“And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
–Acts 8:37
It is not enough to merely claim “I believe.”
It is not enough to merely claim “I have faith.”
One must SINCERELY believe with all thy heart FIRST.
THEN, if one’s faith and belief are true, one will achieve eternal salvation.
Sincere, true belief and faith are pre-requisites: belief and faith come first, THEN, God in His great mercy will grant eternal salvation.
Saying “I believe” is NOT eternal salvation.
Claiming to have “faith“–even claiming to have “great faith“–is NOT eternal salvation.
BELIEVING is eternal salvation.
The good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is that ALL who believe are saved eternally. Shouldn’t the reader inquire further into such an opportunity?
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16
Believing in the heart–with one’s whole being–comes FIRST.
THEN, come eternal salvation.
Required as a prior condition of something else; necessary or indispensable.
Believing and faith are pre-requisites to eternal salvation: NOT eternal salvation itself.
HAS the reader been led to believe that he must ‘make a decision for Christ?’
It is not YET too late: there is still time to change direction (repent), place your faith (hope) for the future entirely on Jesus Christ and enter the kingdom of heaven.
DOES the reader believe he is saved?
Make Your Calling and Election Sure: End Times Survival
DOES the reader believe he is NOT saved?
Time is Running Out: Today is the Day of Salvation
- Gospel of Jesus Christ: Making a Choice
- The Gospel of Jesus Christ
- Gospel of Jesus Christ: The Power of God Unto Salvation
- Gospel of Jesus Christ: The End Times Power of God Unleashed
THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST
“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. ”
–1 Corinthians 15:1-8
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
-–Romans 1:16
MORE: Eternal Salvation Through Jesus Christ: Salvation Messages from End Times Prophecy Report
[Portions of this piece appeared originally in End Times Prophecy Headlines: January 22-24, 2021.]
MORE: Eternal Salvation Through Jesus Christ: Salvation Messages from End Times Prophecy Report
MORE
- Eternal Salvation: The Narrow Way is Challenging and Few Find It
- FEW THERE BE: How Many Christians are There?
- Salvation NOW: Do NOT Wait!
- Time is Running Out: Today is the Day of Salvation
- An Unlikely Salvation
MORE
- Man Struggles Against God
- God is in Control
- The Nature of Spiritual Deception
- Tender Mercies of the Lord: Will Not Always Be Available
RELATED ARTICLES
- Eternal Salvation Through Jesus Christ: Salvation Messages from End Times Prophecy Report
- Do You Know if You are Going to Heaven? Be Sure!
- END TIMES PREPARATION: 15 Ways to Prepare for the End Times
- Deceitful Workers are Victims of Deception Themselves
- End Times Survival, End Times Preparation
- 35 Most Important ETPR Articles
- DISOBEDIENCE and REBELLION: The Wisdom of Man OR the Word of God?
- Apostate Church: Breaking Every Chain
- Persecution, Tribulation, Troubles, Trials: What the Bible says to Christians
by Jeremiah Jameson
–with Mondo Frazier
image: ETPR/Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash.com/ETPR
© Jeremiah J. Jameson and End Times Prophecy Report, 2012-20. © Mondo Frazier and End Times Prophecy Report, DBKP 2007-2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jeremiah J. Jameson and End Times Prophecy Report with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Link Disclaimer: inclusion of links to other blogs/websites is not necessarily an endorsement of all content posted in those blogs/websites.
[NOTE: The following articles are from a service. We neither endorse nor at times have much control over them–although we do, of course, enjoy articles originating from this website on this service. Some articles illustrate points made in ETPR articles; some are merely for the reader’s edification or education.
ALL such links appearing in End Times Prophecy Headlines, such as those below, should originate at ETPR.
RE: our link disclaimer: there are links, from time-to-time which appear on this site which we neither approve nor endorse. The frequency of these types of links will no doubt grow worse. All effort is made to remove such links when we become aware of them.]
End Times Prophecy Report 