Anyone who came to Christ to feel safe and good about themselves was never born again.
It is only by realizing how sinful we are that drives us to want to be changed into a new creation by Christ.
God will not allow us to use Him, He will only save those who love Him and want to obey His commands.
Those who love Christ want to know His will for them, they want to please Christ in them because of this love.
Those who spurn the commands and principles of Christ while claiming to be Christian are lying, they do not love Him nor do they care what He thinks, they just want what they perceive to be the safety they think they will gain by claiming His name.
It is also clear when someone is born again they love the brethren, they love all born-again believers, this is their family, and they are dedicated to being helpful in our walk with Him.
John 13:34-35 "…34 A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are My disciples if you love one another.”
We know when someone is born again because the Spirit of God in us connects with the Spirit of God in all those who love Him.
Pretenders can say all the right words, attend a church gathering every week, and keep themselves from committing crimes that others can see, but they have no love and do not possess any of the fruit of the Spirit.
Ephesians 5:22-23 "22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.…"
Those who are born again don't have to be told not to steal because they do not want to. If they fall into sin from weakness, they are convicted by the Holy Spirit and confess to be cleansed of that sin. Those who are believers and do not confess will regress in their walk due to disobedience against the promptings of the Holy Spirit. They will never be comfortable and God will discipline them to bring them back to obedience.
Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” 7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"
Those who are of the world and reject Christ are not disciplined, God leaves their own actions to chastise them. Often they don't even realize they are miserable because they think their attitudes of rebellion are normal for everyone.
Hebrews 12:7-9 "…7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you do not experience discipline like everyone else, then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live?…"
When a believer ignores the Holy Spirit they will miss the blessings of obedience and the fellowship of the Lord, the Holy Spirit will go silent.
1 Thessalonians 5:18-20 "…18 Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not extinguish the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt,"
Believers can put the fire of the Holy Spirit out, leaving their lives without help and without comfort. The Holy Spirit will not leave them because He is the seal of their salvation, but we can live willfully refusing to hear the Holy Spirit while missing all the blessings He has for believers, the joy will leave, the help with problems will leave, we will go through hardship without comfort and our witness to the unsaved will be ruined until we repent, confess our sin of wilfulness and begin again to obey Him.
There are those who will come into heaven having no rewards but they will be saved, don't ask me to explain this I don't understand why someone would not want to consult the Holy Spirit and remain in constant communication with Him, but God said it and I believe Him.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15 "10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it.
11 For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw,
13 each one’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each one’s work.
14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.
15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire."
Sometimes it is difficult in our day to tell the difference between a believer and a non-believer because we are living in an apostate age and many believers are acting like pretenders who never found Christ.
However, we can know them by their fruit, as God mentioned in Matthew 15:20. Our duty is to challenge those who walk disobediently to ask God if they are saved, perhaps they were never born again.
2 Corinthians 13:5-6 " 5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Can’t you see for yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you— unless you actually fail the test? 6 And I hope you will realize that we have not failed the test.…"
There are many I have known who lack the fruit of God's Spirit and the Spirit of God within me does not connect at all with these people. In these cases, the Lord has made it clear to avoid them when they claim to be Christian but act like the world.
We are influenced by those we spend much time with, the very reason God told us to "come out from among them and be separate." 2 Corinthians 6:17
1 John 2:15-17
"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. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever."
James 4:4
"You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God."
Colossians 2:8
"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ."
