God Expects Obedience and there will be Lost Rewards for Disobedience

Baptism is an expression of our desire to be cleansed by Christ; it does not save anyone. Just as the Lord's supper is an expression of our belief in what Christ did for us on the cross and the head covering for the woman is an expression of the church, and the lack of a head covering for the man is an expression of Christ. Husbands and wives are expressions of Christ and His church. They are symbols that tell a story, not means of salvation.

 
Christians are disobedient all the time, even though they are saved. All we have to look at is the disobedience in divorce and remarriage. We don't say all divorced and remarried people are unsaved, but we know at the very least they have been disobedient, ignoring the commands to not divorce and doubling down on the disobedience by remarrying.

 
My point is that disobedience to God's Word does not lose one their salvation. However, it may be an indicator that someone was never born again. This is why believers have an advocate with the Father, because we are not sinless, but we should be sinning less as we confess our sins throughout our lifetime to grow in holiness.

 
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?"

There will be those who are very disobedient to Christ and still make it into heaven; we know this because of the following Scripture.

1 Corinthians 3:14-16 "…14 If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as if through the flames. 16 Do you not know that you yourselves are God’s temple, and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?"

1 Corinthians 3:13-14
"His workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward."

All born-again believers will make it to heaven. We are judged not on salvation but according to what will be our rewards.

 
When God places His Holy Spirit in us as a guarantee of our inheritance, it is finished, we are transformed and no one or nothing can de-transform us.

 
2 Corinthians 5:16-18 "…16 So from now on we regard no one according to the flesh. Although we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:"

Those who have appeared to have walked away from Christ were never changed into a new creation; they came under their own efforts, never having trusted Christ. They were pretenders wanting to feel good about themselves without any change in their hearts.

 
If Christ has not changed someone, then they are not saved. No one can change themselves to gain heaven. It would be like a person who is desperately wicked changing his desperate wickedness; it is impossible. A desperately wicked unsaved person must be transformed, not reformed, and only Christ can transform someone and only if they want to be changed by Him.

Jeremiah 17:9
"9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?"

Ephesians 2:9-11 "…9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life. 11Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles in the flesh and called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision (that done in the body by human hands)—"

Many unsaved people can be very clever at pretending. They learn the verbiage of the church, sing the songs, do good deeds, but they are doing it all in their own power and full of pride, never having trusted Christ. They can be very convincing until they are challenged to ask God if they have been changed, then is when you see the real them emerge, the disgust, contempt, and serious rejection of the truth. God speaks of these types in the word and gives a warning in Matthew 7.

Matthew 7:21-23 "21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"

No harm can come from asking someone to evaluate themselves according to the Bible to see if they are saved by Christ. If there is anger, then that might be the answer that they are not born again. Those who are born again will want to know why you might think that. If we have misinterpreted them and they are saved, they will not be intimidated but confident of their salvation.

 
We are to continually challenge one another to walk in holiness.

 
1 Timothy 4:1-3 "1 Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons, 2 influenced by the hypocrisy of liars, whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. 3 They will prohibit marriage and require abstinence from certain foods that God has created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth."

Matthew 15:8-9
"‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”

Titus 1:15-16
" To the pure, all things are pure; but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure. Indeed, both their minds and their consciences are defiled. / They profess to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed."

1 John 4:1
"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world."

There are those who will chastise us for questioning the salvation of one who walks consistently disobediant. Those who chastise for confronting to correct are themselves ignoring much of scripture that guides us to help those in the gathering learn if they are saved or help grow those who have been changed by Christ.

 
May we all grow stronger and bolder in these last days, never deviating from the love of Christ to be accepted by the culture.

Never Listen to a Future Teller!

I do not accept anyone telling me they have received a prophecy about the future for me or anyone else.

 
To do such a thing is to proclaim to be the mediator between me and God the Father. Jesus Christ is the only Mediator between me and God, as is true with all born-again believers who have the Holy Spirit.

 
We no longer need prophets who tell the future; we walk by faith according to the revealed word of God. If God wants me to know something, He tells me.

 
A persistent desire for special, supernatural signs to prove God's existence or power, instead of trusting in what God has already revealed, is a lack of faith.
Many people who look for miracles often neglect the commands and principles of God, even justifying disobedience because of the miracle.

 
I will not allow anyone to diminish my faith by playing the Holy Spirit on my behalf.

 
I have no need to know the future because I have faith, God will tell me what is needed when it is needed.

 
Matthew 16:3-4 "…3 and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but not the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Then He left them and went away."

Those who continually seek signs and wonders will be fooled by the devil when he parades his false miracles that seem so right but are deceptive and detract from walking by faith in Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 11:13-15 "…13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions.…"

Satan comes as an angel of light, pretending to be from God, causing many people to place their trust in signs and wonders instead of Christ Himself.

 
Attempts to bolster faith by the need to "see" miracles diminishes faith, it does not build it. Paul trusted Christ through his infirmity, even when he was never healed of his physical problems.

 
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
"8 Concerning this I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might leave me. 9 And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in distresses, in persecutions, in difficulties, in behalf of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong."

The greatest faith occurs when we trust Christ even when things are hard. We know He goes through with us, often not bailing us out but building our faith because we remain trusting in Him when difficulties do not subside.

 
It is easy to trust Christ when things are easy and we are getting everything we want. True faith is tested when the trials come.

Matthew 5:45 "so that you may prove yourselves to be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

Our faith is seen by the world the best in our unwavering joy and peace through the trials.

 
Matthew 5:44-45 "…44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

No one escapes the trials or storms of life; how we respond to them is what reveals our character, whether we walk in the flesh or whether we walk in the Spirit.
The most foolish and mean-spirited thing one can say to another person in the middle of a trial is "you don't have enough faith", as though one must muster up faith and all their troubles will go away.

 
The greatest faith I have seen in people has been from those who lived a lifetime of trials and still remained faithful to God's Word. Their joy was present in the middle of their tears; they praised God even when it hurt. Perhaps a good account to read is that of Job, who suffered greatly and yet never was angry with God. He mourned and prayed, but never demonstrated anger or distrust in God.

 
Galatians 6:10 "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith."

The best thing we can do for those who are suffering is to pray for the strength for them to endure through it. Because, after all, only God knows when to lift the suffering or if it will ever be lifted. Our kindness is in realizing we don't know God's will for someone else, and He can give them the strength necessary to endure.

 
We can pray for healing too for others, but we never want to pray against God's Will, and we don't know what His will is for someone else.

 
James 1:12 "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him."

The trials may be emotional persecution as one is rejected by those who do not love the truth, or they can be physical persecution from others for our faith. Or, they may simply be a lifelong illness that will keep us humble. There is no gain without pain and suffering builds confidence and perseverance.

 
Romans 5:3-5
"3 And not only this, but we also celebrate in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; 4 and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; 5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

May we stop looking for special miracles to boast about and begin trusting Christ every day for the small matters as well as the big ones and everything in between.
Our greatest witness to the world is our demeanor and faith through everything difficult.

 
Philippians 4:5-7 "…5 Let your gentleness be apparent to all. The Lord is near. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Be Transformed in Your Minds by Christ

1 Corinthians 14:20 "20 Brothers and sisters, do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature." It's a command!

How do we become mature? We read the Bible and seek Christ to show us our blind spots and change our minds about the things that were taught to us that were not Biblical.

 
All of us were taught things that did not please God, even if they were well-meaning. It is human nature to add to God's Word our own interpretations unless we are asking Christ to open our eyes to everything that needs changing in our way of thinking.

 
It is human nature to interpret things according to the culture in which we live every day. It is easier, and we can keep our friends without losing anything.

 
When God changes our thinking, we will lose most people in our sphere of influence. Very few people want to know the truth that comes from God; they would rather maintain what is comfortable and familiar and more pleasurable.

 
Our way of thinking determines our attitudes and actions. Those who have wrong thinking will act disobediently, those who think with the mind of Christ will act righteously and be dedicated to what God shows them. This angers many people; we know this by what they did to the apostles and to Jesus Christ Himself. They murdered them and felt justified in doing so as they determined in their minds that those who followed Christ were troublemakers and blasphemers.

 
Romans 12:2 "2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

Those who think like the world are inwardly angry with those who follow Christ; even if we do not see it on the outside, it will emerge when we bring them the gospel.

 
Matthew 7:13-14
13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

We are "living epistles", the mere practice of living for Christ will irritate the demons of those who do not know Him. They will show us who they are by their responses to us. Those who love Christ will love us, and those who hate Christ will hate us.

 
John 13:35 "35 By this all people will know that you are My disciples: if you have love for one another.”

Matthew 10:21-22 "…21 Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved."

We do not see in our country children putting parents to death, but we do see the angst and hatred that demonstrates they would if they could. Family members are hell bent on drama for no good reason, believing they have one, they deceive themselves into justification for their hatred.

 
This is the mentality of the end times, when the culture as a whole claims to have religion but has denied Christ in their attitudes that lead to lifestyle.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 Godlessness in the Last Days
"1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people."

We must keep our minds focused on Christ so that we do not become like those around us. It is easier to fall into what we see all the time than do the hard work of prayer and dedication to Christ to avoid becoming like the world.

 
1 Corinthians 10:11-13 "11Now these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall. 13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it. "12 Therefore let the one who thinks he stands watch out that he does not fall."

Salvation Depends Entirely on Jesus Christ and His Sacrifice

If salvation depended on our own efforts with good deeds then our salvation depends on us. Our salvation depends entirely on Jesus Christ, Who paid the price for our sin.
Ephesians 2:9-10 "…9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life."

2 Corinthians 5:17
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!"

Philippians 2:13
"For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose."

Titus 2:14
"He gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds."

Colossians 1:10
"so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,"