Realizing the dreadful wrath of God that is coming on a wicked world, and knowing that the majority of people will be judged guilty, we begin to understand the value of being in a saved position.  Most people have not met God’s one requirement of escaping the flames—“that you should be believers in Him whom He has sent" John 6:29.

            The issue is far too important to go by opinion—only the Word of God can reveal the truth on this important subject.  We must know what it means to be saved.  When a person begins to reach out for God and to place their faith in Him for life issues, Satan becomes very active with temptations and suggestions to get us away from trusting God.  Even after years of living by faith, the devil can bring discouragement and begin to influence our thinking.

            Denominational church members often seem joyful and prosperous, while we are harassed and tempted by the devil.  Satan suggests that we are not where we should be spiritually.  The truth is that Satan will fight anyone who is trusting God right, and that most professed Christians are living like the world—not walking by faith and not trusting God for anything. 

Satan suggests that these professed Christians are saved, but anyone walking in obedience to the Word is not saved, because they are trying to earn favor with God.  The truth is that if we are trusting God in faith, it will draw the fire of the devil.  Ephesians 6:12 “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against…the spiritual forces of evil.”  We must be reminded that the sin nature wants to believe everything Satan suggests, and not believe anything God has written.

We must not be influenced by the experiences of others, but only by what God has said in His Word, because the Christian life is an individual matter between us and God.  The Word is to mean everything.  John 1:1 ”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  The Word is God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit speaking to us as One.

Many denominational church members have a false peace, but if they are not trusting God in true believing faith, for the issues of this life, sudden destruction could come upon them.  1 Thessalonians 5:3 “When they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them… And they shall not escape.”

The apostle said 4-5 ”But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.  You are all sons of the light and sons of the day.  We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.”  God will enlighten any willing heart to see that peace, protection, health, healing, and every daily need, is a blood-purchased right of the believer.  We must place ourselves and families under the blood in faith every day.

Trials and temptations are part of the Christian life.  "We must go through many hardships [afflictions] to enter the kingdom of God," Acts 14:22.  When the apostle Paul and his companions returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, they encouraged the disciples to “remain true [continue in, hold fast] to the faith.”

Wherever we are spiritually, the devil will try to hinder and discourage.  Tests of faith are part of living by faith.  1 Peter 1:6 ”In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials.”  When we meet trials according to the Word, we are continuing in the faith and holding fast to God’s truth.

Faith is refined by the trials we meet, so these tests are far more valuable than the entire wealth of the world.  1 Peter 1:7 ”These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

A spiritual battle is waged every day to get our attention, our life, and our soul.  Satan is trying to hinder our faith and to discourage our walk.  He wants us to be in an unsaved position of not believing in faith and not trusting God for real-life issues.

All of God’s dealings with us is to give us His paradise kingdom, and all of Satan’s lies to us is to put us in the lake of fire.  The devil will always oppose us in divine things, but will help us do worldly things.  His entire purpose is to have our faith dissolved by the time we pass into eternity.

God knows that if we believe in His Son, and place a trusting faith in His atonement sacrifice, we will be saved.  1 John 5:13 ”I write all this to you in order that you who believe in the Son of God may know for certain that you already have the Life of the Ages.”  Trusting God in believing faith is evidence that we believe in the Son of God for the forgiveness we need.

This life is a school, with tests along the way, and God wants us to graduate.  The devil is determined that we are not prepared, but God is working to have us be prepared by teaching and testing us along the way.  The gift of forgiveness is free to anyone willing to trust Him in faith while they are here on this earth.

We are right with God through our faith in His Son.  Colossians 1:22 ”Now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.”  We go directly to God and trust Him for all things.  We are holy in His sight Colossians 1:23 ”if you continue in your faith [continue to believe this truth], established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.”

Being saved means having the Holy Spirit, seeing ourselves forgiven by faith in the atonement of Christ, and continuing to trust God for the issues of this life.  The only reason we meet with temptations, is to have the opportunity to meet them according to the Word.  After we have been tempted “for a short time” and met them right, God “Himself make you perfect, firm, and strong” 1 Peter 5:10.

            The trials we meet can be in various forms—a physical attack, a request for money, an insulting co-worker, being cheated, or tempted to get revenge, but no matter what it is or how unjustified it may be, we cannot resent it, but place it before God in prayer.  We are to do as Jesus said Luke 6:35 “Love your enemies!  Do good to them! Lend to them!  And don’t be concerned that they might not repay.  Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High.”

            God’s Word explains how to meet trials and temptations so that we would know if we are in a saved position.  How we meet these things shows us if we are heading toward heaven or not.  Many people think they are saved, but there is more to being saved than just saying words.

            To be converted means to be changed, and Matthew 18:3 "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  Outward things like baptism, looking pious, and saying religious words mean nothing in themselves, but “keeping God’s commands is what counts” 1 Corinthians 7:19.  It is what happens after our conversion that counts and shows whether we are saved or not.

            There is a beginning, a learning process, and a perfecting of our faith in Christ.  There is a change in our thinking and a revolution of our living.  Unless we change from trusting in anything and everything but God, and learn to depend on Him like a child depends on an adult for everything, we would not enter God’s kingdom.

            Most human opinions and Bible teaching are opposite on this saved issue.  The Bible places the test of being saved at the end of the Christian life, but the false teacher places it at the beginning.  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 crown of life is eternal life—given to those who continued to trust God in faith through all trials and tests.  Many think that when a person is born again, they have a ticket to heaven that can never be revoked, but the Bible does not teach that.

            Hebrews 10:38-39 ”My righteous one will live by faith.  And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.  But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed [to perdition; Webster’s: loss of the soul in Hell], but of those who believe and are saved [gain possession of their souls].”

            Being saved means three things.  There is a beginning of salvation when we confess our sins in repentance toward God and accept His Son as our personal Savior.  Next—which many religious groups do not teach and often oppose—is to commit our life totally to God as they did in the Bible and to receive the Holy Spirit Who inspires faith to believe God’s promises.

            The third step answers the question of being saved.  It is whether we live by faith in the living God for the issues of this life, or not.  If we meet things as the Word says, we will be in a scriptural position concerning—divine healing, finances, training children, protection, meeting things at work, and all other circumstances.  We are in a saved position when we are righteous in the sight of God by a genuine faith in the sacrifice of His Son.

            Until we are living by believing faith in the atonement work of Christ, we are not in a saved position.  However, if we truly repent before God, totally commit our life to Him, and meet the circumstances of life as God says, we will not be “shrinking back from the faith,” but will be among “those who believe for the saving of the soul.”  That is what it means to be saved!

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