Before I officially begin, let me start by quoting Matthew 13:57–” So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” In Hebrew the use of the word “offend” has many meanings, it is not simply to hurt one’s feelings but rather to shock the conscience. Prepare to be shocked! In Hebrews 10:2–” For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins.” The meaning of this verse translates to if we walk away from God, then even if we once worshipped him, we will no longer feel conviction in our spirit and lose awareness of our sin. If we lose consciousness of sins, we no longer have an aversion to it and we will easily give into temptation. By offering ourselves, we draw near to the Lord through submission and adoration. In Hebrews 10:26-29–” For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?” This is an unforgiveable sin.
I personally cannot imagine a life without God after experiencing being saved, it is hard to fathom that someone could back-slide to the point of being forsaken. To be forsaken means to be abandoned. Galatians 3:26-27 explains that–” For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” We are all adopted sons and daughters of God when we saved as written in Romans 8:15–” For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” There are three parts to salvation: first we are saved from the penalty of sin (death), then we are set free from the desire to sin, and the final part involves ascending into Heaven to have everlasting life where we no longer live with sin.
Salvation is not a one and done, nor is redemption a free ticket to Heaven. This truth is revealed in Romans 8:1-8–” There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in use who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
I invited Jesus into my heart when I was 17 during the most trying time in my young life. To mortal eyes, this was a stroke, the result of pressure on the left side of my brain from a deadly brain infection. However, even my neurosurgeon noted that this near-death experience was spiritual. Interestingly, the anniversary of my salvation is also my husband’s earthly birthday. April 19th, 2009, I was born again. My spirit fought when I was not consciously aware of the events taking place because I had been induced into a medical coma. My dad rebuked the doctor’s diagnosis when they stated I only had a “15% chance of survival” and that even if I survived, I would be paralyzed or braindead. He would not accept it. My family laid hands on me, even my uncle tickled my foot that was paralyzed, and I gave a little kick. I fought through multiple sedatives and reached out to my mom and dad. Jesus saved me in more ways than one that day. I became a Child of God when the Holy Spirit indwelt within me, but I still had much to learn and one of the most important things I have learned is about repentance.
When I was younger it was instilled in me that to repent meant to beg for forgiveness for everything I have done, this led to me counting my faults daily, or a record of wrong being kept against me. Repentance means to renew your mind, and through consciousness of sins we know to abstain. If we change our hearts and minds, our actions also change. James 4:8–” Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” In the Left Behind series, when the rapture took place in the movie, a pastor of a church was left behind while his congregation was raptured away. He shouted to God that he taught the message, but that was ALL he did. He didn’t live for God, and it was implied that he didn’t even practice what he preached. To be truly saved, we are to submit as Doulos servants to the Lord and believe. Faith is NOT automatic, and salvation can be lost if we continue to disobey and insult the Holy Spirit. Man has free will to choose to follow God or to choose to turn away. Hebrews 2:1–” Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things that we have heard, lest we drift away.”
