In my walk with God, one of the things I have come to realize is that salvation is not an event; it is a process! Salvation is God's gift to anyone who wants to receive it, there is nothing we can do to earn it, nor is there anything we can do to save ourselves! But with salvation comes the responsibility to work out our salvation. That means that once we are saved, we must claim all that has become ours!
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:12b-13.
Through salvation, God gave us victory over sin. That victory applies not only to past sins but also to every sin we will ever commit. When we became Christians, God made us a new creation. God wants to continually build new things into our life as we walk with Him. God gave us His joy when He saved us, and He wants to fill us with His joy daily. Friends, let's understand something here-when we first repented of our sins, we relinquished our right to our life! We willingly gave control of our life over to God and asked Him to make us new, to lead us, to guide us, and we in turn have entered into a covenant of obedience. God continues to ask us to yield our will to Him and to follow His leading rather than setting our own direction for our life. Take care, that does not mean that if we do not do what He asks we will lose our salvation, it means that if we allow ourselves to turn from His direction here and now we will suffer the consequences of our actions here and now! When we were converted, God made everything available to us; how we implement what He has given us is our choice!
This is the great paradox of the Christian life. We are to work diligently on our faith, yet always with the awareness that only God can bring about lasting change in our lives. As we see God at work in us, we should be motivated to work even more diligently. God will not force His changes upon us; neither can we ourselves bring lasting change into our lives apart from the work of the Holy Spirit!
Friends, as we sense God developing an area of our life, join Him in His activity so that His gift of salvation will be demonstrated fully--to us and to others around us!
May God Richly Bless You Today!! H Trent!
"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:12b-13.
Through salvation, God gave us victory over sin. That victory applies not only to past sins but also to every sin we will ever commit. When we became Christians, God made us a new creation. God wants to continually build new things into our life as we walk with Him. God gave us His joy when He saved us, and He wants to fill us with His joy daily. Friends, let's understand something here-when we first repented of our sins, we relinquished our right to our life! We willingly gave control of our life over to God and asked Him to make us new, to lead us, to guide us, and we in turn have entered into a covenant of obedience. God continues to ask us to yield our will to Him and to follow His leading rather than setting our own direction for our life. Take care, that does not mean that if we do not do what He asks we will lose our salvation, it means that if we allow ourselves to turn from His direction here and now we will suffer the consequences of our actions here and now! When we were converted, God made everything available to us; how we implement what He has given us is our choice!
This is the great paradox of the Christian life. We are to work diligently on our faith, yet always with the awareness that only God can bring about lasting change in our lives. As we see God at work in us, we should be motivated to work even more diligently. God will not force His changes upon us; neither can we ourselves bring lasting change into our lives apart from the work of the Holy Spirit!
Friends, as we sense God developing an area of our life, join Him in His activity so that His gift of salvation will be demonstrated fully--to us and to others around us!
May God Richly Bless You Today!! H Trent!
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