by Terry Laughlin | May 1, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
“He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.” (Titus 3: 5,6)
Regeneration is the divine act which imparts to the repentant believer a new life in personal union with Jesus Christ. Christianity is not another world religion. It is the relationship with Jesus Christ that takes man’s fallen nature and regenerates sinners by bringing into them the life of God. It is a spiritual change wrought in peoples’ hearts by an act of God. The very nature of regeneration involves union with God and Christ through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit within the born again Christian.
This union manifests itself in various ways: 1.) It is characterized in a newness of life: “We are therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Jesus was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:4) Christians are able to count themselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, sin no longer reigns in their mortal bodies, so that they no longer obey its evil desires. (Romans 6: 11, 12) 2.) This union results in a new heart and spirit: God says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit in you and move you to follow My decrees and be careful to keep My laws.” (Ezekiel 36: 26, 27) This enables Christians to spiritually hear the voice of God and joyfully desire to do His will as He directs them through the written Word of God. 3.) The regenerated Christian can be a partaker in God’s nature: 2 Peter 1: 3,4 says; “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil.”
Regenerated Christians are able to participate in God’s divine nature only by first having accepted Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord. Then the Holy Spirit draws them to prayerfully read and study the Word of God. He draws them to prayer, Christian fellowship, Christ-honoring music and solid Christian reading material so that they are enabled to surrender to His gentle promptings and leading’s. God’s great Salvation, found only through Jesus Christ, (Acts 4: 10 – 12) has purchased more than eternal life. It has given you the opportunity to literally be made new, regenerated, enabling you to say no to the pleasures of this world, freeing you from the bondage of the flesh and sin, as well as empowering you to overcome the temptations of the devil.
Will you join those who have been regenerated by the power of God’s Holy Spirit? Invite Christ into your heart and life today!
by Terry Laughlin | May 1, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
There are marks of true Christianity. The characteristics of a born again Christian are seen by all. Three evidences of a man’s acceptance of God’s great Salvation are repentance, faith, and obedience. Children who truly love their parents will strive to obey them. People can see which children belong to what set of parents by the way the children are responding to which adults. There are children who have parents who sacrificially love and provide for them. It is heart sickening to see these children disrespect their parents. In contrast it is heart warming to see children joyfully obey such parents.
God by His grace has given life, talents and opportunities to all of mankind. There are two kinds of responses from man to God. First, man has taken life, talents and opportunities to serve selfish ambition and pride. Second, man in repentance, through faith in Jesus Christ and obedience has surrendered his entire life over to the Lord. Paul wrote in Romans 1:5, “Through Him and for His Name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes through faith.” Through the written Word, Paul is calling you to come to Christ and become true saints, obedient to God’s will for your life. Those who are truly saved will strive to be obedient to Jesus Christ and they are changed people. Paul thanked God for the Roman Gentiles who were Christians. He wrote to them, “…Though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” (Romans 6: 17, 18)
You can determine the temperature of your heart for God by the thermometer of obedience. The beloved John wrote, “This is love for God; to obey His commands…” (1 John 5:3) Jesus said, “If anyone loves Me, he will obey my teaching.” He also added, “He who does not love me will not obey My teachings. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the father who sent me.” (John 14: 23 – 24)
Matthew Henry wrote, “It ought to be the great care and endeavor of everyone of us to follow the Lord fully. We must in the course of obedience do God’s will and do service to His honor.” One of the evidences of man receiving God’s great Salvation is obedience. If the Holy Spirit of God is not moving you to obedience to God, then you’re not saved. If you are a Christian and you are not walking in step with the Holy Spirit, and you are purposely walking in any kind of disobedience, then you are breaking the heart of God. Christians who walk in obedience to Lord are like children who are responding responsibly to the sacrificial love of their parents.
Are you walking in obedience to God? Are you responding appropriately to the sacrificial love of Jesus Christ? He died for you. Receive Christ today as personal Savior and Lord.
by Terry Laughlin | May 1, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
The second truth relating to man’s acceptance of God’s great salvation is true Biblical faith. Faith is the indispensable channel of salvation. In Hebrews 11:6 we are told that “…without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Hebrews 11:1 gives a Scriptural definition of faith, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
The Greek word for faith as it is used in Hebrews 11:1 means to put trust in and to have a holy fear of God. It is born from the conviction that God sovereignly loves His children. This faith involves a complete surrender to His will. We see this type of faith in Jesus in Gethsemane. He prayed “Abba, Father, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:36) Jesus was about to face the hardest test of obedience that He would ever go through for the salvation of mankind and He showed forth true Biblical faith. A faith full of trust, confidence and assurance in God the Father.
Faith is not a leap in the dark, it is being sure of who God is and believing in what His Word says enough to let it direct your life and test everything you hear and read to what the Bible says. The key to greatness with God and being useful in His service is not in a developed talent or exercising a gift. It is having enough faith in Him to completely lay our lives, jobs, finances, and families into His hands, regardless of the outcome, because God can be fully trusted.
“Being sure” means to lay hold of the foundation, knowing His assurance and guarantee. Dr. A. T. Robertson in his exposition of Hebrews chapter 11 tells us “…this is being sure of what He has spoken. If your faith does not find rest upon the written Word of God, it is not Biblical faith.” Too many treat faith as if they believe hard enough God will give them what they want, with no concern for God’s will. Others won’t take God at His Word. Both attitudes are a sin against God. The Greek word for “certain” is a legal term meaning evidence that is accepted for conviction, evidence by which invisible things are proved and we are convinced of their reality. It is proof so powerful that it causes you to have hope for the promises yet to come.
People who have received God’s great salvation have genuine faith. They seek first His kingdom and righteousness, because they know His promises of provision are true. (Matthew 6:33) They walk being led of the Holy Spirit as He illuminates the Word of God into their hearts. The righteous live by faith. (Galatians 3: 11) Christians keep themselves from the love of money and they are content with what God has given them, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5)
If you are not walking and living in true Biblical faith, then invite Jesus Christ into your heart to be Savior and Lord and join the body of Christ, those who live by faith in God. Do you have Biblical faith?
by Terry Laughlin | May 1, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
The birth of a baby is a wonderful thing! Doctors, nurses and parents regularly speak of the miracle of the birth of a child. News of a child’s birth is often reported by newspaper and radio, especially in rural areas.
Exciting as it is, however, no natural birth of a child can compare to the awesome supernatural birth of a child of God. Though the birth of Jesus Christ was announced by an angel of the Lord and though people were amazed at what the shepherds told them about Jesus, only a few gave glory to God as the angels did. In the same way today, few note the birth of a new child of God. It will probably not be announced in the newspaper or on the radio and sadly few even in the church will rejoice over this miracle of God. Nevertheless, Jesus said, “I tell you, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7)
Being born-again is a necessity. Jesus clearly told Nicodemus (a religious leader of that day), “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” (John 3:3) Jesus’ statement applies to everyone, “You must be born again.” (John 3:7) A minister saying nice things, or having hymns sung at your funeral, or the paper announcing that you were a member of such and such church will not gain you entrance into heaven.
In the Greek, born “again” means born “from above.” Many Scriptures describe what God will do in the life of a person who, through true repentance, accepts Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord. Ezekiel 36: 26, 27 is one of the clearest, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit in you and move you to follow My decrees and be careful to keep My laws.” A heart of stone is inflexible, unyielding and insensitive. It is not apt to receive from or have any devoted affection toward its Creator. A man with a heart of stone has no fellowship with the Lord. He does not do the will of God. He does only what seems right in his own eyes which will lead to his destruction.
Until you are born-again, you are spiritually dead. You may even attend church, use church language, and hang out with professing Christians. But unless you are born-again it is like dressing a corpse in clean, fresh clothing. God alone can give physical life when your are born, and God alone can give spiritual life to you in what Jesus calls being born-again. When God supernaturally gives you a heart of flesh and puts His Spirit in you, you become sensitive and alive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Only then are you able to determine and do the will of God. Thus knowing the joy that comes from obedience to the Word of God. Once the Holy Spirit of God has entered your heart to implant the life of Christ within you, you will never be the same! Guaranteed!
Finally, this essential point must be crystal clear. Until you are born-again, you are unsaved, unpardonable, without God and without true hope. In order to have spiritual life and be able to enter heaven, Jesus said, “You must be born again.” (John 3:7)
by Terry Laughlin | May 1, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
This question was once asked, “If you could choose what you want most in life, what would you ask for?” The most common answer was “Peace.”
People want peace in their marriages, families, workplaces, country and world. Our country has some of the best medical and psychological treatment centers, highest educational institutions and worldwide communication abilities. Yet with all of these things, most people are yet without true inner peace. The results are devastating… broken marriages, split families, hatred, rebellion, financial anxiety, a country unsettled. The world will offer you peace through many forms of escapism… drugs, alcohol, immoral relationships, constant entertainment. It is sought through all forms of pleasure, self-satisfaction and positive thinking. Many believe that peace is defined as the absence of trouble. They refuse to face the problems in their lives believing that this is finding peace. The world, however, has never held the answer to true peace.
You can choose to have true peace. True peace comes not from man but from God. This peace is the fruit of the Holy Spirit spoken of in Galatians 5: 22. This peace means to be in harmony with God, to be bound, joined and woven together with God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. It also means to be assured of, confident of and secure in the love and care of God. There is a consciousness and a sure trust that God will provide, guide, strengthen, sustain, encourage, deliver and save completely those who seek Him with all their hearts. This supernatural peace comes first and foremost from receiving Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord. Second, it comes from a knowledge of God’s Word.
The Apostle Paul knew this peace. He suffered greatly because of his love for the Lord, love for God’s truth and because of his commitment to the commission given to him by Jesus Christ. Yet in all this, his heart was kept in perfect peace. He had been imprisoned, stoned, left for dead and scourged by the Romans, and yet he said in Romans 8: 28, “And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” Note the conditions of knowing God’s peace: 1.) You must love God, and 2.) you must be called according to His purpose, which means fitting into His plan and into His perfect will for your life. Most reject God’s peace because they surrender to their own selfishness and their lust for the pleasures of this world.
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you.” A legacy of inner peace is offered to all who know Jesus Christ, regardless of their circumstances. In these days of uncertainty and distress, will you receive Jesus Christ into your life? He is the Giver of eternal life and the Prince of Peace!
by Terry Laughlin | Apr 30, 2016 | Evidence of Salvation
1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” To “purify” (katharizo) is to cleanse the spiritual heart from the filth, pollution and contamination of sin. As the child of God is sanctified through the washing of the Word of God and the cleansing work of the Holy Spirit, he is more and more becoming like Jesus Christ, thus he is being freed from the admixture of a life controlled by the flesh and the world, to enjoying a Holy Spirit led life.
Chemistry has performed many wonderful feats of transformation. What is more black and dirty and unpromising than coal tar? Yet it has been changed into the most beautiful useful colors and lotions.
What can be more filthy and unpromising than a God-hating, sin loving, blaspheming sinner, steeped in a cesspool of iniquity, and possessed by the spirit of the devil? Yet the purifying grace promised in 1 John 1:9 has changed many such a man and enabled them to become fellow workers of the Lord Jesus.
One such man was John Bunyan – He was born to hard working parents who tried to set John on the right course in life, yet rebellion moved him into a life of darkness, becoming the ring leader of many youth who loved all manners of vice and ungodliness.
God was faithful to warn John, he writes, “The Lord even in my childhood, did scare and affright me with fearful dreams and did terrify me with dreadful visions.” Even in his adult life John was able to recognize God judgments and mercy in his life, yet still retained his hard heart. John writes, “I sinned still and grew more and more rebellious against God and careless of my own salvation. It was my delight to be taken by the devil at his will: being filled all unrighteousness.” He loved sinning for the devil, indulging the flesh with all the world had to offer.
However, after suffering the consequences of sin, John finally surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The Lord did a powerful cleansing in John’s spiritual heart, enabling him to become a great soldier of Christ, standing against false teachings in the church and a hard worker in the spread of the Gospel. His stand ended him up in prison for 12 years, were he enjoyed the Holy Spirit’s enablement to write the famous Christian allegory, “Pilgrims Progress.”
The blood of Christ is a life changing, purifying cleanser of the Spiritual heart enabling the worst God hating sinner to repent and become a solder of Christ who is equipped to serve the Lord, even in the most difficult circumstances in life. Any repentant sinner could be used of God to do a work that changes lives long after they have gone home to be with the Lord.
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