Saved? vs Saved!

John 5:24 (NKJV)

24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.

Before we move into this devotional, think about what that verse is saying, really meditate upon it. It is telling us that most assuredly, we can know without a doubt that we are saved! Saved from eternal punishment, saved from the hurt and pain of this former world, assured of our place with Him eternally, saved with an exclamation point! This devotional really could stop there, of course, there is so much more to unwrap!

Saved?

How many times do we say one thing with seemingly all the confidence in the world while inwardly doubting everything? We went through a very large change in the department I manage at work recently. I gathered my five full-time employees and my 40+ subcontractors and with all the confidence I could muster, explained the change I was about to enact. On the inside, however, I was questioning whether or not I had thought of every potential pitfall or not. Thankfully, everything turned out great and we are a better department for it. We can be the same way when we are asked about our salvation. When we are asked if we have salvation, we can confidently say “absolutely” while inwardly wondering if we truly saved or not. Thankfully there is that “most assuredly” or in the KJV “verily, verily,” giving us confidence that if we hear His word and believe in Him, we shall inherit eternal life. Still not confident, let’s take a quick look at what our lives should look like.

Following His Commandments

John 14:15–16 explains… (15) “If you love Me, keep My commandments. (16) And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever… Before Christ, we were bound and held captive by fleshly desires, we did as our flesh wanted. A saved person should be held and directed by the Spirit. Have you replaced hard-living Friday nights with a church service, time in the word, or devoted time in prayer? You are probably saved!

What’s Coming Out Of Your Mouth?

Ephesians 4:29 tells us… (29) Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers… I am not going to get into some of the foul things that proceeded out of my mouth before Christ. Any referee that suffered the full-force of Al Goodrich’s mouth could testify that it wasn’t good. Let’s just say, not uplifting and encouraging. Instead of tearing people down, our new Christian tongues should be lifting people up, encouraging them, loving them. Is your mouth different now that you know Christ? You are probably saved!

Hope

Jeremiah 29:11 promises… (11) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope… I will admit, I worried about everything before Christ, from money to death itself. While I still find myself in a state of worry every once in a while, it is a lot different now. I worry about living a life that is pleasing to the Lord. I worry that my actions are not discouragin, but encouraging. Gone are the days that I worry about death. That worry was replaced by the amazing hope of stepping into eternal glory. If you have hope and assurance of your eternal destination, you are probably saved.

If You Hear & Believe

If you hear, believe, live a perfect life from now until your end, if you tithe enough, if you feed all of the homeless in your town, if you lead 500 people to the Lord, if you teach Sunday school every weekend, if you attend at least 75% of the services your church offers, if you never allow your mouth to get out of control, if you avoid even the appearance of sin… you are saved! Nope, that idea is not supported by scripture. If you hear, and from that hearing, you believe, you are saved exclamation point! Life should look a lot different now that you are saved, that is for sure, but, the only question is, have you heard and do you believe? If in fact you have heard and you believe, scripture states that you are indeed saved! Live in that assurance today, because our tomorrow is going to be amazing!

Closing Thoughts:

Hear + Believe = Eternal Salvation.

John 3:36 (NKJV)

36 He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”