Religious or Redeemed ?

Often when it is afforded me the opportunity to share my testimony, or part of it, my most often told story is giving my life to Jesus Christ. What made the event so iconic is that it happened after my serving in ministry for 9 years! How is that possible?

Well, it’s very easy to do. Many believe religion is redemption.

The most frequently mistaken acts for salvation we have found are among the Catholic denomination. A few years ago it was my joy to pray with one such person for salvation who was raised Catholic. When asked if she was saved, she replied “yes, I was baptized as a baby”. Then my question was “how, in light of scripture, could she have made this decision as a baby who had yet to reach the age of the knowledge of good and evil”? She stared blankly at me for a moment and then replied “you know, that had never occurred to me before now”!

Romans 10:9  “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

Romans 10:10  “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

One of the greatest tricks of the enemy is to convince you that you are already saved. Well, if you cannot remember making a conscious decision to give your life to Christ, then you are not saved. If you were asked to name the first (kiss/date/driving a car/etc.) in your life, you would remember the event. You might  not recall the date, time, etc. – but the memory of the event did happen!

If this is not true of your “first” decision to give your life to Christ, then how is it you have done so?

Pastor Ray

Thought for the Week

Beginnings always have included a decision to begin.

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