Does that mean everyone who says Jesus is their LORD and Saviour will automatically be sealed & marked with the Holy Spirit?
I’m sorry to say, but the answer is no.
“On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’
But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” (Matthew 7:22-23)
I’m not saying we have the right to go around telling people “oh! You have the Holy Spirit in you.” Or “You don’t have the Holy Spirit in you!” No, that is not our place, nor do we have any right to judge this matter for ourselves and proclaim judgement over another.
What I’m saying is this: our mouths can say one thing, but our hearts can beat to another.
To be a Christian is more than words, more than actions; it is a transformation that begins from the inside out. Is your heart pure? Do you really love Jesus? Does every bone in your body, every pore of your being ache and long and desire to follow Jesus the Christ? Do your thoughts linger on God’s character, His laws & His works?
These unseen attitudes manifest themselves, evidence themselves, show themselves in your outward, visible actions and behaviour. Do curses and swear words flow like water from your lips? Do you laugh at the misfortune or at the expense of another? Do you share with people in need? Do you stop and help that blind man find his way to the MRT? Do you approach God with heavy footsteps and ask Him to forgive you when you sin against Him?
There is so much more to being a Christian than meets the eye. It definitely entails much more than just going to church week after week and saying grace before meals meal after meal.
It is okay to be confronted time and time again what a sinful people we are. It’s okay to struggle with sin and temptation and tests and trials. Every Christian comes face to face, whether he\she wants to or not, with that carnal, that sinful person he\she is. In fact, even with God’s Holy Spirit sealed securely within us, we still fall into sin.
“If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.
My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him.” (1 John 1:8-2:5)
But then we come to God in quiet prayer, knowing full well our short-comings and where we went wrong, confessing our sins to Him. That act of confession in itself is already evidence of the Holy Spirit working within you!
But if you are a genuine, authentic Christian, cling on to the promise “in Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:13-14)
I’m sorry to say, but the answer is no.
“On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’
But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” (Matthew 7:22-23)
I’m not saying we have the right to go around telling people “oh! You have the Holy Spirit in you.” Or “You don’t have the Holy Spirit in you!” No, that is not our place, nor do we have any right to judge this matter for ourselves and proclaim judgement over another.
What I’m saying is this: our mouths can say one thing, but our hearts can beat to another.
To be a Christian is more than words, more than actions; it is a transformation that begins from the inside out. Is your heart pure? Do you really love Jesus? Does every bone in your body, every pore of your being ache and long and desire to follow Jesus the Christ? Do your thoughts linger on God’s character, His laws & His works?
These unseen attitudes manifest themselves, evidence themselves, show themselves in your outward, visible actions and behaviour. Do curses and swear words flow like water from your lips? Do you laugh at the misfortune or at the expense of another? Do you share with people in need? Do you stop and help that blind man find his way to the MRT? Do you approach God with heavy footsteps and ask Him to forgive you when you sin against Him?
There is so much more to being a Christian than meets the eye. It definitely entails much more than just going to church week after week and saying grace before meals meal after meal.
It is okay to be confronted time and time again what a sinful people we are. It’s okay to struggle with sin and temptation and tests and trials. Every Christian comes face to face, whether he\she wants to or not, with that carnal, that sinful person he\she is. In fact, even with God’s Holy Spirit sealed securely within us, we still fall into sin.
“If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.
My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him.” (1 John 1:8-2:5)
But then we come to God in quiet prayer, knowing full well our short-comings and where we went wrong, confessing our sins to Him. That act of confession in itself is already evidence of the Holy Spirit working within you!
But if you are a genuine, authentic Christian, cling on to the promise “in Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:13-14)
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