I’ve gone over this lesson several times recently in the forums. Each time I like to add a little bit more to it. When I add more to what I am saying, don’t worry too much. I try to keep everything in harmony. So if you would like to know more about this, please check out my other forums concerning this topic.
So being saved is a process. Satan wants you to think this is a one time thing where all you have to do is say I repent and everything goes away. Being saved is actually a lifetime decision. But let’s get more into that after we discuss what it means to be saved.
When you are ready you will start by recognizing that you are a sinner. In Romans 3:23 it says For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. In doing this you can humble yourself. You must recognize that “we” are all sinners. “I” am not the only sinner, “you” are not the only sinner. We are all sinners. So we are saved by grace, and grace alone.
Now that you have admitted that you are a sinner you can move forward. You must now confess your sins. But in order to confess your sins you must know what they are. I have a couple of different pieces of scripture that I’d like to share with you, that are for the most part the “catch all” categories for sin. The first one is the Ten Commandments, and the second one is the 17 sins of the flesh. Let’s take a look at them both down below.
Exodus 20:1-17
The ten Commandments
1. I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
3 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
4 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
5 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
6 Thou shalt not kill.
7 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
8 Thou shalt not steal.
9 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
10 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
17 sins of the flesh
Galatians 5:19-21
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Now this list can be a bit difficult to understand, so let me turn you to a modern day translation. A man by the name of Wade M. Hughes wrote up an article on Sermon Central. In this article; not only does he translate the 17 sins of the flesh, but he also shows you where the sins show up in your modern daily life.
Know The 17 Works Of The Flesh?
Know The 17 Works Of The Flesh?
Once you have accepted that these are sins, now you can move on to repentance. Go through the lists one by one and confess all of your sins. God reads everything on your mind and Jesus reads everything on your heart, so you can’t hide any sins from either one of them. This should be a huge help to you if you are able to do all of this.
Now that you have repented, you need to hide from your sins. Don’t do any of the same behaviors that you were doing before that lead you to sin. This is a very conscious effort on your part. Think of the Ten Commandments as God’s law, and the sins of the flesh as misdemeanors (but take them very seriously), that are loosely related to God’s law.
Now let’s take a quick look at a scenario involving crime in the world today. If a man commit’s a crime he goes to jail. Now if he commit’s the same crime 5 different times and get’s caught 5 different times, how many times does he go to jail for the crime. Well he will go to jail 5 times. So even though we are saved by grace, this only saves us for the crimes against God that we have confessed and repented from.
So in saying this, I am telling you that once saved always saved is not a thing at all. It doesn’t exist. Satan just wants you to think it exist because he wants to pull you away from God. You can still backslide, but you will always be forgiven every time you confess.
From here it is a really good idea to get yourself baptized. If it is a possibility at all, you need to do it. If you have already been baptized it will be up to you to decide whether you need to do it again or not. You should know that baptism is a ceremony that shows that you have accepted Jesus as your lord. You get baptized when “you” have made the decision to turn your life from sin, and it is the representation of all of your sins being blotted out from your book of life. They are all forgiven at this point and you will know what you must do.
So if you are struggling with the next part a little, let me tell you a little more about what this life altering decision entails. This is a total submission to Jesus and to God. It’s a process where you are learning how to love God and love Jesus. Sometimes it will be about learning to love your fellow man. It doesn’t happen over night, but if you can’t love your fellow man, Jesus, and God for a lifetime; how are you going to make it through eternity with them. Life is full of trials and tribulations to get yourself ready for the kingdom of God. Besides Jesus plainly says in John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
So read your scriptures, find out what you should and shouldn’t be doing. Don’t model yourself after man in the scriptures but model your life after Jesus and God. Find out what things are good in life through the scriptures and do only those things. Being saved takes a commitment, and God refers to our union with him as us being the bride and him being the bridegroom. This doesn’t mean he wants us all to be girls so please don’t take that out of context. It’s just an analogy that defines how you have to prepare yourself for the kingdom of heaven.
I know this is a lot to ask of anyone, so I always advise people to take steps when they are ready. But you also have to know that you need to be ready before you die. Don’t worry too much, because if you are sincere in your repentance, the holy spirit will take almost your entire burden away from you. Because of this the process will be much easier for you.
Let me know how things went, and if you have more issues pop up, I’ll help you find which direction you need to go by showing you more scriptures related to your problems.
May God bless you and help you find your way to a true salvation. I will be praying for you.