Hi SBC ! What do you call that person who has not accepted the Holy Spirit ? Unsaved.
Correct.
However, we, of the earth, ie humans - go through "stages".
Born in sin - thus born in standing against God.
...Against Who? Against What?
...Sounds funny, a baby is AGAINST God, yet he knows not even what a god is....but yet true;
...Because if one is NOT in standing WITH God, he is AGAINST God.
Well, so the babe, begins learning ABOUT God. Now what is the babe? Standing WITH or WITHOUT God?
...Clearly he is without God's Spirit WITHIN him.
However, every babe, regardless of age, man, woman, child, WHO is hearing Gods WORD....and here's the KEY.....BELIEVING, Gods Word...
THEY ARE, called
BEGINNING, in FAITH -
which is to say - because they are hearing, because they are believing what they hear - Gods LIGHT, God POWER (ie light, Spirit) IS reflecting upon them (which results in them receiving from God, FAITH).
But what IF, they STOP, following, hearing, believing what they have heard?
Well, they then STOP receiving Gods light, power, faith in God.
And they then are called FALLEN FROM FAITH -
What if they GO BACK and again do the SAME ?
Then again they are called BEGINNING IN FAITH -
And what if they AGAIN stop?
Then again they are called FALLEN FROM FAITH -
How many times can a man believe then fall from faith?
As many times as:
1) he does so, during his physical life
It is to his own detriment, to physically die, during a time he has fallen from faith.
So what about a FORGIVEN, SAVED and BORN AGAIN MAN?
This is greater than FAITH. This is a commitment, to be ONLY Faithful to God, forever and always.
It is greater; Because as the term implies.... it is not only a Beginning Faith, it is FAITH-FULL.
Faith- FULLNESS, comes after a mans commitment to give his life to God.
It is God WHO, gives the man the FULLNESS of FAITH, that shall NEVER depart from the man.
Thus a man can NOT thereafter, FALL FROM FAITH.
The mans FULL, body, soul, and spirit, is FOREVER in FULL FAITH in God.
And THAT IS KEPT in it's FULLNESS, BY the POWER of God, that dwells WITHIN THE MAN.
A man claiming to be; saved, born again, faithful to God, son of God....are all words reflective
of a man having the Spirit of God, within him, forever.
A man saying he is a Christian, can imply, following in beginning faith, or in full faithfulness to God.
The fact is; God is not making us Christians.
The fact is; God is making us "sons of God".
God Bless,
SBC