THE REAL DEAL – Am I really a Christian? Part 1

Salvation (being rescued and preserved from the greatest calamity which is the conscious and permanent state of eternal torment in hell by having our sins forgiven, and instead receiving the assurance of eternal and abundant life with God through Jesus Christ) is the most important matter in one’s life. The Bible says that we can know for sure if we have eternal life. 1st John 5:13 says “these things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” It is possible to know for sure that you are saved.

Moreover, the Bible also tells us of ways to confirm our salvation. You may ask yourself: how can I make sure that I am really a Christian and that I have eternal life and that I am going to heaven? In the same epistle, John, inspired by the Holy Spirit, left us guidelines that we can use as a test to make sure that we are really saved, kind of the same way that a doctor checks for vital signs to make sure that a body is alive or not. The matter of salvation is so critical, that the Lord through the Apostle Paul left the following commandment in 2nd Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? So we ought to test ourselves to make sure that we are “THE REAL DEAL.”

The general idea is “change.” I heard once “A heart that has seen Jesus will never be the same.” Think about it, if you have really had an encounter with Jesus, your life will be rocked; mine has. So based on that, let’s start. Here is the test (and to make it easier, I’m going to put it in the form of questions):

1. Do you spend time with God? Do you enjoy fellowshipping with God? 1^st John 1:3 says “and our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son, Jesus Christ.” The first evidence that we are the real deal is our desire to have fellowship or spend time with our Lord. If we say that we are His follower, and do not spend time with Him that might be an indication that we haven’t had a saving encounter with Jesus. The word fellowship means companionship, friendship, wanting to be together, intimate familiarity. Do you have an unquenched desire to read His Word, to talk to Him in prayer, thanksgiving, praising and singing to Him?

This is just the first question. Stay tune, there is more to come soon…