ARE YOU?

(1Pe 4:17) For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

Are you saved? You might ask, “Why do you ask such questions?” “What's the big deal about being saved?”

I ask because I truly care about you. You are a good person, a friend, a neighbor, a co-worker. I feel somewhat protective about those I care about. I would certainly warn you about any dangers that were in your path, or coming up from behind. I would never want to see you hurt or killed if at all possible for me to prevent such a thing. I expect that you would grant me the same friendship and consideration. That is why I ask, are you saved?

(Gen 1:1) In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

God also created everything in and on the earth, man and woman included. (Gen 1:27)

And so it began. Adam the first man fashioned by the very hands of God, and from his body, God made Eve, the first woman. Their home was in the Garden of Eden. God desired that they take care of and cultivate the garden for Him. They did so with joy. Eden was really and truly heaven-on-earth. Here was complete innocence, no violence, no lust, no pride, only joy and peace. Even the birds, beasts and all the animals, including the creeping ones got along well with each other and with man. There were no predators. All creatures were Vegans!

Innocence prevailed in this heaven-on-earth. God was so pleased.

God had one prohibition for Adam. Just one. Do not eat from the tree that is in the middle of the Garden. Adam passed this rule onto his bride Eve and included that she should not even touch the fruit of that tree. (Gen 2:16-17)

We know that Satan used his craftiness and charm to lure Eve into eating of the fruit of that forbidden tree, and she gave Adam fruit as well and he also ate.

In an instant, the innocence of Adam and Eve was ripped away, as sin and death was immediately introduced into mankind through the seed of the only man who existed, Adam. From this point forward, SIN became the default behavior for all mankind that followed. It was as though man's DNA was changed and would be passed on to all generations. The penalty for this sin is death, and the sentence immediately pronounced.

It is this sin and the standing sentence on all of us that drives us to ask ... ARE YOU SAVED?

Just as Adam was sinless, God gave us Jesus, also sinless. Jesus, through His death and in His blood, corrects the grievous error of Adam, and redeems us, returning each of us to that pure innocence that was found in the Garden of Eden. It is God's gift to us. His way of righting ourselves from the crushing penalty of sin, completely and forever.

Here is the catch. You have to believe. You must believe that Jesus Christ is our Lord. You must believe that Jesus was crucified, died, was buried and on the third day was raised up from the dead by the mighty hand of Almighty God. You must believe. (Heb 11:6)

You must ask for the gift. It is not automatic. It is through the GRACE of God, and through FAITH that Jesus will come into your heart and clean you of all sin, and grant you eternal life with God, with Him and with the Holy Spirit forever in God's kingdom. ARE YOU SAVED?

In the next several blogs, we will journey through the Bible and get a better understanding just how salvation in Christ can operate in your life.

Don't be that one person who takes his last breath and is not saved, spending FOREVER in horror, darkness and pain, never ever able to be redeemed.

(Rom 10:8-10) But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART"--that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

HAVE YOU READ YOUR BIBLE TODAY?