Salvation
PART 1
Genesis 2:7
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And Jehovah God formed the man out of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
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When we were made God gave us our soul. The soul includes our mind (what we think), will (what we want), and emotions (how we feel).
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Adam and Eve, the first people, sinned. This sin eternally separated them and all their ancestors, including us (our souls), from God the Father. We were no longer part of His family.
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Justice is good and God the Father is just. We would have to face His wrath so justice could be served. Only after His full wrath was put upon us would there be a full forgiveness (atonement) for our sins. Only after atonement could we become part of His family again. What did he demand for atonement? Blood.
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Hebrews 9:22
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And almost all things are purified by blood according to the Law; and apart from shedding of blood not any remission occurs.
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In the Old Testament God gave us laws to follow. We failed to keep His laws. As a matter of fact, we failed over and over again. Each failure was a sin. Because we couldn’t keep His laws, we needed His mercy.
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As mercy, we were temporarily allowed to use the blood of animals for atonement, but this blood only covered our sin. This was a temporary atonement. The source of the stench, sin, was still there. God wasn’t going to accept blood from animals as atonement forever.
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Eventually, there came a way to permanently remove sin, the source of the stench. A full and final atonement. An atonement that could permanently bring us back into God’s family. There was only one source of blood that was sinless and pure enough to be accepted by God the Father for the final atonement...the blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus.
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This is how much God the Father loves us Through mercy, He brought His full wrath on His own Son, instead on each of us where it belonged. It also shows how much Jesus loves us by His willingness to lay His own life down in our place.
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We (our souls) are unrighteous and unworthy of saving. Only by God’s extreme love and mercy were we saved through the blood of Jesus. God is a great leader. He leads from the front. He loved us first.
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1 John 4:19
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We love Him because He first loved us.
PART 2
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There is a critical thing to know though...atonement doesn’t happen automatically. We have only been given a chance for atonement. God has completed the atonement on his end, we must now appropriate it (take what has been given to us). To appropriate the atonement we must allow Jesus to lord over us, by being obedient to the Word. When we do, we’ll receive the Holy Spirit.
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John 14:15-21
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If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate, that He may remain with you to the age, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him nor know Him; but you know Him, for He abides with you and shall be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I am coming to you. Yet a little while and the world no longer sees Me, but you see Me. Because I live, you also shall live. In that day you shall know that I am in My father, and you are in Me, and I am in you. The one having My commandments and keeping them, that one is the one loving Me; and the one loving Me shall be loved by My Father, and I shall love him and will reveal Myself to him.
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Jesus will recognize those of us who love Him by our obedience to the Word. When Jesus sees someone who loves Him, He’ll ask His Father to give that person His spirit, the Holy Spirit, who will indwell our bodies along with our soul.
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1 Thessalonians 5:23
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And may the God of peace Himself fully sanctify you, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Those who obey the Word and receive the Holy Spirit are made up of body, soul, and spirit. The body is a vessel that holds spirits and can physically perform the will of those spirits.
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The Holy Spirit is set apart from all other spirits as directly representing God the Father. The Holy Spirit is more powerful than all other spirits. He’s far more powerful than any demon, fallen angel, or the devil himself. Just think, the Holy Spirit is in us, hoping for us to utilize His power. When we do utilize His power it glorifies Jesus. The Holy Spirit serves to glorify Jesus and do what Jesus wants Him to do.
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John 16:13-15
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...for He will not speak from Himself, but as many things as He hears, He will speak; and He will announce the coming things to you. That One will glorify Me, for He will take from Mine and will announce to you. All things, as many as the Father has are Mine. Because of this I said that He will take from Mine, and will announce to you.
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NOTE: Are you starting to see how unleashing the power of the Holy Spirit to cast out demons, heal the sick, raise the dead, etc. glorifies Jesus? This is part of the great commission and should be a normal part of Christianity.
PART 3
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Now we know that Jesus sacrificed Himself as an atonement for our sins. We also know that we must strive to be obedient to the Word in order to receive the Holy Spirit.
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After we receive the Holy Spirit, we have two spirits in our body that were given by God. One being our soul (mind, will, and emotions). The other being the Holy Spirit. We now need to choose who runs the show - our soul or the Holy Spirit. Unlike demons who try to control us, the Holy Spirit is a gentleman and only takes command when we submit ourselves to His authority.
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John 6:44
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No one is able to come to Me if not the Father, the One having sent Me, draws him, and I will raise him up in the last day.
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God the Father uses His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, to draw or lead us to the finish line (Jesus). If we choose to let the Holy Spirit lead us, over our own will, we’ll be able to complete the connection with Jesus and appropriate the gift of atonement.
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Galatians 5:18
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But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under Law.
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This is the foundation for salvation - when we are led by the Spirit, rather than our soul, we move from under the curse of the law (spiritual death) to under grace (spiritual reunion with God the Father).
PART 4
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Being led by the Spirit means striving to put every thought, desire, and emotion through a Holy Spirit filter before we accept it. We must ask ourselves if that thought, desire, or emotion makes the Holy Spirit happy or does it grieve Him? He will convict us (let us know) when something is displeasing to Him. We can feel that conviction if we are paying attention. If it would grieve Him, we reject it! We know what pleases the Holy Spirit when we know the Word.
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Vigilance in submitting one’s soul to the leadership of the Holy Spirit is what separates a believer and a disciple. A believer chooses to submit some of their thoughts, desires, and emotions through the Holy Spirit filter, as it is convenient. A disciple strives to submit EVERY thought, desire, and emotion through the Holy Spirit filter, even if it’s uncomfortable at times. The disciple strives to reject EVERYTHING that would grieve the Holy Spirit. Vigilance is the key.
With the Holy Spirit leading us, our faith will continue to grow deeper and deeper. The more we dig, claw, and fight to be more obedient to the Word and be led by the Spirit, the more the Spirit is willing to move in our lives. The bible will come alive. Truths will be revealed. Demons will be cast out and people will be freed from their bondages of sin. Loved ones will be healed. The fruit of the Spirit will blossom in our lives. The gifts of the spirit will be revealed. We’ll certainly be attacked by the devil, but the Lord will have the last say in all matters. Knowing this, we’ll walk through this evil world with no fear and in calm peace. This is the life of a disciple!
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Approaching the end times, the world doesn’t need more believers. It needs disciples. Let’s be obedient. Let’s make ourselves into disciples. Let’s guide others to become disciples. Let’s make an army of disciples and get to work.
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