7 October 2019

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED WHEN WE GOT SAVED?

By John Ollis

I guess because I celebrated my 68th spiritual birthday  recently, I have been thinking much about GOD’S GIFT OF SALVATION. In reality we really know nothing about Salvation when we are born again, other than the fact that when we hear the Word of God (either through preaching or someone witnessing to us) one moment we think “all is well” the next (because of the convicting power of the Holy Spirit) we are overwhelmed by our sinfulness and  future eternal separation from God, we also become aware of the drawing power of the Holy Spirit (not that we knew what it was at the time) and are given the ability to repent and ask forgiveness, and the burden of sin rolled away, and we knew something had happened on the inside again we couldn’t describe it nor understood it, but we knew because we knew, because we knew, we had received the “Gift of eternal life”. The Word of God has a major integral and essential part to play in our Salvation.
Sadly, many Believers because of the lack of Biblical Discipleship and their lack of reading and studying the Word of God, still live in a place of limited understanding of what took place in their life. Of course our understanding grows over the years, and I am still personally increasing in understanding of God’s gift of Salvation. I have referred numerous times in my blogs to 1 Peter 1:23 AMP N.T. You have been regenerated (born again), not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting Word of God. The MESSAGE Bible expresses it this way, Your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God’s living Word. Just think: a life conceived by God himself!
Here Peter tells us that God plants His divine sperm (incorruptible seed) into the womb of our heart and spiritual conception takes place and we are born again. The very nature, the very righteousness of God, His character is in that divine sperm The incorruptible seed of the Word of God.
Paul in Romans 5:17 NKJV describes it as the GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED THE DAY YOU WERE BORN AGAIN

SO WHAT IS NEXT AS WE BEGIN THIS JOURNEY.
The Bible tells us we need to be “discipled” which includes developing a relationship with God, through prayer, and the Word of God and being planted in His (the local) Church. We must see the “conception” grow and produce (or woman) a man of God. The Holy Spirit who has come into our life wanted to help us in our spiritual development. We must develop what Paul calls in Phil 1:11 NKJV being filled with the FRUITS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.  Paul expresses it this way in Eph. 5:9 NKJV For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, RIGHTEOUSNESS, and truth)
SO WE NEED TO:
Matt. 5:6 NKJV HUNGER AND THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS,
Matt. 6:33 NKJV SEEK first the kingdom of God and His RIGHTEOUSNESS, and all these things shall be added to you.
1 Cor. 15:34 NKJV AWAKE to RIGHTEOUSNESS, and do not sin.
Eph. 6:14 NKJV PUT on the breastplate of RIGHTEOUSNESS,
Each of these 5  could be a separate blog in themselves
God has spoken and declared us RIGHTEOUS and we have a responsibility to  let the WORD OF GOD WORK IN US, so that we are experiencing more and more of His righteousness outworking in us.
We must learn to OBEY the Lord, and CO-OPERATE  with the Word of God, In the Old Testament Jeremiah describes the Word of God this way “Is not My word like a fire?” says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rocks in pieces. The more we learn to lay still on the altar (Rom. 12:1) the more God deals with the unrighteousness in us, so let us learn to walk in righteousness and enjoy God’s glorious Salvation.
This is a simple overview of what happened when we  were born again, and what is God’s plan for us from day one of our conversion,
So, the above tells us something of what happened the day we were born again, and God’s plan to work in us and through us, and prepare us for eternity.
I would love to receive your response to this blog, and any comments or questions.