The moral relativism stated in the phrase “I’m OK, you’re OK” is often embraced in a world where “everyone does what is right in one’s own eyes.” In the realm of biblical truth, however, these self-oriented statements are “not OK” even though they are indicative of popular beliefs and lifestyles.
This study will reveal whether or not you are spiritually OK as defined by biblical truth. First, God’s Word will be referenced to determine your spiritual situation before receiving Christ. Second, the Bible will be consulted to learn of your vastly different spiritual situation after receiving Jesus into your life. As you will note, the diametrically opposed spiritual realities of a person before and after receiving Christ are numerous and immensely significant, not only for this life but also for the life to come.
YOUR SPIRITUAL SITUATION BEFORE RECEIVING JESUS CHRIST INTO YOUR LIFE
No one is inherently good since we all were born with a natural, self-oriented predisposition toward sin.
(This is a result of the Fall of Adam and Eve, a catastrophe that ushered sin into the world. This scriptural account is in Genesis chapter 3.)
Psalm 14:2-3, The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one.
Ecclesiastes 7:20, Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
Jeremiah 17:9, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
Romans 3:10-12, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”
Romans 3:23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
Romans 5:12, Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
Before receiving Christ, you are powerless to overcome sin in your life.
John 8:34, Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.”
Romans 6:16, Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
2 Peter 2:19, They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.
Before receiving Christ, you have no assurance that God hears or will answer your prayers.
Psalm 66:18, If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Isaiah 59:1-2, Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
Before receiving Christ, you are unable to understand the things of God and cannot know God.
1 Corinthians 2:14, The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
Titus 1:15-16, To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
Before receiving Christ, you are an enemy of God, alienated from Him and unable to obey Him.
Romans 8:7, For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
Colossians 1:21, And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds
Before receiving Christ, you cannot please God even with good deeds that are considered righteous.
Isaiah 64:6, We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away [Emphasis added].
Romans 8:8, Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Hebrews 11:6, And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Before receiving Christ, you are an object of God’s wrath.
John 3:36, Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
Romans 1:18-20, For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
Romans 2:8-9, but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek,
Ephesians 2:1-3, And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind [Emphasis added].
Before receiving Christ, you were spiritually dead in your sinfulness.
Romans 1:28-32, And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, and malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them [Emphasis added].
Romans 6:23a, For the wages of sin is death . . .
Ephesians 2:1, And you were dead in the trespasses and sins
Before receiving Christ, you are blinded by Satan and held captive by him to do his will.
2 Corinthians 4:4, In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
2 Timothy 2:24-26, And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will [Emphasis added].
1 John 3:8, Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil [Emphasis added].
If you never receive Christ, you will die in your sins as a result of being dead in your sins while living.
John 8:21-24, So he said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” 22 So the Jews said, “Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins” [Emphasis added].
If you never receive Christ, you will be condemned and will receive eternal punishment.
John 5:28-29, Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment [Emphasis added].
Revelation 20:14b-15, …This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 21:8, But as for the cowardly, the faithless [unbelieving], the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” [Underlining and explanation added].
WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE AFTER READING WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT THOSE WHO DO NOT RECEIVE CHRIST?
Hopefully, you accept biblical truth. If so, you realize that it is impossible to know God or please Him in your natural state apart from the Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, you may reject God’s Word and assume that you are spiritually OK even if you never receive Jesus. If you think it is possible to please God apart from Jesus Christ, then your only option is “to do good works” to earn God’s favor. You are not alone in that belief.
Except for Christianity, every major religion emphasizes the importance of “doing good works” to please God and be accepted by Him. Doing good works—typically defined as being obedient to religious tenets and/or moral practices— is the supposedly effective practice of earning favor with God.
God’s Word, however, proclaims it is impossible to know God or earn His acceptance by doing good works. Instead, Scripture says in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast” [Emphasis added].
GOD’S GIFT OF HIS SON, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, IS HIS RESPONSE TO THE HOPELESSNESS AND HELPLESSNESS OF YOUR SPIRITUAL CONDITION BEFORE RECEIVING CHRIST.
According to the Bible, you must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to be accepted by God and, correspondingly, have a relationship with Christ. This relationship is due to God’s grace and is based solely on Christ’s sacrificial love and work on your behalf. You cannot save yourself because God’s demand for sin’s penalty requires a sacrificial death. Since you cannot pay that price, God provided the solution by sending His own Son as the propitiation for your sins. [Propitiation means an appeasement that turns away wrath by an offering.]
John 14:6, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Romans 5:8, but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:14-18, Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. 18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.
Ephesians 1:7, In him [Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, [Explanation added]
1 John 4:9-10, In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Since your sin separates you from God, no matter how many good works you may do, the problem of sin must be dealt with. As the above verses indicate, God provided the solution to the problem of sin through Jesus Christ. All of us should be grateful for God’s grace and mercy, since our sin problem is the major hurdle that must be overcome for God to accept us. Instead of trying to measure up to some standard of righteousness proven by good deeds, you are simply to believe [trust] only in Jesus Christ and, as a result, receive forgiveness of sins as well as the gift of eternal life.
John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
John 6:28-29, Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
John 17:3, And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Romans 10:8-13, But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Galatians 2:16, yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
Colossians 1:13-14, He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
For further information, see Life’s Most Important Decision and Heaven…Are You Going There?
YOUR SPIRITUAL SITUATION AFTER RECEIVING CHRIST INTO YOUR LIFE
After receiving Christ, you are justified by God’s gracious love and mercy and are at peace with Him.
(Justified means “just as if you never sinned.”)
Romans 3:24-26, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Romans 5:1-2, Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Titus 3:3-7, For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
After receiving Christ, the righteousness of God is yours because of your faith in Jesus Christ.
Romans 3:21-22a, But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.
2 Corinthians 5:21, For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
After receiving Christ, you have eternal life, your sins are forgiven, you are redeemed, and you are a recipient of God’s great grace.
John 5:24, Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
Acts 10:43, To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.
Ephesians 1:7-10, In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
After receiving Christ, you are no longer under God’s wrath but, instead, are reconciled to God and enabled to tell others of this Good News.
Romans 5:6-11, For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19, All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
After receiving Christ, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who dwells within you.
John 14:16-17, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
1 Corinthians 6:19, Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
After receiving Christ, God’s truth is available, understandable, and applicable to you through the Holy Spirit and God’s Word.
John 16:12-14 [Jesus, speaking to His disciples], “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”
John 17:17 [Jesus, praying for His disciples], Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. After receiving Christ, you can grow spiritually by learning and obeying God’s Word.
Romans 6:16-18, Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.
2 Timothy 2:15, Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
2 Timothy 3:16-17, All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
James 1:22-24, But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
1 Peter 1:14-16, As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
After receiving Christ, you are a new creation [born again] and spiritually empowered to put off your old sinful way of life in order to grow in Christ-likeness.
John 3:3-8, Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Romans 6:2b-6, … How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
2 Corinthians 5:17, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
Colossians 2:6-7, Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.
After receiving Christ, you no longer are a slave of sin but, instead, are to be a slave of righteousness.
Romans 6:6, 14, 17-18, 22, We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin…14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace…17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness…22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.
After receiving Christ, God’s grace is available to meet your every need.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10, But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Hebrews 4:15-16, For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
After receiving Christ, your trials and sufferings are used by God to develop Christ-likeness in your life.
Romans 5:3-5, Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Romans 8:28-29, And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
James 1:2-4, Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
After receiving Christ, God assures you that nothing can separate you from His love. Temptations and difficulties now provide opportunities for you to be a conqueror through Christ.
Romans 8:35-37, Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
1 Corinthians 10:13, No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
Hebrews 4:15, For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
After receiving Christ, you are no longer estranged from God but, instead, are an adopted child of God, a joint heir with Christ, and a fellow citizen with the rest of God’s family.
John 1:12-13, But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
Romans 8:14-17, For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Galatians 4:7, So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
Ephesians 2:19, So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.
After receiving Christ, you are graciously enabled to minister for the common good through spiritual giftedness.
Romans 12:3-8, For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
1 Corinthians 12:4-7, Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
After receiving Christ, you and others in the Body of Christ are enabled to grow in Him and demonstrate His love for one another. You cannot do this on your own but can do so because He has poured out His love and teaches us to love accordingly.
John 13:35, By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
Romans 5:5, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Ephesians 4:15-16, Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
1 Thessalonians 4:9, Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another,
1 Peter 4:8, Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.
1 John 4:7, 11-12, Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God … Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
After receiving Christ, you are spiritually alive in Christ due to God’s merciful love and are holy before God as one of His chosen ones.
Ephesians 2:4-7, But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus [Emphasis added].
Colossians 2:13-14, And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross [Emphasis added].
Colossians 3:12, Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
After receiving Christ, your dependency on God and faithfulness to Christ results in a prayer life that is constant and confident.
Psalm 34:15, The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry.
John 15:7, If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
Romans 8:26-27, Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
1 John 3:21-22, Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
1 John 5:14-15, And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
After receiving Christ, your destiny is assured along with your eternal inheritance and rewards.
John 10:28-29, I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
2 Timothy 4:8, Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
1 Peter 1:3-5, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
CONCLUSION
The Bible presents the spiritual realities of those who reject the Lord Jesus Christ as well as those who receive Him into their lives. The emphasis of this study is not on the number of these characteristics but, instead, the differences between them.
If you believe the Bible, you have, hopefully, responded in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ and are living to please Him as well as anticipating His return. If so, you have a continual basis to give thanks to God for the indescribable gift of His Son, Jesus.
If you have not received Jesus into your life, your sins separate you from God. Jesus, however, gave His life so your sins would be forgiven and you would no longer be separated from God.
To see a concise, visual presentation of Salvation, see either of two presentations mentioned earlier in this study…Life’s Most Important Decision and Heaven…Are You Going There?.
The title of this study refers to the most important “before” and “after” scenario in all of life. Hopefully, you will experience the joy and fulfillment that can be yours after receiving the Lord Jesus Christ into your life.
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Spiritual Realities Before and After Receiving Christ © 2013 WordTruth, Inc—http://www.wordtruth.net
Verses from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version © 2001 Version by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers