In life we make many mistakes and there are few that can’t be undone or fixed. Salvation is not a mistake that you can make. You can’t afford to mistake your own salvation. You must KNOW if you are saved. To be wrong about this has eternal consequences.

One of Satan’s tricks is to make people believe that they are saved when in fact they are not. This has been coined as “easy believism.” Our country is a prime example of easy believism. We make everything easy, micro-waves make it easy to cook and heat food, dishwashers take care of our dishes, permanent press clothes so we don’t have to iron, even electric knives so we don’t have to move our arms to cut our own meat. None of these things in and of themselves are bad, they are just examples of how important it is for us to make life easy.

Doing that with your faith is a terrible mistake. Faith is not easy, faith requires, well, faith! Let me ask a question. Is a person saved by simply believing that Jesus Christ is his/her Savior? How many people do you know that profess Christ as Savior and live like the devil with blatant disregard for Christ’s teachings. We hold many beliefs that are not true. I believe that it’s safe to text and drive at the same time, how often has that hurt someone? I believe that I will be married to you for all my life, check out the divorce statistics. These are simple examples of how a belief can be false. You can’t let your “belief” about your salvation be left to chance. You MUST know if you are saved.

If you have ever experienced and altar call you will notice that after the preacher has the participants say the “sinners prayer” he will tell them they have been saved. However, if you compare that to what Paul taught you will see a difference.

³¹ So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” (Acts 16:31, New King James Version)

Paul did not say believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you ARE saved, he said “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved . . .” That is a very different distinction. It take more that simply saying I believe to be saved. Take a look at what James has to say.

¹⁴ What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? (James 2:14, New King James Version)

²⁰ But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? (James 2:20, New King James Version)

What kind of faith is yours? If your faith is not being put into action then according to James your faith is dead. If your faith is dead then what is your salvation? Your faith, your belief can’t save you by itself. Works are proof of faith. If works prove faith, then conversely the absence of works prove unbelief. Yes, faith is necessary to be saved, but it takes more than just faith.

Let’s look at a passage in Acts for a moment.

⁹ But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously practiced sorcery in the city and astonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, ¹⁰ to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.” ¹¹ And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his sorceries for a long time. ¹² But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. ¹³ Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done. (Acts 8:9-13, New King James Version)

Was Simon the Sorcerer saved or was it easy believism? Let’s take a look.

¹⁴ Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, ¹⁵ who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. ¹⁶ For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
¹⁸ And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, ¹⁹ saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
²⁰ But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! ²¹ You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. ²² Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. ²³ For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.”
²⁴ Then Simon answered and said, “Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.”
(Acts 8:14-24, New King James Version)

You see that Simon said he believed and was even baptized but the evidence of his belief was false!

For those of you who may be more familiar with the bible you might ask “what about Romans 10:9?”

⁹ that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9, New King James Version)

Once again you will see that this is a future tense and not present tense. The Apostle Paul knew and understood that no man can truly confess Christ without the Holy Spirit.

³ Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
(1 Corinthians 12:3, New King James Version)

James tells us that even the devils of this earth believe.

¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! (James 2:19, New King James Version)

Does that belief give them or you salvation? I don’t think so.

⁷ Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison ⁸ and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. ⁹ They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. ¹⁰ The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (RevelationAs applied to religious matters, it is the making known the previously unknown character, nature and precepts of God that can only be understood by those attributes being spoken by God through a prophet appointed by Him. 20:7-10, New King James Version)

We can safely assume that Angels believe but Satan took a third of them with him when he was cast from heaven. What will happen to them?

⁴ For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; (2 Peter 2:4, New King James Version)

There are many good men, charismaticPertaining to the charismata or gifts. Having a connection with or pertaining to the spiritual gifts listed in the New Testament. Churches or groups who emphasize or believe that certain of the spectacular gifts are in operation today, namely those of tongues, healing, words of knowledge and prophecy, among others, and these gifts are given through a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Such churches or groups having a greater emphasis on emotions and feeling, to validate their belief, rather than on teaching and doctrinePrinciples, tenets, creeds or beliefs. Usually presented in some type of official form but also may not be stated in an organized manner. Doctrine is usually considered to be a systematic and carefully worked out principle or belief.. men, even Godly men preaching the gospel today. Many are led by the spirit of God, but not filled with the spirit of God, rejecting the whole of God’s truth because of self study, or theological or denominational beliefs. The most dangerous lie there is one that is wrapped in so much truth that you can’t see the lie that will send you to hell. First, pray that God will reveal the truth to you regarding his plan for salvation. Then, study God’s word for yourself. It’s there in black and white. It’s not a mystery.

⁵ Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (John 3:5, New King James Version)

There are plenty of things that we can disagree on in the bible, but there can be no mistake about the plan of salvation. To be saved you must first believe, then repent (turn away from) of your sins, be baptized in the name of Jesus, and then receive the Holy Spirit. As all this happens your life will change, your mind will change, your actions will change, you will have become a changed man or woman.

Please do not mistake belief for salvation. Examine and test yourself.

⁵ Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. (2 Corinthians 13:5, New King James Version)

Father, I ask that each one of us look to you for our salvation and understand what that salvation truly is. I pray that we would not be deceived by the evil one into believing a lie. Lord we want our lives and our faith to be easy and for me that is not always the case. Help us in our unbelief, teach us to follow you faithfully, to read the Words you have given us and to live those Words out in our daily life. Amen.