7

Subtle Signs that Maybe You're Not Saved, After all!

1 You feel perfectly AT HOME,

in this world . . .
Those who are born again and truly saved don't feel like they're a part of this present
world. The Lord Jesus Christ, addressing those who are saved, said: "If ye were of the
world, the world would love his own: but because YE ARE NOT OF THE WORLD, but
I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." John 15:19
How do you view yourself? Are you comfortable being a part of this world? Is this world
the only home you can conceive? You may be wondering: What else is there? The
answer is \ Heaven. "For our conversation [lifestyle] is IN HEAVEN; from whence also
WE LOOK FOR the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ." Phil. 3:20
Do you look forward to going home to Heaven and being with the Lord Jesus Christ, or is
He the last person you'd want to see?
The saved of old knew they were going to Heaven and looked forward to it. They
viewed themselves as "strangers and pilgrims on the earth." "These all died in faith, not
having received the promises, but having SEEN THEM AFAR OFF, and were
persuaded of them, and EMBRACED THEM, and CONFESSED THAT THEY WERE
STRANGERS AND PILGRIMS ON THE EARTH" (Heb. 11:13). How about you? Do you
consider yourself a stranger, a saved person trying to follow the Lord in a world that readily
defies Him? Or do you feel right at home here?

2 You are NOT PECULIAR . . .

See if you can relate to the following titles describing a truly born again
Christian: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, A
PECULIAR PEOPLE; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called
you out of darkness into
his marvellous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). Are you peculiar when compared to the rest of the
world? Do you read the Bible, talk about the Bible, study the Bible, meditate upon the
Bible,
and even carry that Bible to Church? Sound fanatical? Do you think a newborn baby
acts fanatical because he seeks out his milk? Of course not! Neither is it fanatical for
a "newborn babe" in Christ to seek out spiritual nourishment from God's Word. The
Bible says to the born again person: "As newborn babes, DESIRE THE SINCERE MILK
OF THE WORD, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the
Lord is gracious." 1 Pet. 2:2-3
Have you been born again? Do you "desire the sincere milk" of God's Word? Do you
have an insatiable appetite to learn more about the God who supposedly saved you? Do
you have an obsession with anything pertaining to God? If you still think all this sounds
extreme, maybe you need to get saved and become a new creature in Christ: "Therefore
if any man be in Christ, HE IS A NEW CREATURE: old things are passed away;
behold, ALL THINGS ARE BECOME NEW." 2 Cor. 5:17
Just how "peculiar" are you? Do you try to blend in with this God-forsaking, God-hating
world? Why try to appease the very world that hates your heavenly Father? Unless, of
course, He's not your Father in the first place.

3 You don't WANT TO separate from sin . . .

The Bible describes a before and after when it comes to salvation. One such verse
says: "Which IN TIME PAST WERE NOT a people, but are NOW THE PEOPLE OF
GOD:
which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy." 1 Pet. 2:10 . Do you
consider yourself one of God's people? God expects His people to follow His example.
God says: "BE YE HOLY; for I am holy" (1 Pet. 1:16). Being holy means being
separated
from sin. In other words, the Christian is not to drink booze, smoke, swear, fornicate, tell
dirty
jokes, hate others, seek revenge, tell lies, steal things (even if it's from work), cheat on
their
taxes, or anything else God frowns upon.
Many, professing to be saved, don't strive to be holy at all. Some question whether
practicing holiness is even necessary. They will often rationalize that lying to protect
someone is honorable, stealing from a thief is justifiable, cheating on their taxes from a
corrupt government is understandable, and so on. However, the issue is not whether
practicing separation from sin is necessary, but rather, the real test of salvation is whether
the person WANTS TO separate! Why wouldn't he/she want to? After all, sin should be
an abhorrence to the new creature in Christ. The new creature DOES NOT LIKE to
wallow in sin, much less practice it; it goes against their born again nature. The Bible
reminds those who are saved to, "Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is
good" (Rom. 12:9). Is that what you do, or do you cleave to that which is sinful, enjoying
every minute of it?
Those who are constantly trying to justify not having to separate are merely looking for an
excuse to sin; sin is what they really want to do. The truly saved person doesn't need
a "good reason" to separate. They separate because THEY WANT TO. How about
you? Is there something inside of you that feels uncomfortable sinning? There should
be, if you're truly saved!

4 You are willing to have a

Saviour, but NOT A LORD . . .

Many will gladly welcome Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour, recognizing the need to
save their skin from Hell. Yet, often, these same people will not make Christ their Lord.
Oh, they may call Jesus "Lord." But the Bible says: "They PROFESS that they know
God; BUT IN WORKS THEY DENY HIM, being abominable, and DISOBEDIENT, and
unto every good work reprobate." Titus 1:16
Jesus once even asked a professing, but rebellious, group: "And why call ye me, Lord,
Lord, and DO NOT THE THINGS WHICH I SAY?" (Luke 6:46). Is Jesus Christ your
Lord? Do you constantly seek to DO HIS WILL? Or, do you do your own thing, calling
upon Christ for help only when it suits YOUR plans and YOUR self-will?

5 YOU GET OFFENDED if someone implies you might not

be truly saved . . .
Have you ever heard of a "false profession"? Can you conceive the possibility that
someone could profess to know Christ and yet not truly be saved? Many today find such
a scenario hard to believe. Yet the Lord Jesus Christ warned that, on Judgment Day,
many would be in for the shock of their lives: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord,
Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of
my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we
not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name
done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you:
depart from me, ye that
work iniquity." Mat. 7:21-23
Tragically, many professing Christians today assume that a false profession is virtually
impossible. Consequently, they never question whether they are saved. However, God's
Word
says: "EXAMINE YOURSELVES, WHETHER YE BE IN THE FAITH; prove your own
selves. Know
ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" 2
Cor. 13:5
A truly saved person will not get offended if someone questions his/her salvation. A truly
saved person realizes it's easy to make a false profession if one calls upon Christ,
WITHOUT REPENTING. For example, Acts 8:13-23 describes Simon, a person
who "believed" but didn't repent. The Bible says: "Simon himself believed," but a few
verses later we find out he still wasn't saved. Peter said to Simon: "Thy money PERISH
WITH THEE....thy heart is not right in the sight of God. REPENT THEREFORE of this
thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps
the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall
of bitterness, and in THE BOND OF INIQUITY."
False professions are very common because of the absence of repentance. Many call
upon Christ, willing to believe, but not willing to repent. Yet, Jesus commanded: "The
time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: REPENT ye, and believe the
gospel." Mark 1:15
Many call upon Christ because they don't want to go to Hell; yet, they are not willing to
repent and submit to God's rule over their lives. They don't want to follow Christ; they just
want to save their skin! What about you? Did you repent when you called upon Christ?
Who's the real Lord of your life, you or Jesus Christ? Whose "will" do you regularly follow,
God's or your own? Jesus warned: "I tell you, Nay: but, EXCEPT YE REPENT, ye shall
all likewise perish." Luke 13:3

6 You think it depends solely on

YOU KNOWING HIM . . .

So many today will claim they know Jesus Christ, but the real question is: DOES HE
KNOW
YOU? Again, referring to Matt. 7:21-23, Jesus Christ says in the end: "And then will I
profess
unto them, I NEVER KNEW YOU: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Those poor souls described on Judgment Day will argue that they know Christ, but their

real
problem will be that Christ never knew them. How about you? Does Christ know you? If
you
are not sure, that's a strong indication He doesn't know you. Jesus said: "My sheep
HEAR
MY VOICE, and I KNOW THEM, and THEY FOLLOW ME." John 10:27

7 You are never REBUKED when

you're alone . . .
The Bible says of those who are truly saved: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the
Spirit, if
so be that THE SPIRIT OF GOD DWELL IN YOU. Now if any man have not the Spirit of
Christ, HE
IS NONE OF HIS." Rom. 8:9 Every truly saved person has the Holy Spirit living inside of
them. The Spirit is not "just there for the ride." One of His jobs is to rebuke God's child
whenever he/she sins --the same way an earthly father rebukes and disciplines his child.
As God's children, the Bible says: "My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord,
nor faint when thou art REBUKED OF HIM: For whom the Lord loveth he
chasteneth [disciplines], and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure
chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father
chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then
are ye bastards, and not sons." Heb. 12:5-8
God doesn't just sit around and allow His children to get away with sinning all they want. He
rebukes them; His rebuke comes from within --through that indwelling Spirit mentioned
in Rom. 8:9.
God's rebuke often comes in the form of conviction. You may fall under conviction
when your sin is mentioned during a sermon, but how about when you sin, and you're all
alone? Who convicts you then? Can you sin without being rebuked by God? Is there
any conviction at all? There should be if you're saved. "But if ye be without
chastisement [rebuke], whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and
NOT SONS."
IF you were to die today, are you 100% SURE
you would go to Heaven? The Bible says
YOU CAN BE SURE (1 John 5:13).
BUT FIRST, you must realize that what keeps you from going to Heaven are your sins,
because: "...your iniquities [sins] have separated between you and your God," Isaiah
59:2. In fact, in God's eyes YOU ARE A SINNER: "For all have sinned, and come short
of the glory of God;" Romans 3:23.
SECONDLY, you must realize that there is NOTHING you can do to save yourself and
earn Heaven: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it
is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph. 2:8-9) Baptism,
good deeds, church membership, self-righteousness are all examples of good works that
cannot save you, because, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but
according to his mercy he [Christ] saved
us," Titus 3:5.

THE ONLY WAY you can get saved is through Jesus Christ. He said: "I am the way, the
truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6)
THAT'S WHY: "...while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8-9
THEREFORE: You must REPENT (change your mind); admit that you are a Hell deserving
sinner and can't save yourself. And call upon Christ, and Him alone, to save you. "if
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus [REPENT], and
shalt believe in thine heart [TRUST] that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved." Romans 10:9
SEND THE LIGHT
P.O. Box 815 Fargo, ND 58107