Is Your Journey Complete?

“In Romans 8:16 it is stated, ‘The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.’ The primary meaning of this Scripture is that the Spirit witnesseth with our spirits unto God. It is also clear that He witnesseth to our spirits concerning all that we have in our sonship relation to God. The witnessing work of the Spirit is mentioned again in Galatians 4:6. ‘And because ye are sons, God hath sent firth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying Abba Father.’ Not only does He actualize this relationship unto us, but He would actualize every great fact which we have taken by faith.” He That is Spiritual, L. S. Chafer.

What an amazing statement to the testimony of every Christian. To know that we never have to show, prove, or authenticate our salvation. The Spirit of God has testified for us before the Father’s Throne. This means no matter how beat up, banged up, or hurt we might feel at times will not change the status of the salvation of man before God. I don’t know about you but sometimes I have wondered how God continues to tolerate my behavior over the years of “too much of me, and not of Him.” I have found myself extremely frustrated with my actions over the years and wondering how long it will ever take me to change in certain areas of my life. But even in the midst of this I can know and have assurance that the Spirit of God that this salvation testimony is not based upon my actions or deeds, but by His Spirit.

This is why is so important in this day and age to see that we grow all we can into the full admonition of the Lord Jesus Christ and not stay wimpy Christians. When we grow into Christian maturity, we begin to sense more of God’s grace upon our lives and begin to praise Him for the things He is doing in our lives. Our lives begin to reflect more grace upon others, because we have experienced that same grace as well. We grow to show grace because we know what it feels like to receive it. Our relationship with Jesus Christ grows that grace understanding.

Chafer says; “By this particular manifestation of the Spirit, unseen things become blessedly real. There is such a thing as ‘ever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth.’ Truth must become real to us. We may know by faith that we are forgiven and justified forever: it is quite another thing to have a heart experience wherein all is as real as it is true.” The thing here is that it is one thing to be assured of our salvation (which is a great thing mentioned above) but to feel it in our hearts is a totally different life experience.

I am convinced that most Christians know they are children of God, but wonder how many actually know their Father personally? I thank God that He took care of the portion of securing my salvation to where it was checked at the door of heaven and never has to be revisited again. But that was all His work, not mine. Salvation was God’s idea, not men. I recognized, repented, and believed and He gave. This is the promise of God to all who come to faith and repentance in Jesus Christ.

For most Christians, I imagine the cares of life crept in and began to destroy that beginning and growing spark which began at salvation. I know it did for me. I let ten years of my life become controlled by my own actions (most which aren’t worth mentioning) and no knowledge of my relationship grew. But after those years, I had a man who took the time to invest in me and teach me about God and His plan for my life, while showing me how to navigate the Scriptures in my spiritual journey. It is because of this man, I serve the Lord in ministry today. This wouldn’t have happened without God using him in my life. Again, I just had to become available.

Today, if you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior recognize there is a difference between the two. A Savior is one who saves. Every Christian has forgiveness if they had gone through true conversion. It is settled before God through the Spirit’s testimony to God. The Lordship of Jesus in the life of the believer is another part of the journey that should be immediately connected to Him. Unfortunately many times it gets neglected, forgotten, or put aside in the believer’s life. Please don’t ignore this. When Jesus became the Lord of your life, He is in charge and He is transforming your life to mirror His. He is the example. He is the way. He is the truth. He is the life. Live life the mightily way God intended it to be; not by your own might. Without Him, you have nothing.