I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20
We all have heard the sinner’s prayer many times it is a very simple prayer that carries a lot of scriptures and significance, it has 4 parts
Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior.
- Acknowledgment and forgiveness of Sin – The implication is that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
- A confession that Jesus rose from the dead- The implication is that we have risen with Him
- Allowing Him into your hearts and life – He lives in us therefore the flesh is dead, therefore we are Sons’ of God
- Follow him as lord and savior – We will follow him through the power of the holy spirit
If you ask me Christianity at its core is repentance into this 4 issues, it is not something that happens over night, but it is a process. The evidence of true repentance is that we accept this 4 issues by faith. Just like Abraham who “Believed God and this was counted to him as righteousness” on the day he received the promise, yet he had not done anything, it is the same with our salvation that is received by faith on the day we make that confession.
But just like Abraham this decision has to be worked out according to the parable of the sower, we receive this word with Joy but what sets us apart is how we handle the tests that follow. Circumstances conspire around us to test our resolve to maintain the confession we have made, posing the question “do you believe the sinners prayer confession”. Christianity is not theory, Who we are must be tested/exposed through real life experiences.
Children of God
Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—John 1:12
When you confess the sinners prayer you automatically become a child of God. This is purely an act of grace and mercy after conviction by the Holy Spirit, the season after that is what we call the honeymoon stage. There many biblical parallels e.g Moses living in the house of pharaoh, David as a commander in Souls army, the children of Israel watching God fight for them during the 10 plagues, Joseph in Jacob’s house .
This season has one distinct characteristic.. the believer receives favors, breakthrough, miracles signs and wonders. These miracles rarely require, the believer’s effort they are a good father’s way of encouraging in to this new life. These miracles are also supposed to act as spiritual anchors to ground the believer in the power of God
Sons of God
A child is to grow into maturity to be a son of God, this process is accomplished when we are led by the Holy Spirit in various tests that will determine if we truly believe what we confess. The first perquisite to enter this stage is to be led by the Holy Spirit
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Romans 8:14
The Holy Spirit always leads us first into the wilderness to teach us and test us
Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Romans 8:2-3
The stories of the bible can teach us on what to expect
- Test of Betrayal
- Test of the opposite of the promise
- Test to do it in your own strength
- Test of perceived abandonment
- Test of Persecution
In short we have to go through what Jesus went through.. in order to establish our son ship, we have to follow in his footsteps. There are no shortcuts, this is what we call sanctification, the process of the word becoming flesh in us.
To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 1 Peter 2:21
How we respond to this test determines who we are
Blessings or Curses 