If you are afraid you have fallen away because you had thoughts of unbelief and doubt, is it possible that you have not aposticized because you are worried about it? As in if you questioned your faith and felt faithless will God forgive that or are you doomed because you were not faithful when trying to research and prove to yourself that Christianity is true and felt discouraged and confused. Since then have been praying for forgiveness and understanding but according to Hebrews 6:4-6 it looks really bad. Now I am sitting at home just worried that I have unwittingly forfeited my salvation because I was scared and confused and weak in faith. This is incredibly stressful.
Dear Lex. You've shared a couple of things that are very concerning. You wrote that you were, "not faithful when trying to research and prove to yourself that Christianity is true." Though not knowing what was going through your heart & mind, I believe that if a person is a Christian, he has already confirmed in his heart of the reality of his sinfulness, his need of a Saviour, of Christ's full & complete Work on the Cross for him, & that by accepting & believing that Truth in repentance, he has not only proven the reality of Jesus, but also of the inward change in him.
Christians can have all types of intrusions into their lives as Satan creates fears, doubts, temptations to sin, etc. All these things God forgives on the basis of His Son's death as we come in repentance for our folly & sin. But you have stated that you might not be fully convinced that "Christianity is true". So, I would ask you, with great care: 'have you truly repented of your sins, been born again & have God's Spirit in you?' And secondly, 'if you have come the Way of the Cross, then what is troubling you about your faith or God's Word?'
Before you can even concern yourself with Hebrews 6:4-6 (which was a specific warning to those who were wanting to revert back into Judaism) & about apostatizing, I feel you need to attend to the other matter to find out why you are having doubts about 'your faith' & to prove the truth of 'Christianity'. However, if you truly believe you're saved, then it could be that you're not spending much time in God's Word, in prayer & receiving wholesome teaching in a Fellowship. Maybe, you need to ask questions (even here on this Site), seeking answers that will clear up your doubts & fears. And remember, when God's Word assures us or gives us an answer, we can fully trust it & use it against any doubts or fears we may have. Every Christian must daily put on God's Armour in readiness ( Ephesians 6:10-18). May the Lord lead you especially in your matters of concern.
I had some doubts as to whether I believed because that is what I was taught growing up and I was baptised at 15. I have prayed for salvation many times in my life but have also had doubts as to whether I fully believed and was convinced. I also questioned the authenticity and validity of the bible. In trying to research good reasons to convince myself I became discouraged and had a point in time when I was not confident in the Gospel. Yet I thought that losing faith or having any measure of doubt or unbelief would be falling away. I later apologized to God and am not sure if I have ruined any chance of being forgiven. I thought the Holy Spirit would confirm in my heart that I am still a child of God and that Jesus is my Saviour but it has just been sad and uncomfortable. I reached out to family and to a church. The church my family attends never responded to me. The other church I reached out to informed me that " Mark 9:24 shows that belief and unbelief can co-exist in the same mind and heart." I have been searching for the truth and just want to know if God will forgive me.
Hello Lex. Others here have responded, which should encourage you that we are mindful of what you are going through, identifying with your struggles, & by being in Christ, there is always hope ahead & only His Light that is at the 'end of the tunnel of despair'.
Re-reading your comments over & over again, I'm wondering whether you have really been taught in God's Word & therefore unable to believe & hang on to its Truths. You only know what took place when you first repented of your sins, turning to Jesus for forgiveness & then subsequently baptized in water. The Word of God tells us that we can know that our salvation is both real & secure: Romans 10:9 "if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou SHALT be saved." And verse 13, "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord SHALL be saved." If we have called upon the Lord, putting our faith in His Work for us by His death & resurrection, God will fulfil His Promise that we will receive His Salvation & be welcomed into His family.
The other point that you can take confidence in is the fact of your distress over the state of your soul after being saved. A person who doesn't belong to the Lord, has no such concern, simply because the things of Christ are meaningless to him. The fact that you are agonizing about your salvation & unbelief must prove God's Spirit working in you: maybe keeping you restless until you take God seriously for all that He has said. If you have doubts & fears about your salvation or the Truth of God's Word, then these are not from within you but from the enemy of our souls who wants to keep you bound & therefore weak in faith & Christian experience. Spending time on things that are contrary to the Bible & your salvation, instead of God's Word, gives Satan a fertile ground to work with. Remember, God does forgive us our sins, but we still have to believe in that fact & continue on in our walk with Him.
A good indication of someone having the Holy Spirit would be a change in that person's life. That person has a hunger and desire for the things of the Lord and has a hunger for His word. When God's Spirit comes into a person's life, that person becomes a new creation in Christ.
There has to be a change because the Spirit of God that dwells in a believer is not dormant. It is God's Spirit (Holy Spirit) that transforms the life of a believer. God's Spirit will give you a true love for Him, and a true love for your brothers and sisters in Christ. Apart from His Spirit, we cannot produce that type of love.
Jesus' ministry is to baptize all who call on Him with His Spirit. He promises us that. Please keep in mind that you cannot "feel" the Holy Spirit. We cannot feel spirit. We can have a human emotional experience, but we can't feel spirit.
A believer knows they have the Spirit indwelling them by faith. It is God's Spirit that persuades us to believe. In fact, that's what the word faith literally means. It is the word PEITHO and it means persuasion. I cannot feel God's Spirit in me but I know He is there because He has fully persuaded me in my mind to know that He is in me and He is working in my life.
Lex, if you have God's Spirit in you, there will be a noticeable change in your life. It is a change that you know has taken place. Others might and should also notice the change.
If you have been born of God's Spirit, His Spirit abides in you permanently. In John 14:16, Jesus said "And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another comforter, that He may (abide) with you forever. This word abide (MENO) denotes permanency. Jesus said His Spirit will abide with you forever. How long is forever? No end! Jesus is going to send another comforter and He is going to abide in me, and I am going to be a dwelling place forever.
Ephesians 1:13-14 tells us that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. That seal cannot be broken by anyone other the owner of the possession. Jesus Christ has purchased us. We belong to Him. He has given us His Spirit to live in us permanently until He comes to redeem His possession.
Of those who Christ has saved and placed within them His Spirit, Jesus said He will never leave them nor forsake them. This is a double negative in the Greek which denotes the strongest impossibility of something ever happening. He will never take His Spirit from a believer.
We are told in Romans Chapter 8 that if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ (Indwelling), that person does not belong to Christ. That is the indication that a person is saved, is that they have the Holy Spirit in them. John 6:37-40 is a great section of scripture that would indicate that God's Spirit will always be with the believer. If God's Spirit were to be removed from us, we would be lost. And Jesus said all that the Father has given to Him, He would not lose one, but raise them up at the last day.
In terms of the Holy Spirit, if you still want to repent does that mean the Holy Spirit is working in you because I know that people can be deceived? I mean with thoughts of unbelief and the warning "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. 13But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."- Hebrews 3:12-13 I keep feeling bad.
So if you realize that your thoughts are wrong and you genuinely want to reconcile with God, you can repent right? But sometimes some of the scriptures have me worried that it could be too late? Like the point of no return.. God is not the author of confusion and He does not give a spirit of fear so how do you get to a place where you are clear on what the Scripture says?
The Holy Spirit in a believer causes them to come to true repentance. I say true repentance because there are two separate words in the Greek text for our English word repent. One is METANOEO, and the other is METAMELOMAI.
Metanoeo (Repent) is true repentance. It's when a person makes a decision to change the direction of their life and surrender their life to Christ. But with that comes the understanding that we cannot change ourselves. It takes the Spirit of God in us to make that change. Metamelomai (Repent) simply means you are sorry for your actions. The bible tells us that Judas repented, but the word that was applied to Judas was not Metanoeo.
If you have the Holy Spirit living inside you, He is always working. God's Spirit inside a believer is never dormant. I agree with you that we can be deceived. If we think something is coming from God, how do we know? Satan knows the bible very well. We see that in the instance where he was tempting Jesus out in the wilderness. Satan quoted scripture perfectly. He just misapplied it. So how I know it's from God and I'm not being deceived? I have to trust Christ.
You mention "Genuinely wanting to reconcile with God." Here's a thought. It wouldn't be genuine if God's Spirit didn't put it on your heart. Our flesh wants nothing to do with God and is constantly trying to get away. It's the Spirit of God in us that continually draws us to Christ and brings us to confess the things that disrupt our fellowship with Him.
As far as getting to a place to where we clear on what the scripture says, good luck on that one. I don't know how to get to that place. All I can do is study the word, pray for understanding, and place my trust in the Lord.
In Hebrews 3:12, the word departing is the word apostasy. A believer cannot commit apostasy. Only someone who is involved, maybe intellectually understanding, being enlightened, and even agreeing with the truth, but when the hardships come, they leave. That's called apostasy.
I usually read the New King James Version but I do not know the Greek words. I have read that there are a few different forms and meanings for "repent" in the Bible. Understanding scripture can drastically impact the lives of people so it is important to keep learning. Translations give me pause so thank you for writing both words. Where did you get that info from? Does your bible have the Greek terms on the bottom of the page or an interlinear bible?
That is why those scriptures I mentioned have had me stressed. I appreciate your responses
I study from a King James Bible. It does not have any Greek on the pages unless I have added it to a section to better help me in my understanding. There are so many places in scripture where we as English speaking people see words and one person will come up with one meaning and another person will come up with another. And in a sense, they would both be right because English is such a general language. We see a word in English and it might mean one thing to me and another to you or someone else because just like Hebrew, English is a very general language. But it's not so with the Greek. Greek is such an exact language. I think it was the Lord's plan to have an exact language for the New Testament. Since most of the NT is teaching/doctrine, there needed to be an exact language.
As far as where I get my info from, I do own a Strong's Concordance, and also a Greek Interlinear Bible. However, I don't spend too much time in either one. I also was given a copy of the Textus Receptus (TR) while I was in a Koine Greek study. I have learned to read Greek and at times I will read straight from the Greek Text (TR). I spent several years under the ministry of a professor who taught both Hebrew and Greek at Masters International School of Divinity. He taught and trained those who were going into the ministry. He retired from there and now pastors a small community church close to where I live.
I'm glad I was able to share something with you that helped. All glory to Christ Jesus!
Hi Lex , i hope you dont mind me butting in , in my experience it has taken me only a few years of reading the Bible every day to understand and believe that i understand the basics of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God ,after that there is so much treasure in there that re affirms the Truth and helps you to feel closer to God and His Son ,read and pray and read some more ,its a big book and unlike most books theres no irrelevant filler ,everything is important ,you may not see things clearly immediately but a big part of the joy is discovering something new even though you have been reading it for over 25 years ,it still happens to me and im sooo happy when it does ,be patient and enjoy .Sorry for sticking my nose in but icant help myself sometimes ,thats what the Bible does ,it makes you want to talk about it and share your joy in it .
You have been given some pretty sound biblical advice here. If I might add, Hebrews 6:4-6 is not talking about a born again believer losing salvation as salvation cannot be lost.
I would like to also share with you what I get from Mark 9:24, the verse you shared. I'm glad you brought this verse up.
It says, "And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief."
Nowhere in the Bible does it challenge someone to come up with their own faith so that Jesus can perform in your life. That's the cry of a person. I believe, but Lord Help my unbelief because I can't believe. Only God can give me that. Help my unbelief!
It is always the strong point in a person's life when they can approach the Lord, even as a nonbeliever, even if you don't understand the things of God, you can still approach Him and say "Lord, if you are real, make yourself real to me!"
I mean, even a nonbeliever, somebody who doesn't believe in God, they are asking God to do it all because they realize their human inability to figure Him out.
If you have ever looked at the awesomeness of an electrical storm, you can just sense that there is an awesome God behind all of this because this is just a drop in the bucket compared to the universe.
But how are you going to find God? How are you going to know about Him? You know, when you come to Him and say, help my unbelief, I am empty, magnify yourself to me, show yourself to me, because I don't have the ability to know, and He reaches down to those people to manifest Himself.
If you have truly called out to the Lord to save you, His promise is that He will do so ( Romans 10:13). And once you are saved, your salvation can never be lost!
The fact that your discomfort in your present condition is the light that has been there all the while,
We have to be broken in order to be restored.
Luke 5:30-32. But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?
And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.
I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
To often we study salvation scriptures and mercy, grace, we stick to the new testament scriptures to find these topics,
Sometimes it does us well to view the commandments and scriptures out of the old testament to know the Lord, His Holiness and requirements in order to get a full appreciation of that Grace, We will get a better understanding of why Christ came and had to die on the cross for the sins of the world.
Feel free to please open up and share with us your doubts and disbeliefs.
Hi Lex ,you sound a bit sad and im sorry for you ,please dont be too hard on yourself ,dont give up on God ,He surely wont give up on you ,we are all individuals and God knows each and every one of us even better than we know ourselves , be still and wait for Him ,dont fret ,read your Bible with an open heart and mind ,dont try to understand everything immediately just enjoy it ,pray every day ,even if its just to say "thankyou " to God ,let Him work on you in the way He knows best and most importantly be patient ,He will bring you to Him ,He knows how to do it .
Lex ,that a good idea ,all we have is today ,rejoice in Gods love for you today and look forward to tomorrow ,Christ is coming so we have a lot to be happy about ,dont let this world crush your joy in Him .
Christians can have all types of intrusions into their lives as Satan creates fears, doubts, temptations to sin, etc. All these things God forgives on the basis of His Son's death as we come in repentance for our folly & sin. But you have stated that you might not be fully convinced that "Christianity is true". So, I would ask you, with great care: 'have you truly repented of your sins, been born again & have God's Spirit in you?' And secondly, 'if you have come the Way of the Cross, then what is troubling you about your faith or God's Word?'
Before you can even concern yourself with Hebrews 6:4-6 (which was a specific warning to those who were wanting to revert back into Judaism) & about apostatizing, I feel you need to attend to the other matter to find out why you are having doubts about 'your faith' & to prove the truth of 'Christianity'. However, if you truly believe you're saved, then it could be that you're not spending much time in God's Word, in prayer & receiving wholesome teaching in a Fellowship. Maybe, you need to ask questions (even here on this Site), seeking answers that will clear up your doubts & fears. And remember, when God's Word assures us or gives us an answer, we can fully trust it & use it against any doubts or fears we may have. Every Christian must daily put on God's Armour in readiness ( Ephesians 6:10-18). May the Lord lead you especially in your matters of concern.
Re-reading your comments over & over again, I'm wondering whether you have really been taught in God's Word & therefore unable to believe & hang on to its Truths. You only know what took place when you first repented of your sins, turning to Jesus for forgiveness & then subsequently baptized in water. The Word of God tells us that we can know that our salvation is both real & secure: Romans 10:9 "if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou SHALT be saved." And verse 13, "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord SHALL be saved." If we have called upon the Lord, putting our faith in His Work for us by His death & resurrection, God will fulfil His Promise that we will receive His Salvation & be welcomed into His family.
The other point that you can take confidence in is the fact of your distress over the state of your soul after being saved. A person who doesn't belong to the Lord, has no such concern, simply because the things of Christ are meaningless to him. The fact that you are agonizing about your salvation & unbelief must prove God's Spirit working in you: maybe keeping you restless until you take God seriously for all that He has said. If you have doubts & fears about your salvation or the Truth of God's Word, then these are not from within you but from the enemy of our souls who wants to keep you bound & therefore weak in faith & Christian experience. Spending time on things that are contrary to the Bible & your salvation, instead of God's Word, gives Satan a fertile ground to work with. Remember, God does forgive us our sins, but we still have to believe in that fact & continue on in our walk with Him.
A good indication of someone having the Holy Spirit would be a change in that person's life. That person has a hunger and desire for the things of the Lord and has a hunger for His word. When God's Spirit comes into a person's life, that person becomes a new creation in Christ.
There has to be a change because the Spirit of God that dwells in a believer is not dormant. It is God's Spirit (Holy Spirit) that transforms the life of a believer. God's Spirit will give you a true love for Him, and a true love for your brothers and sisters in Christ. Apart from His Spirit, we cannot produce that type of love.
Jesus' ministry is to baptize all who call on Him with His Spirit. He promises us that. Please keep in mind that you cannot "feel" the Holy Spirit. We cannot feel spirit. We can have a human emotional experience, but we can't feel spirit.
A believer knows they have the Spirit indwelling them by faith. It is God's Spirit that persuades us to believe. In fact, that's what the word faith literally means. It is the word PEITHO and it means persuasion. I cannot feel God's Spirit in me but I know He is there because He has fully persuaded me in my mind to know that He is in me and He is working in my life.
Lex, if you have God's Spirit in you, there will be a noticeable change in your life. It is a change that you know has taken place. Others might and should also notice the change.
If you have been born of God's Spirit, His Spirit abides in you permanently. In John 14:16, Jesus said "And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another comforter, that He may (abide) with you forever. This word abide (MENO) denotes permanency. Jesus said His Spirit will abide with you forever. How long is forever? No end! Jesus is going to send another comforter and He is going to abide in me, and I am going to be a dwelling place forever.
Ephesians 1:13-14 tells us that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. That seal cannot be broken by anyone other the owner of the possession. Jesus Christ has purchased us. We belong to Him. He has given us His Spirit to live in us permanently until He comes to redeem His possession.
Of those who Christ has saved and placed within them His Spirit, Jesus said He will never leave them nor forsake them. This is a double negative in the Greek which denotes the strongest impossibility of something ever happening. He will never take His Spirit from a believer.
We are told in Romans Chapter 8 that if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ (Indwelling), that person does not belong to Christ. That is the indication that a person is saved, is that they have the Holy Spirit in them. John 6:37-40 is a great section of scripture that would indicate that God's Spirit will always be with the believer. If God's Spirit were to be removed from us, we would be lost. And Jesus said all that the Father has given to Him, He would not lose one, but raise them up at the last day.
So if you realize that your thoughts are wrong and you genuinely want to reconcile with God, you can repent right? But sometimes some of the scriptures have me worried that it could be too late? Like the point of no return.. God is not the author of confusion and He does not give a spirit of fear so how do you get to a place where you are clear on what the Scripture says?
The Holy Spirit in a believer causes them to come to true repentance. I say true repentance because there are two separate words in the Greek text for our English word repent. One is METANOEO, and the other is METAMELOMAI.
Metanoeo (Repent) is true repentance. It's when a person makes a decision to change the direction of their life and surrender their life to Christ. But with that comes the understanding that we cannot change ourselves. It takes the Spirit of God in us to make that change. Metamelomai (Repent) simply means you are sorry for your actions. The bible tells us that Judas repented, but the word that was applied to Judas was not Metanoeo.
If you have the Holy Spirit living inside you, He is always working. God's Spirit inside a believer is never dormant. I agree with you that we can be deceived. If we think something is coming from God, how do we know? Satan knows the bible very well. We see that in the instance where he was tempting Jesus out in the wilderness. Satan quoted scripture perfectly. He just misapplied it. So how I know it's from God and I'm not being deceived? I have to trust Christ.
You mention "Genuinely wanting to reconcile with God." Here's a thought. It wouldn't be genuine if God's Spirit didn't put it on your heart. Our flesh wants nothing to do with God and is constantly trying to get away. It's the Spirit of God in us that continually draws us to Christ and brings us to confess the things that disrupt our fellowship with Him.
As far as getting to a place to where we clear on what the scripture says, good luck on that one. I don't know how to get to that place. All I can do is study the word, pray for understanding, and place my trust in the Lord.
In Hebrews 3:12, the word departing is the word apostasy. A believer cannot commit apostasy. Only someone who is involved, maybe intellectually understanding, being enlightened, and even agreeing with the truth, but when the hardships come, they leave. That's called apostasy.
I usually read the New King James Version but I do not know the Greek words. I have read that there are a few different forms and meanings for "repent" in the Bible. Understanding scripture can drastically impact the lives of people so it is important to keep learning. Translations give me pause so thank you for writing both words. Where did you get that info from? Does your bible have the Greek terms on the bottom of the page or an interlinear bible?
That is why those scriptures I mentioned have had me stressed. I appreciate your responses
I study from a King James Bible. It does not have any Greek on the pages unless I have added it to a section to better help me in my understanding. There are so many places in scripture where we as English speaking people see words and one person will come up with one meaning and another person will come up with another. And in a sense, they would both be right because English is such a general language. We see a word in English and it might mean one thing to me and another to you or someone else because just like Hebrew, English is a very general language. But it's not so with the Greek. Greek is such an exact language. I think it was the Lord's plan to have an exact language for the New Testament. Since most of the NT is teaching/doctrine, there needed to be an exact language.
As far as where I get my info from, I do own a Strong's Concordance, and also a Greek Interlinear Bible. However, I don't spend too much time in either one. I also was given a copy of the Textus Receptus (TR) while I was in a Koine Greek study. I have learned to read Greek and at times I will read straight from the Greek Text (TR). I spent several years under the ministry of a professor who taught both Hebrew and Greek at Masters International School of Divinity. He taught and trained those who were going into the ministry. He retired from there and now pastors a small community church close to where I live.
I'm glad I was able to share something with you that helped. All glory to Christ Jesus!
You have been given some pretty sound biblical advice here. If I might add, Hebrews 6:4-6 is not talking about a born again believer losing salvation as salvation cannot be lost.
I would like to also share with you what I get from Mark 9:24, the verse you shared. I'm glad you brought this verse up.
It says, "And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief."
Nowhere in the Bible does it challenge someone to come up with their own faith so that Jesus can perform in your life. That's the cry of a person. I believe, but Lord Help my unbelief because I can't believe. Only God can give me that. Help my unbelief!
It is always the strong point in a person's life when they can approach the Lord, even as a nonbeliever, even if you don't understand the things of God, you can still approach Him and say "Lord, if you are real, make yourself real to me!"
I mean, even a nonbeliever, somebody who doesn't believe in God, they are asking God to do it all because they realize their human inability to figure Him out.
If you have ever looked at the awesomeness of an electrical storm, you can just sense that there is an awesome God behind all of this because this is just a drop in the bucket compared to the universe.
But how are you going to find God? How are you going to know about Him? You know, when you come to Him and say, help my unbelief, I am empty, magnify yourself to me, show yourself to me, because I don't have the ability to know, and He reaches down to those people to manifest Himself.
If you have truly called out to the Lord to save you, His promise is that He will do so ( Romans 10:13). And once you are saved, your salvation can never be lost!
To add to what's been said by Chris and Sacha,
The fact that your discomfort in your present condition is the light that has been there all the while,
We have to be broken in order to be restored.
Luke 5:30-32. But their scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?
And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.
I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
To often we study salvation scriptures and mercy, grace, we stick to the new testament scriptures to find these topics,
Sometimes it does us well to view the commandments and scriptures out of the old testament to know the Lord, His Holiness and requirements in order to get a full appreciation of that Grace, We will get a better understanding of why Christ came and had to die on the cross for the sins of the world.
Feel free to please open up and share with us your doubts and disbeliefs.
We would love to help!
God bless you.
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