Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:1-8 KJV
- 1 Corinthians 12:3 KJV
Many lost people wander through life believing that one day before they die that they will repent and accept Jesus as their savior and avoid eternal damnation. They believe if they do it today that they would have to change things in their life and miss out on the "fun" sins of this world. There are so many things wrong with this thought process.
First, people do not know when they will die, so how can they determine when they "need" to be saved? My 20 year old son was brutally murdered while studying to be a pastor. He did not wake up that morning and say, 'this is the day that I am going to die, let me get right with God.' Hebrews 9:27 tells us, "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" God tells us every person will die and be judged, He just does not tell us when.
The second thing wrong with the thought process in the opening paragraph, is that we are incapable of cleaning up our own life. Yes we can make some outward changes (which normally does not last a long time), but only God can change our heart. Once we have true salvation we will not desire to live in "fun" sin.
Finally, and most importantly, salvation and repentance is a supernatural act. God draws us to Him and opens our eyes to sin and allows us to see sin as He sees it. This brings a desire within us to change our behavior, to repent (turn from our sins) and to be saved.
For salvation to occur, we must submit ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit. Apart from the Holy Spirit, we can do nothing. 1 Corinthians 12:3 tells us "...no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." Conviction leading to salvation is initiated by the Holy Spirit. John 6:44 tells us, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him..."
You can not be saved without the Holy Spirit drawing you to salvation. If you are being convicted to be saved, do not ignore it. That conviction will not always be there. 2 Corinthians 6:2 says, "...behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." Do not miss it!
