Day 82

"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 Corinthians 13:5)

The greatest promise that we have in the gospel of Jesus Christ is that we will never be forsaken by God. If we be in Jesus Christ then he is in us. He has given us the Holy Spirit as an earnest, a down payment of our eternal salvation. But many people still struggle with this idea. It is very hard for us to wrap our minds around a God who demonstrates so much mercy and grace that we will always be acceptable in his sight regardless of our circumstances. This is where the authors of the new testament encourage us to 'know' our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

We are not comforted with salvation and comforted to sit hoping in Christ with blissful ignorance. Rather, we are instructed to search out the Scriptures and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Christ is in us, for us, and with us in all things.

Consider the passage above. We are told to examine our own selves on the basis of God's revealed word, whether we are in the faith of Jesus Christ or not. The basis of our faith in found in the Scriptures; they will reveal to us our true spiritual condition whether we be lost or saved, hell-bound or heaven-bound, a child of Satan or a child of God. 

The idea in the passage is to prove ourselves in the same likeness we would prove a coin or bill with monetary value. We know what characteristics validate a genuine piece of currency; likewise, the Scriptures reveal characteristics that validate a genuine believer. If we are found to be counterfeit in the faith we have hope that Jesus Christ will accept us on the grounds of true repentance and faith.

But sometimes people will come along and try to fool us into thinking that the currency we carry is really counterfeit. So what is our defense to such attacks? We should know how to identify genuine currency. Likewise, if we know what genuine faith in Jesus Christ looks like, and if we know that we have genuine faith in Jesus Christ, we cannot be deceived by the liars and cheats who wish to take away the confidence in that we have. This is exactly what some tried to do to the believers in Galatia.

"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ." (Galatians 1:6-7)

"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" (Galatians 3:1)

The believers in Galatia had received Christ by faith, trusting in his person and work, yet there were some who set out to disrupt their faith with lies and counterfeits. I want to encourage you today with this: If you have begun in faith then you will continue on to the end in faith. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He does not change. The faith you have in Jesus Christ that is counted to you for righteousness is the same faith that will see you through this life and into eternity.

So 'know' your Savior Jesus Christ. Do not let someone bewitch you. Examine yourselves whether your faith is genuine. If it is, then let know one trick you. However, if you are found with counterfeit faith, turn to Jesus in repentance and call on him in faith. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

Trusting in Christ Alone,

Jay Silvas