“If you love Me, keep My commandments."
21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
So here is the question: Do You Love Him? Really? I hear a lot of people say that they are going to go heaven, because they are a "Christian," but my question is always: "Do You Love Him?" The answer is always a resounding "YES!" But do we show that we love Him by keeping His commandments? Do we even know what those commandments are?
Some will argue and say that "salvation is a free gift!" "It is by faith alone and not by works (lest any man should boast)!" And in response I would say that I whole-heartedly agree. Salvation is a free gift. You can not earn or merit salvation. You cannot be good enough, smart enough or good-looking enough to get salvation. It is not dependent on any works except this one: "believe."
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
So that's it. All you have to do is believe in Him, and nothing more. But let me pose this question. If you truly believe that Jesus was and is the Son of God, who came to earth to bring glory to the Father through the redemption of fallen man. . . If you truly believe that He sacrificed His perfect Son, to pay the penalty for your sins and mine, how could you not love Him? And how can you say that you love Him, when you fail to keep His commandments? How can you keep His commandments unless you know what they are?
Keeping His commandments is not a prerequisite for salvation. It is a direct result of belief. Belief that Jesus was and is the Lamb of God. Belief compels love, and love compels obedience.
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