King James Bible Study Devotional
Message Title: The Saving of The Soul
For: Tuesday December 14, 2010
Chapters: Hebrews 8-10
Click Here to Read Them or Go to: http://www.imfollowingjesus.com/bible-december-14

Details of Today's Chapters: a more excellent ministry, the man made Tabernacle, the perfect Tabernacle, a mediator, a better sacrifice, a shadow, a new covenant, and the saving of the soul.

Hello My Friend/Guest,
A lot of people who grow up in Christian homes are taught that if you want to go to heaven you have to be really good or follow these rules. So, when a person brought up this way is told that a murder, a con, an abuser, or even a terrorist can go to heaven it is hard to grasp that concept. It's even harder when a person who tries their best to live the right way is told that they are facing eternity in hell. Jesus said, “So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.” - Matthew 20:16. What Jesus means by this is that many will get saved early in life, perhaps as a child or later on as an adult, but many are saved when they are about to die. Billions of people will have the knowledge of Christ, but only a few of them will be saved because they never acknowledged Christ.

The culprit, the flesh, the Bible says, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” - Romans 7:18-20. The truth is this, no matter how good we try to be we all sin (wrong doing), whether intentionally or unintentionally, every person here on earth does something that constitutes as sin. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” - Romans 3:23. The glory of God means the splendor and bliss of heaven. Did you ever come close to reaching a goal, but something got in the way that prevented you from reaching that goal? That is what God is talking about, you got close, but something is preventing you from getting to heaven, that something is sin. If you stomped your feet and pitched a fit as a child, that constitutes as sin.

Since it is the flesh that commits sin and keeps people from heaven God needed a way for a soul to be saved. First, He came up with the Law or covenant that was given to Moses for His people to follow, the blood sacrifices of spotless animals would be offered up to God. A priest would act as a mediator, a middle man to God, he would receive the offering and give it to God for that person to be saved temporarily. Even before a priest was able to accept a sacrifice from anyone else he had to go through intensive cleansing to be cleansed himself first since he himself was not exempt from committing sin. God realized that even with the Law people just could not do enough to keep themselves from facing an eternity in hell. That is when He decided to make a way for the soul to be saved permanently without the need of all those sacrifices and use a heavenly priest who would act as the mediator. “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;..For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:..But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.” - Hebrews 8:1,4,6,7.

Jesus not only is our mediator He is our Redeemer, while the Law was a shadow of good things to come, it was only temporary, a better, more obtainable covenant was in the works. A covenant that redeemed a person once and for all, “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” - Hebrews 9:11-14.

One sacrifice was made once and for all to redeem all who believe in Jesus Christ. Dead works are those things that we try to do to be good, being good or bad does not get us to heaven. All who believe in and accept that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, which made Him qualified to be the spotless sacrifice, died, was buried, and three days resurrected (brought back to life) are saved and able to go to heaven. All are saved the same way, it's simple, admit that you are a sinner and ask Jesus to save you. No matter who you are you can be saved from hell. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” - I Corinthians 6:9-11.

Asking Christ to save us saves our soul, not the flesh, make no mistake, if you are saved and you live in sin your flesh will suffer. God does not appreciate it when a person takes His gift for granted or asks to be saved in vain, “For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;..Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.” - Hebrews 10:30-32,35-39. Without Jesus a soul is not saved and is destined for an eternity in hell, regardless of any good or bad, “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” -Revelation 20:14,15. The second death is the death of the soul, anyone who has not asked Jesus to save them will get cast into the lake of fire.

While we may never understand some things in life, the amazing thing about eternal life with Christ is that one day every bad thing that we have witnessed or done ourselves, every tear, and every bit of suffering will vanish and be forgotten forever. “and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” - Revelation 21:3,4. Praise God!

Be blessed, enjoy the rest of your day/night and week.
Merry Christmas, remember, Jesus is the reason for the season.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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