After Salvation

When God’s Holy Spirit comes knocking on your heart’s door (Revelation 3:20), should you run and hide, or invite him in?

Open the door to your heart. Allow Jesus to forgive your sins and remove their burden (1 John 1:9). Believe and profess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God whose death and resurrection paid the atoning price for sins. A Romans 10:9-10 prayer might go like this...

“Jesus Christ, Son of God, I believe that you died on the cross to pay for my sins, and then rose from the grave.

Please forgive my sins, and write my name in your Book of Life. Please take me to Heaven when I die, or when you return. Thank you, Jesus.”

Saying that prayer with heartfelt confession and repentance invites Christ into your heart. Jesus calls it being “born again” (John 3:3-8). Then what?

A newborn baby can (1) remain a baby the rest of his life; (2) lose his life and die, or (3) grow into a child, teen, and adult. The same holds true for born again Christians.

It is unlikely that a newborn baby will remain a baby the rest of its life: choice (1). A baby is more likely either to die prematurely, or to mature towards adulthood.

The same applies to a born again Christian. Without feeding your spirit with “soul food,” and exercising your faith muscles, and educating your spirit self, you would be like someone in a river treading water and going nowhere, slowly sinking. So what does the Christian do to prevent that from happening?

First, find a preacher to baptize you in water. Why? Well, why not? Jesus asked John the Baptist to baptize him (Matthew 3:13).

“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection” (Romans 6:4-5).

Find a good Christian church to attend: maybe the church where you got baptized.

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day [of Christ’s return, Judgment Day, etc.] approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). Worship, preaching, and fellowship in the church feed your soul and spirit.

“When thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret” (Matthew 6:6). Don’t literally pray in a small, dark closet. Find a place where you can get alone with God and pray, communicating with God like he’s your best friend.

Purchase a Bible best suited to your needs: King James Version, New International Version, Amplified Bible, My Sword app for smart phones, etc. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed” (2 Timothy 2:15).

Allow God’s Holy Spirit to work inside you, edifying and sanctifying your virtues, annihilating your bad habits and carnal traits until “old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Stop reacting abruptly, rashly to situations. Ask God, “What would Jesus say and do in my shoes?

What would he not say, and not do?” Listen to the still small voice of God’s Spirit (1 Kings 19:12) whispering words of wisdom to your conscience to guide you.

Whatever’s happening, keep faith in God. “The just shall live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38).

Doing these things helps you to mature towards Christian perfection and completion.