What is a Believer?
By: Minister E. J. Kolenda
We have been asked so many questions about believing and why just
believing in the LORD JESUS CHRIST does not put you IN CHRIST.
The person who asked us this question understands what is necessary to
do to be saved but the concern is this, how do we teach the doctrines
and commandments to others?
The “believer” theory has been taught for hundreds of years and it is
ingrained deeply into minds and in order to teach the truth you must
really
get to know and understand your own Bible.
When we come across that person who is really hungry to KNOW the
LORD a joy feels our very beings here at Kolenda Ministries. This
question shows us not only a hunger to teach but also a hunger to learn
about our Heavenly Family. We are extremely grateful and privileged to
be able to answer this question.
If a person has a teachable spirit and wants to know all the ways of the
Bible then we will be excellent students. Yes, there is a spirit of learning as
well as a spirit of teaching. Also, if a person does not care about the LORD
but only what the LORD can do for them then they won’t really care what
the doctrines are either. The Bible especially requires a teachable spirit.
Ask
the LORD everyday in prayer to give you the spirit of prayer and a
teachable
spirit. You will never become a teacher unless you are first
teachable yourself.
Even in the regular schools if a child does not have a teachable
spirit they will grow up with very little knowledge and
understanding of what they are taught in school or what
they must do to get along in this world. Many times
this is called “hard to learn”, “lazy” or some form of “learning
disability”.
Disinterest in learning causes teaching to become almost impossible.
They
might learn enough to get by in this world but what about the world
to come?
There are those who do not do well in some subjects in school that make
great
Bible learners and teachers. This comes because the LORD gives them
the spirit
of revelation, learning and teaching. Don’t judge how well
you did in the world’s school as to how well you will do in GOD’S Word.
Many who followed JESUS
CHRIST were not learned men.
We have had parts of this study before and the title is the
same. We have added
more information and eliminated some due to length.
Jesus said to the Israelites and the Jews, “Let not your heart
be troubled: ye believe in GOD, believe also in ME.” [John 14:1]
All Israel was waiting for the consolation, the coming of their
Messiah. All the
prophets had foretold the coming of the Messiah and they
believed that He
would come. [Luke 1:68-70]
In the Old Testament, most of Israel believed in their GOD,
JEHOVAH
ELOHIM. They had not seen GOD, but they did believe in Him.
Even today the Jews believe in GOD.
Now, Jesus is born as a human baby with human life in
Bethlehem. Many
that were associated with His Birth and Life followed
Him. During His three
and one-half years of ministry, He performed many
miracles and multitudes followed Him. At one time they
wanted, by force, to make Him King of Israel.
They believed
in Him. They believed he was sent from GOD and they believed
He was born King.
On the other hand there where those who did not believe in
Jesus as the Christ. They believed Him to be a fraud and
blasphemer. They sought to kill Him and get rid of that blasphemer.
They were angered and envious of the large
following that Jesus
had. These priests and religious groups called the followers
of Jesus, “Believers”. That name was given them because they believed
Jesus
was their Messiah. They rightly “believed” that
Jesus was the Christ.
After three and one-half years of ministry Jesus shed His Blood
and died on the Cross. After three days and three nights
He was Resurrected from the grave. Many were convinced of His
Resurrection for He had been seen on the streets
of the city.
Mary Magdalene had seen Him. He had appeared a number
of times
in the midst of the disciples.
Mary, Peter, and some of the other disciples had seen the empty
tomb. Why shouldn’t they believe? Thus, the people continued
to follow Him, and the
name “Believers”, was never changed.
Even after the Day of Pentecost, when they became Possessors
of the Holy
Spirit (Christ In Them), they were still called
“Believers”.
It is understandable, that the Jews and religious groups of
that day would
continue to call them by the name “believers”. The thing
that is hard to believe
today is, why, in this day and age of supposedly
enlightenment in the Word of
GOD, so many religious leaders do
not know the difference between “believing
and possessing”?
Could it be that two thousand years later we are
still just
believers? Why are we still preaching as if we were still
going to the synagogue
and waiting for the Messiah to come.
On the day of Pentecost the people, upon receiving the Baptism
of the Holy Spirit, were changed from “Believers to
Possessors.” They became New Creation People. A New
Creation will by necessity have a new kind of life. Just as CHRIST
JESUS received begotten life from the Father, JEHOVAH
ELOHIM,
at the Resurrection so will we receive a new kind of life.
CHRIST
did not have to believe that He was Begotten and
Resurrected but it is a fact.
The human fetus in the womb does
not have to believe that it has human life
because it is a fact.
Peter and John went to the Temple to pray. They met the
crippled man at
the Gate Beautiful, begging alms. Peter said,
“Silver and gold have I none;
but such as I HAVE...”
Yes, indeed, they had something. They were
Possessors of Life
Eternal! This is not about the abundance of silver and
gold but it is about Life Everlasting, incorruptible, immortal
and living with
the Father in Heaven and His Begotten Son.
This is the High Calling that Paul was speaking of.
That is the race we run to become the sons of GOD
as heirs of Life Eternal.
The days of being only a believer were over. They had now
become a member of The Body of Christ. They were all baptized
into One Body
and they became a part of Him. There was no need for them to
Believe
anymore, they had Received Him.
Remember that the devils are believers too, and they tremble,
but they are
still lost. [James 2:19]
Now this was all Israel and the Jews could do while Jesus was
on earth, for the Holy Spirit was not yet given. Do you mean
to say that we, today,
have to be satisfied with, as we are
being told, “just believe”? No, indeed not! To believe, to
hope for is to trust in the future. We need to possess salvation now, and
we can.
How wonderful! GOD has provided us a way, through Jesus Christ,
whereby
we can possess spiritual life. We do not have to trust for
it (in the future), hope
for it (also in the future), but
we can experience it now by being baptized in
water
for remission of sins, AND receive this new life, the Holy
Spirit Baptism.
Water and Spirit is one baptism as I have so often
told you.
Have you considered how destructive these theories of just have
faith, hope,
trust and believe is? There are Multitudes that
believe but never possess the New Creation Life.
If you still have to hope and believe for it then it has not
yet come to you.
A general belief is that when a person becomes a Christian, you
will know it
because they will stop drinking, smoking, using bad
language and etc. This is
certainly to be expected, but is only
one sign. This does not make that person
a New Creation In Christ.
If the Doctrines set out by the Bible are followed
there will not be any problem with separating yourself from
these things. The
Holy Spirit will cause you to refrain from
worldly behaviors.
It is true we are to present our bodies a living sacrifice,
holy, acceptable unto GOD, totally separated from the world,
but, have you ever stopped to
consider that a person can stop doing all
those acts that we associate with the ungodly man, without
being a Christian? We have people on earth who never done
any of the
things that we associate with the unsaved.
Yet they worship idols and hate Christ and our Heavenly Father.
Are we to say that they will go to Heaven? There are those
who believe in Christ but go on living as though He were an imagination.
They believe that Christ "in some form" came to all religions
and all are going to Heaven. Would that disobedience not bring about
the same condition that we have on earth? It is not what
you believe and how you live that saves you to
start with. It is always obedience to the instructions for
salvation that will ultimately bring salvation. Many churches
tell the people to clean yourself up from the world and then come and
be saved. My Bible tells me that JESUS came to save the sinners that were
lost. If they can clean themselves up then why was JESUS Blood an
absolute necessity? Paul the Apostle tells us this "without the shedding
of blood there is no Remission of sins."
We have to conclude that a man is not a Christian because he
gives up his bad
habits. But, he is a Christian because he has dealt
with the sin question, the
death sentence that has
separated us all from GOD. Many people say that they
are going
to somehow go into the enemy’s camp and take back what the devil
stole from them. I have yet to hear HOW they plan on doing this.
What did the devil steal from you and me? Did he steal our
money, houses, cars and other belongings? Was it your joy,
peace and happiness that he stole? Of course it was but keep reading
My friend it was far more than your worldly processions that
were stolen. He
stole your life and left you to die and also inherit a sin that
you cannot get a
pardon or covering for. This is what you must
first deal with.
The plan of salvation is so plain that a child need not err
in finding it. In
[Acts 2:37,38] When Israel was pricked in their heart
(convicted of their wrong
doing), they asked this question, “Men and
brethren, what shall we DO? Then Peter said unto them,
Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the Name of
Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift
of the Holy
Spirit (Eternal Life – the new kind of life).
At that point they became more than just believers. They did
something
about it and now they are possessors.
Become a possessor and not just a believer.
How much truth does it take to go to heaven?
May GOD Richly and Abundantly Bless You All,
Your Minister and Apostle of Revelation Truth
E. J. Kolenda
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*Contact Info for egospel.com
USA
Kolenda Ministries
E. J. or Sylvia Kolenda
112 Joyce Avenue
Lewisburg, TN 37091
Telephone 1-931-359-0362
FAX (419) 715-6400
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