Be Established in Faith
Colossians 2:6 So live in Christ Jesus the Lord in the same way as you received him. 7 Be rooted and built up in him, be established in faith, and overflow with thanksgiving just as you were taught. 8 See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ.
Human nature is nothing if not humorous. After all, we have everything we need in Christ to be content, thankful, and strengthened in our faith, yet we tend to look other places for our help. Isn’t that funny? We are given freedom from bondage in Christ, yet we allow people to deceive us and burden us with traditions made by man instead of God. Isn’t that funny?
The Colossians were in danger of having the gospel adulterated by those who taught that faith and grace alone were not enough to offer salvation. And, if you think about it, the gospel does not make sense to the world. How could it? The gospel requires that we believe in a God we cannot see, follow a Christ who did not come to save the people from a corrupt government but from the corruption within their souls, and depend on a spirit for strength and guidance.
Things have not changed much in the 21st century. Instead of reading the Bible to discern God’s will, we read self-help books. Rather than allowing our faith to sustain us, we look for signs. Will we ever learn?
PRAYER: Dear God, forgive us for failing to remain steadfast but instead being tossed by every wind. Help us to maintain a teachable heart and to keep our eyes on you rather than seeking answers elsewhere. Amen
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- Tagged: Established in Faith, Seeking Holiness
Seeking Holiness 
When you believe in Jesus and have faith in his blood for the payment of your sindebt, in accordance with todays gospel in Romans 3:24-26, whereby you have peace with God (Romans 5:1), why ask God for forgiveness? Asking for forgiveness cancels out grace: either you are completely forgiven by faith in Jesus and his blood or you are not forgiven.
If you are a believer in accordance with Romans 3:24-26, you can check Gods commandment to be established in the faith, as written in Romans 16:25-26: Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to:
• my [Paul’s] gospel [read Romans], and
• the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest [read Romans up to and including Revelations], and
• the scriptures of the prophets [read Genesis up to and including Acts],
according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.
In my previous post, I hadn’t taken your testimony into consideration, as provided in the right column. I noticed that you believe that Jesus comes into your heart by prayer and that you must repent from sins. However, this is not the way to get saved today (or anytime for that matter). God doesn’t hear a sinner’s prayer and you can repent from sin until you are blue in the face, but that doesn’t remove your existing sindebt. Therefore, you are still on your way to hell. The scriptures are clear:
Mechanics of salvation:
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Therefore, prayer doesn’t get you anything: faith does.
Way to salvation:
Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.
Conclusion
God has faith in the blood of Jesus and is the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Therefore, I believe (present time) in Jesus and I have faith in his blood as payment for my sins. According to scripture, I now have peace with God.
Thank you for taking the time to read “Seeking Holiness” and for your thoughtful insight into the Scriptures. I pray you will continue to seek out God’s word and that His grace will be abundantly and supernaturally real to you