I have committed myself to praying for a list of people on a regular basis. But I often wonder if it is possible to determine whether they are truly saved or not. What makes someone a Christian?
There is first the classic John 3:16 which says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
This leads me to ask the question: what does it mean to believe in Jesus?
Romans is where I'll head next. Romans 8:1 says, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Also, verses 9-16 affirm that, "You, however are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, 'Abba! Father!' The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God"
Therefore it can be assumed that, if someone has the Spirit of God dwelling within them, they will bear the fruit of the Spirit in their lives. Galatians 5:19-24 says, "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."
Also, those who believe will have faith in the Word of God as Jesus says in John 5:24 and 45-46, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life...For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?"
Another piece of evidence is that no one can do good in and of themselves without the Holy Spirit in their life. Everything is done with selfish motives otherwise. Romans 7:18 says "For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out."
One more verse that perhaps sums a lot of this up is 1 Corinthians 12:3, "...no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says, 'Jesus is accursed!' and no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except in the Holy Spirit."
I heard a story once of a man who attended a Bible College (this man was not a Christian) for a few years and decided that he would "fake" Christianity just to see what happened and sure enough, by the end of his studies the College wanted to put this man into leadership because he had such a believable "fake faith."
I have prayed that I would not be overwhelmed with discouraging sorrow when I discover that people who I once thought were genuine followers of Christ turn out to be living a "fake faith." This has happened several times and thus far my faith has continued strong and I have not been overwhelmed. After all, your faith is only as strong as who or what you are putting it in, and I would argue that God is strongest and He has reassured me as His Word says, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;" - 2 Corinthians 4:7-9
I can hope to be sure if I see some of the evidence listed above that someone is following Christ but apart from the individuals themselves, only the Lord truly knows a person's heart and whether or not they will be with Him in heaven someday. I must choose to put my faith in Him and leave the people on my prayer list in His hands. Trusting Him to work in their lives, drawing them to Himself, in hope that one day they may believe and be saved. My faith will not be shaken. I will strive to "pray without ceasing" - 1 Thessalonians 5:17 as I wait for the return of my Lord Jesus.
There is first the classic John 3:16 which says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
This leads me to ask the question: what does it mean to believe in Jesus?
Romans is where I'll head next. Romans 8:1 says, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Also, verses 9-16 affirm that, "You, however are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, 'Abba! Father!' The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God"
Therefore it can be assumed that, if someone has the Spirit of God dwelling within them, they will bear the fruit of the Spirit in their lives. Galatians 5:19-24 says, "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."
Also, those who believe will have faith in the Word of God as Jesus says in John 5:24 and 45-46, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life...For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?"
Another piece of evidence is that no one can do good in and of themselves without the Holy Spirit in their life. Everything is done with selfish motives otherwise. Romans 7:18 says "For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out."
One more verse that perhaps sums a lot of this up is 1 Corinthians 12:3, "...no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says, 'Jesus is accursed!' and no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except in the Holy Spirit."
I heard a story once of a man who attended a Bible College (this man was not a Christian) for a few years and decided that he would "fake" Christianity just to see what happened and sure enough, by the end of his studies the College wanted to put this man into leadership because he had such a believable "fake faith."
I have prayed that I would not be overwhelmed with discouraging sorrow when I discover that people who I once thought were genuine followers of Christ turn out to be living a "fake faith." This has happened several times and thus far my faith has continued strong and I have not been overwhelmed. After all, your faith is only as strong as who or what you are putting it in, and I would argue that God is strongest and He has reassured me as His Word says, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;" - 2 Corinthians 4:7-9
I can hope to be sure if I see some of the evidence listed above that someone is following Christ but apart from the individuals themselves, only the Lord truly knows a person's heart and whether or not they will be with Him in heaven someday. I must choose to put my faith in Him and leave the people on my prayer list in His hands. Trusting Him to work in their lives, drawing them to Himself, in hope that one day they may believe and be saved. My faith will not be shaken. I will strive to "pray without ceasing" - 1 Thessalonians 5:17 as I wait for the return of my Lord Jesus.
