Salvation is an individual response to the Holy Spirit
There are no blanket Salvation promises for everyone
If you say in the word, it says that if you believe, you shall be saved
That is truth, however each person must recognize that Jesus is Lord and that He was raised from the dead
Each one also must reconcile his or her life to Jesus and this is an individual effort
If you meet Jesus and you decide to give your life to Him, then your walk is with Him
He tells you how to follow Him, what He is asking of you
This is not payment for Salvation
It is a response to His work in your life
If you do not allow Jesus to work in your life and make you a new creature,
you will be like a man who looks at himself in a mirror and forgets what he had seen

For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. James 1:23-24

We each need to check our walks before the Lord
Paul called that judging ourselves
Then, we will not get surprised when we do finally meet our Lord
because we will already be aware of what it means to follow Him
There will be no surprises
Stay close to Jesus as you walk with Him, He will direct your steps

Should we be afraid we can lose our salvation?
Yes. It is the godly fear that reminds us that He can cast us into Hell, which is separation from Him
it is a lie from the pits of Hell that we cannot lose our salvation
Jesus gave us many ways that we can lose our salvation
It will not be our goodness or anything we have done that will allow us Salvation, but God’s grace and mercy
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

it is all between you and God
The assurance of Salvation comes from Him
He will make it clear to you
Ask Him

If God were to remove Himself from the Earth, there would be nothing good.
No love, no kindness, no goodness, no light, only emptiness and darkness.
People who live without God, who do not acknowledge Him do not realize,
the only good they have is from Him.
With God’s presence, which is everywhere, there is honesty, justice, and anything good and right.
Without God is emptiness, complete absence of anything good.

When people arrive in Hell of their own choice,
to not choose God while they had the chance here on Earth,
the worst part will be to be completely separated from God.
Jesus spoke of Hell many times. He also called it outer darkness.
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed,
than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Mark 9:43-44

God does not play. He said what He meant and He meant what He said.
We cannot change His words, neither can we soften them when they seem harsh.
God said what He said.
Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand,
Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: Matthew 25:41

And He said unto him, Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but one, that is, God:
but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. Matthew 19:17
True good, the only good that matters comes from God and reflects God’s goodness.

There is no turning once we die. We will be judged and it will be too late.

What is the whole duty of man? Solomon told us in Ecclesiastes 12:13
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
The fear of the Lord is to be in our hearts. He can cast us into Hell.
We cannot talk our way into His good graces. It is entirely up to Jesus.

In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God,
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 
Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of His power; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9
The time is short. Time to take God seriously.

Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. Matthew 7:21

The fear of the Lord is a little hard to grasp.
Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. Psalm 33:8
Jesus created us for His pleasure.
He did not create us to be His buddy.
To lose the fear of God and think of Him as just like any friend is not the ultimate goal.
His holiness gives us a bar. We are to revere Him at all times, at all costs. He is God. We are not.

Losing the fear of God and moving into entitlement is a gigantic mistake.
Fearing that He can cast us into Hell is not to be forgotten.
If we realize that He can doesn’t mean we should be worried that He will.
He also wants us to know of His bountiful grace and mercy.
Jesus has given us promises.
He has formed us and shaped us and molded us into who we are and will continue that work.
The entitlement is where it can be a danger.
The attitude of: ‘I can do anything I want and He will forgive me.’ ‘I have my ticket. I’m getting into heaven.’

King Solomon lost his fear of the Lord.
He forgot. He didn’t care anymore. He refused the warnings of how he would get there.
King David was operating without the fear of God when he had the adulterous relationship with Bathsheba
and then killed her husband so he could take his wife.
He also regained the fear of God after repentance.
To continue to walk without the fear of God in our lives will lead us nowhere good.

Paul who was called Saul did not gain the fear of God until he was struck blind.
He had to repent time and time again and be brought back to the throne where he could realize that Jesus was his Lord and He offered to Paul mercy and grace as a gift, not as an entitlement.
We cannot demand that the Lord God give us mercy and grace.
It is with great humility and reverence that we will be reconciled to the Father.
There is no in between. You have the fear of God or you don’t. It is either a part of your foundation or it isn’t.
Can you learn it? Absolutely.
If, when you read the word, you continue to excuse yourself, you are not operating in the fear of the Lord.
There is much humility with the fear of the Lord.
You cannot have the fear of the Lord without humility.
Those who think they will get to the throne of God on the last day and tell Jesus how great they are
and all the accomplishments they have made will cause them to fall flat.

No human has the right to demand anything from God.
God’s will, God’s timing, God’s way.
You think you have the best way to walk with Jesus? Think again. It is we who follow Him.
It is the cross He has given us that we carry.
We are the clay, He is the potter.

I hear it thousands of times from all angles of thought with that spirit of entitlement.
It is in Christian songs on the radio, even at church sometimes.
The fear of God is not taught much in the church of today.
For some Christians, the fear of God is a long forgotten part of their walk with God.
Who needs the fear of God when the bible clearly tells us that we are saved?
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
The fear of the Lord keeps us on the straight and narrow.
it is not something we can turn on and off. It is a core attribute, a foundational part of Christianity.
Those people who will hear from Jesus ‘I never knew you,’
either never knew or have forgotten the fear of God.
They were doing things in their own strength, without God, using God for their glory.
God will always be true to Himself.

To become great in the Kingdom of Heaven, we must become less.
We must exalt Jesus with everything we do and say, in our thoughts, exalting Him
and helping others to see Him as He truly is: The Saviour of the world.

Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven. 
Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name?
and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works? 
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.
Matthew 7:21-23

There is no formula.
We all must wrestle with the Lord and accept Him and accept that Jesus gave His life for us
and that He rose from the dead that we might be cleansed from all sin and unrighteousness,
as we accept Him and give our lives to Him, we are to walk in His ways and follow Him as He leads.

What does all this mean?
It means this is not a game. We are not playing. Our lives matter. The choices we make matter.

I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. 1 Corinthians 4:14

Many people have an entitled attitude about God.
If you are banking on entitlement: I said the prayer, I believe in Jesus or a host of other things that you are sure you are saved, if it is entitlement,
and if you have not made sure with your Maker that you are right with Him, that entitlement will fail you.

Does that mean you should be scared? Maybe, we should have the fear of God.
Mostly, this is a warning to check in with God.
Make sure your heart is right before Him. He will make things clear to you,
but if you just assume because someone else told you you are saved
or because you said a prayer and you have not gone on to develop your relationship with Jesus,
people will hear, I never knew you, depart from Me.

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only,
but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13

Some people think these are hard words and they are not the way God has shown them in the bible.
That is not different. Some people are missing it. No human knows who they are. That is up to Jesus to determine, but He also gave us warnings such as the one written in scripture above. It is up to each follower of Christ to check with God, to make sure they are on track with Him.

Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee. 1 Timothy 4:16
It’s very simple:
Take God’s word seriously. If someone does not,
if there is no fear that God can cast you into Hell, they are missing it.

And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

Remember in Proverbs? The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom?
The fear of the Lord is of utmost importance.
Without knowing that we may displease Him by what we do or do not do, we cannot earn His favor.
Get to know Him. It is of utmost importance and make sure He knows you,
that you are not just one among a thousand that made your way to see Him..
Be real, be true to the relationship God has called you to and don’t miss it.

And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences;
and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. Luke 21:11

At present, Ebola stems from Congo and Uganda. It is not airborne.
The White House Coronavirus doctor said a new mRNA vaccine can be made in 60 days.
The spread can come to the World Cup, which will have the capacity to infect millions of people
as there will be over 1 million visitors from other countries in 11 US cities.
She said she is not concerned of the spread as long as those people who are on the teams
can be kept separated from the areas in Uganda and Congo that have the active virus.

The other virus they believe is airborne. The rat virus, they call it.
There are concerns of mutations so that it can be spread by air and breathing rat feces is one way it spreads.
This virus seems to be spreading slowly across the world.
On the cruise ship where it recently infected the passengers, every continent was represented.

Just as the digital ID is about to be introduced, it will likely include health information such as vaccine statuses.

So, now what?
We know these things will be happening to our world. We know God’s Judgment is here.
How will we be affected?
Will we get it? Will our loved ones die? Will it affect our economy? Will they do a shut down?

At this point, we do not know. It is more important than ever to be close to Jesus.
He is the only answer.
Close to Jesus in your heart, in what you think about all day, in praying without ceasing,
in listening for His voice, in reading and studying and memorizing His word, in staying close to the brethren.
Jesus does not want us to fear anything or anyone but Him.
Easier said than done, but ask Him to help.

We know bad things are on the way. God has warned us about many difficult times ahead.
Behold, I have told you before. Matthew 24:25

Watch and pray.

While this was talking about the Israelites claiming the land the Lord promised and gave to them,
there are also metaphors that the Lord might show you about today or about your life specifically.

When I was reading about the Kings, suddenly, it dawned on me (the Holy Spirit, our teacher, of course) that we each also have a domain that the Lord Jesus has given us, no matter how big or how small.
A domain, our own little kingdom, that we are responsible for, that we will be held accountable for how we exercise God’s righteousness over. For some it might be their families, children, maybe they are a matriarch or patriarch. Some rule over many people, an immediate supervisor or a Leader or CEO of a whole company, big or small.

How we obey the Lord in the big and the small is what we will be held accountable for, whatever He has given us responsibility over, even if it’s only our own lives, our phones, what types of idols we allow or disallow in our homes, that we worship, that we serve. Whatever the Lord Jesus has given us, is what He requires of us.

if we look at that scripture again, we might notice that God was telling them to drive our their enemies.
Just one of the many things He commands us. Not to allow our enemies, or in the case of this metaphor is any sort of evil.

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord,
and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 2 Corinthians 6:17

God’s word bears witness of itself. You will find throughout that the Bible that the Lord does not want us to serve other gods or allow evil in our midst.

He wants us to remain holy and pure in the sanctification of His Son Jesus the Christ.
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matthew 5:48
And ye shall be holy unto Me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people,
that ye should be Mine. Leviticus 20:26

“…that ye should be Mine…”

If people think they can take God for granted and continue to sin, thinking He will forgive them,
they might be surprised.

There is a fine line between asking God for forgiveness and feeling entitled to that forgiveness.
There has to be a fear of God in our hearts.

Some people dismiss the fear of God. Such as the Once Saved, Always Saved people.

We have to look at the whole word of God.

God forgave some and not others.
Even Jesus warned that not everyone who says to Me, Lord Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Consider what an honor it is to know Jesus and to be able to serve Him.
If He assures you, remember, that does not mean entitlement. It does not mean you have rights.
It means He has mercy on whom He has mercy and compassion on whom He has compassion.
There are no demands on Him.
Jesus gives to whom He will and if we become entitled, we could be pushing the envelope.

I can just hear the people saying, what about what He says in His word?
We can accept His promises.
Check your attitude with Jesus the Christ. Are you being demanding? Are you telling Him what it’s like?
Or are you humble before Him, knowing His ways are higher and we don’t get to decide anything?
We are nothing without Him.

Some people say they stand upon His word. While that sounds strong and robust,
how about kneeling before His word, being humble before His word,
loving what He says and standing up for Jesus in this adulterous and wicked generation?
Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation;
of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed,
when He cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels. Mark 8:38
Who wants Jesus to be ashamed of them?
He means what He says and He says what He means.
Maintaining the fear of God in our hearts keeps the fear of God in us and keeps us from entitlement.

Scriptural References:

And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28

Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 7:21

For He saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Romans 9:15

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:9

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him,
the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing.
John 15:5

Sometimes attitudes we have adopted can be sinful: Calling people names, sizing them up pr swearing
Those all seem somewhat small and not important. Keep it before the Lord, whatever it is.
Unforgiveness, letting others know faults we have found out about people that should not be amplified.
There are all sorts of things we can do. It is the little foxes that spoil the vines.
Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. Song of Solomon 2:15

Keep things that you do before the Lord.
By assuming He will forgive or that His grace will be there is an entitled attitude and it is a form of pride.
God is always looking for those whose hearts are perfect toward Him.

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth,
to shew Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him.
Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. 2 Chronicles 16:9

Whatever our problem, whatever our need, God is there to help us when we look to Him.
Sometimes, there will be a battle to allow us to triumph over the difficult obstacles, no matter how small.
Keeping those things before the Lord and listening in case there are holes in our armour,
or something we need to take care of can be an uncertain predicament,
or possibly there is nothing at all we can do,.
We just have to remember: we can try to make the right choices, but we can’t overcome without Jesus’ abilities.,

So much talking in our world today.
God wants us to listen.
Listen to Him.
He has much to tell us.
He has much to teach us.
His Holy Spirit is constantly wooing, beckoning us to sit at His feet.
Like Mary, not Martha who was worried and busy with many earthly things.
It is hard to be calm in the midst of the storm.
Like when Jesus said, “Peace, be still.” to calm the storm the disciples were in.
Jesus was not worried. He was sleeping, on a pillow.
He knew the Father had Him in His hand.
We too should know that our lives are in His hand.
Once our lives are no longer ours, and we are called according to His purpose,
we can then rest assured that He is working all things together for our good.

Give Jesus some quiet time.
In the stillness of your heart.
Adoring and cherishing His majestic awesomeness and wonder.
Just listening.
See what He shows you or tells you.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: John 10:27

Be still, in His presence.

And the key of the house of David will I lay upon His shoulder;
so He shall open, and none shall shut; and He shall shut, and none shall open. Isaiah 22:22

Have you ever had a door slam in your face, then afterward, you realized it was God?
Or have you ever had a door open and you realized it was God and God alone who opened that door?
Or, if you’re trying to leave somewhere, then you feel like you are stuck and the door just isn’t opening?

We really do not run our own lives. Once we have placed our lives in the hands of Him who doeth all tings well,
we are along for the ride. It’s a submission and a trusting of God whose will we honor.

Remember when Pilate was angry at Jesus for not speaking to him and he said,
I have power to release you and power to crucify you? Pilate was afraid of what was happening.

And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art Thou?
But Jesus gave him no answer. 
Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest Thou not unto me?
knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? 
Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against Me, except it were given thee from above:
therefore he that delivered Me unto thee hath the greater sin. John 19:9-11

When God opens the door, no man can shut it. This was happening because God designed it to happen.
The door could not be closed there. Jesus had submitted His will to the Father.
Peter did not like the idea and wanted to stop it. Jesus rebuked him.

Then Peter took Him, and began to rebuke Him, saying,
Be it far from Thee, Lord: this shall not be unto Thee. 
But He turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind Me, Satan: thou art an offence unto Me:
for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men. Matthew 16:23

So when the doors are open, go through them and when they are closed, submit yourself to His will.
He has His ways and His ways are higher than our ways.
Always pray for wisdom. Jesus will guide you and help you to do His will.