Let’s start first by going over some facts. Christ died on the cross for all sin — check. All who repent and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior are forgiven — check. Those who are forgiven are under grace — check. All who are under grace are free to do as they please — che…..wait, what?!

You see, there's this lie that keeps going around and as it goes around it grows like a snowball on every rotation, larger and larger. The idea that once we’re under God’s grace, then we can do no wrong. We can keep sinning and participating in the things we used to, but now it’s okay because Jesus loves us. You’ll hear or read things like, “I can sleep around because I believe in Jesus and He loves me”. If this is something you believe to be true, please keep reading. You might be missing the warning signs of a false salvation (Matthew 7:22-23).

But I Believe

The gospel message is very simple and very clear. Repent and put your full faith in Jesus (Mark 1:15). The apostle Paul recorded an important detail about belief in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4:

If we look carefully at verse 2, Paul says “unless you believed in vain”. What exactly does that mean? The original Greek word used for vain is eikē. Which means: inconsiderably, without purpose, without just cause, without success or effort. So what Paul is saying is the gospel message of Christ brings salvation to all who believe, that is unless your belief lacks consideration, purpose or effort. So simply believing that Jesus walked this earth and He is God is not enough. James 2:19-20 states that even demons know who Jesus is and shudder, yet they are not saved. Putting your full faith and trust in Jesus is true belief. Meaning nothing in this world is greater to you than your love for Him.

Okay, But Grace, We’ve Got Grace

Indeed, as believers we are under God’s grace, which is through true faith in Jesus. It’s also true that we’re not perfect and won’t be in this life. We’re gonna stumble and maybe even fall sometimes. It’s how you respond to that, which makes all the difference. In Romans 6:1-4 we can find this very important piece of information.

Paul is stating the fact that once we truly place our trust in Jesus, we are baptized (through the Holy Spirit) into the death of Christ and arise new. His death and resurrection took our sin punishment and defeated our death sentence. What Paul is saying here is if we are truly Christ’s, then we are dead to sin as we have died with Christ and are now a new creation in Him.

So we are certainly under God’s grace, He is faithful to forgive us if we confess our sins to Him. We’re gonna sin at times, we’re imperfect and that’s the way it is. Now, if you profess the name of Jesus Christ but you are not truly sorry for the sins you commit and your life is ruled by sin, then you should be concerned. Perhaps you never really gave up the things of your past, after coming to Him. God’s grace covers the sins we’ll commit during our walk with Him. But this is not a license to live a life that is controlled by sin — in fact the true believer, who is Spirit indwelt, would not desire to live a life controlled by sin (Galatians 5:22-23).

I Thought I Had Freedom in The Lord?

It’s true, where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17). But does that mean we can do whatever? That you can be a Christian who regularly cheats on your spouse; a Christian who is involved in homosexual acts; a Christian who constantly looks at pornography; or maybe even a Christian who robs banks and murders people? Paul says in Romans 6, verse 2, “absolutely not!”. As Christians we should not be participating in the sins of this world any longer since the true believer has been cleansed, as we see in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

Remember, we are dead to sin now. If you say you love Jesus but you’re constantly having sex with people you are not married to, you treat people poorly all the time, or perhaps you get drunk all the time to cope with your life; any unrepentant sin that is driving your life, could be a serious sign of a false conversion. There’s a chance you may not have a saving faith, which means you’re not under grace to begin with. Please take a moment to think about that.

Now it’s important to understand that nobody else can absolutely know if you are saved or not. I’m not claiming to know and would never claim to know. We are not to judge by outward appearance (John 7:24), because at that moment, an unbeliever may be doing something that looks Christian, while a true believer may be stumbling, doing something that does not look Christian. However, over time the fruit produced is a telling sign (Matthew 7:15-20). If you’re putting all your joy and faith in sinful things and you really don’t feel compelled to stop and aren’t truly sorry for your sin, then it’s imperative that you ask God to reveal your heart to you at this very moment.

The freedom that we have in the Lord, is freedom from the chains of sin (Psalms 107:14). Not freedom to do as we please. The Bible states that faith without good works is dead (James 2:20). Simply put, if what you do in your Christian life is mostly sinful and self-serving instead of serving the Lord by reflecting His light, love, mercy, kindness, and compassion into this world — then you show the signs of a heart that has not been changed by God. The follower of Christ is one who loves Him so much, that he or she is willing to give up the life they want for themselves, for the life that God wants for them (Luke 14:26-27, John 12:25). That true believer isn’t perfect, but has a heart for God and consistently produces the fruit of the Spirit. King David is a perfect example of what it’s like to follow Jesus while battling our still sinful flesh.

In Summary

Only you and God can know if you have salvation, and you should know if you do. Reflect on the lifestyle you live and ask God to reveal to you the things that are not pleasing to Him. If you’re a true believer stumbling in sin, repent and ask Him for forgiveness. Spend time around other believers who can help you stay away from the sin that is taking hold in your life. Read your Bible daily, God’s word is powerful enough to change lives and He will speak to you through it. It’s a fact that a saved Christian will commit sin in their life but they will eventually repent and ask for forgiveness — God’s loving grace will always pardon them (1 John 1:9).

However, constant and unrepentant sin should be alarming and could signal a non-saving faith or false conversion. This is someone who loves the things of Christianity but doesn't truly love Jesus. Being a Christian means living for Christ first and for ourselves last. And this should not be a task, but a desire of your heart. Which is instilled in you by a God-given change from the inside-out, through the true salvation found in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).