LIFE Begins with Salvation

So questions come up like, what is salvation and why do I need to be saved, what do I need to be saved from, who does the saving, how does God save and many other questions.

What does it mean to be saved?

Salvation is deliverance from danger or suffering. To save is to deliver or protect. The word carries the idea of victory, health, or preservation. Sometimes, the Bible uses the words saved or salvation to refer to temporal, physical deliverance, such as Paul’s deliverance from prison (Philippians 1:19).

More often, the word “salvation” concerns an eternal, spiritual deliverance. When Paul told the Philippian jailer what he must do to be saved, he was referring to the jailer’s eternal destiny (Acts 16:30-31). Jesus equated being saved with entering the kingdom of God (Matthew 19:24-25).

What are we saved from?

In the Christian doctrine of salvation, we are saved from “wrath,” that is, from God’s judgment of sin

Romans 5:9 NKJV

9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

1 Thessalonians 5:9 NKJV

9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Even though you are sinner, God loves you. He wants you to have a personal relationship with Him through Jesus, His Son. There is just one thing that separates you from God. That one thing is sin.

The Bible describes sin in many ways. Most simply, sin is our failure to measure up to God’s holiness and His righteous standards. We sin by things we do, choices we make, attitudes we show, and thoughts we entertain. We also sin when we fail to do right things. The Bible affirms our own experience – “there is none righteous, not even one.” No matter how good we try to be, none of us does right things all the time. People tend to divide themselves into groups - good people and bad people. But God says that every person who has ever lived is a sinner, and that any sin separates us from God. No matter how we might classify ourselves, this includes you and me. We are all sinners.

Romans 6:23 NKJV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Biblical salvation refers to our deliverance from the consequence of sin and therefore involves the removal of sin.

Who does the saving?

Only God can remove sin and deliver us from sin’s penalty

2 Timothy 1:9 NKJV

9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,

Titus 3:5 NKJV

5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

How does God save?

In the Christian doctrine of salvation, God has rescued us through Christ

John 3:17 NKJV

17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

Specifically, it was Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection that achieved our salvation

Romans 5:10 NKJV

10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

Ephesians 1:7 NKJV

7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace

Scripture is clear that salvation is the gracious, undeserved gift of God

Ephesians 2:5 NKJV

5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Ephesians 2:8 NKJV

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

and is only available through faith in Jesus Christ

Acts 4:12 NKJV

12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

How do we receive salvation?

We are saved by faith. Faith comes by hearing. Hearing the word of God.

We must hear the gospel—the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection

Ephesians 1:13 NKJV

13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

Then, we must believe—fully trust the Lord Jesus

Romans 1:16 NKJV

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

This involves repentance, a changing of mind about sin and Christ

Acts 3:19 NKJV

19 Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,

and calling on the name of the Lord

Romans 10:9–10 NKJV

9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13 NKJV

13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

A definition of the Christian doctrine of salvation would be

“The deliverance, by the grace of God, from eternal punishment for sin which is granted to those who accept by faith God’s conditions of repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus.”

LIFE BEGINS WITH SALVATION

God says that if you believe in His son, Jesus, you can live forever with Him in glory.

"For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

John 3:16 NKJV

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Are you ready to accept the gift of eternal life that Jesus is offering you right now? Let's review what this commitment involves:

1. Acknowledge that you are a sinner in need of a Savior - this is to repent or turn away from sin

2. Believe (Faith) in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead - this is to trust that Jesus paid the full penalty for your sins

3. Confess Jesus as your Lord and your God - this is to surrender control of your life to Jesus you receive Jesus as your Savior forever - this is to accept that God has done for you and what He promised He would do.

If it is your sincere desire to receive Jesus into your heart as your personal Lord and Savior, then talk to God from your heart and pray in repentance to receive Christ as Lord and Savior. No magic words save, only a broken heart that is willing to lay all down and follow Christ.