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Salvation
is God’s free gift to us through His Son Jesus Christ. We can
never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only
by trusting Jesus Christ as God’s offer of forgiveness can anyone
be saved from sin’s penalty. Jesus Christ died on the cross and
rose from the dead in order to pay the penalty for our sins and
offer to us the free gift of heaven by faith in Him alone. When we
turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are
saved. Eternal life begins the moment Christ enters our lifeless
heart.
Two Questions That Need To Be Answered:
1. Have you come to the place in your spiritual
life where you know for sure that if you were to die today that
you would go to heaven?
2. Suppose you were to die today and stand before
God and He were to ask you, “Why should I let you into my heaven?”
What do you think you would say to Him?
These two questions determine two very important
pieces of information in understanding your salvation. First, do
you have any assurance that you have a relationship with God? And
if you do have assurance, what is that assurance based on?
Making Sure Our Salvation Has A Biblical Foundation:
5 Truths about Eternal Life from the Bible:
“I write these things to you . . . so that you may know that you
have eternal life.”
1 John 5:13
1. HEAVEN IS A FREE GIFT
“ . . . the Gift of God is
eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23
and because Heaven is a free gift . . . It is not earned or
deserved.
No amount of personal effort, good works, or religious deeds can
earn a place in heaven for you.
“For by grace are you saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
NOT OF WORKS, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
Why is it that no one can earn
his way to heaven? Because . . .
2. MAN IS A SINNER
"for all have sinned and fall
short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23
Sin is transgressing God’s law and
includes such things as lying, lust, cheating, deceit, anger, evil
thoughts, immoral behavior, and more. And because of this man
cannot save himself. Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount that
if we hate someone that we are guilty of murder. If we lust in our
heart after someone we are guilty of adultery. (Matthew 5) Jesus
expanded our understanding of sin by reminding us that sin is not
just what we do, but it is what we think. We cannot escape the
biblical teaching of our sinfulness. (Romans 3:10-23)
If you wanted to save yourself by good deeds, do you know how good
you would have to be?
“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Matthew 5:48
With such a high
standard, no one can save himself. However, in spite of our sin .
. .
3. GOD IS MERCIFUL
He doesn’t want to
punish us. “. . . God is Love.” 1 John 4:8
But the same Bible which tells us God loves us, also tells us that
God is Just. Therefore, He must punish sin.
“. . . He does not leave
the guilty unpunished . . .” Exodus 34:7
“The soul who sins is the one who will die.” Ezekiel 18:4
We have a problem: God
loves us and doesn’t want to punish us; but He is just and must
punish sin.
God solved this problem
for us in the Person of . . .
4. JESUS CHRIST, WHO WAS BOTH GOD AND MAN
“In the beginning was the
Word (Jesus) . . . Word (Jesus) was God. And The Word (Jesus)
became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” John 1:1 & 14
Jesus Christ came to earth and
lived a sinless life, but while on earth, He died on the cross to
pay the penalty for our sins and rose from the grave to purchase a
place for us in heaven.
“We all, like sheep, have gone
astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has
laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6 Jesus
Christ bore our sin in His body on the cross and now offers you
eternal life (heaven) as a free gift.
This gift is received by
. . .
5. FAITH . . . WHICH IS THE KEY THAT OPENS THE DOOR TO HEAVEN.
Many people mistake 2
things for saving faith:
1. Saving faith is not mere knowledge of certain facts. The Bible
says that the devil believes
there is one God, so believing that
there is one God is not saving faith.
2. Saving faith is not mere temporary faith, that is trusting God
for temporary crises such as
financial, family, or physical needs.
These are all good to trust Jesus for, but they are not
saving
faith.
Saving faith is trusting in
Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. It means resting upon Christ
alone and what He has done rather than in what you or I have done
to get us into heaven.
". . . Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved . .
.” Acts 16:31
Eternal life, according to the
Bible, means transferring trust from what you have been doing to
what Christ has done for us on the Cross. It means accepting
Christ as your Savior, inviting Him to come into the “door” of
your heart. It means receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord, giving
Him the “driver’s seat” and “controls” of your life, not the “back
seat.” Eternal life also means to willingly turn from anything
that is not pleasing to Him as He reveals those things in your
relationship with Him. To turn from sin to Jesus Christ is what
the Bible calls repentance. Acts 3:19 reads, “Repent, therefore,
and be converted that your sins may be blotted out.”
If this makes sense to you and
you would you like to receive the gift of eternal life, believing
that . . .
“For it is with your heart that you
believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you
confess and are saved. For, 'Everyone who calls on the name of the
Lord will be saved." Rom 10:10 & 13
Here’s a suggested prayer:
Lord Jesus, I am a sinner and
need to be saved. I admit that I cannot save myself. I accept your
death and resurrection as payment for my sin. Lord Jesus, take
control of my life; forgive my sins and save me. I repent of my
sin and now place my trust in You for my salvation. I open the
door of my heart and invite you to come in. Thank you Jesus, for
hearing my prayer, saving me and giving me eternal life. In your
Name I pray. Amen.
If this prayer is the sincere
desire of your heart, look at what Jesus promises to those who
believe in Him:
“I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting
life.” John 6:47
If you have prayed this prayer, or would
like more information on becoming a Christian, contact any of our
staff members on our
Contacts Page.
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