How to know Jesus - Why do we need to be saved?
The term “saved” generally means to be saved from the penalty of our sins. The Bible says that every person has sinned and is guilty of sin. We are sinners. The punishment for sin is spiritual death or hell. However, John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” But what exactly does this mean?
Since God created this world and Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, mankind has been under the curse of sin. Our very natures are sinful and we can do nothing to change this. Everyone has sinned. Everyone is guilty. For this reason, Jesus Christ came into the world as a man and lived the sinless and faultless life that we couldn’t live. He then died on the cross, giving up His life for us, and 3 days later, He rose from the dead.
God is perfectly holy. We deserve hell because we have all done wrong things and sinned against Him in rebellion. When Jesus died on the cross, He was taking the wrath of God that we deserved onto Himself so that we wouldn’t have to face God’s punishment for our sins. In that sense, He died in our place.
But the only way to receive forgiveness for all of our wrongs and avoid punishment is through placing our trust in Jesus Christ and repenting of our sins. This is the only way a person can be right with God, because we are all guilty of sinning against Him.
Following Jesus is no easy task. It is not about health, wealth, or earthly prosperity. Likewise, Following Jesus can mean having to sacrifice our possessions, our relationships, even our lives sometimes. Christ said that His followers would be hated because of Him, but He also said that no sacrifice we ever make for Him will be for nothing. Following Jesus is hard and different people will pay different prices—but it is so worth it. Jesus is worth it all.
Romans 10:9 says, “if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
To be a Christian, we must believe that there is a holy God who has created the possibility for sin with the expectation that human beings do what is right. We have all failed to meet this expectation. We must believe that we are sinners, and that we need Jesus in order to be saved. Until we make the personal decision to follow Him, we are under the anger or wrath of God. God is angry about sin and He is a morally upright judge. To fix the problem of man’s separation from Him, God had to send His only Son, Jesus, into the world.
We must believe in the deity of Jesus Christ, meaning that Jesus, while He was fully man, was also fully God. Jesus was the Son of God, but He was also one with God (He was God Himself). Now, because no man can provide payment for another man, God Himself had to come and die in our place, seen in Jesus dying on the cross.
Furthermore, the Lord Jesus never sinned. He lived the perfect life that we could never live. And so, He was the only One who could stand in our place and pay that penalty for our sins. When He died on the cross, He was taking the sins of many onto Himself and becoming the sacrifice for these sins (so that those He died for would not have to face the punishment for all the wrong they had done).
Lastly, we must believe that Jesus rose from the dead. If He had not, we would still be stuck in our sin with no way of being forgiven, but on the 3rd day after His death, Jesus Christ rose from the grave.
So, the sinless Son of God, Jesus, died in our place, sacrificing Himself so that we could be forgiven, and then He rose from the dead (Matthew 28:6). We must admit to God that we are sinners, be genuinely sorry for our sins, believe all of these things, and accept the free gift of God’s forgiveness (salvation) through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through His sacrifice, all our sins are able to be forgiven.
Repent means to “change one’s mind”. In coming to Christ, we must repent of our past sins by turning away from them. We no longer love our sin, but we dislike sin because it offends a holy God. For this reason, we are truly sorry for the things we’ve done and we turn our lives around. We start seeking to do God’s will instead of our own. We start living for God instead of living for ourselves. In order to be a Christian, a person has to put aside their own wants and desires and do what God says is right in every area of their lives. In order to be a follower of Jesus, turning away from our sin is a requirement.
Now does this mean that Christians never sin? No. Christians fall into sin sometimes, and as a result, we continually repent of these sins to God. This is called continual repentance. We confess our sin and we ask His forgiveness. The Holy Spirit continually convicts us of sin and we continually turn from these sins throughout our walks as Christians. We don’t rush wholeheartedly into evil, since a Christian is someone whose life has changed direction. We avoid evil, seeking instead to do what’s right. Let it be understood, Christians aren’t perfect, but are progressively becoming more like Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit within them. Followers of Jesus are always growing in holiness and working towards being better.
A Christian lives to obey God because, after they believe and repent, they have given over their lives to Jesus, and are now officially living for Him rather than themselves. Further, their life begins to change, their nature begins to change, and their love for God makes them want to obey Him. And the Christian practices continual repentance because it is a command given to us by God.
Have you come to repent and believe in Christ? If so, welcome to the family of God! Christians have the promise of entering Heaven when they die, as well as the ability here on earth to know the Lord in a real and personal relationship that can be built up everyday through prayer, worship, and time spent with Him reading His word. Now it is time to start your Christian walk, and there are a few ways that you can begin…
People begin life in God’s family just as they began it in their parents’ family — as babies. Baby Christians need to be nurtured, protected, taught and loved. Here are a few suggestions that will help you get the care and guidance you need as you begin to grow in your faith:
Tell a friend. Do you know someone who might get excited about the decision you’ve made — a pastor, maybe, or Christian friend? Tell him or her. Share the joy of your new commitment with someone else!
Read the Bible. Baby Christians need rich nourishment, and no source is better than God’s Word. The Bible is God’s message to mankind, so it’s vital for young believers to know what it says. We’d suggest that you make a habit of reading a chapter a day, beginning with the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — they’ll help you get better acquainted with Jesus). Next you could take a look at Paul’s letter to the Philippians and the letters of James and I John. To understand more about how Jesus’ death means life for you, read Paul’s letter to the Romans. If you have questions, a pastor or Christian friend will be able to help you in your Bible study. If you don’t have a Bible, please contact [www.focusonthefamily.com] and they’ll be happy to send you one.
Talk to God regularly. Make prayer a daily habit. This means talking to God about anything, at any time of the day or night. It can also mean spending a special “quiet” time with Him where you meditate on His Word, tell Him of your love and devotion, and talk to Him about others and their needs.
Get involved in a church. When you open the door to Christ and come home to God, you acquire a new set of spiritual brothers and sisters. God has many other children on the earth, and it’s important that they meet together regularly as a family. That’s what church is all about. The church is the best place for infant Christians to find the support they need to grow strong. Churches are where God’s people gather to worship, learn from the Bible, encourage each other and welcome new believers into God’s family. Find a church near you that does these things, and get involved. Your church should believe that the Bible is the accurate Word of God, that Jesus Christ is God’s Son, that He is fully God and man, and that only through faith in Jesus Christ can a person be saved.
Talk to your church about getting baptized as well. Baptism is a very important and meaningful next step now that you have become a Christian.
What Must Someone Believe in Order to Be Saved? (2019, January 02). Retrieved from https://www.desiringGod.org/interviews/what-must-someone-believe-in-order-to-be-saved
“Time to Grow” Excerpt by:
Coming Home: An Invitation to Join God’s Family. (2012, February 23). Retrieved from https://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/becoming-a-christian/coming-home-an-invitation-to-join-Gods-family/
WEB Bible found on BibleGateway.com
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