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Salvation

connecting to God

Side notes

All Bible references are from the English Standard Version unless otherwise noted.

[1] Acts 1:3
He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

[2] Matthew 12:25-26
Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?”

[3] Ephesians 2:1-3
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

[4] Romans 3:23
..for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God..

[5] 2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

[6] Ecclesiastes 12:1-7
Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”; before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain, in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed, and the doors on the street are shut—when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low— they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets— before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

[7] Acts 4:12
“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

[8] John 6:37
“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”

[9] 1 Timothy 1:15-16
The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.

[10] John 3:3
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

[11] John 3:6-7
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”

[12] Isaiah 44:6
Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.”

[13] Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[14] Luke 12:5
But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!

[15] John 1:10-12
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God..

[16] 1 John 3:8
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God..

[17] Galatians 3:13
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”..

[18] Romans 5:8-9
..but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.

[19] 1 Corinthians 15:3-6
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.

[20] Acts 1:9-11
And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

[21] Romans 10:9
..if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

[22] 1 John 1:5-9
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

[23] Romans 8:38-39
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[24] Luke 9:23-26
And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

[25] Deuteronomy 1:21
See, the Lord your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not fear or be dismayed.’

[26] Deuteronomy 7:21-24
You shall not be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God. The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you. But the Lord your God will give them over to you and throw them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. And he will give their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name perish from under heaven. No one shall be able to stand against you until you have destroyed them.

[27] 1 Corinthians 2:9
But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”..

The Bible teaches that there are two spiritual kingdoms operating in this world, the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Satan. Acts 1:3[1], Matthew 12:25-26[2]

Both kingdoms have a direct influence on every part of planet earth. Both kingdoms are more powerful than natural man can reach.

 

What does it mean to be ‘saved’?

The Bible teaches that every one of us is born into the citizenship of Satan’s kingdom, and therefore comes under his rulership. Ephesians 2:1-3[3]

Because of this we, by nature, have followed Satan’s principles and behaviour patterns. In doing so we have sinned, everyone of us. Romans 3:23[4]

It is God’s desire that we each transfer from the Kingdom of Satan to the Kingdom of God sometime during our life on earth, the earlier the better. 2 Peter 3:9[5], Ecclesiastes 12:1-7[6]

The bad news is that not one of us can make that transfer except through Jesus. It doesn’t matter how unfair we may consider such a position, God has declared it so, and so there is no use arguing. Acts 4:12[7]

The good news is that no one is too wicked to make the transfer. God has also declared this so, and so there’s no use arguing about this either. John 6:37[8], 1 Timothy 1:15-16[9]

God calls this change of citizenship ‘salvation’. The process by which we are each saved is called in Scripture – being ‘born again’. John 3:3[10], John 3:6-7[11]

 

How do we become born again and so saved?

God has made it as simple as possible to transfer into his kingdom, so let us also hold on to that simplicity, and call it the ABC of salvation. There are three stages that we need to go through to make sure we are saved.

A = Accept

We need to come to a place in our lives where we accept that the God of the Bible is supreme above all else. Isaiah 44:6[12]

We need to find out what he says about us, and requires of us, and accept them as true and important. Amongst other things, he calls us sinners and therefore on a pathway to Hell, which he created for Satan and his demon followers, but where we also will go unless we are born again. Romans 6:23[13], Luke 12:5[14]

We need to accept these truths.

B = Believe

We need to believe that the part of God whom the Bible calls Jesus – God’s Son – came to planet earth, became a man, defeated Satan and transferred to himself our sins and their wage, death. John 1:10-12[15], 1 John 3:8[16]

We need to believe that when Jesus was crucified on a cross, he shed his blood for our sakes, not his own. Galatians 3:13[17], Romans 5:8-9[18]

We need to believe that he rose again from the dead after 3 days in the grave, and now is back in Heaven with the power and the desire to save us from eternity in Hell. 1 Corinthians 15:3-6[19], Acts 1:9-11[20]

C = Commit

We need to, verbally, and by life style, commit ourselves into God’s hands, asking him to become our new and permanent boss (the Bible calls it – making Jesus ‘Lord’). Romans 10:9[21]

We need to commit ourselves to doing away with our previous sinful lifestyles, with the help of the Holy Spirit (that part of God which is given to us when we are saved), to live within, guiding and helping us conquer sin. 1 John 1:5-9[22]

Salvation, therefore, is both a once-for-all transaction, and an ongoing lifestyle. Once we have asked God to save us, declared our willingness for Jesus to be Lord and received his seal of the Holy Spirit into our lives, we become what can be titled positionally (once-for-all) saved. From then on God accepts us as part of his eternal kingdom, and we have the assurance of his word that nothing or no one will ever undo our salvation. Romans 8:38-39[23]

Positional salvation is nevertheless only the beginning. We need to adopt a new lifestyle of learning about, and from, God. We need to be willing, on a moment-by-moment basis, to submit to his rulership. Jesus doesn’t promise an easy life. It may, in actual fact, become harder as we learn to submit to his standards. This lifestyle of following God can be titled experiential salvation. Luke 9:23-26[24]

The picture given in the Old Testament part of the Bible concerning our salvation is found where God spoke with Moses about the future of the Jewish nation as it was about to enter the ‘Promised Land’. Deuteronomy 1:21[25]

Here we have, firstly, the statement of position. God had (past tense) declared that the land was theirs, and as far as he was concerned, it was. He continued on, though, informing them that, secondly, they would need to take physical control over the land in order to actually possess it and thereby enjoy it. In fact, God further related how they would need to walk everywhere, and be willing to fight and sweat, in order to fully achieve his promise. Deuteronomy 7:21-24[26]

The same is true of our salvation. God, through Jesus, has done everything necessary, for his part, to accomplish our salvation; our full transfer from the Kingdom of Satan into the Kingdom of God. When we fulfil the ABC as previously written about, we in effect place our signature with that of Jesus, completing the legal, positional offer made by him to us, his part sealed with his own blood shed at the cross.

The story does not stop here though. It is one thing to be born into a family; it is quite another thing to become an active part of that family. If we care to study the Bible, we will discover that becoming saved is only the beginning. Once having been given new citizenship in God’s kingdom, there remains a limitless spiritual country of blessing and joy to explore. An eternal country. One unlimited by time or space. One holding boundless wealth. And above all else, one in which the King of all kings (Jesus) dwells, promising fellowship and love to a degree that we can only guess at. 1 Corinthians 2:9[27]

What we inherit in God’s kingdom, indeed whether or not we are even saved in the first place, is our choice. We are invited to become part of God’s future – everyone is. But we have to fulfil the ABC to enter into the covenant offered.

Have you?

Will you?

 

Here is a suggested prayer

I, …….(my name)……. declare that I have come to the place in my life where I recognise that I need you God. I accept that you, God, are Supreme in the entire universe. I accept that I have fallen short of the standards you expect from me. I accept that you have declared me to be a sinner, and I accept that I have no way of getting to your Heaven by my own efforts. I accept that my only hope is to come to you through Jesus.

I choose to believe that you, God, are made up of three persons called the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I choose to believe that your Son, called Jesus, came to earth, lived here without ever sinning, died on a cross and rose again from the dead so as to make it possible for me to transfer from the Kingdom of Satan to the Kingdom of God.

I ask you now, Heavenly Father, to please forgive me for all my sins against you. Please save me from my sinfulness and accept me into your Kingdom. I commit myself to the lifestyle of making Jesus my Lord at all times from now on. Please send to me the Holy Spirit so that I may be born again and baptised into the family of God.

Although I do not understand everything at the moment, I choose to trust you to do these things for me, and I thank you for all that you have already done for me.

As a proof that I am genuine in what I say, Lord Jesus, I place my signature below in gratitude for the covenant offered by you to me, and I thank you for your patient love in waiting so long for me.
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This paper seeks to accurately represent the teachings of Holy Scriptures. You are free to copy or alter all or any part of this paper PROVIDED that the Holy Scriptures are not misrepresented as a result.