Go to: Part 1.
"Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners"What was the mission of Christ? Why did He come into the
world? What does the coming of Christ into the world mean
to you? The most wonderful sound that can come to the
sinner's ear is the glorious news of the gospel."Christ Jesus came into the world to save sin-
ners;"--I Timothy 1:15.All have sinned! All are guilty! All are condemned! Praise
God, it doesn't have to stop there. Jesus came to save sinners!
Listen to Christ's own words."For the Son of man is come to seek and to
save that which was lost."--Luke 19:10There is hope. There is a promise. There is a way of
salvation. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
How can He do this? How is salvation made possible? Again
we ask one simple thing. Listen to God's Word."Who his own self bare our sins in his
own body on the tree, that we, being dead to
sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose
stripes ye were healed."--I Peter 2:24"he hath made him to be sin for us, who
knew no sin; that we might be made the right-
eousness of God in him."--II Corinthians 5:21This is God's wonderful salvation. We are sinners, yet God
made Christ "to be sin for us[.]" Our sin was placed upon
Christ. We are unrighteous, yet God says, "we might be
made the righteousness of God in him." By this wonderful
salvation it becomes possible for the lost, unrighteous sinner
to be reconciled unto God. "we were reconciled to God by
the death of his Son," (Romans 5:10). Now the Bible picture
begins to come into focus. Two classes of people are
described . . the lost and the saved. The lost are described as
perishing, condemned, guilty, and separated from God.
Their fate is everlasting punishment. The saved are pictured
as possessing eternal, everlasting life.How do the lost become saved? Through Jesus Christ. Jesus
Christ came into the world to save sinners. Christ died for
our sins. When Jesus died on the cross He was taking the
sinner's place and bearing the sinner's penalty. On the cross
Jesus paid the sin debt and set the repentant sinner free.
This is why the Scriptures can say:"the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from
all sin."--I John 1:74
The theme of the entire Bible is salvation. There are those
who are saved and those who are lost. Christ Jesus came into
the world to save sinners. The salvation that Christ obtained
is a possession we can have now. It can be a reality . . . now!
The New Testament speaks of a definite salvation that is
already possessed. Salvation is not something that we might
get sometime in the future. It is a present possession. It is
not a mythical maybe, but a present reality. Once more . . .
listen to God's Word."For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in
them that are saved, and in them that per-
ish:"--II Corinthians 2:15."them that are saved[.]" This is speaking of a real, positive
condition of salvation. It is that which we possess . . . now, or
not at all. Are you saved? Has religion produced an
assurance of salvation? You can have this assurance and
you can have it now.What must I do to be saved? The question is, "how can the individual be saved?" How
does salvation become a reality? Let us take two texts:"And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the king-
dom of God is at hand: repent ye, and be-
lieve the gospel."--Mark 1:15"Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks,
repentance toward God, and faith to-
ward our Lord Jesus Christ."--Acts 20:21Repentance and faith are the only essentials to salvation.
The Bible teaches that if a sinner repents of his sin and
believes in the Lord Jesus Christ he is saved. THERE IS
NOTHING ELSE NECESSARY. Let us establish this fact
from God's Word.The Word of God calls for sinners to repent.
"And the times of this ignorance God winked at;
but now commandeth all men every-
where to repent:"--Acts 17:30."...for I am not come to call the righteous, but
sinners to repentance."--Matthew 9:13God commands all men to repent. It is easily established
that the Word of God plainly teaches that sinners should
repent. Repentance is simply the act of recognizing sin,
regreting and rejecting it. The Bible teaches that if the
sinner does not repent he is lost. Regardless of what else he
does, he must repent. You cannot be saved without
repentance."I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye
shall all likewise perish."--Luke 13:3 and 5"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as
some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to
us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but
that all should come to repentance."
--II Peter 3:9These verses teach that to fail to repent would be to perish,
that is, to be eternally lost. Again it is revealed that
repentance is absolutely necessary to salvation.5
Now, let us look at the other essential to salvation. The Word
of God calls for sinners to believe."For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth
in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life."--John 3:16"whosoever believeth" . . . this is the gospel invitation.
Believing is an essential to salvation."He that believeth on him is not con-
demned..."--John 3:18.
"He that believeth on the Son hath ever-
lasting life:"--John 3:36.To have everlasting life is to have salvation and this is a
present reality to all that believe. In answer to the question,
"what must I do to be saved?" the Bible answers:"And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."--
Acts 16:31From these Scriptures, and hundreds like them, it is easily
established that the Scriptures invite men to believe and be
saved. The call is always to faith, faith in Jesus Christ as
Lord and Saviour.The Bible teaches that if a sinner does not believe, he is lost.
The sinner cannot be saved without faith. He must believe."He that believeth on him is not condemned: but
he that believeth not is condemned al-
ready, because he hath not believed in
the name of the only begotten Son of God."--John
3:18"he that believeth not is condemned[.]" To fail to believe is to
be eternally damned. It is to be lost forever. Believing is an
essential to salvation. The reason for condemnation is also
given in this verse in the phrase, "because he hath not
believed[.]" A sinner is lost because "he hath not believed[.]""He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life:
and he that believeth not the Son
shall not see life; but the wrath of
God abideth on him."--John 3:36Let the Bible say what it obviously intended to say. "he that
believeth not the Son shall not see life[.]" The only way that an
individual can see life, that is, be saved, is to believe. There
can be no eternal life without faith."That they all might be damned who be-
lieved not the truth..."--II Thess. 2:12."repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord
Jesus Christ." As has been established, repentance and faith
are essentials to salvation. Repentance and faith are the hu-
man responsibility in salvation. Repentance and faith are
inseparable. True repentance cannot exist apart from
faith, nor can there be faith without true repentance. In
repentance, the sinner turns from sin and, in faith, he turns
to God through his Son, Jesus Christ. Christ must be
accepted by faith as Lord and Saviour. True repentance
involves faith and true faith involves repentance.This is the only way that God has given for the sinner to be
saved. Nothing more . . . nothing less. In all its simplicity6
this is what God says:
- All have sinned.
- The sinner is separated from God and con-
demned.- Christ died for our sins and made salvation pos-
sible.- All who repent and believe in Jesus Christ are
eternally saved.Will you turn from sin and by faith believe in Jesus Christ as
your own personal Lord and Saviour? If you do this, you will
be saved for eternity and be assured of a home in Heaven.
Right now, won't you (in a prayer) ask God to forgive you of
your sins and ask Jesus Christ to come into your heart and
life and save you?How can I know I am saved? It is not necessary to rely upon emotional or personal
feelings in order to have a wonderful assurance of salvation.
We have assurance through the Word of God. God has given
man His Word so that man may know Him. He has given
man His Word so that man may know himself. Not only does
God's Word teach that a man needs salvation but it also
teaches that man may know when he has salvation. If it is
God's Word that convinces us that we are sinners and we do
what is necessary to be saved, why can't we believe the
Bible when it says that we can know we have eternal
life."These things have I written unto you that believe
on the name of the Son of God; that ye may
know that ye have eternal life, and that
ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."--
I John 5:13"ye may know that ye have eternal life[.]" What a wonderful
statement. No doubts, maybes or fears, but wonderful
assurance in what the Bible says. Now, there may be times
when we may doubt, but, IF YOU HAVE REPENTED
FROM YOUR SINS AND BELIEVED IN JESUS CHRIST
AS LORD AND SAVIOUR, you can go back to God's Word
and see that you fulfilled your responsibility in salvation.
Therefore, the Holy Spirit enters your heart at the moment
of salvation and when God looks into your heart, He no
longer sees your sin but rather the righteousness of Christ
imputed in you. We know that we are saved because God's
Word says so and we believe what it says. When we repent
and believe, God says we have redemption."In whom we have redemption through his
[Jesus Christ's] blood, the forgiveness of sins, ac-
cording to the riches of his grace;"--Ephesians 1:7."For the preaching of the cross is to them that
perish foolishness; but unto us which are
saved it is the power of God."--I Cor. 1:18"I write unto you, little children, because your
sins are forgiven you for his name's sake."--
I John 2:12"And by him all that believe are justi-
fied from all things, from which ye could not be
justified by the law of Moses."--Acts 13:39"And I give unto them eternal life; and they
shall never perish, neither shall any man
pluck them out of my hand."--John 10:287
When we repent and believe, God says that we have eternal
life . . . we have been redeemed . . . we are saved . . . we are
forgiven . . . we are justified . . . we shall never perish. How
do we know these things are so? God says so in His Word
and we believe God.One more thing. This is an urgent matter. Don't put it off.
Listen again to God's Word."behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is
the day of salvation."--II Corinthians 6:2
"Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest
not what a day may bring forth."--Proverbs 27:1If you have not as yet received this "great salvation" won't
you (in a prayer) ask God to forgive you of your sins and ask
Jesus Christ to come into your heart and life and save you?
You can be saved! You can be saved now! Do it right now!
When you do, all these things become a reality in your heart.
Blessed assurance will be yours.8
[ Christian Helps Ministry (USA) ] [ Christian Home Bible Course ]