Salvation in Christ Broken Down

Many times we hear church people say "Come to Christ and be saved!", or "Let Jesus into your heart!". But, what does that really mean? Sure, a pastor can lead millions in one chanted "Sinner's prayer", but I will assure you, that isn't the same thing as salvation. In fact, it produces many false converts because salvation is never really explained. This process is an intimate one. One that isn't really shared with tens, hundreds, thousands, or millions of people. This is something done between you and the Lord.

So, I'd like to take some time just to go through steps that I have found to be true and helpful in understanding what it means "to be saved". Although I have "Step" in front of the numbers, this is in no way an exhaustive list, and neither are these steps something that must be done. Salvation is the work of the Spirit of Yahweh-God that man can not dictate or conduct. And the Spirit moves how He wishes. But, this is just to get you thinking of some things that others may not teach. Christ tells us to "count the costs" before following Him. And the Word tells us that it is better to not have known the truth, than to know and turn away from it. So, hopefully these "Steps" will help guide you and help you know what you are getting into.

I pray that if you are seeking salvation through Him, that He provides you with a godly council of believers to help you on your journey. I will admit, it is tough, but great things are worth fighting for!

Step 1: You first must forget what the world teaches and BELIEVE Yahweh-God exists...

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. - Hebrews 11:6 

Step 2: Call on Him while He is near . This seems like a no-brainer. But, this is important. We have to call on Him and only Him. A pastor can not save us. And we can't continue to think that we "have more time". The old addage says, "time waits for no man". How true it is. Death comes quickly and suddenly. And once it reaches out for you, there is no "after death" chance at salvation. Also the Father declared from the beginning that His Spirit will not dwell with man for forever.

Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. - Isaiah 55:6-7

Step 3: Realize you do have a evil and sinful heart and need to change. If you can't do this, then you will see no need for Someone greater than yourself. God created you. He has the right to take your life. As a sinner, while you are His creation you are not His child. You are His enemy. In reading through the Holy Bible what He can do to His enemies, this should terrify you. But, He had mercy and grace on you. And because of His tremendous patience, love and grace, and because He didn't turn His back on your and leave you burdened with an evil heart, it should make you sad enough that you don't want to become His enemy again (repentance).

10 The kind of sorrow God wants makes people decide to change their lives. This leads them to salvation, and we cannot be sorry for that. But the kind of sorrow the world has will bring death. - 2 Corinthians 7:10

Step 4: Confess what you know you have done wrong (lied, cheated, stole, sex outside of marriage, whatever is burdening you) and ask for forgiveness and to have a clean heart again.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness - 1 John 1:9

Step 5: Confess and believe Christ as Lord and your Savior - You must believe that Christ did the work of the cross in that He, being perfect, died in your place (the wages of sin is death) , through the power of Yahweh-God, rose again, and now sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on your behalf.

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. - Romans 10:9

Step 6: Once you have chosen to walk this walk, STOP SINNING. The same God that saved you from your sin is powerful enough to keep you out of it. His Spirit dwells in you now. No, you are not just a "sinner" like everyone else. Sinners don't go to heaven and gain eternal life. Yahweh-God calls you righteous. And we should live like it. I think this is a overlooked point, so I'm going to give two verses for this:

23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, 26 for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. - Romans 3:23-26

6 Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. 7 Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous. 8 But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. 9 Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life[a] is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. - 1 John 3:6-9

Step 7: Last, don't let anyone or anything separate you from His love. The enemy of your soul will play tricks to make you believe this isn't real, or, that because you didn't "feel" anything nothing happened. The enemy, satan, will do anything to get you to denounce what you have done in dethroning him as the lord of your life and placing Christ in His rightful spot.

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. -  Romans 8:38-39

I know this may seem like a lot, but it's not. When you think about it, if you are coming to Yahweh seeking salvation, you've taken care of at least three of the seven steps already. One thing I know, if you are serious, He is faithful to complete the work He started in you. It is not His desire that anyone perish with an evil heart. The bible says if you draw neigh unto Him, He will draw neigh unto you....

Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. - James 4:8

Amen.....