the wordless book

Contemplating God's Salvation

Undoubtedly, you have heard of terms found in the Bible such as “salvation,” or “saved.” But that doesn’t necessarily mean you fully understand what those terms mean.

In fact, there are many people professing to have been “saved” yet still don’t have a true understanding of these terms in the way the Bible uses them.

Different denominations have various concepts of what the Bible is telling us with regard to salvation. I hope this will not discourage you in seeking God’s salvation, as you still need to be saved from hell whether you fully comprehend it or not.

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If you become disillusioned and quit searching for biblical truth, you may never find it, and that would be disastrous, for such will affect your own eternal destiny.

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Don’t be discouraged though; begin to pray with an open mind and heart, and ask God to show you His Truth. He will do so; you can count on it.

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In the article below I will seek to clarify some of the confusion and provide a very brief explanation of the biblical teaching of “being saved.” First, however, let me ask you some preliminary questions:

Accepting God's Salvation
When it comes to receiving God’s salvation as offered in the Bible, we understand that there is a definite beginning point — THE CROSS OF CHRIST!

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All of us are born sinners into this world; we cannot help that as we are born with a sin nature (we naturally sin, and do not have to be taught it).

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Our sinful condition brings death to our lives (not only an eventual physical death, but a present spiritual death [separation] from God as well). Being separated from God, then, necessitates a solution…a bridge back to Him…a Savior, if you will.

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Jesus is the Savior God has provided (in fact, the ONLY Savior, there’s no one else who can fill Jesus’ shoes). I can’t save myself, you can’t save yourself; we can’t even save each other! God does the
saving…and He does it through His only begotten Son, Jesus.

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If you want God to save you, it must begin with your asking Jesus to save you from spending an eternity in hell. How can a person make such an important decision as “being saved?”

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First of all, people can’t even do this apart from God’s Spirit convicting them of their need to be saved.

And they won’t respond to that conviction until they realize their need of God’s salvation. If you don’t think you need it, you won’t seek it.

But…

• …when your heart cries out to God, and you are ready to submit your life into His hands…

• …When you confess to Him that you are a sinner deserving both spiritual and physical death…

• …when all of these facts hit you; when they reach down deep into your mind and your heart…

• …when you realize there is a need for you to be saved from hell…when you realize that you cannot

• possibly save yourself…

• …when you come to the place where you feel a need to reach out and call upon the God of the

• Bible to rescue (save) you from an eternal separation from Him, then you are in a position to be

• saved!

• …when you realize all of this, and as a result you make that decision to receive Christ into your life as YOUR Savior, that is the beginning point of your salvation-life with God.

• …when you decide to make this all-important decision, God graciously delivers (saves) your inner spirit (that part of you that is eternal). You then become permanently and forever delivered from the fires of hell.

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Following through after Receiving Salvation
After God, by His grace, saves (rescues, delivers) your inner spirit from an eternal hell, He now wants to save (deliver, preserve) your spiritual service so that it will one day reap a reward for you; therefore He has some work for you to do.

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In the book of Ephesians, you will find that the works (christian service) that God wants you to do are already planned out for you. In fact, that is why God saved you, so that you could give Him glory and honor through your service unto Him (Ephesians 2:8-10).

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So now that you have accepted Christ as your Savior now what? The first act of service God has commanded you to do is to be baptized by a scriptural New Testament Baptist church. That’s right, a Baptist church. You see, the Baptists are the ONLY group that DID NOT PROTEST OUT OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH as did Rome’s daughters, the Protestants. They go way back through the centuries to John the Baptist, Jesus, and the Apostles. They are the original New Testament churches that existed hundreds of years before the Catholic church, and have continued down to our day and age.

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So, to answer the question as to what you should do after accepting Jesus as Saviour, you need to submit yourself to the ordinance of christian baptism. This would be by immersion only; no other mode (sprinkling, pouring) are acceptable with God. Once you have been baptized by a true Baptist church, you are thereafter expected to grow in your faith. The pastor and other brothers and sisters in the assembly are there to help you build up your faith.

 

Worship in the Assembly
Attend every service that you are physically able to attend. Don’t hit and miss in your church attendance. Go regularly, and go with an open heart and mind toward the Word of God. Bring your Bible and a notepad and pencil and take notes from which to study at home during the week.

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Feeding on the Scriptures
Be eager to grow and to learn the Bible. Be sure to develop a strong and effective prayer life. Also, give your tithes and offerings unto the Lord through the ministry of your church. That is how God designed for His churches to meet their financial needs.

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Begin to Share Your Faith
Be sure to tell others what God has done for you. Witness to them concerning their need of God’s salvation. Bring them to your church services. Encourage them to become a disciple of Jesus so that they too may prepare for Christ’s second coming.

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A Salvation Yet Future
Receiving Jesus as your Savior, following Him in scriptural baptism, and serving Him in one of His true churches will all be worth it to you one day when Jesus returns to this earth to establish His kingdom and rewards His faithful followers with a special inheritance within that kingdom. To some, Christ will grant an “abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom” that He will establish when He returns to the earth.