1) Recognize your condition.
ROMANS 3:23- For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.
No one is good enough to go to Heaven on his own merit. No matter how much good we do, we still fall short.
Isaiah 64:6- But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
How could we be unclean in God's sight? Because even one sin mars us and we are no longer able to keep the standard of perfection that is required.
James 2:10- For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
Have you ever lied? Did you ever steal? How about covet?
Then you're already a sinner that has violated God's law.
2) Realize sin's penalty.
ROMANS 6:23a- For the wages of sin is death...
A wage is a payment. The payment for your sin is death and separation from God in a place that the Bible calls Hell.
REVELATION 20:14-And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
First the body dies and is buried. But that's not the end for the soul.
The soul goes before God to account of the choices made during the your lifetime.
Unless you can prove that you've kept the law perfectly, God's justice demands payment for the infraction. That means that your soul pays. This is the second death; the death of the soul.
3) Believe Christ died for you.
You don't even realize what the requirement for a soul is.
Leviticus 17:11- For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
To make an atonement (the process by which people remove obstacles to reconcile), it requires blood. But not just any blood will do. It has to be sinless blood.
ROMANS 5:8- But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
The word commendeth means "proved." God proved His love for you by giving His own Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for your sins.
If you could have paid for your own sins, you would never have known the proper protocols to go before the God of the universe. You don't even know the proper protocols required to stand before an earthly ruler!
Hebrews 5:1,5,9 - For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
Jesus Christ was born as a human so that He could be a mediator between God and mankind. As a man, He is able to live a perfect life which satisfies the law's demand. As God made flesh, He is able to sacrifice Himself as the perfect offering to satisfy God's justice. And as God, He knows the proper protocols to follow to submit the payment for sin before the throne of God as a perfect High Priest.
No one else can ever do this!
I Timothy 2:5-6- For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
You cannot approach God because you are a sinner. You don't know the proper protocols. However, Christ does. You cry out to Him and He intercedes before God on your behalf.
4) Trust Christ alone as your Savior.
ROMANS 6:23b- But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Everlasting life of the soul is a gift purchased by the blood of Jesus and offered freely to those who call upon Him by faith.
Romans 10:9- That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Some people will believe that Jesus was a prophet, but that's not enough.
Some people will even believe that Jesus was God manifest in the flesh, but that's still not enough.
You don't get saved by believing that Jesus was a person in the past. You get saved by believing that He did what the Bible prophesied He would do.
I Corinthians 15:1-4- Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
You must believe that Christ died as it was prophesied in the Scriptures. And that He was buried. And that He rose again the third day as it was prophesied in the Scriptures.
ROMANS 10:13- For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
5) Claim God's promise for salvation.
You have to believe in your heart and then go one step further and confess your belief before God with your mouth.
ROMANS 10:9-10- That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
To believe on Jesus Christ as Savior means to believe that He paid the price for your sin by His death on Calvary, and believe that He is the only way for your sins to be paid in full so your soul can go to Heaven. You can express your belief on Jesus' payment for your sins by calling to Him in prayer.
An example of a salvation prayer: (Realize it's not mere words that save, but your faith in Jesus Christ.) The words don't matter. You tell Jesus the best way you know how that you believe and want to be saved.
“Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and there is nothing that I could ever do that would ever be enough to pay the debt for my sin. I believe that you died on the cross and paid the penalty for my sin with your blood. I believe that you rose from the dead three days later proving that you have eternal life and that you can give this gift to anyone who asks. I am placing my faith in your work on Calvary alone to forgive my sin and save my soul. Please apply your blood to my sin debt and forgive me of my sin, and bring my soul to heaven when my body dies, just as you promised in the Bible. Thank you for giving my soul eternal life, in Jesus' name, AMEN.”
Amen is a Hebrew word that means "So let it be done".
When you ask for something in Jesus' name, God honors that request.
Acts 4:10,12- Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
If you made a decision to trust Christ as Savior after reading this, I would like to know that I might pray for you. Simply reply to this and let me know that you've trusted Christ as your personal Savior.
