To be saved forever, understand first that you are a sinner and that you cannot save yourself.
Romans 3:23 in the King James Bible says,
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Isaiah 64:6a,b says,
6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;
God is perfect and holy, and unholy people cannot stand before a Holy God.
1 Samuel 2:2 - There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.
God is also a righteous judge and will judge all people according to their works. All people will be judged according to Paul's Gospel which is according to whether or not they have simply believed the Gospel of the grace of God or not, which is how that Christ Jesus died for our sins, was buried and rose again for our justification.
Romans 2:16
In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my [Paul's] gospel.
This gospel is also known as the Gospel of the grace of God and the gospel of Christ.
You cannot earn your way to salvation, you must simply believe how that Christ Jesus died for your sins, was buried and rose again for your justification. The moment that you SIMPLY BELEIVE that glorious gospel, you are saved forever!
You cannot earn your way to salvation, you must simply believe how that Christ Jesus died for your sins, was buried and rose again for your justification. The moment that you SIMPLY BELEIVE that glorious gospel, you are saved forever!
Romans 1:16
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
The gospel ALONE is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth, not to everyone that worketh! This faith that we have isn't just a mere intellectual understanding of something occurring in history, but a true trust that Christ Jesus is your savior and that what He did for you was sufficient to save you.
Salvation is the gift of God by grace. It is not a product of:
• – Prayer
• – Popes
• – Baptism
• – Confession
• – Good works
• – Turning from sin
• – Commandments
• – Church membership
• – Mass or the Lord’s Supper
Or ANY OTHER WORK.
What about repentance? To repent is to have a change of mind. You go from not believing the gospel to believing it! In Genesis 6:6, God had repented. It simply means that he had changed his mind. "And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart." (This was right before the flood of Noah's time). Repentance does NOT mean trying to turn away from sin, because God never sins!
To repent, you understand first that you are a sinner and you can't save yourself. Then, you simply believe that Jesus is your savior and that he died for your sins, was buried and he rose again for your justification. Repentance is NOT trying to change your ways in order for God to accept you because that is a work. God only justifies believers. No one will ever be able to boast before the Father for any kind of work that he's done in his flesh, including a person who decides that they can try to get into heaven by giving up their old lifestyle and trying to keep the law. Righteousness doesn't come by the law or else Christ is dead in vain!
Gal 2:21 KJB
I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Romans 3:24
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
After we have been saved, then we can read and study the Bible to learn about how to live godly. But we can't do this until we have been saved FIRST by simply believing the gospel.
When we believe the gospel, we have God's very own righteousness imputed (credited) to us. This imputed righteousness is the answer to our sin problem!
2 Corinthians 5:21
21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Jesus literally took our sin upon himself and died the death that we deserved. Then, the moment that we believe the gospel, His righteousness is imputed to us.
This imputed righteousness is a GIFT from God once we have believed the Gospel. Our Salvation is a GIFT from God, not something that we earned.
Ephesians 2:8
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”
Romans 4:4-5
4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
We don't trust in OUR works for salvation, but in His work
Philippians 3:9
9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
It is Christ’s shed blood that redeems us.
Ephesians 1:7
“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;”
The very moment that we believe the gospel, we are COMPLETELY FORGIVEN of ALL of our sins -- including all past, present and even future sin!
Colossians 2:13-14
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
The moment we believe the gospel, we are also now delivered from the power of darkness! All unbelievers have Satan's spirit working in and through them! But we are delivered from that the moment we are saved!
Eph 2:2
Wherein in time past [before salvation] ye walked according to the course of this world [Satan has a course for this world], according to the prince of the power of the air [Satan!], the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Colossians 1:13
“Who hath delivered us [from the very moment that you believed the Gospel!] from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”
Once we have believed the Gospel, we are then SEALED with the Holy Spirit of promise, which means that we are guaranteed eternal life in Christ Jesus.
We are sealed and secure in Christ!
Ephesians 1:13-14
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest [down payment] of our inheritance [eternal life] until the redemption of the purchased possession, [the pretribulation rapture] unto the praise of his glory.
As believers, nothing and no one can ever separate us from God once we have believed the Gospel!
Romans 8: 38-39
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
When we have believed the Gospel, we are no longer "in adam" but are now "in Christ"! We are made spiritually alive in Christ Jesus!
1 Corinthians 15:22
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Colossians 2:10
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
As believers we are fully accepted in His beloved Son, Christ Jesus, from the very moment we believe the gospel!
Ephesians 1:6
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
As believers we are eternally secure no matter what! Even if we stopped believing and even when we sin after salvation, we are STILL "in Christ" forever! We are so completely UNITED AND IDENTIFIED with Christ from the very moment that we believe the gospel, that for God to later deny us is actually to deny Himself!
2 Timothy 2:13
“If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.”
2 Timothy 2:12 is regarding the believers rewards in heaven at the BEMA judgement seat of Christ
12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
If we deny Christ later on as believers, this equals loss of rewards in heaven and denial of higher positions in Gods government in the heavenly places. But if, as believers we "suffer with Christ " for the sake of the gospel, we earn rewards in heaven and higher positions in our new heavenly careers. Either way, believers who, after salvation, suffer for the sake of the gospel or who simply choose to live for themselves will BOTH be in heaven, eternally secure in Christ, but will have different results at our believers judgment for rewards. This is why it then goes on to say in 2 Timothy 2:13 , "If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.”
As believers we are a new creature in Christ
2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
As believers we are in Christ and He is in us!
Colossians 1:27
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Colossians 3:3-5
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
As believers we are baptized into His death.
Romans 6:3-11
3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
By one Spirit we are baptized into one body, called the church the Body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:13
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
Eph 1:22-23
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
As believers we have a new heavenly home!
2 Corinthians 5:1
5 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Ephesians 2:6
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
As believers we will one day have glorified bodies like Jesus's glorious body!
Philippians 3:21
21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
As believers we are now ambassadors for Christ
2 Cor 5:20
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
As believers we have a ministry of reconciliation
2 Cor 5:18
And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
As believers we are delivered from the wrath to come
1 Thessalonians 1:10
“And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.”
So again, to be saved, simply believe "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"
