What is Salvation?
Your Need
Salvation literally means preservation or deliverance from harm, ruin or loss. Biblically, salvation pertains to a spiritual deliverance. If we are honest with ourselves, each of us has needs, especially the need to belong to something greater than ourselves. However, our present condition keeps us from obtaining what we truly need. The Bible says, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 3:23; 6:23). Since each of us are unable to live up to God’s perfect standard for which the penalty is death, wouldn’t you say we all need some help to pay that penalty?
God’s Love
Only God can pay our debt (2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 3:5). The Bible says, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were all still sinners” (Romans 5:8).
His Promise
God promises us security and safety when we accept what He has done for us, dying on the cross to satisfy the penalty our disobedience deserves. The Bible says, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
It’s A Gift
“God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
It’s About Faith
The Bible says, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Salvation, the free gift of God, is obtained when we confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior while believing with your heart that He did what He said He did for us.
How Do We Receive Salvation?
We are saved by faith. First, we must hear the gospel, which is the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection (Ephesians 1:13). Then, we must believe and fully trust the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16) and confess Him as Lord and Savior (Romans 10:9-10, 13). When you have done all of these things, you have received the gift of salvation! Congratulations!
