What Does It Mean To Be Saved Anyway?
In the beginning of Genesis we read about God sending Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden after they committed their first sins, not because He did not love them anymore but so that they wouldn't eat of the tree of life and live forever.
(Genesis 3:23, KJV)
22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
Why wouldn't God want them to live forever if He still loved them? Because if they had lived forever they would be eternally sinners separated from God without any hope of ever being cleansed of sin and made righteous toward God again. And not only themselves but every single individual ever born into the world from that time forward would suffer the same fate. None of us is able to undo the nature of sin that abides within us even if we do our best to behave good most of the time.
(Romans 5:12, KJV)
Wherefore, as by one man {Adam} sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Most people have a hunger in their hearts to one day see heaven or at least to see a better world where there is no violence, where every word that people speak is the truth, where people care enough about others that they stop looking out for number one and make the other person more important than themselves and where all the calamities that seem to come upon us so often just cease. If man never died he would just continue on in his current sinfulness and in fact he would spiral downward into even greater sin as life continued on and on and on forever. The earth wouldn't be worth inhabiting and if sinners ever started showing up in heaven it wouldn't be heaven anymore. It would just reflect the hell on earth that we see occurring all around us everyday. So God allowed man to die, in fact made sure of it by denying him access to the tree of life and then one day He sent His only begotten son to die also, along with the rest of mankind but this time it was different. God had created Adam in His own likeness and image and breathed the breath of life into him.
(Genesis 1:27, KJV)
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
(Genesis 2:7, KJV)
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Jesus was different. He is called the only begotten son of God because He was born of a woman but not just any woman. She was a virgin. How could this be? God had been speaking His word for centuries to His prophets who wrote them down. Those words were special because they all concerned Jesus who would be the begotten son of God and God used those words to supernaturally create His son in the womb of Mary the same way that He created the earth that we live on and everything in it.
(Matthew 1:18-23, KJV)
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily.
20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Since Jesus was born to a virgin and God was His father {Not by a physical relation but by a creative miracle of His word.} He did not have the same sin nature that was being passed on from generation to generation among mankind. Jesus like Adam in the beginning was born in the likeness and image of God. This meant that as God was holy, righteous and without sin so Jesus was. Jesus was born for one reason and one reason alone. To free us from the bondage, the burden and the penalty of sin and there by redeeming mankind from the hand of Satan. God could have sent Jesus to rule over all mankind without him dying for us and therefore without the salvation experience but He would be ruling over all of us as sinners who could never experience the fullness of righteousness. Watch closely as you are reading the following verses. God can pack a whole lot in just a few sentences.
(Colossians 1:12-21, KJV)
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell;
20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
That was a mouth full but in a nutshell, it is simply saying that God redeemed us to Himself by the death of His son on the cross. Jesus paid the price for our sins. Every work that he performed on the earth was in obedience to the Father and out of His love for God and for lost mankind. There is just one catch though. God didn't just jerk us all out of the hand of Satan and force us to be free from sin. He has left it up to us to make a choice. Do we want to be free from sin and serve God and enjoy the fruits of righteousness for ever or do we love the sin in our lives too much to give it up. Are we going to be self serving and doing it all our way or are we willing to do things God's way {the right way} and surrender some of our own will to His? We all have to make that decision on our own between ourselves and God. Then God says “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved”. The word saved actually refers to several different things as listed below.
(1 Peter 1:18-19, KJV)
18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
(1 Peter 1:23, KJV)
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
(1 Peter 2:24-25, KJV)
24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
(2 Corinthians 5:21, KJV)
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.
(2 Corinthians 5:17-18, KJV)
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
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;
(Colossians 1:13-14, KJV)
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
(Ephesians 1:4-5, KJV)
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
(Colossians 2:13-14, KJV)
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;
We are redeemed from corruption, old things are passed away and we are born again into a newness of life without the guilt of passed sins and God looks on us as holy and righteous because of the absolute cleansing of sin from our lives because of the redemptive work of Jesus. This is just a part of what God did through Jesus and it is more than just religion or philosophy. It becomes an absolute reality on the inside of you when you receive Jesus as your Lord and savior. Being born again is a miracle that happens on the inside of you that brings real and recognizable changes on the inside. After you are changed on the inside the changes will begin to show up on the outside also as your desires begin to change and focus towards God. God's plan of salvation is awe inspiring when you look at the complexity of what God has been doing from the very beginning of time when He started to plan our redemption. Out of the complexity of what He has done comes the simplicity of what He has left for us to do.
(Romans 10:13, KJV)
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
(Romans 10:9-10, KJV)
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.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
If you believe in your heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead for the remission of your sins and declare Him to be your Lord then you will be saved. It's as simple as that and then the changes start to take place in your life. All it takes is a simple little prayer.
Father God. I believe that Jesus has died for me to save me from the hand of Satan, from hell and from my own sinful nature. I receive Him as my Lord and Savior now and I trust you to do the cleansing and changing on the inside of me that will make me one of your own new creations. In Jesus name. Amen
If you are not able to make that declarative statement then perhaps another simple prayer is what you need.
God I don't really know if I believe in you or not. I want to know that you are real and if you are if Jesus is the way of salvation that you have provided for all mankind. Please make yourself and your word real and alive to me so that I can approach You in faith and not always with doubt. From this day forward I want to know if you really love me enough to save me from my own sinfulness and to allow me into heaven. In Jesus name I ask this. Amen.
You have just begun the process of calling upon the name of the Lord. Just a word of caution. Satan will come to cause you troubles and try to get you to blame God for your problems but God is greater than Satan and He can get His message of love across to you even in the rough times if you watch and listen with your heart. Isn't it your heart deep inside of you that wants to be loved anyway?
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If you have prayed the prayer of salvation and you know that you are saved, let us know at  . If you prayed either of the prayers and you are unsure of things let us know and we will be praying for you.
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