UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT OF SALVATION

Welcome, friends, to today’s broadcast. I’m very confident that the seed of the Word of GOD being planted in your life will find a fertile ground, germinate, grow and bear fruit unto perfection. Some of your responses have encouraged us to keep bringing the pure Word of GOD unto you. May the LORD continue to open the eyes of your understanding. And may HE help you to act on the Word of GOD which you hear.

Our topic today is, Understanding the Concept of Salvation.

UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT OF SALVATION

Our text is from Romans 10:8-10

The Book of Romans 10:8-10.

Romans 10:8-13

⁸But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): ⁹ that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Let us pray.

PRAYER

Heavenly FATHER and The FATHER of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, you are great and mighty. We thank YOU, O GOD our FATHER, for today. I pray, LORD GOD, that the words we will be preaching to our people will make meaning into their lives. As we bring the Word, O GOD our FATHER, we pray that the Word will cast light into their lives, and they will see reasons to yield unto YOU, the King of Glory…in JESUS’ Mighty Name we pray. Amen!

The world is becoming complicated. Religious activities and preachings are also becoming complicated. Some practitioners are not helping matters at all. Sometimes they want to outdo each other. However, one of the Legacies of The Master’s Vessel Ministry is, presenting the Gospel unambiguously and in its unadulterated form – in fact, presenting it in all simplicity. We are committed to this because we are The Voice of The Master: Our LORD JESUS CHRIST. The fact is that, GOD has made salvation simple. For whoever calls upon the Name of the LORD will be saved. Your salvation experience will be the beginning of your relationship with JESUS CHRIST. If you can recite ABC, you can understand salvation.

What is the meaning of salvation? The dictionary defines salvation as “preservation or deliverance from ruin or loss”. The second dictionary definition is, “deliverance from sin and its consequences believed by Christians to be brought about by faith in CHRIST JESUS”.  Both these definitions are right, even in our topic today. Thus, the implication of these two definitions is that your personal life requires deliverance or preservation – otherwise you will face ruin, loss and the consequences of not accessing deliverance brought to you by JESUS CHRIST.

I said earlier that, there are three steps which I will term, The ABC of understanding salvation.

The first step which is A, is, Admit you are a sinner in need of the SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST. Admit you are a sinner in need of the SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST. Your sin separates you from having fellowship with GOD. Your sin is like a golf separating you from GOD. A relationship with JESUS CHRIST begins with your admission that you are in need of HIM. You must admit you need GOD to do three things in your life:

1. Number one, You need GOD to forgive you your sins. Those attitudes or actions that do not meet GOD’s standards require to be forgiven. In 1 John 1:8-9 the scripture says,

1 John 1:8-9

⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

It is not possible within this broadcast to enumerate the sins that require to be confessed and be forgiven. But the common ones are pride, arrogance, anger, jealousy, envy, stubbornness, self-will, disrespect, unforgiveness, malice, bearing grudges, being revengeful, sexual sins, dirty thoughts, seduction, lying, cultism, hypocrisy, unbelief and many more. You need GOD to forgive you.

1. Secondly, You need GOD to give you eternal life. You need GOD to give you eternal life! In Romans 6:23, The bible says,

Romans 6:23-7:1

²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• Thirdly, you need GOD to show you HIS purpose for your life. You need GOD TO show you HIS purpose for your life. In John 10:10 the bible says,

John 10:10

¹⁰ The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Again, in the Book of Prophet Jeremiah 29:11,

Jeremiah 29:11

¹¹ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Do you know why you need GOD?

The second step, which is B, is, Believe that JESUS died to pay the penalty for your sins. You will need to trust the LORD JESUS to be the substitutionary payment for the forgiveness of your sins. Ephesians 2:8-9 says,

Ephesians 2:8-9

⁸ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

⁹ Not of works, lest any man should boast.

The penalty for your sin is death. However, because of the love of GOD for you, HE provided a way for you to escape that penalty. This is what John 3:16 says,

John 3:16

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

JESUS can and will save any one from an eternity without GOD. HE died and rose gain for your justification. To put your relationship with GOD in right standing, believe in the death and resurrection of JESUS CHRIST for your sins. It’s essential for salvation, but it is not enough. Believe in the death and resurrection of JESUS CHRIST for your sins is essential for salvation. But it is not enough. In James 2:19, the bible says,

James 2:19

¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe [GOD] — and tremble!

You must do more than to say I believe in JESUS. You must confess HIM as LORD or Boss or Master of your life.

The last step, that is step three or C is, Call upon JESUS as LORD and Savoiur of your life. Call upon JESUS as LORD and Saviour of your life. Confessing JESUS as LORD means to commit totally the control of your life in HIS hands. Receive HIM as your personal Saviour. John 1:12-13 says,

John 1:12-13

¹² But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Give HIM the ownership of your life, HE becomes your new Boss. If you confess JESUS as LORD of your life, the bible says, you will be saved. That’s what our text says. The involvement requires your repenting of your sin and asking HIM to forgive you.

Friends, perhaps you want to take these three steps boldly, pray alongside with me.

PRAYER

Dear FATHER in heaven,  I admit I am a sinner in need of YOU. Please, forgive me of my sins, and give me abundant life here on earth and the free gift of eternal life with YOU in heaven. I believe JESUS died and rose again for my sins. I call upon JESUS to come into my life and be my LORD and SAVIOUR – The SAVIOUR of my life…in the Name of JESUS. Thank YOU for saving me…in JESUS’ Name I pray.

Now I want to pray for you.

As many as have heard the Word, and you want to take these three steps: one, to admit you are a sinner; two, to believe that JESUS is your SAVIOUR; and C, to call on HIM, I want to pray for you.

Heavenly FATHER, because YOU died for me, and because YOU laid YOUR life on The Cross of Calvary, I also stand in the place of an intercessor, praying for my people who have heard the Word of GOD today, and asking YOU, O LORD OUR GOD, Almighty, that YOU will save them based on the faith that is exercising in YOU. Forgive their sins and deliver them from the hand of the devil – the power of darkness that is holding them captive. LORD, I pray that the salvation that comes through YOUR Word through JESUS CHRIST YOUR SON will be their portion. Save them, and let their names be written in YOUR Book as YOUR Children…in JESUS Mighty Name we have prayed. Amen!