HOW DO YOU GET
SAVED?
Learning
how to be saved can be confusing because different
people have different ideas. For example, some say that salvation comes by
faith alone, by inviting Jesus into your heart, or by saying a sinner’s prayer.
The reason many are confused is because they listen to
what others say about salvation instead of seeing what God’s Word says about
salvation.
God
is not the author of confusion (1 Cor. 14:33), and you
can know how to be saved by examining what the Scriptures teach about salvation
(Jn. 8:32; 20:31). Since Jesus died on the cross and created a new covenant for
all (Heb. 9:15; Col. 2:14), you must use the New Testament Scriptures as your
authority to learn how to be saved.
After Jesus was raised from the dead, He told His
disciples: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 "teaching them to observe
all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Mt. 28:19-20).
God’s
plan of salvation is to be taught by mankind, and the
baptism Jesus refers to is something that mankind can obey, which is water
baptism.
Jesus’
disciples obeyed His instructions starting on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). They
taught a large crowd about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. When they
finished, the message pricked the heart of many Jews:
“Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest
of the apostles, "Men and brethren,
what shall we do?" Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every
one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins;
and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).
Faith
alone did not save these men because they already believed, which caused them
to ask what they should do. James also confirms that we are not saved by faith
alone (
Peter
tells them two things they must do. First, they must repent, which is a change
of heart. Second, they must be baptized in the name of Jesus for the
forgiveness of their sins, which is exactly what Jesus commanded them to preach
(Mt. 28:19; Mk. 16:16; Lk. 24:46-47; Jn. 20:21-23).
The
only command not mentioned in the above passages is confessing Jesus as Lord.
However, confessing Jesus as Lord is necessary for salvation (
When
you examine what the New Testament Scriptures teach about salvation, you will learn
that you must:
- Hear the Word of God
(Rom. 10:17)
- Believe (Jn. 3:16;
8:24)
- Repent (Lk. 13:3; Acts 17:30).
- Confess (
- Be baptized (Acts
2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21)
When
you use the Scriptures to learn how to be saved, it is
not confusing. The ideas people invent like inviting Jesus into your heart or
saying a sinner’s prayer are not found in the
Scriptures. It is a shame that people are always trying to add or take away
from what the Scriptures teach to fit their way of thinking.
My
plea to you is to listen to what the Word of God says about salvation and not
what people say (Acts 4:19-20).
Many
in the religious world will agree that you have to hear, believe, repent, and
confess Jesus as Lord, but many teach that baptism is not necessary for
salvation though the Scriptures teach that it is necessary. For example,
baptism is the point your sins are forgiven (Acts 2:38) and washed away by the
blood of Jesus (Acts 22:16; Rev. 1:5). Baptism is the point you are buried with Jesus and crucified with Him (Rom. 6:1-11).
Baptism is the point God adds you to His church/kingdom (Jn. 3:5; Acts 2:47; 1 Cor. 12:13).
The
following two Scriptures clearly teach that baptism saves:
Mark 16:16" He who believes and is baptized will be saved…
……………………………….
1 Peter 3:21 There is also an antitype
which now saves us – baptism …
Baptism is only one part of God’s plan of salvation, but
without it, you cannot be saved. Faith,
repentance, confessing Jesus as Lord, and baptism work together to save you.
One is not more important than the other, but baptism
is the final step of salvation.
The only reason I am emphasizing baptism is because many deny its necessity, which is sad, because
without it, the devil has you exactly where he wants you. You can live like a
Christian and do many works to glorify the name of God, but if you have not been baptized into Christ for forgiveness of your
sins, you will still die in your sins. As Jesus said:
“Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter
the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. "Many will say to Me in that
day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your
name, and done many wonders in Your name?' "And then I will declare to
them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who
practice lawlessness!” (Mt. 7:21-23).
If you are still not convinced that baptism is necessary
for salvation consider the chart on the back. Notice all the things found in
Christ: every spiritual blessing, forgiveness of sin, no condemnation, new
creation, grace, salvation, and eternal life.
Of course, none of these things found in Christ can be found outside of Christ. Therefore, if you want to
have those things found in Christ, you must be in Christ.
The chart shows you how you can get into Christ by
following God’s plan of salvation. However, it is only at the point of baptism
that you are put into Christ (Gal. 3:27;
Some think baptism is a work of merit, but this is not
true. As our chart points out, everything that happens to you in baptism is by your
faith in the working of God (Col. 2:12). There is nothing magical about the
water, it is simply the place God has said that you will receive the
forgiveness of your sins.
Since baptism is a work of God, just as believing is a work
of God (Jn. 6:29), baptism cannot be a work of merit. If a person claims that
baptism cannot save because it is a work, then he has to say the same thing
about believing in God (Jn. 6:29). No one would ever say that you could be saved without believing, and no one should say that
you could be saved without baptism.
If you are still not convinced that baptism is necessary
for salvation, then I suggest you study the conversions in the book of Acts
because two things are always mentioned, belief and baptism (Acts 2, 8, 9, 10,
11, 16, 18, 19, 22, 26). If you will allow God’s Word to be your guide, you
should have no problem knowing what His Word says about salvation.
In conclusion, while people can make salvation difficult
to understand, God’s Word makes it easy to understand. You must hear the Word
of God, believe that Jesus is the Son of God, repent, confess Jesus as your
Lord, and be baptized into Jesus for the forgiveness
of your sins. All these steps work together to bring
about your salvation, but baptism is the point your sins are washed away and
you become a child of God. Everything that happens to you in baptism is by your
faith in the working of God.
If you have questions or comments about this tract, send
them to Cougan Collins at lgchurchofchrist@cableone.net.
