Salvation In Christ

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How do we get </b></div> <div> <B>"</b><B>i</b><B>nto Christ"?</b></div> <bR> <div> <I><B><U>BELIEVE</U></b></I></div> <div> <I><B>Romans 10:9-10:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#800000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> </b></I></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"....if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead,you will be saved;for with the a person believes, resulting in righteousness,and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Mark 16:16:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Belief, or "faith," must come from the Word of truth, the Bible. And how will one know of the truth outside of the Scriptures or one bringing him or her the Gospel from the revealed Word of God (Rom. 10:14-15)?  They Cannot! Rom 10:17:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Acts 18:8:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "And Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household, and many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B><U>REPENT</U></b></I></div> <div> <I><B>Luke 13:3:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#800000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> </b></I></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Acts 17:30:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Acts 26:20: Paul told</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "both to those of Damascus first, and also at Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds appropriate to repentance." </b></I></FONT><I><B>Repentance involves "turning" from sin, and "turning" toward God. It involves "turning" our life over to God and offering ourselves to Him!</b></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B><U>CONFESS</U></b></I></div> <div> <I><B>Rom 10:9-10 tells us that, </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved;</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>10</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Matthew 10:32,33:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#800000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> </b></I></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>In "confessing" Christ, we acknowledge our faith in Him as the Messiah, the Son of God, the One who can and will save us from our sins, and He who is Lord. When Peter made that confession in Matthew 16, He knew just who Jesus was!</b></I></FONT><I><B> "He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>16</b></I></FONT><I><B> And Simon Peter answered and said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>17</b></I></FONT><I><B> And Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>(</b></I><I><B>Matt 16:15-17).</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B><U>BE IMMERSED</U></b></I></div> <div> <I><B><U>FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS AND </U></b></I></div> <div> <I><B><U>THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT</U></b></I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Acts 2:38:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#800000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> </b></I></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"......,Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Acts 22:16:</b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B> "'And now why do you delay? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.'"</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>Gal 3:27:</b></I></FONT><I><B> "For all of you who were baptized </b></I><I><B>into Christ</b></I><I><B> have clothed yourselves with Christ."</b></I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Peter writes about  </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>21</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you-- not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience-- through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>22</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him"</b></I></FONT><I><B> (</b></I><I><B>1 Peter 3:20-22). Baptism certainly is involved in our salvation, since it is for the forgiveness of sins, and Peter says that it "saves us." Above we see that Paul told the Galatians that this is how they got "into Christ."</b></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B><U>BE FAITHFUL UNTIL DEATH</U></b></I></div> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#111111" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>Revelation 2:10:</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"...Be faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life."</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>Rom 6:12-13:</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>"Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts,</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>13</b></I></FONT><I><B> </b></I><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God."</b></I></FONT></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><U>IS GOD CONCERNED ABOUT THE ETERNAL DESTINY OF YOUR SOUL</U></b><B>?</b></div> <bR> <div> <B>2 Peter 3:9 says,</b><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#990000" FACE="Arial" ><B> </b></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>"The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."</b></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>John 3:16 says,</b><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#990000" FACE="Arial" ><B> </b></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FF0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."</b></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>Yes, God cares.</b><B> He wants you to spend eternity with Him! He loves you and has provided Jesus Christ as a way for you to come to Him.</b></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I>(All scriptures are from the New American Standard Version of the Bible.)</I></div> <bR> <div> <B> <img src="HTMLobj-303/aniGif.gif" alt="Green Bar" border="0" align="bottom" width="576" height="14">  </b></div> <bR> <div> <B>COMMUNION MEDITATION</b></div> <bR> <div> <B>JOHN 10</b></div> <div> <I>"I Have Authority"</I></div> <bR> <div> "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. 18 "No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father." (John 10:17-18)</div> <bR> <div> Jesus says in John 16 that He has the authority to give His own life and that He has the authority to “take it up again.” Twice Jesus says, “I have authority.”</div> <bR> <div> In John 19:30, Jesus said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head, and gave up His spirit.”</div> <bR> <div> Jesus has the power of life. He is the Giver of life. He is the Sustainer of life. And He has the authority over all things. Matthew 28:18, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”</div> <bR> <div> But Jesus is also the Giver of eternal Life. He said in John 10:10, “I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.” Jesus also said in John 6:51, “"I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he shall live forever.”</div> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>OFFERING MEDITATION</b></div> <bR> <div> Revelation 2:1-7, “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this: 2 'I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false;  3 and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary.  4 'But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.  5 'Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place - unless you repent.  6 'Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.  7 'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God.' “</div> <bR> <div> The church at Ephesus did not “tolerate evil men. They would not put up with false teachers or imposters. However, in all that they did well, they were guilty of leaving their “first love”. </div> <bR> <div> The church there had apparently become less zealous, less motivated in their service to the Lord. It wasn't that they weren't doing what was right. Jesus commends them for their faithfulness. But He then warns them concerning the foundation for what they were doing. In fact, they had “left [their] first love” to the extent that they were in danger of Jesus removing their lampsatnd.</div> <bR> <div> I wonder how many congregations are facing the same set of circumstances today. And I wonder how it is affecting their service to the Lord. After all, it is our love for Him that should motivate us to work zealously until He returns.</div> <bR> <div> As we gather together on the first day of the weak to give as we have been blessed, I once more wonder, “Is our generosity, or our stinginess, a sign of our “first love”, of just how much we love Jesus? I believe that we know the answer to that question.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I>“Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible, © The Lockman Foundation </I></div> <div> <I>1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used with permission.”</I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B> <img src="HTMLobj-3637/aniGif.gif" alt="Green Bar" border="0" align="bottom" width="576" height="14">  </b></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://users.aol.com/OpenBible/100.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://users.aol.com/OpenBible/100.html"><U><B>Bible Research Library: Salvation</b></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.uponthisrock.com/Coolgraphics.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.uponthisrock.com/Coolgraphics"><U><B>Some of the Graphics From This Page Are From REAL COOL CHRISTIAN  GRAPHICS</b></U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>