Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household...nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved, Acts 16:31, 4:12, NKJV.
The Bible clearly teaches that salvation is by God's grace, in faith alone in Jesus Christ alone, plus nothing else. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast, Ephesians 2:8-9, NKJV. The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord...For the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable, Romans 6:23, 11:29, NKJV.
Man is in desparate need of reconciliation with God, but all men are sinners by birth and by choice. We have trespassed God's law, and therefore have incurred His wrath. Justice must be satisfied. Since God wishes that none should perish (2nd Peter 3:9, Ezekiel 18:23,32), He sent His Son in the likeness of our sinful flesh to die in our stead. Jesus Christ, fully God and fully Man, the sinless Lamb of God (John 1:29) paid the penalty for our sins, satisfying the demands of the law, and opening the way for sinful men to come again before a holy God. Christ died for the sins of the world, and when anyone places their faith in Jesus Christ they will be saved. He is the Savior, and our faith rests on the fact that the death He died, He died so we did not have to suffer the judgment of our sin; he bore that judgment for us: separation from God, which is what Hell is. We have peace with God when we place our faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1), because the Father was well pleased with His Son (Mark 1:11).
It is clear: He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on Him, John 3:36 NKJV
I implore anyone who reads this, consider eternity for a moment, and where you will reside when this life is finished. Do you hope that you have eternal life? Or do you know through the confidence that the Bible provides, God's inspired word, the only word He has seen fit to give mankind? Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also, 1st John 2:23. My prayer is to inform anyone with ears to hear about the true gospel of salvation. For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23 NKJV. This is the bad news. The good news is, God provided an adequate atonement on the cross to satisify the demands of His law, so no one must go to Hell. God receives the glory through Jesus Christ our Savior, and we receive the righteousness of Christ, a required element for anyone who wishes to enter Heaven. Only someone possessing a righteousness equal to God could enter Heaven on their own esteem; this is why Jesus had to die as our substitute: as God He possessed this righteousness, and as Man He may impute it to His fellow men who believe on His name.
Salvation is free, to all who will come to Jesus through faith. We're justified in Jesus Christ, Acts 13:39. We're preserved in Jesus Christ, Jude 1:1. We will be glorified through Jesus Christ, John 17:22; 2nd Corinthians 3:18. We may continue to rebel against the Lord, disbelieving God about our natural sinful state, using religious duties to be a "good person" in order to try earning Heaven as a reward; or we may choose to believe God on His word. All our righteous acts are filthy rags, Isaiah 64:6. There is no man who is righteous and does not sin, 2nd Chronicles 6:36. There is a vast gulf between attempting to be justified by our works and being saved purely by God's sovereign grace, Romans 4:4-5; 11:6. Choose wisely. Amen.
