Doctrine, Part 6: Salvation and Christian Living

Salvation belongs to God (Revelation 7:10), and is solely a gift of grace for Him to give (Romans 5:15; Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8) to sinful man. It is received by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:12; Ephesians 2:8-10); whose holy life, substitutionary death, and glorious resurrection made it possible for our sins to be forgiven, our punishment to be taken away, and for His righteousness to be imputed to us (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 1:18-19; see notes on The Person and Work of Jesus).

This faith in Jesus is received by hearing His Word (Romans 10:17). The Holy Spirit draws us into this faith in Jesus by convicting us of our sins, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11); thus revealing our need for Him.

Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation (John 14:6).

We are not saved by good works, but rather to do good works (Ephesians 2:10).

The Bible says in Romans 10:9, “that 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.” This is an act of faith. It’s simply acknowledging that you are a sinner who needs the forgiveness of God in your life so that you can be restored in Him, and that the only way for that to happen is to ‘fully rest in the fact that what Jesus did for you took care of everything’ and ‘begin to follow Him’.

Once saved; the Holy Spirit baptizes the Christian into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-15), dwells within them from the moment of salvation (Acts 2:38; Romans 8:9; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20), and seals them until the Day of Redemption (John 6:37-40; John 10;27-30; Romans 8:38-39; 1 Corinthians 1:4-8; 2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30; Philippians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:5).

The Holy Spirit sanctifies the believer-making them more like Jesus- (John 14:26; Romans 8:9), thus regenerating the believer and giving them a new life (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Those who are saved- Christians/ believers- will be known by their love for one another (John 13:35) and by the Spiritual Fruit- or good works- that they produce (Matthew 7:15-23; Ephesians 2:10).

It is a Christian’s desire to please God and abstain from sin (Romans 7:7-25); so they must not take advantage of God’s grace and the freedom it gives to indulge in sinful activity (Romans 6; 1 Corinthians 8:9-13; Galatians 5:13; Titus 2:11-15; Hebrews 10:26).