John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Did you know that you don't even have
to “ask” Jesus to save you in order to go to Heaven? “What?” you say?
Yes, you heard right, you don't have to “ask” for the Lord to save
you to get to Heaven. The reason why is because God already told us
what to do to be saved, and that is to simply BELIEVE on the Lord Jesus
Christ. If you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, and you
believe that Christ resurrected from the dead (which means that God the
Father accepted Christ's payment for our sins) you are saved. Jesus said in
John John 6:28-29, “Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we
might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them,
This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath
sent.”
Acts 16:30-31, “And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Believe that Jesus is the Son of God, the Christ, Who paid the price for your sins upon the cross. Jesus was buried and then raised-up from the dead three days later, which means that God the Father accepted the payment of His dear Son on the cross for our sins.
Certainly, you may call upon the name of the Lord in prayer to be saved, but it is your heart's trust in the Lord that causes God to work the supernatural miracle of salvation, and not our prayer or human will in any way. John 1:12-13, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Salvation is completely of God. Our part is simply to believe the Gospel. Mark 1:15, “And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
The word “call” in Romans 10:13 does NOT mean “to pray” as most people think. Rather, it is the Greek word epikaleomai and means “to entitle,” that is, “give the right to,” (by implication, to invoke”). My friend, God wants to save you more than you could ever comprehend. 2nd Peter 3:9 says God is not willing for any to perish, but for all men to come to repentance. Your salvation has already been paid for by Jesus' precious blood. 1st Peter 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” Eternal life is a free gift (Romans 5:15, 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9).
All you have to do is give God the right to save you. That's what the word “call” means in Romans 10:13. God's holiness cannot permit any sinner to enter into Heaven. So God in His wondrous love made provision for our redemption through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son on the cross. There are no exceptions to the rule. God is bound by His Word. God cannot save you unless you let Him. As strange as that may seem, it is 100% Biblical. God has given to you a freewill to choose for yourself.
Although God can do anything (omnipotent), there are certain things that God simply WILL NOT do, because they would violate His holy character. So many people are foolish idiots, who believe that a loving God will let them slide and enter into Heaven without being born-again. Jesus exclaimed in John 3:5 that unless a person becomes born-again (anew) by the Holy Spirit of God, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. Jesus warned that the Scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35). Religion is man trying to reach God through human effort; whereas, Christianity is God trying to reach man by the sacrifice of His dear Son on the cross.
The holy Bible warns that you will go straight to the fires of Hell if you die in your sins (John 8:24; 2nd Thessalonians 1:8-9). Jesus literally took our truckload of sins upon Himself on the cross, paying our humongous sin debt that He did not owe, so that we would not have to spend an endless eternity burning in the fires of Hell to pay for our own sins. All you need to do is receive God's grace and mercy by receiving Christ's payment on the cross for your sins. It's all free for the taking.
It is not wrong to “ask” Christ to save you, but as I have painfully learned over the years, heresies are creeping into our Fundamental Baptist Churches by the hour. There are all sorts of unbiblical, dangerous and infectious false doctrines which have crept into most churches today. Salvation is easy, and anyone who comes along saying it is hard is a liar. Billy Graham makes salvation hard, requiring lost sinners to COUNT THE COST and PAY THE PRICE to be saved. My friend, Jesus paid the price and there is no cost for us to count. Salvation is absolutely, freely and completely by faith alone in the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the Gospel according to 1st Corinthians 15:1-4...
1st Corinthians 15:1-4, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”
There Is No Salvation Apart From Faith In Jesus Christ
It is tragic that most people are filled with sinful pride, love for sin and skepticism concerning the truth of God's Word. John 3:20 says that a sinful lifestyle hinders people from coming to Christ to be saved. Most people prefer to remain vague on the subject of God. When Hollywood actors and famous people are asked if they believe in God, they often shirk off the question, attempting to take a middle-of-the-road approach as to not label themselves. Most of them claim to be unsure whether God exists or not, and then quickly digress by talking about the god in all of us (New Age teaching).
God cannot save you unless you receive Christ's sacrifice on the cross as full-payment for your sins. If you reject Christ, then God cannot save you because there is NO OTHER WAY to be saved. Acts 4:10-12 plainly teaches that salvation is found ONLY in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. If you try to enter into Heaven some other way, the Bible calls you a thief and a robber in John 10:1. Jesus is the only Door into Heaven (John 10:9). Believe the Gospel and the work is done!
END
It is so easy and simple to be saved. Heresy is creeping into our churches by the hour, influenced by the false religious cults.
Man could not enter into a union with God, but as God, Jesus can, and God could not enter into a union with man, but as man, Jesus can. So we contact the Man, Christ Jesus, and the Father contacts the God, Christ Jesus; hence, man contacts God through His Counsellor, and our Saviour, the God-man, Christ Jesus.
SOURCE: 'Prayer And The Sovereignty Of God,' from the book by Dr. Jack Hyles, 'Exploring Prayer With Jack Hyles'
Here are some excellent MP3 sermons on the 3 Persons of the GODHEAD by Pastor Jeff Owens...
The Doctrine Of The Holy Spirit (2)
There is nothing more important to Christianity than the fundamentals of the Bible (MP3, Dr. Owens)—the DOCTRINE OF CHRIST. The doctrine of Christ includes the physical blood of Jesus Christ, the literal virgin birth, Christ's deity as almighty God, His bodily resurrection from the dead, His sinless life, et cetera.
