Romans 10:5-21
Thursday, 12 January 2023
“…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; “ -Romans 10:9 [NASB]
A Christian minister in a talk-show spoke of the rising popularity of Christianity in a once Communist nation. He mentioned that people were still searching for something beyond self-sustenance and being provided for their material needs. This only points to one thing- man is not just a physical being but an emotional and spiritual one- there is a vacuum in every individual that can only be filled by the Living God!
As Paul writes about his fellowmen, how they missed God’s standards in being made right with Him, it points to each of us how we can be made right with God—how to be SAVED! To be ‘saved’ literally means to be delivered from a place of danger to a place of safety. That is exactly what we need to ensure ourselves of- the world we are living in is a place of danger – “…the whole world is under the control of the evil one.” (1John 5:19). The place of safety is heaven- the dwelling place God has prepared for His children (John 14:2,3). Now the question is how do we ensure we have a place there? Simple!-when we become God’s children!
As long as we are in the world, we are in the presence of sin […sin is lawlessness (1John 3:4)] Sin separates us from a holy God. A sinful man must be saved from sin to connect to God. This realization makes us want to:
1. A- Admit I am a sinner
2. B- Believe in Jesus Christ
3. C- Confess Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour
Admitting I am a sinner before a holy God, whose standard of righteousness I can never achieve on my own, makes me want to come to His terms of being made right with Him. God has assigned only One way for all humankind to be saved, speaking of Jesus Christ, Peter said in Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” Jesus Himself said “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6).
Jesus came to this earth with this very purpose- at His birth, He was to be named Jesus, “… because he will save his people from their sins” (Matt.1:21). His death on the cross was the just punishment not for His sin (for He was sinless) but for the sin of mankind which He took on Himself. His resurrection on the third day proved that He conquered the power of death so that He could bestow eternal life to all who believe in Him. Acts.1:3 states: Jesus “...presented Himself alive…” Here is the crucial point: Jesus is the Saviour who lives today to save sinners! Believe in Him! 1 Tim.1:15 – "It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners."
This acceptance leads to the next step of being saved: Confess with your mouth that He is your Lord and Saviour! Confessing with your mouth that Jesus is your Lord is very significant. Remember that when you were not saved, you were dead in your sin and followed the ways of the world and obeyed the ruler of this world (Eph.2:2). Now your ownership is changed- you have a new Master- the Lord Jesus Christ – hence your confession, “He is my Lord!”
Dear friend, if you are not yet saved, do not miss this opportunity to turn to Jesus Christ and be saved- you have a chance while yet alive to make this crucial decision where you will spend your eternity. Will you CHOOSE CHRIST?
Thought for the Day: A man can accept what Christ has done without knowing how it works: indeed, he certainly would not know how it works until he has accepted it. ~ C.S. Lewis
Listen: 'JESUS PAID IT ALL! '