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presents "The Way to Heaven"
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Lesson 8: What Must I Do to be Saved? (part 2)
In our last lesson we saw God's great love for sinners. If we are unsaved, we are lost to God. But God cannot bear to lose us.
Friend, have you considered how much it cost God to seek you?
Can you say,
"I was lost, but God wanted me, and now He has found me"?
We cannot imagine the joy that it brings to God's heart when we turn to Him. Jesus said,
"There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents." Luke 15:10
Repentance and saving faith go together. They are like two sides of the same coin.
When we repent we must also put our trust in the Lord Jesus, the One who died for our sins. We must believe on Him and receive Him as our Savior.
The moment we do this, we are born again into the family of God. God wants us to see that His salvation is a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ.
God wants us to have a living relationship with His Son. The Bible says, "He that has the Son has life (everlasting life)."
Five Wonderful Steps
We can think of life as a long journey. We have been going away from God, but when we repent, we turn to God. Ahead of us we discover five steps that lead to everlasting life in Heaven. Let us see what these steps are.
The five steps (illustrated on the right/above) lead to everlasting life in Heaven. Start at the bottom and read each step.
Now let us talk about each step and what it means. We will have a Bible verse for each step.
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23
What does this verse tell us? It tells us that we have all sinned. We know that this is true. We have all broken God's holy laws. We have all sinned.
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16
What is God's gift to us?
His gift to us is His Son! "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son."
God's salvation is a Person—The Lord Jesus Christ.
Read this verse again carefully. Whom does God mean when He says, "the world"? He means all the people in the world. That includes you and me!
Whom does God mean when He says, "whosoever"?
He means anyone. You can put your name in this verse. Do it right now!
For God so loved _________ that He gave His only begotten Son that _________ believing in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Read the verse again with your name in it. There, that is good news, isn't it?
It is not simply that God loves "the world," but God is interested in you. He loves YOU and He wants YOU!
"God commended (God showed) His love towards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8
This verse tells us that, while we were sinners, Christ died for us. He died for me and He died for you.
Make this verse personal. Say, "God showed His love toward ME, in that, while I was yet a sinner, Christ died for ME."
We not only have a Savior, but we have the personal love of that Savior. The apostle Paul said,
"The Son of God loved me and gave Himself for me." Galatians 2:20
Have you realized Christ's great love for you? Can you say: "The Son of God loved ME and gave Himself for ME"?
Because Jesus died for our sins, God can forgive us of all our sins when we take Him as our Savior.
"As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God." John 1:12
This verse tells how you can become a child of God. You become a child of God by receiving the Lord Jesus.
You may ask, "But how do I receive Him?"
You receive Jesus as your Savior by inviting Him into your heart. Jesus said,
"I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I WILL COME IN." Revelation 3:20
Would you like to invite the Lord Jesus to come into your heart as your Savior? You can do this right now. Since this is just between you and the Lord Jesus, it will be good if you can find a place where you can be alone with the Lord Jesus for a few minutes.
In your own words, thank the Lord Jesus for dying on the cross for your sins. Ask Him to come into your heart to be your Savior.
What did Jesus say that He would do if you asked Him to come into your heart?
He said, "I WILL COME IN."
Does He keep His word? Yes, He certainly does.
If you asked Him to come into your heart and you really meant it, He came in. You received a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now you belong to Him and He belongs to you…forever!
"He who has the Son has life (everlasting life)." 1 John 5:12
This verse tells you that if you have the Lord Jesus, you have everlasting life.
Say the verse to yourself, "He who has the Son has life."
When you believe that Jesus died for your sins and you take Him as your Savior, you have everlasting life. You are saved. Your sins are all forgiven. You are born into God's family.
The Bible says, "For you are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus."
How were we born into God's family? It was by trusting the Lord Jesus as our Savior.
Saving faith has two elements:
1. We cease trusting in ourselves and our "good works."
2. We put our entire trust in Jesus Christ and His blood which was shed for our sins.
A man said, "Before I was saved, I tried and tried to make myself acceptable to God, but one night I gave up trying to save myself. I said, 'God, if You save me, You are going to have to do it all!' God heard that prayer and He saved me. He did it all!"
That is the way God saves us—He does it all. We are saved by grace (what God does for us) and not by our works. The Bible says,
"For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8-9
There will be untold multitudes of people in Heaven, so many that no man can number them. If they were asked how they got there, each one would point to Jesus on the throne and say, "I am here because of Him and what He did for me."
Sometimes a person will say, "I will take Jesus as my Savior some day, but not now."
Dear friend, this mistake can cause you to be lost forever.
Jesus tells us to come to Him NOW. He will save you NOW. You do not know what will happen tomorrow.
The Bible says,
"Behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6:2
If God is speaking to your heart, come to Jesus NOW! Come just as you are.
Say to Him, "Lord Jesus, Your Word says that, if I take You as my Savior, You will forgive me of all my sins and make me a child of God forever. I am taking You as my Savior NOW!"
