Salvation Summaries

This post and the next one are probably two of my most important posts on how a person becomes a Christian.  In this one, I summarize how to become a Christian and provide an outline of the thought process one should typically go as part of this. In my next post, I will provide comments that fill in the outline.

Using my ongoing analogy of salvation being a puzzle, most of the New Testament books I have reviewed provide only a few pieces of the puzzle, and thus offer an incomplete picture of salvation.  Matthew, on the other hand, contains a number of important pieces and provides a relatively clear view of how to become saved.

I have organized Matthew’s salvation-related verses into an order that I believe makes the most sense in understanding how a person becomes saved. Salvation is, in one sense, a process.  I do not mean that it is a life-long process, and that one never really knows whether he or she is saved. Rather, salvation has a beginning aspect, a finale of sort, and as a result, some type of middle too.

For simplicity, I am showing salvation as consisting of three steps, and I have summarized these below.  I have also included an outline a person may want to follow to become a Christian.

Summary of Steps to become a Christian

The first step in becoming a Christian is hearing and accepting the gospel message.  This is needed to understand who Jesus is, why He came to earth, and ultimately, to believe in Him.  Also, we know that faith comes from hearing the gospel message (Romans 10:17), and faith in the Lord is required for a person to become a believer. Jesus’ parable of the sower (or some translations refer to this as the parable of the soils) in chapter 13 is where we learn about hearing and accepting the gospel, and believing in Jesus.

The next step consists of two parts.  The first part is realizing your own spiritual condition and inability to make it to heaven based upon your own efforts.  The second part is a natural byproduct of the first – it is realizing that you need Jesus to save you (for if you can’t save yourself, you must rely upon someone else who can, and Jesus is the only One who is qualified to do this).  The story of the Rich Young Ruler in chapter 19 is an example.  I believe that this step “trips up” many people, since many think you can get to heaven by being “good enough” and without having faith in Jesus.

The final step is “coming to Jesus.”  This requires that you surrender yourself to Him as Lord, and become willing to follow and obey Him.  As part of this, Jesus is to become the most important person in your life.  We read about this in chapters 10, 11, 13 and 16.  I realize that some people who view themselves as a Christian may disagree with me on this step, and say that all one needs to do is believe in Jesus.  I used to think this way, but after reading the gospels and other books in the New Testament, it became clear that we use a watered-down definition of “believe” that does not fully reflect what was meant back then, just as our definition of faith is also lacking.

Outline of How to become a Christian

When I was in college many years ago, a campus minister showed me a little booklet titled, 4 Spiritual Laws, which I later learned is a very popular booklet used by some evangelical denominations in an effort to save others.  The minister “walked through” this booklet with me to help me become saved.  The booklet contains a brief explanation of the gospel, and includes four main points:

1) God loves you,

2) Man is sinful and separated from God,

3) Jesus Christ is God’s only provision for man’s sin, and

4) We must individually receive Christ as Savior and Lord.

Now, does simply reading through a booklet like this save a person?  We can’t prove that it does, and I’m sure there are a number of people who read through it and do not become saved.  However, as I mentioned above, faith comes from hearing the gospel, and because the booklet summarizes the gospel message, it is certainly possible that God uses this booklet (just as He uses the Bible) as the tool by which a person receives faith and becomes saved.  Also, I did become saved during the year in which I read through the booklet, and I attribute at least part of my salvation to it, for by it I understood the gospel and realized my need to repent. However, I had other influences too, including a Christian dorm friend who shared the gospel with me and prayed for me to become saved. Only in heaven will I know to what extent each of these, and other experiences, contributed to my belief in the Lord.

I want to reiterate, though, that while a gospel booklet, the Bible, a pastor’s sermon, or my outline below can be a tool by which a person becomes saved, God is the One who ultimately determines if and when a person is saved. Becoming saved means that a person’s sins are forgiven, they receive faith in the Lord, the Holy Spirit, and these are things that we cannot do ourselves; only God can do this. However, I encourage you to read through the outline below, which is more comprehensive than the 4 Spiritual Laws booklet. In my next post, I will provide comments for each part of the outline, and it will offer a comprehensive view of how one is saved, so please be sure to read it too.

• You need to hear the gospel to learn about Jesus and believe in Him.  A casual belief in Jesus is not sufficient to save you. (Mt 13:1-23; also see Luke 8:4-17)

• You need to understand who Jesus is and why He came to this earth
  • Jesus’ name reflects His purpose (to save sinners)
  • Jesus came for sinners, not those who think they are good (Mt 9:13)
  • Jesus has the power, ability and authority to forgive the sins of His people (Mt 9:2, 6)
  • God alone determines who goes to heaven and who goes to hell (Mt 10:28; 25:32-33)
  • Jesus died to save others from their sins (Mt 20:28; 26:28)

• You must realize that by your own efforts you cannot make it to heaven; that you are not good enough to do this (Rich young ruler; 19:16).

• You need to understand your true spiritual condition, and your need for Jesus to save you (Mt 5:3). Here is the stumbling block that prevents many people from becoming a Christian.

• You need to mourn over your sinfulness (Mt 5:4)

• You need to repent of your sins (Mt 3:8-10; 4:17)

• You must “come to Jesus.”  There is a lot to this last step.  As part of it, you must deny yourself (Mt 16:24-26), take up your cross for Him (Mt 16:24-26), and be willing to follow and obey Him (Mt 7:21; 12:50; 16:24-26).In addition, you need to be willing to give up everything to gain Him. (Mt 6:19-24; 13:44). In short, when you become a Christian, you lose your life for Him (Mt 10:37-39; 13:44-46; 16:24-25).