The
word "saved" is used by many people.
But what does it mean?
First,
we understand that nobody is perfect, and that all people have
sinned by turning away from God (see Romans 3:23). We all need
God's forgiveness and mercy! But our sin has separated us from
the Lord, and that causes spiritual death...
Second,
the GOOD NEWS is that God is loving
and merciful, and he wants to have a relationship with us! He
sent his Son Jesus to pay the price for our sins through his
death on the cross. He defeated sin and death by his resurrection,
and made a way for us to come back to God. (See Romans 3:22-26,
4:25-5:2, and 5:6-11.)
Finally,
being "saved" means that we have put our FAITH
and TRUST in Jesus alone for eternal
life, because we understand that it is only through CHRIST
that our sins are forgiven. We are saved by GRACE,
which means that God rescued us from sin and death by giving
us mercy as a FREE GIFT... We could
not save ourselves, but Jesus saved us by paying the price himself
so we could come back to God! That is what we mean when we say
that we are "saved by grace."
The importance of "faith"
is that through our belief in Jesus' death and resurrection,
and by trusting him alone for our salvation (not our own works),
we can receive the gift of grace that God has offered.
(See Ephesians 2:1-9 and Titus 3:4-7.)
This has only been a summary of the meaning of salvation.
There is so much more that you can learn
about God's grace and forgiveness! It is also important
to understand "repentance" and what it means to surrender
your whole life to the Lord. Please e-mail or come and visit
us if you would like to study more...
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