Step 1: Hear the Gospel and Recognize Your Condition
You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize
that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what
your background is. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned, and come short of
the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand
that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the
gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, “I am the way, the
truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6)
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
Step 2: Have Faith in God
You must have faith in God because “without faith it is
impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is,
and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6) But
neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James
2:24; Matthew 7:21)
Step 3: Repent of Your Sins
You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance
alone is not enough. The so-called “Sinner’s Prayer” that you hear so much
about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the
Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the “Sinner’s
Prayer” to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that
prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting
with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins
when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God
always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts
10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, it will not
save you either. You must obey the gospel.
Step 4: Confess That Jesus Christ is the Son of God
You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
(Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus “Lord of your life.”
Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed
his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already
is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just “accept
Jesus as your personal savior.” We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God,
but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew
7:21)
Step 5: Be Baptized for the Remission of Your Sins
Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the
Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It
is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It
is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute
necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21)
Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that
contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ! For much
more information about baptism, click here.
Step 6: Be Faithful Unto Death
Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes
your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in
God’s grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they
remain faithful, those who are in God’s grace will fall from grace, and those
whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that
book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)
