With the souls of men hanging in the eternal balance, it is extremely important to give a clear presentation of the gospel. We have always marveled at how the Holy Spirit sorts through the maze of confusion regarding the various plans of salvation that have been developed over the years. Although all these plans contain an element of truth, they leave the door open to mislead the sinner.
Plan One:
- Admit you are a sinner (Rom. 3:23).
- Be willing to turn from your sins (repent) (Matt. 3:2).
- Believe Jesus Christ died for you on the Cross (I Cor. 15:3).
- Through prayer invite Jesus Christ to come in and control your life.
Plan Two:
- Confess your sins (Mark 1:5).
- Open the door of your heart so Christ can come in (Rev. 3:20).
- Believe on Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31).
- Come forward publicly to receive Jesus as your personal Savior.
Plan Three:
- Acknowledge you are a sinner (Rom. 3:23).
- You must make Jesus Christ Lord of your life (Rom. 12:1).
- Believe Christ died for you (I Cor. 15:3).
- Accept Christ as your personal Savior by praying to God.
There are two serious flaws with the above plans. First, they confuse the terms of salvation under the kingdom gospel with the gospel of the grace of God. Second, the sinner could easily place his trust in what he has done, instead of the Savior. Therefore we suggest the following:
The Scriptural Terms of Salvation:
- Acknowledge you are sinner, βfor all have sinned and come short of the glory of Godβ (Rom. 3:23).
- Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that He died for your sins, was buried and rose again (Rom. 4:5; I Cor. 15:3,4).
If you have trusted Christ as your personal Savior, why not pray and thank God for your salvation.
Beloved, the unsaved are dangling over the lake of fire by one thin thread of human existence. The only thing that is standing between them and eternal judgment is the good news of Christ and Him crucified. May the Lord give us a burden for lost souls, for βnow is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.β source
[β¦] βthe knowledge of sinβ (Rom.Β 3:20; 7:7). He then can see his need of a Savior and believe the gospel. This then enables him to obey the ten commandments out of a pure heart and out of βa good [β¦]
[β¦] magnificent truth of believers being βin Christβ (Eph. 1:3; 2:6,13). The moment we trust the gospel of salvation, we are placed into Christ by the Holy Spirit. As members of His Body, we are united with Christ [β¦]
[β¦] told them, βI ought to have been commended of you.β As the one who had begotten them in the gospel (I Cor. 4:15), they should have been singing the praises of his apostleship, instead of forcing him [β¦]
[β¦] misled. Satanβs enmity against God and against His Word continues undiminished. His hatred of βthe gospel of the grace of God,β is as bitter, and his opposition to it as determined as it ever was. But well does he know that [β¦]