Praise the Lord & congratulations! Not only have you made a life-changing decision – but you have made the BEST decision of your life!
In Luke 15:7 Jesus says there is joy & celebration in Heaven over one sinner who repents & today Heaven celebrates because of your decision to accept Christ as Lord & Saviour.
So now what? What do you do next? How do you begin your Christian life and your walk with God?”
Please read carefully below to understand the decision you have made and the steps you can make to grow in the Lord.
When you have questions on your journey, please visit www.inspiredwalk.com as we have some teachings & articles about various aspects of the Christian walk. You can also contact us if you have any specific questions or queries about salvation.
A) MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND YOUR SALVATION
1 John 5:13 says, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
God wants us to understand salvation. God wants us to have the confidence of knowing for sure that we are saved. Briefly, let’s go over the key points of salvation & why we need Jesus Christ in our life:
1. We are all sinners & our sins separate us from God
Since Adam & Eve ate from the forbidden tree, Mankind has been sinful by nature. We are all born with sin & we are all sinners. Living a life in sin hinders us from reconciling with God & having fellowship with God. This means that we have all broken God’s laws and God’s 10 Commandments like those mentioned in Exodus 20:1-17. For example, if you have told a lie; if you have stolen something; if you have lusted after somebody or if you have coveted. This means you are guilty of breaking at least one or more of God’s 10 Commandments. Breaking God’s commandments makes us sinners.
Romans 3:23 NKJV – For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Isaiah 59:2 NKJV – But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.
2. The Wages of Sin is Death
The consequence of living in sin or according to the sinful nature is death (hell & eternal separation with God). However God offers us a FREE gift. This FREE gift is eternal life (and eternal fellowship with Him) through Jesus Christ.
Romans 6:23 NKJV – For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
3. We Cannot Pay the Price for Our Sins With Our Own Works / Own Righteousness
The penalty for our sins cannot be paid by us because our personal merit & our own righteousness are not enough before a perfect & holy God. The price of sin is too high for sinful man to pay the debt owed for sin.
Isaiah 64:6 NKJV – But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousness are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.
Galatians 2:21 NKJV – I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.
4. God Loves You & Has A Redemption Plan For You
Despite the fact that we are sinners, God loves us unconditionally. God desires to reconcile with mankind & He is willing for every individual to have fellowship with Him. Our sin does not hinder God’s unconditional love for us & this is why God has a redemption plan for us – JESUS CHRIST.
John 3:16-17 NKJV – For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
1 John 4:10 NKJV – In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
5. Jesus Christ Paid The Debt We Cannot Pay
Since the penalty for sin is too high for sinful man to pay – God Himself decided to pay for our sins through Christ. Jesus who is without sin paid for our debt which we cannot pay through the blood He shed for us on the cross.
Isaiah 53:5 NKJV – But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
Mark 10:45 NKJV – For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.
6. Jesus Is The ONLY Way We Can Reconcile With God
There is only ONE way to God – Jesus Christ. Our personal merit & works are not enough; Our church will never take us to Heaven; Our pastor will never take us to Heaven; Our religion will never take us to Heaven.
Only Jesus Christ will reconcile us with God & only Jesus Christ will give us eternal life and eternal fellowship with God
John 14:6 NKJV – Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me”.
1 Timothy 2:5-6 NKJV – For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,
7. You Become A Christian through FAITH in Christ Jesus
God grants forgiveness and salvation to all those who place their faith in Jesus—trusting His death as the payment for our sins. The Holy Spirit comes to reside within you at the moment of placing and trusting your salvation in Christ Jesus.
John 1:12 NKJV – But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name
Galatians 3:26 NKJV – For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
That is the message of salvation! This is what being born again means.
If you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ as your Saviour, then you are saved; you are born again.
You have been saved by God’s grace or unmerited favour & not because of your own personal effort or ability (Ephesians 2:8)
If you are trusting in Jesus alone as your Savior, you can have confidence that you will spend eternity with God in heaven.
B) WHAT HAPPENED AT THE MOMENT OF YOUR SALVATION
The moment you receive Jesus through FAITH, the following happens:
1. The Holy Spirit now lives inside of you (1 Corinthians 6:19,20)
2. You are now a child of God and are part of the spiritual family of God (John 1:12)
3. You are a new creation in Christ. This means that you are a new person in Christ. You now have a new nature in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17)
4. ALL Your sins are forgiven. Therefore you are no longer condemned to eternal punishment, but instead you shall have eternal life through Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:7)
5. You now live your life by FAITH & BELIEF in God (2 Corinthians 5:7)
6. The Bible is your infallible & God inspired manual for life (2 Timothy 3:16,17)
7. In Christ Jesus, the Lord will enable you to fulfill and experience His plan and purpose for your life. (Romans 8:28)
8. You have eternal life through Christ & God will never leave you or forsake you (John 3:16)
9. Your salvation is secure in Christ Jesus (John 10:28,29)
C) WHAT’S NEXT
1. Read and meditate on the word of God daily (Psalms 1:1-3)
The Bible is ultimately our final authority in our Christian walk. The Bible is the God-inspired word of God which corrects, reproves, instructs and equips us in our life and for the work of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Therefore our reading and meditation of the Bible enables us to understand the mind of God for every situation in life.
2. Pray to God daily (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Prayer is communication with God. As a Christian you have the privilege of directly communicating with the Creator of the Universe. You can talk to God about every issue in your life. You can thank Him for all that He does in your life. You can talk to God any time of the day.
Prayer draws us near to God.
3. Get water baptized as an outward sign that you now trust in Christ for salvation (Romans 6:3-4)
Water baptism is an outward sign to the world that you have given your life to Jesus Christ.
We are not saved through water baptism but we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Therefore water baptism is done after you become a Christian to symbolize Christ’s death and resurrection and that we as Christians will also be resurrected in Christ.
4. Share the gospel of Jesus Christ with other people (Matthew 28:18-20)
As a Christian it is also important to learn to share the Gospel of Christ and His salvation to other people. You can share the gospel to friends, family, workmates or even strangers.
Everyone needs to hear the Gospel of Christ and God desires that all people become saved. Therefore we must play our part to share God’s word and God’s free gift of salvation to others because it is an act of love.
5. Trust God in every area of your life (Proverbs 3:5,6)
As Christians we no longer live according to our feelings or moods or according to the values of this world. Instead we live according to the word of God.
We therefore must put our trust and faith in God. We must rely on God and the promises and instructions that He gives us in the Scriptures. We must learn to trust God in every situation because God will work all things for good (Romans 8:28). Therefore God can also use bad situations in our life for His glory and for our spiritual growth as we walk with Him.
6. Obey the Lord (Matthew 7:24,25; James 1:22-25)
The Bible says that we must be “doers of the word and not hearers only”.
Therefore we must be willing to exercise our faith in God by obeying His scriptures. Our obedience to God will reflect the nature of Jesus Christ to others. Our obedience to God will enable us to grow spiritually in the Lord.
7. Have God control your life daily (Galatians 5:16-25)
Being a Christian means that we now submit our entire life to the Lordship and control of Jesus Christ. As a Christian it is Jesus who is in the driver’s seat of your life. We therefore surrender to Him daily and allow Christ to lead us in whatever we do.
Therefore whether we are in the workplace, with family, with friends, in relationships or in whatever plans we have for our life – we surrender everything to God and seek God’s guidance and direction in every area through prayer and reading His word.
8. Join a good Bible-based church that teaches sound Christian doctrine. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
The church is not a building. The church is actually the people. The church are born again believers.
However it is important to join a good Bible-based church that teaches and preaches the word of God correctly and where you can fellowship and grow with other Christian believers. Make sure the church you join believes in the primary essentials of the Christian faith.
It is therefore important to be prayerful and to patiently research with God’s guidance for the right church to join.
9. Spend more time associating with good & genuine Christians who will encourage you to grow in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:33)
Whether you’re in the workplace, with family, with friends, it is important to ensure that you spend more time with Christian believers who will build and encourage you to grow in Christ.
DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS or TESTIMONY?
If you have any questions about the decision you have made or about Christianity in general please do not hesitate to contact us.
We would love to hear from you. Please feel free to send us your questions, testimony or comments below
