God’s Plan For Saving Man

   There seems to be many in the world today who believe that the Bible cannot be understood.  What a sad sight it would be for God to preserve His word over centuries, only to give us this book that we cannot understand.  It is obvious from scripture that God intended that we do understand His Divine Word.  The apostle Paul said in Ephesians 5:17, “So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Not only can we understand His will but we have a responsibility to do so.  Paul also said earlier in Ephesians 3:4, “when you read, you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ.” At one time the word of God was a mystery.  We can be thankful now, however, that this is not the case.  When we read the words of these inspired men of God, we can understand what God would have us to do.  What a great blessing to have the ability to know God’s will for us.  But what does His word tell us to do?  How is it that I can get myself into a right relationship with Him?  These are some questions that we must answer.

Hear.

The first step in obeying god is to HEAR what He has to say.  How do you know anything that you are to follow unless you hear what it is you are to do.  Paul said in Romans 10:14, “…And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard?…” How can we believe anything unless we have first heard it?  We get our faith by hearing the words of Christ.  Romans 10:17, “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

Believe.

The second step in obeying God is BELIEF.  How could we be obedient to the Lord unless we believed in Him and in His word?  The Hebrew writer said in 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” One of the most popular verses in the religious world is John 3:16, “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.” What a wonderful thing to know that God loves us.  To understand that God loved us so much, He gave His Son to die that terrible death on the cross.  But is it enough to just simply believe?  Realizing the great love that God has for us and understanding that Christ died for each and every one of us, we should not perish.  We do have a greater responsibility, however, than just believing.  Many people in Jesus’ day believed in Him but that wasn’t enough.  John 12:42-43 tells us about some of the rulers who believed in Jesus.  They were afraid of the Pharisees though and were not confessing Him.  Verse 43 tells us why, “for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.” Just because they believed in Jesus didn’t make them right.  There was more to it than that.  Likewise, there is more to our obedience than just belief.

Repent.

The third step in being obedient to God is REPENTANCE.  Repentance is a change brought about by Godly sorrow (Acts 3:19; II Cor. 7:9-10).  Jesus said in Luke 13:3, “I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Paul said in Acts 17:30, “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent.”  We have to change from living a life of sin, to living a life for Christ.

Confess.

The fourth step in obeying God is CONFESSION.  Many people believe that this confession is telling someone about all of the sins we have committed but this is not the kind of confession that is taught.  Jesus said in Matthew 10:32, “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven.” A good example of what was confessed is found in Acts 8:36-38.  Notice that he didn’t list out every sin he had committed.  He confessed, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” That’s all, no more, no less.

Baptism.

The fifth step in our obedience to God is BAPTISM.  This is something that most people fail to understand.  And because they don’t understand, they simply do not include it as part of God’s requirements.  Jesus taught in Mark 16:16, “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.” Peter said in I Peter 3:21, “…Baptism now saves you…”  Just as water saved Noah and his family in the ark by lifting it above the water, so does water save us by washing away our sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16).  Baptism is also described as a burial in Romans 6:3-4.  Just as Jesus died, was buried, and rose again on the third day, so we too die to sin in a watery grave of baptism and rise up out of the water to walk in newness of life.  Baptism is how we get into Christ.  Galatians 3:27, “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” How do we get into Christ?  By baptism.  But why would we want to be “in Christ”.  Paul told Timothy that salvation was in Christ (II Timothy 2:10).  If I want to be saved, I had better be baptized.

Live Faithfully.

The final step in our plan to be obedient to God is to LIVE FAITHFULLY.  If we do not continue to follow the Lord, we have no assurance of being saved.  Revelation 2:10, “…be faithful unto death and I will give you a crown of life.” Paul talked of those who have been severed from Christ, they had fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4).  The only way you could ever fall from God’s grace is if you had it at one time.  These were Christians who didn’t stand strong.  They had separated themselves from God.

God’s plan for saving man is not a complicated plan.  It is not something that only certain people can do.  The only hard part about it is just making up our minds to do it.  Compared to the great reward that is promised, obedience is such a small price to pay.  Won’t you become a follower of Christ today?

                                                              --Shane Williams