The Bible and specifically our Apostle Paul tells us the answer to that question. We find the answer in the gospel of the grace of God recorded in I Corinthians 15:1-4.
I Corinthians 15:1-4
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.
Our Apostle Paul tells us that WE ARE SAVED when we believe that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that He was buried and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures.
In II Corinthians 5:21 we are told that God made Christ to be sin for us.
II Corinthians 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
This gospel is easy to understand and very straightforward. We only have to believe that the God that spoke this world into existence gave His life for us, He was buried and that He rose on the third day. This seems like a very easy choice. Doesn’t it?
Let’s look back to a time where a couple of other people also had a very easy choice to make. Let’s call them Adam and Eve. Let’s say that they lived in the best place on earth. Let’s say that they could live with God forever. Let’s say that they would never get old, sick or die.
We all remember Adam and Eve and the choice that they made. Would they have made the right choice if God had written the instructions that they needed on a piece of paper and they could carry that piece of paper with them everywhere that they went?
Well, guess what? God has written down the instructions that we need to follow in order to inherit eternal life with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is called the Bible, and we can carry it everywhere we go. If we follow the instructions in the Bible, we can live in the best place imaginable. We can be with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ forever and we will never get old, sick or die.
Have you made the decision to believe God and follow His written instructions, so that you will become a child of God forever? God doesn’t make mistakes. When He adopts you as His child, it is a forever adoption. Yet, some of us question God and His promises.
Now you may ask yourself what Satan is up to these days. That is an easy question to answer. Satan is not hanging around in the obvious places where everyone goes to sin. Satan has total control of those places.
No, Satan hangs out at the places where people feel safe, and they go to in order to feel closer to God. No, I’m not talking about your “prayer closet” or “on your knees beside your bed” praying to God. No, I’m talking about…
…places where false gospels are preached. These are places where people are fooled by Satan into believing an adulterated gospel, and thus BELIEVE IN VAIN. God, through the Apostle Peter warns us in II Peter 3:15-16 that people who twist the scriptures do so to their own destruction.
II Peter 3:15-16
15 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,
16 as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
God has warned us through the Apostle Peter about those that twist the Scriptures. Peter tells us the final destination of someone that twists the Scriptures. God, through our Apostle Paul tells us that we are saved by believing the gospel unless we have believed in vain.
Will you put your trust in someone that twists and distorts the gospel by adding to or subtracting from the gospel? Will you believe someone that tells you that you must do something extra for your salvation?
Do you remember Adam and Eve? A little bit of Satan goes a long way. A little bit of twisting the Scriptures can last for an eternity.
I have made a decision to learn from Adam and Eve’s mistake. I have believed the gospel of the grace of God “alone” for my salvation. Call me wise if you want to. I will just call myself a forever saved and blessed child of God.