What do Christians believe about salvation?

Is it not a momentous question — do you believe God? Surely this is the first question to settle. Let me put the question slowly. Do you believe that God gave His Son to die the infinite sacrifice for your sins? Do you believe that God raised Him from among the dead, to be your righteousness? Do you believe that God has given to you eternal life, and this life is in His Son? "These things have I written to you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life." Have you on the testimony of God this eternal life? Are your sins put away by an infinite propitiation for sins? Can you look up by faith to heaven, and say, That glorious, infinite Son of God is my everlasting righteousness? Salvation is wholly of God. "Sent his Son!" Could He love you more? could anything add to, or increase that love? Then it is not infinite. And "God commends his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us."

This, then, is the answer to your question: if you want to be saved, you must believe on God's Son. "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." Mark you! it is Christ, you must know. It is the Person of Christ who is the object of belief, the object of faith. Christ, personally, is the object of the soul's faith, and the one who believes in Him gets the benefit of all the work He has done. I do not agree at all with an old woman, in Arran, who said to a friend of mine, who was pressing the gospel on her, "You make far o'er muckle o' that word, believe, believe." That let out a great deal. You cannot make too much of believing. If Christ has not hitherto been the object of your faith, may God give you now to believe on His blessed Son, and you will get what the jailor got. "Thou shalt be saved," is God's assurance to the believing soul.

These are the three faithful sayings the apostle Paul enjoined in the first century and I am perfectly sure I am on safe ground when I tell you they are as important now as they were then, as important in our land as they were in the lands where the apostle Paul wrote them. There is no salvation except in our Lord Jesus Christ and that which He has wrought, not on the ground of merit but on that of mercy through the grace of our Lord, and if we receive it it works a transformation in character so that we pursue godliness. It comes into expression in works that are good according to God. These are faithful sayings, and they are worthy of all acceptation. I hope we shall all be stirred up by having looked at them briefly tonight to seek to make those faithful sayings operative in our hearts and in our lives. If that is wrought out as a result of our little talk tonight we shall each be blessed and God will be glorified.

To be saved therefore, to have eternal life, you must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It is thus a question not of doing, but of believing. For it is now, not what the sinner can do, but what Christ has done, for "He took what I had earned; I get the fruit of what He has done." Therefore it is, and ever must be, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." There is no other way; and hence salvation is always connected with faith. Take a few instances: "Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace" (Luke 7:50); "Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole" (Luke 17:19); "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life" (John 3:36); "He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (judgment); but is passed from death unto life" (John 5:24); "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life" (John 6:47); "To Him give all the prophets witness, that through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43); "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1, etc. etc.).

The personal character of present salvation should therefore be laid hold of by us. It is of the last importance to do so in these days of departure from the truth, and apostasy from the faith. To be saved, is to be saved! To be unsaved, is to be lost! The final issue is fast approaching! The coming of the Lord draweth nigh! The lights of the oil-less lamp-holders are going out! Those who “have not received the love of the truth that might be saved” (2 Thess. 2:10) will soon be carried away by the strong sweeping currents of error, “that they should believe what is false, that all might be judged who have not believed the truth, but have found pleasure in unrighteousness” (v. 12). God has no pleasure in this, but desires rather that “all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4). The Son of God came not to judge the world, “but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17 and 12:47). Upon the cross He bore the believer’s sin, and the judgment that those sins deserved; moreover, He was raised again from among the dead for their justification. On the basis of that work the believer is saved, for it is on account of this God righteously forgives sins, and the gospel brings “the knowledge of salvation … by the remission of their sins” (Luke 1:77). The first person outside of Judaism to be reached by the glad tidings was Cornelius. He heard words whereby he and all his house were saved (Acts 11:14). Those words pointed him to Christ, through whose Name everyone that believes on Him receives remission of sins (10:43). Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, for grace alone could meet the need of such; and while It is truly by the grace of God such are justified freely, through the great redemption which is in Christ Jesus, it is likewise true, we are “saved by grace” (Eph. 2:5, 8); not on the principle of works, so that none might boast. Grace is in Christ Jesus, and so is salvation (2 Tim. 2:1, 10). This latter is obtained there through faith, whether in regard to judgment, enemies, state, adverse influences, this present evil world or age. “Neither is there salvation in any other.”

I learn by experience that in me dwells no good thing, and that I have not the strength to conquer. I cease to look towards myself, as though I could become better. The flesh is always there; the will may be good (in a converted man), but practice does not correspond to will. Not amendment, but salvation, is needful to us: and that we possess in Christ by faith, and, in salvation, peace. Being unable to accomplish justice in ourselves, we submit to the justice of God. By the faith that Christ Himself is our justice before God, we learn by experience what we are ourselves. This experience is itself the fruit of the work of the word by the Spirit in the heart; but by this we learn that we are lost, that, looking to Christ, we are saved. "Believe, and thou shalt be saved." Good works are what suit the position we then occupy. It is the same in human relationships of children, wives, servants; it is necessary to be in the relationship, or the duties do not exist. When we are saved, we become the sons of God, and then we find the duty of sonship; but it cannot exist before we are sons. The duty of man as the creature of God existed, but on that ground we are lost. Christian duty does not begin till we are Christians. It is remarkable, here and elsewhere, how whole households are admitted to the Christian assembly.

So it is today. Men are perishing on every hand. They go to "church," they have Bibles in their homes, and profess to believe in God, but by works they deny Him. They have no real faith. If they had, it would most certainly be shown forth by their works. "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (James 2:26) "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." (James 2:24) A man can be justified in the sight of his fellowmen by works only, for no man can see into the heart of another. So men can judge whether there is true faith, only by his works. Jonah 3:10 is an illustration of a city that is justified (from man's point of view) in God's sight, by their works. God, Himself, gives us other examples, as Abraham and Rahab.

In these days, through God's infinite grace, a full and clear gospel, through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ alone, is often preached. We can thank and praise God for it; but we fear that at times, the balance of truth is not always kept, and we are apt to forget that with us, it should be as in Abraham's case, "faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect." (James 2:22) Please be absolutely clear, it is not that we are saved partly by faith and partly by works. No, we are saved by faith alone, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. But if there is true faith, then it is utterly impossible not to have works. The works are merely the external result, of the internal faith. The faith saves us. The works give evidence that we truly have the faith.

“By their fruits ye shall know them” (Matt. 7:20), is a test so obvious that it needs no proving. If a young man or woman professes to be converted, it will certainly be evidenced by a change of life. It is true that salvation is by grace alone, through faith, “not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:9). It is equally true that believers “are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). These works do not procure salvation in the smallest degree, but are the evidence that we are saved. They are the product, not of the old nature, not of the flesh, but of the new nature, the new man “created in Christ Jesus.” The very grace of God that has brought us salvation teaches us “that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world” (Titus 2:12).

We must ever remember that, “faith, if it has not works, is dead, being alone” (James 2:17). We are utterly powerless to do works to procure salvation, for salvation is “the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). Works acceptable to God are the evidence of faith, working out in life, “faith which works by love” (Gal. 5:6). Thus it must ever be. May this priceless salvation, boys and girls, be yours in the great mercy of God, and through the merits of His blessed Son, who died to save us. Surely such love calls for a response on our part. Shall we give it to Him?

Believing on the Lord Jesus Christ saves the sinner, because He died on the cross, atoned for sin, and shed His precious blood. “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7), is the divine testimony of Scripture. We cannot be saved by anything we can do. Our religion cannot save us. Our so-called good works cannot procure us God’s forgiveness But, blessed be His name, He points us to His Son. He bids us put our faith in Him. He tells us, “There is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Thank God, His name is enough.