1 Corinthians 2:2
ESV - 2 For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.
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To me, one of the simplest summaries of the process of salvation is found in Romans 10:9 when Paul wrote, "But if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." As simple as that statement might be, however, the words "Jesus is Lord" and "believe in your heart" carry implications for the person who confesses and believes. Acknowledging Jesus as Lord implies not just acceptance of His existence as a historical figure, or even of His identity as God incarnate, but obedience to His will and commands, as revealed in the Bible. (As Jesus Himself said to His disciples in Luke 6:46, "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord' and not do what I tell you?") It is not our obedience that saves us (Ephesians 2:8-9), but our obedience is the outward witness to others of the salvation that God had granted us through faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:10). But even such outward evidence is of no value with respect to salvation if it is not accompanied by sincere devotion of the heart. Believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead is not mere "head" knowledge of it (that is, regarding it as an event that did actually occur), but appropriating it for ourselves by a total dependence upon Jesus' finished work of redemption (as testified by His resurrection), rather than on anything that we have done (or even CAN do), for our salvation and eternal life. As Jesus also said (in Matthew 7:21-23), many at the last judgment will be able to point to "mighty" works (including prophesying (preaching) and the casting out of demons) that they performed in Jesus' name, only to have Him tell them that He never knew them.
John 3:16. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER, believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 He did not come into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 Believers are not condemned. Unbelievers are condemned already because they have not believed on the name of the Son of God. We all deserve to go to hell. We are all sinners. But Jesus, just because He loved us, paid our sin debt in full, so we would not have to go to hell to pay for them. First John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world, but only those who have believed it are saved. Once we believe we are given eternal life. Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also AFTER ye believed, ye were sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise. Ephesians 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit in whom ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Every one who has ever trusted Jesus alone by faith alone is saved and going to heaven. We have eternal life now. If an unsaved person was driving down the highway, and heard the gospel on the radio, and believed the gospel, and died in a car wreck one second later, they would go right to heaven. If that same person lived another 40 years, they are still just as saved as they were at first. Once we have believed we are sealed by the Holy Spirit and can never be cast out. John 6:37 He will never leave us or forsake us. Hebrews 13:5. John 5:24 We have passed from death unto life. How do we know we are saved? Because Jesus said so and He can not lie. John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life. If you have everlasting life, how long does it last? Forever. How many sins did Jesus die for? All of them. Second Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless, the foundation of God is sure, having this seal, (the Holy Spirit) the Lord knoweth them that are his. What if you go off and live in sin all next week? Paid. What if we continue to live in sin? Paid. We do not quit sinning to be saved, we believe all our sins are paid for to be saved. Should we live in sin just because we can? No, but when we sin grace abounds, where sin abounds grace much more abounds. And we all sin. First John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Romans 11:6 It is all grace, not works. Not by what we do or do not do, but by His mercy He saved us. When we trust Jesus as our savior, He imputes His righteousness to us, and will no longer impute sin to our account. Romans 4:6-8 Once we trust Jesus our savior, we are going to heaven whether we want to or not. It is finished. Done. Paid for. Stamped, paid in full. We have eternal life. John 10:28-29. AMAZING GRACE, JESUS PAID IT ALL AND WE PAID 0. IT IS FREE.
I realize when you say you believe in the trinity, you are speaking of the Godhead, God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. However there is another trinity that points to God's path to heaven: John 14:6 is a type of trinity, so to speak. Jesus says He is the Way to Heaven, the Truth of Heaven, and the Eternal Life in Heaven. His way was His giving His life for us and shedding of His sinless blood. His truth is He died in our place and His life is eternal for He was raised from the dead and lives evermore to rule and reign and be our High Priest. [Hebrews 4:14-16] If that is what you believe in your heart and know you need a Savior, then [Romans 10:9-10] indeed is how God the Holy Spirit through Paul explains getting saved and thus getting into Heaven.
Let us look at what the Apostles told everyone the must do to be saved, Hear- Romans 10:17, Matthew 11:15, Acts 18:8. Believe- John 5:24, Mark 16:16, Acts 16:31-33, Acts 18:8. Confess- 1 John 4:15, Romans 10:9-10, Acts 8:35-38. Repent- Luke 13:3, Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19, Matthew 9:13. Baptized- Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Acts 8:35-38, Acts 16:31-33, Acts 18:8. Then God adds you into the Church- Acts 2:41, Acts 2:47, Colossians 2:12, Galatians 3:27, Romans 6:3-11. Study the Scriptures daily- 2 Timothy 2:15. Endure to the end- Matthew 24:13.
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