Romans 10:8-10 (NKJV) 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
(We are traveling again, this time in Puerto Rico. I must admit that the warm sunshine is a welcome respite from the cold and snow we left in upstate New York. I am hopeful we will actually see some spring weather by the time we get home. As usual I find it difficult to stay on top of posting while traveling. I do want to finish my series on the New Birth though so here is that much anyway. I will try to get other things up as I can.)
Over the past week, we looked at the nature of the New Birth. We talked about what happened to man in the Garden of Eden. We saw that man changed from what he was originally created to be when he chose to sin against God. Paul tells us in Ephesians 2 that man became “by nature a child of wrath” because his connection to God and the world of the spirit was severed.
The result was that his spirit was filled with death and darkness. This death and darkness passed on to his offspring because God had declared that everything would produce after its own kind. Birds always produce creatures with bird nature. Cows always produce creatures with cow nature. Man now produced creatures with fallen human nature. The entire created world was tainted with spiritual death because its rightful ruler, man, was thus tainted.
Man chose to sin on his own. He was tempted by the devil and Eve was deceived, but man made a choice. When he did, he took the right to choose away from those who would come after him. This was not something God was going to allow to stand. The bible says that Jesus was slain from the foundation of the world. God always knew how he would turn the tables on Satan.
God chose to come to the earth in the “likeness of sinful flesh.” (Romans 8:3) Jesus chose in the Garden of Gethsemane to take on the sin of the world and die for all mankind. Since his death was not for his own sin but for the sin of the world, anyone who wanted to could choose to receive his sacrifice as the payment for their own sinfulness.
As we have already studied, the person who chooses to believe in the sacrifice of Jesus is literally born again in his spirit. The death that came upon all men was taken out of his heart and a new person was born at that moment. That person has no background of sin. Spiritual death is not a part of his spiritual makeup in any way. He is just as Adam was before he sinned in the Garden.
Although it is evident that our bodies do not change immediately since they still can get sick and they still die, the change to our spirit is immediate. Our minds must be renewed so that we can think like the “new creatures” we become. That process takes many years. What happens to us inwardly is very real and very supernatural. Often it does not feel like it is but that does not change the truth of the new birth. It is the only solution to man’s condition. It is the only way man can come into right relationship with the creator God.
How then, can I make this choice? What must I do to access the salvation God has provided? Do I have to fulfill some extreme requirement? Must I do some kind of penance for my past sin? Do I have to think of every wrong thing I have ever done and confess them all to be saved? If I miss any, does that mean I am not saved? Must I pray a certain number of hours or memorize a certain percentage of the bible? Thank God none of those things is necessary.
The truth is you could never do enough to pay the price for sin. The bible is clear that the only payment for sin is death. (Romans 6:23) That is what Jesus paid. However, he did not sin so the payment was not for him. He was man but he was also God so the payment could be for all men. What must I do to be saved? How do I access the gift that Jesus paid for so long ago? How do I choose to be born again?
The answer is in today’s section of scripture. This is the most concise and simple statement about what God requires of us. He paid the price of death through Jesus. We must now choose to believe and receive two things.
First, we must believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. Verse 10 tells us that with the heart a person believes unto righteousness. We are made right with God when we choose to believe that the sacrifice Jesus made was for our personal sinfulness. This does require that we recognize that we are sinful. We must accept the need of a savior before we can receive one. Our sinfulness is not a product of our behavior. Our behavior is a product of our sinfulness. That said, we still must accept that we need a savior.
This may seem a simple thing to those who have already come to this understanding. However, it is probably the thing that keeps most people from making the choice required for salvation. Many have not heard the message of the cross. They do not understand that all people were separated from God by sin. Others simply cannot accept that they need a savior. They argue that they are not that bad. They try to live good lives so why would God send them to hell. God would not, but sin would.
Man must come to the realization that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) There is no one exempt from the effect of Adam’s transgression. Behavior is irrelevant to our need. It is our nature that is the problem. That is the role of the law in the process of salvation. (Romans 7:7) It is the law that reveals our need. The bible teaches that to break one commandment is to break them all. It is humanly impossible to keep all the commandments all the time. That is why we need a solution that is not limited to human ability.
Every person must believe that Jesus paid the price for his or her sin nature. There is one more thing each person must accept. Today’s scripture says we must confess Jesus as Lord. Just as believing is the key to becoming right with God submitting to the Lordship of Jesus is what truly saves us.
Many people are willing to see their need for a savior but they do not acknowledge Jesus as the absolute ruler of their life. That is what “Lord” means. That is the cost to us of salvation. I am no longer my own. I have been bought with a price, the precious blood of the Lamb. (1 Cor. 6:20) This is understandable if we realize that salvation is a matter of covenant.
Blood covenant is the foundation for all God’s dealing with man. The idea is simple. We choose to make covenant with each other. This means that all I have belongs to my covenant partner. All my covenant partner has belongs to me. I am in covenant with God in Christ. All I have and all I am belong to my Lord Jesus. In return, all Jesus and the Father have is mine. I get eternal life and he gets my natural life. I get his righteousness and he gets my unrighteousness. I get the power of God working for me and he gets my weakness.
I believe that is quite a good deal. However, I cannot walk in the benefits of the covenant if I do not fulfill the condition of the covenant. I must submit to Jesus as my Lord. All that he says I am, I am. All that he says I am not I am not. What he says I can do I can do and what he says I cannot do I cannot do. If I believe that God raised Jesus from the dead and confess with my mouth Jesus as Lord I will be saved and live eternally with him.
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