Please invest the time to read this page in its entirety. It is the most important subject you will ever investigate! The question is this:
How can I know that God has forgiven all my sins and I will go to Heaven when I die?
I. God’s Plan (He’s thought this through for you)
Learning about God and His Word (the Bible) is important if you want to receive eternal life and go to Heaven when you die. But how do you get started? What is involved in a relationship with Jesus Christ, through whom we become alive spiritually?
We can never do enough good to earn our salvation. “Salvation” or “to be saved” means that a person is saved from the punishment of their sin which is our soul’s eternal separation from God following our physical death. This salvation from God provides the individual with eternal life from God immediately after physical death.
Salvation and Eternal Life only come through God’s Son Jesus Christ. There is one God who exists externally in three persons: Father, Son (Jesus), and Holy Spirit (sometimes called Holy Ghost).
Where Jesus fits in
Before Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God knew that they would need a second chance to be saved. God’s plan was that God the Father would send God the Son into this world to be born as a human (Jesus the son of Mary). Mary was with child through the power of God the Holy Spirit and not her legal husband Joseph (Jesus’ stepfather). This miraculous plan enabled Jesus to be 100% human and 100% perfect.
Jesus’ earthly ministry as the Master Teacher and Miracle Worker was done to prove that He truly was divine. Even His enemies could not deny His miracles and His works were faithfully documented in the first four books of the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John).
Jesus’ ultimate purpose for coming to this earth was to present Himself as an offering for the sins of the world. He died on the Cross and shed His precious blood so that any person who trusts in Him as their personal Saviour will have forgiveness and eternal life. God wants to forgive our sin and make us right with Him, but it only comes through faith in Jesus.
Bible verse – Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
We can never make up for all the sin we have committed, however God has made a way to forgive all our sin.
Bible verse – Romans 5:1
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”
Where it all begins
Salvation starts by opening our hearts to believe in God’s Son Jesus. This provides a way to have the sin the separates us from God to be fully paid for by Jesus’ shed blood on the Cross. With our sins all forgiven, we are immediately and eternally reunited to God and are at peace.
Bible verse – John 14:6
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Jesus Christ came to earth, shed His blood, died for your sins on the Cross and gave us his Righteousness so by faith you now can be forgiven and in right standing with God.
Our substitution
When we receive Christ into our hearts, his blood covers our sins and is the payment God receives that clears our sin debt. We are now completely forgiven of all our sins.
God gave His Son to save us from sin’s death penalty, a penalty we could not pay on our own.
Christ died for us on the Cross so we could receive eternal life in him, set free – NOW.
Bible verse – 1 John 1:9
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Bible verse – John 8:36
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
Bible verse – Ephesians 2:13
“But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.”
How do I receive peace and forgiveness from God?
II. God’s Process (ABC’s of salvation)
To break things down and simplify for better understanding, we provide to you the ABC’s of salvation. They are based upon the Bible verses listed previously.
1. Admit
Admit personally to God that you want to be free from sin’s death penalty.
2. Believe
Believe in your heart that God the Father raised Jesus from the dead.
3. Confess
Confess your sins to God asking Him to forgive you for living without Him.
4. Decide
By faith ask Jesus to come into your heart to give you God’s gift of salvation and eternal life.
The four steps above are simply done by talking to God (praying). God is listening. It is by no accident that you are at this point in your life. To assist you in praying, please review the following prayer. It is traditionally known as “The Sinner’s Prayer”. You don’t have to read it word-for-word, but it is an outline that millions of people have prayed to be saved.
The Sinner’s Prayer
Lord, I admit that I need you as I am a hopeless sinner without you. I believe that your holy Son, Jesus died on the cross for my sin. Lord, I confess my sin before you. I now decide with my free will to accept Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour. Cleanse me now. I ask you to come into my heart and life. Be my Saviour from this day forward until you call me home to Heaven. Amen.
How do I know God saved me?
III. God’s Provision (your assurance)
1. God’s Word
If you sincerely prayed the prayer above (or used it to put it into your own words), God’s Word is the contract that God has forgiven you! John 3:16 is just one of many Bible verses that is your proof.
Bible verse – 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.”
Remember, if you could lose your eternal life after salvation, then God would not have called it “everlasting life!”
2. God’s Will
We are immediately guaranteed Eternal Life in Heaven when we die.
Bible verses – Ephesians 1:13-14
“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
The moment you get saved; God the Holy Spirit enters your body. No, you will not feel Him do so as this is a spiritual and not physical transaction. The reason for this is that the Holy Spirit becomes your official promise from God the Father that you will inherit Heaven upon your physical death. You are officially in God’s will. This is your inheritance. Imagine, everywhere you go, every second of the day, the Holy Spirit is with you to guide your earthly life and guarantee your eternal life!
3) God’s warmth
Additionally, the evidence of new life in Christ will be peace in your heart, which will follow your confession of faith. You are now alive spiritually! You need not fear death, the grave, nor the afterlife!
One more important thing!
If you have recently asked Jesus to save your soul, please email us at pastor@fcBaptist.com to tell us about it. We would love to rejoice with you by adding you to our prayer list. You don’t have to give us your full name (God knows who you are), but your email will be of great encouragement to us.