Great Doctrines of the Bible
Special English Version

Lesson 2
THE WAY OF SALVATION

INTRODUCTION
The most important thing for a serious Bible student is to know the way of salvation.

IMPORTANCE OF THIS LESSON

• There are thousands of different kinds of churches. There are hundreds of different kinds of religions in this world. All of them say they have the truth. All of them say they have the only way of salvation.
• The Bible is clearer on the subject of salvation than on any other subject. There is much confusion on this subject. This is true because Satan tries to make people spiritually blind, so that they do not understand the Gospel (2 Corinthians 4:4). We need to be absolutely clear about the matter of salvation. This is why this lesson is so important.
• When we know the way of salvation we can enjoy assurance. Then we also have the sure knowledge in our hearts that we will go to heaven. I pray that God will help you to understand everything in this lesson. When you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior, you will have joy and peace.

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THE LESSON
THERE ARE SIX CLEAR STEPS IN THE WAY OF SALVATION

I. THE FIRST STEP IS THAT OF RECOGNITION. (Understanding)

1. The WAY OF SALVATION begins by seeing ourselves as God sees us. God sees us as we really are
2. You cannot hope to be saved (have your sins forgiven) unless you see yourself as God sees you. For example:
   1. A person does not want God to find him, unless he knows that he is lost.
   2. A person does not want God to make him clean, unless he knows he is unclean.
3. Some people do not want to see themselves as God sees them. These people often say:
   1. I am just as good as any other person.
   2. I am good enough, just the way I am now.
   3. I don’t need anything. I am fine the way I am.
   4. I do the best I can.
   5. I know people who are much worse than I am.
   6. I am not as bad as the Bible says I am.
   7. I try to obey the 10 commandments.
4. What does God say?
   1. We are all like an unclean thing (Isaiah 64:6).
   2. Our hearts are not honest and they are seriously wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).
   3. No person is righteous. No person does only good things. No person brings profit to God (Romans 3:10-12).
   4. Every person is lost (Luke 19:10).
   5. Every person is condemned (John 3:18).
   6. Every person is separated from God (Ephesians 4:18).
   7. Every person sins and fails to bring praise to God (Romans 3:23).
5. How did the heroes in the Bible see themselves?
   1. David – “I was made in sin. In sin did my mother become pregnant” (Psalms 51:5).
   2. Isaiah 6:5—“I am a man who has unclean lips. I live among people who have unclean lips”
   3. Jeremiah – “More than anything else, the heart deceives (tells us lies). The heart is seriously wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9).
   4. Paul –“I am the chief of sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). Nothing good lives in me (Romans 7:18).
   5. Peter – “Leave me, I am a sinful man” (Luke 5:8).
6. The WAY OF SALVATION begins when you see yourself just the way God sees you. You must accept what the Bible says about you. The Bible tells us who the Lord is. The Bible tells us how great His salvation is. The heroes of the Bible saw themselves as sinners. We should be just as humble as they were. We should understand that we are sinners too.

II. THE SECOND STEP IS REPENTANCE.

1. The meaning of Repentance.
   1. Repentance is a translation of the Greek word metanoeo. This word means, “to look behind you.” It can also mean, “to change your mind.”
   2. The New Testament meaning is almost always “a change for the better.” It almost always means “changing your mind concerning sin.”
2. Repentance must then be the second step in the Way of Salvation. First we must see ourselves as God sees us. Second we must confess that we are sinners, change our minds concerning sin and turn away from our sin.
3. God commands us to Repent
   1. Luke 13:3 – Except you repent – you shall perish.
   2. Acts 17:30 – God commands all men to repent.
   3. We must not ignore repentance. We must not disregard (fail to think of or forget) repentance. A person who does not repent will come to ruin. He will die in his sin. He will spend eternity in hell.
   4. God commands every person to repent.
      1. Some people think they are more righteous (better) than other people are. They believe there is no reason why they should repent.
      2. The Bible says:
         1. Luke 13:3 – Except you repent, all of you will also come to ruin. (Study the other verses in this chapter too.)
         2. Acts 17:30 – Now God commands all men everywhere to repent.
         3. 2 Peter 3:9 – “…that all should come to repentance.”
   5. A person must repent and he must have faith. A person is not saved by repentance only. A person who only repents does not receive forgiveness of sins. But repentance is a part of saving faith. God says there must be repentance.
      1. Acts 2:41 – A person who repents, receives the Word. He is saved by faith in Christ, through the Word.
      2. Acts 3:19 – A person who repents becomes a new creation (made new).
      3. Acts 20:21 – Paul preached to turn people from sin to God. Paul also preached in order that people would believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
   6. True repentance involves your mind. It involves your emotions and your will.
      1. Illustration that repentance involves the mind: Acts 2:14-40 – When Peter asked these Jews to repent, he was asking them to change their minds about Christ. They thought that Christ had insulted God. The Jews did not think that Christ was the person He said He was. Now they were commanded to repent. They were told to accept Him as their Messiah. They were asked to change their minds concerning Christ.
      2. Illustrations that emotions are involved:
         1. 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 – The Corinthians had changed their minds about the sin in the church. They had covered up this sin. This brought great sorrow.
         2. Matthew 11:20-21 – Sackcloth and ashes are always a part of repentance in the Bible.
         3. Illustrations of the will:
            1. 1 Thessalonians 1:9 – It means turning away from idols and to God. This is an act of the will.
            2. Acts 26:18 – It shows a turning from darkness to light. It means turning from the power of Satan and turning to God. This is also an act of the will.
            3. Luke 15:17-20 – This is the story of the son who spent all the money his father had given him. In this story we see all three parts of repentance.
               1. The intellect – He came to himself.
               2. The emotions – He shows sorrow for his sin. Sorrow shown when he said that he would die with hunger.
               3. The will – when he said that he would get up and go to his father.
                  • Repentance is not only sorrow because of sin, but it is sorrow from sin.
   7. Repentance is produced in us in many ways.
      1. Romans 2:4 – The goodness of the Lord.
      2. Acts 2:37-41 – The preaching of the gospel.
      3. Acts 11:18 – The grace of God.
      4. 2 Peter 3:9 – The patience of God.
      5. Revelation 3:19 – The disapproval and punishment of God.

III. THE THIRD STEP IN THE WAY OF SALVATION IS THE STEP OF KNOWING THAT YOU ARE HELPLESS.

1. When you understand from the Bible what kind of a person you are, you understand that God says you are a sinner. You must understand two important facts after you repent and turn to God.
   1. A sinner cannot save himself. He is completely helpless.
   2. Christ is the only one who can save him from sin. This is what Christ is able to do.
2. There is a difference between knowing you are a sinner and understanding that you are not able to help yourself.
   1. Illustration – A person may know certain signs of a sickness. That person may not understand how far the sickness has gone in the body.
   2. Illustration – A person may see a child who is dirty and hungry. That person may not know the difficult conditions in the child’s home.
   3. In the same way a person may know he is a sinner. At the same time he may not understand that he is helpless. He may not understand that he cannot save himself.
3. The third step shows that a person depends completely on the grace of God for his salvation.
   1. Man is helpless and cannot save himself.
      1. Ephesians 2:8-9 – By grace are you saved, not of yourselves.
      2. Titus 3:5-6 – Salvation is not by works of righteousness.
      3. Romans 4:5 – Salvation comes to him that does not work but simply believes.
   2. Christ is the only one able to save a person.
      1. Hebrews 1:3 – He has purged our sins BY HIMSELF.
      2. Hebrews 9:26 – He put away sin by sacrificing HIMSELF.
      3. 2 Corinthians 5:21 – God made HIM to be sin for all of us.
      4. Isaiah 53:6 – God laid our sin on HIM.
         • All religions, including Christianity, begin by admitting personal need. Other religions say, “I BRING SOMETHING IN MY HANDS.” Christianity says, “I BRING NOTHING IN MY HANDS.” Other religions ask you to DO something for your salvation. Christianity says that the work has already been DONE. Jesus Christ has done all the work on the cross. Jesus said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30).

IV. THE FOURTH STEP IN THE WAY OF SALVATION IS “DISCOVERY”.
Every person who wants to be saved must discover who Jesus Christ is.
WHAT IS THIS DISCOVERY? It is a discovery that Christ is the Son of God, that God is alive.

1. Note Peter’s confession in Matthew 16:16 – “You are the Christ the Son of the living God.” Peter understands that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah.
   Note Christ’s answer in Matthew 16:17 – “Flesh and blood (a person) did not show that to you. My Father in heaven showed it to you.” God caused Peter to make a discovery concerning Jesus Christ.
2. Illustrations from the Bible about people who turned to Christ:
   1. Saul of Tarsus - Acts 9:5 – Paul cried, “WHO ARE YOU, LORD?” Note the answer: “I am Jesus, the One you are persecuting.” Paul made a great discovery at that moment. Paul was a faithful Jew. Paul was the best one among the Pharisees. God suddenly helped him to discover whom Jesus was. This same Jesus that Paul hated, was the LORD, his MESSIAH.
   2. The dying thief on the cross - At the beginning he insulted Christ. Matthew 27:44 – He discovered who Jesus was and said, “Lord remember me…” (Luke 23:42).
   3. The woman at the well - John 4:10, 25-26 – He said, “I that speak to you AM HE.” This helped the woman to discover that He was the Messiah.
   4. Zaccheus - Luke 19:1-10 – Zaccheus went to see Jesus to know WHO HE WAS.
3. The Bible tells us that we must know that Jesus is the Son of God.
   1. John 20:31 – This verse tell us that the Bible was written to show us that Christ is the Son of God. It also tells us that when we believe this we have eternal life.
   2. Acts 16:31 – This verse tells us to believe on the LORD JESUS CHRIST and then God will save us.
   3. Romans 10:9-10 – These verses say that if you believe on Jesus as Lord, and you believe that God has raised him from the dead, then God will save you.

V. THE FIFTH STEP IN THE WAY OF SALVATION IS TO RECEIVE CHRIST.

1. Remember that salvation is a GIFT. You cannot earn a gift. You cannot pay for a gift. You can only RECEIVE it from the GIVER (Romans 6:23; John 10:28).
2. There are TWO things you must RECEIVE in order to be saved.
   1. The WORD THAT GOD WROTE, called the BIBLE. It is the message or good news concerning Christ.
      1. When it is preached (1 Corinthians 1:21; Acts 2:41).
      2. When it is discovered (Mark 4:20; Romans 10:17).
         • We are born again by means of THE WORD THAT GOD WROTE (1 Peter 1:22-23). We have everlasting life through hearing the WORD THAT GOD WROTE and believing that Word (John 5:24).
   2. The WORD OF GOD THAT LIVES, which is Jesus Christ Himself (John 1:1,12).
3. Christ is the WORD OF GOD THAT LIVES and comes into our hearts when we receive the WORD THAT GOD WROTE (Revelation 3:20). This verse says, I (THE WORD OF GOD THAT LIVES) will come in if you hear my voice (THE WORD THAT GOD WROTE). It says that you must open the door (FAITH).

VI. THE LAST STEP IN THE WAY OF SALVATION IS TO DEPEND ON GOD.

1. What are you depending on to go to heaven?
2. Some people depend on baptism and good works. Other people depend on living a good life and being honest.
3. You must depend on two great pillars of truth in order to be saved. People have two legs to stand on. God has two pillars of truth we must depend on.
   1. THE BIBLE IS FINAL AUTHORITY!!! The promises of God are true. You can depend on them. We must believe what God says. A well-know hymn says:
      
      “’ Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
      Just to take Him at His word.
      Just to REST upon His promise
      Just to KNOW, ‘THUS SAITH THE LORD’.”
      
   2. CHRIST FINISHED HIS WORK.
      In John 19:30, Christ said, “IT IS FINISHED.” Christ obeyed and honored the law. Jesus crushed the power of Satan. Christ paid for sin. Christ defeated the power of sin. The work of Christ satisfied the justice of God. God is still holy. Our salvation is complete.
      • Now we can rest and depend on that great work of Christ (Matthew 11:28).

CONCLUSION
This is the way of salvation.

1. You must see yourself as you really are--as a holy God sees you.
2. You must repent from your sins and turn to God.
3. You must understand that you cannot save yourself. You are completely helpless.
4. You must understand that Christ is the only one who can save you.
5. You must let the Holy Spirit show you that Jesus is God.
6. By faith you must receive the Word that God wrote concerning Christ.
7. You must allow Christ to take control of your life. You must depend completely upon the Work that Christ finished for you.
   Now is a good time to receive Christ as your Savior, if you have not done that before. CHANGE YOU MIND CONCERNING YOUR SIN, BELIEVE ON CHRIST, RECEIVE HIM AND LET OTHER PEOPLE KNOW THAT HE IS YOUR SAVIOR AND THE LORD OF YOUR LIFE.

Go to a place where you can be alone and tell Jesus Christ that you are a sinner. Tell Jesus that you changed your mind concerning your sin. (Name you sins before God one at a time.) Tell Jesus that you believe He is God. Tell Him that you receive Him into your life as your Savior. Tell Him that you are giving yourself completely to Him. Memorize: Romans 3:23; Acts 17:30; Ephesians 2:8-9; Acts 16:31, Romans 6:23

Examination

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