“THE SIMPLICITY OF SALVATION”
Introduction
The greatest stumbling block to men and women entering eternal life is the legalism
which adds to the Message of grace and obscures the simplicity of salvation. Man, by his
very nature— in order to feed his ego, in order to feel good about himself, to feel „worthy‟—
wants to „do‟ something to earn his salvation. But God says it is a gift, a precious gift of
grace, because Jesus Christ paid its price on the Cross. He bought eternal life for every man,
woman and child. How does one acquire it? Simple: the gift must be received by faith.
“Trembling with fear,” the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I
do to be saved?” To which they replied, “Believe [aorist tense, at this moment in time]
in the Lord Jesus {Christ}, and you will be saved…,” Acts 16:30-31.
Body
In contrast to the legalistic distortions of the Gospel {the Grand and Glorious News of
Jesus} so prevalent in our society, let me give you nine things salvation is which not only
simplify, but clarify the issue. Salvation is:
1. As simple as coming when called. “Come to Me all who are weary and heavy-
laden,” said our Lord and Savior, “and I will give you rest,” Matthew 11:28. This is
the eternal “rest” of salvation.
2. As simple as drinking water. “But whoever drinks of the water that I will give
him shall never thirst, but the water that I will give him will become in him a
well of water springing up to Eternal Life,” John 4:14. “If any man is thirsty,
let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me,” Jesus told His fellow
Jews on the great day of the Feast, “as the Scripture said, „from his innermost
being shall flow rivers of living water…,‟” John 7:37b-38.
3. As simple as eating bread. In John 6:35 Jesus said, “I am the Bread of Life, he who
comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst…;”
and again, in v. 51, “I am the Living Bread that came down out of Heaven; if
anyone eats this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I shall
give for the life of the world is My flesh.”
4. As simple as entering a door. Using the figure of the Good Shepherd and His sheep
Christ said, “I am the Door, if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved...,”
John 10:9.
5. As simple as receiving a gift. Romans 6:23 tells us, that “the wages [the „payment:‟ this
word was used in the ancient world for the rations of a Greek foot soldier] of sin is
death [spiritual „death‟ means separation from God and all that He is {Light, Life, Love}
forevermore], but the free gift of God [that‟s grace] is Eternal Life in Christ
Jesus our Lord.”
6. As simple as calling for help. The apostle Paul in Romans 10:13 said,
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“whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” This consists of
one simple little prayer which can be expressed inwardly, outwardly, or anywhere in
between. “Lord Jesus, I believe in You, I trust You now as my Savior {Redeemer} and
Sovereign {Lord}. You are the One and Only Son of God and Savior of man. And I need
You desperately… I need Your grace to forgive me and Your mercy to cleanse me. Thank
you, Lord, for Your amazing love. Thank You for giving me Life Eternal and freedom
from the tyranny of sin. But above all, thank You for dying on the Cross for me. I
embrace You wholeheartedly as my Savior King. Now I know that I belong to You
forevermore, that I am a child of God and beloved of the Father. I know that You live in
me, Your Spirit has come to dwell within my heart and that I belong to You. I will live
my life for You alone, loving You and loving others …as Your love changes me. Amen.”
7. As simple as looking toward the light. Upon His entry into Jerusalem Jesus told the
nation of Israel, “I have come {as} Light into the world, that everyone who
believes in Me may not remain in darkness,” John 12:46. Earlier in this same
passage, in v. 36, He had said to them, “While you have the Light, believe in the
Light, in order that you may become sons of light....”
8. As simple as the trust of a child. Matthew 18:2 says, that Jesus “called a child to
Himself and set him before them [the disciples], and said, „Truly I say to you,
unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the
Kingdom of Heaven,‟” v. 3. What does He mean “become like children”? He
meant, not like children of today but those in the ancient world: humble, willing and
eager to trust in the power of the Word.
9. As simple as believing in Jesus Christ. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes
[in Me] has eternal life,” John 6:47. In John 11:25-26 Jesus said to Martha, “I am
the Resurrection and the Life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,
and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. [then He makes the
issue personal and individual; He asks her] Do you believe this?”
In Conclusion
Each of the examples and illustrations I just gave you is designed to show the simplicity
of faith. The Scripture says in Romans 10:17, “So faith comes from hearing, and
hearing by the Word of Christ.” Faith is trusting what the Word of God says. In the
final analysis it all comes down to the question in John 11:26, “Do you believe this?” A
man or woman‟s response to that single, solitary question determines his destiny: either
eternal glory in Heaven or eternal misery in the Lake of Fire. Legalism in Jesus‟ day kept
many of those in His generation from recognizing and receiving the Son of God; legalism in
Paul‟s day tried to take those who had been saved by grace and bind them to a system of
rituals and observances that passed away with the death of Christ; and legalism in our day,
right here and right now, is still the greatest stumbling block to the simplicity of the Gospel
for the unbeliever, and to the phenomenal freedom which is the birthright of every child of
God in the Age of Grace!
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