In 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, Paul said the Corinthians could be saved by remembering what he had preached to them. But what did He preach to them? Faith only? Grace only? Christ only? The Bible speaks of these three but also many other things that save mankind. In this article we want to notice some things that save us.
We are saved by God. He desires all to be saved (1 Tim. 2:3-4) and has made that possible through the sacrifice of His son, Jesus (Jn. 3:16).
We are saved by Christ. Before and at His birth, angels declared He would save mankind from their sins (Mt. 1:21; Lk. 2:11). This He did by the cross.
We are saved by grace. Paul wrote we are saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8). God has made His grace available to all (Ti. 2:11), we must only choose to take it.
We are saved by faith. Without it we cannot please God (Heb. 11:6). Without faith in Jesus as the Christ, we will die in our sins (Jn. 8:24).
We are saved by preaching. Paul wrote that people were saved by the preaching of the cross (1 Cor. 1:18, 21). In fact, if one refuses to hear that preaching, one will be lost (Rom. 10:13-16).
We are saved by words. The devout moral man Cornelius was good, but not saved. He was told to send for Peter and hear words that would save him (Act 11:14).
We are saved by the Gospel. Paul said it was God’s power by which people are saved (Rom. 1:16). If we hear it, believe it, obey it, and continue in it, we can be saved by it (1 Cor. 15:1-2).
We are saved by repentance. When the Jews on Pentecost wanted to know what to do to be saved, they were told to repent (Act 2:38). Repentance demands a change from wrong to right (Mt. 21:28-29).
We are saved by confessing Christ (Mt. 10:32; Rom. 10:9-10; Act 8:37), by baptism (Mk. 16:16; Act 22:16; 1 Pet. 3:21), by the blood of Christ (Rom. 5:9), by self (Act 2:40; 1 Tim. 4:16), by hope (Rom. 8:24; Heb. 6:18-19), by works (Jas. 2:14-26), and by faithfulness (Rev. 2:10; 1 Cor. 15:58).
God has abundantly poured out His grace in offering us a path to salvation! But can you see that we are not saved by any one of these alone? Have you done the things by which ye can be saved? - Phillip Stuckey
Download the complete issue of the Bonaire Exhorter for August here.
