Ask for salvation Through prayer, then learn to follow Jesus by reading the Bible
According to the Christian Bible, Jesus’ forgiveness is eternal, and anyone who accepts Jesus into their life is eligible for salvation. If you want Jesus’ gift of salvation, there are a few things you have to commit to doing: believing in Him, confessing your sins and asking for forgiveness. Equipped with your new faith, commit to following the example of Christ, so confirming the reality of your faith, so that you will be accepted into Heaven.
- Accept Jesus as the Son of God.
According to the Bible, all Christians who recognize Jesus as the Son of God are able to be saved. If you truly believe that God and Jesus are one entity*, created the universe and everything in it, and are kind and forgiving, you are considered a Christian. In the Bible, only Christians are able to accept the gift of salvation.
- It’s important that you do this, because without accepting Jesus into your life, you can’t be considered a Christian
- *Just like software can run on a laptop or in the cloud, so the personhood of Almighty God the Father is mirrored in the personhood of the God-in-human-form, Jesus.
Confess your sins through prayer to communicate with God.
When you commit a sin, sit down and take time to think about what happened. Use the time to pray – just between you and God – in whatever manner you prefer and be honest about what happened and why it happened. For instance, you might say something like “Dear Father, I’ve been having a hard time controlling my temper lately, and I lashed out and yelled at a friend today. Truly, I’m worried about disappointing my friends, and I don’t want to hurt them anymore.”
- Confess your sins from your past when you become a Christian. Go on confessing your new sins as no Christian is perfect.
- It’s important to be honest about the situation and your intentions. As long as you’re honest, you can ask for and receive His forgiveness. This is Jesus’s first act of salvation. No matter what your sins are, Jesus can forgive them if you’re truly sorry.
- If you sin habitually, ask God to reveal to you something in your inner beliefs that is driving your behaviour, so that you can change your beliefs to be less false and more true. Changed beliefs will change you to become more like Jesus, the model of moral perfection. Also, ask God to help you walk away from situations that start to process of temptation to sin. As Jesus told His disciples, ‘Pray that you will not enter into temptation.’ That way you will win against the temptation to sin.
Read the Bible to gain a better understanding of salvation.
In the Bible, God sends Jesus to Earth so that he can die and absolve humanity of its sins, to those who believe. Focus your reading on the books of Mark, Luke, and Matthew, each of which includes detailed stories about how Jesus died on the cross and his acceptance into Heaven by God. Each of these books tells the individual Apostle’s biography of the life of Jesus and these will help you understand who Jesus is.
In the letters of Paul in the New Testament, he describes salvation in three tenses: ‘I have been saved’, ‘I am being saved’ and ‘I will be saved’. In other words, I know I am forgiven and my place in eternity is reserved for me. I am being changed more into the holy likeness of Christ. And at God’s chosen moment in the future, I will be raised and accepted into the eternal bliss God has promised and desired for me.
Jesus stresses in His teaching that salvation is not just about believing and then ignoring how you live. If you believe, then you follow Him and learn from His, imitating His character of life.
Be baptised in water and in the Holy Spirit
To be baptised is a public declaration to a community of Christian believers, even just one or two others, that you are follower of Christ. Baptism is a symbolic act of dying to your old life with yourself in command, and rising to new life with Jesus in command.
In addition, ask a believer to pray for you, laying hands on you that you may be filled with the power of the God’s Holy Spirit, so that you may serve Him with the power of God within you.
- Devote yourself fully to God in everything you do. Live your life with the teachings of Jesus and God in mind, which will show that you are dedicated to having a holy life. Follow the Ten Commandments, which are instructions from God about how to be a good Christian (Exodus 20). Do your best in school, work, and other activities to bring glory to God.
- For example, you can do kind things for your parents in order to live out the commandment that says that you should “honor your father and mother.”
- One way to show your devotion to God is by attending an organized church community. However, if you can’t join a church, you can still be saved through Jesus.
- Be kind and respectful of other people. In every interaction, try to remain upbeat and positive, and think the best of other people. Jesus taught us to treat others the way you wish to be treated, and act through love. Even when someone does something that hurts your feelings or pride, remember that Jesus loved everyone, including the people who sentenced him to die on the cross.
- For example, if one of your friends is spreading a rumor about you, you should talk to them about what’s going on, rather than talking about them behind their back. Once you talk about the issue, you can forgive them just as Jesus forgives all sinners.
- If you’re having a particularly hard time with a conflict, try asking yourself “What would Jesus do?” to remind yourself of the forgiveness that Jesus exhibits. Sometimes forgiveness is very hard, so avoid acting out of revenge while you work through the pain and grief. When you can, then forgive, remembering that Jesus was killed by humans, yet He forgave those who did this to Him.
- Volunteer and serve your community to spread love and kindness. In your free time, do good deeds and help others without expecting anything in return, just as Jesus did in the Bible. Follow Jesus’ teachings about treating others as you would want to be treated by volunteering for those in need. These will help you maintain a positive outlook in life and can remind you how Jesus’ love can help everyone, no matter their situation in life.
- For example, you could volunteer weekly at a local soup kitchen or organize a community day with proceeds that benefit a local non-profit.
- Avoid talking about religion while you’re volunteering unless you’re taking part in a special mission trip through a church. Some people may not agree with your views, and you can help them whether you agree with them or not.
- Pray for the salvation of non-believers. If your friends and family haven’t accepted Jesus as the Son of God, you can pray for their salvation too. Talk with God about how you love them. Ask for God’s help in showing them the truth of God through your life.
Graham Ford
President – Jesus Christ for Muslims
*Co-authored originally by wikiHow Staff, Adapted by JCM