Getting Right With God
A guy in the Bible asked:
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
–Acts 16:30
Big question. You might have realized or noticed that different churches give different types of answers to this question. Some give long and detailed answers, and some give a simple four-point “plan of salvation.” I’m going to try to strip away everything, especially all that traditional stuff, and give you some straightforward instructions based on what the Bible says about it. In the Scripture I just quoted, here is what happened:’
They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved–you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized.
-Acts 16:31-33
Believe and be baptized. Now you should know that “believe” doesn’t mean simply to agree with something. The word used there literally means to put your trust in something. When it comes to believing in Jesus, it means to put your faith, your trust, and even your life under the authority of the living Jesus Christ. It’s exactly what baptism represents, which you notice was something the family in the above Scripture did as well.
Sometimes people associate baptism with sprinkling a child to dedicate him or her to God. Sometimes baptism is required to join a church. In Jesus day, baptism meant to leave your old life behind and start a new one. It meant to be washed clean of your past sins, and start a new life as a follower of God.
So when the apostle Paul was talking about baptism, he said this:
We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
-Romans 6:4
So if we strip away all the churchy stuff, getting right with God includes
1. Believing in Jesus (putting your trust, your faith, even the authority of your life, in Him)
2. and being baptized. (an outward symbol of the above decision)
Doing so not only grants you the forgiveness of your sins which Jesus already paid for on the cross, thus making you right with God, but it also brings you into a spiritual and continuing relationship with God as well, because Christ sends His Holy Spirit into you. Sounds wild I know, but think of it as the real presence of God with you at all times. Jesus talked about the Holy Spirit (the “Counselor” or “Comforter”) in John 14 and John 16.
So when Peter describes getting right with God, he includes this about the Holy Spirit: (In this verse, Peter used the word “repent” which means to change your direction. In chapter 3, Peter says “Repent, then, and turn to God.” So that’s the idea.)
When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. -Acts 2:37-38
Notice, the Bible doesn’t say that to get right with God, you have to earn it first through things like, going to Church, being a good person, believing that God exists, by giving money in the offering, by following religious rules, by worshiping God in some way or that if you’re a “good” guy, you’ll be alright.
According to the Bible, there is only one way to get right with God, and that’s through Jesus. He’s already paid for our sins on the cross. God has called us to believe in His Son, and be baptized in His name. We turn to God, by doing just that.
Here’s How the Bible Explains It:
WE NEED FORGIVENESS
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” – Romans 3:23
But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”
– (Jesus) Luke 13:5
FORGIVENESS IS AVAILABLE TO ALL, BUT IT’S NOT AUTOMATIC
… whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
– (Jesus) John 3:36
…If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. -Revelation 20:15
IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR GOD TO IGNORE SIN
I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins.. –(God) Isaiah 13:11
I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. -Exodus 20:5-6
THEREFORE WE MUST TURN TO GOD, BY BELIEVING IN HIS SON
…now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world –Acts 17:30-31
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. -John 3:16
THROUGH JESUS, YOU CAN HAVE FORGIVENESS AND MORE!
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
-(Jesus) John 3:17
So Jesus is how you get right with God. Turning to God by believing in Jesus and being baptized in His name, is where it starts.
You start this article off with “A guy in the Bible asked:”? Does this Guy have a name?
“1. Believing in Jesus (putting your trust, your faith, even the authority of your life, in Him)
2. and being baptized. (an outward symbol of the above decision)”
Baptism only makes sense if you use soap!
“Doing so not only grants you the forgiveness of your sins which Jesus already paid for on the cross, thus making you right with God”
If he already paid for our sins then we should all be right with god, no?
“When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. -Acts 2:37-38″
Did that include child molesters, murderers, and rapists?
“FORGIVENESS IS AVAILABLE TO ALL, BUT IT’S NOT AUTOMATIC
… whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
– (Jesus) John 3:36
…If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. -Revelation 20:15″
Sounds like a nice guy to me. What if someone grew up in the woods with no bible or church? They are condemned to a fiery eternity? Sign me up!
“I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. -Exodus 20:5-6″
How can an omnipotent being be jealous of beings as insignificant as us, and if he is, then he is displaying the actions of a 4 year old throwing a tantrum..
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. -John 3:16″
I don’t know if you have children, but I do, and I would never put my son, or daughter in danger, no matter the cost.
So basically what I understand is that IF a man named Jesus existed, and IF he was actually the son of a God who came to suffer for our sins, then I think maybe he wasted his time if we still have to repent. LMAO!!!
I don’t expect you to approve or even respond to this comment because you can not!
May you live a long and healthy life!
Erin J Carney (AKA All American Atheist)
Ah, Erin. lol You have to understand first of all, most of the words in this post are carefully chosen because churches like to argue over every little thing. I didn’t so much write it for folks who think they arrived in the universe by spontaneous generation, I wrote it for church people who argue over the necessity of baptism, etc…. But let me answer your questions, or some of the serious ones at least.
—Yep, Jesus already “paid for our sins.” To be precise though and explain further, Jesus was the sacrifice, which is sufficient for the payment of every wrong thing we’ve ever done before God. Like the lamb sacrifices in the Old Testament for instance. Jesus sacrifice is sufficient for your sins, once and for all, but of course if you don’t take it, if you reject it, then your sins will remain unpaid. The book of Hebrews puts it this way, if you reject Jesus and deliberately keep on sinning, “no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”
—Uh, hmmm… Not sure if there were any child molesters or rapists in the crowd in Acts chapter 2, but if there had been, yes it would have included them. And not only them, but mass murderers, serial killers, terrorists, adulterers, human traffickers, politicians etc… but then, you are assuming that you are better than those folks and good enough to deserve God’s grace yourself right? I’d guess you haven’t done anything bad like those people, but how perfect are you or I stacked up next to a perfectly righteous and holy God? We may not be THAT bad, but we aren’t good enuf. And a God who can create the universe, can also rescue a messed up person. Happens all the time in prisons when people who are paying their penalty to society, find in God some real help and redemption. The worst of people can be rescued by their Creator. Many times, he’s their only hope of rescue from what they’ve become.
—What if someone grew up in the woods? Raised by wolves or what? lol Ok FIRST, Think. Think about the whole premise here. For instance, 100,000 murders have gone unsolved over the last decade (I believe that’s the number) do you want God to be nice and leave those murderers unpunished, or would God have the right to judge them? We’d probably call God evil if he DIDN’T judge at least those murderers who got away with it right? Don’t WE ourselves punish people and send them to prison, or even the death chamber? Who are we to tell God that “judging” is something he is not allowed to do? It an illogical argument. And hypocritical of us since we judge between right and wrong in society already. It sounds good on paper I know, with the whole “God is love” angle. Truth is, God is love, but God is also Good, and Righteous, and Just (as in justice). That’s what the Bible says anyway. Over and over and over.
SECOND… the Bible makes it pretty clear that people are right with God based on what they know, based on how God has reached out to them. Jesus is God’s final message to mankind, and so that message is the one getting preached now, but people who haven’t heard of Christ, can still turn to God just like people did, who lived before Jesus was born.
—The whole argument over the statement about God being jealous is used a LOT, but it is laughable. I mean, really? Just explaining an answer will make me sound condescending because the argument is sooooo ridiculous. But here goes: Jealous is a word. Words have meanings, and can be applied in different ways. I know you’re running with a particular meaning of “jealous” that Dawkins and others like to run with because it sounds better for the argument, but please. The word “jealous” (not even the original word you know) in Exodus 20 does not mean or imply that God throws a tantrum like a 4 year old. (And why is it always a 4 year old? Why can’t it be a 6 year old? I know 6 year olds that throw tantrums.) Here’s what I mean: if a wife cheats on her husband and he became JEALOUS, would you say he was wrong to be jealous? Would we say he was acting like a 4 year old and throwing a tantrum? You could say that, but you’d be inaccurate. We’d say he flew into a rage, or he was consumed with jealousy. A tantrum implies immaturity, but a jealous husband is not being immature, he’s being jealous! Same word, used to imply different shades of meaning. In the case of a husband discovering his wife cheated on him, we’d say he had every right to be jealous! She was his wife after all! Why doesn’t God have the right to be JEALOUS in a righteous & mature sense, if we do? The whole 4year old thing, besides being discriminatory toward 6 year olds, is not only illogical and hypocritical again, but it’s silly. Honestly, it’s a strawman argument that relies on people not thinking it through.
—I wouldn’t put my son or daughter in danger either. But then again, I WOULD allow my son or daughter to serve my country in the military where they might die. And if I KNEW that they would return back alive, as Jesus did to His father, I would ESPECIALLY let them serve a greater purpose.
Now, if you want to keep your kids home and never let them do something that matters, that’s up to you. Oh I know that’s not what you meant. Of course, if that’s not how we mean it, then we shouldn’t apply it that way to Jesus.
—Ok, Erin, look I know you didn’t think there could possibly be an answer to these questions, but there’s a reason some of the most educated and brilliant people that have ever lived, have been believers in God and Jesus. It’s because this Faith is not philosophically bankrupt or stupid as you have been told. It can answer any question with a valid response, and in fact, it’s stood up to debate for 2000 years against some pretty tough philosophers. So don’t fall into the trap of thinking faith in Christ requires you to check your brain at the door. It doesn’t, never has. You don’t have to agree with it of course, but if you dismiss it out of hand, you’re missing more than you know.
BTW, I forgot one, the “guy in the Bible” did have a name I’m sure, but no one knows it. He’s referred to today as “the Philippian Jailer.”
—Yep, Jesus already “paid for our sins.” To be precise though and explain further, Jesus was the sacrifice, which is sufficient for the payment of every wrong thing we’ve ever done before God. Like the lamb sacrifices in the Old Testament for instance. Jesus sacrifice is sufficient for your sins, once and for all, but of course if you don’t take it, if you reject it, then your sins will remain unpaid. The book of Hebrews puts it this way, if you reject Jesus and deliberately keep on sinning, “no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”
* I will use one of my favorite quotes here.- The God of the Old Testament is arguable the most unpleasant character in all fiction: Jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.
—Uh, hmmm… Not sure if there were any child molesters or rapists in the crowd in Acts chapter 2, but if there had been, yes it would have included them. And not only them, but mass murderers, serial killers, terrorists, adulterers, human traffickers, politicians etc… but then, you are assuming that you are better than those folks and good enough to deserve God’s grace yourself right? I’d guess you haven’t done anything bad like those people, but how perfect are you or I stacked up next to a perfectly righteous and holy God? We may not be THAT bad, but we aren’t good enuf. And a God who can create the universe, can also rescue a messed up person. Happens all the time in prisons when people who are paying their penalty to society, find in God some real help and redemption. The worst of people can be rescued by their Creator. Many times, he’s their only hope of rescue from what they’ve become.
You say god is “Righteous” Well the definition I have read for Righteous is this
1. Morally upright; without guilt or sin.
So does this passage show you a righteous entity?
Exodus 31:15 Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.
Sounds righteous to me. What if the family is poor and needs food?
Human Traffickers? God has nothing against such people. Jesus says that God is like a slave-owner who beats his slaves “with many stripes.”Exodus 12:47
If you believe that people in prison Actually found god then you are the MOST Naive person I have met. It is just a ploy to get Parole.
Your whole argument is just regurgitated from your brainwashing, and as for the most intelligent people ever alive believing min god….well you couldn’t be more wrong. Here is proof.
FREDRICH NIETXCHE QUOTES
Which is it, is man one of God’s blunders or is God one of man’s?
Faith means not wanting to know what is true.
Convictions are more dangerous enemies of truth than lies.
ALBERT EINSTEIN QUOTES
What I see in Nature is a magnificent structure that we can comprehend only very imperfectly, and that must fill a thinking person with a feeling of “humility.” This is a genuinely religious feeling that has nothing to do with mysticism.
It seems to me that the idea of a personal God is an anthropological concept which I cannot take seriously. I also cannot imagine some will or goal outside the human sphere. … Science has been charged with undermining morality, but the charge is unjust. A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.
Albert Einstein, “Religion and Science”, New York Times Magazine, 9 November 1930
If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.
GHANDI QUOTES
The most heinous and the must cruel crimes of which history has record have been committed under the cover of religion or equally noble motives.
Mohandas K Gandhi, Young India, July 7, 1950, quoted from Laird Wilcox, ed., “The Degeneration of Belief”
I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.
MARK TWAIN QUOTES
“It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.”
A man is accepted into a church for what he believes and he is turned out for what he knows.
What God lacks is convictions — stability of character. He ought to be a Presbyterian or a Catholic or something — not try to be everything.
Under certain circumstances, profanity provides a relief denied even to prayer.
Mark Twain, quoted from Curmudgeon-Online
“In God We Trust.” I don’t believe it would sound any better if it were true.
I could go on but I grow tired of this. I have better things to do.
Take Care!
Erin
You grow tired? C’mon Erin. lol So in other words, you don’t really care what I have to say?
Love the answer for what I said about God and salvation. Merely calling God a bunch of names, (or quoting someone who does) doesn’t argue anything. That’s just rhetoric.
I don’t see it that way. Seems to me like we could also say the police are guilty of kidnapping because they arrest people and take them away from their home and throw them in a small room with bars to keep them from escaping. God has the authority to call His people to follow certain rules in this life, because He is God and He is the Creator. That doesn’t make him unrighteous, it makes Him God.
Jesus doesn’t say anything in the Old Testament. You mean Luke 12:47. It was a parable. A story. An analogy. Those are tools of teaching. But then, you knew that right?
Why don’t you come with me and visit a prison ministry? You might become a believer after having your world turned upside down like that. I’m serious.
You proved it with FOUR people? One of them believed in God from time to time, and another was a believer in another religion, and another was Mark Twain. I like Twain, but cool sounding colloquialisms aren’t exactly philosophical treatises.
I’ve got a book listing
50 Nobel Laureates and other great scientists who believe in God.
21 founders of modern science
10 Great philosophers
Plus, I know more than four brilliant scientists personally, right now, who believe in God, in Jesus, in the Bible, etc… I could get quotes from them, too.
Wow. Why don’t you come with me and visit a prison ministry? You might become a believer after having your world turned upside down like that.
I have been in Prison. I have been Molested, and abused as a child. All while I still believed in God. Yes I wasn’t always an Atheist. God, The Bible, And The Church made me an Atheist.
My basic point is, IF there is a god that promises you ETERNAL pain, anguish, and suffering if you don’t worship him then if you ask me, and God came down to me in my bedroom. I would spit in his face.
“I’d like you to name these 50 Nobel Laureates and other great scientists who believe in God. The 21 founders of modern science, the 10 Great philosophers, and the more than four brilliant scientists.”
I could get quotes from them, too.
(Please Do)
That’s a good question deserving of a blog post or two actually. Books have been written on it recently in fact…
The way I look at it, and this is a very brief answer, is that God is the Creator, he owns this universe, he is the God over life and death and eternity, and thus He has the authority to demand we live certain ways, or to demand that we come to Him in obedience and trust in Him. And the God of the Bible wasn’t talking about religious rituals of worship, as much as He was talking about certain standards of right and wrong. He gave His people in the Old Testament some specific directions and rules, but according to God the Son, it wasn’t about those rules as much as the bigger picture.
P.S. May I post this dialogue in my Blog? I’m asking out of courtesy. I know you have no reason to say no, because you are right, correct?
Your Friend
Erin J Carney
Well, regardless of whether we agree or disagree, I wish you never had to suffer the way you did, especially the abuse. I’m sure you have become a strong person for getting through all the things you have, so you have my respect for that.
(EDIT: If you’ve been in prison you may have come in contact with a prison ministry, or maybe not. But there are real conversions to a faith in Christ in prison. You make think it’s naive, but I’m telling you it’s not rare, it’s hundreds of thousands world wide and over the years.)
I started to list the Nobel laureates before, but it was taking too long. To save time, here is a couple of links:
40 Scientists and Academics Explain Why they believe in God.
Amazon.com: On the Seventh Day: Forty Scientists and Academics Explain Why They Believe in God (9780890513767): John Ashton: Books
Why 50 Scientists Choose to Believe in Creation
http://www.amazon.com/Six-Days-Scientists-Believe-Creation/dp/0890513414/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b
And an online book that uses quotes, so some will be debatable, but it gets a lot of the guys and gals from history
http://nobelists.net/
One of my friends has a blog on creation science etc.. because he’s a believer in Genesis. He’s a scientist who is also a lifetime member of Mensa. So he’s brilliant.
http://www.creationtruth.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=148
Another friend of mine lead a team at the Los Alamos National Laboratories, another guy I’ve had the pleasure of meeting wrote the science articles for the Wall Street Journal and the Boston Globe, etc…
Thank you Brian, God Bless
I am sorry to say Erin J Carney but you are sounding terribly angry and argumentative. To start with seem to argue about most things that are mentioned on this blog site…is that humility? Then you comment on prison inmates as follows: “If you believe that people in prison Actually found god then you are the MOST Naive person I have met. It is just a ploy to get Parole.” I am sorry to suggest again that you clearly have not been on the ministry side of prison. Being an inmate and being a prison chaplain are two very different things, different goals and so often different outcomes from what you have expressed. As a prison chaplain I have seem men come to accept Jesus as their personal Saviour, and a number of these men have little if any hope of facing a Parole Board any time soon. So why make such a sweeping statement when in fact it might well be considered to be judgemental. Jesus said that He judges no man so why should you or I take on more authority than Jesus had when He was on earth…His time for judging will surely come, and, please God may it be soon.
God bless.
And by the way Erin, God did not make you an atheist. From a beliver to an atheist is simply a matter of choice. So many people hav ebeen abused, been in prison and so on and still kept their faith. The blame game will result in nothing short of total dispair for yourself. I encourage you to return to the One who created us.
God bless.