Romans 10:5-13

                                                                     Romans 10:5-13

For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

 

We cannot save ourselves.  This is a truth that is vital for all of us to realize.  A person who is drowning must be rescued by someone else.  We were all drowning in a sea of sin with no ability to save ourselves.  Our only hope was to be rescued and God sent His only Son Jesus to rescue us from sin.  We must simply accept His offer of rescue by calling on Him in faith.  We need to “give up” and “call out.”

 

SALVATION BY WORKS IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ALL: The law of Moses promoted a righteousness that was based on the ability of man to keep the commandments.  The problem is that nobody had the ability to live by those commandments.  It is foolishness to think that somehow a person can earn the right to be in the presence of God and ascend into heaven.  To think this way is to lower the glory of heaven.  It is also foolish to think that any man could have the ability to go to the abyss and back again or have the power to raise Christ from the dead.  The miracle of salvation depends on the power of God, not the works of man.  Only God has the power to save through the work of Christ on the cross.

 

SALVATION BY FAITH IS AVAILABLE TO ALL: The way of salvation is much easier for us than having to obey the law or have the power to raise Christ from the dead.  The way of salvation is through faith in Christ.  It is as close to us as our heart and mouth.  The only requirement is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and what He has done for us on the cross and to confess Him as Lord with our mouth.  We are saved by what we believe in our hearts and what we request with our mouth.  It is not just believing the facts of the Gospel in an intellectual way.  It is believing that Jesus is the Son of God who died and rose again paying the price for our sin.  It is receiving the righteousness of Christ in place of our sin.  It is calling on the Lord to save us from our sin.  This involves recognizing our sinfulness and inability to save ourselves and the desire to be delivered from our sin.  It does not matter what our nationality or economic status might be, the way of salvation is the same for all.  The promise of salvation is available to all.

 

APPLICATION: Don’t be deceived into thinking that we can be saved by our own works or have the power to deal with our own sin and death.  Be thankful for the salvation that is available through faith in Christ. Faithfully proclaim this message to all men everywhere.

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