Salvation
Let’s be clear…Following Jesus isn’t about finding religion!
RELIGION EMPHASIZES RULES AND RITUALS. JESUS IS DIFFERENT. JESUS SEES RELIGION AS AN OBSTACLE THAT KEEPS PEOPLE FROM GOD. RELIGION TAKES WHAT GOD INTENDED TO BE INCREDIBLY SIMPLE AND CLEAR AND MAKES IT MESSY AND COMPLICATED.
Jesus didn’t come to begin a religion. He came to offer people a personal relationship with God. The message of Jesus was clear — God loved the world so much that He sent His son into the world to save the world from sin. He did this by dying on the cross for our sins. He took our place so that after his resurrection we could be right with God.
Religion offers an invitation to behave. Jesus offers only one invitation — believe.
The first step in following Jesus is believing!
Believing that you are broken and sinful and that this world is too! Believing that there is nothing you can do to fix yourself or this world. Believing that God didn’t make the world this way and that He wants to fix it. Believing that Jesus is the only hope for the world. That He is the way, the truth, and the life and that everything we need and long for is found in Jesus and Him alone.
That’s why God doesn’t want us to be religious, He wants us to be real! Real about life, real about who we are and where we are in life. If we’re honest and real about these things with God then we will meet and experience God in a real way.
Religion vs GOSPEL
| Law | Faith |
| You | Jesus |
| Works | Grace |
| Flesh | Spirit |
| Works of Flesh | Fruit of Spirit |
| Flesh | Spirit |
| I obey, therefore I’m accepted | I’m accepted, therefore I obey |
| Motivation is based on fear and insecurity | Motivation is based on grateful joy |
| My self view changes depending on whether or not I live standards. If and when I do live up to my standards, I become proud and judgmental towards those who are struggling. If and when I am not living up to my standards, I feel insecure, inadequate, and not confident. I feel like a failure. | My self-view is not based on my moral achievement. In Christ, I am simultaneously sinful and lost, yet accepted in Christ. I am so sinful that He had to die for me, and so loved that He was glad to die for me. This leads me to deep humility and confidence at the same time. |
| My identity and self-worth are based mainly on how hard I work, or how moral I am – and so I must look down on those I perceive as lazy or immoral. I disdain and feel superior to others. | My identity and self-worth are centered on the one who died for me. I am saved by sheer grace and I can’t look down on those who believe or practice something different from me. Only by grace am I what I am. |
Do you believe?
That you are a sinner? That punishment is all you deserve? That there is nothing you can do? That Jesus died for your sins?
NOW WHAT?
If you’ve decided to follow Jesus, or if you still have questions, we’d love to talk with you about it and help you take your next steps. Fill out the contact form below.