The Five Steps - Part #4

Hear, Believe, Repent, CONFESS. When we teach God’s plan of salvation, we often minimize confession. As shown in the previous post, your response to Jesus Christ is deeply profound. Being confronted with the truth of Jesus Christ calls for a decision. Believing that Word drives us to repent. Jesus Christ transforms us from the very center of who we are. We have no choice but to proclaim to the world with our lives and tongue that we owe everything to the one who paid our price of sin. Confessing Jesus Christ as Lord is so important that Paul says in Rom 10:9-10 “That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and with your mouth, you confess and are saved.” NIV Have you ever noticed that our tongue seems to set the direction of our life? If you want to reach a goal, you tell people your plan, and you tell them repeatedly so that they know what you are after. When we confess Jesus Christ, it is not a one-time thing; we need to confess over and over so that others know the direction of our life. The confession helps refocus how we live, and it holds us accountable. The confession of faith declares the Lordship of Jesus Christ and lets everyone who hears know that I will do everything I can to obey. If you confess and don’t obey, you are just another talker. If you have indeed heard and you believed and repented, obedience is the next step. We will continue this discussion in my next blog. In Him J. Tom Washburn