Articles
What It Takes to Be Saved 13 – Man’s Part - Faith in the Facts of the Gospel
What It Takes to Be Saved 13 – Man’s Part
Faith in the Facts of the Gospel
Mike Willis
When John opened his gospel, he wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1-4, 14).
The apostle Paul wrote about the core facts of the gospel saying, “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (1 Cor. 15:1-5). In vv. 6-9 Paul listed additional people to whom Jesus appeared after His resurrection from the dead.
The gospel is rooted in geography and in history. The Son of God entered space and time. Luke quoted Peter’s sermon on Pentecost saying, “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know. . .” (Acts 2:22). He concluded his sermon saying, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:36).
One must believe these facts about Jesus in order to be saved from his sins. When Jesus sent the apostles on the great commission, He instructed them with these words: “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16). The person who refuses to believe these facts about Jesus “will be condemned,” according to Jesus.
The problem with infant baptism is that infants cannot understand the gospel, much less make a conscious decision to believe the gospel. Since they are babies, infants have no sins for which they need to repent. Having someone sprinkle a small amount of water on the head of a baby is not what Jesus sent His apostles to preach.
He sent them to preach to morally responsible people who recognized and admitted that they were guilty of sin and, therefore, needed forgiveness of their own sins (not those of anyone else, not even Adam). Jesus “died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” He was buried and raised from the dead on the third day. Those who wish to be saved must believe in Jesus. What is taught in Scripture about Jesus is not legend, myth, or fairy tale. These are historically confirmed facts that must be believed before one can be saved by Jesus’s blood. Are you a believer?
