I have just put my faith in Jesus…now what?

Follow up After Receiving Jesus as Savior:

Congratulations! You have just made the most excellent decision of a lifetime. As you begin your new journey, you must learn what God wants for your new life.

Understanding your decision about salvation: John, the apostle of Christ, wanted believers to be sure about salvation and to know without doubt that they are genuinely saved. He said, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). God wants us to understand salvation and wants us to have the confidence of knowing for sure that we are saved. Let’s review the ABCs of salvation:

Admit we are sinners: According to the Bible, we have all sinned. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Because we are sinners, we are eternally separated from God And face His judgment, which is an eternity in hell: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23).

While we were sinners, Jesus died in our place, receiving the punishment that we deserved. Jesus rose from the grave on the third day to prove His salvation was sufficient. “In that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Believe in the gospel, the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord: God forgives whoever believes in His Son, Jesus: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting (John 3:16).

Confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, repenting of your sins: “…that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10). 

God’s Holy Spirit indwells permanently. He assures us of our salvation, teaches us, and empowers us to live a Holy life.

That is God’s gift of salvation. Did you place your faith in Jesus, believing He died for you and rose from the grave? Did you call upon His name in prayer, repenting of your sins? According to the Bible, you are saved and have received eternal life: “Whosoever shall call upon the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).

Upon knowing that you are now a believer, find a Bible-believing church (Not a cult) that preaches and teaches the Bible and tell the pastor your decision to trust in Jesus for salvation and that you desire to be baptized, which is a command of our Lord Jesus: The church is more than a building; it is the body of Christ, which is the people. According to the Bible, we are not to neglect the assembling of ourselves together as the church for fellowship and worship: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).

The church offers bible study classes, which will help you gain the knowledge of Scripture and allow you to fellowship with other believers.

Set a time to be alone with God for private meditation and worship: This is also a time to read the Bible and pray. There are many devotional guides available for sale, and there are also some offered free. “In Touch Ministry” by Charles Stanley offers a daily devotional guide emailed to you each day for free. I highly recommend Dr. J. Vernon McGee’s “Through the Bible Radio Broadcast,” which you can get online at WWW.TTB.0rg. Dr. McGee teaches the entire Bible verse by verse in five years. I am in Revelation presently, the last book of the five-year series.