We learned in the last lesson that what you believe about Jesus is the most important thing about you, because your faith – or lack thereof – is the one thing that most impacts your eternal destiny. In this lesson we’ll explore this kind of faith, and we’ll show you how to make a personal response to Jesus – which can become the defining moment for the rest of your life.

Let’s examine five foundational Bible verses that talk about what we call “saving faith”. These are just representative verses of the general message of the Bible. Be sure to take some time to read the Bible for yourself, and you’ll see these ideas surfacing all over the place.

The first verse is a great summary of some of the lessons we’ve already learned in this series:

1 John 4:9 – God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.

And here’s the point: out of love, God sent Jesus into the world to solve our sin problem. He lived a sinless life and died on a cross in our place.

The facts about Jesus were already covered in the last lesson, but this verse goes beyond historical information about a person. It talks about God’s motivation for sending Jesus to the cross. He did it out of love. This is surprising. Many religions depict a deity who is full of wrath toward the human race. Other faith traditions describe a god who requires strict obedience to a list of rules. These ideas generate a picture of a transactional god, a cosmic deity doing business with people who struggle to keep up their end of the bargain. The God of the Bible is different. He’s a relational God, proactively reaching out to the human race in spite of their failure to bring anything good to the table. And this God didn’t send his son Jesus with reluctance or out of obligation; he did it willingly – out of love.

So God’s heart is the first thing you need to know about saving faith. The second thing is about your heart. When Peter preached his first sermon after Christ’s death and resurrection, he invited people to respond to the message of salvation through Jesus. Their words perfectly model the heart attitude necessary for saving faith:

Acts 2:37 – Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”

Go and read the full sermon for yourself (Acts 2:14-36). Peter covers Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, putting it in the context of the story of Israel. And he closes his little sermon by pointing out that Israel rejected him and nailed him to the cross. These were fighting words for sure! A proud Israelite would have taken offense and fought back. But that’s not what happened. Instead, the message “pierced their hearts” and the people humbly submitted themselves to God. They didn’t claim to know more than Peter, but instead wanted to know what they had to do in order to be saved. 

So Peter told them: “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God…” (Acts 2:38). Saving faith requires more than just the right information about Jesus. It also requires the right attitude toward God, which the Bible calls “repentance”. Repentance is the attitude that says, “I’ve changed my mind and I’m ready to go God’s way now.” It’s an act of the will, a relinquishing of control. It happened to the listeners in Acts 2, and it resulted in their humble response to Peter’s message. 

And it happens to people today when they’re ready to respond to Jesus in faith. That’s what Paul describes in the next verse, our third verse for understanding saving faith:

Romans 10:9 – If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Words are powerful. They’re an outward expression of what’s going on inside our heads. They describe our thoughts, feelings, or intentions. What we say matters, especially when we’re talking about what matters most to us.

That’s why God instructs us to openly confess our faith in Jesus. To confess literally means to “say the same thing”. When we confess our faith, we are repeating what God has already said. We are agreeing with Him that we’re sinners and that Jesus can save us.

A typical way to do this is to pray a “Sinner’s Prayer” like this: 

There’s nothing magical about those particular words. What matters is that you have the right information (about sin and Jesus) and that you respond to it with the right attitude (repentance). Once you’ve done that, the Bible says you’re saved: forgiven of your sins and promised eternity with Jesus. If the prayer above helps you to respond in faith, pray it now. But keep our fourth verse in mind:

Ephesians 2:8 – God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

Jesus did all of the work to save us. The Bible teaches that we are “dead in our sin” – and dead people can’t do anything! That’s why the Bible uses the word “grace”. It literally means “gift”. A gift is freely given, and you can’t work for it. If you try to pay for it, it’s no longer a gift. Here’s the point: No level of personal performance can earn God’s approval. We are saved 100% by grace the moment we trust Jesus for salvation.

It’s human nature to want to work for what we have. We love the sense of accomplishment that comes from an honest day’s work. In the physical realm this is a good thing and the Bible even commands it (2 Thessalonians 3:10-12). But the spiritual realm works differently. In God’s economy, we cannot work for our salvation. God alone can saved us, and he alone gets all the credit (Ephesians 2:9). 

So there’s one final question you might have about saving faith: Could it really be true for YOU? That brings us to our final verse: 

Romans 3:22 – We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

Some people are so burdened by their sin or doubts that they feel out of God’s reach. Some may ask, “How could Jesus possibly want a relationship with someone like me? What if I’ve committed the unforgivable sin?” Others question, “I’m not sure my faith is strong enough. I still have questions about the Bible.”

Here’s the good news: the pathway to salvation is simpler than you think. Jesus did the heavy lifting; you just believe. The blood of Jesus is far more powerful than the skeletons in your closet: just believe (Romans 8:1). The message of the cross can overcome your doubts: just believe (1 Corinthians 1:18-21). Those who have trusted Jesus for salvation are made “right with God” in an instant, not in a lifetime of good works. This is the central message of the Bible. 

Saving faith is an end and a beginning. It’s the end of your old life, and it’s the beginning of a new way to live. That’s what we’ll cover in the next few lessons.