Salvation is Everlasting Life

Salvation is everlasting life. It is a gift of grace (unmerited, undeserved favor) from God, received by one's faith (Eph. 2:8-9). Once a person has placed their faith in Jesus Christ alone, accepting His sinless sacrifice (His sinless shed blood, death, burial, and resurrection) to God for payment of all their sins, they are saved forever. They have been passed from death unto life, can never be lost, will never go to Hell, but now possess eternal life and are on their way to Heaven.

Jesus says, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” – John 5:24

Many folks don’t understand what salvation really is.

When presenting the Gospel of Jesus Christ to an individual, make sure to question them whether they really understand their salvation in Christ? You must ask them the right questions even after they have confirmed that they have placed their trust in Jesus Christ alone as their personal Savior.

I have found that many people will say they are a Christian, but don’t really understand the meaning behind that. They may say that they’re saved and believe in Jesus, but when you question them whether they are going to Heaven when they die, they will say “I don’t know, I hope so.” This is not assurance. In many instances, I find most people think they are Christians just because they are born in America or because their family goes to church. 

Don’t just ask an individual if they’re a Christian, but instead ask them if they know for sure without a shadow of a doubt that they are going to Heaven when they die? Ask them what are they trusting in to get them to Heaven? If they say they are trying to be a good person, or that they hope they make Heaven; then that is evidence that they probably don’t really understand the salvation plan.  

Go over the Gospel of Christ again. Tell them Jesus shed His sinless blood on the cross of Calvary, died, was buried, and rose again to pay for your sin debt (all of your sins - past sins, present sins, and future sins). He is God in the flesh. He says if you will trust in Him alone, accepting His sacrifice for the full payment of your sins to God, then He will save you and give you everlasting life. You must make a personal, conscious decision to trust Jesus Christ alone as your only hope of making Heaven. This is salvation.

Then you should ask some more questions once they confirm they will trust in Jesus alone to save them. Ask them what if you fall into deep sin later in life? What if you forget about God, or forsake Him? What if you backslide and live an ungodly life and then die; Are you still saved? Are you still going to Heaven?

The answer is yes! This is the amazing Grace of God. Now I am not promoting a license to sin after salvation. God will deal with you as His child because you have now been born into the family of God by your faith (John 1:12, Gal. 3:26). God will discipline you and chasten you when you sin (Heb. 12:5-11), just as any father should do for his child whom he loves. God wants you to have a joyful Christian life and seeks to help you grow in your Christian faith. But rest assured, your discipline will never be to lose your salvation.  God will never unborn you, condemn you again for your sin penalty, pass you back to eternal death from eternal life; that is impossible because your salvation is completed when you trusted on Christ as your Savior.

Jesus and God are holding on to you to keep you saved (John 10:28-30); your salvation is secure in the Lord. We are saved by Christ's life, not ours (Rom. 5:10). It is not dependent on what you do, but instead on what Christ did for you (Rom. 4:5). God said He will never cast you away for any reason and He will never lose you (John 6:37-39). God cannot lie (Titus 1:2).  God's gifts and His Divine invitation for salvation are irrevocable (Rom. 11:29); and since salvation is a gift from God (Rom. 6:23), once you accept it, it remains yours forever.

God cannot deny His promises.  Unlike us, He never fails to deliver on His Word. “If we believe not, yet he (God) abideth faithful: he (God) cannot deny himself.” – 2 Timothy 2:13

Everlasting life lasts forever. It is not temporary life, and it is not a probation or trial period. It lasts forever the moment you receive it (John 6:47), and God has said nothing will undo this transaction. You are sealed by the Holy Spirit which you receive the moment you believed in Christ as your Savior (Eph. 1:12-14).  The Holy Spirit permanently indwells us (Rom. 8:9-11, 1 Cor. 3:16) and is our guarantee that we will make Heaven.  We are baptized into the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13, 27); we are part of Christ's very body - His flesh and bones (Eph. 5:30), and Christ lives inside of us (2 Cor. 13:5, Col. 3:3-4, 11).

God says, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” – Hebrews 13:5

Praise God for Everlasting Salvation in Jesus Christ! God wants you to be assured of your salvation. You can KNOW you have eternal life and a home in Heaven.

"If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." - 1 John 5:13

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." - 1 Peter 1:3-5

We can now boldly say because of God's saving grace, "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:38-39