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Nearly everyone has had
a “to do” list. Many of these lists include such
things as:
- pull
weeds, mow the grass
- clean
out and wash the car
- replace
burned out light bulbs
- fix
the leaky bathtub pipe
- call
the doctor to make an appointment
The following is a “to do” list for the sinner, the
non-Christian. These are things that the sinner must do to be
saved.
Hear The Gospel.
The Bible reveals, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing
by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). God said of Christ,
“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear
Him!” (Mt. 17:5). Peter rightly stated, “Lord, to
whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (Jn.
6:68). Hearing the Gospel is the first thing on your to do
list. The Gospel “is the power of God to salvation”
(Rom. 1:16). Every case of conversion in the New Testament began
with folks hearing the Gospel. Folks today also need to hear the
good news of Jesus the Christ.
Believe. Jesus
declared, “you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe
that I am He, you will die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24). Paul
preached to the Corinthians and “many of the Corinthians,
hearing, believed and were baptized” (Acts 18:8). A reading
of Hebrews 11:6 reveals, “But without faith it is impossible to
please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that
He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Do you
believe in Christ and in God? They that truly believe in God will
have enough respect to obey His will!
Repent Of Sins.
Acts 17:30 states, “Truly, these times of ignorance God
overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.”
Repentance involves a change of mind along with a change of
action. Folks must stop doing what is wrong and start doing what
the Bible says is right! To help us appreciate the seriousness of
this “to do” list Jesus taught, “unless you repent
you will all likewise perish” (Lk. 13:3). Sin separates us
from God (Is. 59:1-2) and in order to have a relationship with Him we
must turn away from sin.
Confess Christ. In
the initial steps to becoming a Christian God requires man to Confess
Christ as His Son. Prior to being baptized the Ethiopian Eunuch
confessed, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God”
(Acts 8:37). Paul penned, “that if you confess with your
mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him
from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto
righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation” (Rom. 10:9-10). Those that confess Christ as the
Son of God, Jesus will confess before His Father who is in heaven (Mt.
10:32).
Be Baptized. The
sinners “to do” list is not yet complete until he or she
has been baptized into Christ. A reading of 1 Peter 3:21 reveals,
“the like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us
(not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a
good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ.” Jesus taught, “He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved…” (Mk. 16:16). Bible baptism is an
immersion and is to be done “for the remission” of past
sins (Acts 2:38). Baptism puts one “into Christ”
(Gal. 3:27; 1 Cor. 12:13) where salvation is found (2 Tim. 2:10).
Every case of conversion began with folks hearing the Gospel and ended
with them being baptized.
What does your “to do” list look like? These
things just mentioned all must do to be saved. They are all
necessary and not one of them can be overlooked. Upon doing all
of these things the obedient soul is added to the body of Christ and is
now a Christian, a child of God. God then requires the Christian
to “live faithful” (Rev. 2:10). Many “to
do” list are ignored and never get done. The sinners
“to do” list is so important it needs to be done
today! Come to God today hearing, believing, repenting,
confessing and be baptized.
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