How does someone become a Christian?

Preface

If you're thinking about learning more about how to become a Christian, keep reading! If that is you, I am so glad that you're here.

While reading this, I encourage you to not think of people in your life who call themselves Christians and have hurt you badly, or misrepresented Jesus. What we're going to talk about today is all about what the Bible says about how someone becomes a Christian, not what anyone else says.

Understand that you are saved by grace through faith

The Bible is very clear about this:
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-- and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast.

• Ephesians 2:8-9

We did nothing to deserve salvation, God simply decided to give us this free gift because He loves us. An analogy I like to think of is the one that has an image of us drowning, and God throws us a life preserver; but this analogy is inaccurate. It gives us the idea that we have the potential to save ourselves if we can swim just a little longer.

Rather, a more accurate analogy is, us, face-down in the mud, dead, and God chooses to pick us up and breathe new life into our lungs. Because without God, we are not "mostly dead" (like they say in the Princess Bride), but we were fully, spiritually dead, destined to have to face an eternity spent apart from God, if our sins were not forgiven.

Because of Jesus dying on the Cross for our sins, and resurrecting three days later, the work is done. Your sins are forgiven. Why continue living in shame and self-pity when you can turn around and accept Jesus' invitation to repent (ask for forgiveness) and come to Him?

Romans 10:9 says, "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

If you truly believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died and rose again, and that by His resurrection, we are set free from sin and death, thus granted eternal life in heaven with Him, that's it.

To be a Christian, you don't need "the look" you're thinking of. You don't need to get "cleaned up" first. You don't need any classes, nor have perfect church attendance, nor any kind of certification- all you need is the genuine belief in your heart and confession from your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and you will be saved.

If that is something that you've been thinking about for a while, what's holding you back? Jesus is better than anything you're afraid of losing for the sake of gaining a relationship with Him.

It's different for everyone, but whatever that thing may be, God will bless you with something better, that brings you closer to Him. It might not be immediately after, but God will provide.

Whatever is holding you back, Jesus is better.

God loves you so much, that He sent His one and only Son to die on the Cross and pay the ultimate price for our sins, so we could live with Him eternally. Jesus is always knocking on the door, all you have to do is open it. The work is already done; you just have to accept the free gift. Jesus loves us so much that He gave His life to offer us a better one. He calls us to repent and turn away from a life that leads to death, because He is the only way to true, fulfilling, eternal life!

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

• Romans 6:23

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

• John 14:6

How do I accept the gift?

Like Romans 10 says, you simply confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead. For some, this involves a prayer that you pray out loud in private, but it can also involve someone guiding you through it. The Bible simply says to believe in your heart and declare out loud.

The Bible tells us that upon receiving this gift, we are given the Holy Spirit. It is God's Holy Spirit (yes, the same one that raised Jesus from the dead!) that dwells in our hearts.

Because we have the Holy Spirit, we gain eternal life and are promised freedom from the spiritual death that would've been destined for us, had we not accepted Jesus' gift.

Like I said, this is simply the basis for belief. All further actions, transformation of your inner being, and life come from loving God and believing Jesus is Lord. The gift of the Holy Spirit continues to transform and refine us throughout our lives. It's not a one-time, snap of the fingers, external switch. What it is, is inviting the Holy Spirit into our hearts, and salvation that cannot be taken away.

Loving God and believing in Jesus will continue to shape and change you throughout your life.

It won't be easy, but choosing to stay committed to Jesus will absolutely be the best decision you will ever make. Because of Jesus, I have someone who never fails, to lean on when life gets hard. I make mistakes, but now I am renewed by His strength and know that I am forgiven. Writing this blog isn't easy, but God gave me gifts with writing, and this is one way I am choosing to use that gift to glorify Him and hopefully plant seeds to ultimately bring more people to Jesus.

I know that this blog can't save people. What I do know, though, is that because Jesus saved me, I want everyone to know it, and to know that they can experience salvation and freedom from worldly chains, too. My prayer for you, reading this right now, is that you will get to experience the goodness of God. I pray that after experiencing just a little of His goodness, that you realize that nothing this world has to offer you will fulfill you, and only He can.

Verses of Encouragement

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

• Ephesians 3:16-19

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

• John 8:12

** If any of this was confusing, check out my posts titled, Welcome to my page!, How do we know the Bible is true?, and What is the Good News? They might help explain more of this fully!