What is Salvation in Jesus and Why Does it Matter?

If I ask, "What are the 10 Commandments?", I'm sure a majority of people would know what they are or at least one of the commandments. An important question is, "Why are they important?" They are important because they show mankind that they are a sinner under the Law. What Law? God's Law. The Law defines sin. Sin is the perversion of what is good. Let's look at the 10 Commandments, which can be found in Exodus chapter 20 in the Holy Bible.

Exodus 20:3-17(King James Version):

3)"Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."

4)"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth."

7)"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain."

8)"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."

12)"Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee."

13)"Thou shalt not kill(murder)."

14)"Thou shalt not commit adultery."

15)"Thou shalt not steal."

16)"Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor."

17)"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass(donkey), nor any thing that is thy neighbor's."

The first four commandments(vss. 3, 4, 7, 8) deal with a person's relationship with God. The other six commandments(vss. 12-17) deal with a person's relationship with other people.

How many of you out there think they are a good person? Have you ever committed adultry? Adultery is having sexual intercourse outside of marriage and/or lust in your heart for someone. Have you ever had one night stands, had sex with a boyfriend/girlfriend, had sex with a fiance, etc. Have you ever looked at a man/woman with lust? If you have, then you are an adulterer. All of these fit adultery or sexual perversion, which perverts what is good, which is sex in a marriage. Sex outside of a marriage and/or lust for someone makes you an adulterer.

How many of you have stolen anything in their lives? If you have, then you are a thief. How many of you have lied or lied about a friend, neighbor, relative, about yourself? If you have, then you are a liar.

How many of you have murdered someone? And lets define murder, which is the taking of an innocent life. Killing someone fighting a war or in self-denfense is not murder. In war, countries fight one another and know going in that soldiers will die. You fight for your country. In self-denfense, you are protecting yourself from someone who's intent is to harm you. So, how many of you have murdered someone? If you have, then you're a murderer.

How many of you have lusted after what your neighbor has, or what a friend has, or what a relative has? If you have, then you are a coveter.

The reason for these examples is not to anger people, tho some will be angry. It's to show that tho you think you're a good person, you aren't a good person in God's eyes. You are a sinner. You fall short of God's perfect mark and you are unable to live according to the Law or to be justified by the Law. What is a person to do? Since a person can't save themselves because they can't totally observe all the Law, God has provide a plan of salvation. What is that plan? Salvation through His Son.

Many times have you seen people at sporting events or at protest marches or on the news who hold up signs that say John 3:16. And I'm sure a lot of people know what John 3:16 says. But how many people truly knows what it means? Lets look at John 3:16.

John 3:16(KJV): 16)"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son(Jesus), that whosoever believeth in Him(Jesus) should not perish, but have everlasting life."

It says that God gave His Son and that anyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. But to understand what it means, you need to read John 3:17,18 with verse 16 to put verse 16 into context.

John 3:17,18(KJV): 17)"For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved." 18)"He that believeth on Him(Jesus) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son(Jesus) of God."

God sent His Son not to condemn the world but to save the world, that anyone who believes in Jesus, that accepts what Jesus did on the cross for them, would not perish but have everlasting life. Anyone who does not believe in Jesus or what He did for them on the cross has condemn themselves already. God doesn't condemn sinners. Sinners condemn themselves. Every one of us should be hanging from our own crosses and paying for our sins but we don't have to if we believe in Jesus, believe Jesus paid our debt in full, that He was our substitute. What the Law has condemned to death Jesus has redeemed to life. Where the Law exposes sinners God forgave them by His Son's sacrifice on the cross. Where the Law justified no sinners Jesus justified sinners that believe in Him by His blood shed on Calvary. Under the Law we are codemn to death, through Jesus we are born again to new life. That's salvation in Jesus. Why does it matter?

Acts 4:12(KJV): 12)"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name(Jesus) under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

John 14:6(KJV): 6)"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father(God), but by Me."

It matters because God has no other plan for salvation.

"I'll stand on the absolute truth, the Word of God, and leave the relative truth to worldly people."