Confess Christ and Believe

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

(Romans 10:9-10)

Meditation

I used to get hung up on what it takes to be saved. I thought there were things I was supposed to get right in my life first, before Christ would accept me. There were times when I was made to feel that way by other believers, but it’s not true. It wasn’t anything purposeful or exclusionary on their parts. They were just as deluded as I was, but their legalistic views and practices drove me away from God, instead of attracting me to him.

I read this scripture as a preteen kid and believed it back then, but after becoming a teenager, I decided it wasn’t cool to believe. My disbelief wasn’t because these verses weren’t true, but because I thought the sinful life, I was leading was more fun than what I saw in the lives of some believers. They didn’t look all that happy or fun loving, so I didn’t want what they had. I didn’t think I needed God, so I didn’t need saving. I convinced myself that all submitting to Jesus would get me was a list of things I wouldn’t be able to do anymore.

I thought I liked what I was doing even if I didn’t like myself. However, this verse I’d read and believed as a kid, kept invading my thoughts. It took me way too long to figure out why I thought so little of myself that I had to get drunk or high to have a good time. By that time, I was at a very low point in my life. Fortunately, Jesus was there to pick up the pieces of my brokenness and put me back together. He wasn’t waiting for me to figure things out for myself, or to make myself a person worthy of his love. He was there with his arms wide open, ready to lead me through the rest of my life.

Are you standing on the sidelines, waiting to feel like you’re a good enough person to get in the game? None of us are good enough, nor will we ever be. If you would just confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord of your life, and believe God raised him from the grave, then that’s it, you’re saved. As you can see, it’s totally uncomplicated. All Christ requires is an acknowledgment from your lips and belief in your heart that he is who he claims to be. He takes our repentant and broken hearts and makes us a new creation. Hallelujah!

Daily Prayer

Heavenly Father, our faith is made whole in your love. We have no reason to doubt whatever plan you have for our lives. We ask you to use us in ways and wherever you see fit. Father, from the first moment we confessed Christ as our Lord and savior, our lives have been changed. For some of us, it was a scary prospect to become of follower of Jesus, only because it was an unknown. Change is very hard for most people. Now that we are called by your name, there is nothing that could make us want to go back to that despicable sinner we once were. We are resting on the promise that once we submit ourselves to the lordship of Jesus, we will spend eternity in heaven. We thank you, Lord God, for thinking enough of us to want to save us from destruction. We want to know you more and more every day. Help us to make time in our busy day to spend time with you in the Word. It’s there where we’ll meet our risen Lord. It’s in his precious name, we pray. Amen!