Believe and Be Saved: What Does It Mean to Believe in Jesus Christ?

Originally published January 21, 2015

Archive note: This article reflects my evangelical Christian understanding of salvation and the authority of Scripture. The original version has been edited for clarity, theological precision, and a more respectful treatment of Christians who interpret some passages differently.

“…what must I do to be saved?”
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”
— Acts 16:30–31

Few questions are more important to Christianity than this:

What must a person do to be saved?

When the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas that question, their answer was remarkably direct:

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:9 likewise says:

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

For me, these passages point to the heart of the Gospel: salvation is found in Jesus Christ and received through faith in Him.

But What Does It Mean to “Believe”?

The word believe should not be reduced to simply acknowledging that Jesus existed.

James 2:19 reminds us that even the devils “believe” that there is one God.

Saving faith is therefore more than agreeing with a religious fact.

To believe in Christ is to trust Him; to place our confidence in who He is and what He has done rather than in our own righteousness.

The Gospel proclaimed by the apostles centered on the death and resurrection of Christ. Paul summarized it in 1 Corinthians 15:3–4: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again.

Christian faith rests upon that Gospel.

Salvation Is of the Lord

Long before the New Testament, Jonah declared:

“Salvation is of the LORD.”
— Jonah 2:9

That truth remains fundamental.

A church cannot take the place of the Savior.

A pastor cannot take the place of the Savior.

A priest, minister, denomination, religious tradition, or Christian organization cannot take the place of the Savior.

The church has an important place in Christian life. Christians are called to worship, fellowship, learn, serve, and grow together.

But the church does not become Christ.

Peter declared:

“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
— Acts 4:12

And Jesus said:

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
— John 14:6

The Christian claim is therefore ultimately personal: salvation is in Christ.

Saved by Grace, Not Earned by Merit

This is also why salvation cannot be treated as something we accumulate through enough good deeds.

Ephesians 2:8–9 says:

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

Grace means that salvation begins with God, not with our ability to make ourselves worthy of Him.

Titus 3:5 expresses the same principle:

“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us…”

This does not mean good works are unimportant.

The very next verse after Ephesians 2:8–9 says that believers are created in Christ Jesus “unto good works.”

That distinction is crucial:

Good works are not the price we pay to purchase salvation; they should become part of the life produced by genuine faith.

James similarly warns that faith without works is dead.

So the biblical message is not:

Live however you want because you once said you believed.

Nor is it:

Become good enough and perhaps God will save you.

It is:

Trust Christ, receive God's grace, and let that faith begin transforming the way you live.

Faith, Repentance, Confession, and Baptism

Christians have long debated the precise relationship between faith, repentance, confession, baptism, the sacraments, and perseverance.

Those differences should be acknowledged rather than pretending they do not exist.

But Scripture repeatedly places faith in Christ at the center of salvation.

When Romans 10 speaks of believing in the heart and confessing Christ, it describes faith that is openly identified with Jesus.

When the apostles call people to repentance, they are calling them to turn toward God.

When believers are baptized in the New Testament, baptism publicly identifies them with Christ and His people.

From my evangelical understanding, none of these should be treated as human achievements that force God to grant salvation.

They belong to a person's response to the Gospel.

Examine What You Believe

My original article spoke harshly about Christians who relied on church traditions rather than reading Scripture for themselves.

I would put the challenge differently today.

Tradition is not automatically wrong simply because it is tradition. Every Christian community, including evangelical and Baptist churches, develops traditions of its own.

The better question is:

Can what we believe withstand examination in the light of Scripture?

Christians should read the Bible.

We should study its context.

We should examine what our pastors, priests, teachers, churches, and denominations teach.

And we should be willing to examine our own assumptions as carefully as we examine everyone else's.

Faith should not fear serious study.

Why Jesus?

Matthew 1:21 says of Jesus:

“Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”

Jesus is not merely presented in Christianity as a moral teacher.

He is presented as Savior.

John 3:16 declares:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

And Isaiah 45:22 says:

“Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth.”

This is ultimately why the message “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” matters.

Christian salvation is not confidence in ourselves.

It is not confidence in our religious achievements.

It is confidence in Christ.

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ

Christians should therefore continue preaching the Gospel of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection.

But we should do it with humility.

We cannot force anyone to believe.

We cannot insult someone into faith.

We cannot substitute religious arrogance for the Gospel.

We can proclaim Christ, explain why we believe, answer questions as faithfully as we can, and invite others to consider Him.

And after all the theological debates, denominational disagreements, traditions, arguments, and interpretations, I continue to return to that remarkably simple exchange in Acts:

“What must I do to be saved?”

And the answer:

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

Salvation is of the Lord.

Grace comes from Him.

And faith ultimately points away from ourselves and toward Jesus Christ, the Savior.

— J.P. Abecilla

Freedom to Live, Freedom to Believe, and Freedom to Express

Originally published January 17, 2015

“And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.”
— Acts 22:28

Freedom is one of the most valued ideas in human society.

We want the freedom to live, to think, to believe, to speak, and to express ourselves without unnecessary interference from others or from the state.

But freedom has never meant that every action is without consequence.

A society that values freedom must therefore wrestle with an equally important question:

Where should one person's freedom end when it begins to harm the freedom, dignity, safety, or rights of another?

Freedom Is Not Absolute

In 2015, debates about freedom of expression and religious belief became particularly intense.

After the deadly attack on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, the world was forced to confront difficult questions about religious offense, violence, satire, and freedom of speech. Twelve people were killed in the January 7 attack on the magazine's Paris office, prompting an international debate that continued long after the tragedy.

Pope Francis made an important distinction at the time: violence committed in the name of God cannot be justified, but freedom of expression also carries responsibilities.

That distinction is worth considering.

No person should be murdered, threatened, or physically harmed because of something he writes, draws, says, or believes.

At the same time, possessing the legal freedom to say something does not automatically make what we say wise, truthful, respectful, or morally good.

A right protects our ability to speak. It does not guarantee that everything we say is right.

Freedom to Believe

Religious freedom is particularly important because belief reaches into a person's conscience.

A Christian should be free to believe in Jesus Christ.

A Muslim should be free to practice Islam.

A person should likewise be free to reject religion altogether.

The Philippine understanding of religious liberty makes a useful distinction: the freedom to believe is protected within the realm of conscience, while actions arising from those beliefs may still be regulated when they affect public welfare or the rights of others. The Philippine Supreme Court has described religious liberty in essentially these terms.

This distinction protects everyone.

Christians should not want a government powerful enough to dictate another person's faith, because the same government could someday dictate ours.

Faith imposed through coercion is not genuine faith.

Freedom to Express

Freedom of expression is equally necessary in a healthy society.

People must be able to criticize governments, religious institutions, politicians, cultural traditions, and even ideas considered sacred by others.

Without that freedom, societies become intellectually stagnant and political power becomes much harder to challenge.

But freedom of expression also requires maturity.

We should be able to distinguish between:

criticism and defamation,

disagreement and hatred,

satire and deliberate cruelty,

evangelism and coercion,

and conviction and contempt.

Religious people should not demand protection from every criticism or offense.

Likewise, secular society should not treat religious convictions as automatically irrational, hateful, or unworthy of public discussion.

True freedom requires space for disagreement.

Freedom to Live

Freedom is perhaps most visible in the way we live.

We choose our careers, relationships, beliefs, lifestyles, political opinions, and personal priorities.

But every choice exists within a network of consequences.

My freedom cannot legitimately require another person's imprisonment merely for disagreeing with me.

My religious freedom cannot justify violence against someone who rejects my religion.

My freedom of expression cannot exempt me from criticism.

And my personal freedom does not mean that society must declare every decision I make wise or morally good.

Freedom and responsibility must therefore coexist.

Without freedom, responsibility becomes coercion.

Without responsibility, freedom can become recklessness.

Faith and Freedom

As a Christian, my understanding of freedom goes beyond political liberty.

The New Testament presents another kind of freedom—the freedom that comes from truth.

Jesus said:

“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
— John 8:32

This does not mean Christians possess political authority to force everyone else to accept our understanding of truth.

Christianity itself teaches that faith involves a personal response.

People may accept Christ.

People may reject Him.

Christians may preach, persuade, teach, write, and defend what we believe.

But genuine belief cannot be produced by force.

That should make Christians among the strongest defenders of freedom of conscience.

Truth Does Not Need Coercion

There is also an important lesson for religious people.

Defending truth does not require silencing everyone who disagrees with us.

If Christianity is true, Christians should be willing to expose our beliefs to serious questions.

We should be capable of explaining our faith rather than merely demanding that others respect it.

First Peter 3:15 instructs Christians to be prepared to give a reason for their hope—and to do so with meekness.

This means Christian expression should combine conviction with humility.

We can disagree.

We can challenge ideas.

We can defend Scripture.

But we should not confuse insulting people with defending the faith.

Let Freedom Ring

Freedom to live.

Freedom to believe.

Freedom to speak.

Freedom to question.

Freedom to disagree.

These freedoms should not belong only to people who think like us.

A genuinely free society protects them even when people arrive at completely different conclusions.

But freedom also asks something of us.

It asks us to think before we speak.

To consider the consequences of our actions.

To respect the humanity of those with whom we disagree.

And, from my Christian perspective, to remember that freedom reaches its highest purpose not merely when we can do whatever we want, but when we are free to pursue what is true and good.

“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

— J.P. Abecilla, January 2015