Salvation is Repentance

For some odd reason we treat God like Satan when it comes to salvation… but sort of in reverse.

With Satan a person would be tempted to sell their soul in order to have wealth on earth.  Christians sell their life to God to have a good afterlife.  It’s like, “Ok, now he’s Lord, I have to do something good and go through crap now because it builds character or whatever.  At least there’s heaven later.”

But Jesus said he came to give life, and that more abundant.(John 10:10)  Meaning here AND there.  We focus on the “Lord” part and think everything comes with a catch and that we are slaves.  Not quite.  God is our Father, and while you obey him like a master, the relationship is completely different.  Jesus said that the Kings of the earth exercise authority over their servants and lord it over them, NOT SO WITH US.  He said that whoever wants to be great must be a servant and slave of all, JUST AS the Son of man came not to be served, but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many. Matthew 20:25-28

God loves us and cares for us as a Father, and what he says is not “for the heck of it” but for a purpose and for our benefit.

For some odd reason we keep thinking of this as a transaction.  “You have to repent before you can receive salvation.”  Not quite, it’s more like “Repentance IS salvation”.  You see, because sin is pushing God out, holiness is inviting God in.  Salvation is being saved from God’s wrath by being hidden in him.  So how can you accept God and reject him at the same time?  You can’t receive salvation while remaining in sin because they are complete opposites of each other.(Romans 6:2)  It’s not a catch.  You have to understand what it is.  Heaven is being in God’s presence.  You can have the peace and joy that comes with heaven if you are in Christ.  When you have an understanding of holiness and stop thinking it’s about works, but just trusting God (“The righteous shall live by faith”- Romans 1:17) then it doesn’t seem so impossible.  We fear because we don’t think we have what it takes, but God just wants us to have himself.

Note:
This is not to say that every time you sin you lose your salvation; as many have come to believe.  When you pray for salvation you are saying you no longer want to live for yourself and that you want God to guide you and help you love and follow him.  From then on God is in charge of your sanctification and working out all your flaws.  (1 Corinthians 6:11, Hebrews 10:14)