A Public Confession
Scripture: Romans 10:8-10
"And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: 9 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved."
Observations:
Paul here outlines the essence of the Christian message and what it means to be "in Christ" or "saved". He says that right standing with God is conditional and requires two things: confession of Christ's Lordship, and belief in His resurrection (vs. 9). In vs. 10 he seems to imply that belief always precedes confession and that confession is the best evidence of true belief. Obviously if you don't believe in Christ you can't be saved. But how do you know if my belief is really genuine? How do you really know that you're "saved"? Confession is the key. If you confess to a crime you are admitting your guilt and submitting to the consequences of your actions. In the same way, when you confess that Christ is Your Lord it is not only admitting your belief (faith/truth) in His sacrificial death on your behalf as the final payment for your sins but also full submission to the consequences of that reality. In other words, because I truly believe that Christ is Lord, my lifestyle is now the evidence of that belief.
Application:
Does your belief match your confession? If we truly believe that we are followers of Christ, do our lifestyles reflect His example to the world around us? If we really believe that our sins have been covered, are we still living in guilt? If we believe that His grace is sufficient, are we still trying earn God's approval or His blessings? If we truly believe that the greatest position belongs to the servant, are we still striving for recognition and self-promotion? Our salvation was not just an event but our admission of and surrender to a new way of life. To the degree that we are living out our belief in Christ's Lordship in all things, we are "being saved". Does your confession today match what you say you believe?
Prayer:
Father, thank You for bringing us into a right relationship with You through the death and resurrection of Your Son. May the confession of our lives become more than mental assent to a statement of truths. Let our lives truly become the living evidence of our belief in Your resurrected life. Amen
Daily Bible Reading Plan
"And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: 9 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved."
Observations:
Paul here outlines the essence of the Christian message and what it means to be "in Christ" or "saved". He says that right standing with God is conditional and requires two things: confession of Christ's Lordship, and belief in His resurrection (vs. 9). In vs. 10 he seems to imply that belief always precedes confession and that confession is the best evidence of true belief. Obviously if you don't believe in Christ you can't be saved. But how do you know if my belief is really genuine? How do you really know that you're "saved"? Confession is the key. If you confess to a crime you are admitting your guilt and submitting to the consequences of your actions. In the same way, when you confess that Christ is Your Lord it is not only admitting your belief (faith/truth) in His sacrificial death on your behalf as the final payment for your sins but also full submission to the consequences of that reality. In other words, because I truly believe that Christ is Lord, my lifestyle is now the evidence of that belief.
Application:
Does your belief match your confession? If we truly believe that we are followers of Christ, do our lifestyles reflect His example to the world around us? If we really believe that our sins have been covered, are we still living in guilt? If we believe that His grace is sufficient, are we still trying earn God's approval or His blessings? If we truly believe that the greatest position belongs to the servant, are we still striving for recognition and self-promotion? Our salvation was not just an event but our admission of and surrender to a new way of life. To the degree that we are living out our belief in Christ's Lordship in all things, we are "being saved". Does your confession today match what you say you believe?
Prayer:
Father, thank You for bringing us into a right relationship with You through the death and resurrection of Your Son. May the confession of our lives become more than mental assent to a statement of truths. Let our lives truly become the living evidence of our belief in Your resurrected life. Amen
Daily Bible Reading Plan
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