Summary

Here is a summary of this article, which discusses why and how to receive salvation and eternal life through true faith in Jesus.

God is perfect, loving, holy and just.

The Rock, his work is perfect;
For all his ways are justice:
A God of faithfulness and without iniquity,
Just and right is he. Deuteronomy 32:4 (ASV)

People, on the other hand, are full of sin and wrongdoing.

Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. Ecclesiastes 7:20 (ESV)

For this evil, we deserve to die, be punished and go to Hell. But God loves us so much that He sent us His Son, Jesus Christ, who can save us from this fate.

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23 (KJV)

Jesus is God in essence.

I and the Father are one. John 10:30 (ASV)

Jesus, Who is perfect, died for us and was raised back to life. This was a substitution for us so that we don't have to die for our sins, and it cleans us from our sin.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, Colossians 1:21-22 (ESV)

To get this cleansing, we have to believe in Jesus (this means believing in God and the Holy Spirit too). Doing so means that we receive the free gift of eternal life, or salvation. This faith in Jesus is what counts us among the saved!

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. John 3:16 (KJV)

However, our belief can't just be in our heads. It has to be true belief, which has certain characteristics. One of these is that we must confess our sin and repent of it (wholeheartedly turn away from it and turn towards God).

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 (KJV)

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. 2 Corinthians 7:10 (ESV)

We must also love God and people.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:30-31 (NIV)

We must obey the Lord.

for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified: Romans 2:13 (ASV)

Persevering in living for the Lord is also required in our faith.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. James 1:12 (ESV)

We also need to believe correctly - that is, to believe what God says in the Bible.

Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. 1 Timothy 4:16 (NIV)

There are other things we should do too, like reading God's word, joining together with other believers, being baptised, and so on. But importantly, it's faith which saves us, not deeds themselves.

Yet another aspect of being a Christian are the many wonderful things God promises us if we follow Him.

To start being a follower of Jesus, believe in God, the Holy Spirit and God's Son, Jesus. This involves the things described above. Call on God, confess, repent, love, have faith... and grow as a child of God, with an inheritance of eternal life! Read the Bible to learn all about it.

To read about these things in more detail, continue on through the article.