Confess That Jesus Is Lord - May 21

Read Romans 10:9-10

…because, 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. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

Reflect

What does it mean to believe in Jesus? What specific beliefs about Jesus result in our salvation?

When we go back to the Bible, we read over and over again that you must believe in Jesus to have eternal life. But I think it is really important to understand what is meant by “believing in Jesus.” We need to understand what it means to actually have saving faith. After all, James 2:19 points out that even the demons believe and shudder!

We see evidence of the demons understanding who Jesus is in Mark 1:24 when a man with an unclean spirit cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”

Mark recorded another instance of the demons recognizing Jesus as the Son of God in Mark 5:7: “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.”

In those two incidents, even the demons confessed and provided testimony as to the true identity of Jesus. They believed that God the Father is the Most High God and that Jesus is His Holy Son. And yet, the demons are obviously not going to experience eternal life in the presence of God. What’s the difference?

In today’s verse, the apostle Paul explained that true saving faith is submitting to Jesus as our Lord. “Believing in Jesus” isn’t merely intellectually assenting to His existence. It isn’t simply acknowledging that Jesus is the Son of God. The belief in our hearts that makes us right with God is a belief that understands who Jesus is and trusts Him as our Savior. It is a heart that humbly accepts His free gift of salvation and a heart that bows down in worship to Him as Lord.

Specifically, Paul mentioned that we must believe in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. But that belief encompasses so much more than just believing the resurrection actually occurred. True believers trust that Christ died on the cross in their place to pay the penalty for their sins and because Jesus rose from the dead, they know they will also rise one day, too. Believers identify with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection.

Do you see the difference? The demons certainly don’t trust in Jesus for the salvation of their souls and they don’t want to serve or worship Him even though they fully understand who He is. Demons know that God raised Jesus from the dead and that those who put their trust in Him will be saved. But they don’t want people to be saved! So they seek to deceive people.

This is why Paul said that we must confess that Jesus is Lord. We confess our faith privately to God in prayer and we profess our faith publicly to other people. Jesus said that we shouldn’t be ashamed to be associated with Him: “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also deny before my Father in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).

While confessing our faith in Christ is clearly important, I do want to clarify that we are not saved by the words we speak. The words “Jesus Christ is Lord” is not a magical incantation that has the power to save. Declaring the words out loud without saving faith already in your heart is pointless.

Throughout all of his writings in Scripture, Paul is clear that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone, not by the works we perform or the words that we utter. Confessing our faith in Christ is an outward expression of the inward reality of the faith already in our hearts.

So, if you understand that you are a sinner in need of a Savior and if you believe that Jesus is the Son of God who is our Savior, confess your faith to God in prayer. Tell Him that you are placing your faith in Christ to save you and that you are submitting to Him as the Lord of your life. Then, tell someone else who can encourage and disciple you as you grow in your relationship with the Lord. The steps of faith in Christ really are as easy as ABC—admit, believe, and confess.

Respond

Lord, I confess that I have sinned against You. But, I have placed my faith in the work of Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of my sins. I trust in the power of the resurrection of Jesus and I know that because He lives, so will I. You are my Savior, my Lord, and my God. Help me to submit to You in obedience the rest of my life. Amen.

Reveal

Today is a great day to share your testimony with someone else. Don’t overthink it! Just tell them what Jesus has done for you and confess your faith in Him.