Salvation For All Who Believe

Introduction

In our reading today we turn to Paul's letter to the Romans, where he proclaims the good news that salvation is available to all who believe.

This message is at the heart of our faith

—a declaration that no one is beyond God's saving grace. Our passage, Romans 10:8-13, reminds us that salvation is not about human effort but about faith in Jesus Christ.

Many people are lost in the darkness of sin, searching for a way out. But God has already provided the way.

Imagine a man stranded in the middle of the ocean, treading water and exhausted. A rescue boat approaches, and the crew throws him a life preserver. All he has to do is grab hold of it, and he will be saved. But what if he hesitates? What if he thinks, “I will swim to shore by myself,” or “I need to prove I can stay afloat a little longer before accepting help”?

Many people approach salvation in this way. They think they must earn it, work for it, or be “good enough” before God will save them. But our reading tells us something different: salvation is near, salvation is accessible and it is available to anyone who believes and confesses that Jesus is Lord.

1. The Word of Faith is Near You (v. 8)

Paul begins by quoting Deuteronomy 30:14, where Moses instructs the Israelites that God's word is not distant or unreachable. V8 says, it is near us—in our mouths and in our hearts. Meaning, the gospel is not hidden or reserved for an elite few. The gospel states that salvation is available to all and simple to receive. It is given freely by grace.

While good deeds are important as a response to salvation, they are not the means of salvation. Some people mistakenly believe that performing religious acts guarantees salvation. This was a mistake the Pharisees made—focusing on outward rituals while their hearts were far from God.

Religious rituals, such as baptism, holy communion, prayer, and church attendance, these are important expressions of faith. They help you grow spiritually, they strengthen your faith, and they express your relationship with God, but they are not the basis of salvation. Prayer and fasting help us stay connected to God, but they cannot replace faith in Jesus as the foundation of salvation.

In Matthew 15:8 Jesus said, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” We are saved by grace alone. God’s unmerited love and mercy despite our sins.

Consider the prodigal son in Luke 15:11 where the father welcomes his son back, not because of his worthiness but out of the father’s love and mercy.

In John 3:1, Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a respected teacher of the law, yet he did not understand the true nature of salvation. Jesus told him, “Nicodemus, you must be born again.” He was teaching that salvation requires a spiritual transformation and no amount

of religious knowledge or status could replace the need for a personal relationship with Christ.

Jesus criticized those who relied on religious traditions but lacked true faith.

In Mark 10:17, A wealthy young man approached Jesus and asked, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” He believed that eternal life could be earned by keeping the commandments. He had followed the law since his youth but after his conversation with Jesus…. the man walked away sorrowful because he relied on his own righteousness rather than faith in Christ.

This story shows that no matter how much good we do, we cannot earn salvation—it is a gift from God. Ephesians 2:8 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God…” This means that your salvation is secure because it depends on God’s faithfulness and not your own abilities. God has already done the work through Jesus Christ and it’s available to all.

In Luke 23:39, One of the criminals crucified alongside Jesus mocked Him, but the other, he recognized who Jesus was. He said: “Jesus, please remember

me when You come into Your kingdom.”

Jesus responded: “Truly I tell you, this very today you will be with Me in paradise.” This man had no time to perform good deeds, He had no time to prove his worth—he simply believed and confessed Jesus as Lord. Salvation was accessible to him, just as it is available to us today.

Salvation is not a complicated process.

2. Salvation Comes Through Faith in Christ (vv. 9-10)

Paul clearly lays out in V9 what it means to be saved. He says, “Believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead …. And confess that Jesus is Lord". This means having deep, genuine faith that Jesus' resurrection is real and