Salvation, Getting Acquainted continued ...

     Adventists usually refer to the continuing war which Satan began long ago in heaven as "the great controversy between Christ and Satan." Sin entered the universe when Lucifer inexplicably became self-centered instead of God-centered. Selfishness is the very essence of sin. And sin is deadly. It contains within it the seeds of self-destruction.
     Incredibly, Adam and Eve---though enjoying daily personal fellowship with God---were persuaded by Satan to doubt God's fairness and love. They selfishly chose their own way rather than God's, and the floodgates of sin opened on our world. And sin always leads to death---eternal oblivion.
     But God had already planned for just such an emergency. Jesus the Son would come to this earth and become mankind's Substitute. He would reap the result of sin by dying in man's place. Men and women would then have another chance to live forever---as God had originally intended.
     Jesus did die for us all---on a horrible cross, surrounded by men and women driven to a frenzy of hate by Satan, the great enemy. But after a Sabbath rest in the tomb, Jesus rose again, forever breaking the power of death for us.
     When we accept Christ's life and death in our place, He justifies us---which means that He pardons us fully and accepts us---which means that He pardons us fully and accepts us as if we had never sinned. He also makes us new again (the new birth) and gives us power to live as He lived and love as He loved.
     Adventists believe that salvation is on;y by God's grace through faith in Jesus as mankind's substitute. We can add nothing to deserve or earn salvation; it is God;s free gift. Everyone who in faith accepts Jesus as Saviour can rejoice in the full assurance of complete forgiveness and salvation.
     We believe too that born-again Christians will give evidence in their lives of this great change. They will daily surrender themselves to the Lord Jesus and allow Him to bring about growth in grace and victory over sin.

• Gen 31-24      John 3:16          Rev. 3:20
• Rom. 5:12       1 Cor. 15:22     John 3:1-15
• Rom. 6:23      Eph. 2:8, 9         Gal 2:16, 20
• Rom. 5:8        John 1:12          Phil. 2:12, 13