Because this question is so important--indeed, its answer contains our eternal welfare--we would assume that there would be a great deal of information answering this question in the Bible. That assumption is absolutely correct! In fact, there is so much material dealing with the subject that we will never be able to cover it all in this limited amount of space. But that's good news! So let's get started!

Perhaps we should begin by first understanding and accepting that we need salvation. In Romans 3:23 Paul writes, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." David wrote in Psalms 14 (and Paul quoted in Romans 3:10) that "There is no one righteous, not even one." Apart from Christ, we are doomed.

So we know that we need salvation. How do we get it? What could be better than an answer that comes directly from the mouth of Jesus? We have such an answer. The question was posed to Jesus by a rich young man who wanted to know how he could inherit eternal life. The passages are Matthew 19:16-30, Mark 10:17-31, and Luke 18:18-30. Let's look at portions of one of these passages.

Mark 10

17 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

18 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: `Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.'"

20 "Teacher," he declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy."

21 Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

22 At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

In verse 17, the rich man asks the very question we are trying to answer! In verses 18-21 Jesus answers the man, saying that he already knows the commandments. The young man says that he has kept the commandments since he was a child. Obviously the man did not yet feel saved. He knew that there must be something else. Verse 21 is powerful. "Jesus looked at him and loved him." Jesus must have felt tremendous compassion for the man. He must have known that what He was about to tell the young man would cause great sadness. Jesus then revealed they key to eternal life. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

The answer to the question is "Come. Follow me." Total devotion to Christ is the only method by which we may achieve eternal life. The young man was saddened by the answer Jesus had given. This was because he was not willing to submit totally to the will of Christ. For this man, wealth was more important than salvation. Hard to imagine, isn't it? And yet, we have all done something similar. All of us, at one time or another, have decided we could do things better without God. Or we've refused to stop doing something that we know would sadden Jesus. Apart from Christ, we will die, but with Him as the center of our lives we will receive eternal salvation.

We could almost stop here, since we have found an answer given directly by Jesus. But this is so exciting, and there is so much more to explore! Let's continue.

Acts 16:16-40 tells of how Paul and Silas cast a spirit out of a slave girl. They were beaten and thrown in prison for the night. Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. At about midnight, there was an earthquake. The prison doors opened and the chains of all the prisoners were loosed. The jailor, having thought the prisoners had escaped, was about to kill himself. Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!" The jailor rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. At once, he asked them, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They replied "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household." Then Paul and Silas told him and his family about Jesus.

Again, we have an answer to the exact question we have asked. To be saved, we must believe in Jesus Christ. We must believe that He is the Son of God. We must believe that He died on the Cross, and that through His death, He made it possible for us to receive eternal life. He made it possible for us to overcome the Prince of Lies, Satan himself. We must look at His entire life and love Him with all our hearts, believing in everything that He said, did, and commanded us to do. This is what Christ meant when He said "Come. Follow me." Total belief in--and devotion to--Jesus Christ brings salvation. We are not at liberty to pick parts of His teachings, for it is only through complete surrender to Jesus Christ that we may find everlasting life.

Of course there are many more passages that deal with this subject, but we will not go into them here. I would highly recommend that anyone who is interested in learning more about salvation read about the life of Jesus Christ in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Look at how He lived. In doing so, you will want to become like Him. When your only desire is to live for Him, you will know you are saved, and will inherit eternal life when Jesus returns.