July 29, 2026 | www.gospelofjesuschrist.blog | River Wilde
Every day, millions of Christians listen to sermons, watch videos, read books, and follow religious teachers in hopes of understanding how to be saved. While many of these teachers are sincere, there is one voice that rises above them all—the voice of Jesus Christ Himself. If your eternal destiny is at stake, shouldn’t His words be the first ones you read?
The Bible warns us that there will be many voices in the world. Jesus Himself cautioned, “Take heed that no man deceive you” (Matthew 24:4, KJV).
The Apostle Paul warned that even if an angel from heaven preached another gospel, it was not to be received (Galatians 1:8-9, KJV).
That should cause every one of us to pause and ask a simple question: Have I personally studied what Jesus taught about salvation, or have I relied mostly on what others have told me?
One of the greatest blessings we have is that the teachings of Jesus have been preserved for us in the Scriptures. His words are not hidden. They are not reserved for scholars or clergy. Anyone can open the New Testament and read exactly what the Savior taught while He walked upon the earth. In fact, Jesus invited people to do exactly that: “Search the scriptures…” (John 5:39, KJV).
Before you allow another church leader, sermon, podcast, video, denomination, or religious tradition to define the Gospel for you, spend time listening to Jesus Himself. Read these passages prayerfully. Ask, “What is my Savior saying?” Compare every teaching you hear with His own words. There is no safer place to stand than on the teachings of the Son of God.
Below are Twenty-Five passages where Jesus speaks directly about salvation, and being born again, teaching us how we can qualify to live with Him in heaven. Read them slowly. Ask God for understanding. Let Christ speak to your heart before allowing anyone else to explain His words.
25 Teachings of Jesus (KJV)
- John 3:3
“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
- John 3:5–7
Jesus explains that a person must be “born of water and of the Spirit,” concluding with the unmistakable statement, “Ye must be born again.”
- John 1:12–13
“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
- 2 Corinthians 5:17
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
- Titus 3:5
“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;”
- 1 Peter 1:23
“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”
- Galatians 3:26 (KJV)
“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.”
- Ephesians 2:8–9
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
- Romans 3:28
“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”
- Romans 5:1
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”
- Romans 5:8
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
- Romans 5:9
“Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.“
- Romans 5:15 (KJV)
“But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.”
- Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
- Galatians 2:16
“Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ…”
- Galatians 2:21
“I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.“
- Philippians 3:9
“And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness… but that which is through the faith of Christ…”
- 2 Timothy 1:9
“Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace…”
- John 5:24
“He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life…”
- Acts 16:30–31
“And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…”
- 1 Peter 1:18–19
“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things… But with the precious blood of Christ…”
- Hebrews 10:10
“By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
- Romans 10:9–10
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
- John 6:47 (KJV)
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”
As you read these passages, notice something remarkable. Jesus continually points people toward Himself. He invites them to come unto Him, believe on Him, abide in Him, hear His voice, follow Him, and receive the eternal life that only He can give. He teaches the necessity of repentance and being born again, but He never directs people to place their trust in a religious organization, a human leader, or ceremonial works as the source of their salvation. Again and again, He calls people into a living relationship with Himself.
That does not mean obedience is unimportant. Genuine faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ changes a person’s life, through a spiritual rebirth. Those who truly know Christ desire to follow Him, obey His commandments, and love others. Yet these are the fruit of salvation, not the purchase price of it. Jesus came to save sinners because no one could earn heaven through personal righteousness. He offers eternal life as a gift to those who believe on Him with sincere faith.
Jesus declared, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35, KJV). If His words will endure forever, then they are worthy of our complete trust today. May every believer become like the noble Bereans who searched the Scriptures daily to see whether the things they heard were true (Acts 17:11). And may we always remember that, before we listen to any preacher, we should first listen to the Great Shepherd Himself.
In my 50+ years as a member of my former church, I was NEVER taught the one thing that was necessary for me to get to heaven. This was a very high demand religion, teaching me so many things tht I must do, yet all of those teachings did not contain the simple answer that Jesus Christ taught.
I’d like to help all of you see what that one answer is to how I can ensure that I am going to heaven.
The Teachings from Nicodemus
John 3:1 (KJV)
“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:”
Nicodemus was the kind of man everyone would have expected to enter heaven. He was a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews, “a master of Israel” (John 3:1, 10, KJV), respected for his knowledge of the Scriptures, his moral character, and his religious devotion. If anyone could have earned God’s favor through religious dedication, it would have seemed to be Nicodemus.
Are you with me so far? I want you to see yourself in Nicodemus for a moment:
You’re Religious – Good Moral Character – Faithful Church Attender – Devoted – Your Knowledge of the Scriptures.
Yet when Nicodemus came to Jesus, the Lord did not praise his religion, position, or good works. Instead, Jesus immediately told him,
“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God“ (John 3:3, KJV).
Then Jesus repeated the statement so there could be no misunderstanding.
“Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” (John 3:7 KJV)
Christ’s message was unmistakable: even the most religious, sincere, and respected person must experience a spiritual rebirth. Nicodemus reminds us that entering heaven is not based on religious status or personal righteousness, but on being born again through faith in Jesus Christ.
Jesus is saying this same thing to you right Now:
“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God“ (John 3:3, KJV).
Being Born Again is NOT being baptized and receiving the Holy Ghost. From the 25-scripture teaching listed above, they show us how a person becomes Born Again. I will leave this up to you and God to understand this spiritual rebirth and how a person receives it. For THIS is how a person goes to heaven.
In the New Testament, people were baptized because they had already believed the gospel and received Christ—not because they were joining a denomination.
Baptism is the joyful public declaration that a person has been born again through faith in Jesus Christ. It is not intended to be a “step” to join a religious organization. It is my belief that God is very displeased when a religion uses such a sacred ordinance to promote their own organization rather than its true intention.
Jesus taught that being born again is a spiritual work of God, not a physical ceremony. Baptism is an important act of obedience for those who have believed in Christ, but the act of entering the water does not itself produce the new birth. Rather, baptism is the outward testimony that a person has already trusted in Jesus Christ and has received new life through faith. The new birth is accomplished by God’s grace through the Holy Spirit which happens before baptism, while baptism publicly declares that inward transformation.
The First-Hand Teaching Example of the Thief on the Cross
One of the greatest teachings of Jesus Christ was in an event that happened during His crucifixion. Something so profound yet simple. The entire gospel preached through a very unlikely person – A person hanging besides Jesus, being punished for a considerable crime that he had done.
The thief hanging beside Jesus had no opportunity for baptism, church attendance, temple worship, religious ordinances, or years of faithful service. He simply placed his faith in the dying Savior.
As Jesus was crucified, one of the thieves acknowledged his own guilt, recognized that Jesus was innocent, and turned to Him in simple faith, saying,
“Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.“
Jesus answered him with these comforting words:
“Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.“
(Luke 23:43, KJV)
The thief was going to “heaven”! Saved solely because he placed his faith in Jesus Christ. His story beautifully illustrates that eternal life is God’s gift of grace, received through faith in Christ rather than earned by religious works or human merit.
The tragedy is that millions of sincere people continue trusting partly in Christ and partly in themselves, or their religion. Many believe they must remain worthy enough, perform enough, or participate in enough religious ordinances to finally qualify for eternal life. Yet Scripture continually points us away from ourselves and back to Christ alone.
Satan’s greatest lie is not that Jesus cannot save. It is convincing people that Jesus’ atoning sacrifice didn’t completely save, and that they must somehow finish what He already declared finished.
The true gospel gives all glory to Jesus Christ. He alone lived the sinless life. He alone bore the sins of the world. He alone shed His blood for our redemption. He alone conquered death. He alone offers eternal life as a free gift to those who believe.
When we stand before God one day, the question will not be, “How many religious ceremonies did you perform?” or “How many good works did you accumulate?” The question will be Have you been Born Again.
Salvation is a gift. A gift cannot be earned. The moment someone contributes his own works toward earning it, it is no longer received as a gift. That is exactly why Satan loves religious systems that shift even a small portion of the glory away from Jesus Christ and onto human effort. If people believe that their own obedience, ceremonies, or righteousness helped secure their salvation, then Christ no longer receives all the glory He deserves.
Being Born Again Is having complete faith, and receiving the atonement of Jesus Christ into your life and trusting that atonement as all that is necessary for a person to enter heaven.
To put this teaching into simple terms: If you believe that it is because of your church, temple rituals, or even your own good works that you are going to go to heaven, you have not yet been Born Again.
Again, even Nicodemus had not yet been saved by all of the things that he had done and in his current belief, for Jesus said:
“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God“ (John 3:3, KJV).
Jesus is calling today to share that same declaration with you. Will you listen, or will this be your demise:
Matthew 7:21–23 (KJV):
21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Your church might know you, but does Jesus?!?
The greatest danger today is when a person thinks that they are saved, and they are truly NOT.
Matthew 24:24 (KJV)
“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.“
Your very next step is to go and talk this over with God, for it will be Him that helps you navigate towards truth.
Psalm 118:8 (KJV)
“It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.”
When a person has been Born Again, they too qualify to be rescued by God in the event known as the Rapture, which will soon take place; but that is a teaching for another day. God’s speed!
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