When you put your trust in Jesus’ payment for your sins and commit to following Him, you are saved. Salvation is God’s gift to you. You cannot earn it, and you don’t have to “get right” to receive it.

Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Everyone! We all need saving — from the person filled with regret to the preacher’s kid who followed every rule. God’s desire is for everyone to have a relationship with His Son.

2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

We are saved when we receive and believe the good news that Jesus came, died and rose again for our sin. You don’t have to remember the exact time or place you made that recognition to be saved.

The important thing is that there’s a turning point when life started to look different because of Jesus. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

Jesus gives every believer the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us a desire to live for God as well as the ability to hear, recognize and respond to God’s voice. 

To love God, to enjoy His presence, to hear His voice, and to feel the conviction of sin and the need for repentance — these are all common experiences of those who are saved (John 10:3-5).