The answer to that question comes from God Himself. Jesus Christ the Son of God was born of a virgin, walked among men, performed miracles that testified to His deity, spoke parables and teachings that testified to His Lordship, and despite a sinless life was suspended by His generation on a wooden cross bearing in His broken body the sin of the world. Three days later He rose from the dead as verified by eyewitnesses. His resurrection bore witness to His crushing of Satan, His victory over sin, His plundering of death, and His right to heaven’s reign and humanity’s devotion.

This same Jesus who was crucified for your sins, and who was resurrected in order to deliver you from the fear of death, now commands all men everywhere to repent and look to Him for salvation. There is coming a day when Jesus will return to judge all men according to His revealed word. Jesus Himself declared, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day” (John 12:48). And again, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 7:21). What is the will of the Father for you? How can you and I be prepared to welcome Jesus when He comes in judgment?

Jesus said, “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned” (Mark 16:16). Jesus said through His apostle, Peter, to men who had believed and were pierced in their hearts with the news of salvation, “Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins…” (Acts 2:38). Through the evangelist Philip Jesus said to an Ethiopian who desired to be baptized, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And the Ethiopian confessed, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts 8:38).

Putting the words of Jesus and His messengers in order, it is seen that the message of salvation is only preached to persons of accountable age who recognize right and wrong and who feel shame for having embraced the wrong. Jesus never offered salvation to infants, nor to parents to accept for infants. Children who are not of accountable age don’t require saving because they’re safe—they have no sin. The gospel, or good news, is meant to be told to those who can hear or read news. It is meant for men and women who know they are sinners, who believe that Jesus Christ is God’s own Son and that He gave His life for theirs.

Please know that to believe in Him is to trust Him. To trust in Him is to obey Him. To obey Him is to serve Him unashamedly. If you really believe Him, if you trust Him, you will do what He, and no one else, tells you to do. After all, He’s the Savior. He’s the Lord. And He said repent. But repentance is not just a matter of feeling bad for breaking the rules. It’s not just a process of slowing down. Nor is it a matter of stopping. It is a matter of turning around—not 90 degrees, but 180 degrees. It’s an about face. It’s a decision to make a turn in your life and to begin serving God.

Jesus said to confess Him. He doesn’t have room in His kingdom for timid soldiers. He wasn’t ashamed to die for you. Why should you be ashamed to live for Him? He will only save those who are willing to confess their belief in Him both in word and in conduct.

Jesus said to be baptized. Jesus said it. There is no forgiveness of sins without submission to His command. Not all the testimonials of all the televangelists, and commentators, and reformers, and theologians, and councils of all the ages change what He said. He said through Peter, “…baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:21). There is no magic in the water. The power is in Jesus’ promise, “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved…” (Mark 16:16).

Would you be the follower of Jesus, and rid yourself of the problem of sin? Would you defeat the devil in your life, get rid of your guilty conscience, and obliterate your fear of death? I would not deceive you by saying that it’s easy to be a Christian. But it’s easier to be a Christian than to not be one. A Christian has hope. He has eternity. He has forgiveness. Because he has Jesus Christ. He has everything to look forward to and nothing to regret. Come to Jesus today.