Skip to main content
Corniglia, Italy - Cinque Terre. Photo by Charles F. Stanley.
Daily Devotion

Understanding the Christian Life

Do you understand what it means to be saved?

Galatians 1:11-17

A change in both lifestyle and understanding should result from salvation (Rom. 12:2). Shortly after encountering Jesus on the road to Damascus, Paul pulled away to Arabia for a time. Before he could start his ministry, he needed to learn from the Lord. Similarly, new believers coming into faith need to understand what salvation really means. Let’s look at some terms that help explain what is meant by “being saved”: 

  • Born again (John 3:3; 2 Cor. 5:17). Rebirth is a starting over. We become new creations in Christ, with new spiritual life and identity.

  • Converted (1 Thess. 1:9). Converting something means changing it, like money that’s exchanged from one currency to another. The Christian life involves many different changes.

  • Receiving Christ (John 1:12). We often think of salvation as something God gives us, but it is more than that. When someone trusts in Christ, that person welcomes the Lord to live within his or her being.

Think about how you thought and lived before you knew the Savior, as compared with now. In what ways do you see genuine change? Ask God to reveal areas in your life where Christ could become more evident.

Bible in One Year: Psalms 23-28