A Christian Characteristic - Romans 10:9-11

9 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.

10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

Romans 10:9-11

Remember the old saying, “If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck and sounds like a duck, it

probably is a duck”? When I read these three verses, I am reminded of that saying. In a spiritual sense, I believe it is fitting in these verses in Romans. A person who is truly a believer should act like a believer, and be known as a believer to those who are around him or her.

Paul says in vs 9b, “...and shalt believe...that God hath raised him from the dead...” Of course, Paul is speaking of Jesus Christ and the gospel. When a person realizes that they have broken God’s law and are guilty, under the wrath of God, and in danger of eternal punishment, it changes everything. It is then they can see the gospel as good news. Only through believing the gospel can a sinner be forgiven and experience salvation.

Paul also said in vs 9a, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus…” One of the signs of having believed in Jesus is we begin talk-ing about Him and what He did for us. Vs 11, “For the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” When talking to peo-ple, it usually doesn’t take long to figure out what is important to them in life. They may talk about sports, cars, TV shows, politics, or a number of other things. But as believers, our greatest subject ought to be about our Savior and how He changed our lives, our church, biblical things, and so much more. A lot can be learned by listening to a person speaking! Paul says if we have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, our mouths should re-flect it. Not only do we abstain from cursing, dirty jokes, lying and slan-dering, but we talk about Jesus!

Paul seems to make a point that a regenerate heart will bring about a regenerated mouth. What was once used to glorify self is now used to glorify God. What was once used to drive people away from God is now used to bring people to God.

Paul concluded in vs. 9, “...thou shalt be saved”. It is by the inward working of the Holy Spirit in our hearts that we know that we are saved. It is by our mouths that others can know that we are saved, and we can lead them to the Lord. If our hearts and our mouths are “on the same page”, it is good evidence that we are believers!

I want to walk like Christ, sound like Christ, and look like Christ as a believer, so that others can see Christ in me.