Keep it Simple!! 

Have you ever heard of the KISS method? Now, depending on where you heard it, the wording may have been cleaned up a little bit. But in my former days, when I was training to become a law enforcement officer, the instructors were not always concerned about making things sound church-friendly. Let’s just say the “keep it simple” part was there, but the last word may have had a little more seasoning on it. Part of that training included firearms. We had to shoot from the 3-yard, 5-yard, and 7-yard lines. Now, you would think shooting from that distance would be easy. I mean, that sounds close enough to almost tap the target on the shoulder and say, “Excuse me, hold still.” But it was not always that simple. The instructors taught us to focus on the front sight and squeeze the trigger. That was it. Focus. Breathe. Squeeze. Keep it simple.

But sometimes, trying to do two things at once feels like walking and chewing bubble gum. And for some of us, even the KISS method started feeling complicated. We would overthink it. We would rush. We would tense up. We would anticipate the shot. We would make something simple harder than it needed to be. And if we are honest, we do that in life too. We take something the Heavenly Father made clear, and somehow we start adding layers to it. We complicate it. We overthink it. We wonder if we are good enough, know enough, prayed long enough, cried hard enough, or cleaned ourselves up enough. And when it comes to salvation, many people carry that same confusion. They think they have to earn it. They think they have to perform for it. They think they have to understand every deep theological concept before they can come to Jesus. They think they have to fix their whole life first, then maybe God will accept them.

But Paul keeps it simple in Romans 10:9–10 (NIV): 

“If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”

That is simple. Not shallow. Not cheap. Not casual. But simple. Believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. Declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord. Paul is not saying there is no depth to following Christ. There is a lifetime of growing, learning, surrendering, repenting, obeying, and being shaped by the Heavenly Father. But the entrance is not complicated. Jesus did the heavy lifting. We do the receiving. Sometimes we make salvation sound like a spiritual obstacle course. Jump through this hoop. Climb over that wall. Say it perfectly. Dress a certain way. Know all the church words. Have your life fully together.

But Romans 10 reminds us that salvation is not about showing God how polished we are. It is about trusting in what Christ has already done. That is the beauty of the Gospel. God did not hide salvation behind confusion. He made the way clear through Jesus. Now, let’s not misunderstand simple for easy. There is a difference. Simple means clear. Easy means without cost. Salvation is simple for us because it cost JeLord sus everything. The cross was not easy. The suffering was not easy. The sacrifice was not easy. But because Jesus finished the work, the invitation is clear.

Believe.

Confess.

Be saved.

That is good news.

And maybe that is why some people struggle with it. We are used to having to prove ourselves. We are used to transactions. We are used to earning approval. We are used to people making us feel like acceptance comes with conditions. But the Heavenly Father is not asking us to impress Him first. He is inviting us to trust Him. Just like in firearms training, when the instructor said, “Focus on the front sight and squeeze the trigger,” the issue was not that the instruction was complicated. The issue was that we kept making it complicated. In faith, the focus is Jesus. Not our past. Not our failures. Not our ability to explain everything perfectly. Not our fear of what people may think.

When our hearts believe and our mouths confess that He is Lord, we are not just saying religious words. We are surrendering our lives to the One who saves. So today, maybe the reminder is simple: Stop overcomplicating what God made clear. The Gospel is deep enough to spend a lifetime growing in it, but clear enough for a sincere heart to receive it.

Jesus is Lord.

God raised Him from the dead.

And through Him, we are saved.

Next Step

Take a moment today and read Romans 10:9–10 (NIV) slowly. Then ask yourself, “Have I been making faith more complicated than God made it?” If you have been trying to earn what Jesus already paid for, bring that pressure to the Heavenly Father. Keep it simple. Keep your focus on Jesus.

God bless you, God keep you. God loves you and I love you too!