So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, describing the conversion of the Gentiles; and they caused great joy to all the brethren. (Acts 15:3)

We now come to the end of a twelve-month series on the subject of conversion. I hope that it has been as profitable to you in receiving it as it has been to me in writing it. This study has not been academic. Rather, this series has had a definite and practical purpose. The subject of conversion is not merely an interesting Bible topic that makes for a good bulletin-filler for 12 months. On the contrary, the underlying issue that inheres in this discussion is the salvation of the soul. A person who is not converted to Christ is lost. If one dies in that condition or if Christ returns while he is in that condition, he will be lost forever.

It is fitting, then, for us to briefly but pointedly emphasize the main thoughts of the series.

PRINCIPLES. In the initial article, I emphasized the basic principles of the subject. Conversion refers to a changing or turning. He who drives a convertible, drives a car that can change or take on a different form. One who is spiritually converted changes and becomes a different person in the eyes of God. He leaves the power and darkness of sin and is transferred into the kingdom of God's dear Son. (Col.1:13) Therefore, there is no conversion without the remission of sins. When one discovers how his past sins are forgiven, they will have discovered how to be converted to Jesus Christ.

Moreover, Jesus is not only the one to whom the sinner is converted, but He is also the means of that conversion. Only through the precious blood of Christ can one return to the clean, sinless relationship with God he had at birth. Peter emphasizes this wonderfully in 1Pet.1:18-21. But Peter, in the same context, also highlights the fact that man plays a part in his own conversion through obedience. The sinner must yield himself to the conditions presented in the gospel in order for God to save him. (1Pet.1:22-25)

ELEMENTS. We studied throughout the last 10 installments of the series the elements of conversion requiring man's attention. We noted the things taught in the scriptures that a person must do in order to be saved, in order to be converted to Jesus Christ.

The Bible teaches that one must believe that Jesus is the Son of God and be willing to confess such. (Jn.8:24; Rom.10:10) A person must resolve in his heart to become a new person who fashions the entirety of his life after the pattern of the Lord's New Testament. And we have seen that water baptism must occur in order to bury the old life and begin a new life free from sin. (Rom.6:3-4; Col.2:11-12; Acts 22:16)

EXAMPLES. As if God's word wasn't plain enough in its commands, He gives us examples of the conversion process. We studied a few of these and they consistently illustrate the elements discussed above. And where faith or repentance was not explicitly recorded, each was clearly implied.