The first step in the salvation process is to believe what God says about you: that you are a sinner (Romans 3:23).
Les Feldick consistently points to Romans 3:23—'For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God'—as the very first step of faith on the road to salvation. Before anyone can be saved, the Holy Spirit must convince the heart that we are sinners in need of a Savior. Nothing a person does can get them into heaven; the new birth begins when we recognize our need and rest on the fact that we are sinners.
Romans 3:23 — This is the verse Les Feldick repeatedly calls 'the very first step of faith'—God's verdict that all have sinned and come short of His glory.
Romans 3:19 — Shows the purpose of the law: to stop every mouth and make the whole world guilty before God, which is the context for the first step.
Scripture is clear about every human being's condition before God. Paul writes that the law speaks to those who are under the law—the Jew—'that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God' (Romans 3:19). No one is made right with God by keeping the law: 'Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin' (Romans 3:20). The law gives the knowledge of sin rather than the remedy. Scripture's verdict on every human being is found in Romans 3:23: 'For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.' Immediately after this verdict, the same passage points to what God has done about it: 'Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus' (Romans 3:24).
Les Feldick is emphatic that the first step in coming to salvation is believing what God says about you. He points to Romans 3:23 as the verse to start with—'For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God'—and calls it 'the very first step of faith on the road to salvation.' The first thing the Holy Spirit makes us aware of is that we are sinners; we are not as good as we think we are. Les explains why this must come first: salvation is not something we do. Nothing can be done to get us into heaven; we have to rest on the fact that we are sinners and sons of Adam, separated from God because of the fall. People who think they are good enough—even genuinely good people—will be lost, because the person who thinks he is good enough for heaven will never be saved. Once we recognize our need, the new birth can happen. Les also corrects the idea that salvation is a process: salvation is an event, and the Christian life (sanctification) is the process that follows.
Les Feldick says the first thing God tells us to believe is that regardless of how good we may be, or how good a family we come from, God says we are sinners—'all have sinned' (Romans 3:23). The Holy Spirit's first work is to make us aware of that fact: 'I'm not as good as I think I am.' This recognition is what Les calls 'the very first step of faith,' because people who think they are good enough for heaven will never be saved.
Scripture says the law speaks to those under it so that every mouth may be stopped and all the world becomes guilty before God (Romans 3:19). By the deeds of the law no flesh is justified; the law gives the knowledge of sin (Romans 3:20). Les carries the same thought into his teaching: when you begin studying the Scriptures, you begin to see that you are a fallen, sinful creature, and that the law stops every mouth—Jew and Gentile alike. The law does not save; it stops human excuses and prepares the heart for the first step.
Les is specific about this: salvation is an event, not a process. He corrects himself when he uses the word 'process' for salvation, clarifying that 'salvation is an event, and then the Christian life is a process.' The new birth happens when a person recognizes their need; spiritual growth, or sanctification, is the process that covers time as believers begin as new babes in Christ and mature.
The Law Stops Every Mouth
Les describes what happens when you study Scripture: you begin to see that you are a fallen, sinful creature. He reads Romans 3:19 to show the law silences every mouth—Jew and Gentile alike—setting the stage for the first step.
The First Step: Believe God's Verdict
Les says the very first step in the plan of salvation is to believe what God says about you: God says you are a sinner, regardless of your goodness, family, or circumstances. He also distinguishes salvation (an event) from the Christian life (a process).
The Holy Spirit's First Work
Les teaches that the Holy Spirit's first work is to make you aware that you are a sinner. He quotes Romans 3:23 as what God says about you—'I'm not as good as I think I am.'
Resting on the Fact That We Are Sinners
Les says nothing we do can get us into heaven; the first step of faith is resting on the fact that we are sinners and sons of Adam. He then notes that God has declared we can be justified freely with no strings attached.
Start of the Roman Road
Les uses Romans 3:23 as the starting point on the Roman road. He explains that many good people will be lost because they never take this first step of realizing they are sinners.
Lost Because of Adam's Fall
Les teaches that the very first step of faith on the road to salvation is recognizing we are lost—separated from God because Adam was the federal head of the human race, and everyone has come short of God's glory.
Salvation Is an Event, Not a Process
Les uses Jesus' illustration that the sick need a physician: the person who thinks he is good enough for heaven will never be saved. The new birth cannot happen until we recognize our need—salvation is the event, and the Christian life is the process.
Recognize Our Need
Les calls Romans 3:23 the first step for salvation: we must see ourselves as God sees us—everyone has sinned and come short of the glory of God. He connects this to the need for redemption.
Romans 3:19: Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
Paul explains that the law's message is directed to those under it so the whole world stands guilty before God.
Romans 3:20: Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
The law does not justify anyone; its role is to give the knowledge of sin—the very need that must be recognized first.
Romans 3:23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
This is the foundational verse for the first step: every person without exception has sinned and falls short of God's glory.
Romans 3:24: Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Immediately after declaring universal sin, Paul presents the solution: justification freely by God's grace through redemption in Christ.
Les Feldick says the very first step is to believe what God says about you—that you are a sinner. He consistently points to Romans 3:23—'For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God'—and calls it the first step of faith on the road to salvation.
Les teaches that nothing we do can get us into heaven; we have to rest on the fact that we are sinners. He says there are many good people who will be lost because they think they are good enough, and the person who thinks he is good enough for heaven will never be saved.
Salvation is an event, not a process. The Christian life—sanctification—is the process that follows, as believers grow from new babes in Christ toward maturity over time.
Watch the Teaching: Justification by Faith: What Does It Really Mean?