The central theme of the Bible is God's love for you and for all
people. This love was revealed when Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came
into the world as a human being, lived a sinless life, died on the
cross, and rose from the dead. Because Christ died, your sins can be
forgiven, and because He conquered death you can have eternal life.
You can know for sure what will become of you after you die.
You have probably heard the story of
God’s love referred to as the "Gospel." The word Gospel
simply means "Good News." The Gospel is the Good News that,
because of what Christ has done, we can be forgiven and can live
forever.
But this gift of forgiveness and eternal
life cannot be yours unless you willingly accept it. God requires an
individual response from you. The following verses from the Bible show
God's part and yours in this process:
God's love is revealed in the
Bible
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal
life" (John 3:16).
God loves you. He wants to bless your life
and make it full and complete. And He wants to give you a life which
will last forever, even after you experience physical death.
We are sinful
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
(Romans 3:23).
You may have heard someone say, "I'm only human--nobody's
perfect." This Bible verse says the same thing: We are all
sinners. We all do things that we know are wrong. And that's why we
feel estranged from God--because God is holy and good, and we are not.
Sin has a penalty
"For the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23).
Just as criminals must pay the penalty for
their crimes, sinners must pay the penalty for their sins. If you
continue to sin, you will pay the penalty of spiritual death: You will
not only die physically; you will also be separated from our holy God
for all eternity. The Bible teaches that those who choose to remain
separated from God will spend eternity in a place called hell.
Christ has paid our penalty!
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we
were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ, the
sinless Son of God, has paid the penalty for all your sins. You may
think you have to lead a good life and do good deeds before God will
love you. But the Bible says that Christ loved you enough to die for
you, even when you were rebelling against Him.
Salvation is a free gift
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and
this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that
no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
The word grace means "undeserved
favor." It means God is offering you something you could never
provide for yourself: forgiveness of sins and eternal life, God's gift
to you is free. You do not have to work for a gift. All you have to do
is joyfully receive it, Believe with all your heart that Jesus Christ
died for you!
Christ is at your heart's door
"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my
voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with
me" (Revelation 3:20).
Jesus Christ wants to have a personal
relationship with you. Picture, if you will, Jesus Christ standing at
the door of your heart (the door of your emotions, intellect and
will). Invite Him in; He is waiting for you to receive Him into your
heart and life.
You must receive Him
"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his
name, he gave the right to become children of God" (John 1:12).
When you receive Christ into your heart
you become a child of God, and have the privilege of talking to Him in
prayer at any time about anything. The Christian life is a personal
relationship to God through Jesus Christ. And best of all, it is a
relationship that will last for all eternity.
