“We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” -Tim Keller

So what can we do? Nothing. Because of our sins and our sinful nature, we have no hope of changing the situation. First of all, even if we wanted to return to God, we would still have to answer for our sins, and that means going to hell.  And because of our sinful nature, no matter how hard we try, we cannot transform ourselves. We just keep sinning.

Thankfully, God is awesome in his love. Even though he would have every right to just abandon us to the path we have chosen, God instead showed mercy on us. God sent us a savior from heaven to rescue us from the mess we had made of everything. That savior was God Himself in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus has eternally existed with God. The Bible says that He is the Word that explains God, the perfect representation of God. He is also called the Son of God. He came to earth and became a man in order to restore us to God and to the way we were meant to be.  Because of this, the Bible says that Jesus Christ is both our Lord and our Savior.

So how is Jesus our Savior? What did He do to save us?

The Bible says that Jesus died on a cross for our sins.  He became our substitute.  He took upon Himself the wrath and punishment of God that we deserved for our sins, so that we could be forgiven and treated as He deserved for His goodness.

But Jesus didn’t stay dead. On the third day after his death, He rose from the dead, with a glorious new body full of power. He appeared to His disciples over the course of 40 days, teaching them and encouraging them. And then He returned to heaven. This proved He really is our Lord and Savior. And through the power of the resurrection, Jesus gives people a new life, rescued from the power of sin and death, making a way for us to escape death and sin and return to God.

Therefore, the Bible says that people who are in Christ are made NEW. First of all, they are forgiven forever for all their sins, past, present and future.  They also receive a new status with God. They are declared righteous instead of “guilty.” They gain Jesus’ righteous status before God. This makes them qualified to enter God’s world and live with God.  They receive a new relationship with God. They are adopted by God as His children. As a result, they become a part of His family, what Jesus called His Church. They become brothers and sisters with all those who have been adopted by God. They gain a new nature that loves God and loves people. The Bible says they are “born again,” a new creation.  Now their deepest desire is to live for Jesus and be pleasing to God. Now they are filled with a love for people that stirs them to bring healing to this broken world, especially through sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.

They also receive a new helper: the Holy Spirit of God to live in them so that they can experience the presence of God within them and God’s transforming power in their lives, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, to help them to love God and love people.

And they receive eternal life. This is all just the beginning of the new life they receive in Christ. When they die, they go to be with God in heaven. And after God brings this world to an end, God will make a new world. He will resurrect all those who are in Christ, just like He raised Jesus from the dead, and He will give them new bodies, like Jesus received, full of glory and power. And there will be no more sin or death. And they will live there with God forever.

So this is what Jesus Christ has done to save us. Through the cross, He is the bridge between us and God. Now God is calling all people to return to him through Jesus. Would you like to know how?

The Bible says that if we believe in the Lord Jesus, we will be saved (John 3:16). Jesus promised that if we believe in Him, we will have eternal LIFE instead of DEATH, and we will begin to experience this new life immediately.

Believing in Jesus means more than just believing He existed. It means believing in what the Bible says about Him and entrusting yourself to Him. The Bible says that Jesus is our only Lord and Savior, who died for our sins and rose from the dead, and that if we believe in Him we are saved. Therefore, believing in Jesus means to turn away from your old life of trusting in anything else to lead you or save you and apologize to Jesus for your sins. You also must turn your life over to Jesus, trusting in Him alone to lead you and save you, based on His death for your sins and His resurrection.

If you truly believe in Jesus and want to make that turn now, you can make a simple prayer such as this one:

Lord Jesus, I believe in You. I believe that you are our Lord and Savior, that you died for our sins and rose from the dead. I am sorry for my sins. Please forgive me and save me. I give my life to You and I trust in you to save me. Thank you.

If you sincerely prayed this, CONGRADULATIONS!!!! I would love to know if any of you have accepted Christ.  I am so excited what God has in store for your life.

If you are still on edge, it’s ok.  Like I said I am not trying to push anything on you but just want to present to you what the Bible has to offer you.  Wherever you are at though, I encourage you to check out this powerful, short video that gives an overview of the gospel.