Do you have a deep down peace within your heart that all is well between you and God? Most of us spend much of our life and energy on relationships, possessions, pleasures or accomplishments trying to fill an internal void. I have good news for you if you have been on this search: Jesus is the answer to our heart’s deepest and greatest need.
God loves you and wants you to experience peace and an abundant life with him. The Bible says that we have been created by Jesus so that we might have a relationship with him.
There are three facts we must accept to experience forgiveness right now and to gain the peace and abundant life that is promised through a relationship with Jesus.
We can never be good enough to be right with God.
1 Isaiah 64:6 tells us how the role of living a good life and doing good works plays into being made right with God.
For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment: And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. -Isaiah 64:6
The Bible makes it clear that in God’s eyes, when it comes to being made right with him, living a good life or doing good works is not good enough. It tells us that all of us have been infected by sin and that our good works are no better than a pile of filthy rags.
2 Does obeying God’s law, being religious and practicing religious rites make us right with God?
Because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in his sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. -Romans 3:20
God tells us that no one will be made acceptable to him by keeping his commandments (laws). God’s commandments were not given to remove our sin, but rather to reveal our inability to keep God’s commandments perfectly! Man’s imperfections (sin) become evident when measured against God’s perfect laws.
3 The Bible states that every one of us, no matter how good or bad we are, is a sinner. We all fall short of God’s glorious standard of his own perfection in all that he is.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. -Romans 3:23
Man, at his best, can never be good enough to measure up to a perfect God.
God makes us right with him through Jesus Christ.
1 God has made His righteousness (his perfect goodness and rightness) known to us through a totally different way than the system of keeping his commandments and laws. God’s law pointed to this righteousness, but was not the righteousness itself.
But apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the prophets. – Romans 3:21
2 Jesus is as perfect as God the Father.
He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf…- 2 Corinthians 5:21a
Jesus is the only one who ever walked on earth and did not sin! He is the only one who meets God’s glorious standard of his perfection in all that he is and does. That is because he is God the Son.
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?” – John 14:8-9
Jesus is the only one who has God’s righteousness
3God placed our sins upon the Perfect Jesus.
He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf… -2 Corinthians 5:21a
But he was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon him, And by his scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. -Isaiah 53:5-6
4 God makes us right with him through Jesus.
He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. -2 Corinthians 5:21
I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly. -Galatians 2:21
God makes us right with him through faith in Jesus!
We experience being made right with God on the basis of faith, not by our own efforts to be good enough.
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast. -Ephesians 2: 8-9
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. -John 3:16
The 3 facts each person must accept if they want to have their sins forgiven and go to heaven when they die are:
Fact 1: We can never be good enough to be right with God!
I must face the fact that I have sinned against God and am in need of forgiveness
Fact 2: God makes us right with him through Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ died to forgive my sins and rose from the dead to give me a brand new life.
Fact 3: God makes us right with him through faith in Jesus!
I must turn from trying to be good enough and/or my empty pursuits of sin and place my faith in Jesus Christ.
The Bible says the Lord generously gives his riches to all who ask for them.
For whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved. -Romans 10:13
If so call upon him in believing prayer now.
1. Acknowledge to him that you are a sinner and that all of your trying to be good falls short of what God wants from you.
2. Tell Jesus that you believe that he is the only way to God and that you are going to trust no one or nothing else.
3. Thank him for dying to pay for your sins on the cross and giving you eternal life through the resurrection.
If you called out in faith for Jesus Christ to save you today, then God wants you to know the following:
… that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life. -1 John 5:11-13
For more information about being a Christian you can go to: www.godlife.com
If you trusted Jesus Christ today, please let us know at tcww@christianworkingwoman.org so we can send you some materials to get you started on your new relationship with Jesus Christ.
