My friend, I am asking you the most important question of your life. Your
joy or your sorrow for all eternity depends upon your answer. The question is: Are you saved? It
is not a question of how good you are, nor if you are a church member, but are you saved? Are you sure
you will go to Heaven when you die?
God says in order to go to Heaven, you must be born again. In John 3:7,
Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Ye must be born again.” In the Bible, God gives us the plan of how to be born again which means to be saved.
His plan is simple! You can be saved today. How?
First, my friend, you must realize you are a sinner. “For
all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
Because you are a sinner, you are condemned to die. “For
the wages [payment] of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).
This includes eternal separation from God in
Hell. “…it is appointed unto
men once to die, but after this the judgement” (Hebrew 9:27).
But God loved you so much he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus, to
bear your sin and die in your place. “For he hath made him (Jesus, who knew no sin) to be sin for
us…that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Jesus had to shed his blood and die. “For
the life of the flesh is in the blood” (Leviticus 17:11) “…without shedding of blood is no remission
[pardon]” (Hebrew 9:22). “But
God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
Although we cannot understand how,
God said my sins and your sins were laid upon Jesus and he died in our place. He became our substitute.
It is true. God cannot lie. My friend, “God…now commandeth all men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30). This repentance is a change of mind that agrees with God
that one is a sinner, and also agrees with what Jesus did for us on the cross.
In Acts 16:30, 31, the Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas: “…
‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ And they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt
be saved…” Simply believe on him as the one who
bore your sin, died in your place, was buried, and whom God resurrected.
His resurrection powerfully assures that the believer can claim everlasting
life when Jesus is received as Saviour. “But
as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on
his name” (John 1:12).
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13). Whosoever includes you. Shall be saved means not maybe,
nor can, but shall be saved. Surely, you realize you are a sinner.
Right now, wherever you are, repenting, lift you heart to God in prayer.
In Luke 18:13, a sinner prayed: “God be merciful to
me a sinner.” Just pray: “Oh, God, I know I am a sinner. I believe Jesus was my substitute when
he died on the cross. I believe his shed blood, death, burial, and resurrection were for me. I
now receive him as my Savior. I thank you for the forgiveness of my sins, the gift of salvation and everlasting life, because
of your merciful grace. Amen.”
Just take God at his word and claim
his salvation by faith. Believe, and you will be saved. No church, no lodge, no good
works can save you. Remember, God does the saving. All of it! God’s simple plan of salvation is: You are a sinner.
Therefore,
unless you believe on Jesus who died in your place, you will spend eternity in Hell. If you believe on
him as your crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, you receive forgiveness for all of your sins and his gift of eternal salvation
by faith.
You say,
“Surely, it cannot be that simple.” Yes, that simple! It is scriptural.
It is God’s plan. My friend, believe on Jesus and receive him as Saviour today.
If his plan is not perfectly clear,
read this over and over, without stopping until you understand it. Your soul is worth more than
all the world. “For what shall it profit a
man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36).
Be sure you are saved. If you lose
your soul, you miss Heaven and lose all. Please! Let God save you this very moment. God’s power will save you, keep you saved and enable
you to live a victorious Christian life. “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common
to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also
make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthian 10:13).
Do not trust your feelings. They
change. Stand on God’s promises. They never change. After you
are saved, there are three things to practice daily for spiritual growth:
You should be baptized
in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ, as a public testimony of your salvation, and then unite with a Bible believing church
without delay. “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord…” (2
Timothy 1:8).
“Whosoever therefore shall confess [testify of] me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which
is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).
