GOD'S GIFT FOR YOU
Did you know that God has a special gift just for you? The Bible tells us that before the world began, God had you in mind. He loved you so much that He purchased a special gift just for you: eternal life (heaven).
Romans 5:18b says, “…even so by the righteousness of one (Jesus) the free gift (heaven) came upon all men.”
In II Corinthians 9:15, Paul says, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.”
Here's how you can receive his free gift:
1
We have all sinned.
"There is none righteous, no, not one," - Romans 3:10
"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." - Romans 3:23
This means that each of us has broken God’s laws in some way. God doesn’t see “little sins” and “big sins”, He just sees sin. Each of us has sinned, or committed offences against God.
2
There is a price for sin.
The bad news: God says that we each deserve a punishment for our sin, and that punishment is death and hell. Hell is a great lake of fire, and it is separation from God forever and ever.
"For the wages of sin is death..." - Romans 6:23a
3
Jesus paid that price.
The good news: thankfully God does not stop there.
"...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." - Romans 6:23b
God wants to give you a gift, and that gift is eternal life (heaven). You cannot earn your way into heaven by going to church, or living a good life, or getting baptized. God will not take you into heaven because you do more good things than bad. You cannot pay money to get into heaven.
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” - Ephesians 2:8-9
Heaven is a free gift; it is a present that God has purchased for you, and all you can do is accept it. How did God pay for your gift? Through the death, burial, and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” - John 3:16
Jesus came to earth and lived a perfect life. He loves you so much that He died on the cross and shed His blood to take the punishment for your sins.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
- Romans 5:8
4
We Must Believe on Jesus
How do you accept this gift?
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” - Acts 16:31
The word “believe” means to trust, or to depend upon.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” - Romans 10:9
Choose to put your trust in Him, and simply ask Him to save you.
“For whosoever shall call upon the Lord shall be saved.” - Romans 10:13
Whosoever means anyone, and that includes you. If you realize that you are a sinner who deserves eternal death, but you believe that Jesus died so you could have eternal life, simply bow your head right now and ask Jesus to save you and give you the gift of heaven.
You can pray something like this,
“Jesus, I know that I have done wrong and deserve to be punished, but I also believe that you love me and died to save me. Please come into my heart, take away my sins, and give me the gift of heaven. It is nothing that I can do that saves me, but it is only what you did through the cross. I put my trust in you alone. Thank you for saving me. Amen.”
If you made a decision to trust Christ as you Saviour after reading this, we would love for you to let us know so that we can pray for you and send you more information. To get in contact with us you can either send us an email at pastorjosh@goodshepherdbaptistcr.com or call Pastor Josh directly at 515.573.0379