"These things have I
written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God;
that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may
believe on the name of the Son of God." — (1 John 5:13)
This verse says quite clearly that you can
know for certain that you have eternal life. Eternal life is
salvation. Salvation is spending our eternity with Christ in
Heaven after we die.
There is nothing that we can ever do to earn our
salvation. There is no task great enough or no work good
enough to reserve us a place in Heaven. Salvation is a gift
from God. It is a free gift that God makes available to us by
His grace. Grace is not something that we have the ability to
earn for ourselves. It is given to us freely.
"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)
Think about this for a moment…what is a gift?
According to Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, a
gift is:
"that which is given or bestowed; anything which is
voluntarily transferred by one person to another without
compensation; a donation; a present."
A gift then is something that is voluntarily transferred.
This requires that both the giver and the receiver desire to
exchange a gift. As the giver of the gift, God's desire is
for you to accept it from Him without compensation. In other
words, it doesn't cost you anything. But, there is a price
associated with it. It cost God everything!
Jesus Christ voluntarily gave His life to die a horrible
death on the cross to appease God's sense of righteousness.
It's a fact. It's also a fact that God hates sin.
"For all have sinned,
and come short of the glory of God;" — (Romans 3:23)
"As it is written,
There is none righteous, no, not one:" — (Romans 3:10)
The Bible says that every single one of us is a sinner,
whether we agree or not. Sin is separation from God. God's
Holiness demands a penalty be paid for our sin.
"For the wages of sin
is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord." — (Romans 6:23)
"For the wages of sin is death;" the Bible says.
Wages are something we earn for our performance. In this case
because we are sinners, we earn death. Death is separation.
Our bodies die when our spirit separates from it, most
everyone understands this.
But the death that is mentioned in this scripture is not
just your everyday body in the ground type of death. No, this
death is the eternal death that we earn as sinners. Eternal
death is eternal separation from God in Hell. This eternal
death is the natural end for all mankind, from which there is
no escape. Or…is there?
Look at the second part of that verse, " but the gift
of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord."
There's that word "gift" again, but this time we
learn it's through Jesus Christ our Lord.
"But God commendeth his
love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us." — (Romans 5:8)
When Christ died on the cross he took the penalty for our
sin upon Himself. He paid the ultimate price to appease God's
wrath, so that God's wrath won't be visited upon us. He
became our substitution. The one who didn't deserve any
punishment at all accepted all the punishment for those who
deserve it. This is how God shows us His love, by having His
only Son die in our place.
"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)
So when does this gift become yours? When you accept it,
of course! Remember…a gift is a voluntary transfer
without compensation? We know God wants to give it to you. If
he didn't, Christ wouldn't have had to die the death that he
did. His gift is being offered to you right now. If you
continue reading, you'll learn exactly what you need to do to
accept it.
"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)
It's quite simple actually. It's as easy as A-B-C.
-
Acknowledge — Acknowledge before God
that you're a sinner and that you realize that as a
sinner you are on the way to Hell. Let Him know that
you understand that accepting His gift is the only
way for you to get into Heaven.
-
Believe — Believe that Christ is who
He said He is and believe in what He did for us. He
said He is God and that's that. He died on the cross,
was buried in a tomb, and rose from the dead three
days later to prove once and for all to the world
that He is God in the flesh.
-
Confess — Confess the above two
items to God in a prayer and ask Him to take the
punishment for your past, present, and future sins.
The confession God talks about is solely between you
and him. You don't have to share your sins with
anyone else in the world to be forgiven.
Oh yeah, there's one more thing. Salvation, once you
accept it, is forever. Don't ever be bothered by anyone who
says you can lose your salvation by sinning again. It just
isn't true.
"For by one offering he
hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." —
(Hebrews 10:14)
If you're not quite sure exactly what you have to pray,
here's a sample prayer to help you get through. When you
pray, the intent of your heart is more important than the
actual words. God looks on your heart and will know if you
mean it or not.
Dear Heavenly Father,
I know that I'm a sinner and
I know the punishment for sin is death and Hell. I believe
Christ died for my sins and I can't get into heaven by any
other way than by accepting His gift to me. Lord Jesus, I
believe you are God and that you rose from the dead and are
alive today. I'm accepting your gift of salvation and am
asking you to come into my heart and save me from my past,
present, and future sins completely and forever. It's in your
name I pray. Amen
That's all there is to it. If you prayed that prayer right
now and meant it in your heart, you're on the way to Heaven
and there's nothing that can ever prevent you from getting
there.
We might never meet face to face in this world, but God
promises we'll see you in Heaven.