God loves you so much that He sent His only Son to die so that you may have life. He has limited that gift in only one way: You must accept it. There is no other stipulation. Therefore, salvation is open to everyone who accepts it.

Where we will spend our eternity is decided by whether or not we accept the gift of salvation offered by Jesus Christ. If we do, then we are privileged to spend eternity in the presence of God, in heaven. If we do not, then we are forever separated from God by death.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died on the cross to bear the weight of the sins of the world. He then rose from the dead after three days, defeating death and the grave, giving hope to all who believe in Him.

Jesus, the Son of God…

Luke 22:70, "They all asked, 'Are you then the Son of God?' He replied, 'You are right in saying I am.' "

John 3:18, "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son."

John 11:27, " 'Yes, Lord,' she told him, 'I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.' "

…died for your sins…

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Rom 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

…and then rose from the dead in the ultimate victory of the grave, thereby promising eternal life to those who believe!!

Romans 6:4, "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."

Old Testament law required a blood sacrifice in order for people to be cleansed of their sins. Unfortunately, it had to be done repeatedly because it was never sufficient atonement for sins.

Hebrews 10:1-4, "The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins."

Innocent blood is required for the remission of sins:

Hebrews 9:22, “In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness."

If the blood of bulls and goats was good enough for a time, how much more effectively could the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ cleanse you from your sin?

Hebrews 9:11, “When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation."

Which would you rather have?

Hebrews 10:11-14, “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy."

Heaven is a holy place; it is not a right. It is a gift given to God’s children—people who have come to a faith in Christ and who have made Him Lord of their lives. Many denominations and cults believe that there are many roads to heaven but that debate was won with one statement by Jesus Christ:

John 14:6, "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Jesus has made a statement. You have no choice now but to make one of three choices:

1. Jesus was lying. It is not possible to misunderstand the meaning of His words, so if they are not true, He must have been lying.

2. Jesus was a good man and maybe even a prophet, but He was wrong on this issue, maybe even a little crazy.

3. Jesus really is Lord and He was right on this and every other thing He said.

***You must choose. It is impossible to say that Jesus is Lord but that He was wrong sometimes, or that He was a good man and prophet but erred when He said that He was the only way to the Father. If He really were wrong on this one thing, it would invalidate everything single thing He said. So if you determine that He was not lying and that He was neither wrong nor crazy, then you must accept that fact that He was and is Lord and the fact remains that there is only one way to the Father and that is through the Son and the blood that He shed.***

Realize though, it is not just about belief. Even Satan believes in Jesus Christ. Belief in His existence must be followed by belief in the saving power of His blood. Then, there must be faith that if you call on Him, He will hear your prayer and will forgive you of your sins. Finally, that belief and faith must be followed by the action of surrendering yourself to Him.

Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

God loves you so much that He sent His only Son to die that you may have life. He has limited that gift in only one way: You must receive it. There is no other stipulation. Therefore, salvation is open to everyone who receives it.

1. The first step toward salvation is recognizing that you cannot BE good enough.

Being a good person will help you get through this life. It will earn you some good friendships and make you trustworthy and dependable. However, it is not what God requires of you. If God held you to the standard He requires, you would never make it to heaven—no one would.

No person is equal to the glory and goodness of the Lord. In fact, God has known since the beginning of time that man is incapable of perfecting himself, so He has been revealing our need for a savior through our own weaknesses.

2. The second step is confessing your sins and accepting the gift of the blood of Christ as payment for that sinful nature.

1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

If you believe in Jesus, but have not taken the step toward a personal relationship with Him, I encourage you to not wait a moment longer. Simply ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins and enter your life. At that moment, your belief will become your salvation.

Your acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord in your life, should be followed by water baptism, as an act of obedience to Jesus.

Acts 2:38, "Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.'"

Water baptism is the outward expression (symbol) of the inner-work of forgiveness that has taken place in your life. You can be baptized at Paxton Church of Christ, or at any Bible-teaching church. Contact us for more information or counsel.

The thing that causes new Christians to struggle the most is the pull between their new identity and their old identity. They think that once they are saved, they will no longer battle the flesh and will live a perfect life. Not only is that not true, but the battle can now feel stronger because before becoming a Christian there was no struggle.

The last thing the devil wants is for a person to accept Jesus Christ as his personal savior. Once a person does that, the only thing Satan can do is try to cause that person to believe that he is failing and will never be good enough. By doing that, Satan has achieved his purpose of keeping a believer from living in the fullness of God’s grace.

The apostle Paul struggled with his flesh on a daily basis. In Romans, he described his inner-struggle perfectly.

Paul is saying that even though he has accepted Christ, and is actively serving Him, he still battles with his flesh. We are called as believers to trample on that flesh and die to it daily. However, we will fail at times and, as Paul says in the next chapter:

Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death."

Romans 6:1, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?"

Clearly, we will fail, but we are to grow from the experience, not live in it. And through that struggle, we can rest fully in the love of Jesus Christ, Who gave freely of His own life that our sins may be covered with His blood. Out of that gift comes a natural response of gratitude and desire to serve God that translates into evident changes in the life of every believer as they grow over time.

There is no way that your life can be completely free of sin on this side of heaven. Every believer will be completely sin-free upon entering heaven, but not because of what we do or do not do, but because of what God does in us.

Isaiah 1:18, “Come now, and let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be like wool.”