The first thing we need to ask is 'Does God really care about me?' In Isaiah it says "Thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee." Isaiah 43:4. And in Jeremiah it says "Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love." Jeremiah 31:3.
So it would seem that God does love you and always has. But how did God demonstrate His love for us?
"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. "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:9, 10.
So because He loved us so much that He sent His son and risk losing Him rather than giving up on us. Maybe you are thinking "How could God love someone like me?" You might feel that you have done some terrible things that you feel are unpardonable.
"But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8.
Our sins might be the kind that man would not pardon but with God we can find pardon as long as we ask with sincere hearts.
So what is this about the death of Jesus that is so important to me? Well, God's law says that all sin is punishable by death since sin cannot exist in the presence of God. What God did to resolve this dilemma is send His son to die in our place and take the penalty for our sins.
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God." 1 John 3:1. "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.
You might then ask "How do I receive Jesus and pass from death to life?". You need to admit to three things. 1. I am a sinner "All have sinned." Romans 3:23. 2. I am doomed to die. "The wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23. 3. I cannot save myself. "Without me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.
Once you admit to these then accept the following. 1. He died for me. "That he ... should taste death for every man." Hebrews 2:9. 2. He forgives me. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins." 1 John 1:9. 3. He saves me. "He that believeth on me hath everlasting life." John 6:47.
In summary what you need to do is ask for, believe in and accept the gift of God, our Lord Jesus Christ.
You are probably thinking then "What must I do to receive this gift?".
"Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." Romans 3:24. "A man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." Romans 3:28.
This is good news! The gift is free! We don't need to do anything other then to accept the gift. That is why it is called a gift.
"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.
Your next question will probably be "Do I need to change anything in my life?". Well of course! When we love someone we trust that person. And if they tell us to do something we know it is because it is for our best. So we can be happy and healthy. We also do it out of our love for the person.
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17.
It will be the same with God. Everything we do is because we love Him. And, of course, we love Him because of what He did for us first. So we are going to start changing to please Him. We are going to try and find out what makes Him happy and do those things.
He will help us through the Holy Spirit to remove from our lives those things that will hurt us and those around us, as well as Him.
(to be cont'd)
