The amazing thing is, it comes with an optional offer of *guaranteed* forgiveness (for everything you have ever done!)! For many, the question “Do you need forgiveness?” results in 3 answers – which reflects you? :
“I don’t need forgiveness”
“I have to earn forgiveness”
“I deserve to be forgiven”
The truth is though, we have all violated the rules of the Creator. Some of us know His rules and break them deliberately, others do it without realising, others can’t resist. Either way, the fine *must* be paid.
The God who created the universe says that lying, stealing, lust and envy are wrong – they all leave us condemned.
Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever stolen anything? Have you ever lusted after a man or woman (including pornography or sex before marriage)? God calls it adultery. Envy, blaspheme and more – we have all wronged Him and are headed for Judgement.
Almost all religions have devised schemes that supposedly earn us forgiveness. Catholics, Muslims, Jews, Mormons, Buddhists, but even Atheists & Agnostics…most are unaware they have a (faulty) ‘balance belief’ hidden within…
On one side of the balance scales, they (you) put their bad deeds, sin (Lies, Stealing, Cheating, Lust, etc)…
On the other side, we put all the things that we have done that we see as ‘good’. Helping people, giving money to the poor / charity, virtue signalling, campaigning and whatever else we think is good.
Unfortunately, God says that even the best of our ‘good’ deeds are filthy and dirty, unable to outweigh any bad at all: 1 We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6 (NLT)
The truth is, all our deeds, all our thoughts are all on the one side. The wrong side! They all count against us – even the ones we thought were good!
We are all doomed and most don’t even know it! Every single one of us has failed to live up to God’s standard 2 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23 (NLT) That leaves everyone – all of us – under God’s wrath & judgement. We will all receive what we have earned…DEATH. That’s right – God calls death ‘wages’ that we have earned by sinning. 3 For the wages of sin is death Romans 6:23 (NLT)
Sin is incredibly serious and counts against you – it causes God’s wrath to rest on you right now 4 And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.” John 3:36 (NLT) and will count against you on Judgment Day, causing you to be sent to hell.
“Don’t you realise that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (NLT)
“But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” Revelation 21:8 (NLT)
There is only One Way to deal with sin: not empty religion, but Jesus Christ, the real, living, Jesus Christ. He is the risen King, who rules from Heaven and is coming back to judge the living and the dead 5 I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he appears to set up his Kingdom 2 Timothy 4:1 (NLT) .
There is nothing we can do to earn (or add to) what Jesus has done. 6 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:8-10 (NLT) . Jesus has paid the price for *every* sin you have ever done. All you need to do is accept this free gift: that means letting go of your sin / lifestyle / religion and receiving what He has.
Picture it like this: you are on the deck of a cruise ship, you’ve been parting, but now there is a storm and you are holding on to the railing. The ship is swaying and someone (me) has just told you it is heading for the rocks. You are being told that Jesus is offering you a lifeline…
You have two options:
– Scoff at me, ignore the offer, deny the reality and get back to partying.
– Accept what Jesus is offering, letting go of the railing, abandoning the party lifestyle.
If you keep holding on to the railing, you will go down with the ship.
Your lifestyle is your position on the ship, your sin is what you do on the ship, the railing is your religious beliefs from Karma to Catholic, they can not help.
If you do accept His offer, He gives you a life preserver, attached to a lifeline, that He is holding. Now, your life isn’t about enjoying the trip, unaware of the doom coming. It is about helping others come to know the impending doom and Good News of available rescue! He will direct you to a new position on the ship, give you a new purpose and new desires. You won’t love sin as much, you will actually want to do what pleases Him. And yes – I know how crazy that sounds…but it’s real!
Sure, people will laugh at you for wearing this uncomfortable and visible aid, but you will have complete peace, despite knowing that the ship is going down. Seeing others come to know about this reality will suddenly become *so* rewarding you will be amazed!
Something else that makes this trip infinitely better: God adopts you as His very own son / daughter! 7
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16 (NLT)
That’s right – the perfect, powerful and all-knowing Creator, welcomes us into His very family with arms wide open!
Non of this is based on us in any way, but on His love and the perfection of His Son’s sacrifice! How AMAZING is that?!!
We pray that you would take this Good News to everyone you know – even the misguided people who taught you the wrong thing about God. Even those who laugh at you or hate you. Even family members who are totally against you or this message.
Always follow Jesus – He will never let you down!
“Lord Jesus, please convict me of my sin so I know how bad it is. For the sin I do recognise, I chose to willingly turn away from it and turn to You, to receive Your forgiveness and grace. Please change my heart so that I think of sin the same way You do.
ThankYou for sending Your Son Jesus to die on the cross to pay my debt.
I have made a mess of my life, so I give it to you and agree to follow You as you help me.”
Read the Bible and follow what it says. Jesus will *never* let you down!
PS: (you *really* don’t need to buy this item – it is just here so that you will ‘hear’ the Truth.
PPS: Saying a rote prayer or ‘pretending’ to turn to Jesus / away from sin is just hypocrisy. Empty religion can not save – only the certain judgment of God can be expected.
And when he [the Holy Spirit] comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. John 16:8-9 (NLT)
#thankYouJesus #reallife #freedom #forgiveness
Footnotes:
- 1We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6 (NLT)
- 2For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23 (NLT)
- 3For the wages of sin is death Romans 6:23 (NLT)
- 4And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.” John 3:36 (NLT)
- 5I solemnly urge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who will someday judge the living and the dead when he appears to set up his Kingdom 2 Timothy 4:1 (NLT)
- 6God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:8-10 (NLT)
- 7
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16 (NLT)