The Bible says...

1. God expects me to be perfect.

Matthew 5:48 says, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Matthew 5:20 " For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."

So, according to the Son of God, I must be free from sin in order to enter heaven. Not better than my neighbor, but perfect. That means without sin.

2. I'm not perfect. I am a sinner in the eyes of God.

Romans 3:23 " For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.

Romans 3: 10-12  "As it is written, THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NO, NOT ONE. THERE IS NONE THAT UNDERSTANDETH, THERE IS NONE THAT SEEKETH AFTER GOD. THEY ARE ALL GONE OUT OF THE WAY, THEY ARE TOGETHER BECOME UNPROFITABLE; THERE IS NONE THAT DOETH GOOD, NO, NOT ONE."

What does that mean to me personally?

3. Being a sinner carries consequences.

Romans 6:23 " For the wages of sin is death..."

But everybody dies, you say. Biblical death is something entirely different.

Revelation 21:8  "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."

Ezekiel 18:4  " Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die."

So we have a problem. A big, big problem.

But here's the Good News

4. God loves you!

Jeremiah 31:3  " The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee."

John 3:16  "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."

5. Jesus came to solve our sin problem.

John 1:1  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

John 1:14  " And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

Isaiah 53:5-6  "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."

Romans 6:23  "...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

6. Can't we work our way to righteousness? There must be something I can do to earn God's favor.

Faith in Christ is the only way to eternal life. No amount of good works or religion can save us.

Ephesians 2:8-9 " 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."

John 3:3  "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

7. How can a person be born again?

You must trust Christ and commit your life to His care and leadership.

Acts 16: 31  "...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved..."

Romans 10: 9-10  "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. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

Jesus is calling you!

Revelation 3:20  "Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

Will you let Him in?

John 1:12  "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."

1 John 5:13  "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."

All of the verses written above were wriiten by eyewitnesses. They were men who lived with Jesus, who ate and slept with Him. They witnessed His life, His miracles, and heard His words. They saw Him arrested, tried, and executed. They saw Him dead.

And then they saw Him LIVE AGAIN!

They died for not renouncing what they had witnessed. What will YOU believe? CNN, the Discovery Channel, the New York Times.... or these eyewitnesses who were there?

If you'd like to be forgiven of your sins, no matter what they are, and be assured of eternal life, here's what you need to do:

1. Agree with God that you are a sinner.

2. Repent: turn around. As much as you are able, stop sinning against God.

3. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Ask Him to come into your life, and save you from your sins. He will give you power to resist sin.

4. Walk with Jesus. Follow Him.

If you have sincerely done this, you are born-again!

Now What?

Read the Bible

1 Peter 2:2  "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby."

Pray

Phillipians 4:6  "Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

Now that you are a child of God, you will notice a huge difference in your prayer life. Your Father in heaven hears and answers your prayers.

Worship

 Psalm 122:1  "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord."

John 4:24  "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship must worship him in spirit and in truth."

After experiencing a peace with God like you've never known, worship will come very easily.

Fellowship

1 John 1:3  "That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ."

Find a church that accepts the Bible as it's sole authority and start going! It's important to help you grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ.

And finally...

If you have prayed to receive the free gift of eternal life from Christ, you are about to embark on the most amazing and wonderful journey imaginable. You will experience the abundant life that Christ has promised you. Your life will have purpose. Boredom will become a thing of the past as you walk with Him. There will be hardship and persecution, but Jesus has promised to never leave your side. And, perhaps for the first time, you will know joy, which is infinitely richer than momentary happiness. You will soon come to see that whatever you gave up to serve Christ is nothing compared to what He gives in return.

Welcome to the family of God!

Now go and tell someone what you have done