We make different kinds of decisions.
• SIMPLE or TRIVIAL [“Where to eat?” “What to wear?”]
• SIGNIFICANT [“What career should I pursue?”]
• LIFE CHANGING [“Who do I marry?”]
Today, you are about to make a decision that will impact you for…
ETERNITY!
There are four important truths that you must know…
Truth #1
GOD LOVES YOU…
…and desires that you have eternal life with Him and…
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
…and that you have an abundant and meaningful life with Him.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10)
But most people are not experiencing a meaningful life and…
They are not sure that they have ETERNAL LIFE because…
TRUTH #2
MAN has a SIN problem that separates him/her from the Holy GOD.
How?
Romans 3:23 says, “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;”
THE PENALTY OF SIN IS DEATH.
“For the wages of sin is death, …” (Romans 6:23)
Death is a reality that is not hard for us to imagine because we see death happening everyday of our lives. But the death that we witness is a separation of our physical body from our soul (or spiritual self).
The greatest BAD NEWS though for us is that there is a another kind of death that we cannot avoid. That is a SPIRITUAL DEATH or the ETERNAL SEPARATION FROM GOD known as the…
SECOND DEATH!
“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and ALL LIARS, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” (Revelation 21:8)
SINCE SIN SEPARATES US FROM GOD…
WHAT IS THE SOLUTION TO THIS PROBLEM?
We often think that RELIGION, GOOD WORKS, & GOOD MORALS are the solution.
But there is only ONE solution from God.
TRUTH #3
JESUS CHRIST IS GOD’S ONLY WAY TO ETERNAL LIFE.
In John 14:6, Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
HE COMPLETELY PAID THE PENALTY OF YOUR SINS.
“For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God” (1 Peter 3:18)
HIS RESURRECTION PROVES THAT HE IS THE SON OF GOD, THE MESSIAH, THE ONLY SAVIOR.
“the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,” (Romans 1:3–4)
HE PROMISES ETERNAL LIFE.
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God’s wrath.” (John 3:36)
Merely knowing what Christ has done for us is not enough.
TRUTH #4
WE MUST PLACE OUR FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST TO SAVE US.
WE ARE SAVED BY GOD’S GRACE THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST ALONE.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Based on Ephesians 2:8–9, if salvation can be expressed in a formula, which do you think is the correct one?
F1: FAITH IN JESUS + YOUR GOOD WORKS = SALVATION
F2: FAITH IN JESUS ONLY = SALVATION
The right answer, of course, is Formula #2.
How about all our GOOD WORKS?
Ephesians 2:10 tells us that good works were always meant to come as a by-product of salvation: “For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.”
GOOD WORKS are not the means to salvation. So, if Jesus Christ alone paid for our sins, what is our part?
Do you remember this verse?
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
How do you show your belief in Jesus Christ?
Accepting His gift of Eternal Life
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
Note: A gift can never be earned. It can only be accepted or rejected.
This is all that God asks of you; to have FAITH in Jesus.
When He sees your faith, God promises that you will surely know that you have ETERNAL LIFE!
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13)
Perhaps you have trusted God for many things, but today He is asking you to trust Him alone to save you. He is offering you forgiveness and eternal life, and He wants to have a personal relationship with you.
ARE YOU WILLING TO MAKE THE DECISION TO TRUST AND FOLLOW JESUS AS YOUR LORD AND SAVIOR?
- Consider what you just read very carefully.
- Ask yourself if you truly want Eternal Life.
- Then, pray this in faith:
LORD JESUS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LOVING ME. I CONFESS THAT I HAVE SINNED AGAINST YOU. THANK YOU FOR DYING ON THE CROSS FOR MY SINS.
TODAY, I PUT MY TRUST IN YOU AS MY LORD AND SAVIOR. I ACCEPT YOUR FREE GIFT OF ETERNAL LIFE AND I SURRENDER MY LIFE TO YOU.
THANK YOU FOR FORGIVING MY SINS. FROM THIS DAY ON, I CHOOSE TO FOLLOW YOU.
AMEN.
Johann Quisumbing 