Man's Fallen Condition
God wants us to realize our condition before Him. We are a sinner by nature; this sin nature was inherited from the first man Adam. Adam sinned and disobeyed the commandment of God. Since Adam was the first man created by God all man next to him inherited this sinful nature, generations by generations, we are all sinner as stated by Isaiah 53:6
"All we like sheep gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Also in Romans 6:23
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
Yes we are ALL sinner, no man has reached God's standard that even a hatred toward our brother was considered murder as stated in 1 John 3:15
"Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."
And even looking to a woman in lustful way is considered adultery as stated in Matthew 5:28
"But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
In Romans 3:10 "There is none righteous, no, not one." Oh you may say that you are a follower of God's holy law but I tell you "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." as James 2:10 told us. Think about it when you lie you are a liar and at the same time you are a murderer.
So let us just accept the fact that we are a sinner and we are separated from God because of our sins. We cannot offer God our righteousness as it written in Isaiah 64:6 "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
"All we like sheep gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Also in Romans 6:23
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
Yes we are ALL sinner, no man has reached God's standard that even a hatred toward our brother was considered murder as stated in 1 John 3:15
"Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."
And even looking to a woman in lustful way is considered adultery as stated in Matthew 5:28
"But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."
In Romans 3:10 "There is none righteous, no, not one." Oh you may say that you are a follower of God's holy law but I tell you "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." as James 2:10 told us. Think about it when you lie you are a liar and at the same time you are a murderer.
So let us just accept the fact that we are a sinner and we are separated from God because of our sins. We cannot offer God our righteousness as it written in Isaiah 64:6 "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
There Is A Price On Our Sin
Now that we know that we are sinner, our righteousness is nothing but a filthy rag before God. We need to know also that a loving God is also a righteous Judge, yes you heard me right, a RIGHTEOUS GOD. If God is a righteous GOD then we are to be judge, all our sins will not go unpunished. You can say that God is not a God of love since He wants ALL of us to be punish, I tell you a story my friend, there was this man found and proven of murder, he stand before a judge, if the judge declared him as innocent despite of evidence and proof that he murdered someone can you call this judge a righteous judge? You said no? That was it! God is a righteous God and he will judge us righteously.
As it is written in Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” There is this punishment of our sin and that is death. Yes we are all going to die after all, but this death means that our soul will be cast in the lake of fire forever and ever as it is written in Revelation 20:14-15 "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." This is the punishment of our sin our soul will be cast in hell, you say you don't believe in this hell well you can stop reading right now and click this link and learn the reality of hell.
We must accept the fact that we are a sinner and are appointed to cast in hell, yes all of us as the bible warned us in 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.”
As it is written in Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” There is this punishment of our sin and that is death. Yes we are all going to die after all, but this death means that our soul will be cast in the lake of fire forever and ever as it is written in Revelation 20:14-15 "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." This is the punishment of our sin our soul will be cast in hell, you say you don't believe in this hell well you can stop reading right now and click this link and learn the reality of hell.
We must accept the fact that we are a sinner and are appointed to cast in hell, yes all of us as the bible warned us in 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.”
Jesus Paid The Price Of Our Sin
At this very moment what I am telling you is only the bad news, that we are sinner destined to hell. Let us take a moment of silence and let us accept the fact....Now are we ready for the good news and that is the main reason I wrote this, to share to you the good news and the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It is written in the bible in 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.” Yes God loves us so much that He the righteous judge do something so unfathomable so uneasy to understand that He himself needs to die for us! Jesus, the God incarnate, live and walked among us, the begotten Son Of God, took the punishment of our sin and died on the cross. It is written in Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
And this is the good news, the gospel as it is written in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”
It is written in the bible in 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.” Yes God loves us so much that He the righteous judge do something so unfathomable so uneasy to understand that He himself needs to die for us! Jesus, the God incarnate, live and walked among us, the begotten Son Of God, took the punishment of our sin and died on the cross. It is written in Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
And this is the good news, the gospel as it is written in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”
Repentance And Faith
Now that we know that all of us was a sinner, appointed to hell and that the good news of Jesus' death, crucifixion and resurrection. What will we do next? When Jesus Christ commences his ministry and begun preaching, His very first preaching is "Repent ye, and believe the gospel." (Mark 1:15). I will not go in detail about repentance, but yo may click the link for further study about repentance. But let me give you an overview of biblical repentance.
"Repentance and faith can be understood as “two sides of the same coin.” It is impossible to place your faith in Jesus Christ as the Savior without first changing your mind about who He is and what He has done. Whether it is repentance from willful rejection or repentance from ignorance or disinterest, it is a change of mind. Biblical repentance, in relation to salvation, is changing your mind from rejection of Christ to faith in Christ." (gotquestions.org/repentance)
And faith is simply to put your trust in Jesus Christ. To put your trust in His finished work, to put your faith that Jesus died, buried and rose again on the third day to give us the free gift of salvation. A saving faith is well emphasized by David Cloud "Saving faith is a faith that issues from a heart that is convinced of its own fallen condition and has stopped making excuses and hiding in self-righteousness. Saving faith issues from a heart that is convinced that Christ is the only Lord and Saviour and that reaches out to Christ in personal trust. Saving faith issues from a surrendered heart, which is the very essence of repentance."
Jesus said that "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6). In order to obtain the free gift of salvation one must simply turn to repentance and have faith in Jesus Christ to accept Him as He is, God incarnate that died and resurrected for the remission of sin and salvation of soul.
It is a free gift of salvation, it is not of our works as stated in 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."
Charles Spurgeon have wonderfully put repentance and faith on work together.
"Oh, how blessed it is to know where these two lines meet, the stripping of repentance, and the clothing of faith! The repentance that ejects sin as an evil tenant, and the faith which admits Christ to be the sole master of the heart; the repentance which purges the soul from dead works, and the faith that fills the soul with living works; the repentance which pulls down, and the faith which builds up; the repentance that scatters stones, and the faith which puts stones together; the repentance which ordains a time to weep, and the faith that gives a time to dance— these two things together make up the work of grace within, whereby men's souls are saved." (spurgeon.org/sermons/0460)
"Repentance and faith can be understood as “two sides of the same coin.” It is impossible to place your faith in Jesus Christ as the Savior without first changing your mind about who He is and what He has done. Whether it is repentance from willful rejection or repentance from ignorance or disinterest, it is a change of mind. Biblical repentance, in relation to salvation, is changing your mind from rejection of Christ to faith in Christ." (gotquestions.org/repentance)
And faith is simply to put your trust in Jesus Christ. To put your trust in His finished work, to put your faith that Jesus died, buried and rose again on the third day to give us the free gift of salvation. A saving faith is well emphasized by David Cloud "Saving faith is a faith that issues from a heart that is convinced of its own fallen condition and has stopped making excuses and hiding in self-righteousness. Saving faith issues from a heart that is convinced that Christ is the only Lord and Saviour and that reaches out to Christ in personal trust. Saving faith issues from a surrendered heart, which is the very essence of repentance."
Jesus said that "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6). In order to obtain the free gift of salvation one must simply turn to repentance and have faith in Jesus Christ to accept Him as He is, God incarnate that died and resurrected for the remission of sin and salvation of soul.
It is a free gift of salvation, it is not of our works as stated in 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."
Charles Spurgeon have wonderfully put repentance and faith on work together.
"Oh, how blessed it is to know where these two lines meet, the stripping of repentance, and the clothing of faith! The repentance that ejects sin as an evil tenant, and the faith which admits Christ to be the sole master of the heart; the repentance which purges the soul from dead works, and the faith that fills the soul with living works; the repentance which pulls down, and the faith which builds up; the repentance that scatters stones, and the faith which puts stones together; the repentance which ordains a time to weep, and the faith that gives a time to dance— these two things together make up the work of grace within, whereby men's souls are saved." (spurgeon.org/sermons/0460)
Why The Delay?
We are sinners, leading to hell, Jesus Christ died for our sins and promised redemption and salvation, we only just need to repent and have faith toward Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
Why the delay? Most of us have the response that we will think it before we decide to repent and believe the gospel of Christ. The bible says in James 4:14 "Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. " We simply don't know our appointed time of death, it may be today, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. We must respond to God's salvation message as early as possible as Jesus said in 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." Why to delay opening the door as the bible said in 2 Corinthians 6:2 "For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
Respond my dear friend and secure your eternity in heaven it may be that one day you woke up in hell if you don't accept the free gift of salvation.
Repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ making him as your Lord and Savior. Believe in Jesus Christ's finished work that his death, burial and resurrection to the redemption of your soul. Simply say a simple sincere prayer acknowledging that you are a sinner and in need of a savior.
Why the delay? Most of us have the response that we will think it before we decide to repent and believe the gospel of Christ. The bible says in James 4:14 "Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. " We simply don't know our appointed time of death, it may be today, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. We must respond to God's salvation message as early as possible as Jesus said in 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." Why to delay opening the door as the bible said in 2 Corinthians 6:2 "For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
Respond my dear friend and secure your eternity in heaven it may be that one day you woke up in hell if you don't accept the free gift of salvation.
Repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ making him as your Lord and Savior. Believe in Jesus Christ's finished work that his death, burial and resurrection to the redemption of your soul. Simply say a simple sincere prayer acknowledging that you are a sinner and in need of a savior.