If, after reading the previous ten chapters and studying the indicated references, you view my logic as flawed then you are free to reject the teachings of this book. However, if you accept my logic, please continue reading; particularly if the first five chapters have shaken your trust in the materialistic/humanistic answers to important questions and the last five chapters have shaken your rejection of Christianity. In the next few paragraphs I'm going to delineate some important truths growing out of the beliefs that Jesus is God and the Bible was inspired by God. These paragraphs are directed at your heart since I am assuming your head has already been reached.
The one true God, existing as three eternal, distinct and unchangeable persons, created the universe as a home for man and then created a man and a woman to live on planet earth. God loved the man and woman and wanted them to return that love. They chose to reject God and desired to become gods themselves. Their disobedience ushered them and all their descendants onto the path of sin. Humanity has paid a great price for their decision: aging, disease, suffering, hatred, despair, loneliness, war, jealousy, murder, grief, death and, worst of all, separation from our creator. You see, God is holy and cannot fellowship with sinful creatures like you and I.
God knew, before the creation of the universe, that all this was going to happen. On one hand, God knew sin would prevent Him from fellowship with man; on the other hand, God knew He would love each individual unconditionally and would not want eternal separation to be the inevitable consequence of sin. But sin could not simply be overlooked; a price had to be paid for every crime. Unfortunately, if you and I paid the price for our own crimes, our souls would spend eternity in Hell. Before the universe began, God chose an incredible, astounding and magnificent solution to this dilemma.
Two of the three persons who are God have a Father/Son relationship. The Father sent the Son to earth to be incarnated as a man. If this man could live a sinless life culminating in humiliation, torture and execution for crimes He didn't commit, that punishment would pay the price for every sin throughout the history of the human race. This substitutionary atonement is exactly what transpired about 2000 years ago. Jesus paid the price for the sins of every man and woman who ever lived. But there's a catch. No one has been or will be simply handed the gift of salvation automatically.
The gift of salvation cannot be received until your heart is right with God. Getting your heart right with God cannot be accomplished by joining a particular Church, faithfully participating in Church activities, tithing, dedicating your life to Christian service, becoming a pastor, living what you and your friends consider to be a holy life, making life-risking sacrifices for Jesus or exercising some spiritual gift. To get your heart right, you must make something like the following statements to God and mean them to the depths of your soul:
Father, I come into Your presence confessing my sin nature and behavior, having remorse in my heart, wanting to repent, asking Your forgiveness, forgiving those who have sinned against me, asking for Your mercy, receiving from You the far greater gift of salvation and believing I am saved by faith, the grace of God and the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ. I can stand before You redeemed from eternal punishment, forgiven my sins, justified as sinless, adopted into the family of God, regenerated from the death of sin to a life of righteousness, guided along the path of sanctification, reconciled with fellow believers, united in the Church of Jesus Christ and looking forward to glorification only because Jesus died on the cross for my salvation. I accept the undeserved gifts of reconciliation with You, reconciliation with fellow believers and unification in the church. I pray that the Holy Spirit will occupy and purify my heart, help me discern the truth, make known to me the will of God, be Lord of my life and keep me on the path of repentance, faith and obedience continually reaffirmed and renewed.
THINK ABOUT IT DEAR READER...THINK ABOUT IT
