|
MAY I ASK
YOU A QUESTION?
Has anyone ever
taken a Bible and shown you how you can KNOW
for sure that you’re going to heaven?
The Bible contains
both BAD NEWS and GOOD NEWS.
The bad
news is something about YOU. The good
news is something about GOD.
Let’s look at the
bad news first….
Bad News #1
You are a
sinner. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God.”
“Sinned” means
that we have missed the mark. When we lie,
hate, lust, or gossip, we have missed the
standard God has set.
Suppose you and I
were each to throw a rock and try to hit the
North Pole. You might throw farther than I,
but neither of us would hit it.
When the Bible
says, “All have sinned and fall short, “it
means that we have all come short of God’s
standard of perfection.
In thought, words
and deeds, we have not been perfect.
But the bad
news gets worse…….
Bad News #2
The penalty for
sin is death. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of
sin is death.”
Suppose you worked
for me and I paid you $50. That $50 is your
wages. That’s what you earned.
The Bible says
that by sinning we have earned death. That
means we deserve to die and be separated from
God forever.
But…… since there
was no way you could come to God, the Bible
says that God decided to come to you!
GOOD NEWS #1
Christ died for
you. Romans 5:8 tells us, “But God
demonstrates His own love toward us, in that
while we were still sinners, Christ died for
us.”
Suppose you are in
a hospital dying of cancer. I come to you and
say, “Let’s take the cancer cells from your
body and put them into my body.”
If that were
possible,
What would
happen to me?
What would
happen to you?
I would
die in your place.
I would
die instead of you.
The Bible says
Christ took the penalty that we deserved for
sin, placed it upon Himself, and died in
our place.
Three days later
Christ came back to life to prove that sin and
death had been conquered and that His claims
to God were true.
Just as the bad
news got worse, the good news gets better!
Good News #2
You can be saved
through faith in Christ.
Ephesians 2: 8, 9
says, “For by grace (undeserved favor) you
have been saved (delivered from sin’s penalty)
through faith, and that not of yourselves; it
is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone
should boast.”
Faith means
trust.
Q: What must you
trust Christ for?
A: You must depend
on Him alone to forgive you and to give you
eternal life.
Just as you trust
a chair to hold you through no effort of your
own, so you must trust Jesus Christ to get
you into heaven through no effort of your
own.
But you may say,
“I’m
religious.” “I go to church.” “I don’t
steal.” “I’m a good person.” “I help the
poor.”
These are all
good, but good living, going to church,
helping the poor or any other good thing you
might do cannot get you into heaven.
You must trust in
Jesus Christ alone, and God will give you
eternal life as a gift!
Does this
make sense to you?
Is there
anything keeping you from trusting Christ
right now?
1. _________________________________
2. _________________________________
3. _________________________________
Think
carefully. There is nothing more important
than your need to trust Christ.
Would you like to
tell God you are trusting Jesus Christ as you
Savior?
If you would, why
not pray right now and tell God you are
trusting His Son?
Remember!
It is not a prayer
that saves you. It is trusting Jesus Christ
that saves you. Prayer is simply how you tell
God what you are doing.
“Dear God. I know I’m a sinner.
I know my sin
deserves to be punished. I believe Christ died
for me and rose from the grave.
I trust Jesus
Christ alone as my Savior. Thank You for the
forgiveness and everlasting I now have.
In
Jesus’ name. amen.”
The article
“May I Ask You a Question” was taken from
literature provided by my home church. It was
printed in booklet form by EvanTell Inc. in
Dallas, TX.
|
