What is the Gospel?

Whenever people think about life after death, they have no fear about it. After all, they believe in God, and they think they are a pretty good person. They think that if anyone could end up in Heaven, they probably would. They think “Well, there are a lot worse people than me and I go to church”. While it may seem that God’s goodness will cause Him to overlook your sins, the opposite is actually true.

Now what is sin? It is a violation of God’s moral laws. Have you ever lied, stolen, used God’s name in vain, looked at the opposite sex with lust? Then you have sinned against God and that is just three of the Ten Commandments. “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.” (1 John 3:4)  If you sinned just five times a day for a year, you would have broken his law 1825 times.

Perhaps the following illustration will clarify this for you.  Imagine you’re standing before a judge, guilty of multiple crimes. The judge is about to pass sentence when he asks, “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” You stand up, look the judge in the eye and say, “Yes Your Honor, I believe that you’re a good man, and because you’re good, you will let me go.” The judge will probably say something like, “Well, you’re right about one thing, I am a good man. And it’s because I’m good that I’m going to see that you are punished for your crimes.”  

The very thing you are counting on to save you on the Day of Judgment—namely God’s goodness—is going to be the very thing that will guarantee that justice is done. Because God is so good He will make sure that every murderer, rapist and thief receives justice.  But He won’t stop there.  He will also make sure every liar, blasphemer, and adulterer is punished.  “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) 

While this is extremely tragic and far from God’s ultimate desire for any person, the Bible is clear that the place of punishment for those who do not turn from their sins is Hell.  Does this concern you?  It should. Would you sell your eyes for a million dollars?  No one in their right mind would!  Consider how precious your eyes are, then realize that Jesus said that Hell is so horrible that you would be better off tearing out your own eyes than ending up there for all eternity.  “And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out.  It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell...” (Mark 9:47)

Giving money to charity, going to church, and reading the Bible are all good activities, but none of them impress God. The Bible says, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” (Isaiah 64:6)   That means “good deeds” can never make up for the fact that we’ve broken God’s Holy Commandments.  Your own so-called “goodness” can’t get you into heaven any more than mine could.   So, what can get us into Heaven?  The Bible tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) 

This is what God did for you so that you wouldn’t have to go to Hell, God sent his only Son, Jesus, to die on the cross—suffering the punishment that justice demands. So it’s like this—we broke the law, Jesus Christ paid the fine. Then He rose from the grave, forever defeating death!

Jesus is the ONLY way to Heaven. He is the “Door.”  And there is salvation in no other name.  If you repent, which means to confess and abandon your sins, and put your trust in Jesus, then you will not have to suffer God’s justice in Hell, because the payment for your crimes was made by Jesus on the cross and God says he will forgive all your sins and grant you the gift of everlasting life.  Remember, you do NOT go to heaven because you are a good person, but rather because you are a BAD person whose sins have been forgiven by a very gracious God.

We are all part of the ultimate statistic. 10 out of 10 people will die, and none of us know when that day will be.  Life can be so unpredictable, so don’t take the risk and play Russian roulette with your soul.  The Bible says, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment...” (Hebrews 9:27)

Please Consider Everything I have said.  Do not waste another moment.  For TODAY is the day of YOUR SALVATION!  

If you’re not sure what to pray, read Psalm 51, and make it a model for your prayer.  The words are not “magical,” what God really cares about is the attitude of your heart.  When you pray, it should sound something like this:

“Dear God, I repent of all my sins, such as (name them).  I put my trust in Jesus Christ as Lord (to say Jesus is your Lord means you are now making Jesus the master over your life) and Savior.  Forgive me and grant me your gift of everlasting life.  In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.”

If you have done this sincerely, then you will become what the Bible calls “born again” where God gives you a new heart with new desires. This is not an overnight process, and will happen over time as you mature in the faith.  “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26)

Now read your Bible and pray daily, obey what you read, and find a good Bible believing church. God will never let you down.

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