Salvation means to be rescued from sin and its punishment and set free to know, love and serve God. Jesus replied,
"I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin...If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:34,36).
JESUS & YOU
In the beginning, thousands of years ago, God created the heavens and the earth. He made the sun, the moon and the stars. He made the waters and the dry land. He made all that is on earth. He made the grass, flowers and trees as well as all the fishes, birds and mammal (Genesis 1:1-25).
Then God created man in His own image, male and female. He called the man Adam and the woman was named Eve by her husband. God blessed them and gave them dominion over every living thing on earth. He commissioned them to be fruitful and multiply to fill the earth. (Genesis 1:26-28)
God made a garden in Eden and put Adam and Eve there to take care of it. It was a beautiful place. They lived there in happiness, eating from the trees of the garden. In the garden, God had placed two special trees. One was the Tree of Life. The other, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. God told Adam and Eve that they were not to eat of this tree. If they did, God said that they would surely die. God did not want His children to know evil, so He told them not to eat from that tree. God wanted His children pure and innocent. (Genesis 2:8,9,15,16&17)
Before God made the world, God had prepared a place in the heavenlies called Heaven. He had also made thousands upon thousands of heavenly beings called angels. These heavenly beings served and worshiped God. There was order among the angels. The angels in charge were called arch angels or chief angels. (Hebrews 1:6,7)
At some point in time past, one of the chief angels called Lucifer became proud and rebellious. He vowed to make himself like God. He influenced other angels to follow him and they plotted to exalt themselves above God. God punished Lucifer and the angels by casting them out of Heaven. A lake of fire in a place called Hell was prepared as an ultimate punishment for them. Lucifer, who is the devil, hated God. He desired to "get even" by destroying God's creation. He came into the garden in the form of a serpent, a most crafty beast. He deceived Eve and she ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Eve gave some fruit to Adam, who was with her, and he ate some also. (Genesis 3:1-6)
The disobedience of Adam and Eve was the first sin. God banished them from the Garden of Eden. He knew that they would be tempted to eat of the Tree of Life and, therefore, live forever in their sin. Because of their sin, the curse of God came upon this first family. Their sorrow, after being driven out of their beautiful home, was very great. Since that time, all their descendants, all people from that time until now, are born with a sinful nature, a desire to sin. It does not take long in an individual's life for this nature to manifest itself. (Genesis 3:7-24)
God loves people, His creation. He promised that He would send a Savior to deliver them from the curse of sin. For thousands of years this promise was passed down from generation to generation. Through the centuries, people waited for the Savior to come and free them from the judgment of sin. God periodically sent messengers, His prophets, to encourage people to have faith and wait a little longer. (Matthew 3:1-3)
About 2,000 years ago, during the Roman Empire, God fulfilled His promise. A child, Jesus, whose name means Savior, was to be born to a virgin named Mary. Mary was pledged to be married to a man named Joseph. God said that this Child would be the long waited for Savior of the world. This was to be a true miracle birth. Mary was not married at the time of conception. She had not had sexual relations with any man. An angel called Gabriel prepared Mary for this by visiting her and telling her that God the Holy Spirit would come upon her, leaving her with Child. She would give birth to a Son who would be called Jesus. This baby was God's very own Son. (Luke 1:26-35)
Jesus, born in Bethlehem, lived for 33 years in the land of Israel. He grew up a child of Mary and her husband Joseph. Jesus lived a sinless life. His life was a demonstration of the love of God. He healed the sick and did many wonderful miracles: the blind were made to see; the deaf heard; the lame walked; the dumb spoke. He raised some people from the dead and cast evil spirits out of people who were possessed by them. People loved Jesus and many believed in Him and followed Him. (Luke 7:1-23 , John 11: 30-45)
Some religious rulers known of that time became jealous of Jesus. They wanted to kill Him. One day, they seized Him and brought Him before the religious and political courts. After an unfair trial with false witnesses, they sentenced him to death by crucifixion, the cruel Roman method of executing criminals. (John 11: 46-57, John 19)
Those who wanted Jesus dead rejoiced, but not for long. After three days in a tomb, Jesus, the Savior of the world, arose from the dead. He came out of the grave and for forty days appeared to His disciples and friends. They later told this to others. He was taken up into Heaven, where He is today. (Luke 24)
Jesus, the Son of God, died for a purpose. He could have saved Himself by calling on angels to set Him free, but He chose not to. He chose to die and thereby suffer the punishment of sin for each and every one of us. He was judged by God, His father, with the judgment we deserved. He bore our sins when He was crucified. His death, burial and resurrection once again made fellowship between God and man possible. What sin destroyed in the Garden of Eden, Jesus again made possible. (Isaiah 53:4-12, Romans 4:20-25, Romans 5:18,19)
If you have never heard this story before, it might sound quite strange to you. The Bible says 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." For those who believe, this has become our joy, comfort and peace. If you choose to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that His death, burial and resurrection was for you, you too can receive forgiveness and everlasting life. Jesus will become your personal Savior and Lord if you ask Him. He loves you! He died for you! He wants you to love Him and tell others the story you have just read. There is a penalty if you reject Jesus. The penalty is spending eternity separated from God and His love. The Lake of Fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels will be your eternal home if you do not accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. But if you believe, you will be saved from this terrible fate.
If, after reading this message, you want to make Jesus Christ your Savior and Lord and become a part of the family of God, simply pray this prayer from your heart (sincerely), and say unto God with your voice (out loud):
Heavenly Father, I come to You in the name of Jesus. I recognize that I am a sinner and cannot change myself. I ask that You change me. I thank You for sending Jesus to die for my sins. I believe that He died for me and that You raised Him from the dead after three days. I renounce Satan, the devil. I repent of my sins and I ask Jesus into my heart to be Savior and Lord. Jesus, I love You and will live my life for You. Come into my life and make me pure and holy as You are. In Jesus' name. Amen."
Praise God! You are now a child of God and on your way to heaven! Build your relationship with Jesus by calling on Him every day through prayer and reading His Word, the Bible.
If you have trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, please let us know by contacting us using the link at the top of this page.
Special Thanks to and in memory of Pastor Ulrich, Word Of Life Ministries 80 W. Merrick Rd. Freeport, New York 11520 Authors of "JESUS CHRIST: WHO HE IS & WHAT HE DID FOR YOU" tract.
We pray that this ministry will be a blessing to you and your family.
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