The Ultimate Gift

"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God." Ephesians 2:8, NLT

Many times, we think that we have gone too far. God couldn't possibly love me or God would never forgive me, you just don't understand what I've done. You're right, I may not understand but the Bible says that "while we were yet sinners, God sent Jesus into the world to die for us."
On the other side of this coin are those of us who think that because of all the "good" we do, our ticket to heaven has been stamped. We tithe, we help the poor, we pray, we have our nose stuck so far up in the air that if it rains we may drown. How pathetic are we?
The good news is we can't out sin God's love! We can't get good enough to come to Jesus. He knows us better than we know ourselves and he loves us anyway! That my friend is awesome!
I have a friend who is fighting a heroin addiction. I've asked her to come to church with me and she says, "I will just as soon as I get clean. I can't go to church high." I've told her that Jesus will accept her right where she is and then he will start cleaning her up, he is willing to "wash her dirty feet." She just doesn't get it, I pray that she doesn't OD and die in her sin.
I have a family member who volunteers time to people less fortunate. "I don't have to go to church, God knows all the good I do. If he is just and loves me like you say he does, then there is no way he would send me to hell." That scares me worse than my friend who is an addict. She doesn't have to go to church to be saved, but if she is saved then why wouldn't she want to go?
The gospel is this:
Jesus is the only begotten son of God. He was born by a virgin, lived a sinless life, was obedient to death. He was falsely accused and crucified on the cross. After three days he rose from the grave, conquering death and hell.
We are born into sin. All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We are all in need of a savior, and the Bible teaches that no man comes to the father except by the son. Jesus is the only way! Not Buddha, Mohammad, or any other. Only Jesus can save us. All we have to do is let him. It is by grace, not anything we can do. It is a free gift from God!
Do you know Jesus? He would like for you to. Today is the day of salvation. Cry out to God, confess your sin and ask him to forgive you. Get a Bible, read it each day.
If you would like to know more about this free gift from your creator, click on one of the church links on this page. For prayer, or just someone to talk with, contact me directly; rlwhitener@gmail.com Please include "prayer request" in the subject line.
Thanks for following along,
God Bless