by Celesta Thiessen
Many people when asked this question will automatically respond, "yes". But are you really?
God loves everyone in the world so deeply. He wants us to know Him. He knows all about you (Matthew 10:30). And He loves you, specifically (1 John 4:10). He wants you to be his child and his friend.
Sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2). God cannot envelop us in His love, as he longs to do because sin blocks the path. Sin is anything we do that is wrong. Any lie, greed, envy...Anything you have ever done wrong is sin and so you are eternally separated from God. "For the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). If anyone sins, they die and go to Hell. Eternal death is the result of any sin.
Jesus, God's only son, died on the cross in your place. "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) He paid the price for your sin. He never sinned. Never ever (1Peter 2:22). So He did not have to die. But He died for all the sins ever committed. Then, He rose from the dead, proving His power over sin and death.
All we have to do is accept what he has done for us. "Confess with your mouth, ėJesus is Lord' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved." (Romans 10:9)
Salvation isn't logical (1 Corinthians 1:23). It simply isn't provable. But neither are love or truth. It is through faith that we are saved - through believing without seeing (Ephesians 2:8). You can never know God is real until you call out to Him. Admit your sin. Ask Him to forgive you. Make Jesus the lord of your life. Call out to Him now. Then you will know God's love. Then you will be a Christian.
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