Jesus loves you - He loves you enough to die for you. Jesus’ death and resurrection are the core of the Christian faith. No other events in world history have inspired (or offended) as many people as those that took place in Jerusalem in about 30AD. There is no denying that Jesus’ death and resurrection were the most significant events in world history. But why would Jesus die? He went to the cross willingly, despite the agony and shame that faced him. What is it about Jesus’ death that is so important?
Jesus’ death was God’s way of dealing with mankind’s wrongdoings that have separated us from God. God has always said that the penalty for these wrongdoings is death, yet every person falls short of the standards God has set. It would seem that God had two choices - accept that no person would be able to enjoy relationship with Him or contradict His own law and waive the death penalty for sin.
God is a loving God. In His Word, the Bible, He states that He desires mercy, not sacrifice. And God is also a God of justice, ever faithful - if He says it, He does it. So His desire has always been to restore relationship between ourselves and Him, but a death had to occur for that to happen - that death is the one of Jesus on the cross.
Jesus says, “God so loved the world that he gave [me], so that whoever believes in [me] will not actually die but live forever”.
Jesus’ death restores our relationship with God, and over and above that Jesus’ resurrection life allows us to live eternally with God. The God of the Universe desires to be our friend! He has done all that is necessary to allow us to choose whether or not we will accept His gift.
The gift of relationship with God and eternal life are not anything we can earn. They are the desires of every human (even if we don’t know it) because these gifts of God lead to complete fulfillment and peace, and a joy that just can’t be attained anywhere else. The religions of the world strive to reach the eternal God, hoping that their efforts will win them an eternal life. Sadly for them, the gifts of God are just that - gifts, not wages. They cannot be earned. They can be accepted though, and God offers this wonderful life to everybody.
So what do you have to do to accept this gift of life from God? You simply need to make a decision in your heart to accept Jesus’ sacrifice as being for you. There is nothing that you could ever do to earn the gift of a forever friendship with God, and there is nothing you could do to make God withdraw his offer from you. You cannot have done enough wrong things in your life to make God stop loving you.
To become a Christian, which is all it means to accept Christ’s life into your own, is simply a matter of inviting God’s Holy Spirit to live in your heart. If this is a decision you want to make, why not pray to God (prayer is simply talking to God). A suggested prayer is:
Father, I know that there is nothing I could ever do to earn Your love, and I know that nothing I have ever done that will make You love me any less. I want the peace and joy that comes from a relationship with You. I want You to be a part of my life every day, and I want to have a friendship with You forever. I accept the relationship I now have with You, by identifying with Christ’s death on the cross. And I accept the life You have for me, by identifying with Christ’s resurrection. Thank You that You loved me enough to give Your only Son to reconcile me to You.
If you prayed that prayer and meant it in your heart, God now lives inside of you. He says in His Word that He will never leave you or forsake you. You can now talk plainly to Him whenever you like, and He will guide and direct you into all the great things He has in store for your life.
An important thing to do is to read and understand the Bible. Start with the New Testament, and ask God to help reveal His plan for you as you read it. There is no better way of getting to know God better than by reading His Word.
You will also benefit greatly by joining a local, Bible-believing church. You will find other people who have made the same decision as you and you will be able to relate well with them because of your common experience and your common relationship with God. They will be able to help you grow in the faith and you will also be able to help them. Ask God to direct you to a church that is committed to the truth of the Bible, where you can grow in relationship with Him.