And this is eternal life, that they may know You,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
(John 17:3 NKJV)
The most important message of the Bible is the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. His final command to His disciples was to "go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15. This is the message about Jesus Christ that everyone needs to hear. That's because "there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12.
He stands alone as the most famous person who ever lived. His life and teaching have profoundly impacted more people than anyone else. Nations tell time by His birth. His appeal extends across race, culture, and national boundaries. People have found in Him what they could not find in anyone else.
No one ever taught like Jesus. No one ever lived like Him. No one ever loved like Him. There is no one else like Him in the history of the world. He is incomparable!
On one occasion Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." Of course, these answers were all wrong. Jesus continued, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!" Jesus answered, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." See Matthew 16:13-18.
Jesus Himself claimed to be the Son of God. When He was on trial before Caiaphas, the high priest, He was asked, "Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!" Jesus answered, "It is as you said." The Lord was charged with blasphemy for which the penalty was death. Matthew 26:63-68.
Jesus also frequently spoke of the Father-Son relationship. Because of this, the Jews accused Him of making Himself equal with God. Who else but Jesus could say, "For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him." John 5:21-23.
The apostle John begins his gospel, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1. Jesus Christ is "the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14.
We can only find God where He has revealed Himself. Only Jesus could say, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father." John 14:9. The Son has made the Father known. The apostle Paul put it this way: "He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist." Colossians 1:15-17.
"For in Him (Jesus) dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Colossians 2:10. He is both truly God, and truly man. Jesus is God incarnate!
All mankind has a common problem. "For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:22, 23. "There is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:10. Sin is an undeniable fact of human life.
Sin has its consequences. "Therefore, just as through one man (Adam) sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned…" Romans 5:12. "The wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23.
Everyone has an appointment with death. "It is appointed for men to die once, and after this the judgment." Hebrews 9:27. No one will escape the righteous judgment of God.
You cannot save yourself by good works. The Bible makes this clear. "By the works of the law no flesh shall be justified." Galatians 2:16. "Not by works of righteousness that we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us." Titus 3:5. Do you think that Jesus would have gone to the cross if you could save yourself by your good works? Paul answers that question. "I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain." Galatians 2:21.
You need a Savior. Consider Jesus, who died for your sins in your place. "For when we were still without strength, in due time (at the right time) Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:6-8. Jesus died for us while we were without strength, ungodly, and still sinners.
God didn't just talk about His love for us. He demonstrated it. "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation (sacrifice) for our sins." 1 John 4:10. This God of love has involved Himself in the sin and salvation of all mankind.
The preaching of the cross was of primary importance to the apostle Paul. He wrote, "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:3. Christ died for our sins!
The cross is only half the message. The resurrection is the second half. Jesus' death and resurrection are inseparable. "And that He was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:4.
Jesus made an astonishing claim in John 10:17, 18: "Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down my life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father." No one else could make that statement.
Jesus foretold His resurrection, when He drove out the animals and money changers from the temple in Jerusalem. He said to the Jews, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." They didn't understand that "He was speaking of the temple of His body." John 2:19, 21. Later He gave a sign to some of the scribes and Pharisees, saying, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Matthew 12:39, 40.
Christ died for our sins. He rose again the third day. "And that He was seen by Cephas (Peter), then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me (Paul) also, as one born out of due time." 1 Corinthians 15:5-8. These people were eyewitnesses of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ.
The apostles delivered the message, preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. They were forbidden to preach the gospel, but they obeyed God rather than men. They were beaten, imprisoned, and killed for preaching Jesus and the resurrection. But they had seen Jesus. They had a personal relationship with Him. They had come to a saving knowledge of Christ. If they had been false witnesses of His resurrection, would they have been willing to suffer and die for a lie? Of course not!
The religious leaders in Jerusalem could have silenced the preaching of the resurrection immediately simply by displaying the dead body of Jesus. But there was no body for them to show. The tomb was empty.
The Lord Jesus Christ is risen. He is the Savior, who said, "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen." Revelation 1:18.
Is He your Savior? Do you know Him?
The message, the good news of Jesus Christ, "is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes." Romans 1:16.
Paul and Silas were imprisoned missionaries at Philippi. There was an earthquake, and the keeper of the prison was fearful that the prisoners would escape. Trembling for his life, he asked God's messengers the most important question that you will find in the Bible. "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." Acts 16:31.
The Lord Jesus Christ promises eternal life to those who believe in Him. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16. Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life." John 6:47.
Those who receive Jesus Christ by faith become children of God. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right (authority) to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." John 1:10-13. Believers are born again into the family of God.
What does it mean to believe in Jesus? For many people it is merely a mental assent, like believing in George Washington, Julius Caesar, or some other historical person. They know the basic truths of the gospel and profess to be Christians. Their logic may be sound, and they may be doctrinally correct. However, they have never welcomed Him into their lives, trusting Him as their personal Savior."
You must be saved. You can be saved. The Scripture says, "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Romans 10:9, 10.
If you have never received Jesus Christ as your Savior, you can call on Him today. "For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.' For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call on Him. For 'whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.'" Romans 10:11-13.
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If you have trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior for the first time through this site, we invite you to contact us so that we may rejoice with you.
When someone accepts the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior, they are encouraged to read the Bible and pray every day. Bible study and prayer are important. We encourage you to use the studies on this site (see the menu at the top) as a starting point.
The sites on our Links will help you find additional resources for growing in Him.
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” Colossians 2:6.
How did you receive the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior? You received Him by faith, that is, by believing on Him. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.” John 1:12. Believing is receiving. That is the only requirement for salvation.
What is a new believer supposed to do? We should “walk in Him” the same way that we received him…by faith! “The just shall live by faith.” See Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38. We walk by faith.
Step One: Assurance. Do you have the full assurance of faith? Your faith is in a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and it is based upon His promise as recorded in the Word of God. “And this is the promise that He has promised us---eternal life.” 1 John 2:25. Are you a believer? “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.” 1 John 5:13.
Step Two: The Scriptures. When you were born again, you became a child of God. “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.” 1 Peter 2:2. It is the Word of God that is able to build you up. Acts 20:32. Study the Scriptures. Meditate upon them. Memorize them. The holy Scriptures will strengthen your faith like nothing else.
Step Three: Prayer. The apostles followed Christ for three years and were told, “Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:24. You can come to God in the full assurance of faith in the name of Jesus. Let it not be said of you, “You do not have because you do not ask.” James 4:2. Make prayer a regular part of your life.
Step Four: Fellowship. Become part of a fellowship of Bible-believing Christians. “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some….” Hebrews 10:24, 25. Be mindful that “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:9. You’ll find the good Shepherd among His sheep.
Step Five: The Holy Spirit. The dynamic of Christian living is the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God. “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Galatians 5:25. God’s Spirit is a missionary Spirit, who empowers believers in their witness for the Lord. Acts 1:8. We are admonished to be “filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:18. He only fills that which is His. “And He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15.
You’ll discover that as you walk by faith, you will walk with God. It was said of Noah and Enoch that they walked with Him. May this be your joyful experience as you walk with the Lord step by step.