God Loves Me

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The Bible tells us, “God is Love!” (1 John 4:8). The Lord is our Creator and cares a great deal about us. “See how much the Father has loved us? His love is so great that we are called God’s children” (1 John 3:1 TEV).  God wants you to have a happy life. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

Perhaps you’ve had moments in your life when you wondered, “Is this all there is?” Maybe you’ve felt something was missing and felt a longing to understand the purpose of life—your life! Some people feel an emptiness in their hearts that nothing seems to fill. Others wonder, “Where did I come from?” or “Why is there so much hatred and evil in the world?” 

 

The Bible tells us there is a loving and compassionate God who created our world to have a meaningful and joyful relationship with us. Our planet was created perfectly. There was no death or pain; no tears were shed over broken relationships. Everything functioned harmoniously.
 

My Sin Separates Me from God

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Sin has broken our connection with God. “But your iniquities have separated you from your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He will not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). Everyone has broken God’s perfect law of love. “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Unless something happens, we are all doomed to die. “For the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23).

Yeshua Connects Me Back to God because of God’s great love of sending His Son, Yeshua willingly took the wages of our sin upon Himself. Our Messiah gave His life for us as the perfect  Passover Lamb. He died in our stead so people could live eternally and not have to die. Yeshua's life without sin covers my life of sin to have eternal life—salvation.

God accepted Yeshua's death as full payment for all my past sins. “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). But someone did intercede for us. Even though our first parents turned away from God and believed a lie, the Lord provided a way out, a plan to save people from destruction and eternal death. Yeshua, the Messiah, the Son of God, chose to take the penalty for us.

 

Sin is turning from God’s law of love and life, and the result of sin is death. Yeshua, who was equal with God, willingly laid down His life, dying for the sins of the whole world, provided His perfect life and sacrifice for our sinful and broken lives. Hence, Yeshua offers the gift of salvation freely. It is not something we can buy but only accept. We deserve death since all of us have sinned and turned from God. Yeshua extends eternal life to us. People do not have to live meaningless lives that end in hopelessness and death. God desires to restore humankind into a life-giving relationship and give people new hearts that desire the Lord and turn toward the way of life.

This gift of salvation can be ours if only we will accept it.
 

How Do I Accept Yeshua Into My Life?

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When I accept Yeshua as my Messiah, as a gift, I become a child of God. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Yeshua the Messiah our Lord” (Romans 6:23). What does His death on the cross mean in my life? “To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave the power to become children of God” (John 1: 12 RSV). If you would like to receive Yeshua into your life right now, follow these simple steps:
 

1. Recognize you must die. “The wages of sin are death…” (Romans 6:23).

2. Realize you cannot save yourself. “Without Me (God), you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

3. Repent and confess to God that you are a sinner. “All have sinned…” (Romans 3:23).\

4. Believe that Yeshua Jesus died for your sins. “For God so loved the world that He gave…” (John 3:16)

5. Believe that He forgives you of sin. “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)

6. Believe that you have eternal life. “He who believes in Me has everlasting life” (John 6:47).

Now live in faith every day in your new way of life. “As you, therefore, have received Yeshua the Messiah, now walk with the Lord in a life of faith” (Colossians 2:6).

Isn't it true? If someone gives you a gift, it is not yours until you receive it?  Yeshua, holds out before you the gift of salvation, but how do you take it? The Bible tells us that we must first sense our need for Messiah. This comes as the Holy Spirit speaks to our conscience, and we realize our sins have separated us from God. Then we are led to repent of our sins, which means we acknowledge in our hearts that our wrong choices have been put on Him, Yeshua, and destroyed His life on the cross.

Repenting means to be so disgusted with our old way of life that we turn away from it and seek a new way in Jesus. We confess our sinfulness to God in prayer and tell the Lord we are very sorry. When we come before God, broken in the heart because of our sinful choices, and confess our sinfulness, we may claim the Lord’s promise to forgive us and make our hearts clean. We may be restored into a right relationship with God, a friendship that brings us life and love, and joy.

You can know you have received this gift of salvation when you accept it by faith.
 

My New Life in Faith

When I join God’s family, how does God’s love change my life? “When anyone is joined back into fellowship with God through His Son, He is a new being; the old is gone, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, TEV). When a person accepts Yeshua,  the old sinful nature is destroyed. He gives us a new spiritual life. Then we begin to hate our old life of sin. The new life gives us deep joy as we realize how empty our life was without the Lord in our life.  Why did I wait so long to accept God’s love?

After we genuinely confess our sins to God and ask the Lord to wash our hearts clean, we must choose to believe this truly has happened. We must have faith and say, “God promised to take away my sin. I believe that has taken place, and I now thank God for sending His Son Yeshua into my heart.” Even if our faith in God is weak or tiny, the Lord wants us to exercise our belief in the gift of salvation. As we walk in this new belief, it will grow stronger each day. We may also talk with God in prayer and reflect on the way Jesus leads in our life. We can see how He taught in parables and how sharing with others how God is working in our lives to keep our faith in the Lord strong.

If you have not yet given your heart to the Lord and feel ready to take that step, you may kneel in front of your computer and pray this prayer from your heart: