Your Journey

 Do you know where you would go if you died tonight? Your journey into eternity could happen at any moment. As Grace Evans (in Journey of Grace) shared with friends, coworkers, and even strangers, we can know for sure where we will spend eternity.

"Grace walked over to the table where the girl was sitting. “Do you have any questions about what you’re reading in there?”

The girl jerked up her head to see who was talking to her. “Oh, hey, sorry my friend was kinda rude over there,” she apologized.

“That’s okay. Would you mind if I spent a few minutes with you and explained what the Bible says about you and me and our relationship with God?”

“That would be great! My name is Jackie, by the way.”

“And my name is Grace. Let me get out my Bible and we can go through some verses together.” She turned to Romans chapter three. “Jackie, do you want to know how to be saved?”

“Yeah. I know I need to get right with God, but, like, I’m not sure how to even start. I’ve done so many awful things in my life; I don’t even, like, think my good outweighs my bad!”

“Well, to tell the truth, Jackie, you’re on the right track. Before someone gets saved, they must realize they are lost and in need of salvation! We have all sinned and that makes us worthy of hell, but God does not accept us based on if our good outweighs the wrong we have done. He is perfectly holy and cannot allow sin in His presence. If someone does even one sin, that person is a guilty sinner and worthy of death. Would you mind reading these verses here?” She pointed in her Bible to Romans 3:10.

“Okay, As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one….’”

“Now look down here in verse 23. It goes on to say that ‘all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;’ Those verses just confirm what you already know in your conscience. The next few verses tell what God has done to solve the problem: ‘Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

‘Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

‘To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.’ Jesus died on the cross to pay for our sins!’”

“So how do you, like, get that for yourself?” Jackie asked.

“Good question. Look a few verses down, and it answers that for us: ‘Therefore we conclude that a man is justified’ (that means to be counted righteous) ‘by faith without the deeds of the law.’ And chapter five verse one says, ‘Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:’ We are justified by faith in Christ Jesus, and what He did for us on the cross. Look at what the Bible says about it in Galatians 2:16: ‘Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.’ Does that make sense to you, Jackie?”

“Yeah, it does. I just never understood that it cost God so much, and I’ve never even taken Him up on His offer.” she said quietly.

Grace thought she saw tears in Jackie’s eyes. “Is there anything that is keeping you from asking God for that salvation now?”

“No, I guess not!”

“Why don’t we pray right now? Just tell God that you accept His salvation by faith and trust Christ’s payment to save you.” Now Grace had tears in her eyes too. What an amazing thing was happening!

“Dear God, I never knew before how awful my sin was or that you took the punishment for it. I ask you to save me and forgive my sins. I trust you to save me by what you did on the cross. Thank you for dying for me and giving me new hope! And thank you for sending Grace here to tell me about it! Amen.”

“Amen! Praise the Lord, Jackie! You’re a child of God now, and that means we are sisters in Christ!” Grace reached out and gave Jackie a big hug."

The Gospel is as simple as the little poem which says:
Life is short;
Death is sure.
Sin the problem;
Christ the cure!

If you have never trusted God to save you, please, do so this very day! Life is too precious to risk being unsaved one more minute! The Lord is very ready to forgive you and wash your sins away in His blood. The transaction is pending until you turn to Him in faith and allow Him to do it all.

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