FIRST, you must accept that you are a sinner.

• Romans 3:23 - "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
• Romans 3:10 - "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one."

No one is perfect. No one has lived up to God's perfect standard.


SECOND, you must accept that as a sinner you owe a penalty.

• Romans 6:23 - "For the wages of sin is death..."
• Ezekiel 18:4 - "The soul that sinneth, it shall die."

This death is described in the Bible as the second death, the lake of fire.

• Revelation 20:14 - "Death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death."

If we pay what we owe as sinners, we must spend an eternity in the lake of fire (Hell).

THIRD, you must accept that Jesus Christ has already paid your sin debt.

• Romans 5:6 - "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
• Hebrews 2:9b - "...that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man."

Christ was not a sinner, and the Bible teaches that God took all of our sin and placed it on Christ. While Christ was bearing all our sins in His own body, God punished Him in our place to pay the debt we owe. This is not something God promised to do. It is something that God has already done.

• John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
• 2 Corinthians 5:21 - "He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

It is a FACT, Jesus Christ has already paid your sin debt.

FOURTH, you must accept by faith what Jesus Christ did for you. Ninety times in the Gospel of John the Bible says, "Believe."

• John 3:36 - "He that believeth on the Son of God hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him."

In this verse, Jesus divides the world into two groups: those who are believing and those who are not believing on Jesus Christ. Those who believe have everlasting life, and those who believe not shall not see life.

It is a FACT, Jesus Christ has already paid your sin debt.

The word believe means to trust, to depend on, to rely on. To believe on the Lord Jesus Christ means that you accept the fact that you are a sinner, that as a sinner, you owe the sin penalty, and that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the debt you owe. But it means going one step further. It means that you will completely trust Christ to get you to Heaven - that you will put the matter of your salvation in His hands and depend on Him for everlasting life.

The moment you do this, God promises you are not condemned but have everlasting life and you shall never perish.

• John 5:24 - "Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."

If you will trust Jesus Christ as your Savior, pray this simple prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner, and I deserve to pay my own sin debt, but I do believe that You died for me to pay the debt that I owe. Today, the best I know how, I trust you as my Savior. I will depend on You from this moment for my salvation. Now help me to live for you and to be a good Christian. AMEN.

If you have read this and trusted Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, please email us at requests@elmwoodbaptist.com