When my children were very young I would occasionally give them some money in the form of change: pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. They held tightly to this money as a prized possession. They enjoyed the color, how it was shiny, the noise it made when the change rattled together, and how you could stack one upon another. They wouldn’t part with the money because to them it was their prized possession. One time while shopping at a store my daughter saw a toy she wanted, I told her that if you give the people at the counter your money they will give you the toy, well she would have none of that, she wasn’t going to give up her money. One time I tried to offer my son and daughter each a one dollar bill in exchange for their one dollar in change, they wouldn’t have it, the change was shiny and the dollar was not, besides the change was many and the dollar was one. I think had I offered them a one hundred dollar bill in exchange for their one dollar in change they would have denied it as well.
Now this is a story about two children 2-5 years old with no understanding of the purpose of money, but are you not yourself holding on to something of little value when God is offering you everything. God offers everyone a free gift and that gift is eternal life through Jesus Christ, but instead many chose to keep their sin rather than accepting the gift of God, and God promises that whatever you give up in this life you will receive a hundredfold as much in the life to come, and receive eternal life (ref. Matthew 19:29); are you not just holding on to a small amount of change when you could have one hundred dollar bills. I carry around with me at all times a gospel tract; on one side it says “God Loves You” referencing to Romans 5:8. This verse defines the way in which God loves us, it says: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” ~Romans 5:8. That is the way in which God loves you, He doesn’t want to see you perish, but His desire is to save you and that is why Christ died. On the back there are three verses, the first verse is Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. When it says all, it means every one, you and me both. What is sin? Have you ever lied? I have, how about you? The ninth commandment of God says; “do not tell lies”. The bible tells us that “Sin is lawlessness” ~1 John 3:4, meaning sin is breaking God’s law, and if you have ever told a lie even one time you have broken God’s law. The second verse I have listed is Romans 6:23. The first half of that verse says: “For the wages of sin is death”. That is what we have earned for sinning, for breaking the law, we have earned death. And it’s not the death of your body we all know that each of us will die at some point, the Bible says: “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” ~Hebrews 9:27. When God judges you, will you be innocent or guilty? Your innocence or guilt is based on this; did you break the law are not? If you have ever lied; than yes you have broken the law. Since you have broken the law and are guilty; what will happen to you? This is what the Bible says will happen to you; “all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” ~Revelations 21:8. That is what we commonly refer to as Hell, but there is a second part of Romans 6:23 “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”. You have earned death in Hell for breaking God’s law but God offers the free gift of eternal life and it is a gift because you didn’t earn it, the wage you earned was death in Hell. This verse tells us the way in which we receive this gift, “in Christ Jesus our Lord”; you must accept Jesus as Lord. The final verse I have on that Gospel tract is Romans 10:9 – “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved”.
Jesus said: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” ~Matthew 16:24. This is how to be saved. To deny yourself and take up your cross is to give up the sins in your life that you hold tightly to. Is it easy? No, but God offers you a hundredfold as much in exchange and you will receive eternal life. Come to God, confess your sins to Him and forsake them (turn away from them) and accept Jesus as Lord!
Repent and trust in Jesus Christ alone,
Mike Peek
