We are born with an inherited sin nature and none of us can stand perfect before God, because we have all sinned at least once in our lifetime. The Word of God declares that all people have sinned against God; all have done wickedly at some point in their life (Rom.3:23). In James 2:10, it tells us, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” The problem is with our hearts, this is where all of our sin originates and it is desperately wicked as it says in Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked”. All of our sin comes from the wickedness that lies within each one on our hearts, Jesus said in Matthew 15:18-19,”But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.”

We all need to examine what we have done wrong in our lives, how we have sinned, and see our need for a Savior in order to turn to the Lord and experience His Salvation. If you are honest with yourself, you will realize that you have sinned and missed the mark, the standard God has set, and see your need for a Savior. Each one of us as individuals must see our need for salvation, repent and turn of our sin, and accept His provision for our salvation. After we accept Him as the Savior and Lord of our lives, then He is to truly be the Lord of our lives. He must have first place in our lives and we are to live completely for Him the rest of our lives.

Deep down inside our hearts each one of us knows something is not right, there is something missing within us. There is an emptiness we as human beings all share, and we each try to fill it in many different ways throughout our lifetime. We may try to fill, or at least silence, the void with things like food, alcohol, drugs, relationships, sex, good deeds, education, personal achievements, money, material possessions, wealth, fame, and even religion. All of our pursuits end in frustration and disappointment, because we are unable to fill the void inside of ourselves. We may find a temporary fix, where we forget about [or numb] the pain, guilt and shame for a short time; but it is always there deep in our hearts, because nothing permanently fills the void accept Christ.

How many times have you tried to fill the void and emptiness inside your heart with different things and still remained empty? Often the things we try not only leave us empty, but in many cases due to the destructiveness of the sin, leave us worse off than we were before we tried them. We try alcohol and end up struggling with it or end up addicted; we try one or more form of drugs only to end up addicted and dependent on them. We try relationships that never work, and we end up with broken hearts. The relationships that do work out to some degree result in a dependency on our partner. We pursue our work and end up workaholics. Our sin controls us and we are unable to break free from all the sin using our self effort, no matter how hard we try. Sin is always lurking in the shadows and will capture and overtake us at some point; we may not even realize it when it happens. We end up discouraged over our inability to overcome our weakness and failures. Does this resonate or ring true with you? Are you ready for the answer to fill the void inside?

All of our pursuits end up in frustration due to the fact there is only One who can fill the void and emptiness inside each of our hearts. This void and emptiness inside of us, the longing for something we do not know or understand, can only be filled by a personal intimate relationship with the God who created you. God created each one of us with the capacity and desire for a continual and ongoing personal and intimate relationship with Him. The intimate relationship of continual unbroken fellowship with our God and Creator was broken due to Adam and Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve gave into the temptation of the devil and sinned against God, sin entered into the world and ended man’s continual relationship of intimate fellowship with God. Man’s intimate relationship with God ended due to that first sin, and each one of us inherits a sin nature when we are born that keeps us separated from God.

Each of us is prone to sin due to our inherited sinful nature with an unending and ceaseless lust for sin. It is because of the inherited sinful nature that we seek to live for ourselves, desiring our own will and our own way in life. When we live our lives on our own terms and our own way, we become easy prey for the devil, not realizing we come under his kingdoms’ rule and reign. We are sinners who are blinded by the devil and live in rebellion against our God and Creator, choosing to live in darkness and held captive by the devil as slaves to sin.

The Word of God declares “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom.3:23). Everyone has sinned against God, even if it’s only once, and will stand guilty before God, deserving of death and eternal separation from Him in a place called Hell. In James 2:10 it tells us, “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” And Hebrews 9:27 says, “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment”. Most of us choose to live sinful lives and have therefore committed all kinds of sins against God by following our sinful and selfish desires. All our sin comes from within our hearts, out of the core of our being, sin such as selfishness, lust, greed, covetousness, un-forgiveness, anger, bitterness, hatred, envy, jealousy, pride, boasting, lying, cheating, stealing, adulteries, fornications, and drunkenness as well as many other sins. In Rom. 1:20 it says, “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse”. There is no absolutely no excuse for our sin, there is no escape without Christ, and we stand guilty before God having no hope of escape. Without Christ as our Savior, we stand before God guilty as charged and will suffer the consequence of our sin, resulting in our punishment of eternal separation from Him.

Many people realize their guilt before God and attempt to make themselves right with God through self-effort, both consciously and unconsciously. Often times, this is a religious attempt to make themselves right and acceptable to God by reaching out to Him through religious acts or good deeds. In self-effort they try to do what’s right, they try to be good for goodness sake, and they may even attend Church, read their Bibles, pray and keep many other religious rituals and traditions. They hold to traditional conservative values and Church traditions, all in an effort to be acceptable to God by their religion, not by a relationship with Christ. We attempt to do the same thing as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, through their own self effort they tried to cover their sin and shame with fig leaves. Their attempt to cover the guilt and shame with fig leaves did nothing for the sting of sin in their heart and conscience. When they sinned they died on the inside, the fig leaves only covered their shame [their nakedness] on the outside and could do nothing to restore the missing life on the inside. Adam and Eve’s self-effort to cover and hide their sin resulted in failure, just as our attempts in self-effort to cover over our sins by doing good deeds result in failure today. Our best attempts to cover our sin through self-effort produce nothing that can remove the effects of guilt and shame we feel in our consciences and in our hearts. There is always a longing for “something” we will never find, even though we search for it continually to remove the guilt and shame we feel inside. We are sinners and cannot change ourselves nor change the wickedness of our hearts with all its lusts, we are without hope. Dead in our sins with no way out, we are stuck in our condition without any way to free ourselves.

Adam and Eve had sinned against God and realized their nakedness, embarrassment, guilt, and shame, because of the sin they committed. They attempted to cover their shame and guilt through their own self-effort by using fig leaves; however, this did not work or change their situation, they were still in the same predicament and mess. The reality of their sin against God did not change; they were still naked, embarrassed, and full of guilt and shame for what they had done. Fear struck their hearts and they were afraid to face God, so they hid themselves from the presence of God. God called them out and held them personally responsible [accountable] for their sin, he had them confess the sin they committed to Him. Both Adam and Eve confessed to their Creator what happened to influence their choice to sin, and God dealt with each one justly. God brought judgment upon the sin of Adam and Eve, punishing them for their sins against Him.

In the same way as Adam and Even in the Garden, we will stand before the Lord and have to give an account for the things we have done in our lives (1 Pet.4:5). Without Christ as our Savior, we will be found guilty for all the sins we have committed throughout our lifetime, no matter how big or small, and face eternal judgment in Hell and separation from God.

The article titled Prayer of Salvation has more information on how to accept Christ as your Savior.

Our Creator, God the Father, purposed in His Son Jesus Christ the plan of salvation to redeem mankind from their fallen state. This plan of salvation was already in place before time began to reconcile us back to Himself and to restore our relationship with Him. God’s plan to redeem fallen man and restore our relationship with Him begins in the Book of Genesis 3:15. It is here we see a glimpse of His plan for the future of mankind which offers hope in the midst of judgment. God offers us hope through the first prophecy concerning the promise of a Messiah who was to come through the seed of women (Gen. 3:15). The first prophecy reveals the beginning of God’s plan of salvation as we see God Himself taking the initiative to reveal His plan to restore those in sin back to Himself. God in His great love for Adam and Eve took the initiative to cover their sins by shedding the blood of innocent animals and to provide them with animal skins to cover themselves. Under the first covenant or the old covenant the sacrifice of animals was a temporary covering for sin, but could not remove the sins of mankind. God gives us a clear picture or a fore shadow of the initiative God would take in providing the appropriate sacrifice for the sins of mankind. He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die and shed His blood for the sins of mankind because the blood of animals could not take away our sins or remove our sins from us. The word of God in the book of Hebrews 10:4, tells us, “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.”

The plan of salvation through Jesus Christ was His plan even before time began, before anything that was made was made. In the book of Titus we learn of the plan of salvation before the beginning of time, as it is stated in Titus 1:1-2, “accord to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior;” And again in the book of 2 Timothy 1:8-10, the apostle Paul says to Timothy, “ Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” The plan of salvation in Christ alone was before the foundation of the world before time began (Eph.1:4; 1 Pet.1:20). In the book of Genesis we see the first prophesy concerning the Messiah who would eventual reveal the plan of salvation. It is here in the Book of Genesis that we see clear imagery, symbolic of our redemption in Christ, in which we would see eventually take place in Jesus Christ our Lord.

This is the good news for mankind that God sent is Son Jesus Christ, born of a virgin, who was impregnated by the Holy Spirit of God to redeem fallen man. Jesus Christ the Son of God came to earth in the likeness of mankind and lived among us taking the form of a bondservant (Phil. 2:7). He grew up and lived a perfect and sinless life to die on a cross for us, shedding His blood for our sins of mankind (Heb 4:15). He became our substitute sacrifice on the cross taking our place to redeem us and provide the atonement to restore and reconcile us to God. In Hebrews 9:12, “Not with the blood of goats and calve, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” And again in Hebrews 9:15, “And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.” We must be listening to hear His call to come to Him to receive His forgiveness for our sins and eternal salvation. We must choose to accept His sacrificial death on the cross and the shedding of His blood for our sins to receive His forgiveness and eternal life. Having accepted God’s provision in Jesus Christ our Savior we receive the forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life. When we accept His sacrifice as our Savior, we make Him not only our Savior, but also Lord of our lives. We must continue our relationship with Him as the Lord of our lives and walk in obedience to His word. We must live a life of continual surrender yielded to His Lordship out of an intimate relationship with Him. Do you here Him calling you? Will you accept what He done for you, or will you reject Him and His offer of forgiveness and salvation?

It is my desire to persuade and convince you of only one God, who you can only come to know through Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ said, in the book of John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus made it absolutely clear He alone, is the only way to the God the Father, there is no other way to God accept through Jesus Christ. The Word of God is very clear that there is only one way to come to God the Father and to know God personally. The Scriptures reveal there is one way and that is through Jesus Christ His Son. The apostle John in 1 John 2:23 wrote, “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.” The Word of God is explicitly clear that whoever does not accept Jesus Christ as Lord of his or her life does not have God the Father. Those who accept Jesus Christ as Lord of his or her life will have God the Father also. In 2 Cor. 5:18-19, the apostle Paul says, “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.”

Peter spoke to the rulers and elders of the people concerning Jesus Christ of Nazareth in the Book of Acts 4:12 saying, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” The Scriptures make it clear that there is no salvation in any other name. There is no other way to come to know God the Father and there is no other name by which we must be saved, but the name of Jesus Christ. My desire for you is to realize your sinful condition before God and repent of your sins, which means to turn away from all sin. You must accept by faith the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross, the shedding of His blood for your sins in order to receive His forgiveness and eternal salvation. There are many false religions in the world today that lead people astray, the Scriptures clearly state that Jesus Christ is the only way to God the Father. Jesus also said in the book of John 6:44-45, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.” The Word of God makes it clear that all who have truly heard and learned from God the Father will come to Jesus Christ for salvation. We must come to Him in faith in order to receive salvation because He is the only way to receive salvation and there is no other name given by which we must be saved.

We must respond to the call of the Lord Jesus Christ by coming to Him in faith and accepting His sacrifice for our sins to receive eternal salvation. We must come to God according to the way He purposed before time began which is through His Son Jesus Christ the only way to know God (2 Tim.1:8-10; 1 John 2:20-23). We must learn to worship the Lord the way He desires us to worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24). We must learn to surrender our self centred ways and learn to yield ourselves as His disciples in obedience to His will and follow Him as He directs us to follow Him. We must give up our self willed ways of thinking that we know best, or how we ought, or should worship Him apart from the Word of God. Many do not understand what, who, or why they worship the way they do. According to the Word of God in the book of John 4:4 Jesus says, “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” The truth the word of God is speaking of is not according to what we think may be the truth, but is what the Word of God reveals to be truth.