ACKNOWLEGE your sinfulness. Romans 3:23 tells us that “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:10 says that “There is none righteous, no not one.” We are all sinners who in our present condition do not deserve and cannot obtain heaven. Some people may be better than others, but we have all missed the mark. For example, suppose there is an archery target with concentric circles with a center bulls eye. This bulls eye represents moral perfection. None of us can hit that center bulls eye. Some may get closer than others. But no one actually hits that bulls eye. Some may hit the ring around it. Most of us "fall short" and miss the target completely. But no one hits dead center except Jesus.
For another illustration, suppose we had a pier on the Ohio River that stretched from the Evansville shore forty feet out into the river. I then asked everyone to run down the pier and jump across into Kentucky. No one would make it. Some could jump farther and get closer, but no would make it across. This same concept is true when it comes to sin. We have all come short of the perfection demanded for heaven. No matter how hard we try or how "good" we seem, we all "fall short" because we have all sinned. Thus, we need a way to “bridge” that moral gap that separates us from God and heaven.
REALIZE the Penalty for your sins. Our sins have separated us from God and carry with them an eternal penalty. There is a chasm we cannot cross. Just as breaking the law on earth can carry with it consequences, breaking God's laws has consequences. Romans 6:23 reminds us “For the wages of sin is death…” This is a spiritual death, an eternal separation from God. Revelation teaches us that "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:14-15).
RECOGNIZE that Christ has bridged that gap. Above, we quoted the first half of Romans 6:23, which is the bad news. However, the second half of the verse gives us the good news, namely, “But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” I'm glad that God "butted" in here. Notice that eternal life is a gift, it is not earned through works or penance or any effort of man. Ephesians reminds us that "For by grace are ye saved through faith, and not or yourselves, it is a gift of God, not or works, lest any man should boast." Salvation is not by works. It is not through our own efforts. It is through the person of Jesus Christ, not through a church or another man or through works. Jesus died and paid the penalty for our sins. He was the just, dying for the unjust. He was our substitute. No church, no angel, no other man could that. He is the way of salvation. “I am the way, the truth, the life, no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (John 14:6) When Jesus died on the cross, several things happened. First, he paid the penalty for your sins. He took on Himself the punishment that was due to you and to me. He "became sin for us" Scripture says. Second, he made it possible for us to obtain His righteousness. Think of it this way, heaven is a place of perfection. Only the perfect can go there. That is why in our sinful condition we cannot go to heaven. By our very nature we do not belong. But when Jesus died on the cross he first paid the penalty for our sins. He then made it possible that His righteousness could be placed on our account. Jesus never sinned and was thus perfect. When a person accepts Christ, Chrsit's righteousness is imputed to them. Basically, a swap takes place. Christ takes our sin and we get His righteousness. What better deal can we find than that! That is why salvation is not by works or any effort of our own. We need Christ's righteousness, not some corrupted righteousness of our own that we try to manufacture. Which leads to the last point.
ACCEPT Christ as your savior. Romans again tells us, “That if thou (this means you), shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in thine heart that God has raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever (that means anybody, including you) shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
In a sense, God has made salvation simple, not necessarily easy, but simple. Realize you are a sinner and that you face an eternal penalty. Understand that Jesus paid that penalty for you and that you need His righteousness to get to heaven. Then, accept His payment for your sin and trust Him alone to save you. Jesus has made it possible for anyone to be saved. Notice that it says, "That if thou..." That means you, no matter your present physical, emotional, moral, societal, financial, or spiritual condtion. It goes on to say, "Whosoever..." This means anybody. Christ died for the sins of the world. "For God so loved the world..." "He is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." Salvation is available to you, whether you are young or old, rich or poor, black or white, moral or immoral.
So, to trust Christ, all that is necessary is to admit you are sinner, believe that Christ paid for your sins, and trust Him to save you.
If you would like to accept Christ or need more help in understanding the plan of salvation, let us know. We’d love to talk to you about it.