A long time ago, God created the earth and everything in it. He also created people in His own image. He lived with people but also gave them the ability to choose. After all, we cannot truly love if it is not a choice. People chose to rely on themselves, and in doing so chose to deny God. We were slaves to our nature. This action required God, who must be just, to pour out His wrath on people, but because of His great love and mercy, God did not do so immediately. This was part of His plan from the moment of creation. Instead, several thousand years later God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to satisfy human debt to God for the wrong that was done. God did this so that all people would have the opportunity to have a relationship with Him once again. Christ has paid our debt and no sin can keep us from God any longer. When we surrender to Christ, He gives us His righteousness and continues doing an amazing work within us. As we give our lives to Christ, we are given an eternal relationship with the God who created us, and the best part is that this relationship begins, for us, now.
There was a man from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Him at night and said, “ Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him.”
Jesus replied, “ I assure you:Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
“But how can anyone be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked Him. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born?”
Jesus answered, “I assure you:Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
“How can these things be?” asked Nicodemus.
“Are you a teacher of Israel and don’t know these things?” Jesus replied. “I assure you:We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not accept Our testimony. If I have told you about things that happen on earth and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about things of heaven? No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven — the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.
“For God loved the world in this way:He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.
“This, then, is the judgment:The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who practices wicked things hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God” (John 3:1-21).
We cannot earn eternal life. We must be born again, of the Spirit. A relationship with Christ is not something that we can attain by keeping rules. It is a gift given by Christ. Being rescued from the darkness in this way means that we become exposed creatures, living in the light for God's glory.
If you would like to have a relationship with God, and be a part of His forever family, say the following words. God can hear you. In fact, He is the one bringing you to Himself and giving you the gift of eternal life.
God, I know that I have done wrong. I’ve done wrong by simply living without you in my life. Please forgive me. I believe that you are real, and that you sent your Son, Jesus Christ, to pay my debt. Because of that, God, I want to ask you to save me. I give my life to you, and want to have an eternal relationship with you. God, thank you for saving me. Thank you for loving me and giving me life.