Hello, and welcome! We really do have some great news for you: God loves you and has a great plan for your life. If you’d like to know how it works – how God can truly forgive you, no matter what, and give you a brand new life – read these 4 steps listed below.
Step 1 – God loves you and has a plan for you!
The Bible says, “God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, [Jesus Christ], that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
God is love, literally. He made you and wants to have a personal relationship with you. God loves you right now – exactly how your life is at this very moment, and He would love to forgive you for anything and everything you’ve ever done wrong and make you a new person. And He can do it! He has a master plan – a plan that works out the absolute best for you.
Jesus said, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly”—a complete life full of purpose (John 10:10).
But here’s the problem:
Step 2 – Man is sinful and separated from God.
Everyone in history is imperfect. We’ve all sinned, or done wrong things. You may think you’ve gone so far off the rails that it’s not possible that God could ever forgive you.
In fact, the Bible does say, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
It also says, “The result of sin is death, spiritual separation from God” (Romans 6:23).
However, there is good news: if you trust His free gift of forgiveness, He’ll see you as perfect every time he looks at you. Check out Step 3!
Step 3 – God sent His Son to die for your sins!
Jesus literally died in our place so we could have a relationship with God and be with Him forever. So once you accept that free gift of grace He’s offering, God only sees perfection when He looks at you, because He sees the One (Jesus) who died in your place.
“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
But it didn’t end with His death on the cross. He rose again and still lives!
“Christ died for our sins. … He was buried. … He was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
Jesus is the only way to God. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me” (John 14:6).
Step 4 – Would you like to receive God’s forgiveness?
All you have to do is admit that you are a sinner, understand that Christ died to pay for your sins, then trust Him alone as the complete payment for your sins. When you do that, you can ask for His forgiveness and be assured of that forgiveness, as well as His gift of eternal life to you.
And don’t worry – it’s not up to you to save yourself by being good. Jesus will come into your life and make you a whole new person! There is no one in the history of the world that has “gone off the rails” so far that God’s forgiveness can’t reach them. In fact, the Bible says it like this:
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, and the new has come! I Corinthians. 5:17
Anyone – that’s everybody, including you. Jesus Christ knows you and loves you. He formed you in your mother’s womb! He has a wonderful plan for your life both now and for eternity!
The Prayer of Salvation
Saying the prayer below is not a magical incantation, or even a requirement to get into heaven. It’s a matter of trust. If you sincerely believe Jesus loves you and wants to forgive you and give you a new life (which He most definitely does), and you trust Him to do that, He will! The prayer below is simply a representation of how you might verbalize that trust in a prayer to God.
God knows what’s in your heart, and He knows if you truly trust Him. So if you pray the prayer below – and truly mean it – God will do what He does and not only forgive you & set you on a path to a new life, but also redeem everything about you! Everything in your past will now be used by God for good, something you can’t imagine until you see it in action.
So please allow God to speak to you, listen to what He’s telling you, and pray this prayer:
“Dear God,
I know I’m a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died for my sin and that you raised Him to life. I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as Lord, from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to live according to your plan for me.
I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.”
