Personal Justification

A Word of Truth #170  

Imagine someone coming to you and saying, “There is a free feast being offered at this location.” He hands you a flyer with an address and the promise: “The feast is here for everyone. We will not run out of food.” Whether or not you believe the message, the food will be there. But if you do not believe the message you will not go and will not personally eat any of the food.

Jesus died on the cross for the sins of all people. There is forgiveness for everyone. However, even though Jesus won forgiveness for everyone, it is through faith in Him as our Savior that the forgiveness comes to us personally. Sinners who reject Christ’s forgiveness are like those who don’t go to the feast. The forgiveness is there, but they will never taste it because they don’t believe the message.

Through the faith that the Holy Spirit creates in our hearts to believe that Jesus is our Savior, we personally receive the forgiveness that Jesus won for the whole world.

Our Christian Certainty

A Word of Truth #171  

Are you certain that you will go to heaven? Many people respond to that question by saying that while they hope to go to heaven, they are not really sure that they will get there. Such uncertainty suggests a misunderstanding of God’s plan of salvation. God wants us to be sure that we will go to heaven, and there is no reason why we cannot be sure. That is because the Bible reveals that our Christian certainty regarding salvation rests not upon our own works, but rather upon the completed work of Jesus Christ. Jesus lived a perfect life in our place and then suffered on the cross to remove our sins. The Bible assures us that when we are led by the Spirit to believe in Jesus, God gives us heaven as a free gift of His grace. That is why we can be absolutely certain that we will go to heaven.