Aren’t Good Deeds Enough?

Since eternal life is a gift from God, you and I can’t do anything to earn our way into heaven. Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, explains God’s amazing grace.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” —Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV

For a gift to be ours, we need to actually receive it. Like any gift, you can choose to accept or reject Jesus Christ’s pardon for the penalty for your sins. This was made clear by the apostle John.

“This is what God told us: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life, but whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” —1 John 5:11, 12, NCV

To become a Christian you must place your faith (trust) in Jesus’ death for your sins on the cross, and in His resurrection for your eternal life. It is a choice that you alone must make. No one else can do it for you.

You must honestly admit you have sinned, and want the forgiveness Jesus Christ offers you. The apostle John tells us that “If we freely admit that we have sinned, we find God utterly reliable—he forgives our sins and makes us thoroughly clean from all that is evil” (I John 1:9, J.B. Phillips).

 John tells us that whoever receives Jesus Christ becomes his child.

“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God”.

You can receive Jesus right now by asking him to come into your life and forgive your sins. If you haven’t ever invited Jesus into your life, simply pray the following words.

But remember, it’s not the words you say but the attitude of your heart that is important.

“Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying for all my sins—past, present, and future. Thank you for giving me eternal life. I receive you as my Savior by faith, and desire you to be Lord of my life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.”

If you have made this commitment to Jesus Christ, he actually entered your life. He will help you to become the brand-new person he created you to be. He is freeing you to experience a life of meaning, purpose and power. There is even more…