Suppose their response goes something like this, “Mom and Dad, we’ve realized that we don’t deserve your gifts to us, and so we’ve decided to earn them. We’ve decided to serve you and do things so that we can deserve your kindness.” What would you do? You would probably explain that this is totally unnecessary! You would tell your kids how much trouble you’ve gone to in saving, shopping, and purchasing their gifts. You don’t want their service (at least not yet) so much as you just want to enjoy Christmas morning and present them with their gifts – your free expression of love to them.
This is the ‘Gospel Message’ of God to the sinful human race. God became a Jewish man – His name was Jesus Christ. He lived a sinless life, suffered, bled, and died to suffer the wrath of God that your sin deserved. He rose again the third day and is alive right now and is willing to save you by His grace alone, without any of your works added. As long as you are busying and worrying yourself with doing, you’re missing what God has already *Done* for you through His Precious Son – the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Bible says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom 6:23) The gift of eternal life has been worked out through Christ’s sinless life, and purchased by Christ’s shed blood on the Cross. There’s no need for you to DO anything more, but to just trust Christ Himself (His doings and sufferings) to save you from your sins. You must only receive Christ’s Free Gift of Salvation. This gift of salvation is free to you, but it cost God His only begotten Son. All the work and preparations have been made for you. Christ paid it ALL, there’s nothing for you to pay for, nothing at all. Stop trying and just TRUST HIM with your soul. God says, “Come now, let us reason together, saith the LORD.” His invitation to you is not to DO for Him, but rather simply come to Him as a helpless, hopeless, and guilty sinner. Flat out acknowledge your sinfulness. Christ died for the ungodly, not for good, self-righteous people. Christ Crucified is the sinner’s only hope. This is the sole remedy for your disease of sin—TRUST Jesus alone! Christ only receives lost and needy sinners.
There Christ hangs bleeding on yonder Cross for you. Jesus bled for your sins. Look to the Cross, look there, only there! Bring as many sins as you can with you to the Cross – the more the better. No measure of sin in your past can deprive from the gift of salvation. Jesus delights in saving the sinful. Just Trust Him! Forsake all other carnal and religious trusts, and look only to the Lamb of God and His bleeding wounds. Jesus is the Substitute for guilty sinners: He suffered in your place. Look your doubts and sins away at the foot of the Cross. Right now, stop working and worrying, and simply Trust and Live. Salvation is not received by you giving anything to Christ, but salvation comes to your soul by Christ giving you EVERYTHING. Abandon your own goodness.
Jesus will never be a partial Savior. Take Christ (the Gift of God) to be the sole Savior of your soul! You must believe completely on the Lord Jesus Christ to enter Heaven. Only Christ’s Perfect Righteousness and Precious Blood can save you from sin, death, and Hell. “Believe on” means an unreserved transfer of trust from oneself to the Lord Jesus Christ. The faith that saves is not believing certain Truths of Christ, nor believing that Jesus is a Savior – but it is resting on Him, depending on Him, lying with all your soul’s weight on Christ as the sole foundation of your eternal hope. Believe that Christ can and will save you! Leave the whole matter of your salvation with Christ alone in absolute confidence. Christ is the only Propitiation for your sin: He is only One that can appease the wrath of God that abides on you because of your sin against God. Christ gave Himself for you. God be merciful to me a sinner, and save me now by Christ’s Precious Blood alone!
