Henning Memorial United Methodist Church

    To answer this vitally important question, let’s look at what’s often called, “The Good News in a Nutshell.” John 3:16 records Jesus saying, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” If a person understands the thrust of these words, s/he has answered the question above.

    At the risk of oversimplifying, let’s paraphrase this verse of Scripture. God loved me and gave me the gift of Jesus, so that my faith in Jesus will keep my life safe throughout eternity. Or, at the risk of being too complicated, John 3:16 may be paraphrased as the following: The Creator of the Universe loves me, so Christ came to live in the created order as a demonstration of eternal love. As I believe in the revelation of Christ, my personality experiences a life of timeless quality.

    One’s response to the revelation of God’s love boils down to the word, “believe.” Faith, or believe, means to “trust, rely upon, or have confidence in, someone or something.” The Bible speaks of the kind of faith that believes in Christ as “Lord and Savior.”

    Believing in Christ as Lord means to trust the Spirit of Jesus to be the ultimate authority for one’s life. Christ becomes our King, President, boss, teacher or coach. We no longer make our life decisions independently of God’s direction. We rely upon the teachings of Jesus to guide us into healthy, life enhancing, choices.

    Trusting Jesus as one’s Savior means to have confidence in the Spirit of Christ to save a person from long lasting damage caused by invisible evil forces, sin, or death. We trust Christ as Savior, to ultimately give believers victory over these threats to our well being.

    The real question now becomes, “Have you trusted Jesus Christ, the revelation of God’s divine love, to be your Lord and Savior?” An eternal quality to your life may be yours, through faith.