The Five Facts of Life
1. You Are A Sinner
The first fact that you must realize in life is that you are a natural-born sinner, a natural transgressor against God:
"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23.
"As it is written there is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:10.
"Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me." Psalm 51:5.
Most people have the false idea that we all LEARN to be sinners as we grow older and are influenced by evil, but this isn't true. God's word declares that we are all sinners by nature--we are all transgressors against God.
2. You Are Going To Die
Death isn't a very popular subject, but it is certainly a very REAL subject. Sooner or later, your heart will beat for the last time, your loved ones will mourn over your passing, and your body will be laid to rest in a grave. It's a fact of life. People die, and the Bible tells us WHY":
"Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Romans 5:12.
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23.
People die because people are SINNERS. Do you remember the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden? It wasn't until AFTER they had sinned that they were subject unto death. God told them in Genesis 2:17 that they would "die" when they ate of the forbidden fruit. Before man had sinned, he was ABOVE death, not subject unto it. Today, however, we are all sinners, because we have all inherited our sin nature from Adam. Death means more than physical separation from one's body. There is a second, far more horrible, aspect of death that every sinner will suffer. "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Revelation 20:14-15
3. You Are Going To Be Judged
God is the all-powerful Creator, the Supreme Commander of the Universe. He is in complete control of all people, places, and things, so no one should think it strange that God intends to judge all men. We must all give account to our Maker.
"For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Ecclesiastes 12:14.
"And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:" Hebrews 9:26.
YOU will stand before God and you will be judged by Him. Every sin that you have ever committed will be revealed--EVERY SECRET SIN! You may have managed to hide many things from you fellow man, but you have hid NOTHING from God. He knows all things, and He will hold you accountable.
4. Your Good Works Can Not Save You
When God judges this world, millions upon millions of people are going to be absolutely SHOCKED to find out that NO ONE--ABSOLUTELY NO ONE--was able to earn their way into Heaven. People have the false idea that they will be permitted to enter Heaven as long as they "do more good works than bad". The word of God tells us just the opposite:
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8-9.
"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Romans 4:5.
"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away:" Isaiah 64:6.
The "Good Works" that you do are only good in YOUR eyes. In God's sight, you are a helpless sinner and your works are totally unacceptable. If you are counting on your own righteousness to save you, then you are setting yourself up for a very big disappointment.
"For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth:" Romans 10:3-4.
The Bible clearly states that we are all cursed with sin, and that we are all totally incapable of earning our salvation by our own righteousness. Friend, unless your SINS are removed. God will NOT accept you. You are hopeless.
5. Your Only Hope Is the Lord Jesus Christ
When you are ready to accept the fact that you are a lost and dying sinner and that your "good works" are unacceptable to God, then you can begin to see your need for Jesus Christ. He came into this world to lay down His sinless life for YOU-to pay for your sins, because you couldn't. Jesus is your only hope for salvation. Only by receiving Him as your Savior can you enter the gates of Heaven. There is no other way.
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me." John 14:6.
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven give among men, whereby we must be saved:" Acts 4:12.
The Lord Jesus Christ has come and PAID for your sins by shedding His own Blood on Calvary. By receiving Him as your Savior, you can be WASHED from all you sins in His precious Blood (Rev. 1:5; Col. 1:14; Acts 20:28; 1Pet. 1:18-19). Notice these important words from Romans 5:8-9
"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him."
Jesus PAID your way to Heaven for you! By receiving Him as your Savior, you will be receiving God's ONLY means of Salvation. Are you willing to forsake YOUR righteousness and receive Jesus Christ as your Savior, your ONLY HOPE for Salvation? Romans 10:13 says, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:9 says, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." Why not pray right now and ask the Lord to come into your heart and cleanse you from all sin. He will save you, just as He promised. That's a fact. Receive Him today.