1 John  1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Proverbs 28:13 “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”

2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

Matthew 4:17 “ From the time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’

Acts 3:19 “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”

Acts 17:30 “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.”

Zachariah 1:b “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will likewise perish.”

2 Corinthians 7:10 “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.”

Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart-These, O God, You will not despise.”

I think by now you see that there must be an understanding that you were born a sinner. We are all sinners in need of a Savior. If you think that your good deeds, your believed good heart, will gain you entrance into heaven, you are wrong. Do you know that Satan believes in Jesus? It is not enough to say, ‘Yes, I know Jesus was God’s son.’ I know that sometimes I do bad things, but I am mostly good. It is not enough to be good according to the world’s standards; we are sinners in need of saving. We need His righteousness; we need to be clothed in the blood of Jesus. His blood can turn our filthy rags into white robes of righteousness. 

Romans 3:26 tells us, ‘for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’

Jesus came to this earth as a man, to live life as we do, but unlike us, He was without sin. Never once in all His earthly days did he sin. He died on the cross to save us, that through His sacrifice we might be saved.  Yes, you must come by faith believing that Jesus is the only way to heaven, but you MUST repent of your sins. Turn away from those things you do that are contrary to scripture, God’s holy word. And by your repenting and belief, God’s mercy saves you. You go from death into life. As it says in Romans 12:2, we are no longer conformed to this world and its ways; we are being transformed by the renewing of our minds. 

These are the things that need to die in us, as it tells us in Colossians 3:5, “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth; fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” In the place of things, we should start displaying the fruits of the spirit, which are found in Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”

Once we have turned from our sins and asked Jesus into our hearts, where we let Him be Lord of our lives, we start to sound different, less like the world and more like our Savior. We let go of those things that keep us bound. The Holy Spirit comes into us the moment we are saved, and He begins the process of changing us. 

Each day as we walk with Jesus, we are being transformed, made new. Our old nature, which was contrary to God, begins to look more like Jesus. Make no mistake, you can never do enough good, say enough right words, to get yourself into heaven. WE ALL NEED A SAVIOR! Each of us is born with a God-sized hole in us. 

The world will tell you there is another way to heaven outside of Jesus, but the  scriptures are clear. Acts 4:12 says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Psalm 62:11 “Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes salvation.”

The hour of grace is now. We are living in the age of grace, where you can choose to turn from your sins and be saved, and have the assurance that when you close your eyes on this side of heaven in death, you will open them in heaven looking in the face of Jesus.  Jesus is long-suffering and kind; he does not want any to perish. 2 Peter 3:9.

You can have the assurance of salvation. I pray that for anyone who is reading this and is unsure of their salvation, you can know today in a matter of seconds that you are saved.  I will leave you with this final word from John 3:17: “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world  through Him might be saved.”