Enjoying a right relationship with God is the most important quest any human being can undertake in this life. Grouped under four crucial questions, this screen presents key selections from the Bible that reveal what God has done to reconcile individuals to himself and what we must do in order to enter a right relationship with him.

Who is Jesus?

 John 1:1-4  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men."   

 Colossians 2:8-10 "See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority."  

 Philippians 2:5-6 "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,"

 John 1:10 "He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him."

 John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

 Philippians 2:7-8  "But made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross!"

 Philippians 2:9-11 "Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

 Colossians 1:15-17 "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

Conclusion:  Jesus Christ is God: He is the eternal Creator and Sovereign Ruler of the universe. Jesus Christ is a man: Remaining fully divine, Jesus was born as a man in order to reveal God to us.

Who am I? 

Matthew 22:36-40 "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord you God with all you heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Romans 2:6-13  "God 'will give to each person according to what he has done.' To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For God does not show favoritism. All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous."

Romans 3:10-12, 19-20, 23 "As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not even one;  there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one' ... Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin ... for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"

Isaiah 64:6 "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."

Conclusion:  We are all sinners. Despite our most noble efforts and every favorable comparison we may choose to make with others, we are morally corrupt to the core of our being. By God's common grace, we are not as evil as we could be. But we fail to love God with all our heart. This failure is evil and this evil is displayed in how we view ourselves, how we treat others, and how we dishonor God's will. From birth, we are in desperate need of rescue from our immoral nature and the consequences of our sin.

What did Jesus do?

 Luke 19:10 "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

 John 3:17 "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him"

 1 Peter 2:24  "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."

 2 Corinthians 5:21 "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

 John 1:29  "Ö 'Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!' "

 1 Corinthians 15:14, 20 "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith Ö but Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."

Conclusion:  Jesus died in the place of sinners. As a substitute sacrifice, he carried our sins to the cross and paid the physical penalty for them. As a demonstration of God's approval and of Jesus' genuine victory over death, Jesus physically rose from the dead.

What must I do?

 Romans 3:21-22 "But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe."

Romans 4:1-8 "What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter?   If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about - but not before God. What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God  credits righteousness apart from works: 'Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him.'"

John 3:16, 18 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life ... whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son."

Ephesians 2:8-10 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Romans 10:9-10 "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."

Conclusion:  I must place my full trust in the work Jesus did in my behalf for the forgiveness of my sins against God. To avoid the wrath of God, I must believe that Jesus died in my place, to pay the penalty of my sin. I must also believe that Jesus rose from the dead in victory over death. I must place my trust in Christ alone to provide the forgiveness of my sins. Any dependence upon my good deeds or religious status is evidence that I do not fully appreciate the sufficiency and necessity of Christ's sacrifice in my behalf. I must humbly receive the salvation God offers as a free gift of his grace.

For further insight, please read the several articles relating to this topic and/or order from our office "The Word: Understanding the Bible's Central Message."

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