God has made eternal life (human salvation) extremely easy and simple. This is the teaching of New Testament authors. Below, I have written about how simple it is to be born of the Spirit. Jesus said, "Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit" (John 3:6). This is common sense from the spiritual realm.
You may be someone who has killed others for your faith, just like the Apostle Paul. You may be a mean hearted, difficult personality. Or, you may think you are the best thing that ever walked the earth. Perhaps you think that you're pure and holy and don't need salvation at all. (Hey, I'm a good guy!) But God loves you and wants to change your life in ways you can't even imagine, forever and ever. What you are today can be totally different. How?
Simply accept and believe that the historic person of Jesus Christ, foretold by the Archangel Gabriel to Daniel the prophet, is indeed God Almighty (Jehovah), who gave up everything to come to earth to redeem you. I mean you very specifically! The Creator took on flesh and blood, laid down his life on the cross (to remove sin from you to himself) and arose from the dead. The door is wide open to everyone. It doesn't matter who you are, where you have been, how bad you've been. Jesus, the Messiah, wants to change your life. God will take all your shortcomings, all your sin, all your evil ways and ideas and place them on Jesus on the cross. All you must do is believe that Jesus is Jehovah our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:5-6), the Messiah who died a sacrificial death as foretold by Gabriel to Daniel (Daniel 9:26). Just as the Apostle Paul wrote:
"God made him who had no sin (Jesus) to be sin for us (Jesus on the cross), so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
To make it very plain, "your righteousness comes from God through trusting Jesus alone for eternal life." This righteousness is external to you. You are not righteous. If you believe that you are righteous enough to get into the presence of God in heaven, then you have thought wrong. "...all our righteous acts are like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6). You have no internal righteousness that will permit you to enter heaven. Jesus spoke of this problem to people who believed that they were more righteous than other people.
". . . unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law [people who lived by strict rules or codes of ethics: emphasis mine], you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:20).
So if you believe you are righteous enough on your own to make it to heaven, you will be taken by surprise after death. The righteousness that surpasses the requirement comes only by accepting God's righteousness through the Messiah, Jesus. If you reject Jesus, who became sin for you on the cross, then you are rejecting the righteousness of God, which is required. The Apostle Paul (a former Pharisee) understood this and wrote of how he received salvation from God, but not because he was righteous.
". . . he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit [born of the Spirit: emphasis mine] (Titus 3:5).
It is actually very easy to be born again or to be born of the Spirit. Consider the following verse
"Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ [the Messiah] is born of God [born of the Spirit: emphasis mine] (1 John 5:1).
Since believing that Jesus is the Messiah is required to be born of the Spirit (to receive spiritual life), it is highly important to know what the term "Messiah" means. This word "Messiah" is found in Daniel 9:26. Gabriel revealed to Daniel that the "Messiah" would die a sacrificial death and bring spiritual blessing to all who accept the Messiah. Just as important, Daniel based his prayer on a promise found in Jeremiah the prophet. Since Gabriel answered Daniel's prayer, we have an acceptable link to Jeremiah as a true prophet. It is in Jeremiah that we learn the source of the "Messiah" is the Creator called Jehovah. The "Messiah" is Jehovah our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:5-6). To be born again and receive eternal life means that you must acknowledge and accept that the Creator of the universe became part of the creation in the historic person of Jesus Christ. Jehovah is our redeemer, our source of salvation.
So the Bible teaches that salvation is very simple. I like to say that it is so simple that people trip over it. Just below, take the time to pray and confess your sins to God through the Messiah, Jesus. I will give one more verse that will ensure you that when you confess, you are forgiven and made righteous by placing your trust in Jesus Christ. Then join me in a sincere prayer from your heart.
"If we confess our sins, he (Jesus: Jehovah our Righteousness) is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9).
Please pray the following prayer:
