"And you know the way where I am going."
These words were spoken by Jesus Christ over 2,000 years ago. They are recorded in the Bible in John 14. Jesus was talking about how to get to heaven. One of the disciples, Thomas, asked how they could know the way. To this Jesus responded:"I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me."

The Need...
The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that "For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God." Sin is anything we do that offends God, or goes against what He says in the Bible. Sin is any wrong that we do. We have all sinned. We may try to do good works to make up for the sin we do, but we could never do enough. In fact, Isaiah 64:6 says, "For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment." Even the good things we do are filthy in God's sight, because we are all sinners.

The Punishment...
Most children quickly learn that when they do something wrong, they will be punished. We too must be punished for our sins. God is just, He can not overlook sin. He must punish it. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death...". Death refers to a seperation from God. The only acceptable punishment is to spend eternity in a real place called hell. Hell is not a big party, it is not even a tolerable place to live. It is an awful place of torture. Mark 9:44 describes hell as a place"where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched."

The Provision...
Romans 6:23 does not end with bad news. It goes on to say that "...the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." You see, God's justice demanded a punishment for sin, but God's love took that punishment on Himself! John 1 tells how Jesus, God's Son, became a man nearly 2,000 years ago. He then died for our sins (see Romans 5:8) and rose again. I Corinthians 15:3-4 says, "For I delivered to you... what I also recieved, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."

Your Choice...
God has offered each of us a free gift. We don't need to earn it. In fact we can't earn it. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not as a result of works, that no one should boast." God has offered us eternal life. All we must do is admit that we are sinners, believe that Jesus, God's Son, died and rose again for us, and accept His free gift of eternal life. In Acts 16:30, the question is asked, "What must I do to be saved?" The response is found in verse 31, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved."

Won't you choose to accept God's free gift? Just tell God that you want to. You can use the following prayer as a guide for what to say: "Dear God, I admit that I have done wrong, and can't save myself. I believe in your Son, Jesus, who died and rose again for me. I now accept Your gift. Please come into my life and save me from my sin. Thank you."