The Way to Salvation

God Loves You
By Eric Giorgio

“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” (John 3:16).  This verse is well known by many people who are familiar with the Bible. It says that God really loves you. God loves you so much that He gave His only Son for you.

Maybe nobody else in the world cares about you – but God loves you very much. He has not forgotten you. You are important to God because He created you. God truly loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.

Key Concepts
Let us see four key concepts in John 3:16. They are: so loved … whoever believes … not perish … and eternal life. These concepts can change your life dramatically. First, it would have been enough for God just to love us. But the verse says “so loved.”  That is, He loves you so much to send His son to die for you!

Second, “whoever” means anybody. If you choose to believe – whoever you are doesn’t make any difference. Your background or status or intelligence or race does not matter. “Whoever believes” opens the door to all the people of the world who decide to believe.

Third, the word “perish” refers to the decaying process of things. Flowers are beautiful but after a few days they perish.  People are like flowers – after a while they begin to perish. If you do not believe in the original plan of God for your life, you too will perish.

The fourth concept is “eternal life.” In the Greek, this phrase means a never-ending life that goes on and on from centuries to centuries. You see, God wants to give you this kind of eternal life.

Decision Time
Today, you have a decision to make. Your decision will affect your entire destiny. God loves you very much. If you believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, you will not perish. You will have everlasting eternal life. The choice is yours. Your believing opens the door to this life.

To have eternal life, you must do two important things. First, believe in the love of God for you, regardless of your background. Choose to believe that you are not on this earth by accident. You were created by God for a purpose. God created you with a special design in mind. All the successful people in the Bible believed this truth – that God created them, loved them and had a special purpose for their lives.

Jeremiah was told, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I set you apart” (Jeremiah 1:4, 5).Do you see what that means?  Before his mother and father knew about Jeremiah, God knew him and formed him and set him apart for a special assignment. That’s awesome!  God does not show partiality. If He did it for Jeremiah, He has done it for you and me. So believe it – you are loved and you have a special purpose from God for your life.

Second, accept Jesus Christ as your Savior. True belief causes you to seek God and to know Him. God says to you: “Here I am! I stand at your door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). 

A Simple Prayer
You can use this simple prayer. “Lord save me. I believe in Jesus Christ. I want to experience Your love and have eternal life. I believe John 3:16 is for me today. Lead me in my walk with You, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.”