What do you mean by Jesus died for our sins?

I have had several people either come up to me or Facebook message me the question: "What do you mean Jesus died for our sins?"  A simple question requires a simple answer.  Without Jesus' death on the cross for our sins, no one would have eternal life.  In John 14:6, Jesus said:  "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."  Jesus declares the reason for His birth, death, and resurrection was to provide the way to heaven for us and that we can never get there on our own.

  You see "sin" is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as an offense against religious or moral law.  The original sin happened in the garden of eden with Adam and Eve.  They were created perfect in every way.  They lived in a paradise. Every need met, and communed with God every day.  God created man in His image, (Gen 2:15), which meant they also had free will to make their own choices.  Genesis goes on to say that Adam and Eve listened to Satan's lies, in that eating of the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, they would be like God himself.  (Not unlike Satan's attempt to overthrow God in Heaven to be like God.)  God told them that they were free to eat of anything in the garden except the Tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Well, they did after listening to the devil and as a result, all mankind is subject to a sinful nature inherited from Adam.  

In God's mercy and grace, He provided a way out of this.  It would take a major sacrifice.  God said in Hebrews 9:22 that through the shedding of blood, redemption is provided.  The Law of Moses in Exodus 20:2-17 provided a way for the people to be right in God's eyes by offering the best animals sacrificed for every sin they committed.  This was only temporary, though.  So alot of animals were sacrificed!   

THIS is why Jesus came and why He died, to be that perfect, ultimate sacrifice, as He was born by the Holy Spirit and a virgin (Mary), so He was without the sinful nature.  (Colossians 1:22, 1 Peter 1:19).  Through Him, we are promised eternal life with God through the faith of those who believe in Jesus Christ.  Galatians 3:22 - "So that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe."  Ephesians 2:8-9 goes on to say "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." 

If you believe that Jesus Christ, is Lord, ask forgiveness of your sins, you can have eternal life.  
The Bible presents a clear path to eternal life.  You have to realize first that you have sinned against God.  
Romans 3:23 says "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God."
We all have done things that displease God, which makes us deserving of eternal punishment (Hell).
Romans 6:23 says "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord."    Romans 5:8 says "God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus died on the cross to take our punishment, our place.   Which leads us to the following verse of Romans 10:9 - "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."  You see, faith alone in what Jesus did on the cross is the only way to eternal life.  

If you want to accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, simply believe that Jesus is Lord, ask forgiveness for your sins, and trust in Him.  Saying a prayer someone else made up or what I call "Holy Incantations" wont do it.  You have to pray in faith and thank Him.  
If you need a prayer to get you started, here is one:
"God, I know that I have sinned against You and I deserve punishment.  But I believe that Jesus took the punishment I deserve on the cross, and through faith in Him I can be forgiven. I place my trust in You for salvation. Thank You for Your wonderful grace and forgiveness - the gift of eternal life! Amen!"  

If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, please email me so that I can pray for you and I or my wife will be available for any questions or help you require.   God Bless you, and Happy Good Friday!

Pastor Rob Lawler.
rlawler@lifepointtn.com 
Amy Lawler
alawler@lifepointtn.com 

Ministry Regrets: Top 7 Do-Overs for Pastors

I recently interviewed more than twenty pastors who had been in ministry for at least 25 years.
All of these men were over 55 years old.  A few of them were retired, but most of them were still active in full-time vocational ministry.
The interview was simple. I asked one open-ended question: “What regrets do you have about the years you have served as a pastor?”
Each of the men could provide as many responses as they desired. They could make the answers succinct, or they could elaborate upon them.
Three pastors had as few as two responses; one pastor had nine. Most of the pastors noted three or four regrets.
As a researcher, I typically see patterns develop in this type of subjective research. When it concluded, I was able to see seven definitive patterns, and I was able to see the frequency with which they occurred.
Here are the top seven regrets noted in order of frequency.
I received a total of 17 different responses, but only these seven occurred with any degree of repetition. After each regret, I provide a representative direct quote from one of the interviewees.

1. Lack of practical training for local church ministry.

“I was not prepared for 80 percent of my day-to-day ministry after I graduated from seminary. I wish I had taken time to find some resources or places where I could get practical training. I had to learn in the school of hard knocks, and it was very painful at times.”

2. Overly concerned about critics.

“I had this naïve view that a bunch of Christians in a church would always show love toward each other. Boy was I wrong! There are some mean church members out there. My regret is that I spent way too much time and emotional energy dealing with the critics. I think of the hundreds of hours I lost focusing on critics, and it grieves me to this day.”

3. Failure to exercise faith.

“At some point in my ministry, I started playing defense and let the status quo become my way of doing church. I was fearful of taking steps of faith, and my leadership and churches suffered as a result. Not only was I too cautious in the churches I served, I was too cautious in my own ministry. I really felt God calling me to plant a church at one point, but I was just too fearful to take that step.”

4. Not enough time with family.

“I can’t say that people didn’t warn me. One wise pastor told me I had a mistress. When he saw my anger rising, he told me that my mistress was busyness in my church, and that my family was suffering from neglect. It hurts me to say this, but one of my adult sons is still in rebellion, and I know it is a direct result of my neglect of him when he was young.”

5. Failure to understand basic business and finance issues.

“The first time I saw my church’s budget, I thought I was looking at a foreign language. Greek is a lot easier than finance. They sure don’t teach you basic church finance and business at seminary, and I didn’t take the initiative to educate myself. I really felt stupid in so many of the discussions about the budget or other church business issues.”

6. Failure to share ministry.

“Let me shoot straight. I had two complexes. The first was the Superman complex. I felt like if ministry was going to be done well, I had to do it. I couldn’t ask or equip someone else to do it. My second complex was the conflict-avoider complex. I was so afraid that I would get criticized if I didn’t visit Aunt Susie personally when she had an outpatient procedure that I ran myself ragged. In my second church, I suffered burnout and ended up resigning.”

7. Failure to make friends.

“I know it’s cliché, but being a pastor can be lonely. I think many pastors get in trouble because we can get so lonely. I wish I had done a better job of seeking out true friends. I know if I had made the effort, there would have been a number of pastors in town that I could have befriended. Sometimes I got so busy doing ‘stuff’ that I didn’t have time to do the things that really matter.”
So what do you think of these top seven regrets? What would you add?

-Thom S. Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources (LifeWay.com). Among his greatest joys are his family: his wife Nellie Jo; three sons, Sam, Art, and Jess; and six grandchildren. He was founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism, and Church Growth at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His many books include Surprising Insights from the Unchurched, The Unexpected Journey, and Breakout Churches. 

 Excerpt taken from http://www.churchleaders.com.