Jesus Is...

more than a man --

more than a teacher --

But the real question is: who do you think Jesus is, and what did he teach?

Jesus taught about sin - that's another way of saying that our lives don't measure up to God's infinite standard. The Bible puts it this way:

• " For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23).

So we all fall short in sin... is that such a big deal? Here's what Scripture says about the results of that fall:

• "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23).

Did you see that bit about the 'free gift'? How does one get that gift? Here's Jesus on that subject:

• "Jesus answered him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.'" (John 3:3).

I'm sure that you've heard the "born again" phrase. But what does that mean? How do we get into the Kingdom of God?

• "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'" (John 14:6).

Jesus doesn't pull any punches here. He said that he is the only way to come to the father... It seems that it's a matter of trust:

• "Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, 'Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.'" (Romans 10:9-11).

When the Bible uses the word "believe" it means "to trust in, to cling to, to rely upon". It's like a mountain climber who puts on a harness and only after attaching the climbing rope are they ready to begin their climb. Jesus is trustworthy, able to be relied upon... because though he died for all of us, he didn't stay dead:

• "And he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised." (2 Corinthians 5:15).

And the Risen One is calling to everyone... knocking on the door of our hearts...

• "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." (Revelation 3:20).

At this point, you might be asking yourself, "Okay... how *do* I open the door of my heart? What do I do? Well, here are some simple steps...

• Put your trust in God ~ admit that you can't "climb" to heaven without the "safety harness" that Jesus provides. You rely on God to rescue you.

• Let go of your old life; the Biblical word for this is "repent"; it means "to think in a new way". It's when you stop holding on to your old life, so that you can grab the new life with open arms.

• Hold on to the truth that Jesus died for your sins and was raised three days later. This means that not only did Jesus' death paid for your sin, but because he rose from the dead, you can have a new life with him calling the shots!

• The Bible says to "confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord." That means that you not only trust God with your heart, but you tell the truth about your trust in Jesus.