John 3:16: The foundation of Christianity.

"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 (NIV).

What it means to me:

For many years I went to church, memorized scriptures and did all the biblical things required of a good christian. I never stopped to ponder what it actually meant to me and the importance of it. As I grew older I begin to drift away and focus upon things I desired more. I distanced myself from God and pursed all the pleasures i could attain. Then one day I was asked what I believe, if there was a God or not. I hesitated, evaluted the room and said no, I didn't. The shame and guilt I felt instantly caused me to stop and groan inwardly. I realized in that moment that I had lied, I had denied Christ as I knew there was a God and he did love me and he loved those others. I went away and at the time I tried to forget the guilt and shame I was feeling from my denial, but I couldn't. I finally broke, the pain and heaviness in my heart from the struggles in life I was facing, the internal pains of life and the shame and regret of my sins was too heavy and I cried out to Christ for help. It was in that moment that I remembered this simple, yet powerful and profoud verse of John 3:16 . In my teens i had devoured books and scriptures studying it and learning, wanting to know more. However, likely it was selfishly so I could impress others with my knowledge and relationship of Christ. I thought of John 3:16 as a nice simple verse but for real Christian's and people really pursing Chris there were much more important verses to be studied or made into our, "life verse." Here I was now, many years later, and this simple verse I had memorized hit me like a ton of bricks. How could I have forgotten this? How could I have drifted away from a God who loved me so deeply that he sent his one and only son to die in my place, and all he asked in return is that I believe in his name and confess my sins and I too could be in heaven with him forever? In that moment I realized what I was missing and my life began to change. Admittedly it was slow, and painful. Many times i found myself going back to my old ways. But I learned quicker, prayed more, and sought to be more like Christ with each passing year. It's a journey I am still on, one I hope I can share with others who will join me along the way. I hope that through these posts I can give others the chance to be encouraged and also hear from others who will encourage me in this journey.

The key to Christianity is the simplicity of it. God does not create some complicated nor impossible life to follow in order to have redemption. Redemtion is a simple formual. Believe + Confess = Redemption. If we beleive that God sent his one and only son, Jesus, to die for our sins, and that he was raised from the dead after the third day; then, we confess our sins and proclaim him as Lord of our life, we are given freely salvation. Such a thing seems to simple, too good to be true as we look at our world. That's the greatness of Christianity, the only religion in the world that freely grants access to salvation and heaven simply by faith.

Let's remember this truth as we journey through life, and not lose lose sight of the greatness and love our Father in heaven gives us. Nor the access to salvation by our faith alone.