The Message in a Nutshell

I suggested, a while back, that it was possible to read the basic message of the Bible in about an hour. The essence of what it is saying is found in Romans 10:1-13, written by the Apostle Paul, an early follower of the resurrected Jesus.

He starts by lamenting the fact that certain of his own people hadn't attached themselves to the concept that Jesus was their Messiah, their chosen one. Christ had become the endpoint of the Jewish law, its utter fulfilment, its complete goal. Through him, all of God's plans to bring humanity back to himself are accomplished.

It isn't complicated. You don't need to get your head or your spirit into some heavenly trance to find the answer. Nor do you need to consult the dead. The answer is right here. Let me quote it:

For 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 it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. (Romans 10:9-10)

The Bible makes it clear that our problem is that we wanted independence from God. God tells us that Jesus must be in control if we want to be reconciled to God. And we must believe that he is truly alive.

The prayer is simple: God, I recognize that I've wandered very far from you and offended you by living my own life my own way. I declare that Jesus will be my Lord from this point on and believe in my heart that he is risen from the dead. He died for me to pay the penalty for my rebellion, and I gratefully take the sacrifice of his blood as my cleansing.