John 17:3 "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."

The theme of the Bible is a love letter to all of us. This love was revealed when Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came into the world as a human being, lived a sinless life, died on the cross, and rose from the dead. Because Christ died, your sins can be forgiven, and because He conquered death you can have eternal life.

Paul's letter to the Romans expresses very clearly the basic truths you need to meet Jesus for yourself. Collectively, these truths are known as the Roman Road but they truly are the Gospel, which simply means good news. I guarantee, this is the best news you will ever hear!

Paul wrote in Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". Not exactly good news at first, but true nonetheless.

All it takes is one sin, one minor transgression, to come short of the glory of God. Even the best of us have missed that mark, and there's nothing we can do about it: Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

The only price we can offer in exchange for our sins is our own death. Many will indeed pay this price, eternally; the bible says in Hebrews 9:27 "And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment"

So how can we be saved? Certainly not by our own righteousness, which the Bible compares to filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6 "For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away."

How then are we saved? Well, even though all have sinned, Paul wrote that we can be justified by grace. Romans 3:24 "being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus"

Why would such a holy God do this for sinful people like us? Because of His incredible love we read about in John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

But no matter how much He loves us, God can't simply excuse our sins. On the contrary, His holiness requires that our sins be paid for, Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

However, God's love for us is so great that he gave His Son to pay for our sins Himself! John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

In fact, the ultimate demonstration of God's love for us was He died for us. Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

Such amazing love leaves room for only one rational response, as illustrated by those who heard Peter's first sermon on the day of Pentecost: Acts 2:37-39 "Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself."

And as Paul instructs us in Romans 10:9-10 "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."