You have probably heard the phrase, "God's gift to man," right? In the verses below you will read about the real "God's gift to man" and what it means for you right now!
The second half of Romans 6:23 contains the answer to your question:
Romans 6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
This verse says that eternal life is a gift. Can you earn a gift? Do you have to do anything to get a gift?
Absolutely Not!
You see, eternal life cannot be earned, it must be accepted as a free gift.
Ephesians 2:8,9For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Titus 3:5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Romans 4:5But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
Faith is simply believing what God has said. God, being a loving Father, wants to have a relationship with you. Since you are separated from Him by your unrighteousness, he will count your faith for righteousness so that you can have a personal relationship with Him!
Philippians 3:9And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
But how did God provide for this free gift of eternal life? And if eternal life is a free gift that I can receive, how do I receive it? If God will count my faith for righteousness, what do I need to have faith in?
Romans 5:8But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
When the Bible says that "Christ died for us," it means that Jesus Christ died in our place. We saw earlier how the payment for sin is death. Christ has already paid that payment for you. Now that's good news!
2 Corinthians 5:21For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Jesus Christ "knew no sin." Since he was God, he never sinned. Since he was not a sinner, he did not owe the payment for sin, death. But he chose to die to pay your debt so that you could be "justified", or declared righteous and set free from the wages of sin, by God.
1 Corinthians 15:3,4For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
Once again, these verses show that Christ did not die for his own sins, but for OUR sins. He didn't have any sin of his own to pay for, so he chose to pay for your sin. This is how God showed his love for us. He died for us so that we could have righteousness and eternal life as a free gift.
But that's not all. If He had only died, this would not have been enough. Not only did He die, but He also "rose again the third day according to the scriptures." Christ's resurrection purchased victory over death and proved that He was truly God. It is on the basis of Christ's resurrection that God can offer you newness of life.
Romans 4:25Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
Romans 6:4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Of course, the Good News is only Good News to you if you receive God's gift. So how does one go about receiving this gift? The answer is very simple! Go to the last page to find out!