Intro: My name is Brad and I have something to share with you. But first,

Speeding Ticket Analogy: Has anyone ever been pulled over for speeding?

Let’s suppose your speedometer was broken. How would you know if you were speeding? You would probably do your best to keep up with the flow of traffic. You figure if you don’t drive faster than most and maybe even drive a little slower than the average driver that you will be okay. You are lulled into a false sense of security because “everyone else is doing it”, that you are not very worried that you might get a speeding ticket.

All of a sudden, lights are flashing and sirens are blaring. Your heart is beating fast, you are now worried and very concerned that you are going to get a ticket.

You know that when you tell the policeman that you were “just keeping with the flow of the traffic”, that it won’t matter at all to him what everyone else is doing. What matters is that it is now your turn to face the law.

Terminal Disease Analogy: If I were a doctor and I knew that you had terminal disease, what kind of doctor would I be if I didn’t take the time to tell you that you had the disease? What if I thought that it might offend you? What if I thought it would make you mad and you wouldn’t like me, or that it might ruin your fun you have planned? I would tell you that you had the disease and explain what you need to do to be cured, because it is what a doctor should do, both morally and because it is his responsibility.

Something to Share: This is what I plan to do tonight. I have something to share with you. It’s the truth. You may not like it. It may hurt your feelings or make you mad at me. I do this because I care for you – even though I haven’t met all of you. The Bible says that “it is appointed unto man once to die and then comes judgment”.

We all Die: Do you know that one day we will all die? 10 out of 10 people die. 150,000 people die each and every day. You might say that you have years to go before you die. I wonder how many of those 150,000 people who died yesterday thought death wouldn’t happen to them?

Check Spiritual Speedometer: We went over the analogy of the broken speedometer. Now let’s check out your speedometer, spiritually speaking, and see how you will do on the Day of Judgment.

Go through the Law: Lying. Stealing. Blasphemy. Lust/Adultery.

Court Room: How did you do? Are you guilty of breaking God’s law? Put yourself in a courtroom. If the evidence is overwhelming that you are guilty, what’s going to happen to you? If you are standing before an honest judge and tell him you now realize that you have broken the law and that you’re sorry, will he just let you go? No, he cannot let you go. A fine must be paid because you broke the law.

God Must Punish Sin: In the same way, God is just, he must punish sin. The Bible says that God will not leave the guilty unpunished.

There is only one way that God has provided for us to be found not guilty on Judgment Day.

But God demonstrated his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12

…except a man is born-again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

If being born-again is the only way to have our sins forgiven, what exactly does it mean to be born-again?

It requires two things of us. We must repent and believe in Jesus.

Repentance Verses:

God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Jesus said, unless you repent, you will perish.

Repent then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out…

Whoever confesses and forsakes his sin finds mercy.

Meaning of Repentance:

In short, repent means to see your sin the way God does and be willing to turn from it.

It means the sin you once loved you now hate. You have changed your mind in regard to what sin is and how your sin separates you from God. You have come to hate something you once boasted about. You see your sinfulness before God.

Believe Verses:

Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Acts 16:31

For God so loved the world (that is you), that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.

Who is Jesus: Jesus is God’s son. Jesus Christ was God in the flesh. Jesus came to earth and was born of a virgin – by God’s power – and lived a sinless life. He did this out of love for you, so that his sinless life could be given as a sacrifice for the sins you and I have committed. Jesus died on the cross and God raised him from the dead on the third day. He is now seated at the right hand of God in power.

Meaning of Believe:

What exactly does it mean to believe? The Bible says that even the demons believe in God – and tremble. But we know they won’t be saved. Saying you acknowledge the fact that Jesus is God’s son is not what is meant by believing.

Do you see that you have no merit in yourself, and that the only way to God is through what Christ did on the cross for you?

Are you willing to turn away from trusting in your own good deeds and throw yourself upon Christ alone?

…all our righteous acts are like filthy rags…

How can God be just and still forgive a sinner? There is only one way. The sin must be dealt with. God poured out his wrath on his sinless son. God’s justice was satisfied by the wrath of God being extinguished upon his son. Jesus paid the price for your sins. We broke God’s law and Jesus paid our fine.

Final Questions:

The question is not only, “do you want to go to heaven?”

The question is not only, “do you want to escape hell?”

The question is, “has God so worked in your heart through the gospel that I preached to you, that the sin you once loved you now hate? Do you see your sinfulness before God?

Salvation Verses:

If so...

…the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

If you have repented, then call upon the name of the Lord –

Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.