Where There is Forgiveness #127

A little community in Western Kansas in the United States has a famous tourist attraction from the days of the old outlaw gang, the Daltons. A tunnel was dug between the little house and the barn. When the sheriff came, the gang would run down the tunnel to the barn, jump on their horses, and make their getaway. The members of the Dalton Gang were wanted dead or alive.

You may not be the member of an outlaw gang but believe it or not, you are still wanted. Because in the end, you are no better off than the members of the Dalton Gang. You see, every person who has never trusted Christ for the forgiveness of their sins is really dead. The Bible says you are dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1)! Don't laugh! There are many kinds of death. The kind of death I'm talking about is a spiritual death.

Oh yes, you may think you are very much alive. You are alive to various sins. But you are dead to God. The Bible warns, "They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power." (2 Thessalonians 1:9) Don't take it for granted God will welcome you into His heaven when all your life you have refused to "honor Him as God, or give thanks." (Romans 1:21)

Now the flip side of the picture is much better. Those who turn from their sins and trust in the death of Christ as the only adequate payment for their sins are alive to God! Listen: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)" (Ephesians 2:4-5).

Are you alive to God or dead in sin?

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Contributed by Dennis J. Prutow, email: djprutow@juno.com Voice message and free tapes: 1-800-777-0389 [USA] Or order your free tapes online. Today's cassette is #127.