The Bible tells us that God originally planned a world that worked perfectly – where everything and everyone fit together in harmony. God made each of us with a purpose – to worship Him and walk with Him. (See Genesis 1:31 and Psalm 19:1.)

Life doesn’t work when we ignore God and His original design for our lives. We selfishly insist on doing things our own way. The Bible calls this sin. Sin leads to a place of brokenness. The consequence of our sin is separation from God – in this life and for all of eternity. (See Romans 3:23 and Romans 6:23.)

At this point we need a remedy – some good news. Because of His love, God did not leave us in our brokenness. Jesus, God in human flesh, came to us and lived perfectly according to God’s Design. Jesus came to rescue us – to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. He took our sin and shame to the cross, paying the penalty of our sin by His death. Jesus was then raised from the dead – to provide the only way for us to be rescued and restored to a relationship with God. (See John 3:16, Colossians 2:14, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.)

We don’t have the power to escape this brokenness on our own. We need to be rescued. We must ask God to forgive us – turning from sin to trust in Jesus. This is what it means to repent and believe. Believing, we receive new life through Jesus. God turns our lives in a new direction. (See Mark 1:15, Ephesians 2:8-9, and Romans 10:9.)

When God restores our relationship to Him, we begin to discover meaning and purpose in a broken world. Now we can pursue God’s Design in all areas of our lives. God’s Spirit empowers us to discover His Design and assures us of His presence in this life and for all of eternity. (See Philippians 2:13 and Ephesians 2:10.)

Now that you have heard this Good News, God wants you to respond to Him. You can talk to Him using words like these: My life is broken – I recognize it’s because of my sin. I believe Christ came to live, die, and was raised from the dead – to rescue me from my sin. Forgive me. I turn from my selfish ways and put my trust in You. I know that Jesus is Lord of all, and I will follow Him.

Excerpted from “Life on Mission: A Simple Way to Share the Gospel”