The Four Corners of Salvation
Salvation is building an eternal home for your afterlife. There are four corners or stones that you must consider before you start to build. Without these stones, you will have a faulty foundation, this is your eternal home, and you want it to be sturdy.
The first stone, ‘the cornerstone,’ (Isaiah 28:16) this is the most important stone. The other stones reference the cornerstone. Our cornerstone is, ‘God loves you’. The Architect of the universe put you in His plan before the foundation of the earth (Ephesians 1:4). God loves you. He created you with love in mind, the number of your hairs are known to Him (Matthew 10:30) and the thoughts He has about you are more than the grains of sand (Psalm 139:17 & 18). Put a pinch of sand in your hand next time you go to the beach, and try to count the grains. It is like trying to count the stars. That is a fraction of how much He thinks about you.
The second stone is sin. God is good but His enemy, satan hates us. Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. (John 10:10) We join forces with our enemy because of our sin nature. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve sided with the serpent against God and the whole human race has borne the consequences. Sin nature is our bent toward evil. Anyone who has been around children can attest to this. You don’t have to teach a child to steal cookies or fight; they have a natural aptitude for it. That is the sin nature at work. Sin is the one thing in the universe that separates us from God. God hates the sin, but He loves us.
The third stone in our foundation is the cross. The greatest demonstration of love throughout all history, the cross is God’s answer for our sin. The Living Bible says it like this, in II Corinthians 5:21; ‘For God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins. Then in exchange, he poured God’s goodness into us.’ He paid our debt of sin on the cross. ‘The wages of sin are death’ according to Romans 6:23, ‘but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’
Jesus death on the cross not only removed the sin between God and us, but it also removed the curse so that we can have life and that more abundantly. His holy blood erased our sin. Isaiah 1:18(KJV) says, ‘Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red like crimson they will be like wool.’
The fourth stone in our foundation is the resurrection. Jesus didn’t stay in the tomb. He defeated the powers of darkness and made a spectacle out of them. Then He rose again! No one in history has ever done that. Jesus is life, and death couldn’t hold Him because He had no sin.
What does that mean to you? He offers you this proposal, trade your sin for His righteousness. He gives us free will. But I think it’s a no brainer….our filthy rags for His holiness. He realizes who we are, knows everything we have done. He wants to be a part of our lives. He says, in Revelation 3:20 ‘Behold I stand at the door and knock if anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in and eat with him and he with me.’
It’s the kindness of the Lord that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). I can guarantee you that you will never have a better friend to guide you through life. He will save you, bind up your wounds and walk with you regardless of what life may throw at you. It’s just as simple as asking Him in. He is ever faithful.
Just a prayer away from His great love. Just pray what is in your heart. He’s listening.
A simple prayer you can say is; Dear Lord Jesus I am tired of living life alone. Please forgive me my sins. Thank you for the love that took you to the cross to pay the debt that I owed. Thank you for rising from the dead to defeat all my enemies. Please come into my life and make me a new creature and fill me with your Spirit. Help me to trust and obey you and to walk in the callings and plans you have designed.