 
                God’s Greatest Gift of Love
In the New Testament Book of Romans, Paul describes what life without Christ is like: heartbreakingly distant from the God who made us and loves us. But he also describes the goodness and grace of Jesus, the only path back to God through salvation.
In Romans 5:8 Paul explains that while we were still distant from God and running from Him, God sent Jesus to die for us. It’s through this that God displays His ultimate love for us as children.
Paul isn’t just speaking in theory—he is speaking from experience! God met Paul in the midst of his work to persecute Christians. And while Paul was an enemy of God, God still made a way for Paul to come back to the heart of Jesus.
The same is true of us.
Regardless of what our life looks on the outside, we all start at the same place as Paul–we were all once distant from God. And it is only through Jesus that we have been brought close to God, and are now part of God’s family. You have a way back to God, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice!
Justified by Faith
Paul, the writer of the letter to the church in Rome, covers the details of what is known as “the Gospel message”—a message that was handed down to them. It's packed with deep theological truths that are meant to shape the way Christians live.
One of the central components to the Gospel is that salvation comes through faith alone. That means we are saved by the power of God through believing and trusting in Jesus. Every Christian comes to God through faith—not through good deeds or by trying to earn salvation.
Paul says that we have peace with God by our faith in Jesus. Prior to that, we were considered ungodly and unrighteous—because we would live our lives in our own power, doing our own things. This led to separation from God.
However, by faith in Jesus, we are justified before Him. This means that through Jesus’ own right-living, we are made right before Him. Even though we still make mistakes, we can stand innocent before God because of Jesus.
It’s ...