What do you want in life? Freedom? Love? Acceptance? Forgiveness? A sense of purpose? Escape from guilt and shame? Peace and contentment? Something that truly satisfies? Do you want some really good news?

There are just 3 ways that people look for these things: irreligion, religion, and the Gospel.

The irreligious person thinks he will find what he’s looking for only if he acts as the lord of his own life and lives without any regard for the law of God. Irreligion basically says, “Life is short, so party hard! If you can’t find the satisfaction or freedom you’re looking for, party harder!”

The religious person thinks she will find what she’s looking for only if she performs up to a certain standard of righteousness. Religion says in some form or another, “Here’s a list of rules to keep and deeds to perform if you want to earn God’s favor. If you can’t find the contentment or forgiveness you’re looking for, try harder.”

But there is a third way to seek these things: the Gospel. True, authentic Christianity is neither irreligion nor religion; it is belief in THE Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel says something like this: “You are so sinful and helpless Jesus had to come and die for your sins, but you are simultaneously so loved and accepted that Jesus was glad to come and die for your sins.”

We don’t like to hear that we’re sinners, but none of us have “hit the target” with our lives. We were created to be God-centered people, but instead we’ve all been selfish. We’ve lived for ourselves. We’ve made ultimate things out of things that are less than God. Some sinners are irreligious; some are religious. But we’re all the same in that we’ve all wrecked our relationship with God. And this is why we can’t grasp the lasting freedom, satisfaction, and forgiveness we long to discover.

But there is Good News, there is hope, for sinners. Jesus, God’s Son, has come and lived the life you should’ve lived. He died the death you should’ve died. And now, through his life and death, you can be reconciled to God. By faith in him you can discover that peace, and hope, and satisfaction you long to find.

How can I get this Good News? Realize that news is different from instruction. Grace is different from merit. To find in God what your soul is longing for, you don’t have to do or earn anything. You simply turn from your sin and see that Jesus lived and died to give you the gift of grace and restoration. You can trust God with a simple prayer like this:

Lord Jesus Christ, I confess that I am weaker and more sinful than I ever dared admit, but through you I am more loved and accepted than I ever dared hope. I thank you for paying my debt on the cross, taking what I deserved in order to offer me complete forgiveness. Knowing that you have been raised from the dead, I turn from my sins and receive you as my Savior and Lord. Amen.