{"title":"GN TRACTS","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"gn-tract-when-god-takes-your-place","title":"GN TRACT WHEN GOD TAKES YOUR PLACE","description":"\u003cp class=\"accordion-section-header\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFull Text\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"accordion-section-content\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Greatest Exchange\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdapted from\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eKiss the Wave\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eby Dave Furman\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cu\u003eBy Dave Furman\u003c\/u\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKelly Gissendaner was on death row for almost two decades for the murder of her husband. She planned the murder and convinced her lover to kidnap her husband and kill him in the woods. Afterward they set the evidence on fire. Their motive was to collect a life insurance policy and receive sole ownership of the house the Gissendaners had just purchased. A jury convicted Kelly of murder for her role in the crime, and after refusing a plea deal, she was given a death sentence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile she sat on death row, Kelly’s entire life changed. She was transformed as she came to understand that Jesus died for her. She encountered the Bible and the truth of the gospel. God worked in her heart to bring her to repentance of her sins and to faith in Christ. The fruit of Kelly’s transformation was on display for all to see. Kelly began to minister to the other women in prison and led various Bible studies. She counseled women through an air vent and prevented some women from committing suicide.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps the biggest change was that, in Christ, she found peace in the midst of the storm of death she was facing. She was in awe that Jesus took her place on the ultimate death row. On one occasion she said, “I have learned first-hand that no one, not even me, is beyond redemption through God’s grace and mercy. I have learned to place my hope in the God I now know, the God whose plans and promises are made known to me in the whole story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.” Her hope was not in her continued breaths in this life, but in her union with Christ in this life and in the next. She was a shipwrecked woman who finally found land.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot all of us have been convicted of murder, but all of us have at one time rejected God. The Bible is clear that we are all under an eternal death sentence and apart from God’s intervention we would all sit on death row facing a forever death. The truth of God’s holiness and our sin means we can never be in his presence unless something changes. We are not simply in need of an inspiring example—we need a saving substitute. We need someone who will take our punishment. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen Jesus was being tried for crimes he did not commit, the Roman governor Pilate gave the people a choice: He could release Jesus, an innocent man, or a man called Barabbas, who was a known terrorist. The crowd chose Barabbas and demanded Jesus to be crucified. The crowd chose a murderer over the one who brings the dead back to life. They chose evil over the one who loves perfectly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePut yourself in Barabbas’s place for a minute. You are walking to your death in chains and then all of a sudden, when you least expect it, you are free. Then you hear the words begin again: “Crucify him, crucify him.” You see another person walking by. Those chants are not for you. The guards are dragging another one to his death— Jesus of Nazareth. He’s beaten and flogged and is forced to carry his cross to his death. It’s the very cross you had imagined yourself carrying only moments earlier. You think to yourself, “That’s my death he’s dying.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Bible says of Jesus that “For our sake [God] made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). You and I are sinners. We sit in a spiritual prison, bound helpless, awaiting the day when we will receive the just punishment we deserve. We sit on the death row of all death rows waiting to be dragged out to death not knowing when God’s righteous judgment will come down. But the good news is that when you repent of your sin and trust in Jesus to save you, Jesus goes off to the cross in your place. He gets what you deserve; you get what he deserves. It is the greatest exchange in all of history. Jesus gives up his life so you can have life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou and I are Barabbas. We need someone to take our place, and Jesus has done that for us. He willingly took the wrath of God upon himself. On the cross, Jesus absorbed all our wickedness. He has poured out his perfect love upon us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFirst Peter 3:18 says, “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit.” Jesus was leading a true revolution. You can always stop a Barabbas, but you can’t stop Jesus. He took our place on the cross so that the greatest exchange in all of history would bring you to God.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you are reading this and want Jesus Christ to become your substitute and exchange your sin for his glory, call out to him right now with a prayer like this:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHeavenly Father, I believe that Jesus Christ is your Son, and that he died on the cross to save me from my sin. I believe that he rose again to life, and that he invites me to live forever with him in heaven as part of your family. Because of what Jesus has done, I ask you to forgive me of my sin and give me eternal life. Please guide me to a Bible-believing church where I can grow as a Christian with others who love Jesus. Amen.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"CROSSWAY","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43994596737244,"sku":"9781682164020","price":0.5,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0663\/4058\/5692\/files\/61-Sifk4FKL._AC_UY218.jpg?v=1697637985"},{"product_id":"gn-tract-is-there-a-way-to-be-saved","title":"GN TRACT IS THERE A WAY TO BE SAVED?","description":"\u003cp\u003ePerhaps one of the most commonly referenced verses in the Bible is John 3:16, in which Jesus says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEven though you may recognize John 3:16 when it shows up on posters at sporting events, do you really know what it means? And who is this John person anyway? By way of introduction, John was one of the twelve disciples that followed Jesus during his ministry, and he is also the author of the books of the Bible called First, Second, and Third John, as well as Revelation. He wrote the Gospel of John, including the verses that are referenced in this pamphlet, sometime between A.D. 70 and A.D. 100 from a city in Asia Minor (modern- day Turkey).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohn’s Gospel is crucial to learning more about Jesus and discovering what it means to become a Christian. His purpose in writing this book of the Bible is to evidence that Jesus is the Son of God and our Savior. By believing in Jesus and trusting in the salvation from our sin that he offers, people can gain eternal life. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWHY DO WE NEED TO BE SAVED?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJesus said, “Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34). If we are honest with ourselves, we cannot deny that from the moment of our birth we have done wrong things—things that make us guilty before God and deserving of his judgment. The Bible calls these wrong things sin, and sin separates us from God. And because we are separated from God, we face the awful prospect of his eternal wrath (John 3:36).  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJESUS IS THE ONLY WAY\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCan anyone save us from God’s wrath and assure us of heaven? Some people believe that they can get into heaven by doing good works, or by following the teachings of a religion, or even by giving money to churches or charities. But Jesus clearly said that none of these things would save us: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). No human effort can give us eternal life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn fact, the only “work” that can save us is the “work” of believing in what Jesus has done to accomplish our salvation: “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:29). And to those who so believe, the promise of God stands firm: “To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHOW DOES JESUS SAVE US?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohn the Baptist, a biblical prophet, calls Jesus the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Jesus explains that our salvation comes through his death on the cross as the perfect and sufficient sacrifice for our sin (John 3:14–15).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen reading the Gospel of John, for example, you’ll notice that chapters 18–19 describe Jesus’ death and then chapter 20 tells of his glorious triumph over death as he rose from the dead. Jesus’ resurrection means that he can give eternal life to all who believe in him: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die . . .” (John 11:25–26).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDO YOU BELIEVE?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohn 11:26 ends with Jesus asking, “Do you believe this?” It is a question that every person must answer: Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God? Do you believe that he died on the cross to free you from guilt and judgment of sin? Do you believe that he rose from the grave, breaking the power of death and making a way for you to have eternal life in heaven?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you believe that these things are true, then you may want to express your faith in him by praying this prayer:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHeavenly Father, I believe that Jesus Christ is your Son, and that he died on the cross to save me from my sin. I believe that he rose again to life, and that he invites me to live forever with him in heaven as part of your family. Because of what Jesus has done, I ask you to forgive me of my sin and give me eternal life. Help me to live in a way that pleases and honors you. Amen.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGROWING IN CHRIST\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnce you have received the gift of eternal life, you will want to grow in your knowledge of Christ and your obedience to him. Jesus’ teaching about how to live for God can be summed up in three simple instructions:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRead the Bible. Jesus said, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me” (John 14:21). One way to show our love for God is to read and live out the commands set forth in the Bible, God’s holy Word. Read the Bible daily to learn how to live a life that honors God and gives testimony to others that Jesus has made a difference in your life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePray. Communication with God through prayer keeps your focus on eternal things. If you are truly following Jesus, your desires will be for God’s glory and for his kingdom, the church. Jesus promised, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeek Christian fellowship. Meeting regularly with Christian brothers and sisters allows you to follow Jesus’ example of love and to fulfill his command to “love one another . . . just as I have loved you” (John 13:34). Just as Jesus surrounded himself daily with his disciples and followers, find a Bible believing church where you can meet with other Christians. There you will find joy and encouragement in the fellowship of God’s people. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"CROSSWAY","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46723283058908,"sku":"9781682163788","price":0.5,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0663\/4058\/5692\/files\/1540465e8b0d836efd3a89c7037e8f87ac74b97f.png?v=1751965893"},{"product_id":"gn-tract-it-is-finished","title":"GN TRACT IT IS FINISHED","description":"\u003cp class=\"accordion-section-header\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFull Text\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"accordion-section-content\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“It Is Finished”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJesus Christ’s final words, hanging upon that cross, were: “It is finished” (John 19:30). What does that mean?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt means that when Jesus Christ showed up twenty centuries ago, he had not come to start a new religion. He had come to end all religion.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReligion is about what we do for God. The message of Jesus—what he called “the gospel” or “happy announcement”—is about what God has done for us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReligion hands us a stack of bills to pay. The gospel hands us a blank check.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Central Message of Christianity\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe central message of Christianity is not what many people think—including many people who have been attending church their whole lives. Like an adopted orphan who has trouble accepting that his new parents really love him, we all deeply believe that God deals with us on terms of religion, not gospel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat then is the central message of Christianity?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe core message of Christianity is not that God condemns or judges or punishes. The primary message of Christianity is not that God teaches or commands or instructs. The main message of Christianity is not even that God helps or strengthens or empowers. The central message of Christianity is that\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eGod substitutes\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe understand this in theory from everyday life. A substitute teacher fills in for the regular teacher who is out sick that day. A basketball player comes off the bench to sub in for a tired or injured player.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd what was happening when Jesus was on that cross, uttering his final words, “It is finished”?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe was completing his work as our substitute. He was subbing himself in for us, if we will have him. But this was not like one basketball player for another. It was more like a king subbing himself in for a condemned prisoner.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn the cross, Jesus was suffering the death, the sentence of condemnation, that all of us deserve. He exhausted the full penalty that our sin deserved, for any who desire it. And so he said: “It is finished.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Devastating Problem\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHow does this land on you? Maybe it sounds interesting, but not all that compelling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps you believe there are people out there who really need some major forgiveness from God—our prisons are full of them. But you’re doing okay. Maybe the notion of a king substituting himself for a condemned prisoner raises your eyebrows—\u003cem\u003eI’m not a guilty prisoner\u003c\/em\u003e, you may think.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou’re friendly with your neighbors and drive the speed limit. You don’t know what handcuffs feel like and you never dropped out of school. You vote as any thoughtful citizen votes and you try to look out for your fellow human beings. Maybe you’ve even given some money to charitable causes from time to time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMay I be so bold as to share a bit about myself?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll of the above is true of me too.\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eAnd I’m violating the commands of the God who created me left and right.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTake the Ten Commandments, for example. The first commandment is, “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). In other words, God should be the number one person in my life that I’m trusting in. But I find myself trusting in myself all the time—counting on my own abilities, trusting in my reputation, enjoying what others think of me, drawing strength psychologically from financial savings. Not a single day goes by that I do not break that command.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe sixth command is, “You shall not murder.” I’ve never killed anyone. But Jesus said we’ve broken that command if we get angry with another person (Matthew 5:21–26). I get angry all the time, even if I’m usually able to keep it beneath the surface.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe seventh commandment is, “You shall not commit adultery.” Once again, Jesus got to the heart of things and said that we’ve broken that command if we lust in our heart toward a woman (Matthew 5:27–30). I’ve broken that one countless times.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI’ve broken the ninth commandment, not to lie, many times—a little bending of the truth, a shaded explanation of something that casts me in a slightly better light. I’ve broken the tenth commandment, not to envy, anytime I’ve looked at another person and wished I had an ability or possession of theirs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTruth be told, I’ve broken all the com­mand­ments.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI’m breaking God’s commands left and right. So are you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Even Deeper Problem\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut our problem is deeper than just breaking God’s commands.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBreaking God’s rules is the symptom, not the disease. The disease is what the Bible calls “sin.” Sin is the dark twistedness within that causes us to live for ourselves. As we go through life, all we know is to live for Self. Even acts of love or neighborly friendliness, when honestly examined, are really just so that we will feel better about ourselves or so that others will think well of us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe may not\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003efeel\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ethat sinful—just as a fish doesn’t\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003efeel\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ethat wet. But we don’t feel it only because we’re immersed in it all the time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThink of it this way. If sin is the color blue, it isn’t as if convicted felons have lots of blue and the rest of us are pretty much clean and white. Rather, everything that every one of us says, does, or even thinks has\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003esome\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003etaint of blue to it. We can’t turn our sinfulness off any more than we can change our eye color.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut when Jesus showed up, he was different. He never broke any of God’s commandments. He was the one person who didn’t live for himself. He lived for others. He laid his life down for others. We view other people in terms of how they can serve the purpose of making my life better. We live a “your life for mine” existence. Jesus stands out brightly across the millennia of human history as the one person who ever truly lived a “my life for yours” existence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHe had no blue.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“I Want to Trade Places with You”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou and I break God’s commands all the time. And deeper than that, we have sin within—lots of blue. And here’s what Jesus is saying to you, right now:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eI want to trade places with you.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJesus kept all God’s commands and was perfectly white—no blue at all. He was the one person who ever lived who deserved\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003enot\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eto die.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut he went to the cross and was condemned unjustly and died. He therefore is able to offer himself as the substitute to any who will have the honesty to admit their desperate need for it and take him up on that offer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLet me be clear: He’s not offering to trade places with you assuming you will resolve to do better from now on.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe’s not offering to trade places with you, but with a clause built into the contract that allows him to step out of the trade if we don’t hold up our end of the bargain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe’s offering to trade places with you wholesale. Once and for all. No matter what the rest of your life looks like. In this trade, you become as permanently unpunishable as Jesus Christ is, now in heaven. The morally consistent Christian and the morally\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003ein\u003c\/em\u003econsistent Christian are both as permanently guiltless as Christ himself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat surprising trade is what Jesus was talking about when he declared, “It is finished.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe was saying that the full price for sin had been paid for anyone who is willing to receive it. His death on the cross was not just any death—it was the death that absorbed the deserved condemnation of anyone down through the centuries who desires the trade that Jesus offers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf Jesus wanted you to complete the deal from your end, he would have said, “It is begun.” But he said, “It is finished.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll that’s left is for you to receive it. Acknowledge your desperate sinful condition and tell Jesus that you would like to take him up on his offer of a trade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYour badness does not disqualify you for this trade. Your goodness does not qualify you for this trade. What qualifies you is knowing you don’t qualify.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCollapse into the open arms of Jesus Christ. As you say to him of your efforts, “It is hopeless,” he will say to you of his efforts, “It is finished.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Way Forward\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you will accept the trade that Jesus offers, everything will change in your life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI don’t mean you’ll suddenly make more money or get sick less often. Actually, in some ways life will get harder for you if you accept his offer. A prisoner of war escaping from a concentration camp will face more intense attack from the enemy than he ever did inside the camp.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut when you say yes to Christ’s offer, everything changes. You’re alive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s like a baby moving from the womb to the outside world, or a statue coming to life, or a spell being broken. Not only are all your sins forgiven; you get your humanity back. You get your dignity back. There’s a new meaning and direction to your life. You discover a surprising buoyancy and joy from within, a glow and a calm that you can’t explain. Death no longer terrifies you. Your desires start changing, from the inside out. All these are indications that the Holy Spirit has taken up residence within you. God the Son trades places with you, so that God the Spirit can live within you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eYou get back the you that you were created to be.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll for free. All of grace. Just by humbling yourself enough to admit that you deserve the cross of condemnation that Jesus went to in your place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd you will continue to sin. In fact, you will be more aware of your sinfulness than ever before. At times it will feel like you’re getting worse, not better. And that’s why Jesus Christ’s words “It is finished” will be yours to cherish the rest of your life. He never asks for a trade back. Once his completed work counts as yours, it always will. That’s the whole point. It’s done. There’s nothing good you could ever do to add the finishing touch to his work on the cross, and there’s nothing bad you could ever do to take away from his finished work.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYour Actual Life\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat’s it. Pretty simple.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou lay down your bad and your good, your irreligion and your religion, and believe the gospel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou hand Jesus your sin and shame, and he hands you his finished work and perfect record. It’s what he loves to do.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps at this point you long for all this to be true, but new questions or doubts are bubbling up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaybe you’re thinking, “I don’t have it in me to be a very good Christian.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd Jesus Christ would say to you:\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eI will walk with you every step of the journey. I will be your Friend and Guide.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaybe you say, “My parents will think I’ve gone crazy and I’ll suddenly be an outsider within my own family.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJesus says to you,\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eI will give you a new family.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eA place of true acceptance and belonging, among my people. They will be your true brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps you respond, “I have baggage from my past that no one else knows about.” He says,\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eI do. I know you better than you know yourself. And I still want you.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“You want me in spite of my baggage?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNo, I want you because of your baggage.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“But shouldn’t I leave my sin and guilt behind before coming to you?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eI can’t trade places with you if you do that.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“The thing is, there’s messiness and failure and sin not only in my past but in my present.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAll the more reason for you to accept my offer, and let me trade places with you once and for all.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd perhaps in a final wave of despair and longing, you whisper: “It’s futile.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd the Lord Jesus Christ lifts your face by the chin, looks you in the eye, and says:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt is finished.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"CROSSWAY","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46723311206620,"sku":"9781682164310","price":2.0,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0663\/4058\/5692\/files\/3b4337f247cd24f0681c4a62d0401f377b3c7a93.png?v=1751966185"},{"product_id":"gn-tract-message-of-the-bible","title":"GN TRACT MESSAGE OF THE BIBLE","description":"\u003cp\u003eWe are all aware of problems in this world. Everyone knows what it is to be weary, to be disappointed, and to struggle. And we have a feeling that we were not meant for this. We are all searching for some solution to the problems of life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe question is, why are you unhappy? Why\u003cbr\u003edo things go wrong? Why is there illness and sickness? Why should there be death? Those are the questions with which the Bible deals.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Bible talks to you about your unhappiness. Some insist that the Bible, far from being practical, is really very remote from life. But nothing in the world is as practical as the teaching of the Bible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn order to answer questions about you, the Bible starts in the most extraordinary way: \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"In the beginning God...\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt starts with God. Before I begin to ask any questions about myself and my problems, I ought to ask questions like this: Where did the world come from? Where have I come from? What is life itself?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou come to me and say, “I’m unhappy. I’m in\u003cbr\u003ea crisis. What’s the matter with me?” And the Bible says, “In the beginning God . . .” as if it has forgotten all about you. But it has not! The only way to understand yourself or your life is to start with God. And right at the very beginning, the Bible takes us there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Bible also tells us that the world came into being because the eternal God made it. It tells us that God is the Creator, that he made everything out of nothing, by his own power, and he made it perfect.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat’s more, according to the Bible, man is a special creation of God. The Bible tells us, “God created man in his own image” (Genesis 1:27). It does not say that about anything else, only about human beings. Man was made by God, for God. He spoke to God, walked with God, and enjoyed God. And his life was one of perfect bliss.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut into this perfect world made by God there entered another power, another force. Something came that was opposed to God and opposed to man, and it was bent upon one thing only— wrecking God’s perfect work. The Bible tells us that the Devil entered into this world, and by tempting the man and the woman, whom God had made, brought to pass everything bad that you and I know.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhy are there jealousy and envy and misunderstanding? Why lust and passion? Why are homes and marriages broken? Why do little children suffer? Why all the agony and the pain of life?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is because there is this other power in the world that has dragged man down. That is the biblical explanation. You will find it in the Bible from beginning to end. And if that is true, how hopelessly and utterly inadequate are all the remedies that are being offered apart from the Bible. What’s more, the Bible tells us that as the result of that original sin, all of us are in the grip of this evil power.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMan, as the result of all this, is quite helpless; he has brought a curse upon himself and cannot escape it. He would like to, but he cannot. Man has been trying to get back into Eden ever since he went out of it. That is the whole history of civilization. That is the whole meaning of philosophy and all political thought and all the blueprints of utopias at all times and in all places—man trying to get back into paradise.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut it is worse than merely not being in paradise. Man is under the judgment of God. He thought that he could forget God and that there would be no risk involved. He did not realize that the law of God is absolute. Both man as an individual and the whole world, according to the Bible, are under the judgment of God. You see, in the garden Adam and Eve thought they could eat the forbidden fruit and all would be well. Then they heard the voice of the Lord God, and they cowered and were frightened. Judgment had come, and they were thrust out.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut, thank God, he intervenes! God, even at the moment of rebellion, tells man that he has a way to rescue him and to redeem him: “It [the seed of the woman] shall bruise thy [the serpent’s] head” (Genesis 3:15). The serpent can only be mastered by one, and he has come—the seed of the woman, Jesus of Nazareth. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJOHN 3:16  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChrist, the Son of God, came into this world, took on our human nature, entered into our very situation, and defeated our enemy. He received judgment for us on the cross. God dealt with him there and pardons us, and our enemy is conquered. So the way to paradise is open, and it is open for you.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll your problems, all your needs, arise from the fact of sin. That is the cause of all ill. And there is but one solution to the problem, the solution that God himself has provided in the person of his Son. “. . . that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” And that life begins here and now—a knowledge of God, assurance that you are right with God, that he will take you through death and announce in the judgment that you are already pardoned and forgiven.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy dear friend, that is your problem, and that is the answer to your problem. Believe it. Accept it here and now. Go to that great God. Acknowledge your sinning against him, and thank him for his eternal love in sending his Son to rescue you and to redeem you by dying for you, and ask him to give you new life. And he will. I say that on the authority of Jesus who stated, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” ( John 6:37). \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"CROSSWAY","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46724429512924,"sku":"9781682163801","price":0.5,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0663\/4058\/5692\/files\/11b4ef7da29f893ec2848ace104ad405ff91f468.png?v=1751972969"}],"url":"https:\/\/bible-society-uae-7958.myshopify.com\/collections\/gn-tracts.oembed","provider":"Bible Society UAE","version":"1.0","type":"link"}