A Letter of Love

The following letter was written by a member of our church to a co-worker dying with cancer:

Dear ______________,

It has taken a long time for me to write this letter, but I think it is one of the most important letters I could ever write. Even before your illness I felt an urging to share this with you. I hope you read this carefully, think about what I have to say, and please don't think I have lost my mind.

Many people ask how you are doing. They want to know how you are feeling, how your body and mind are dealing with things, and don't give anything else much thought. But there are a few people, me included, that are concerned with more. We are concerned about your soul, and are concerned about what will happen to that soul once the body ceases to exist. People don't like to think about what happens after death. It is scary to many and unknown, so they think if they don't think about it, it will just go away. Or they think they will just take their chances on what they think will happen. Many times people make up things in their minds or get misinformation from movies and are content to believe whatever feels good or right to them. These are all very dangerous games to play with one's soul for eternity. We can know for sure what will happen when we die. The Bible explains very clearly what lays ahead and depending on what choices a person makes in this life, not necessarily what a person does, will determine where one will spend eternity. The choice is so easy and the rewards so great. I urge you with everything in me that you consider what I present taken directly from the Bible and make a choice – don't take chances, don't rely on what you think or feel is right, take the words from the Bible and believe and trust.

I'm going to take you down what many consider or call “The Romans Road.” It explains the need and the way to salvation in Jesus Christ. It gets its name from the fact that many of the scripture verses come from the Book of Romans found in The New Testament.

First of all, we all know that we do bad things, it's so easy to do, many times we do it without thinking or realizing it. The Bible explains that clearly in Romans 3:10 when it says, “As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one.” No matter how good of a person we think we are or can be, the Bible says that none are righteous according to God's standards. It further explains in Romans 3:23 -- “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” We have to remember that we can't judge ourselves righteous enough for heaven by our standards, but we have to remember what God's standards are. According to the Bible, we have all fallen short of that standard. Then there comes the good news/bad news verse that can change everything! It is found in Romans 6:23 -- “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” The bad news here is clear, because of our sin nature, death is the only payment we can give of ourselves, BUT God has given us a gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. And remember, a gift is something that we don't expect or earn or pay for. A true gift is something that someone gives us freely, because they want to. They don't expect us to do anything else in return for that gift, except be grateful. And now to my favorite verse in the entire Bible. It is found in the Book of Ephesians 2:8-9 -- “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” To simply explain it means that we are saved by God's grace (grace meaning undeserved favor) by having faith in what Christ did for us at the cross. We can't earn it by works, prayers, donations to the church, etc. because then man would boast of his efforts and think that it was himself and not God who opened the way to heaven. Again, scripture calls it a gift of God – a free gift given for the taking, if we so choose. Another verse that talks of works is found in Titus 3:5 -- “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” Again, it is plain that we can't possibly save ourselves, or think that someone else can even put in a good word for us, it is all by God's mercy and grace.

So after all that, what does one have to believe to be saved? It is called the Gospel. It can be found in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. Paul, the author of 1 Corinthians is writing to the Corinthian people and reminding them of what he had preached to them when he was in Corinth. “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand: By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” Now I know that sounds a bit confusing, but I'll put it simply. In order to be saved, go to heaven, see the Pearly Gates, or whatever you want to call it, you have to simply believe that Christ died for your sins, that he was buried, and that he rose again. If you simply believe that little sentence, believe and trust that what Christ did was a full, final, and all satisfying payment for your sins and that you can't add anything else to that (like works) then you will be saved. You won't necessarily feel anything when this happens (like a warming glow, hear angels singing in your head, or suddenly feel 'spiritual'.) But be assured that something wonderful has happened, a spiritual miracle if you will. God has accepted Christ's payment of death on your behalf and no longer sees you as a sinful human being. He now sees Christ's righteousness instead, and you will then be spending eternity in heaven.

If you choose not to take this free gift from God, the Bible is very clear about what will happen to the unbelievers, or the people who thought they could earn their way into heaven and do it themselves. It will be a place of eternal torment and once you are there, there is no changing your mind or requesting a transfer. Your stuck! So if you are still reading this letter up to this point I thank you from the bottom of my heart for sticking with me! I also urge you to really, really think about what I have said here and consider making a decision. So many people, when they face their own deaths, know that they have to 'get their affairs in order'. And they go about taking care of things in this life, but the really important affair to be settled is the eternal one and many don't consider that until it is too late.

As I stated earlier, there are a few people at work who are truly concerned about your soul. We would really like to sit and talk with you about this if you have any questions or concerns. One person who I have talked to and is eager to get together with you about this is ______________. She may have already, I don't know as I haven't talked to her for a few weeks now that she is on a different shift. But if not, we would really like to get together with you and discuss this. Or, if you have made a decision, and don't feel the need to discuss this further, that is fine too. We just would really like to get to heaven someday and see you standing there waiting for us!

Sometimes I also tell someone who still has remaining doubts is this. If I'm wrong and your right, then you have nothing to worry about. But, if your wrong and I'm right, then you certainly have something to be concerned about here. Are you willing to take that chance? I wouldn't, because remember, this is for eternity, not just for the weekend!

I really do care about you and hope you do sincerely think about what I've said in this letter. If you do have any questions, concerns, or just want to talk, please call me day or night. I would be so happy if I knew I would again see you one day in glory!

Take care,

______________