THE PROBLEM IS SIN!

Salvation starts with the realization that we are sinners.

What is sin? Sin is anything that falls short of God's will. The easiest way to define it is by the Ten Commandments that God gave to Moses. You know, "Thou shalt, Thou shalt not." The first commandment, I am the Lord Your God...you will have no other gods before Me, simply means God must be first in everything. If He isn't the most important thing in your life and the first consideration in every choice you make, then you are sinning. By that standard, we all have sinned. We could talk about lying, disrespecting our parents, envy, lust, blasphemy...all of these and more are sins that are spoken of in the Ten Commandments.

Then Jesus came and taught that sin was more than just disobeying the letter of the law. He said things like, "You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart." - Matthew 5:27-28 (NLT) Jesus was showing us the spirit of holiness that was really what the law was all about.

You might be thinking, Who can live up to that standard? Precisely! We are all sinners, and we can't live ten simple commandments, let alone true holiness, because of the power of sin in our lives. Jesus rescued us from the consequences of sin: Hell, and the power of sin: He gave us a new life empowered by the Holy Spirit to overcome sin.