We who live today believe in Christ who came in the past. Jesus came to this earth and was crucified, bearing the sin of all mankind. Since the time you were born, you have lived your life committing sins, and who knows how many more sins you will commit in the future? If you were to die today in that state, you would end up in hell. Why is that? It is because if you have even the smallest of sins, you cannot go to heaven. But God has taken your sin and put it upon Jesus. When Jesus, who was righteous and had not the slightest fault, was crucified, the sin of all mankind was moved onto Him. Jesus eliminated all of the sin in this world at one stroke.

When Adam sinned, how many days did it take him? As soon as he ate the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he became a sinner at one stroke. Man, who became a sinner the moment he ate the forbidden fruit, becomes righteous in God's eyes the moment he believes in Jesus. So in the Bible it says, "I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day" (Zechariah 3:9). When Jesus suffered on the cross and said, "It is finished," your sins and mine all vanished. Whether we believe in Jesus or not, He took all of our sins upon Himself two thousand years ago.

Jesus took upon Himself all the sins of every one of us, was crucified and died, and then He rose from the dead three days later for our justification.

When Jesus was crucified, there were three crosses standing side by side on that hill. On the crosses to the left and right of Jesus, there hung two thieves. One of them who had been crucified for a terrible crime came to believe in Jesus right then as he hung there. He had never attended church but he certainly believed at that one moment. It did not take him a long time to believe. Did he make a great effort to believe? No. He did not. He
simply believed.

Believing in Jesus is a matter of completely entrusting yourself to what He has already done. You may come to believe as you are thinking and walking along the street, or while you are talking to someone. There are many things that are said in this world, but it is God who has said that man's sins have been completely forgiven. These words do not apply only to certain special people; they apply to all of mankind.

So why is it that people will be judged when they stand before the judgment seat of God? Is it because they have committed so many sins? No, it is not. There is only one reason for anyone to be judged and that is for not believing the truth that God has already accomplished.

If you prepare a free feast for someone who is dying of starvation, he should eat and enjoy it. If he is suspicious and does not eat, he will die. If he starves right beside the table covered with food ready for him to eat, what is the reason for his death? It is, of course, that he did not eat. In a similar way, the reason that people will end up in hell is that they did not believe the truth that Jesus has already accomplished.

People in Old Testament times believed that Jesus would come in the future. We who live in New Testament times believe in the truth that Jesus has already accomplished when He came. The sins of those who believed that the Messiah would come, and the sins of those who now believe that He came and believe in what He did when He came, are already forgiven.

For whom was He delivered up? It was for you. Christ becomes the Savior of anyone who believes in this truth.