One Diagnosis Away

You either expect today to be normal… or something has interrupted your normal.

Normal means things to do, errands to run, people to see, and plans to keep.

But sometimes all it takes is one phone call to change everything.

A call from a family member about a life-changing issue. A doctor says they found something. An injury that is worse than you thought.

One diagnosis can make the future feel fragile.

The Bible says:

“Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”

Proverbs 27:1

“What is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”

James 4:14

Most people avoid thinking about death until they are forced to.

But every hospital room, funeral, and graveyard reminds us of the same truth:

Death is inevitable in this broken world.

Why?

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin…”

Romans 5:12

Sin is rejecting God’s authority and living our own way instead of His.

Every one of us has sinned against God.

That includes you.

Take an honest look at your own life. Do you see that you have the same diagnosis?

Have you ever lied?

Been selfish?

Ignored God while living for yourself?

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

Romans 3:23

No amount of money, medicine, or healthy living can cure the diagnosis of sin and death.

And after death comes judgment before God.

“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”

Hebrews 9:27

This is the greatest problem you will ever face.

There is no cure for the diagnosis of sin that you can provide for yourself.

But God, in mercy and love, made a way for sinners to be forgiven.

Jesus Christ lived a perfect life without sin. Then He willingly died on the cross to take the punishment sinners deserve.

Jesus is life itself, yet He willingly entered death in the place of guilty sinners.

On the cross, God displayed both His justice and His love: justice because sin was punished, and love because sinners could be forgiven.

Jesus took the judgment our diagnosis deserves.

Like a perfect transplant, Jesus takes what brings us death and gives eternal life to those who trust in Him.

Three days later, He rose again from the dead, defeating death.

Jesus said:

“I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.”

John 11:25

A new life is not something you can earn. It is the gift of God given to those who repent and trust in Jesus Christ.

Like a transplant, your old life cannot cure itself or repair its diagnosis of sin and death. Receiving Christ is more than agreeing with facts about Him. It is completely trusting Jesus to give you a new life.

Jesus Christ willingly gave His life so that sinners could live through Him.

Have you received the life Christ offers?

“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:13

To call upon Jesus Christ means:

• Confess to God that you have sinned and turn from it (repent)

• Call to Jesus to save you because He is the only One who can,

• Cling to Jesus’ life alone (trust).

Receiving this transplant means laying down your old life and receiving His. And just as a transplant changes how a person lives afterward, receiving the life of Christ changes the direction of how you live too.

Do not ignore this diagnosis. Go to God honestly. Confess your sin, call upon Jesus Christ, and trust Him to save you. You can do this now, right where you are.

“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature…”

2 Corinthians 5:17

A Christian is not someone who became perfect, but someone forgiven, made alive through Christ, and now following Jesus.

Clinging to Jesus means resting your hope in His life instead of your own. Learn about Him through His Word and find a Bible-preaching church. As you turn away from sin and trust in Him daily, seeking to obey His Word and follow Him, He will change your desires to become more like His.

“He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.”

1 John 2:6