For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9)
The Bible teaches Christ died for every person, without exception (1 John 2:2). He offers the gift of forgiveness, salvation and eternal life to everyone: "Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life" (Revelation 22:17).
There is no righteous deed we can do that will earn us salvation (Titus 3:5). We come to Christ empty handed. Salvation is described as a gift. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). This gift cannot be worked for, earned or achieved in any sense. It is not dependent on our merit or effort, but solely on Christ's generosity and sacrifice on our behalf.
Like any gift, the gift of forgiveness can be offered to you, but it is not yours until you choose to receive it. There are cases where convicted criminals have been offered pardon by governors, but have actually rejected their pardons. Courts have determined that a pardon is valid only if the prisoner is willing to accept it. Likewise, Christ offers each of us the gift of forgiveness and eternal life, but just because the offer is made does not automatically make it ours. In order to have it, we must choose to accept it.
You may feel, "But I don't deserve forgiveness after all I've done." That's exactly right. None of us deserves forgiveness. If we deserved it, we wouldn't need it. That's the point of grace. Christ got what we deserved on the cross, so we could get what we don't deserve-forgiveness, a clean slate, a fresh start. Once forgiven we can look forward to spending eternity in heaven with Christ and our spiritual family (John 14:1-3; Revelation 20:11-22:6).