Many people, even religious people, wrongly suppose that God is against sinners. They think; “Do what is right and God will love and bless you, but do what is wrong and He will be angry with you and curse you.” Sadly, religion paints this picture of God, perpetuating this wrong-headed view.

Perhaps this view of God comes from the fact that many Scripture passages, especially in the Old Testament, reveal God as the Enemy of the workers of iniquity. But He is the Enemy of the workers of iniquity... as a class of God opposers in their act of opposing Him... but even then He is not against the individual persons. Rather, God sent Jesus Christ to die for His enemies even while they opposed Him.

In Ezek. 18:23 God asks: “Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die… ?” And in 2Pet. 3:9 we learn that when God might have judged this world for the crucifixion of Christ. Rather, He delayed the judgment because He is “longsuffering (delaying judgment)” and “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

The Apostle Paul, referring to the crucifixion, declares that “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself (by the cross), not imputing (counting) their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:19).

How could He have shown sinners more conclusively that He desires their good than by putting their sins upon Jesus Christ and telling them that He is not counting their sins unto them? Their trespasses (sins) will be imputed to them, of course, only if they reject God’s one provision of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But for the present it is a wonderful fact that we can go to any sinner and say on the authority of God’s written Word: “Your sins have been paid for; God is not holding them against you. Will you accept His love and receive Christ as your Savior?”

No, God is not against us. He loves each of us and has provided abundantly for our salvation by paying for our sins Himself at Calvary's cross. This is the essence of “the gospel of the grace of God” (See I Tim. 2:4-7).

Will you believe this? Will you trust Christ now, acknowledging Him as your Savior?