Dr. Leighton Ford tells the story of when his young daughter got lost years ago.

“I was minding the children while my wife was shopping. Debbie Jean had returned from school and was playing with her four-year-old brother in the back yard. When I called them to come in, Debbie Jean was missing.

“I walked up and down the street calling her name—fearing the silence.

“Later (after she was found) I reflected on the incident. During the nearly two hours that Debbie Jean was missing, nothing else mattered. In my study were books to be read, letters to be answered, articles to be written, planning to be done—but it was all forgotten. I could think of only one thing: my little girl was lost.

“I had only one prayer and I prayed it a thousand times: ‘O God, help me to find her.’

“‘How often,’ I ask myself, had I felt that same terrible urgency about people who were lost from God?”

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, give me a passion for those who are lost without Jesus. Please use me today and every day to be as Jesus to someone who needs the Savior and grant that they, seeing Jesus in me, will want You for themselves. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

NOTE: Learn how to be a missionary right from your own home, and have a vital part in worldwide gospel outreach by becoming an ACTS People Power for Jesus Partner. It’s very simple, non-threatening, and without cost. See how at: https://learning.actsweb.org/people_power_invite.php.

1. Mark 16:15 (TLB).

According to God’s Word, the Bible, after death, either at the judgment seat of Christ or at the Great White judgment throne of God, every one of us will be required to give an account to God regarding our life here on earth.

Those who believe in God and have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior have their names written in God’s book of life. However, they will still appear before the judgment seat of Christ—not to be judged for their sins, because Jesus paid that penalty for them when he died on the cross—but to be judged on the basis of how they served God here on earth and be rewarded accordingly. As God’s Words says, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”²

On the other hand, those who have not chosen to believe in God or accept Jesus Christ as their Savior—whose names are not written in God’s book of life—will appear before God, the Judge of all the earth at the Great White Judgment throne of God. Because they never accepted Jesus’ sacrifice for their sins nor asked God for forgiveness, they will have to pay the penalty for their own sins, which is eternal death and separation from God, the author of all love and life, in the place the Bible calls Hell or the lake of fire—wherever and whatever that may be.

As God’s Word says, “Each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”³

The critical issue is: have you confessed your sinfulness to God, and do you believe that Jesus died on the cross in your place to pay the penalty for your sins and, in so doing, have you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior? If not, you will be required in the end to pay the penalty for your sins yourself.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You for giving Your Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for all my sins. I do believe in You and confess my sinfulness and ask for Your forgiveness. Help me always to live for you. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

Note: If you prayed this simple prayer and truly meant it, please let us know by going to http://tinyurl.com/pgntm, or for further help be sure to read, “To Find and Know God … without having to be religious” at: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. Hebrews 9:27 (NKJV).

2. 2 Corinthians 5:10 (NIV).

3. Revelation 20:13-15 (NIV).

I recall reading about a father who was caught with his two young daughters in a snow storm and lost his way. When night fell he wrapped his jacket around his two girls and lay on top of them to stop them from freezing to death. The next day they were found by a search party. The two girls were alive and well, but the father had frozen to death. He gave his life to save the ones he loved.

That’s exactly what Jesus did for you and me. He gave his life to pay for the consequences of our sin—death. And on Easter Sunday 2,000 years ago he arose from the grave proving that he had forever overcome the power of death and sin, and to guarantee resurrection for all who put their trust in him.

Rivas Zacharias talks about how Christ encounters us today as he did the disciples on the morning of his resurrection from the dead. “The disciples were the ones marked out for death. Those who survived Jesus were really the dead. And he, Jesus, the dead one, was really the living one.”

And because he is the Living One, the day he rose from the grave was the day that changed the world forever. And the day that you and I commit our life to him and receive his free pardon is the day that changes our life—forever!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, thank You that after paying the penalty for all my sins, You arose from the grave giving me the assurance that I, too, will also arise from death because my trust, and my salvation, is in You. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Revelation 1:18 (NIV).

Note: If you have never accepted God’s forgiveness and are assured of life after death in Heaven, please read the article, “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian” at: www.actsweb.org/christian.

According to a report by medical doctor Mark Eastman, the suffering Jesus experienced on the cross is almost unbearable just to think about it.

For instance, prior to Jesus’ trial he was flogged by the Roman guards. “This process typically involved a whip with numerous leather thongs, 18-24 inches long, with bits of metal, bone or glass embedded in the leather…. Scourging was an extreme form of punishment. The skin on the victim’s back was usually shredded, thus exposing the underlying muscle and skeletal structures. Severe blood loss and dehydration were the rule. Many victims died from such scourging.

“After the scourging of Jesus, the Roman soldiers beat Him a second time with their hands and with a reed. Then they put on him a ‘crown of thorns.’”⁷

Then came the crucifixion. “It is arguably the most painful death ever invented by man and is where we get our term ‘excruciating.’ It was reserved primarily for the most vicious of criminals.”⁸

Even though Pilate, the Roman Governor, said, “I find no fault in this man,” he gave in to the jealous crowd and allowed Jesus to be crucified. With his arms stretched out Jesus was nailed to a wooden cross. “The nails, which were generally about 7-9 inches long, were placed between the bones of the forearm (the radius and ulna) and the small bones of the hands (the carpal bones),” permanently destroying the largest nerve in the hand “called the median nerve…. In addition to severe burning pain the destruction of this nerve causes permanent paralysis of the hand.”⁹

“The positioning of the feet is probably the most critical part of the mechanics of crucifixion. First the knees were flexed about 45 degrees and the feet were flexed (bent downward) an additional 45 degrees until they were parallel to the vertical pole. An iron nail about 7-9 inches long was driven through the feet between the 2nd and 3rd metatarsal bones. In this position the nail would sever the dorsal pedal artery of the foot, but the resulting bleeding would be insufficient to cause death.

“The resulting position on the cross sets up a horrific sequence of events which result in a slow, painful death. Having been pinned to the cross, the victim now has an impossible position to maintain….

“The result is that within a few minutes of being placed on the cross, the shoulders will become dislocated. Minutes later the elbows and wrists become dislocated…. As time goes on, the victim is less and less able to bear weight on the legs, causing further dislocation of the arms and further raising of the chest wall, making breathing more and more difficult. The result of this process is a series of catastrophic physiological effects”¹⁰

Eventually, the heart begins to fail, the lungs collapse, and the victim suffocates. He dies a slow, unbelievably excruciating death.

And all of this Jesus did for you and me gladly and willingly because he loves us with an everlasting love. He died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins and mine so we could be totally forgiven and given the gift of eternal life with him in Heaven forever. The good news is that Jesus, after three days, rose from the dead assuring us that we who believe in him will also rise from physical death to be alive forever with God.

If you’ve never thanked Jesus for dying on the cruel cross in your place, why not do this right now and ask him to come into your heart and life as personal Lord and Savior and accept his full and free forgiveness.

NOTE: For further help, click on the Know God button below for a copy of “How to Be Sure You’re a Real Christian,” or click on www.actsweb.org/christian.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, again I thank You for giving Your life as a ransom price for my sins. And because You gave your life for me please help me live my life for You. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

6. John 3:16 (NIV).

7. Page 10, Personal Update, “The Agony of Love,” by Mark Eastman, M.D.,

Used by permission.

8. Ibid, Page 11.

9. Ibid, Page 11.

10. Ibid, Page 12. Web site of Mark Eastman, M.D. http://www.MarsHill.org.

In yesterday’s Daily Encounter we told the story about the Argyle (prisoner) who, in a Japanese prison camp, gave his life to save that of his fellow comrades.

Surely there is no greater love than what this prisoner displayed. His was the supreme sacrifice. Knowing that he wasn’t guilty, he gave his life to save the lives of his fellow prisoners. Even Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”⁴

And yet, Jesus did display an even greater love. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ [Jesus] died for us.”⁵

So why did Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Great Creator of the universe, lay aside his external robes of deity to be clothed in a garment of human flesh, and left the glory of Heaven to come to earth as a man to die for lost mankind?

He did it because of his incredible love for us, to pay the penalty for and consequences of our sin, which is spiritual death. Spiritual death is not the cessation of life. It is eternal separation from God, the author of all love and life. Jesus died for us because it breaks the heart of God to lose us forever in an unthinkable eternity that God calls hell.

And when we consider the excruciation suffering caused by crucifixion—the agony of which Jesus went through for us—we can appreciate so much more the magnitude of God’s love for us. (Be sure to see tomorrow’s Daily Encounter for a medic’s description of the brutality of Roman crucifixions.)

To be concluded …

Suggested prayer: Suggested prayer: “Dear God, again I thank You for Your incredible love gift to the world in giving Your Son, Jesus the Christ, to die on the cross in my place to save me from the dreadful consequences of my sin. And, Lord Jesus, again I thank You for giving Your life to pay the penalty for my sins so I can be freely forgiven and receive Your gift of eternal life. Help me to live a life in never-ending gratitude to You for all You have done for me. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

3. Romans 5:7-8 (NIV).

4. John 15:13 (NIV)

5. Romans 5:7-8 (NIV).