We’re glad you’re here.

This is a short look at what Christians believe about Jesus. There’s nothing to buy and nothing to sign up for.

When the religious leaders of his day complained that Jesus was eating with tax collectors and sinners, here’s what he told them:

Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.

Mark 2:17

That’s why we call Jesus the Great Physician. It’s what he called himself. But the sickness he came to cure isn’t one a doctor can find. It’s sin, and every one of us has it.

And he heals it in a way no other doctor ever has.

By his wounds you have been healed.

1 Peter 2:24

Here’s the whole story.

Made

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him.

Genesis 1:27

God made you on purpose. Before there was any sin in the world, God made people in his own image, looked at everything he’d made, and called it very good.

He didn’t make us to be his employees or to keep score. He made us to be with him. In the beginning, Adam and Eve walked with God in the garden with nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of.

That’s how life was supposed to be. So if you’ve ever felt like the world isn’t the way it should be, you’re right. It isn’t.

Broken

Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God.

Isaiah 59:2

It didn’t stay that way. Adam and Eve stopped trusting God and wanted to be like him. They ate what he’d told them not to eat, and everything broke. Every person born since has been born into that, including all of us.

The Bible calls it sin. Sin isn’t just the bad things we do. It’s what’s wrong with us on the inside. It’s why we know what’s right and still don’t do it, and why we apologize and then turn around and do the same thing again.

Worst of all, sin separates us from God. It separates us from each other too.

A lot of people think the fix is to try harder. Go to church more, be a better person, and eventually God will accept you. But nobody’s ever been good enough, and nobody can fix this on their own.

That’s why we need a physician.

Healed

So God fixed it himself.

He sent his Son, Jesus, to do what we couldn’t. Jesus lived the perfect life we were supposed to live. Then he died on a cross and took the punishment our sin deserved.

Martin Luther called it the happy exchange. Jesus took our sin, and we get his righteousness. Three days later he rose from the dead, which is how we know the payment was accepted.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree … By his wounds you have been healed.

1 Peter 2:24

Look at who’s doing the work in that verse. Jesus bore our sins. His wounds heal us. You’re not the doctor here. You’re the patient.

And remember, he said he came for sinners. That means he came for you.

Kept

In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them.

2 Corinthians 5:19

Because of what Jesus did, you’re forgiven. The wall between you and God is gone, and he isn’t counting your sins against you anymore.

You might be wondering what you have to do to make this yours. The answer is nothing. You can’t earn it, and you don’t have to. Faith is just trusting that Jesus did this for you, and even that trust is a gift from God.

That means you’re never too far gone. You’re not too late, too doubtful, or too hurt by church people for this to be yours.

He gives you his forgiveness through things you can actually hear, see, and touch: his Word, the water of Baptism, the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, and a pastor telling you to your face, “Your sins are forgiven.”

None of this depends on how tightly you hold onto him. It depends on him holding onto you, and he doesn’t let go.

And one day he’ll make everything new, you included, body and soul.

So what now?

If any of this hit home, here are a few next steps.

If you’d like to pray but don’t know what to say, you can borrow these words. The first line comes from a father in the Bible who brought his son to Jesus to be healed.

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.
I can’t make myself trust you. All I’ve got to bring you is my sin.
You said it is finished. Thank you for finishing it for me.
Amen.

Saying a prayer isn’t what saves you. Jesus already took care of that on the cross. This is just a way to talk to him about it.

  1. Read the Gospel of Luke or John.

    Don’t try to read the whole Bible at once. Pick one of these and read a chapter or two a day. It’s where everything on this page comes from.

  2. Find a church.

    Look for one where the pastor preaches Jesus crucified for sinners, and where Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are given regularly. You can sit in the back. Nobody’s going to make you say anything.

  3. Talk to a pastor about Baptism.

    If you’ve never been baptized, ask about it. Baptism isn’t something you do for God. It’s where God puts his name on you and gives you everything Jesus did on the cross.

If you’ve been hurt by a church, take your time with that second one. Starting with the reading is plenty.

By his wounds you have been healed.