If you watch television, you have no doubt seen commercials for different medications. Some of them tell you what they are supposed to cure, things like psoriasis, asthma or lower you A1C. But some of those commercials don’t even mention what ailment the medication is meant to cure. They just simply say, “Ask you doctor if _____ is right for you!”

Something else you will hear on those commercials, because of the litigious society in which we live, is a long list of warnings about possible side effects. If you listen closely, some of them list a side effect as the very thing they are claiming to heal! And the one that gets me is when they say some people who have taken their medication had severe side effects, including death. So what they are saying is: “Trust us. We will help you. But you might die.”  Not a convincing argument.

God offers us the cure for what ails us: sin.  And when God tells you about the solution, it is simple.

Mark 16:16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved…

When you follow Jesus, there are no warnings about His solution to sin not working. It does work. Jesus saw to that by paying for your sin. The warnings come from not following Him.

Mark 16:16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

Believe in Jesus and you get what He earned for you through His life and death: forgiveness and salvation. Don’t believe, and you will get what your sins deserve: condemnation and eternal death.

The great thing about God’s promise is that He did it all. All you have to do is take it, believe it, trust Him. Paul said the same thing when the jailer in Philippi asked him, “What must I do to be saved.”

Acts 16:31 “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

God’s cure, God’s solution, is for everyone. And it is simple.

Some would argue, “Yeah, if it works, why do people still die?” God has given us victory over death, but you will still die physically unless our Lord returns first. This it is not because of the cure God provided. It is a consequence of sin, but it is also your entry into the presence of your Savior where you enter the next phase of your eternal life. Do you really want to live forever in this fallen, sinful world? God doesn’t want that for you. That is why He banned Adam and Eve from the Garden and access to the tree of life. Physical death will be a reality until this world is no more. But victory over death is our because of Jesus.

Others might object and say, “Jesus said we will have trouble in this world, and if you follow Him, the world will hate you.” I guess that might be a kind of side effect, but it does not negate the cure, the solution to sin that Jesus accomplished. Your trust in Jesus will still give you what you need. Life. To the full. Life now and life Forever. With your Savior.

I’ll take that medicine. Thanks be to God, He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.