God's
Purpose for You: Peace
and Life
God loves you and wants you to
experience real peace and life -- abundantly and eternally.
"We have peace with God through
our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 5:1
"For God so loved the world
that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in
Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16
Jesus said, "I have come that
they may have life, and that they may have it more
abundantly." John 10:10
QUESTION:
Why do most people not have this peace
and abundant life that God planned for us to have?
ANSWER:
There's a problem.
The Problem: Our Separation from
God
In the beginning, God created
human beings in His own image. He planned for us to have an
abundant life. But He did not make us as robots, so we do
not "automatically" love and obey Him. God gives to each
person a will and a freedom of choice.
Our very first parents, the
first two people on earth, chose to disobey God and to go
their own willful way. All of us have inherited the results
of that first bad choice. We still make the same choice
today. This choice produces separation from God.
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The Bible says...
"For all have sinned and fall
short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23
"For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 6:23
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Our Failed
Attempts to Reach God
People have tried in many ways
to get past this barrier between themselves and God.
"There is a pathway that seems
right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." Proverbs
14:12
"But your iniquities have
separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face
from you, so that he will not hear." Isaiah 59:2
Only God can remove the barrier.
God's way of removing the
barrier -- the Cross of Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ died on the Cross
and rose from the grave. He paid the penalty for our sin and
removed the barrier that separates people from God.
"For there is one God and one
mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ." 1
Timothy 2:5
"For Christ died for sins once
for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to
God." 1 Peter 3:18
"But God demonstrates his own
love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ
died for us." Romans 5:8
What do we do
now?
So then, God has provided the only way. Each person must
make a choice.
What we must do: Receive Christ. We must trust Jesus Christ
as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.
"Here I am! I stand at the door
and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I
will come in and eat with him, and he with me." Revelation
3:20
"Yet to all who received him, to
those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become
children of God." John 1:12
"That if you confess with your
mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God
raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9
What
does it mean to receive Christ?
Receiving Christ involves a
change of heart, a turning from your old path to the path
that God has for you. Accepting Jesus means to:
1. Confess or admit your need (I
am a sinner).
2. Be willing to turn away from
your sins (repent).
3. Trust Jesus. Believe that
Jesus Christ died for you on the Cross and rose from the
grave to offer you eternal life.
4. Through prayer, invite Jesus
Christ to come into your life, and to control your life
through the Holy Spirit. (Receive Him as Lord and Savior.)
You can pray right now,
surrendering your life to Jesus. If the prayer below
expresses the desire of your heart, why not pray right now?
I know that I am
a sinner and need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died
for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite You
to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow
You as Lord and Savior.
Did you pray something like the
above prayer? Did you accept Jesus Christ? God offers His
assurance to us through His promises in the Bible:
"Everyone who calls on the name
of the Lord will be saved." Romans 10:13
Did you sincerely ask Jesus
Christ to take charge of your life? Where is He right now?
What has He given you?
"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
All Things Are
New
When we receive Christ, we are born into God's family
through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit who
indwells every believer. In the Bible, this is called
regeneration, or the "new birth."
When you give your heart and
life to Jesus Christ, you are "born again" into God's
family, into God's kingdom. You have eternal life through
faith in Jesus Christ.
The Bible says...
"Therefore, if anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new."
2 Corinthians 5:17
This is just the beginning of a
wonderful new life in Christ. To deepen this relationship
you should:
1.
Pray: Talk to God in prayer every day. God hears
and answers prayer.
2.
Learn: Read your Bible everyday to know Christ
better. A great place to start is the Gospel of John, the
fourth book in the New Testament.
3.
Share: Tell others what Jesus Christ has done for
you.
4.
Church: worship, fellowship, and serve God with
others in a Christian gathering where Christ is preached,
trusted, & believed.
5.
Shine: As Christ's representative in a needy
world, demonstrate your new life by your love and concern
for others. God loves all people, and He wants everyone to
know Him.
God
bless you in your new life as a follower of Jesus.
Jim |
