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By NiteOwlDave
Recently, I was asked why I sometimes prompt
religious conversation; and what's the deal with the Jesus talk!
That, plus the fact that we display a Jesus
fish on the back of our car, positions me as a delicious target for some to
smirk and mutter, "You must be one of those Jesus Freaks!"
I generally respond, "Sounds good to me.
It's good to be freaky about something."
Jesus Christ is the most-quoted,
most-inspiring, most-life-changing, and widely-known person ever to plod the
planet.
Not a bad role model, I'd say.
Oh yeah, and he is ONLY God!
So, hey, fire away with the "Jesus
Freak" stuff.
Who is your hero—Gandhi?
Not a bad choice, except Gandhi didn't die for
you. He didn't come back to life after He died. He was a mere man!
But how can anyone be sure that the Bible is
in fact God's word?
Good question!
Here is what the Bible proclaims quite clearly.
It's what I hang my hat on.
In the beginning...
1. There is a very real, wide-awake God.
Genesis 1:1 states, "In the beginning,
God..."
2. "...God created the heavens and
earth."
There are too many holes to make
evolution a believable science.
3. Adam and Eve chose to sin. From that
point, each person has inherited a sinful nature.
4. Because we are born in sin, we are separated
from God spiritually.
5. Jesus said, "If you die in your
sins, where I go you cannot come."
In other words, if nothing happens
between our birth and death to change the status quo, we are NOT going to
Heaven!
6. There is no second chance to crack Heaven.
Purgatory?
There is no such place mentioned in the
Bible.
Hebrews 9:27 states, "It is
appointed unto man once to die, and after that, the judgement."
If we are all sinners in God's site, how
can we gain admittance into Heaven?
1. God will not allow even one person who
bares the mark of sin to enter Heaven. But, He provides a Way through the Lord
Jesus Christ.
In John 14:6, Jesus states, "I am
the Way, the Truth and the Life; no man cometh unto the father but by Me."
2. The bridge linking earth and Heaven is
Jesus Christ.
In 1 Timothy 2:5, Timothy writes,
"There is one God and one mediator (a representative) between God
and man, the man Christ Jesus."
3. Jesus Christ is the one and only
way to Heaven.
Acts 4:12 states, "Neither is there
salvation in any other; for there is no other name under Heaven given among men
whereby we must be saved." Notice the word, "MUST"!
Do we earn our way to Heaven?
1. Absolutely not! A ticket to Heaven
cannot be obtained by the good deeds we do. If we could earn our way, Jesus
Christ did not have to offer Himself as a blood sacrifice on the cross. We
could each live a "good" life and would not qualify for Heaven
without Christ's help.
2. A ticket to Heaven is free and is just a
sincere prayer away. Ephesians 2:8-9 state, "For by grace (unmerited
mercy) are you saved through faith and not of yourselves, it is the gift
of God, not of works, lest any man should boast."
How can a holy God forgive sin?
On the basis of a blood sacrifice.
Hebrews 9:22 states, "Without the
shedding of blood there is no remission of sin."
John 3:16 states, "For God so loved the
world that he gave his only son (Jesus Christ) that whosoever believes in him
shall not perish but have eternal life."
What is the blood sacrifice for our sin?
Jesus Christ is our blood sacrifice. He
voluntarily offered His blood at Calvary and received all the righteous
punishment of God on our behalf. This occurred at his crucifixion.
John 1:29 states, "Behold the Lamb of God
which taketh away the sin of the world." In the Old Testament, a lamb was
often offered as a sacrifice.
Since Jesus died for sin, am I
automatically forgiven?
No! We must ask for forgiveness. We
must believe that Christ died for us personally, and we must receive Him as our
personal savior.
What happens if I don't accept Jesus as my
Savior?
God has every right to condemn us to eternal
Hell if we refuse to accept the free salvation provided by His Son.
John 3:3 warns, "With all earnestness I
tell you this: Unless you are born again, you can never get into the kingdom of
God."
John 3:3 also warns, "All who trust in
Him (God's Son) to save them have eternal life; those who don't believe and
obey Him shall never see Heaven, but the wrath of God remains upon them."
I have always believed in God. Am I going
to Heaven?
No! The Bible says even the Devil believes in
God and he's not going to Heaven! We must make a decision regarding our
personal salvation.
Hebrews 2:3 states, "How shall we escape
(Hell) if we neglect so great a salvation."
Note: It isn't necessary to outright reject
salvation to miss Heaven. We can be lost by ignoring God's salvation.
How could a loving God send people to Hell?
Someone said to me recently, "I could
never believe in a God who would send people to Hell."
The fact is we can send ourselves to Hell. But
we have to step OVER Christ's sacrificed body to get there.
So then, how can I be sure I'm going to
Heaven?
We must offer up a sincere prayer to Father
God where we:
1. Admit we are sinners.
2. Believe that the Lord Jesus Christ
is the Son of God, and that He died in our place.
3. By faith, receive Jesus Christ as
our personal Savior.
This decision can be made on our own and
anywhere.
Simply offer up a sincere prayer, such as:
Dear God,
I am a lost sinner and ask you
right now (date and time) to forgive me.
I acknowledge and invite the
Lord Jesus Christ into my heart as my personal Lord and Savior.
Thank you for dying for me. I
want to live for you.
Anything else? Yes.
Tell someone that Jesus is now your Lord.
Start attending a church where the Bible is
clearly proclaimed.
Get baptized as a public confession of your
new life in Christ.
Read your Bible. Pray regularly.
And continue or start doing good stuff as a
witness that you care like Christ cares.
Conclusion
If you are sincere, the Bible says you are now
a Christian and you will spend eternity in Heaven.
Too easy, you say?
God made it that way so everyone can
understand.
God's offer of free salvation is to all who
will accept Jesus Christ as their savior.
So why did I research and write this?
Wouldn't you try to warn your friends and
acquaintances of imminent danger?
Please give it serious thought. Then take
action.
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