The
following is when it all clicked, it all made sense. It was beyond figuring out who God
was; it was experiencing God and His presence. God is not found by the terms or
definitions of man. He is not found in the things made by man. Not even in idols, trinkets, or even
buildings of worship. God
is not found in the rituals of religion either.
It was in
these three following verses that opened the doors to the mystery of who God
was.
Do you really understand this verse and what it is saying?
No one is without sin not me, not my parents, and not even my pastor.
Everyone has sin. Can you accept and agree with this in your own personal
life. The only one who lived without sin was Jesus Christ, the son of
God. For me admitting I had sin was a no brainer, of course I had sin and
lots of it.
The first part of Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin
is death...
Wow! That is very bad news. The consequence of sin is
death. That means no heaven. Yes I know sounds overly harsh. Look at it this way, if you punch your friend
how much trouble are you going to be in? Some maybe none. How about a parent? That would be bad and
definite trouble. And how about the
president of the USA? Oh yea very serious trouble. Think about it, same offense but the
seriousness increases with the level of social status. God the creator of all heaven and earth, all
creation, there is no other greater.
Think about the magnitude of sin against a Holy God. There is no sin in heaven, period end of
discussion. Therefore, the consequences
of sin is death, Hell.
This is
even a bigger WOW! Eternal life, does that mean no death, no consequence,
and no hell? Not so fast, here is where I figured out who God is.
It all centers on the gift, the gift of God. So what is this gift?
Jesus Christ, He is the gift. Jesus stepped down from heaven without sin,
by being born of a virgin. He lived a life without sin, and then He died
a horrific brutal death on a cross. Three days later, He defeated death
and rose to life. How, because Hell is for sin. Hell could not hold
onto our savior because He had no sin. The gift is this; Jesus Christ
died in your place. He willingly suffered the consequence of your sin. He
defeated death and therefore redeemed you of your sin.
If you were standing before me and I had a gift in my hand for
you, what would you have to do in order to receive this gift? For one you
would not invite me to give you that gift.
That would be my choice. You may be thinking, say please, say thank you,
do something for it, have a birthday, celebrate Christmas, earn it…. The answer
to all of those statements are no. There is only one thing you can
possibly do in order to receive that gift, you have to take it in order to
receive it. Until you physically reach out your hand and take it, you
have not received it.
The gift of God is the same way. You cannot take Jesus
with your hands, you cannot take Him by going to church, you cannot take Him by
having a bible, you cannot take Him by simply knowing He existed, you cannot
take Him by celebrating Christmas or even Easter. Jesus Christ is not a
material gift that you adorn your house with or even wear around your
neck. He is not a statue or any kind of idol made by the hands of
man. There is only one way you can receive the gift of eternal life
through Jesus Christ. That way is faith.
Romans 10:9-10 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. 10 For
it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your
mouth that you confess and are saved.
This is how you receive the gift of eternal life: You must
confess Jesus as Lord of your life, because He is the son of God, and He died
on the cross taking your consequences. He defeated death because He was
without sin and therefore redeemed you of your sin so that you may have
Life. This is not a belief on a simple historical event or even a
ritualistic religious practice. This is a relationship with a living
savior. It is believing, in faith, that Jesus Christ is the son of God,
and that He died for you. It is accepting His gift to you by surrendering your
life to The Lord Jesus Christ by entering into a relationship with Him.
It clicked, I finally
figured out who God was. I prayed a simple prayer like this:
"God I know I am a sinner, and I know I deserve death because of my
sin. I believe with all my heart the Jesus is the son of God and that He
died on the cross for my sin. I believe that He rose from the dead, that
I might be redeemed from my sin and have eternal life. I surrender myself
to you and accept Jesus Christ as Lord over my life. In Jesus name I
pray, Amen!"
I accepted God’s gift
to me and surrendered my life to Him.
It was at that moment, that my soul came alive. All those
close encounters and feel good experiences that I had felt before. They
were all just a glimpse of what God had in store for me. The moment that
I truly surrender my life to Christ, He did what He promises in His word.
When you receive the spirit of God, there is no question, and
there is no doubt who God is. He literally changes you from the inside
out.
Do you want this gift? If so, have the faith and pray just like
I did by accepting God’s gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ by
surrendering your life to Him. If you make this decision and accept Christ as
Lord of your life, please share this with me in either a comment or
email. Then follow up with a Christian pastor and be baptized. More
than anything, find a church that will disciple you.
New
believers in Nicaragua
giving
their lives to Jesus Christ
May my life be the proof and evidence of Christ's Love!
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