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Did you know that you were created to have a
loving relationship with God? He is patiently
and lovingly waiting for you to respond to His
invitation to salvation. Yes, you can receive
forgiveness for your sins and assurance of
eternal life through faith in His only Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ. "God so loved the world that
He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life. For God did not send his Son
into the world to condemn the world, but that
the world through Him might be saved" (John
3:16-17).
"Now this is eternal life, that they may know
You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom
You have sent" (John
17:3).
You
may be asking yourself: "How can I know God?"
Man is able to know the true and living God
through His Word (that is, the Bible). The Bible
reveals God's character and His plan for
mankind. It is through reading His Word that we
come to a knowledge of the righteousness of God
and that which He requires of us.
What is it that prevents us from personally
knowing God? Our sin has separated us from God —
our corruption is to such a degree that we
cannot know Him personally and cannot experience
His love. God's Word says, "All have sinned and
fall short of the glory of God" (Romans
3:23).
Man was created to have fellowship with God, but
because of his sin (i.e., anything that is
against the righteousness revealed in God's Law)
he is prevented from that fellowship. This
includes anything less than perfect obedience to
God's commands.
"The wages of sin is death" (Romans
6:23a).
The ultimate result of this death is an eternity
in Hell. This spiritual death forces a
separation from God. Man is sinful and God is
holy. This creates a gulf unbridgeable by man
making that intended fellowship impossible. The
only solution is a divine bridge — that bridge
is Christ.
God
created a way by sending His Son to pay the
price for our sin. "God demonstrated His own
love toward us, in that while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans
5:8).
He died in our place; He who knew no sin became
sin for us. This removed our burden of sin and
allows us to enter into that desired fellowship
if we follow His way.
He
is the only way. Jesus said "I am the way, the
truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father
except through Me" (John
14:6).
It
is not just enough that you know these truths.
We must individually place our trust in Jesus
Christ as our Lord and Savior. It is by
repenting of our sins and believing on Christ
that we can know God personally and experience
His love.
"But as many as receive Him, to them He gave the
right to become children of God, to those who
believe in His name" (John
1:12).
"For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of
God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For
we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
for good works, which God prepared beforehand
that we should walk in them" (Ephesians
2:8-10).
"Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in
the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of
sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit" (Acts
2:38).
You
can receive Jesus Christ right now by faith. "If
you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him
from the dead, you will be saved. For with the
heart, one believes unto righteousness, and with
the mouth confession is made to salvation" (Romans
10:9-10).
If
you now believe on God and place your faith in
His Son, congratulations — and welcome to His
family. We, all being His children, share in a
heavenly inheritance! We are heirs to heaven and
are promised the eternal pleasure of glorifying
God. As our life here on earth progresses, God
will continue to work in our hearts. We are
daily being conformed to the image of Christ,
Himself. We will begin to live lives of
righteousness. Obedience to God will not be a
burden to us, but rather a joy.
You
may wonder, now that you are a Christian, "What
now?" Our greatest recommendation for believers,
new and old, is fourfold: 1) find a church so
you might hear the preaching of the Word and
rejoice in the fellowship of other Christians,
2) study the Bible for that is where we learn of
God and His plans, 3) pray to Him to strengthen
your faith and increase your love toward Him,
and 4) enjoy the blessings given by God in the
heavenly ordained sacraments: baptism and the
Lord's Supper. All of these will work to
encourage and build upon your faith. If you have
any questions, search the Scriptures, ask your
Pastor, or please feel free to ask us.
Contact any
Tres Dias Member or if you happened onto our
site and would like to speak with our community
Spiritual Director you may contact him, Kenny
Bush at 936-687-9987 |
