 How
to Turn Your Life Over to Christ! God
loves you...
You need God...
God's provision for you...
Your commitment to Christ...
The prayer...
The most important and most thrilling discovery in life is
finding the way home to God. There are four sign-posts that
point us home to Him.
First, there is a signpost of God’s
love for you. As the Creator of everything, God is
perfect and holy. His heart of infinite love reaches out to
embrace you. He desires to cleanse you of your sins. He longs
to give you peace of mind and heart, purpose for living, assurance
of a home in heaven with Him. The Bible say’s "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 Christ offers you eternal life forever with Him in
heaven. But He also offers you a full and abundant life right
now. He said, "The thief [the devil] does not come except
to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they
might have life, and that they may have it more abundantly"
(John 10:10)
At this moment, God is reaching out in love to you "In
this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us
and sent His Son to be the propitiation [sacrifice] for our
sins" (1 John 4:10).
The second signpost is your need
for God. The most desperate need of people everywhere
is to be forgiven by God and restored to fellowship with Him.
The mad pursuit after pleasure and possessions is often an
unconscious search for God. Although we were created to enjoy
His presence, humanity’s rebellion against God’s
ruler-ship has cut our communion with Him. This rebellion
is the root of all sin and has resulted in all the pain in
our world. Further, all of our self-efforts to reach God have
proved inadequate. Our rebellion against God has separated
us from Him. The Bible says, "Your iniquities have separated
you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from
you…" (Isaiah 59:2). This blight of sin has stretched
over the entire human race. "All we like sheep have gone
astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the
Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah
53:6). "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God" (Romans 3:23).
The payment for our sins is certain death and eternity without
God. "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23).
But the story doesn’t end with your need.
Signpost number three is God’s
provision for you – Jesus Christ. While humanity
raced madly toward judgment and doom, God intervened by sending
Christ to pay for our sins.
Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. As the eternal Son of
God He lived a perfect, sinless life. His death is the sacrifice
God accepts to pay for our sins. Three days after His crucifixion
He physically rose from the grave, forever triumphing over
sin, death, and hell. As God’s only provision for sin,
He offers forgiveness and new life to you, right now. Jesus
himself has said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6).
Further, the Bible declares, "there is one God and one
mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1
Timothy 2:5).
Eternal life is a gift that God offers to you right now.
This wonderful gift is provided, not because of what you have
done, but because of what God has done for you (Ephesians.
2:8-9).
The proof of God’s love for you is Christ’s death
for you on the cross. He died so you can experience the way
home to God.
The fourth signpost is your commitment
to Christ. Just what does it mean to commit yourself
to Christ? First, it means repenting or turning away from
your old way of living. In turning to Christ you must turn
from all your sins and from all your human efforts to save
yourself. The Bible is clear that it is God who does the work
in saving us. "Not by works of righteousness which we
have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through
the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit"
(Titus 3:5).
Since Christ has purchased you with His own blood, committing
your life to Him also means transferring ownership of your
life to Jesus Christ. Now there can be no other title for
Him in your life than "Lord". Jesus Christ literally
becomes your master and you become His servant. The Bible
says "that if we confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus
and believe in our heart that God has raised Him from the
dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
You can come to Christ wherever you are, right now. As you
receive Him, He will receive you. You will finally and eternally
be "home", at peace with God. The past will be forgotten.
Your sins will be forgiven. A new life will begin for you
right now. "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).
Make this the prayer of your heart
to God right now.
"Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for me.
Right now I repent of my sins and trust your shed blood as
full payment for all my sins. I believe that You are the Son
of God and that God has raised You from the dead. I now receive
You as my personal Savior. I commit my life unreservedly to
You as my Lord. Thank you for hearing my prayer, forgiving
my sins, and coming into my life as promised. In Jesus name,
Amen."
If you prayed that prayer, please be sure to let us know
so that we can welcome you into God’s family and pray
for you.
It is important, now that you are His, that you continue
your walk with Him by:
- Publicly confessing your faith to others
- Follow Christ in water baptism
- Allow the Holy Spirit to control your life
- Turn from every known sin
- Find a strong local church to be a part of
Begin to read the Bible to learn more about your new life
in Christ (The Gospel of John is a good place to start).
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