TAKE YOUR NEXT STEP: STARTING POINT
Do you ever think about heaven or hell? Do you know where you will go when you die and step into eternity?
You can know by looking at the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20). Let’s go through some of them:
- Have you ever told a lie?
- Have you ever stolen something?
- Jesus says if you ever looked at a woman with lust after her you have committed adultery with her in your heart? Have you ever done that? (Matt 5:27, 28)
- Have you ever used God’s name in vain? That is called blasphemy.
- The Bible says if you hate someone you are a murderer. Have you ever done that? (1 Jn 3:15)
ARE YOU GUILTY OR INNOCENT OF BREAKING ANY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS?
“It is appointed for [all] men to die once, but after this the judgment...” (Heb 9:27) So if God judge you by this standard on the Day of Judgment, are you going to be guilty or innocent? Do you think you will go to HEAVEN OR HELL?
If you have answered yes to any of the above question on the Ten Commandments and still think you are going to heaven, look at the following illustration:
You committed rape, murder, drug-pushing. Very serious crimes. The judge says “you are guilty, all the evidence is here. Do you have anything to say before I past sentence.” You say “yes judge: I like to say I believe you are a good man and you will overlook my crimes.” The judge will probably say: “You are right about one thing. I am a good man. But because of my goodness I am going to see that justice is done. Because of my goodness I am going to see that you are punished.”
THE VERY THING THAT SINNERS HOPE WILL SAVE THEM ON THE DAY OF JUDGMENT, THE GOODNESS OF GOD, WILL BE THE VERY THING THAT CONDEMN THEM
Because God is good. He must by nature punish murderers, rapists, thieves, liars, fornicators, blasphemers. God is going to punish sin wherever it is found. (1 Cor 6:9, 10) (Matt 7:21)
WHEN WE ARE GUILTY OF BREAKING GOD'S LAW, we have sinned against heaven, violated God’s law, angered God and the wrath of God abides upon us. (John 3:36)
- Through the law of God we are weighed in the balance of God’s eternal justice and is found wanting.
- The law cannot save us, because we already broke the law. The law only serves as a schoolmaster to show us how exceedingly sinful our sin is and point us to the fact that we need a Saviour.
- Can you understand now that we need a sacrifice? (Isa 52:5, 6)
- Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us on the cross. God commended His love for us while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. (Rom 5:8)
- We broke the law, He paid our fine and it is as simple as that.
- Now if we will repent and put our faith in Jesus, God will remit our sins so God will on the Day of Judgment when our court case come up say: “Your case is dismissed through the lack of evidence.” (John 3:3) (Acts 17:30, 31)
TAKE YOUR FIRST STEP AND REPENT - REVELATION 3:20
Repentance is not tears, but turning from your sin to Jesus (changing on the inside out)!
- Acknowledge you are a sinner and cannot save yourself. (Rom 3:23; Eph 2:8-9; John 3:16)
- God loves man with an everlasting love, but His justice requires that sin be punished. (Ezek 18:20; Rom 6:23)
- Man's greatest sin is that he does not accept Christ as Saviour Redeemer. (John 16:8-9)
- Jesus carried our sins in His body and by that He accomplished our reconciliation with the Father. (1 Cor 15:3; 1 John 2:2)
- Therefore, you must accept Jesus as your personal Saviour. (John 1:12; 1 John 5:12) To accept Jesus means to surrender to Him unconditionally and confess out loud that He is Christ the Lord. (Rom 10:9-10)
CONFESSION FOLLOWS REPENTANCE
- Ask God to forgive and cleanse you by the blood of Christ. (1 John 1:7,9)
- Repent of all sins and make restitution where necessary. (Prov 28:13; Eph 4:32)
FIND THE FOLLOWING ANSWERS IN THE BIBLE
- What does God do with your forgiven sin? (Ps 103:12; Jer 31:34)
- What happens if you sin again? (1 Jn 2:1; 1 Jn 1:7, 9 and Prov 28:13)
- Assurance of salvation. (Jn 6:47; 1 Jn 5:13)
- You can expect oppression, persecution and ridicule, but do not be ashamed to confess Christ. (Luke 9:26; 2 Tim 3:12)
VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION
- Don’t follow your feelings. You are not a child of God because you felt it, but because you believed the Word of God. (John 6:47)
- You are no longer a slave of sin, but a child of God. When you are tempted to sin, you should resist the temptation. (Prov 28:13, 1 John 2:1)
BASIC PRINCIPLES TO GROW AS A CHRISTIAN
In order not to mal-function in life, you need to do the following
1. Have daily devotion
- Joshua 1:8
- You don't harvest without planting
- As Christian you need to start a new lifestyle
- If you don't have and do the basics you become spiritually sick
2. Go to Church every Sunday
- With Bible, Notebook, Pen (Go with the intend to grow and change)
- With your Tithe/Offerings
- You go because it is your decision, your lifestyle
3. Go to a Life Group or Cell
- To develop relationships
- Growth happens best in cells (Hand around people that will challenge your in your spiritual growth)
4. Get in Training
- Go to LifeClass and Destiny Training, Encounter and Reboot and Way of the Master
- Training release you to your promotion spiritually
- That you will know how to do ministry
- To become all God intended you to be: a father and mother of nations
5. Give your Tithe and Offering
- When you plant you have confidence for your future
- When you tithe your money transforms and becomes a seed and multiply
- We want all church members to eradicate poverty from their lives and the only way is to become tithers and givers
6. Witness to Others and Reach Out
- You are called to father or mother nations
- You are a witness. You are the light and the salt of the earth
- Your purpose is to empower others. There is no greater love than to lay down your life for others
- All our systems in church are geared to empower you so that you are enabled to empower others
- Through all our training systems your will be restored to your original design to be fruitful, multiply, subdue and have dominion. You will have purpose in your life again!
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BECOME A CHRISTIAN
You probably have an opinion about Jesus. Maybe you think He’s a great teacher or a prophet. Maybe you think He didn’t exist at all. Whatever you believe, we can probably agree that Jesus changed things.
We believe He wants to change you too, and that he’s paved the way back to God for you.
Jesus himself said:
I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well.
JOHN 14:6
Trusting Jesus as the way to God is not an exclusive path to God, it’s completely inclusive. No matter who you are, what you’ve done, no matter where you were born or the colour of your skin, Jesus is the way for you to have a relationship with God. Everybody’s invited. Everybody’s included. Everybody’s important.
If you think you’re an exception to the rule, you’re wrong. Jesus loves you. Yes...you.
So how do you actually become a Christian?
You just have to take a few simple steps.
Look at what the scriptures say:
If you declare 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
That’s it.
Confess with your mouth. Believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord...that God raised him from the dead, and your sins are forgiven and your relationship with God is begun. Do that, and you’re a Christian.
But you’re probably thinking, “Don’t I have to be a better person first?”
No, you don’t. You don’t change in order to gain God’s love, you change because you’ve experienced his love.
When you trust Jesus as your Saviour, you walk into the fullness of God’s love. Gradually, over time, God’s love changes you as you follow Jesus. You change because you’re loved, not in order to be loved.
Through His death on the cross, and then coming back from the dead, Jesus took all of your wrong and gave you all of His right.
If you believe that and commit to following Him, your life will never be the same. It’s as simple as repenting of your sin, declaring you want to follow Jesus, and believing He is who He says He is.
Believing in Jesus is the first step on the greatest journey of your life. You haven’t finished the race—you’ve just gotten started.
Have you trusted Jesus with your life?
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