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Would you like to know Jesus in a personal way?
Because of God's deep love for you, he has already made all the necessary arrangements. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, you can enjoy a personal relationship with Him. Jesus said, in John 10:10, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." His plan is for us to be filled with love and peace- inside ourselves, with other people, and with Himself. Romans 5:1 says, "We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." God wants to bless your life and make it complete forever. Jesus made it possible to bridge the chasm which separates us from God. The following four principles will help you discover how to know Jesus personally and experience the abundant life he promised.
Principle #1 God loves and created you to know Him personally. John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 17:3 "Now this is eternal life; that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." What prevents us from knowing God personally?
Principle #2 Human beings are sinful and separated from God, so we cannot know Him personally or experience His love. Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 6:23 "The wages of sin is death" (spiritual separation from God). Romans 8:6-8 "The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." Isaiah 59:2 "Your iniquities have separated you from God." Our willful separation from God and the wrong things we do kill us. This happens not just in this life but in the life to come after we die. Hate, estrangement, murder, envy, lust, and a host of other evils fill our world. More importantly, they fill each of us. We are lost and dying. People try all kinds of things to bridge the chasm between themselves and God, such as living a good life, going to church, or living by the "Golden Rule". But inevitably we all fail. No one is good enough.
Principle #3 Jesus Christ is God's only provision for human being's sin. Through Him alone we can know God personally and experience God's love. Romans 5:8 "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." 1 Corinthians 15:3-6 "Christ died for our sins...he was buried...he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures...he appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. After he appeared to more than five hundred..." John 14:6 "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'" God has bridged the chasm that separates us from Him by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross in our place to pay the penalty for our sins. But it is not enough just to know these truths.
Principle #4 We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior; then we can know God personally and experience His love. John 1:12 "As many as received Him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name." Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith. This does not depend on anything you have achieved, it is the free gift of God; and because it is not earned, no one can boast about it." Romans 10:9-10 "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. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." Receiving Jesus involves turning to God from self (a spirit of repentance) and trusting Jesus to come into our lives to forgive us of our sins and make us what he wants us to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that he died on the cross for our sins is not enough. Nor is it enough to have an emotional experience. We receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of our will.
Jesus Christ is waiting for an invitation to come into your life. In fact, he says in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in." Romans 10:13 "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
Perhaps you can sense Jesus knocking at the door of your heart. You can invite him in by faith right now. God knows your heart so it doesn't matter exactly what words you use. If your prayer expresses the desire of your heart, pray it right now and Jesus Christ will come into your life just as he promises. He is trustworthy. Here is a suggested prayer: Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be. Hebrews 13:5 says "Never will I leave you nor forsake you."
It is important that you enter into community with other Christians to grow in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you in your journey. |
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