People everywhere ask questions that are common to us all. Such as … Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? What is it that gives life true meaning? Is there something missing at the center of my life? Is there life on the other side of death?
There are real answers to every one of those questions! Jesus Christ begins to answer them in His own words in the Bible.
My purpose is to give life in all its fullness. John 10:10
I am the way, the truth and the life. John 14:6
How does a person discover this LIFE?
To help us understand better, we’re using the acronym LIFE to describe God’s plan of salvation.
Real LIFE begins with LOVE. The Bible says that God is love and that He loves you.
John 3:16 puts it this way:
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.
Not only does He love you, He desires to have a personal relationship with you. John 17:3 says,
And this is the way to have eternal life – to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one You sent to earth.
The truth is, you can have a personal relationship with the God who made you.
Your discovery of true LIFE change continues with I – IMPOSSIBLE.
The Bible says that we are all sinners and that our sins have separated us from God. Our sin makes it impossible for us to have a relationship with God.
Romans 3:23 explains, For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Another way of putting it is, For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. That’s not difficult to understand. The meaning of the word “sin” in the Bible is to “miss the mark.” We’ve all missed the mark of being and living perfectly in the eyes of God.
Here’s the problem. Our separation isn’t just temporal. Unless something happens to help us connect with God, that separation becomes eternal upon our physical death.
Romans 6:23 says, The wages [payment] of sin is death….
This “death” does speak of physical death, but goes beyond the physical to mean spiritual death – an eternal separation from God. Spiritual death, however, does not have to happen to anyone, although physical death in inescapable for us all.
The LIFE Christ promises is ETERNAL. It is God’s FREE GIFT to those who will receive Jesus.
Romans 6:23 goes on to say, …but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Bible says that God provided a bridge from Him to us. This bridge is Jesus Christ. Jesus offers salvation to us as a free gift. The gift is eternal life in the hereafter and a changed life here and now.
John 1:12 says, But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn!
Did you notice the word gave in that verse? He gives us entrance into His family! How did this free gift become available to us in the first place? Jesus Christ, God’s Son suffered on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. He died for us. Three days later He rose from the grave conquering death, sin, and hell. Through His sacrifice, He purchased a place in heaven for us.
Romans 5:8 says, But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
God now offers us the free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. It’s nothing we deserve or can possibly earn through anything we’ve done or haven’t done. It was all His doing! So what is our part in receiving this LIFE Christ offers?
Go back to John 1:12 above. Believing and accepting Christ as our only hope of eternal life is our part.
Look at Ephesians 2:8-9. God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.
Finally, this LIFE results in a new life we can live here with ETERNAL LIFE in view.
Our focus and allegiances have shifted from what a sinful and self-centered lifestyle would prefer to a life of gratitude to God and living out the values that Jesus taught us through His example.
This is what is meant in Ephesians 2:10. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Remember the questions we asked at the beginning? Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? What is it that gives life true meaning? Is there life on the other side of death?
If a person has come to saving faith in Jesus Christ, these questions are answered.
Who am I? I am a child of God.
Why am I here? I’m here to live a life that honors God through a lifestyle that reflects His desires and values, thereby also pointing people to faith in Christ.
Where am I going? I have been promised an eternal home with God in heaven.
What is it that gives life true meaning? My identity and eternal security in Jesus Christ.
Is there life on the other side of death? Yes. It is eternal and it is with Christ.
Now comes the most important question. Have you accepted Christ into your life as your Savior? If not, you can do that right here, right now. There isn’t a prescribed prayer that must be recited in order to be saved. However, if you desire to express your faith in Christ right now, you can pray something like this with your heart being sincere toward God.
Dear God, I admit that I am also sinful. I’m not perfect, nor can I be. But I know that Jesus Christ, the perfect Son of God died on the cross to purchase my salvation and give me His free gift of eternal life. I receive Him into my life right now. My desire is to make Him the most important Person in my life and follow Him the rest of my life. Amen.
If that is your prayer, Sugar Creek Baptist Church wants to be a source of encouragement to you so that you can begin to grow in your newfound faith in Christ. Please contact us at questions@sugarcreek.net or call 281.242.2858 and we will be in touch with you soon.