Trust in Jesus

4 Simple Steps

4 simple steps are necessary in establishing life’s most important relationship. That’s what a relationship with Jesus really is.

The book of Colossians in the bible tells us that all things were made by Him and for Him — and that includes you. You were made by Jesus and for Jesus. But we’re missing this person we’re made for because we’ve been basically, living for ourselves instead of for Him. The bible calls it sin. We have run our lives instead of God running them. That sin has a high price tag.

The book of Isaiah in the bible says that your sin has separated you from God. Sin has put a wall between you and the one you were made for. You’re cutoff from the one who has the love, the meaning, and answers you need.

If you die with that wall still there, it is there forever.

In the book of Romans in the bible, God says the penalty for sin is death. Our sin carries an eternal death penalty. But here’s the greatest news you’ll ever hear.

God loves you so much that He sent His son Jesus to pay for your sin. In the book of Peter, we learn Jesus carried our sins in His own body when he died on the cross. When Jesus was dying on the cross He was taking the death penalty you and I deserve. You did the sinning — Jesus did the dying.

Now you can be forgiven and have every sin you’ve ever committed erased from God’s book. The wall between you and God can come down. You can be guaranteed you will go to heaven when you die.

How?

God tells us in John 3:16 that He loved us so much that He sent His one and only son, Jesus. And whoever believes in Jesus will not die, but will have everlasting life.

To believe in Jesus is like a drowning person hanging on to a lifeguard as if that lifeguard was their only hope. That is what I want to invite you to do with Jesus Christ right now, right where you are. You are invited to pray this prayer of commitment to Jesus Christ.

Jesus, I have been running my life, and I resign. I don’t know everything, but I know my sin carries a death penalty, I know you paid that death penalty when you died on the cross. Jesus, I am putting all of my trust in you. To forgive me of my sins, to get me to heaven, and to give the relationship I was made for. I want to follow you, the best way I know how. Thank you.

That commitment, from the heart, brings you into the family of God forever. The bible says people who believe in what Jesus said and believe in His father, will be saved. Period.

It says in the bible, nothing and no one can take you away from Jesus once you have put your faith in Him. There’s nothing more you need to do. But there are things you can do to grow in this new relationship.

What’s Next?

• Tell someone about your decision. If you just made a commitment to Jesus, please tell us on the form below.
• Find a good bible-teaching church where you can attend often to worship God. A church that teaches Jesus is the only son of God, and faith in Him is the only way to heaven.
• Spend time every day reading the bible.
• Spend time every day with God in prayer.

Is Your Marriage Spiritually Mismatched?

Are you in a different place spiritually? If so, you may be all too familiar with the heartache and frustration of an unequally yoked marriage. What can you do?

Lee Strobel , author of Surviving a Spiritual Mismatch in Marriage, offers this advice: “When you have a spiritually-mismatched situation and conflict begins to come into that relationship, you need to identify those things you love about your spouse and things you love to do in common, and build on those.

Identify those things and say, “I will spend effort and energy building into those ways in which we can build bridges between us instead of letting our spiritual mismatch cause us to drift apart.

The other thing you can do is decide you will live out your faith unilaterally as far as you are able to do it. You can decide to have a Christian marriage to the extent that I can unilaterally live out what my faith means to me.

Remember, the most effective way to reach your non-believing spouse is by setting an example. Don’t lecture or preach, don’t criticize or judge. Instead, win over your spouse by living an example of your faith.

Lee continues, “1Peter 3:1 says if you’re a woman married to a non-believing husband, he most likely will be won over by your behavior, “By the purity and reverence of your lives.”

There will be things your non-Christian husband will see in your character and values that will intrigue him and he will find winsome and find attractive. It might cause him to ask spiritual questions. This is exactly what happened with Leslie and I.

She became a Christian and I began to see changes for the good in her values and character and the way she related to the children that I found attractive. It was her very behavior, influenced by her relationship with Christ that eventually prompted me to give church a try.”

Are You Dating?

Are you in a serious relationship? According to marriage author, Dr. John Trent, “If you’re not at the same place spiritually; if you’re dating a person who doesn’t know Christ; then you may have strong feelings for that person — but it isn’t biblical love.

I realize those are strong words. But they come from someone who weekly tries to put back together in counseling, relationships that were never cemented in heaven to begin with. I’d rather hurt you now, and head off major league hurt later.”

Finally, redouble your prayers for them to come to know Christ. Not only is their eternity at stake, but the stakes are high that your marriage will not be all it could be as well.

 

Surviving a Spiritual Mismatch in MarriageToday Lee and Leslie are both Christians — and they want you to know that there is hope if you’re a Christian married to a nonbeliever. more

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