ENCOUNTER GOD

Many people know about God, but few have had a life-changing encounter with Him. Having a personal relationship with the true, living God involves understanding and accepting five basic principles. You may have understood these five principles if you made a decision to follow Jesus, but in case there is any doubt at all, or if you haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, let’s clear that up now.

Today, would you be able to answer the following question with a resounding “YES”? If you were to die today, do you know where you would spend eternity? If your response is yes, what do you base that “yes” on? If your answer was “no,” or even if you were unsure—today you can learn to answer this question as God would have you answer it.

 

Principle #1: God loves you and offers an incredible (and the best) plan for your life.

All throughout the Bible, there is passage after passage that talks about how much God loves us. The greatest example of this was when He sent His only Son—Jesus—into the world to die for our sins. Today, He watches over you and pursues you to have a relationship with you.

• “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” -John 3:16
• “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” -John 17:3

God’s plan for you is that you would know and love Him from now into eternity. He already loves you.

Principle #2: Man is sinful and separated from God.

It is so common in today’s culture to believe that there must be many paths to God. There are so many religions, each with very nice, good people in them. It may seem natural to assume that each of these “good” people or religions have a lock on heaven because they have done many good deeds.

But the truth is that all of us have come short of God’s standards—all of us have sinned, and all it takes is one sin to separate us from our God, because He is perfect.

• “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” -Isaiah 59:2
• “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” -Romans 3:23
• “For the wages of sin is death,” -Romans 6:23a

In other words, all of us have done things against the will of God and have failed to glorify God as we ought. In our sinful state, we are in enmity with God.

As you can imagine, this creates a huge problem, because through sin, we are separated from God. We learn from the Bible that our best efforts or good works are not enough to reconcile us with God. But just when it appeared that all was lost, principle #3 kicks in:

Principle #3: Jesus Christ is God’s only provision for man’s sin.

That may sound too simple. However, we are not God, and it was God who lovingly chose to provide a sacrifice for our sins—His own son Jesus.

• “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” -Romans 5:8

Now here is the incredible part: it was His death that paid for your sins and mine—all the ones we have committed as well as any we will commit in the future. There had to be a blood sacrifice, and Jesus willfully gave His life for you and for me, that we might be reconciled to God.

Three days after He died and was buried, He rose from the dead, according to the scriptures. This is not religious mumbo jumbo, but a historical fact. He appeared to His disciples and to many others after His resurrection. Afterward, the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven and now sits at the right hand of God, having the name which is above every single name.

Jesus’ death on the cross was God’s perfect solution for [the forgiveness of] man’s sin.

Principle #4: Jesus is the only way to God.

The following ideas do not make a person a Christian, or worthy of heaven:

1. Being a good person
2. Believing that God exists
3. Going to church
4. Performing good deeds. This is the hardest one for many people to believe.

Today the “many paths to God” theory is popular in the minds of many and in some modern churches. This theory is a lie, a deceptive design to keep many people from realizing the truth of Jesus Christ. There are no other “paths” to God or “ways” of salvation.

• John 14:6 states, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”” Jesus is the only way to God.

It is impossible to be a follower of God, or to be reconciled to God, without accepting God’s Son, Jesus. Jesus is the way—the only way to salvation for mankind. It was Jesus who died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, and it is Jesus that we must accept and come into relationship with if we are to be called by His name—Christians, which means “followers of Christ.” Faith in Jesus reconciles us to our Heavenly Father.

Principle #5: You must receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord.

• “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,” -John 1:12
• “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” -Ephesians 2:8-9
• “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.”” -Romans 10:9-13

We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. It is how we can have peace with God and be saved for eternity.

 

Do you want to follow Jesus?

This could be your moment of salvation. Written below is a prayer you may use to ask God for salvation. If your heart’s desire and sincere decision is to follow Jesus, then pray the prayer—Jesus is waiting to meet you. You may have previously prayed a similar prayer, but for some of you, this may be the moment to make a real decision to follow Jesus. If you have already prayed this prayer and know you are a Christian, then read it once and pray for those that may be praying this prayer for the first time. But if this is your moment of salvation, then at this moment pray this prayer to the Lord with sincerity of heart. He is waiting in great anticipation. Only pray these words if they truly represent the desire of your heart and your decision to follow Jesus Christ forever:

Lord Jesus, I need You in my life. I acknowledge that I have sinned against you, and I come to You now confessing that, and asking for your forgiveness. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I believe You are the Son of God, and that You rose from the dead and are alive today. I open the door of my heart and receive You as my Savior and Lord. I pray for your salvation and the gift of eternal life, and I will place my faith in You for these. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. I surrender control of my life to You from here forward—please enable me to walk in the will of God, and make me the person you want me to be. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer just now or previously, please take a moment to respond.