WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW GOD PERSONALLY?
Be a Part of Something Bigger
Faith in God is so much more than a ticket to heaven when we die. It is an invitation into a whole new life, rooted in what God has already done through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
What follows is a brief explanation of some of the most essential elements of our faith and how you can choose to begin a life-changing relationship with God right now:
Creation
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and all kinds of life on the earth. Everything on earth was perfect and good. At the center of all of creation, God created humans - a man and a woman and he placed them in a garden. There was no death and they were free to live in loving relationship with God in his presence eternally.
The Problem of Sin
God gave these humans clear instructions not to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. He also gave them the free will to make their own choices. Satan tempted the humans into choosing their own desires over God’s instruction and sin entered human existence. Sin is any thought, word or action contrary to God’s perfect will.
The problem of sin however, brought about a change in the humans - not God. The sins of humanity did not change the loving God into a wrathful and vindictive God. One the contrary, God’s disposition remained one of love. It was not God’s wrath that stood in the way of our salvation; rather, it was the sinfulness of humans that separated them from God, creating our need for reconciliation or reunification with God. It was not God’s wrath that needed to be appeased, but rather the sins of humans needed to be forgiven, so that our sin could no longer separate us from the Creator.
The consequences of sin, meant separation from God. The humans were cast out of the garden and life became much more difficult. Suffering and death became a part of our reality.
God’s Redemptive Plan
Because God’s disposition hadn’t changed, God started writing a new story beginning with Abraham; through him and his descendants, God called out and created a people through whom God would save the world.
These descendants of Abraham would become the people of Israel and over the course of centuries, they would grow and learn what it meant to be the people of God. They entered into relational promises (covenants) with God, and he gave them instructions (the Law) about how to be his people and they would have seasons of triumph and seasons of failure. Through it all, God remained faithful to keep his promises and there arose this expectation that God was going to send them a Messiah who could finally make everything right, despite their inability to perfectly obey God’s laws.
Jesus
At the right time in history, God sent a Messiah in the person of his son, Jesus. God in human flesh, Jesus was fully God and fully human - the fulfillment of all God’s promises.
God’s people did not necessarily expect a Messiah like Jesus. Most people expected a conquering King who would lead their nation into worldly greatness as a testament to their being favored by God. But Jesus shattered all those expectations. He spent most of his days teaching from the Scriptures, revealing a new picture of God and a new way of living as God’s people. He performed many signs and miracles that revealed God’s power, but the heart of his message was the same as it had always been: love.
The problem of sin in humanity still had to be dealt with. Jesus and his new teachings were perceived as a threat to the religious establishment and so he was arrested, tried - and although no wrongdoing could be found in him - he was beaten and killed by crucifixion.
After his death, Jesus was buried in a nearby tomb. On the third day after his death, God raised him to new life and on multiple occasions, the risen Jesus appeared to his disciples and revealed to them the truth of how God had defeated sin as well as the death that came as a result from it.
Salvation through Life in Christ
Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, everyone is offered the opportunity for the forgiveness of sins on the basis of our faith and trust in what he has done.
Anyone who truly believes in what God has done and demonstrated it by allowing God to transform their lives, can experience new life in Christ.
When we are baptized, we see the image more clearly. By going under the surface of the water and being raised back out, we see that in surrendering to God and choosing to trust God, we allow ourselves to die to this world and all our own worldly desires and we are raised to new life “in Christ”.
God’s Holy Spirit allows us to live a new life in the life of the risen Jesus. We only experience that new life in part while we are still living in this fallen world but the Christian hope is that we will one day experience it in all its fulness when this world has passed away and we are reunited with God in his world made new for eternity.
The Offer of the Gospel
Sin entered our reality through the very first humans and it affects us all. Jesus - having defeated sin, and with it death, offers a new kind of life to us through his new, resurrected life. By being united in him, God extends to us an invitation to be a part of something much bigger with infinitely more hope than we could ever experience apart from him.
This gift of new life and the promise of eternity - the offer is completely free of charge. You don’t have to do anything to somehow deserve this unmerited favor from God. In fact, none of us could ever earn it no matter how hard we tried. Nevertheless, this gift is offered free of charge.
So, What Do I Do Now?
If you want to make the choice to trust God with your life and to accept his free gift, you can simply pray to him. God hears all our prayers and is faithful to answer them. Confess to God the truth about your sinfulness. You do not need “air your laundry list” of every bad thing you’ve ever done. First of all, he knows; second of all, God does not forgive you of certain sins and not others - he forgives your sinfulness. Your individual sins are not forgiven - you are. You become a forgiven person.
After confessing your sin, ask God to forgive you (which he does) and commit your life to learning from Jesus’ teachings how to be a child of God. Ask God for his Holy Spirit to be with you to help you grow in faith and to lead you as you begin this new life of trusting his direction.
If you aren’t sure how to pray or don’t feel like you have the right words, feel free to pray this prayer:
God, thank you for hearing me when I pray. I admit right now that I have not always made good choices; I have often lived for myself and have sinned by what I’ve done or said, sometimes knowingly and sometimes without even knowing it. I am truly sorry and I’d like to turn away from that life and live a new life in you. Please forgive me. Please give me that new life. Please give me your Holy Spirit to be with me, to lead me. Help me to recognize your voice when you are leading me. Above everything else, thank you for loving me! Thank you for forgiving me!
Amen.
Be a Part of Something Bigger
Faith in God is so much more than a ticket to heaven when we die. It is an invitation into a whole new life, rooted in what God has already done through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
What follows is a brief explanation of some of the most essential elements of our faith and how you can choose to begin a life-changing relationship with God right now:
Creation
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and all kinds of life on the earth. Everything on earth was perfect and good. At the center of all of creation, God created humans - a man and a woman and he placed them in a garden. There was no death and they were free to live in loving relationship with God in his presence eternally.
The Problem of Sin
God gave these humans clear instructions not to eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. He also gave them the free will to make their own choices. Satan tempted the humans into choosing their own desires over God’s instruction and sin entered human existence. Sin is any thought, word or action contrary to God’s perfect will.
The problem of sin however, brought about a change in the humans - not God. The sins of humanity did not change the loving God into a wrathful and vindictive God. One the contrary, God’s disposition remained one of love. It was not God’s wrath that stood in the way of our salvation; rather, it was the sinfulness of humans that separated them from God, creating our need for reconciliation or reunification with God. It was not God’s wrath that needed to be appeased, but rather the sins of humans needed to be forgiven, so that our sin could no longer separate us from the Creator.
The consequences of sin, meant separation from God. The humans were cast out of the garden and life became much more difficult. Suffering and death became a part of our reality.
God’s Redemptive Plan
Because God’s disposition hadn’t changed, God started writing a new story beginning with Abraham; through him and his descendants, God called out and created a people through whom God would save the world.
These descendants of Abraham would become the people of Israel and over the course of centuries, they would grow and learn what it meant to be the people of God. They entered into relational promises (covenants) with God, and he gave them instructions (the Law) about how to be his people and they would have seasons of triumph and seasons of failure. Through it all, God remained faithful to keep his promises and there arose this expectation that God was going to send them a Messiah who could finally make everything right, despite their inability to perfectly obey God’s laws.
Jesus
At the right time in history, God sent a Messiah in the person of his son, Jesus. God in human flesh, Jesus was fully God and fully human - the fulfillment of all God’s promises.
God’s people did not necessarily expect a Messiah like Jesus. Most people expected a conquering King who would lead their nation into worldly greatness as a testament to their being favored by God. But Jesus shattered all those expectations. He spent most of his days teaching from the Scriptures, revealing a new picture of God and a new way of living as God’s people. He performed many signs and miracles that revealed God’s power, but the heart of his message was the same as it had always been: love.
The problem of sin in humanity still had to be dealt with. Jesus and his new teachings were perceived as a threat to the religious establishment and so he was arrested, tried - and although no wrongdoing could be found in him - he was beaten and killed by crucifixion.
After his death, Jesus was buried in a nearby tomb. On the third day after his death, God raised him to new life and on multiple occasions, the risen Jesus appeared to his disciples and revealed to them the truth of how God had defeated sin as well as the death that came as a result from it.
Salvation through Life in Christ
Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, everyone is offered the opportunity for the forgiveness of sins on the basis of our faith and trust in what he has done.
Anyone who truly believes in what God has done and demonstrated it by allowing God to transform their lives, can experience new life in Christ.
When we are baptized, we see the image more clearly. By going under the surface of the water and being raised back out, we see that in surrendering to God and choosing to trust God, we allow ourselves to die to this world and all our own worldly desires and we are raised to new life “in Christ”.
God’s Holy Spirit allows us to live a new life in the life of the risen Jesus. We only experience that new life in part while we are still living in this fallen world but the Christian hope is that we will one day experience it in all its fulness when this world has passed away and we are reunited with God in his world made new for eternity.
The Offer of the Gospel
Sin entered our reality through the very first humans and it affects us all. Jesus - having defeated sin, and with it death, offers a new kind of life to us through his new, resurrected life. By being united in him, God extends to us an invitation to be a part of something much bigger with infinitely more hope than we could ever experience apart from him.
This gift of new life and the promise of eternity - the offer is completely free of charge. You don’t have to do anything to somehow deserve this unmerited favor from God. In fact, none of us could ever earn it no matter how hard we tried. Nevertheless, this gift is offered free of charge.
So, What Do I Do Now?
If you want to make the choice to trust God with your life and to accept his free gift, you can simply pray to him. God hears all our prayers and is faithful to answer them. Confess to God the truth about your sinfulness. You do not need “air your laundry list” of every bad thing you’ve ever done. First of all, he knows; second of all, God does not forgive you of certain sins and not others - he forgives your sinfulness. Your individual sins are not forgiven - you are. You become a forgiven person.
After confessing your sin, ask God to forgive you (which he does) and commit your life to learning from Jesus’ teachings how to be a child of God. Ask God for his Holy Spirit to be with you to help you grow in faith and to lead you as you begin this new life of trusting his direction.
If you aren’t sure how to pray or don’t feel like you have the right words, feel free to pray this prayer:
God, thank you for hearing me when I pray. I admit right now that I have not always made good choices; I have often lived for myself and have sinned by what I’ve done or said, sometimes knowingly and sometimes without even knowing it. I am truly sorry and I’d like to turn away from that life and live a new life in you. Please forgive me. Please give me that new life. Please give me your Holy Spirit to be with me, to lead me. Help me to recognize your voice when you are leading me. Above everything else, thank you for loving me! Thank you for forgiving me!
Amen.
