| do you know Jesus? |
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How to Know God Personally What do you think it takes to begin a relationship with God? Becoming a better person so that God will accept you? Being kind? Helping others in order to please God? Going to church? You may be surprised that none of those things will work. But God has made it very clear in the Bible how we can know Him. The following principles will explain how you can personally begin a relationship with God, right now, through Jesus Christ... Principle 1: God loves you and offers and has a wonderful plan for your life.God's Loves Me"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 3:16 God's Has a Plan for Me Why is it that most people are not experiencing an abundant life and ? Because...Principle 2: All of us sin and our sin has separated us from God.We Are Sinful"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23 We were created to have a relationship with God. But, because of our stubborn self-will, we choose to go our own independent way, and when we do, the relationship with God is broken. This self-will, characterized by an attitude of active rebellion or by passive indifference, is evidence of what the Bible calls sin. We Are Separated from God The third principle explains the only way to bridge this gap between us and God...Principle 3: God provided Jesus Christ to bridge the gap between God and us caused by our sin. Through Christ we can know and experience God's love and God's plan for our life.Christ Died for Our Sins Christ Died in Our Place Jesus Christ Is the Only Way to God It is not enough just to know these three principles...Principle 4: We must individually act to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives.We Must Receive Christ"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 We Receive Christ Through Faith We Receive Christ by Personal Invitation Receiving Christ involves an individual act of turning to God from self (repentance) and trusting Christ to come into our lives to forgive our sins and to 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 your sins is not enough. Nor is it enough to have an emotional experience. You receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of the will. You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Prayer is talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. The following is a suggested prayer: "Lord Jesus, I need to have a real relationship with You. I need for my sins to be forgiven. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. I place my faith and my trust in you. Take control of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be." If this prayer expresses the desire of your heart, then you can pray this prayer right now and Christ will come into your life, as He promised. Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? I may want to ask Jesus to be my Savior, but I have a question I would like answered first... Yes - I just asked Jesus to be my Savior. What can I do right now to grow in my faith? |