"What is the most important decision of your life?"

Getting married, accepting a new job how to spend an unexpected windfall of money...all of these are important decisions you may have to make in your lifetime.  However, the most important decision you can make is to decide that you desire a New Life in Jesus Christ!

WHY IS THIS DECISION SO IMPORTANT?

Well, God's Word, the bible, says:

A. We are all sinners –
"All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)

B. There is a price for sin –
"The wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23a)

C. Our sin has been paid for –
"While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

D. Our Salvation is a free Gift from God –
"...but the gift of God is eternal life." (Romans 6:23b)

WHAT DOES A NEW LIFE IN JESUS CHRIST MEAN?

Because this is such an important matter, LET'S CLARIFY just what this involves.

It means, first of all, that you TRANSFER YOUR TRUST from what you have been doing to what Christ has done for you on the cross.

It means, next, that you RECEIVE THE RESURRECTED, LIVING CHRIST into your life as SAVIOR. He says,

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock (at the door of your life). If any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him."
(Revelation 3:20).

Further it means that you RECEIVE JESUS CHRIST INTO YOUR LIFE AS LORD. He comes as Master and King. There is a throne room in your heart and that throne is rightly His. He made you. He bought you, and He wants to take His rightful place on the throne of your life. It means that YOU are willing to turn from anything you have been doing that is not pleasing to Him and to follow Him as He reveals His will to you in His Word.

NOW IF THIS IS WHAT YOU REALLY WANT, FOLLOW THESE SIMPLE STEPS...

GOD'S PLAN OF SALVATION

Knowing your sins are forgiven and you are ready for heaven is as easy as A-B-C:

1. Admit you have sinned.  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23 ).
2. Believe in Jesus.  “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” (John 3:16 ).
3. Confess and leave your sin.  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

These things I have written to you ... that you may know
that you have eternal life."   (I John 5:13)

If you have followed these simple steps and you want heaven to be your home, pray this prayer:

NOW WHAT SHOULD I DO NEXT?

Now that you are a part of God's family, like any other family member, there are some things you need to know to help you grow as a child of God:

1. Pray - You get to know a person by talking with them. Talk to Jesus. You can talk to Him any time of the day wherever you are. (Luke 18: 1)

2. Study your Bible - You will get to know about Jesus and what God says by studying your Bible. (II Timothy 2:15)

3. Become active in church - Another way to learn more about Jesus is to go to Sunday school and worship services on a regular basis. (Hebrews 10:25)

4. Share with others how you made this wonderful decison- Tell others what Jesus has done for you. You will want them to know Jesus as their Savior. (Matthew 28:18-20)

5. Always be assured of your salvation - You can do nothing to make God put you out of his family! (I John 5:13)

6. God is with you always - God is always with you where ever you go. (Hebrews 13:5)

7. Ask for Forgiveness - When you make a mistake (sin), agree with God that you made that mistake and ask Him to forgive you. (I John 1:9)

You are blessed!

What does the Bible say about...

What Does the Bible Say about Love

The greatest personal challenge a Christian will face is to become a Christ-like servant. It is the low road to a believer’s high calling. It is a challenge because it goes against our natural desire for popularity, power, and prominence.

Not surprisingly, Jesus was the perfect example of a servant when He lived on the earth. A believer, by staying fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2), can follow in His steps.

In the Old Testament, Jesus is described as a “servant” (Isaiah 42:1). The New Testament describes Him similarly (Acts 3:26, Philippians 2:5-8). As the Perfect Servant, Jesus taught His disciples that the pathway for greatness in God’s kingdom was found by traveling the low road of a servant (Matthew 23:11).

Jesus demonstrated the consistency of a true servant’s heart by washing His disciples’ feet just a few hours before He was crucified (John 13:3-5).

Believers are to become more and more like the Perfect Servant (2 Corinthians 3:18, Ephesians 4:15). In so doing, they will demonstrate love to others (Matthew 7:12) and not merely live to please themselves (2 Corinthians 5:15).

The example (Jesus) and the teaching (Scripture) clearly and perfectly present the characteristics of a Christ-like servant. The difficulty in becoming a servant is described by three words – dying to self – which presents a clear-cut choice for every believer (Luke 9:23-24; Romans 12:2).

Dying to self, however, cannot be accomplished by one’s own power or insight. If dying to self depended solely on personal abilities, no one would become more like Christ, since natural wisdom and strength are woefully inadequate to accomplish that transformation. Thank God, through His mercy and abundant grace, He has provided divinely powerful and completely sufficient resources

(Jesus, Holy Spirit, and Scripture) to enable a believer to mature spiritually. The issue is not God’s supply, which is more than ample for a believer to mature spiritually. The issue is a believer’s willingness to rely on God’s plan and power to become a fruitful servant of Christ by leaving old patterns of life in order to be conformed to the image of Christ.

Dying to self, in spite of its importance for a believer to become a Christ-like

servant, is not the primary focus of each day. A believer is to focus on Christ, the perfect servant. By maintaining this focus, a Christian realizes that Christ-centered

servanthood comes from the inside out, accomplished by cooperating with God as He develops the character of Jesus within a follower of Christ. As that inward

development progresses, a believer will respond more and more in a Christ-like manner to life’s situations and, especially, in personal relationships.

Life’s greatest challenge, being a Christ-like servant, can become life’s greatest reward for a wholehearted disciple of Jesus.

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

Hebrews 12:1-2, Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of

witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely,

and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him

endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Isaiah 42:1, Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.

Acts 3:26, “God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”

Philippians 2:5-8, Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Matthew 23:11, “The greatest among you shall be your servant.” John 13:3-5, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper.

He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist.

Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

2 Corinthians 3:18, And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Ephesians 4:15, Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.

Matthew 7:12, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to “them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

2 Corinthians 5:15, and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

Luke 9:23-24, And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.”

Romans 12:2, Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the

renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God,

what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Becoming a Christ-like Servant © 2008 WordTruth, Inc—http://www.wordtruth.net