Become A Christian

One of the reasons many people are unstable in their Christian experience is that they have never fully understood what happened to them when they first believed in Christ. Others are never told clearly by the one who led them to Christ what it actually means to be born again.

You may be reading this book at a time when you are not sure you have been born again, born into the family of God. You may be a searcher, wanting to know just how you can know God and be God's child. If so, you are about to discover the greatest mystery of all mysteries; the greatest miracle is about to occur in your life, as you sincerely and soberly go through this book. If you are not yet sure that you know God, or only think you do, go through this chapter, and then the rest, with an expectant humble faith, praying in your heart that God will reveal Himself to you. Millions have found God this way, in the silent corner of their room, because they dared to ask God, and God sent them a book like this through someone who loves them and has been praying for them.

The fact of God's nature

Gen 1:1 In the beginning God.

We shall be having our priorities right by starting with God himself. Man has probably known so much about himself that he does not need convincing. What millions all over the world know nothing or very little about is God Himself. You will be surprised how little you know of God when you begin to meditate ceaselessly on parts of His Word that talk about Him. God is the beginning and end of all things. This fact alone implies that if in any life He is placed as a side issue, the doom of that soul is only a matter of time.

Gen 1:26-27

God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.. .So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.

Look around you today. Are the folk you see in this decaying world living after the 'likeness of God'? This was God's original plan. What was the aim of God? You notice I did not complete verse 26 above. Here it is.

Gen 1:26

God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have DOMINION* over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

God's original plan is clear. Man was created to be partner with God; to rule the earth. The original Hebrew word used here for dominion is radak meaning 'to reign', 'to rule', to 'subjugate'. God created us in His 'likeness' to be the God-kingsman ruler over this earth. Are we really that today? Man is today ruled by his world. Creeping things like snakes have killed many people. Many who are alive and have never even been bitten by a snake are snake phobic. They will want the ground to open and swallow them at the sight of a snake. All dangerous animals like lions have to be feared for they will make any of us prey at sight. Man has become a slave to even gold and silver, all created to serve him. Many have degenerated into worship of stars, moon and even idols made of wood that our grandparents used for fire.

What has happened? Why did you and I lose our first estate? People have never realised their spiritual need because they have never attempted to read the Word of God. If they knew what they were created to be and what God provided, and still provides, for them, they will pant for God as a chicken looks for its hen-mother.

A holy God

1 Pet 1:16 Be ye holy; for I am holy.

This is God's requirement. The Word we have already looked at from Genesis says we were created in His 'likeness.

Gen 1:27 .in the image of God created He him.

Since God is holy, he would never have created man unholy. And if He created him 'in His image' then He had the right to expect him to be holy because He is holy. Do you now see why the Spirit has led us to start with God? The world started with a holy God and a holy man whom He created 'in the image of God' to 'have dominion over his entire creation. Where is man today? No wonder we have chaos and confusion today. The spiritual order was broken and so there can be no peace either in man's soul or in his world until the wrong is remedied somehow. (We shall soon see how God Himself took the initiative to do this).

A great fall!

Rom 3:23 All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

ISAIAH 64:6,7

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. And there is none that calleth upon Thy name that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee: for thou has hid Thy face from us and has consumed us, because of our iniquities.

This is the state of the man without God. It all started from our parents Adam and Eve. They disobeyed God. They were created in the image of God and so had to have a will. Of course, if they were to take rulership over God's creation they should be superior to animals. They should have a will to take decisions. One of the decisions they rightly had to take was that of choosing to obey God, love Him and remain in the dominion He had given them.

Gen 2:16, 17

And the Lord God commanded the man saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Man rather preferred to commit spiritual suicide. Therefore Adam died a spiritual death. It was spiritual because we know 'in that day' he did not die physically and God could not have been telling lies. Remember, He is holy!

This started a trend whereby every offspring of Adam and Eve had the nature of spiritual death - alienation from God. Therefore the Bible says that 'by one man's disobedience many were made sinners' (Romans 5:19).

Rom 5:12

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.

Like begets like. Adam and Eve having become sinners by their own choice could give birth to nothing else but sinners.

You say 'then it's not my fault that I'm a sinner. I was simply born into sin'. That's true and the Bible supports you for the psalmist says 'In sin did my mother conceive me' (Psalm 5 1:5). However, this truth does not negate the fact that your end will be the end of the sinner. Your spiritual destination is that of a sinner. The sinner s eternity will be spent in the sinner's domain - hell. It is because we did not start it that God mercifully didn't leave you and I to die and perish in our sinful state.

Let me reveal to you one startling truth. The sinner is not going to hell or be condemned before God because he is a sinner, but because he has rejected God's remedy for sin. He will be judged for rejecting Jesus Christ, to be precise. So let us stop complaining about who started it all. Let us reach out and grab the solution. That sounds wiser! Rather than end up in hell grumbling that God allowed it or did not allow it, let us take hold of Jesus Christ, as the Bible will show us. Then we'll be sure of a place with God. When you get to heaven, if you still care, you can ask Him all about it, for He is perfect and is sure to give you a satisfactory explanation. The alternative is to perish. His Word has said it and we cannot argue about it.

His Word leads us

Jn 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.

This passage is known by almost every church goer. Thank God it has led so many to find their salvation in Christ. God is love! We have already seen that from the Word of God. He expressed this love in two ways. Many today love, but never show their love. They just say it. God did something. He said: 'Enough is enough! I shall save my people from their sins.' I said He did two things:

a) He sent His Son to come and pay the price for our sins.

b) He recorded it in His Word so we can read, hear and receive our salvation which He offers.

He gave! Many say 'Christ died for the world, therefore the world is saved'. That is not in the Word of God. He alone can say what He has done. He says 'I gave'.

What should be the response at the other end? Believe! God gave His Son to bear the sin of the whole world, including my sins. As I believe and trust God I become free from condemnation.

The act of believing

Jn 14:6

Jesus saith unto Him, lam the way the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

We are to believe God when He says we are sinners, that we have a sin nature which gives us a tendency to sin. We are also to believe that God's Son, who was without sin, died in our place, but that having died for our sins, God raised Him from the dead and that He is alive. The work of salvation resides in a person - Jesus Christ, but our salvation is not automatic. We must believe as we do this we shall find a living relationship with Jesus and with God our Father. How clear! You and I do not need convincing, not when God says "all our righteousness are as filthy rags". Our part is to believe and confess Him as our Saviour and Lord. It is His to forgive and to cleanse. If we were left to struggle and be righteous to earn our way to heaven none of us would get there. But thank God Jesus Christ died for us on the cross and shed His blood, so that He can cleanse us with that holy blood and transform our nature thereby.

Col 1:14

In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins.

Our first step in the act of believing is to acknowledge to God that we are a sinner. We do not need to catalogue all our sins to be saved, but we must confess to God that we have a sin nature. We must say we are sorry for our sins, mentioning specifically those we remember. It is terribly dangerous to hope to be set free if you have not acknowledged your sins. The Bible makes it clear that no-one, no-one, is free from sin until Jesus Christ sets him free from its condemnation.

Acts 3:19

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

Our second step in the act of believing is to repent, that is to rethink our way of life and turn from all that is past and look to Jesus for help. We know we can do nothing for ourselves but we are to believe God when He says He will blot out our sins and make His presence known to us. Only with His help can we lead the sort of life that He desires. We must trust God that He will do as he says.

Romans 10:9, 10.

If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

You will learn in the long run that everything God gives us has to be received this way. You must believe in your heart, that is in your spirit, the inner man, that Jesus Christ died for you on the Cross of Calvary, and that God has raised Him from the dead on your behalf. It is not sufficient to give mental assent to this truth, you must believe it in your innermost being, your heart. It will come by revelation as you think about these truths and hear them. This is why you should confess them with your mouth. Speak them to yourself, that Jesus is the Son of God, that God has raised Him from the dead and that he is alive.

Speak to yourself that Jesus died for your sins and He has come to set you free. Then confess that he is your Lord. You will suddenly know with a great certainty that Jesus is alive and is with you. In the same way that Peter, when asked by Jesus, was able to say with great conviction 'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God' (Matt 16:16) so will you do also, for it will be revealed to you in your heart by God. The word 'confess' means say it. Say it to the hearing of God, to the hearing of your friends, husband, wife, children or parents. Say it to the hearing of Satan and all the evil forces that bound you previously to sin. Let all and sundry know you have been set free.

Many say that Christianity is in the heart. The Word of God says, if you believe it, say it. God will then confirm it in your experience. It is impossible to keep salvation secret, if it is the salvation of Christ. Once you acknowledge you are a sinner, repent and turn towards God and believe in (to) the Lord Jesus, the next thing the Holy Spirit does is to lead you to talk with God. And what is that? Prayer!

If you have come to the point of acknowledging you are a sinner and in repenting have turned to Jesus, but now wish to seal the matter between you and God with a prayer, then why not pray the following or something like it:

To help you pray

Dear God, I acknowledge I am a sinner and because I am a sinner I know through your word that I am alienated from you. I now repent of all that is past and ask for your forgiveness for all my sins. As you have promised to all who turn to you, please blot out my sins and cleanse me from all unrighteousness. I believe Jesus is your Son and that He died for me on the Cross. I believe in my heart that you have raised Him from the dead on my behalf and that He is alive. I now confess with my mouth Jesus as my Saviour, Lord and friend. I now believe I am one of your children and that I am saved. Thank you Father for my salvation in Jesus. Amen.

If you believe what you have prayed, God will hear and will make you a new creature as He gives you new life in your spirit. Therefore if any man be in Christ he is a new creature 2 Cor 5:17.

The result of our salvation

Jn 1:12

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.

Now, you are a child of God. You need to know how to live this new life. John 3:3 says you are born again. Go on and find out all that it means so that you can possess your possessions. Having been born anew, you are spiritually a new babe in Christ and you need to grow, no matter your age.

The gospel of John is very rich in all that we have as a result of our receiving the Son of God into our life. As you study it from the beginning to the end take time to mark the verses in which Jesus Christ himself told us what we have in Him. Make it a point to study the gospel of John soon.

The first and most important of our inheritance is that we have become the children of God. This has nothing to do with how much faith you have or how you feel. None of those two facts are mentioned in this passage. It just says 'as many as received him'. It is very important for every believer to start from the first things. People who have been in Christ for sometime but are not sure of this point are never stable. The devil will give them reasons why they cannot be God's children. The only question is 'have you received Jesus Christ; have you believed on Him?' If so, the Bible says you are now a son of God. Praise God! How?

Col 1:13, 14

…who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son. In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.

How have we become the sons of God? God redeemed His lost possession by paying the price. The price was the blood of Jesus Christ which was shed at the cross. In doing this, He did not stop at rescuing us from being the children of sin and satan. He translated us into His own kingdom. Thus we have become members of the family of God.

Jn 5:24,26

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, bath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;

Jn 1:4

In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

1 Jn 5:12

He that hath the Son bath life, he that hath not the Son of God bath not life.

If we were given the authority to become the sons of God and it all ended there, our salvation would have been incomplete.

The above scriptures show us that Jesus Christ, who is God himself has the life of God. He who believes in Him and receives Him into himself therefore receives the life of God into himself. Since God is eternal it follows that we have everlasting life in Christ. John 5:24 states it clearly. All the facts mentioned there stem from this all important truth that Christ has imparted on us the very life of God. There are altogether three facts in that verse:

a) we have everlasting life;

b) we shall not be condemned at the day of judgement.

c) we are passed from death unto life, thus reversing the process (spiritual death) Adam and Eve passed unto us.

Eph 2:8;9

for by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourself: it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Rom 10:13

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

The Bible categorically says that when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 'we are saved'. Many young Christians are apologetic about this. We did not work for it. It is by grace, an unmerited gift or favour. God bestowed it on us. We should be free and bold to say we are saved through our faith in Jesus Christ. I am saved! Praise God! The world is often free to say many things about their relationship with the devil. We who have a real, everlasting and holy inheritance should be bold to confess it without being shouted down

The passage we looked at in Colossians 1:14 states that we have 'forgiveness of sins'. That's why we are saved. God has forgiven us completely. Our sin nature has been cleansed with the blood of Jesus Christ.

Jn 3:3

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

1 Jn 5:1

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God

When we believe on the Lord Jesus the Word of God says we are 'born again'. Here again we should not be shy about using the very words that Jesus used. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we have the explanation of what this implies. We have become new creatures, old things of sin, condemnation and spiritual death, all things have become new.

Born again! Alleluia!

Our entire Christian life involves living out this new life. We should be determined that we shall yield ourselves to Christ and by His grace make the best of this new life here. The rest of this book deals with how we can grow to know and possess all that this new life has for us. Sadly enough there are many who have given their life to Christ but have not put any diligence into discovering who God says they are and what provisions He has made for them to be what they ought to be. Such people end up living defeated unfruitful lives. I encourage you never to allow this to happen to you. God has provided everything we need to be stable, victorious and fruitful on this way. Go on then and explore the way ahead as His Holy Spirit guides us through the rest of these chapters. After this go further daily into the scripture and discover even more riches than we have by this one step of giving our all to Jesus Christ.