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Meet Your Maker (Before You "Meet Your Maker") Do you know God personally? He loves you intensely and desires to have a personal relationship with you in the here and now by walking and talking with you. He wants you to come to Him. Also, do you ever wonder what happens after death? Is there life after death or are we limited to just a temporary life on this planet with no future beyond the grave? There is a way to live forever, for all eternity. In the Bible, Jesus explained the way to eternal life to a man named Nicodemus. Jesus said that in order for people to enter into God's Kingdom and to live forever, they must be born again. (John 3: 1-8) |
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| What does it mean to be born again? The term born again is speaking of a subsequent birth after your first one. When you were born into this world through your mother's womb, this was a birth of flesh. When Jesus said, "You must be born again," He is speaking of a person's spiritual birth by God. In order for someone to receive the birth by the Spirit, they must go through the Door that gives us access to God's Spirit and eternal salvation. The Door to our salvation is Jesus for He declares: "I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved… (John 10:9) When Jesus said, "that which is born of flesh is flesh and that which is born of Spirit is Spirit," He is comparing the new birth in the Spirit to something we can relate to- our physical birth. Just as we were born into this human family, we can now be birthed into God's family as His very own sons. "Why do I have to be born again in order to live forever," you may ask? Because every human being on the planet, starting with the first man and woman (Adam and Eve) have sinned and in so doing have separated themselves from their Maker or Creator. (Read the story in Genesis chapters 2 and 3) Not only did the first humans' sin, but also all people since have followed the same path… "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 2:23) "But your iniquities have separated you from you God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear." (Isaiah 59:2) We can obtain salvation from our sins and eternal life only from our Maker and Creator. The only way that God has provided for this to happen is through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth and the life. No one come to the Father (God) except through me." (John 14:6) God provided redemption for all mankind through His Son Jesus. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes on him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." (John 3:16-17) Only Jesus can reconcile us back to God the Father. Only He can save us from sin and death. What is sin and why do we need to be saved from it? Sin is a violation or a breaking of God's laws or commands. God is so holy, righteous and perfect that He upholds and lives by His own laws. Suppose you broke the law in your state or country. What is going to happen if you get caught? You will be locked up in jail or prison and be separated from your loved ones. This is a similar picture of what happened to all mankind as a result of our sins. We broke God's commands and as a result have been locked up in a prison of sin and separated ourselves from our Maker who is God. There is a penalty for sin and God reveals to His creation what this penalty is: "The soul who sins is the one who will die." (Ezekiel 18:20) "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23) God says that there is a penalty for sin and that is death. (Genesis 2:15) There are also consequences to our sinful actions and God does not want us to have to suffer the consequences of sin. Just as we have laws in our society to protect people, God has laws as well to protect His creation. The reason that laws are put into place is to prevent crimes. What are crimes? Crimes are acts of violence that hurt people. This is a good picture of sin. Sin hurts people. God already knew this when He created man and so put laws into effect to protect and benefit His creation. God truly loves us and wants to spare us from the torment, sorrow, pain, suffering and death that come as a result of sin. Since every person on our planet has sinned, we have all become prisoners of sin and in effect have been placed on "death row" because of sin's penalty. This is why we need a Savior to come and set us free from sin and death. If an individual is locked up behind bars in prison, they have no way to free themselves. The only One who can release those who are bound in this prison is the One who has the power and authority to do so. God the Father, the highest authority of the Universe, gave this power and authority to Jesus Christ. "The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners…" (Isaiah 61:1, Luke 4:16-21). Jesus was sent into the world for the express purpose of rescuing us from sin and the penalty of death and to give us eternal life with God. He was able to perform such an impossible task for you and me because He came into the world as God in the flesh. As our Creator, He came down out of eternity and heaven to rescue His fallen creation because we could not save ourselves from the awful fate that we had imposed upon ourselves. Jesus' eternal existence is recorded in the Bible: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men… 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. Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:1-14) Jesus came for the express purpose of redeeming and reconciling you and I back to God the Father and to make us His sons. Jesus came to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. (Isaiah 59:16-17) God Himself came to rescue us from the penalty of death. He is an acceptable sacrifice because He provided atonement with God for us by His perfect, sinless life and then shed His blood on the cross for the remission of our sins. (Hebrews 9:22) By God's power, He defeated all those things that defeated us and caused us to be separated from our God. Jesus paid the penalty of death for us by taking our sins upon Himself and dying in our stead or as our substitute. Imagine if you will, if you committed a crime punishable by death. One comes along and says, "I will take their punishment, I will take their place, and I will pay their penalty", and the Judge agrees to it and pardons you! You are no longer separated from your loved ones and can return to them. This is exactly what Jesus has done for us and God the Father pardons you and I of our sins and we can return Him. Jesus, the Savior, came from Heaven for this special purpose and that was to save mankind from eternal death. He came not only to give us eternal life, but also to wipe out our sins as though they never happened! That's like the Judge giving you an acquittal and declaring you not guilty! If we accept what He has done for us, then God will redeem us from death and reinstate eternal life. Talk about overturning a decision! All we must do is accept the way that God has provided for us to receive eternal life. This is the only way that God has provided back to Himself. This is the only way that God has ever made available to mankind. There is no other name under heaven by which man can be saved. (Acts 4:12) Now is the time to accept Him, for today is the day of salvation. (II Corinthians 6:1-2) Today means while you are living, breathing and can still make the choice before you die. If you die without receiving Christ and His sacrifice, then there is no other sacrifice available for your sins. (Hebrews 10:26-27) You have two choices, you can pay the penalty for your own sins when you die, or Jesus can pay the penalty for you. The Good News is that you do not have to pay the penalty for your own sins. Jesus is ready to take them on your behalf so that you may receive eternal life. God loves you so much and does not want you to be separated from Him but to live with Him, in His light and love for all eternity. (John 3:16) This life is only temporary; the one beyond the grave lasts forever. After we die, the sure judgment of God awaits us all. "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." (Hebrews 9:27) We all die and will appear before the judgment seat of Christ. (II Corinthians 5:10) What judgment do you want passed on you? Do you want eternal life or death? God wants us to know that He is real. Likewise, He wants us to know that there is a devil as well. Satan is evil and wants to destroy people who were made in the image of God. God wants us to be aware that the devil wants to not only destroy men but also rob them of their relationship with God and the inheritance that He has in store for them as His sons. There is a future judgment awaiting men but there is also a future judgment awaiting the devil and his fallen angels. It is called the Lake of Fire. (Matthew 25:41, Revelation 20:10) It is not God's will for people, who were made in His image, to follow the devil into eternal punishment, but to have eternal life with Him as His sons. We each have the opportunity to receive eternal life by God's grace now. God is offering eternal life to us now and says to us: "In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you." The Apostle Paul clarifies when the time of God's favor is: "We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God…I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation." (II Corinthians 5:20, 6:1-2) Ever since Jesus paid the ultimate price for our salvation by dying on the cross, God has been extending His grace and favor to all mankind for forgiveness of sins and eternal life. "Now" means that this opportunity is given to us when we hear or read the gospel message. Yes, even now as you are reading this, God is extending His grace and favor to you and offering you eternal life. We must only choose to accept His free gift. After death, we will either be accepted by God as His child and receive everlasting life or be sentenced to hell as a child of the devil and eternal death. Who's child do you want to be? What judgment do you want passed upon you? Each one of us determines the outcome by the decision we make. You can know God before you get there by accepting Him now and having a personal relationship with Him. It is inevitable that we will all meet our Maker and stand before Him one day. It is vital that you meet and know Him before you get there so that He may receive you as one of His own. Won't you meet your Maker today?
Lord Jesus, If you have prayed this prayer and accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, we welcome you to the Body of Christ! Please let us know if you have accepted Christ as your Savior by e-mailing our ministry at thebostics@truthandspiritministries.com or drop us a letter by snail mail to: Truth And Spirit
Ministries God Bless You! |
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