Articles

How to Find God by Anonymous

The world tells us that Christianity is for the weak, for those who need a crutch in life. Actually, the reverse is true. Most people would rather go along with the flow. Standing up for Christian values is a hard thing to do in today's world. It's the truly brave who dare to say, "Those values aren't Godly. There is such a thing as sin. I'm brave enough to live my life differently." The Bible says that it is much harder to be a Christian than to not be one. That it takes a strong person to consistently live a Christian life.

Then too, psychologists will tell us that it is the strong who can admit that they aren't perfect. People aren't fooled by the "know it all" who pretends they know everything and have no faults. They know that this person is really a fool. So it is with people who say, "I'm a good person; I don't need God." The Bible calls these people fools, not meaning fools as a put-down but instead meaning that they aren't looking at the reality of life. In life we admire people who admit their faults. Students always admire the teachers who say, "I don't know the answer to that problem, but I'll find out what the answer is." But when it comes to religion, then we often try to turn it upside down and say, "Who ME? I don't have sin. I'm perfect." We pretend we know all the answers when we really don't.

Let's face it: we all sin. And because we all sin, there's no way that we can come into the presence of a God who hates sin except for some miracle to make us sinless. That miracle is Jesus Christ. It's because God hates sin but loves the sinner, that he provided Jesus Christ as the way for imperfect individuals to meet with Him. It is similar to being invited to an exclusive party. The invitation gets you in the door. And you can't get in without it. In the same way, you can't get into heaven without Jesus Christ. His death on the cross meant that your sins were punished. Because he died for you, you are now invited to heaven's party. But you can't get in without your invitation. All people have been mailed this invitation. But you actually have to pick it up and bring it with you so you can prove you've been invited. Some people are too stubborn and proud to pick up the invitation and bring it. Most people just throw the invitation in the garbage. Or they think they can crash the door without the invitation. They say, "I'm important enough that I don't need an invitation!" even though the invitation clearly states that it is the only way to enter the party.

Don't throw away God's invitation. Instead, acknowledge that you aren't perfect, that you are sinful and that there is no way that you are worthy of heaven. Tell God that you believe that Jesus Christ is God, that He's the only way to get into heaven and that you accept Jesus Christ's invitation to glory. Ask God to clean you from your sin and give you the strength and courage to follow Him.

Some people will say that all you have to do is ask Jesus into your heart. But that's not Biblical. The Bible says that you have to turn your life around, and decide that God is the only one who is perfect, the only one who knows what is right and wrong. And as a result, you have to decide to obey God. Not because you believe following the rules can get you into heaven (it can't). But because you love Him and want to please him. This love of God and willingness to submit to Him will cause the following things to grow in your life.

• Love
• Joy
• Peace
• Patience
• Kindness
• Goodness
• Faithfulness
• Gentleness
• Self-Control

To help you grow, you should start making friends with other Christians who can help you be strong and stand up to the world. Find a local church that you can make your spiritual home.

If you have just made a decision for Christ and would like to receive a free Daily Bread devotional, please email us and let us know.

SCRIPTURES

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) By this we learn that even though we may think we're good people, in God's eyes we aren't. We've sinned and we are far from God.

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23) As sinners, we die both physically and spiritually. We can never work our way to heaven. Because of this, God gave those who want to accept it, the gift of eternal life in heaven through Jesus's death on the cross.

"For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will not be put to shame." (Romans 10:10,11) All you have to do is believe that Jesus died for your sin and accept Him as your Lord and Saviour. This means you have to obey Him, relying on what the Bible says is acceptable behaviour, not what looks good to you.

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8,9) We cannot work our way or try to be good enough to get to Heaven. We must accept God's free invitation.

"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. " (Romans 10:9) Belief means that your actions follow what you say you believe. Saying you are a Christian but then smoking drugs and living in sin shows that you do not have true belief. It's like saying you believe in gravity but then jumping off a cliff without a parachute because you think you can float in the air. The action shows that your belief isn't true belief. You must BOTH confess Jesus as Lord and believe in Him so much that your actions follow your words.

© December 5, 2003