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God loves
you and offers a wonderful plan
for your life.
God’s Love
"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
NIV)
God’s Plan
[Christ speaking] "I
came that they might have life, and might have
it abundantly" [that it might be full and
meaningful] (John 10:10)
So, why is it that most
people are not experiencing the abundant life?
Because…
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Man is sinful
and separated from God.
Therefore, he cannot know and experience God's
love and plan for his life.
Man Is Sinful
"All
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
(Romans 3:23)
Man was created to have
fellowship with God; but, because of his
stubborn self-will, he chose to go his own
independent way, and fellowship with God was
broken. This self-will, characterized by an
attitude of active rebellion or passive
indifference, is evidence of what the Bible
calls sin.
Man Is Separated
"The
wages of sin is death" [spiritual
separation from God] (Romans 6:23)
This diagram illustrates that
God is holy and man is sinful. A great gulf
separates the two. The arrows illustrate that a
man is continually trying to reach God and the
abundant life through his own efforts, such as a
good life, philosophy, or religion — but he
inevitably fails.
The third law explains the
only way to bridge this gulf...
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Jesus Christ is God’s
only provision for man's sin. Through
Him you can know and experience God's love and
plan for your life.
He Died in Our Place
"God demonstrates His own
love toward us, in that while we were yet
sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
He Rose From the Dead
"Christ died for our sins…He
was buried…He was raised on the third day,
according to the Scriptures…He appeared to
Peter, then to the twelve. After that He
appeared to more than five hundred…" (1
Corinthians 15:3-6).
He Is the Only Way to God
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the
way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes
to the Father, but through Me’” (John 14:6)
This diagram illustrates that
God has bridged the gulf which separates us from
Him by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on
the cross in our place to pay the penalty for
our sins.
It is not enough just to know
these three laws…
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We must individually 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
"By grace you have been saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is
the gift of God; not as a result of works, that
no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8,9)
When We Receive Christ, We
Experience a New Birth
(Read John 3:1-8)
We Receive Christ by Personal
Invitation
[Christ speaking] "Behold, I
stand at the door and knock; if any one hears My
voice and opens the door, I will come in to him"
(Revelation 3:20).
Receiving Christ involves
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.
Two Kinds of Lives
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The Self-directed life
Self is on the throne.
Interests are directed by self, resulting in
discord and frustration. Christ is outside
the person's life.
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The Christ-directed life
Christ is on the throne.
Self is yielding to Christ. Interests are
directed by Christ, resulting in harmony
with God's plan.
Questions
The following explains how
you can receive Christ:
You can receive Christ right
now by faith through prayer:
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: Does this prayer express the
desire of your heart? If it does, I invite you
to pray this prayer right now and Christ will
come into your life, as He promised.
"Lord Jesus, I need You.
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. Take control of the
throne of my life. Make me the kind of person
You want me to be."
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