In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth as well as the first man and woman. Although Adam and Eve lived in a perfect world, they chose to disobey God, causing sin to come into the world. Sin (e.g. theft, hatred, and pride) is the breaking of God’s Law and it became man’s biggest problem. Because of sin the world is no longer the perfect place God wanted it to be – it is full of suffering, brokenness, evil and injustice. The worst consequence of sin is that the sinner would go to hell and be separated from God forever. Some people make jokes about hell but it is a very real and terrifying place from which there is no escape. Although we do not deserve it, God the Father – out of His mercy and His love for us – provided the solution. He sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to pay for our sins and therefore made it possible for us to have eternal life and to go to heaven when we die. The rest of this tract will explain what faith in Christ means, how to be forgiven, how to be saved and how to live a godly life that pleases God.
1. FAITH
The Bible tells us that we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ and not through being a good person or doing good works. We must know and understand and believe who Jesus is, and what He has done for us.
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is God himself. He is also the Son of God and the promised Messiah (Saviour) of the wor
- What has Jesus done for us? Jesus came to earth as 100% man and 100% God. Although He never sinned He was crucified on a cross so that He could pay the price for our sins. He died in our place and paid for our sins with His blood so that we may be forgiven by God the Father. He was buried, but after three days He rose from the grave and after forty days He went up to heaven. Jesus said ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me’[1] In other words, we cannot be saved in any other way – not through Mohammed, Buddha, or the forefathers or anyone else. Jesus is the only way to heaven. There is NO other way.
2. FORGIVENESS
We must admit that we are sinners standing guilty before a holy God who will one day be our Judge and that we have no excuse for our sins. We cannot blame circumstances or other people for the wrong things we’ve done. We must believe that Jesus Christ died in our place so that we may be forgiven by God the Father. We must truly be sorry about our sins and ask God to forgive us. We must also not want to sin anymore. If we are serious about that, God will forgive us all the sins we have ever done [2] No sin is too great that God will not forgive it.
3. REPENTANCE
Where we previously lived for the world, we must now turn completely around and live for God. We must change. Our thoughts, words, actions, motives and attitudes must keep on changing to what God wants it to be, as He explains it in the Bible. From now on we must do our best to live holy lives as commanded by God. The Bible also clearly tells us to stay away from witchcraft and idolatry – we do not need to be afraid of witchcraft. [3] and we must not have anything to do with it. God said ‘You shall have no other gods before Me’ [4] Please remember that we do not obey God’s commandments to be saved. We obey because God commanded us to obey Him and out of gratitude for what Jesus has done for us on the cross.
4. ACCEPTING JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND SAVIOUR
The Bible says that we must confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead.[5] Making Jesus our Lord means to obey and follow Him, to love Him with all of our hearts and to be loyal to Him. It is very important to understand that we must keep on believing in Him, keep on loving Him [6] and keep on obeying Him for the rest of our lives [7] We must pray to Jesus and tell Him that we want to belong to Him and we must ask Him to be our Lord and Saviour.[8] When we really mean that, Jesus will accept us and we will then belong to Him and have eternal life. The Bible calls it being ‘born again’. God the Father then rescues us from the kingdom of darkness and brings us into the kingdom of His Son. We now belong to God – we are His children and we receive His Holy Spirit [9] who will never leave us. He puts his laws in our hearts and we become a new person. Apart from becoming our Savior, God also becomes our loving Father, our Friend, and our constant Companion. Because we know that we have been saved, we no longer need to be afraid of dying because we know that we will go to heaven when we die.
WHAT TO DO AFTER WE HAVE BEEN BORN AGAIN?
When you have become a Christian, there are a number of things that are very important in order to live a godly life.
1. THE BIBLE
The Bible is God’s message to us and everything in it is true. The Bible tells us who God is: He is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. [10] He is three persons but He is ONE God. The Bible also tells us what God is like – that He loves us [11] more than we can ever imagine but that He is also a holy God and that He expects us to live holy lives [12] To live a holy life means to do what the Bible tells us to do (when we don’t, we sin). The more we study the Bible, the more we will understand God’s will for us and the more we will know and love God. When you read the Bible, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it and to show you how you should apply it in your life. If you have never read the Bible, start reading the New Testament first and then the Old Testament – both are very important. Underline what is important and try to memorize verses.
2. PRAYER
Prayer is talking with God. We pray to God the Father in the name of Jesus Christ. We talk to Him the way we would talk to someone we really respect and love. We tell Him for example about our worries, our fears and our joys and we can ask Him for His help and guidance. We worship Him in prayer and we thank Him for everything that He has done for us. Prayer builds our relationship with God and helps us grow in our faith and in our love for Him. The more time we spend in Bible study and prayer, the closer our relationship with the Father and Jesus becomes. It is important to pray every day and to make it a priority. It is also important to pray for others.
3. OBEDIENCE
God is really serious about obedience [13] He loves us but He hates the sin that we do because He knows the terrible consequences of sin. A born-again Christian does not keep on sinning. Sin is the breaking of God’s law [14] We must try our best not to sin but there will be times when we do sin. We must then ask God to forgive us and to help us not to sin anymore. Sin causes separation between us and God. When we repent (turn away from our sin), our relationship with God is restored. If we don’t repent we can start backsliding so far that we might even lose our salvation. By doing the good works that God expects us to do, others can see His character and goodness in our lives. Thus God is glorified and others are blessed. The better we get to know God the more we will want to obey Him.
4. CHURCH
Go regularly to a church that preaches the truth of the Bible. If you hear the pastor say something different from the Bible, always believe the Bible [15] because pastors can sometimes make mistakes and misunderstand the Bible. If your church is not preaching according to the Bible, rather leave that church and look for a different church.
5. BAPTISM
Jesus told His disciples to baptize those who are born again [16] This is not an option but a command. When you get baptized, the pastor will baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. When he puts you under the water it means that you are buried with Christ. When he brings you out of the water it symbolises that you are a new person in Christ [17] Just as Jesus was raised from the dead, we receive a new spiritual life and we are no longer under the power of sin. Baptism also gives us the opportunity to testify to those who are present that you have accepted Jesus through faith, are born again and now follow Christ.
6. TELL OTHERS
Just before Jesus went up to heaven, He commanded (not asked) His disciples to go to all the nations, to make disciples and to teach them to do what He taught them [18] We are commanded to spread the Gospel (the good news of what Jesus has done for us) and the truth of the Bible so that unbelievers all over the world can also be born again, live godly lives and have eternal life. There are so many people who have not heard about Jesus or do not believe and follow Him. We must tell as many people as we can about our Saviour so that they can also go to heaven.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life
The Lord is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance
REFERENCES
1. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
2. 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
3. 1 John 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
4. Exodus 20:3 You shall have no other gods before Me.
5. Romans 10:9 …if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
6. Mark 12:30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.
7. Col 1:22-23 …to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard…
8. John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name
9. John 14:17 …the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
10. 2 Cor 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
11. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
12. 1 Pet 1:15 …but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct
13. John 14:15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.
14. 1 Joh 3:4 Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.
15. John 17:17 Your word is truth.
16. Mat 28:19 …make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
17. Rom 6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
18. Mat 28:19-20 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you