Christianity is simply different.
And no, I am not talking about the pointing fingers at you in condemnation Christianity nor the "repent or you will go to hell" pitch fork sign screaming at you in the streets Christianity.
While I do respect those ideals and motives, what comes down to is the heart; The heart of man, the essence of one's soul is at stake.
We can all see we live in a world full of pain, hurt and distress.
We see the distraught faces of those around us, the destruction of wars and civilization and one cannot help but ask, why?
We all hurt, we all bleed.
We all suffer, we all grieve.
We try to be better but always seem to fall short.
But with all this pain and negativity, there must be a positive, right?
Right.
Jesus says here in, John 16:33:
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
What a great hope we have that in spite of all we go through here in this fallen world, we can find peace in Christ who has already overcome the world by the shedding of his blood on the cross and his resurrection.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?"
For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christianity revolves around the fact that God voluntarily sent his one and only son, Jesus Christ, the very image and likeness of God (Hebrews 1:3), to become a man on earth and to take the punishment that you and I deserve for all the bad things we have done, even when he was perfect and sinless. (2 Corinthians 5:21) Yes, God loves you that much!
Other religions and ideals share the fact if you do this and this, perhaps you will inherit the kingdom of heaven. Or if you do charitable works and try to be a good person, they will lead to a better life.
It's not by works that one is saved nor is it about trying to be a good person, it's sincerely only by God's grace and by faith, believing that Jesus Christ has died on the cross for you and rose from the dead. As a result of our salvation, that leads to good works, to harvest an abundance of healthy and good life that glorifies God. (Ephesians 2:8-10) That's what makes Christianity different.
As my pastor stated today;
Grace is an undeserved gift that is given by God.
Grace is what starts our salvation.
Grace impulses the start of our sanctification.
Faith allows us to receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Obedience allows us to live out the Gospel.
And yes I love the verse;
John 3:16:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
It's the very essence of what we as Christians believe, but it doesn't stop there.
What I also love is the verse that follows, which is;
John 3:17
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
God has not condemned you and anything you have done does not disqualify you from allowing you to get closer to God. Trust me, I have made plenty of mistakes before. Now, I live with God's promises and rely on his grace and I rely on his Holy Spirit to make the change in my life and he has been faithful ever since.
John 5:24
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
We all have a sense of faith.
We have faith in our driving abilities, we trust and confide in the idea of arriving to work every single day without a scratch.
We step in faith in anticipation of walking down the stairs without tumbling down to the floor.
So on and so forth.
Now, the difference between the one who does not believe and the one who does believe is this:
The one who does not believe must go on through all the pain and suffering not knowing when things will get better. Living day by day, trusting in your own abilities to comprehend the world and its complexities, and throughout time you develop a set of habits and ideas that temporarily eases the pain of not knowing what tomorrow brings.
To the one who does believe, we can continue to live, confiding in the one who created the Heavens and the Earth. Knowing that by faith, you have blessed hope in God, regardless of what you experience right now.
(Romans 8:18) (Titus 2:11–14)
Soon awaits a better future, a better world, a new life after this one.
(1 Peter 1:3-5) (Revelation 21:4)
We have hope in God who is able to make a permanent change in our lives, we have hope in the one who directs our paths, in the one who loves us so much that even while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
We have hope in the one who longs to have fellowship with you, to have a beautiful relationship as a Father wishes to have with his son, as a mother who holds his dear child in her arms, is the same way God wants to receive you.
For those who do not believe, what is stopping you today from receiving the very salvation of our souls?
God does not pressure nor does he force you to follow him.
Therefore, nor will I.
I will once again address the fact that this world is going towards a downward spiral and I am sure you see it too. There has got to be more to life than what we see now.
The only thing I wish for you to do is to stop putting your faith in your limited capabilities, in the temporary pleasures of this life that distract you from the aches of this world, to replace the faith you have in yourself and now to put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ today. God does not expect you to come to him with all your problems solved first, he wants to you go to him as you are and he will solve the problems for you.
Say this prayer with a humble heart knowing that you can no longer fight the battles of this life by yourself and ask God to pour his Spirit out to you, ask him with a humble heart and with time, he will reveal himself to you.
Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your words are true. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, and be my Savior. Amen.
Rejoice my friend! You have a new address rewritten in heaven! (Luke 15:10)
You are not alone on this journey of life. You are not alone on your path of having a relationship with God. As the days and weeks pass by, I wish to hear from you and will continue to upload blog posts and resources to help you strengthen your relationship with God. If you have received Christ as your savior or if you are recommitting your life to him, comment down below or contact us! We would love to hear from you.
Action Steps:
1. Read the Bible daily.
Start with at least one chapter starting in the new testament. This is how God speaks to you, by his word!
You could perhaps start with the book of John (emphasizes Jesus' ministry in Judaea; and it portrays Jesus discoursing at length on theological matters) or the book of Romans (Intended to provide direction, encouragement, and guidance to that community of believers).
2. Pray.
You can talk to God directly through prayer, let him know how you feel and what areas you would like to grow in, he hears you!
3. Begin to meet with other Christians regularly.
You are not alone! Pray to God for guidance and for him to guide you to a spirit filled church that you can be a part of. Being among other believers of the faith will help you grow and allows you to relate to one another as you continue to walk with God.
3. Contact us so that we can pray for you–we are now your brothers and sisters in Christ! Please feel free to reach out with anymore questions or concerns, the goal of this project is to help you grow in Christ. God bless you always!
Philippians 1:3-6
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.