Next Steps - Following Christ

Why should I follow Christ?

The short answer:  To live the life you were designed to live both now, and later.

The Now...

Following Christ gives meaning to our lives right here; right now. Maybe you’ve tried giving meaning to your life through work, money, prestige, knowledge, or doing good works. These things may be good; but ask yourself “why?” What is the purpose behind these things? If God created us then there is a purpose to our lives. This purpose gives us meaning and fulfillment. When we follow Christ we are connecting ourselves with the “purpose giver.” There are examples of this all around you. How many times have you opened up a new product and read, “Use only as directed” or “Intended for …only?” Our lives are no different. You were created on purpose; for a purpose, by a God who loves you more than you can imagine.

The Later...

Jesus said, "I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me." 

Heaven, that's the later part.  While our bodies will die and decay our souls go on forever, one way or another. 

Hebrews 9:27 Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

When we accept Christ as the leader of our lives then our relationship with God is restored not just in this life but in the next life.  That's heaven.  Absence from God is Hell. 

How do I follow Christ?

The short answer:  Admit that you are a sinner, confess your sins to God, accept Christs payment for your sin (death on the Cross).  Turn your whole life over to him...everything.

If you are like most people there are things that you have done that you are not too proud of, or maybe even ashamed of. These are the things that in your conscience you know are wrong. These things separate you from God and from the purpose for which you were created. The things that separate us from God are called sins. So our first step in following Christ is to restore our relationship with God. If you have ever had an argument with a close friend you know that the relationship can never be the same until the issue is resolved. Unless you talk about the issue, it is always there. The problem is that there is nothing that we alone can do to make up for our sin. God is a very pure God and cannot tolerate the presence of sin around him. So if there is nothing that we can do to restore this broken relationship then we have a real problem. The Bible clearly says that the penalty for sin is death. Not just a physical death, but also a hopeless separation from God and his love after we die. The Bible even says that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin. Here is the good news: God loves you more than you can imagine and has worked very hard to restore his relationship with you. His word still stands; he cannot tolerate sin and has set it as a law that all sin must be paid for by death. So God put on flesh and blood and came to Earth as Jesus so that he could pay the price for your sin. This is what happened on the cross. Jesus died on the cross, using his own blood to pay for your sin. But proving that he was no ordinary man, and having the authority to pay for all of man’s sin for all time, he came back to life.

So now what?

With the sin issue resolved through the gift of God, all we have to do is accept the gift. When we accept the gift we are saying that we are willing to orient our lives with Gods. This means that we put Gods purpose for our lives over our own desires. But the great thing is that God created you in a very unique way…on purpose! So when we live the way God wants us to live we are living out his purpose for us.

If you want to make a commitment to follow Christ click here and contact Jack Fox.