MAY
I TELL YOU ABOUT
THE MAN NAMED
JESUS ?
The Man to whom I refer is known as the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the One true and living Creator “God” (Gen. 1:1, Heb. 1:1-2) Who chose to take on the body of human flesh and be born in a humble stable in Bethlehem. There are many gods in this world, but all are mere figments a men’s imagination. Only the Lord Jesus Christ proved that He is God because He did what no mere mortal could do. He arose from the dead on the third day after His crucifixion on a cross.
We call Him, “Lord” (Acts 16:31), because it is his Title, signifying His absolute authoritative rule as God. His earthly name, “Jesus,” means Savior because He came to “save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). The name “Christ”refers to Him being the anointed One Who was promised throughout the Old Testament and dating back to the sinful fall of man in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:15).
God created a perfect world, but with the first couple, they chose to sin and in so doing broke fellowship with their Creator. Ever since Adam and Eve, we have all inherited the same sinful nature. Because God is Holy and we are not, He requires a price to be paid for the penalty of our sin of which we all are guilty.
The Bible says, “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). The only way fellowship with God can be restored to a sinner is by the finished work of Christ on the Cross where He alone satisfied the wrath imposed against our sin. God requires payment for our sin of which no man can pay. Therefore, God came to earth to pay our sin debt for us. The Bible says, “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:23).
Jesus has done for us that which we cannot do for ourselves. He suffered for our sins in our place on the cross. Coming under conviction of our sin, we must “repent.” Luke 13:3 reminds us that “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Repentance is not being sorry that we got caught sinning, but sorrow and regret for breaking the heart of Holy God and defying His Holy Character.
There is no doubt that we have a loving God in Heaven. Just think what He did to save sinners. He stepped out of paradise in Heaven to live in a sin infested world and then die and suffer the penalty of our sin in our place.
John 3:16, says “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
The only way to be saved is by grace through faith. (Eph. 2:8-9), “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:Not of works, lest any man should boast.”)
This tells us that we are not “saved” by anything we can do, but only by what Christ has done for us. There is nothing you can do to be saved from the torments of Hell and receive the promise of Heaven. To believe on Christ is to have faith and to have faith means to trust Him. You cannot pump repentance and faith out of your heart like you would pump water out of a well. To exercise both is a “gift” of God’s grace and if you truly have a desire to do both is indication that you have received this “gift” of God.
The question for you today is, have you ever come to know this man named “Jesus”? Do you have a heartfelt sorrow over your sin, which is violation of the holy standards of God? Do you believe that Christ alone can forgive your sin with His shed blood on the cross?
Romans 10:9-11, tells us that “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”
After trusting Jesus as personal Lord and Savior, He wants us to be a testimony of His saving grace. That means, we are to demonstrate to the world that we have a new Master and that Jesus is the “Lord” of our lives. We can do this by growing as a Christian. Just like a baby doesn’t grow up overnight, we don’t become a full- grown mature believer quickly. That takes time; therefore, we need to pray and read the Bible daily. Just like we need food in order to grow physically, we need spiritual food that is found in God’s Word. We need to read and study it for ourselves, but we also need to find a good Bible believing local church where we can learn spiritual truth and apply it to our lives.
For that reason, Heb. 10:25 tells us, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.” After becoming a Christian, we should give a public testimony of our faith by being baptized (Matt. 28:19-20) and live a life that will produce the “fruit of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22-26). A truly saved person is a new creature (II Cor. 5:17) in Christ.
That means the Christian has received a new nature that wants to please God. It doesn’t mean that the old sinful nature with which we were born no longer exists, because it will until the day we die. But, when we get saved, God abides within us. We call Him the Holy Spirit. He gives us a new set of desires and convicts us when we sin (Heb. 12:5-11). When we fail our Lord, as the apostle Peter did (Jh. 18:25-17), Jesus will forgive us when we “confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I Jh. 1:8).
Covenant of Grace Ministries
24504-A Ridgecrest Road
Locust, NC 28097
Burley W. Moore-Bible Teacher
www.covenantofgraceministries.com