What is a Christian?
A Christian is someone who believes that Jesus Christ is the son of God and that He came to earth and died on a cross so that anyone who believes in Him would be able to go to Heaven and live forever with God.
God is a loving being and He loves us. (John 3:16)
Unfortunately, each one of us has sinned (done wrong things) and is therefore separated from God. (Romans 3:23). God doesn't want us to be separated from Him, but it's impossible for an all loving being to be in the presence of people who sin.
The Bible tells us that this sin will lead to death, which results in eternal seperation from God after we die physically. (Romans 6:23).
Sounds pretty hopeless, doesn't it? But it's not! God has provided a way for us to live with Him forever, even though we have sinned!
He sent His only son, Jesus Christ, to die in our place for our sins (Romans 5:8).
Since Jesus never sinned, He arose from the dead three days after He had died (1 Corinthians 15:3-6).
Therefore, He is now in Heaven and is the only way that we can reach God (John 14:6). There is a large gap that seperates us from God, because of our sin, but Jesus has now bridged that gap.
Since we are sinners, there are no actions that we could possibly do that will make up for our sins. All the good deeds in the world cannot fix our sin. But, Jesus can.
Therefore, all we have to do is to receive Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord (John 1:12)...to believe in Him. (Ephesians 2:8-9) It's a free gift from God, no strings attached!
How Do We Receive Christ?
We receive Christ by
1. Realizing we have sinned and being sorry for those sins.
2. Believing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that He died in our place on the cross.
3. Asking Him to forgive our sins and come into our lives and be our Lord and Savior. We turn our lives over to Jesus to become the people He wants us to be.
Do You Want to Receive Christ?
If you would like to receive Christ, just pray the following prayer, or make up your own like it:
"Jesus, I need you. I am a sinner, and I thank you for dying on the cross in my place so that I may have eternal life. Thank you for forgiving my sins. Please come into my life and take control to make me the person you want me to be. Thank you for this free gift you have given me. Amen"
If you just prayed this prayer, we would be greatly encouraged to hear from you. Please take a moment to e-mail us at msruggerio@juno.com so we can celebrate with you as you have entered the family of God.
As a Christian you have the assurance of eternal life in Heaven after you die from this earth (1 John 5:11-13), Christ came into your life (Colossians 1:27), your sins were forgiven (Colossians 1:14), and you became a child of God (John 1:12)! Pretty wonderful, don't you think?!
Please be sure to seek out a church where the Bible is preached each Sunday to help you learn about your new life as a Christian. Make sure you tell the Pastor that you have just received Christ into your life...he'll be very excited as well, and can introduce you to other Christians.
Also, be sure to read your Bible every day. Most people find it helpful to begin with the book of John (found in the New Testament, about 2/3 of the way into the Bible).
Please feel free to e-mail us (msruggerio@gwi.net) at any time with questions you may have!
Welcome to the Family of God!!
Bible passages
referred to above:
(passages taken from the New King James Version of the Bible)
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."
Romans
3:23
"for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Romans
6:23
"For
the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans
5:8
"But God demonstrates his own love toward us, in that
while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
1
Corinthians 15:3-6
"For I delivered to you first of all that which I
also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the
third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by
Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five
hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the
present, but some have fallen asleep"
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.'"
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"
Ephesians
2:8-9
"For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works,
lest anyone should boast."
1 John 5:11-13
"And this is the testimony: that God has given us
eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has
life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the
Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and
that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God."
Colossians
1:27
"To them God willed to make known what are the
riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is
Christ in you, the hope of the glory."
Colossians
1:14
"...in whom (Christ) we have redemption through His
blood, the forgiveness of sins."
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."