Eternal Life

What is a Christian?

A Christian is any person, who by faith and repentance confesses that they are a sinner and that Jesus Christ, the Son of God is their Lord and Savior, having atoned for their sins by His death and resurrection, thereby committing themselves to loving obedience to the Word of God for the Glory of God being empowered by the Spirit of God!

Two Crucial Questions?

1. Have you come a place in your spiritual life where you know for certain that if you were to die today, you would spend eternity with Christ in Heaven?

2. If you were to die today and stand before God, and He were to ask you, "Why should I let you into Heaven?" What would you say?

Answering for yourself

     If in the previous questions you answered "I don't know" or "no," Christ can help. If in question two, you would answer God, "because I was a good person" or "I try everyday to be good enough to go to Heaven," Christ can help.

     We know through the scriptures that no man is "good enough" on his own to enter into Heaven. That is because man is sinful, Jeremiah said "the heart of man is wicked above anything else..." and Isaiah said that even our "righteousness is as filthy rags" before the awesome consuming holiness of God. Therefore we see that in our current state, we can do nothing to merit or "work for" our own salvation. That is why God sent His Son, Jesus to earth.

     Now, Jesus is, as Paul says "the visible image of the invisible God," but He humbled Himself and became a man like us so that He could obtain for us what we could not obtain for ourselves. What is that? Eternal life... because Christ was fully God, He was perfect in every way and, unlike you and I, was sinless and perfect. Therefore He was able to fulfill the totality of the Law, that goes beyond simply obeying the Ten Commandments, but wholly and truthfully completing and finishing the Law. When Christ died on the cross, He took our sin, Paul says "He became sin, who knew no sin, so that in Him we might obtain the righteousness of God." What is the key phrase here? "In Him!" That is in Christ, we may obtain righteousness, holiness, and salvation because He successfully and wholly fulfilled the Law of God.

     By taking our faith out of what we have done and putting it in Christ and what He has already accomplished on the cross, we trade places with Him; He takes our sins and sacrifices them to the cross, and we in turn take His righteousness and all the benefits of God. If you feel the convicting power of the Holy Ghost pulling your heart to Christ right now, then talk to God...

Tell God that you have sinned and broken His Law, His code of righteousness,

Tell Him that you are sorry for your sins and that you repent or "turn away" from them,

Tell Him that you now turn to Christ for salvation as a free gift,

"Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead."

Believe that Christ died for your sins on the cross and that you are forgiven,

Ask Him to give you the Holy Spirit to empower you to live as He would want you to live.

Now, "Rise and be healed!" Walking in newness of life!

     Salvation is no light thing, it is life-changing and life-altering. Jesus compared it to a sacrifice, if you truly want to be saved you must embrace the cross of Christ, that is identify with Him in His death and resurrection. That simply means to realize that your old man (the sinner) has been crucified on the cross and that a new life now resides in you. Does this mean you will never sin again? By no means, this means that you are now covered by the blood of Christ and forgiven of all sins past, present and future. But this does mean that you should have a new heart within you, one that seeks to do good and turn from your old ways, this is evidence of a truly changed heart.

     If you live in the Gastonia area we encourage you to visit with us at First Church! It is commanded by God that believers attend worship together, and First Church is a terrific place to get involved! If you are not in the Gastonia area, we encourage you to find a local "Bible believing" evangelical church in your area where you can attend and worship God with other believers. You also should ask your Pastor about being baptized, as this is a command for all believers after they have put their faith in Christ.

If you made a decision to follow Christ today please contact us at (704)867-5745 or email any of the staff. You may also contact us if you simply need prayer or have any questions regarding a life with Jesus Christ.