Becoming a Christian

The decision to become a Christian is the most important one a person can make. In becoming a

Christian, you go from having God against you because of the guilt of your sins to having God for you

because your sins are forgiven. You go from entering each day full of uncertainty about your life, to being

full of certainty that whatever happens God himself has prearranged it for your good and ultimate

happiness. You go from confusion about what is right and what is wrong and even despairing that there

are such things, to being endowed with wisdom from God himself about the true

nature of good and evil. You go from dreading a future in which death is certain and God's hot anger is

poured out on you forever, to a future full of the joy of God's pleasure. In short, to become a Christian is to

emerge from the oppressive darkness and corruption of this world, and enter into the light and purity of

God's holiness and goodness. To become a Christian is to step into another world.

God, through Jesus Christ his son, is calling those who are lost in darkness to follow him. However, you

must be warned that this will not be an easy thing. God offers forgiveness of all your sins and the promise

of an eternal future in his glorious new world. The offer is astounding in its magnitude. However, God

requires that you learn how to live in his way. You are to no longer do what is right in your own eyes. God

requires that you submit to his will in every aspect of your life. Of course, to do this you must believe that

God has revealed his way of life through Jesus Christ his son and nowhere else. You must also understand

that this is not a bad thing, that God is the designer and creator of human life, so he knows what is best for

you. In following Jesus Christ, you have God as your Father in heaven, and Jesus is now your King. In

following the ways of God, you have God as your friend and ally. Because of your commitment to honor

God with your life, God promises to honor you. Like a good friend, He will forgive sins as you are

honest with him and admit faults and resolve to pursue his ways. God is gracious with honest and humble

people, but severe and angered by the dishonest and fake.

This call to follow Christ will not be easy, because deep inside you want to be your own master. You will

have to contend against your own desires for ways that are not God's ways. This will require a firm belief

that God is one who can be trusted with your life. This call will not be easy, because you will be

surrounded by people who will think you are foolish to believe in Jesus Christ, that he is your King and

God is your Father in heaven. They will ridicule you for not sinning in the ways they are accustomed to.

Jesus was ridiculed, and promised that those who followed him would be too.

The adversarial power of your own heart and the opposition of people will have to be overcome. Holiness

means war as long as sin and evil exists. But God promises to be with you through it all as you remain

faithful to him. He promises his presence by his Spirit to give you strength to press on. To those who

press on in faithfulness to God, God himself promises life everlasting in His glorious new world free of

sin and evil and death.

How do you begin this journey? The first thing to do is commit to God to turn from sinful ways and turn

to God's ways through repentance. Then you must find a faithful church, a group of believers to join up

and follow Christ with. Through the church you must be baptized for the forgiveness of sins. This stands

as a public sign of God's forgiveness for you and your commitment to him. Then you must begin to learn

about God's will for your life through the teachings of Jesus Christ. You must study and pray and draw

near to God. He will now be your strength and protector as you seek his ways.

May God bless you as you hear his call and follow!