At 23 years old, I had an encounter with the incredible grace and mercy of God, who intersected my path and radically changed the trajectory of my life. It’s hard to say what exactly brought me to that point but there were a number of incidents and things that converged in my life that led me to coming to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Something inside of me hit a crisis point where I knew there was something more to life than what I had. Many people who come to know the Lord will tell you that God has an inexplicable way of orchestrating events around them to bring us to Him. In His mercy, He saved me and rescued me. It was nothing that I deserved or merited on my own that made me any more special than anyone else. It was purely His grace and none of me. I was hopelessly lost like everyone else and my life was just full of spinning my wheels and futility. Nothing I did satisfied me and everything just seemed senseless.
There were actually a number of “divine interruptions” all through my life from the time I was little where He “showed up” and made Himself known to me in situations. They were like markers or landmarks on a road. He was nudging me all along, popping up here and there to briefly get my attention until I finally surrendered to Him in my early adulthood. The difference was night and day. And after it happened, I felt like a big load was taken off of my shoulders. And it was like everything I looked at had color after I’ve been seeing black and white my whole life.
It’s been almost 40 years since and that change has remained and the journey continues. I can tell you, that there is nothing more wonderful than having a relationship with God through knowing Jesus and seeing what He’s done for you. Everything in this life and world pales by comparison. I want to give glory to God for what He’s done for me because He’s worthy of it. My desire is that I can help give others hope that God is not far from them and is wanting to reach down into their lives and give them a significant future and a wonderful hope for here and the hereafter.
Here, I want to share how you can know him too…
The Gospel and it’s Power
The Gospel changes everything and it has the power to change us and the whole direction and of our life and make it significant. God made the Gospel and the way for us to come to Him so simple to understand, that even a child can understand it and respond.
The Word of God, the Bible, declares that there is one God and He is a Holy, Perfect, Just and Righteous God who created all that there is, the whole universe and things seen and unseen. And that we are created by Him for a purpose. We are not accidents. You are uniquely created with value and a purpose. And the we as people are to live a life that glorifies God and to be in a close relationship with Him.
But there is a problem that separates us from having this relationship with God and the Gospel answers that problem in the person of Jesus Christ:
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)
the Gospel in it’s simplicity shows us the way to freedom:
- First, understand that God loves YOU:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17)
- Second, realize that EVERYONE is a sinner:
“For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)
- Third, realize that there is a price to be paid for our sin.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is ETERNAL LIFE in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
- Also realize that we can’t save ourselves by our good works because anything we do is tainted because we’re still sinners.
“….And all our righteousness are like filthy rags…” (Isaiah 64:6)
Only Jesus, the sinless, perfect, sinless Son of God, can pay for our sins by giving His life as a sacrifice to pay our sin debt in our behalf. This is God’s mercy toward us that we DON’T deserve, but He gives it freely. That undeserved kindness and mercy toward us is called GRACE:
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
“He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)
- Next, realize that Jesus Christ died and rose again from the dead to pay your sin debt and give you a new life in Him.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
- Lastly, pray and ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior, and claim His promise of eternal life.
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” (Romans 10:9-10)
“And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.’” (Acts 2:21)
If you’ve never given your life to God, I encourage you to do that right now, wherever you are. You can do it with a sincere prayer from the heart to God, It doesn’t have to happen in a church or a bible study, but can happen anywhere you are. Even in the privacy of your own home.
Choose Life Right Now!
God takes no pleasure in people being lost in sin and going into eternity separated from life in and with Him. He desires that all would turn to Him, He won’t force us to do it. He gives us all a free will to make the choice.
“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)
“Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.” (Isaiah 55:6-7)
Make the choice right now to call on God right now. Simply just talk to God in your own words, He’s listening. You can pray this prayer or anything that you have in your heart to reach out to Him…
Dear God,
I know I’m a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness.
I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died for my sin and that you raised Him from the dead to life.
I now by faith place my trust in Him by faith as my Savior and want to follow Him as Lord, from this day forward.
Fill me with your Spirit to empower me to live my life for you, guide my life and help me to do your will.
I pray this in the name of my Lord Jesus. Amen.
Next Steps:
This is an excellent online resource to begin your walk with God and learning more about it. I’d also like to encourage you to get into a good local bible-believing church, this is really important for your growth. We are not meant to be a lone wolf but part of a family of believers. Also after you find one learn about getting baptized. You’ll learn more about that with the online info. Also it’s very important that you get yourself a bible that is easy to read and start reading it, everyday if possible. You’ll be surprised how it will change you and how God will speak to your heart out of the pages of scripture. The best place to start as a new believer is the Gospel of John in the New Testament. There are a number of good bible translations that are easy to read but these are my favorites:
- NIV (The New International Version)
- ESV (The English Standard Version)
- NKJV (The New King James Version)
A Pure Genius Animated Resource
There is a fantastic resource put out by a non-profit video animation studio called The Bible Project that was started by a couple of skateboarders turned Christian scholars that will take you through the bible and help explain the key points in an entertaining visual animation format. It’s not a substitute for reading your bible but it’ll give you a leg up on what you’re reading. This is really helpful as you dive into reading each book of the bible to get an understanding before getting that section started. Visit the Bible Project at their website or their YouTube channel.
Contact Me If Questions
If you have questions about the Christian faith or if you’ve prayed to receive Jesus, please feel free to email me at JimmyCruz1960@gmail.com. Comments are welcome.
