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Invitation to Eternal Life: Difference between revisions
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<div style="float:left; width:193px;padding:.3em 0;margin:2px 2px 0; background-color:#cedff2">[[Who is Jesus?]] </div> | <div style="float:left; width:193px;padding:.3em 0;margin:2px 2px 0; background-color:#cedff2">[[Who is Jesus?]] </div> | ||
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|[[Image:Baptism Sakhalin.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The joy of Baptism in Sakhalin Island, Russia: a clean heart and identification with Jesus Christ.]] | |[[Image:Baptism Sakhalin.jpg|right|300px|thumb|The joy of Baptism in Sakhalin Island, Russia: a clean heart and identification with Jesus Christ.]] | ||
=How | =How do I become a Christian?= | ||
:''When the people heard this, they were deeply troubled and said to Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?” | :''When the people heard this, they were deeply troubled and said to Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?” | ||
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This is the first thing that strikes us. Something happened to these people, to the 3,000. A work went on within them. The Holy Spirit of God was using God’s Word and applying it to them. He is a powerful influence, an influence that baffles our understanding, defying analysis and explanation, but we know it has happened. | This is the first thing that strikes us. Something happened to these people, to the 3,000. A work went on within them. The Holy Spirit of God was using God’s Word and applying it to them. He is a powerful influence, an influence that baffles our understanding, defying analysis and explanation, but we know it has happened. | ||
== | ==The work of the Holy Spirit== | ||
But what exactly is it that the Spirit does to us? | But what exactly is it that the Spirit does to us? | ||
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That is how these people had been, but a great change came over them, and the first part of this change is that they began to think, and to think about this Jesus. Those who had shouted against Him were now beginning to think about Him. Oh, the Bible is full of this! What Christianity does, what the Gospel does, is save us; it “delivers” us, as Paul puts it to the Galatians, “from this present evil world” (Gal. 1:4). And what is the main characteristic of “this present evil world”? It is that it does not think, that it cannot think, that it is carried away by mob emotion. It exaggerates; it goes to extremes. It does not know what it is saying. It has no understanding. It is the victim of the powers that are ready to manipulate it. | That is how these people had been, but a great change came over them, and the first part of this change is that they began to think, and to think about this Jesus. Those who had shouted against Him were now beginning to think about Him. Oh, the Bible is full of this! What Christianity does, what the Gospel does, is save us; it “delivers” us, as Paul puts it to the Galatians, “from this present evil world” (Gal. 1:4). And what is the main characteristic of “this present evil world”? It is that it does not think, that it cannot think, that it is carried away by mob emotion. It exaggerates; it goes to extremes. It does not know what it is saying. It has no understanding. It is the victim of the powers that are ready to manipulate it. | ||
===He makes us think=== | |||
So the first effect of Christianity is to make people stop and think. They are not simply overawed by some great occasion. They say, “No, I must face this. I must think.” That is the work of the Spirit. The people in Acts thought again. They repented—the Greek word is metanoia—they changed their mind completely. The Spirit always leads people to think, and, as I have been showing you, the greatest trouble is that men and women go through life without thinking. Or they think for a moment but find it painful, so they stop and turn to a bottle of whiskey or television or something else—anything to forget. | So the first effect of Christianity is to make people stop and think. They are not simply overawed by some great occasion. They say, “No, I must face this. I must think.” That is the work of the Spirit. The people in Acts thought again. They repented—the Greek word is metanoia—they changed their mind completely. The Spirit always leads people to think, and, as I have been showing you, the greatest trouble is that men and women go through life without thinking. Or they think for a moment but find it painful, so they stop and turn to a bottle of whiskey or television or something else—anything to forget. | ||
===We see the relevance of Jesus Christ=== | |||
What does the Spirit make us think about? Well, not first and foremost about ourselves. I must emphasize that Christianity does not start with us. It does not say, “Do you want to get rid of that sin that is getting you down? Do you want happiness? Do you want peace? Do you want guidance?” That is not Christianity. That, again, is the approach of the cults. No, these people in Jerusalem were made to think about Jesus Christ! They were given the objective, historical facts about this person. Peter had just said to them, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” | What does the Spirit make us think about? Well, not first and foremost about ourselves. I must emphasize that Christianity does not start with us. It does not say, “Do you want to get rid of that sin that is getting you down? Do you want happiness? Do you want peace? Do you want guidance?” That is not Christianity. That, again, is the approach of the cults. No, these people in Jerusalem were made to think about Jesus Christ! They were given the objective, historical facts about this person. Peter had just said to them, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” | ||
The next verse continues, “Now when they heard | The next verse continues, “Now when they heard this” — they were not thinking about themselves but were beginning to think about Him. That is always the message of the Christian church. The true Christian message brings us face to face with the historical facts. I repeat this once again because false religions make people think about everything except Jesus Christ. But when you come to a truly Christian church, it is Jesus Christ who takes the highest position—nobody else, however great, however wonderful. Jesus Christ dominates us, and the Spirit dominates us. The first thing we have to face is the person of Jesus Christ—His life, His death, His resurrection, these great historical events. “When they heard this”—when they were reminded of what they had done—“they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” | ||
The next point is that the power of the Spirit upon the message makes us consider this person, but He does not stop at that. The Spirit now makes us go on to realize the relevance of Jesus Christ, and everything concerning Him, to ourselves personally. “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” | The next point is that the power of the Spirit upon the message makes us consider this person, but He does not stop at that. The Spirit now makes us go on to realize the relevance of Jesus Christ, and everything concerning Him, to ourselves personally. “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?” | ||
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People may say, “But I’m living a good life, aren’t I? I’ve never committed adultery. I’ve never been drunk. I’ve never done any of these things. I really am trying to help people. I’m paying my full dues morally—what more do you want?” But the Holy Spirit shows them that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and that the whole world is in a state of sin, and that includes them. | People may say, “But I’m living a good life, aren’t I? I’ve never committed adultery. I’ve never been drunk. I’ve never done any of these things. I really am trying to help people. I’m paying my full dues morally—what more do you want?” But the Holy Spirit shows them that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and that the whole world is in a state of sin, and that includes them. | ||
There is no greater sin than not to see any need of Jesus Christ. The greatest sinners in the world today are those who do not think about Christ at all. They are much worse than the vilest, foulest blackguards who think they need salvation and who come to the minister and say, “Is there hope for me?” The most hopeless people in the Gospels are the Pharisees, not the publicans and sinners, and that is because they see no need of Him. And is not that the tragedy today? | There is no greater sin than not to see any need of Jesus Christ. The greatest sinners in the world today are those who do not think about Christ at all. They are much worse than the vilest, foulest blackguards who think they need salvation and who come to the minister and say, “Is there hope for me?” The most hopeless people in the Gospels are the Pharisees, not the publicans and sinners, and that is because they see no need of Him. And is not that the tragedy today? | ||
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Do you not hear the fear in the voices of those people of Jerusalem? “They were pricked in their heart, and said … Men and brethren, what shall we do?” This is not intellectual interest in Jesus, not a bandying about of opinions: “Well, indeed, I do think after all that He is a very good man who said some fine things, and He is a great leader, and we want more of that spirit.” No, no! They were aware that they were in trouble. They were “pricked in their heart.” They were convicted and afraid. Why? Because they had asked themselves certain questions. And this is how people become Christians. | Do you not hear the fear in the voices of those people of Jerusalem? “They were pricked in their heart, and said … Men and brethren, what shall we do?” This is not intellectual interest in Jesus, not a bandying about of opinions: “Well, indeed, I do think after all that He is a very good man who said some fine things, and He is a great leader, and we want more of that spirit.” No, no! They were aware that they were in trouble. They were “pricked in their heart.” They were convicted and afraid. Why? Because they had asked themselves certain questions. And this is how people become Christians. | ||
Have you ever put these questions to yourselves? Have you ever asked, “Why is it that I have been so unconcerned about Jesus Christ? How long have I lived in this world? How much have I thought about Him? Has He been central in my thinking? Is my life dominated by the historical fact that nearly 2,000 years ago God sent His only Son into this world?” Have you stopped to ask, “Who was this Jesus? Why are the years numbered according to | ==We are made to question== | ||
Have you ever put these questions to yourselves? '''Have you ever asked, “Why is it that I have been so unconcerned about Jesus Christ?''' How long have I lived in this world? How much have I thought about Him? Has He been central in my thinking? Is my life dominated by the historical fact that nearly 2,000 years ago God sent His only Son into this world?” Have you stopped to ask, “Who was this Jesus? Why are the years numbered according to Him — Before Christ (B.C.), After Christ (A.D., Anno Domini, ‘year of our Lord’)?” | |||
And you suddenly realize that you have never asked those questions. You have never been concerned. “Jesus Christ? Of course, I know all about Him!” But you have never read the Gospels. You have never read the Bible through. You think you know, but you do not. When we are awakened and stop and ask those questions, it is because of the work of the Spirit. This is conviction. We sit down and say, “Why have I been so unconcerned? What was the matter with me? Here is a great historical fact. I’m interested in history. I know about great men. I know about great kings and princes and leaders and prime ministers.” | And you suddenly realize that you have never asked those questions. You have never been concerned. “Jesus Christ? Of course, I know all about Him!” But you have never read the Gospels. You have never read the Bible through. You think you know, but you do not. When we are awakened and stop and ask those questions, it is because of the work of the Spirit. This is conviction. We sit down and say, “Why have I been so unconcerned? What was the matter with me? Here is a great historical fact. I’m interested in history. I know about great men. I know about great kings and princes and leaders and prime ministers.” | ||
All I am trying to say to you is that if you are interested in history and in historical personages, why have you not been interested in Jesus Christ? Why has He meant so little to you? Here is this great historical personage who came into this world and died and rose again, who sent down the Spirit and established the church — why are you so unconcerned? You may say, “I read of men like the apostle Paul and these other apostles to whom Christ was everything. They were thrilled by the Gospel. They were ready to die for it. Why isn’t it everything to me?” | |||
You will read about the martyrs, the giants of the Protestant Reformation — men and women who gladly preferred to die rather than deny Jesus Christ and who died triumphant, glorious, knowing they were going to be with Him. Why do you not say to yourself, “Why am I not like that? I know about it, but it makes no difference to me. I’ve never been thrilled by Him. I’ve never been moved by Him. If you could blot Him out of history, it would not make any difference to me. I’m not ready to die for Him and His teaching! Why is that?” Have you ever asked those questions? That is what you are made to do by the Spirit. | |||
Another question is this: “Why have I never seen my need of Him?” He says, “The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). We are meeting on a great and solemn occasion when people are thinking about life and death [the Sunday after Winston Churchill’s funeral], so I will ask you a simple question: Have you ever seen your need of Jesus Christ? Have you ever realized that He came into the world because of you and because of everybody else who is exactly the same as you? Why is it that you have never even considered the consequences of rejecting Him? | '''Another question is this: “Why have I never seen my need of Him?”''' He says, “The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). We are meeting on a great and solemn occasion when people are thinking about life and death [the Sunday after Winston Churchill’s funeral], so I will ask you a simple question: Have you ever seen your need of Jesus Christ? Have you ever realized that He came into the world because of you and because of everybody else who is exactly the same as you? Why is it that you have never even considered the consequences of rejecting Him? | ||
The Spirit makes you ask those questions, and they are painful. You are thinking now. Before you simply said, “There’s nothing in Christianity. It’s played itself out. Away with Him! He’s nobody. Get Him out of the way. Christianity is outmoded. He doesn’t count.” But now you say, “Had I been wiser, I would have been saying: Here is the truth. He is a fact. What does He mean? What is His relevance to me?” | The Spirit makes you ask those questions, and they are painful. You are thinking now. Before you simply said, “There’s nothing in Christianity. It’s played itself out. Away with Him! He’s nobody. Get Him out of the way. Christianity is outmoded. He doesn’t count.” But now you say, “Had I been wiser, I would have been saying: Here is the truth. He is a fact. What does He mean? What is His relevance to me?” | ||
The moment you ask yourself those questions, you will find the answers. You will say to yourself, “I’ve never thought about Him, and I’ve never seen my need of Him, for one reason only, and that is my | ==And He supplies the answers== | ||
The moment you ask yourself those questions, you will find the answers. You will say to yourself, “I’ve never thought about Him, and I’ve never seen my need of Him, for one reason only, and that is my ignorance — and first and foremost, my ignorance of God!” How often do we think of God? Where has the world come from? What keeps it going? What accounts for all its marvel and perfection? Is it all the result of chance? | |||
And, second, you will see that you have been ignorant of your own true nature. People today never ask, What is man? They go on saying that people are wonderful, and twentieth-century man the most wonderful of all. They just go on repeating the clichés they are told every day in the newspapers and on television. We are always being praised and are praising one another. But do we stop to ask what people have made of the world? Do we even stop to ask what is a human being or what is the meaning of life? What are we doing in this world? | And, second, you will see that you have been ignorant of your own true nature. People today never ask, What is man? They go on saying that people are wonderful, and twentieth-century man the most wonderful of all. They just go on repeating the clichés they are told every day in the newspapers and on television. We are always being praised and are praising one another. But do we stop to ask what people have made of the world? Do we even stop to ask what is a human being or what is the meaning of life? What are we doing in this world? | ||
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Now they saw that there was only one thing left for them to do—they could cry out to the Lord. And they started by addressing a question to His representatives, Peter and the others: “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” | Now they saw that there was only one thing left for them to do—they could cry out to the Lord. And they started by addressing a question to His representatives, Peter and the others: “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” | ||
The Holy Spirit makes each of us realize that we are guilty. We see the relevance of the Gospel to us. We realize that we must die and that we cannot escape. You will have to leave behind you the world and the cleverness of the world, and your soul will go out on that last journey alone! Where to? | '''The Holy Spirit makes each of us realize that we are guilty.''' We see the relevance of the Gospel to us. We realize that we must die and that we cannot escape. You will have to leave behind you the world and the cleverness of the world, and your soul will go out on that last journey alone! Where to? | ||
==What shall we do?== | ==What shall we do?== | ||
There is one final point, and it is quite simple. All you must do is obey the message that is given to you. In answer to their question, Peter said to the people in Jerusalem, | There is one final point, and it is quite simple. '''All you must do is obey the message that is given to you.''' In answer to their question, Peter said to the people in Jerusalem, '''“Repent” — think again, change your minds — “and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”''' | ||
If you have seen what I have been putting before you, tell God about it — acknowledge and confess it to Him. Confess that you have been a fool, that all your boasted cleverness is rubbish. Acknowledge all your arrogance. Admit that you have sinned against Him. That is repentance: You simply make an open confession, without any reservations at all, and cast yourself entirely upon God’s mercy and love. | |||
Tell God that you have lived to the world and its passing glory. Tell Him that you have put other people before Him. Fall before Him and confess that you deserve nothing but punishment, that you have nothing to plead, you have no excuse. That is repentance. That is calling upon the Lord. Joel had prophesied, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered” (Joel 2:32). And the moment you call upon God in repentance, He will look upon you and will smile upon you and will say, “It is all right! I sent My only Son into the world for you. Believe on Him. Believe that He died for you and for your sins and thank Him.” | Tell God that you have lived to the world and its passing glory. Tell Him that you have put other people before Him. Fall before Him and confess that you deserve nothing but punishment, that you have nothing to plead, you have no excuse. That is repentance. That is calling upon the Lord. Joel had prophesied, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered” (Joel 2:32). And the moment you call upon God in repentance, He will look upon you and will smile upon you and will say, “It is all right! I sent My only Son into the world for you. Believe on Him. Believe that He died for you and for your sins and thank Him.” | ||
Then give yourself and your life to Him. Submit yourself to Him, whatever the cost, and be baptized. It was not a small thing for those new Jerusalem believers to be baptized. It cost them dearly in persecution, the renunciation of family, ostracism, and a thousand and one other things. It probably meant death for many of them as, indeed, it did to many Christians in the arena in Rome. But that does not matter. Once you see this truth, you will say with the writer of the hymn: | Then give yourself and your life to Him. Submit yourself to Him, whatever the cost, and be baptized. It was not a small thing for those new Jerusalem believers to be baptized. It cost them dearly in persecution, the renunciation of family, ostracism, and a thousand and one other things. It probably meant death for many of them as, indeed, it did to many Christians in the arena in Rome. But that does not matter. Once you see this truth, you will say with the writer of the hymn: | ||
:''Love so amazing, so divine, | |||
:''Demands my soul, my life, my all. (Isaac Watts)<ref>David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Authentic Christianity, vol. 1, 1st U.S. ed., Studies in the Book of Acts (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2000), 48–60.</ref> | |||
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Authentic Christianity, vol. 1, 1st U.S. ed., Studies in the Book of Acts (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2000), 48–60. | |||
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'''[[God|Learn More about God]]''' | '''[[God|Learn More about God]]''' | ||
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