Our mission at Grace Baptist is "to develop committed followers of Jesus Christ." Another way of putting it is that our chief goal is to guide people to have an intimate, personal relationship with God. We believe in order to know God personally, a person must fully understand and act upon five crucial truths. For simplicity, we can use the acrostic, "GRACE."

Truth 1: God created you for a purpose.

Simply stated, God created you to have a relationship with Him. Unfortunately, there's a problem. On the one hand, God is holy and cannot tolerate sin. Isaiah 59:2 says, "It's your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore (NLT).  

On the other hand, human beings are marred by sin. The Bible claims, "for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23 NASB). Sin also has a terrible penalty. In this case, that punishment is death, both physical death and spiritual death, or separation from God. Again, the Bible states, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23 ESV).

Notice that along with death as the result of sin, God promises eternal life as a free gift. How then can we experience moving from a state of spiritual death to having true life and knowing God personally?  

Truth 2: Repent of your sin.

For some people, repentance is thought of much like a "four-letter word." As human beings, we don't like the idea of having to repent of any of our actions. Yet, in order to have a personal relationship with God, repentance of sin is a must. Jesus Himself preached that exact message: "'The time promised by God has come at last!' he announced. 'The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!'" (Mark 1:15 NLT).

Many people have a misconception of what true repentance is, though. In essence, repentance of sin includes three ideas:

1. Agreeing with God about your sin. David, after committing the sin of adultery confessed to God, "Against You--You alone--I have sinned and done this evil in Your sight. So You are right when You pass sentence; You are blameless when You judge" (Psalm 51:4 HCSB).
2. Feeling sorry for your sin. The Bible states, "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Corinthians 7:10 NKJV).
3. Turning away from your sin and turning to God. This is actually the true meaning of repentance, making a 180 degree turn-around in our actions. In one of the New Testament's earliest sermons, Peter proclaimed, "Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away" (Acts 3:19 NLT).

Indeed, repentance of our sin is necessary, but is that all? Notice what Jesus said earlier. He said to "repent and believe the Good News." The good news Jesus referred to is actually the third important truth necessary to know God.

Truth 3: Accept what Jesus did for you.

The "Good News" is also called "the Gospel." The shortest expression of this good news for us is given by Paul. It expresses what Jesus did for us that we could not do for ourselves in order to know and have a relationship with God. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Paul writes, " I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me.  Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said" (NLT). Two extremely important claims are made:

1. Jesus died for us. In the Old Testament, an unblemished animal sacrifice was made to forgive sins. But these sacrifices had to be made over and over again. Jesus became God's perfect sacrifice to take away our sin, first, because He was God and, second, because He was a sinless man. Only the combination of those two attributes would suffice to once-and-for-all pay the penalty for our sin. Jesus was God, as the Bible clearly claims: "In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1 NKJV). Jesus was also a sinless man, uniquely qualified to die in our place. Paul states, "For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT). Elsewhere, the Bible says, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8 NASB).
2. Jesus rose from the dead. The greatest day in human history was Easter morning when Jesus was resurrected from the dead! Women came to the tomb early that morning to anoint properly the body of Jesus, who was crucified the prior Friday. Instead, they heard a wonderful message from an angel: "But the angel told the women, 'Don't be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here! For He has been resurrected, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay'" (Matthew 28:5-6 HCSB).

Jesus died in our place and was resurrected so that we could have a personal relationship with God. That is not only good news; it is the greatest news! But knowing these truths is not enough. Something else on our part is necessary. . .action.

Truth 4: Confess and receive Jesus as Savior and Lord.

No amount of good works can get us to heaven. Salvation and a personal relationship with God is a free gift, paid for by Jesus. The Bible states, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9 NASB). So how then does the knowledge of what Jesus did for us lead to us to know God truly? The answer is twofold:

1. Confess your belief in Jesus. Paul clearly writes, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved" (Romans 10:9-10 NLT).
2. Receive or invite Jesus into your heart. The Bible claims in 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" (NKJV).

Is there anything to prevent you from receiving Jesus right now and experiencing a personal relationship with God? If not, pray this prayer or one similar to it, truly meaning it in your heart. Remember, you are turning away from your life of sin and turning your life completely over to God.

"Dear God, I confess to you that I am a sinner and am separated from you. Please forgive me. I make the conscious decision to turn from my sin and turn to you. Jesus, I believe that you died for my sin and rose from the dead. The best way I know how, I receive you into my life, I invite you to become my Savior and Lord of my life. Thank you, God, for loving me and forgiving me. Jesus, thank you for dying for me. God, right now, I confess that I have a personal relationship with you and give you my life to live for you. In your name, Amen."

If you prayed that prayer and truly meant it, you now possess some great benefits in your life!

Truth 5: Experience God's best for you.

Becoming a Christian and having a personal relationship with God comes along with tremendous benefits. Below are just a small sample:

• A brand new life! The Bible asserts, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV). Your past is now in the past and everything about you is new! 
• An abundant life! Jesus gave us a great promise when he says, "The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.  My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life" (John 10:10 NLT). We may never be be wealthy according to the world's standards, but with Jesus we can have the most abundant earthly life possible!
• Eternal life! Not only do we have an abundant earthly life, but we are assured of an eternal life. Perhaps the most well-known verse in the Bible claims, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16 NASB).
• A purposeful life! You never again have to question whether you have a purpose in life if you receive Christ. Paul writes, "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10 ESV). The reason you're still alive is because God still has something for you to accomplish for Him!
• The promise of forgiveness! Even though God forgave us our sins when we received Jesus, we will still mess up (and often). Still, God promises us that even if we do, His forgiveness is available: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9 NKJV).
• Assurance of your salvation! You cannot ever lose your salvation if you truly invited Jesus into your heart. Jesus Himself says, "My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish--ever!  No one will snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand" (John 10:27-29 HCSB). Likewise, Paul claims, "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39 NKJV).

Now that you have a personal relationship with God through Jesus, your new life has just begun! Here are some practical steps to begin growing in your faith in Jesus:

• Find a good church home (hint: Grace Baptist!) and be biblically baptized as an act of obedience and pronouncement to the world that you're a brand new person!
• Purchase a good study Bible and begin reading it daily, beginning in the book of John. Two good choices are the NASB Zondervan Study Bible and the NLT Life Application Study Bible.
• Beginning praying daily. A simple outline is the "ACTS" model: Adoration or worship of God, Confession of sin, Thanksgiving for all things, and Supplication or praying for others and yourself.
• Share your wonderful news with others. In fact, think right now of the one person you'd like most to tell that you've become a Christian and call them! If you don't have anyone, contact us, we'd love to hear from you!