WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?

If we asked "Who wants to be a millionaire?" You might consider that a daft question. Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? We all know the possible benefits and are willing to risk any of the so called difficulties of having so much money.

If we asked, "Who wants to be a Christian?" The response may be very different. The reason for this is that the benefits are not as easy to see as having a million pounds.

However, we want to share with you the real benefits of becoming a Christian. The great thing is we may never have a million pounds but we all have the opportunity to have Christ in our lives.

In Markethill Sunday School a couple of teachers asked this very question to the young people in their class. Impressed by the way they did this, we thought we would pass it on to you.

1.  What is a true Christian?

The only description of a true Christian is given to us in the Bible.

A Christian is a person . . . . . . . .

. . . . who has realised their sinfulness.

          For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. (Romans 3 : 23)

. . . . who has knowingly come to Christ for help.

        Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew  11 :28)

. . . . who has called on the Lord Jesus for Salvation.

        And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. (Acts 2 :21)

. . . . who has put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ to save them.

          Who ever believes in the Son has eternal life. (John 3 : 36)

To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, he gave the right to become the children of God. (John 1:12)

. . . . who has opened the door of their life to Christ and let Him take control.

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door. I will come in and   eat with him, and he with me. (Revelations 3 : 20)

. . . . who has been changed by the power of God.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5: 17)

. . . . who has been born again.

No-one can see the Kingdom of God unless he has been born again. (John 3 : 3)

Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under the Heaven given to men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

. . . . who is seeking to discover and endeavouring to obey the will of God.

Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 7 : 21)

. . . . who is trusting Jesus Christ and confessing Him as Saviour and Lord, by life and lip.

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10 : 9)

2. Some misunderstandings of what is a true Christian

Years ago at the funfair there was the hail of mirrors. These mirrors distorted your body so you could be any shape you liked, tall, short, thin and fat, They were great fun as long as you realised that this was not your real shape!!

In the same way there are some distortions or misunderstandings as to what a Christian is. These misunderstandings are far more dangerous than the hall of mirrors because sometimes we think they are the real thing. It is interesting to note that there are no references in the Bible to support the idea that any of these misunderstandings are an aid to salvation.

We are not Christians by . . . .

. . . . going to Church whether it is Markethill or any other Church.

. . . . being baptized.

. . . . by taking Communion.

1st Corinthians in fact tells us, Anyone who eats the bread  and drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning  against the body and blood of the Lord.’

. . . . trying to keep the 10 Commandments (God’s Law)

. . . . trying our best and keeping the laws of the land.

. . . . being a member of Committee or even Kirk Session.

. . . . being a Sunday School teacher, minister or missionary.

There are many people who accept these distortions and so think that they are Christians. But salvation is totally undeserved and unearned by any man, woman, girl or boy, it is a free gift of God.

‘For it is by grace you have been saved through faith and thus not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no-one can boast. (Ephesians 2 : 8,9)

Many of us think that the only division in Northern Ireland is Protestant/Roman Catholic or Unionist/Republican. Worldwide others think it is black/white, China/rest of the world.

The more serious division in this world is the saved/unsaved i.e. those who have asked Jesus into their hearts as Lord and Saviour and those who have not.

3.  How then do we become a Christian?

There are several steps we need to take in order to meet the requirements God had set out in His Word. We come on God’s terms not on our own. We need to understand that none of these things in themselves save us and make us Christians. It is Christ who effects salvation. The Lord Jesus is the one, and the only one, who is able to meet our need.

In order for Jesus to make us a Christian we must . . . .

1.  Realise that we are sinners.

For there is no difference, for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. (Romans 3 : 22, 23)

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (John 1: 8)

2.  Repent of our sins.

Repent and believe the Gospel. (Mark 1: 15)

God now commands everyone everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30)

Repentance means more than being sorry for our sin. It is a turning away from it and a turning to Christ.

3.  Recognise in Jesus, the only one who can save us.

Christ died for our sins. (1 Corinthians 15 : 3)

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me." (John 14: 6)

He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed. (1 Peter 2 : 24)

4.  Receive Him , by faith, as our personal Saviour

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. (Acts 16:31)

To all who receive Him, to those who believe in His name, He gave the right to become children of God. (John 1: 12)

5.  Rely on the clear promises God has given you.

I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. (John 5 : 24)

So these are the steps we need to take. However sometimes we are still unsure how practically we take them. This then is how we begin our new life in Christ.

Pray to God a prayer something like this:

 4. What happens now?

We might have expected lights flashing in the sky, we are sure there wasn’t any but you can be sure that there is great rejoicing in heaven at this very moment if you prayed that prayer. There are some important things we need to know about our new life in Christ.

1.  ASSURANCE

The New Testament throbs with living hope certainty. This is not presumption, glad assurance of Christ living in and joyful but is living in us.

The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. (Romans 8: 16)

2.  DOUBT

The devil will try and put doubts in our minds telling us God hasn’t accepted us.

Resist the devil and he will flee. (James 5 : 7)

3.  PRAYER

We now have access to God the Father through Christ the Son. Thank Him for His power, salvation, holiness and love. Praise Him that He has given you eternal life and has made you His child. Make sure that you have a daily Quiet Time with the Lord. Take time to talk to Him and He will give you strength and wisdom to cope with each day.

They that wait upon the Lord will renew their strength. (Isaiah 40 : 31)

4.  BIBLE READING

In Prayer we speak to God and in the Bible God speaks to us. It is therefore important that we read it daily. It would be good to begin with one of the Gospels reading about a chapter a day, asking God to help you understand it.

5.  OBEDIENCE

This is essential for joy, growth and usefulness in our Christian life. If we do not obey what God says to us how will we know life in all its fullness?

6.  SHORT ACCOUNTS

If we sin, we need to go immediately to the Lord. Confess it, ask Him to forgive us, believe Him that He has done so, being assured that our relationship with Him is secure.

If we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1: 9)

7.  WITNESSING

It is very important to tell what God has done for us. Often as we tell the story of God’s saving power in our own lives the Spirit witnesses with our spirit that our words are true. By doing this we are passing on the news the Good News.

8.  FELLOWSHIP

As members of God’s family, we need one another and must meet regularly with fellow Christians.

Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing. (Hebrews 10:25)

9.  SERVICE

It is a privilege to serve a Holy God. Ask your minister how you can serve in the Church.

Christians do not profess to be better than other people; they will certainly not always get things right. They only profess to have simple faith in what God has promised in the Bible - the forgiveness of their sins on the grounds that Christ died for them on the cross of Calvary, bearing their guilt and punishment in their place.

If you want more information, or have responded to Jesus Christ as a result of reading this,

please contact Rev Rankin at minister@markethillpresbyterian.co.uk