How to become a Christian

This blog post covers the things you need to do to become a Christian, and accept the free gift of eternal life that God has made available for absolutely everyone in Jesus Christ.

WHY BECOME A CHRISTIAN?
The most important reason to become a Christian is to be able to avoid the punishment of hell and instead look forward to life in Heaven with God and Jesus and me and lots of other people when your life on earth is over.

You need to understand that becoming a Christian is not primarily about what you do or what you have to do. It is primarily about recognising what God has already done for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and accepting that. It is like a gift that has already been wrapped up and offered to you. All you have to do is reach out and take it.

1. Understand that you do not have to be good enough.
The truth is that absolutely none of us is good enough for the free gift of salvation. If we were good enough, then we would not need it! If we try to make ourselves good enough, then it is like we are trying to pay for the gift ourselves. This is pointless because the price is so high that only one Person in history has ever been good enough to be able to pay for it. That Person is Jesus. He paid for the salvation of the whole world, because no-one else could ever pay even for their own selves, and definitely not for anyone else.

“But Tosin you’re such a good person!”
If you think that I’m a “good person”, then that is actually because of the work that God has already done in my life.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE understand this. You don’t have to get to a certain level before you are good enough to be a Christian.
This is the way it works with God:

a. Come to God just as you are. That means where you are right this very moment is perfect for becoming a Christian
b. Accept God’s gift of salvation through Christ
c. Open yourself to God’s power to change your life
d. The more open you are, the more you ask of God, the more He will change you
e. God’s power works to change you, not only in terms of being “good”, but also in terms of common sense, wisdom etc
It is a continuous thing. None of us will ever attain perfection down here on earth, or even get close. However when we look back over our lives and we see how God has been at work, then we will be able to see the great difference that God’s power has made in our lives.

2. Believe that God is real, and that the sacrifice of Jesus actually happened:
“Tosin, I really want to have faith. But I’m just not sure that I believe it all…”
That’s OK. What I would do is simply to try to pray and ask God:
“God, if You’re real, please show me – and please make it so clear, that I will know it is not my mind playing tricks on me!”
And then all you have to do is wait, and see whether He responds.

3. Accept that you are a sinner
The truth is that we are all sinners. We all do things that we know are wrong. We all sin. We don’t do these things occasionally. We all do these things all the time. When you come to God you have to admit that you are a sinner, and that you can never reach His standards of perfection. This is why you need the sacrifice of Jesus, like we all do.

4. Accept the free gift of God’s salvation through Jesus
To do this, simply ask God to please forgive you of your sins.

5. Repent of your sins. This means turn away from them, put them behind you.
Every sin we commit hurts God. When we become Christians we turn away from our sinful lifestyles, and from deliberately acting in a way that hurts God.

6. Invite God to be King of your life.
This means that God is now the boss. As Christians in everything we seek to put God first. This means that we seek to honour God through the things that we do, the things that we say, the thoughts we cultivate in our minds. God will not accept second place in our lives. He demands to come first even above other important things like family and work. In practice, this will often mean loving our families more than we did before. However, there are times when we might have to choose God above our families. For instance, if our families adhere to a different faith, or they frown on our commitment to Christ. Putting God first means that we continue to serve God and honour Him even though it will mean disapproval from our families. This can be true even for those of us who come from Christian families.

7.Invite Christ to live in your heart.
This sounds a little complicated. However, all it means is that you will start to pray to God, read the Bible, and through it seek to connect with God, the same way you would connect with a friend who wrote you a letter, or an email. You will praise God with your whole heart. You will live life as if you are now in a relationship with God, because you actually are!

So that is how you become a Christian!
It is very important that you start to read the Bible, so that you understand what God is like, and how He wants us to live. It is also important that you join a good church where people genuinely put God first and where the Bible is genuinely regarded and revered as the Word of God.

Ask God for understanding. Ask Him to give you a heart that desires to be holy for Him. Ask Him to work in your life through His power, to make you who He wants you to be. Remember that the more you want it, the more you ask Him, the more determined you are for Him, the more He will work in your life.

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PHOTO CREDITS
Photo of Woman standing at cross by Frankbeckerde on Pixabay
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