You would be wise to give yourself into the loving hands of Jesus.
Here are a few reasons why you should.
Just as God made laws which govern nature, God has also made spiritual laws-principles which govern us and our relationship with Him. These principles God wants you to know.
1) God Loves You! For in His word He tells us:
"...God is Love..." [I John 4:16, NIV]
"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." [John 15:13, NIV] And this is exactly what God did when He came in Jesus Christ and acted through Jesus to bring us to Himself.
"This is how we know what love is; Jesus Christ laid down His life for us." [I John 3:16a, NIV]
"God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." [Romans 5:8, NAS] [to sin is to miss the mark, to go astray, to knowingly disobey, to transgress God's Law, to choose to do wrong]
"God! So rich is He in His mercy! Because of and in order to satisfy the great and wonderful and intense love with which He loved us, Even when we were dead [slain] by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ. -- He gave us the very life of Christ Himself...." [Ephesians 2:4-5a, Amp.Ver.]
"For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave up His only-begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish -- come to destruction, be lost -- but have eternal (everlasting) life." [John 3:16, Amplified Version]
God is asking you today to accept His love for you, to have faith in His Word, the Holy Bible, and to thereby trust Him.
2) God has a good plan for your life. For as the Lord Jesus Christ tells us:
"The thief [Satan] comes only in order that he may steal and may kill and may destroy. I came that they [all of you] may have and enjoy life, and have it [life] in abundance -- to the full, till it overflows." [John 10:10, Amp.Ver.]
And the Lord tells us:
"For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace, and not for evil [destruction], to give you hope in your final outcome [ultimate and daily salvation]." [Jeremiah 29:11, Amp.Ver.]
Yes, God's plan for every one of us is good, for He knows how to make better plans than we do, and His plan would be a blessing to us, if we were in agreement with it, and with Him.
3) But every human being has sinned and has a sin nature. For the Word of God tells us:
"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." [Romans 3:23, NAS]
And also: "...As it is written [in Psalm 14:3], There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one."[Romans 3:11-12, NAS]
"I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. for what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do -- this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it." [Romans 7:18-20, NIV]
Man was created so as to have fellowship with God. But while exercising his free will man imagined that he knew better than God, and thereby overruled God's instruction [to not eat of the fruit of knowledge in the garden] and so fell into rebellion and broke fellowship with God. This state of self-reliance and willful independence is what the Word of God calls the state of sin, the sin nature. And we have all been born with a selfish sin nature. By self-will, whether in active rebellion, or by passive resistance, every natural unregenerated man is today an adversary to God.
4) Unregenerated man is today separated from fellowship with God. For the Bible tells us:
"The wages which sin pays is death" [ultimate physical death and spiritual separation from God]. [Romans 6:23, Amp.Ver.]
For God is perfect, Holy, without error; and He judges all things by the standard of His own perfection. As the prophet says about God:
"Your eyes [Lord] are too pure too look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong." [Habakkuk 1:13, NIV]
Therefore, there is a great spiritual gulf between the Holy God and natural unregenerated sinful man. Man tries in many ways to find the good life, that is only found in God. Man wants to become good through religion and good works, but the false gods of religion and good works can't save him. All such human efforts are doomed to failure, for the impure, the defiled can't purify themselves.
But, knowing all these things, God made a way, the only way!
5) God, in and through Christ Jesus, came to redeem (rescue) man. He paid the price for our sin with His own sacrificial death on the Cross. For the price of sin is death, and He chose to die in our place, as our substitute, that we might be reconciled to Him.
"He made Him (Jesus, the Christ) who knew no sin (who never sinned) to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (Jesus). [2 Corinthians 5:21, Amp.Ver.]
"It was God (personally present) in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor and (to) Himself, not ... holding against [men] their trespasses [but canceling them]..." [2 Corinthians 5:19, Amp.Ver.]
Yes, He paid the price for our sins on the Cross, and He now offers the free gift of salvation and reconciliation to Him.
6) To be set free we must receive Christ Jesus, as Lord and Savior.
His free gift has no power to liberate us unless we choose, by the faith He has given us, to let Him act in our lives. We must truly, in our hearts, trust in Him and His completed work. We must truly receive Him into our hearts.
The Apostle John writes, "To as many as did receive and welcome Him (Jesus), He gave the authority [power, privilege, right] to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in -- adhere to, trust in and rely on -- His name." [John 1:12, Amp.Ver.]
7) We receive Christ Jesus, by exercising the gift of faith which He gives us.
And the Apostle Paul writes, "It is by free grace [God's unmerited favor] that you are saved [delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ's salvation] through (your) faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves -- of your own doing, it came not through your own striving -- but it is the gift of God. Not because of works [not the fulfillment of the Law's demands], lest any man should boast -- It is not the result of what any one can possibly do, so no one can pride himself in it or take glory to himself." [Ephesians 2: 8,9, Amp.Ver.]
8) When we receive Christ Jesus, we experience a new birth.
When we truly let Jesus begin to direct in our lives then we step through a door into a new realm, our eyes are opened to the things of God, we are born again, we become newborn children of God.
Jesus tells us, "Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, `Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with Him.' In reply Jesus declared, `I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.' `How can a man be born when he is old?' Nicodemus asked. `Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!' Jesus answered, `I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.'" [John 3:1-7, NIV]
9) We receive Christ Jesus by inviting Him into our innermost being.
Jesus says, "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." [Revelation 3:20, NIV]
Receiving Christ Jesus involves turning away from independent self will, [that is what repentance is] and turning toward God's ways, and trusting in Christ alone, trusting that Christ Jesus will come into your life, He will forgive your sins and He will make you a new creation in Christ.
10) Intellectual agreement with the Word of God is not enough.
An action of will, to let God be God in your life is absolutely necessary. You can confess that Jesus was indeed the Son of God, that He died for your sins, that He arose from the dead and now is Lord. But confession is not enough. Confession of Christ is not enough to renew your mind and change your ways.
11) No emotional experience empowers supernatural regeneration.
You can get excited about what Jesus did in delivering His children from death and hell. But is your mind really changed?
Is Jesus truly in charge? Do you let His Word inform your decisions? Do you seek out His wise council? Is He the one you trust to come through when things get tough, when things seem impossible? Is He the one you brag on as the source of your strength, your wisdom, your provision? Is He the one that comforts you in secret? If not then that needs to change by your choice.
12) Only an act of will, choosing to let Him direct your ways can bring true transformation.
If Jesus is not yet in charge, then now is the time to put your trust in Him. You begin to trust in Christ Jesus by an act of will empowered by the gift of faith which He has given you.
13) You can now receive Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior by Faith Through Active Prayer.
(Prayer is simply talking with God.)
You can begin the process of renewing your mind and of transforming your life, by calling on Him now to hear your prayer. He knows if you are sincere, if you really mean what you say, so think about this prayer before you pray it. Make sure you really mean what you say. Here is the suggested prayer:
Lord Jesus, Lord of Heaven and Earth, I need you. Thank you for dying on the cross to pay for my sins, and for now covering my sins by your blood. I ask you to come into my life and into my heart, to begin to rule and reign in my life. I receive you as my only Lord and Savior. Thank You for forgiving my sins and for giving me eternal life in you. I ask you to be my king, to keep my thoughts pure, to make we the kind of person that You desire, a person that will bring glory to your name.
If you are ready to make a full commitment, then please pray this prayer, aloud or silently. In either case, Jesus will know if you really meant it. If you do, He will change your life!
And you can trust, that now that you have prayed this prayer, that He has answered you prayer. and that has come into your life, because His Holy Word said He would, and He keeps every promise. He never fails. His reason for creating man was to have fellowship with man, and now He will begin to have communion with you.
Many people feel nothing at the moment that Jesus enters their lives, for the change is a Spiritual one, and some are dull to the things of the Spirit of God. Even so, a real change does happen to every person that sincerely prays this prayer. God is faithful.
14) Now don't trust in your feelings, trust in God and His Word.
Human emotion and feelings were what led man to fail in the beginning, so don't rely on your feeling now. To not repeat that ancient mistake, we must instead place our faith (trust) in the Word of God, in the Promises of God.
Now that you have invited the Lord to be Lord in your life, you can be sure that He takes His relationship with you as very precious, for He died on the cross for it, and He will now defend you as a member of His household, as His own child.
15) You Can Be Sure That Christ Is In You Life Because:
a) God has made you a promise and He keeps His Word.
His Word doesn't change regardless of your feelings. His promises are written in stone.
God made a promise to all those that receive Him (that's you). He had the Apostle John write this promise, "To as many as did receive and welcome Him (Jesus), He gave the authority [power, privilege, right] to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in -- adhere to, trust in and rely on -- His name." [John 1:12, Amp.Ver.]
This promise of power to become a child of God, has now become a contract between you and God, and He will keep it. And He is intent on keeping you in His family, come what may. Doubt may come, trying you. You may drift, you may fail, you may think you are far from Him, but He will always be your strength.
Likewise He has promised you, that by your chosen faith in Him, you now have eternal life and communion with Him.
"For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave up His only-begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish -- come to destruction, be lost -- but have eternal (everlasting) life." [John 3:16, Amp.Ver.]
And again the Lord promises believers: "...God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life." [I John 5:11-13, NAS]
By the unshakable authority of the Word of God we can know with certainty that we are in Him. So we can be thankful, and should often say we are thankful, for the God who made the universe is now our unwavering friend and defender, and will never leave us.
"He (God) Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless, nor forsake nor let [you] down, [relax My hold on you]. -- Assuredly not!" [Hebrews 13:5, Amp.Ver.]
b) We can trust His Word, because by it the universe came to be, and by it the universe has been kept until now.
"By the Word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host... For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast." [Psalm 33:6 & 9, NAS]
"For by Him (Jesus) all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, ... And He is before all things, and in Him (Jesus) all things hold together." [Colossians 1:16-17, NAS]. That is, the universe holds together and the laws of nature are kept to the end of the age, by the same Word that keeps you saved.
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He [the Word] was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him [the Word], and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.... And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." [John 1:1-3 &14, NAS]
As Jesus, the word made flesh said after His resurrection, "All authority -- all power of rule -- in heaven and on earth has been given to Me." [Matthew 28:18b, Amp.Ver.]
The same power that keeps the universe together keeps you saved. He will never fail you.
c) God will bear direct witness in your life that He is present, that He is working in you. For example, as a result of His presence in your life, you shouldn't be surprised if:
1) Your grasp of and interest in the Scriptures noticeably improve.
2) Prayer becomes a vital thing.
3) Your wants, desires, attitudes and thoughts begin to improve.
4) Your language becomes salted with Scripture that uplifts others.
5) You begin to enjoy the fellowship of godly people.
6) Those that reject God, suddenly don't want you nearby, for they see that you are now a child of God.
7) Your faith is tested with trials, which force you to turn to Him for strength, and which bring you closer to Him.
d) Remember the steadfastness of God's very nature is present to keep you. Even when you fall or fail Him, He will not let you go. Just keep praising Him for who He is and He will be there in power to bring restoration through repentance.
As the Apostle Paul writes, "I am persuaded beyond doubt -- am sure -- the neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things impending and threatening, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." [Romans 8:38-39, Amp.Ver.]
Growing In The Lord