The Second Thing

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
Matt 6:33

I've been reading the Autobiography of George Muller and in it he highlights two things regarding the verse above: pursuing the Kingdom of God and pursuing holiness. I don't know why, but I've always missed the second point. I've just had a real blind spot for it. But it's a really key factor in doing God's work here on Earth, a real motivator in the pursuit of holiness, and a promise for experiencing material provision as you go. Here's what George Muller said in his book:

"The great business which the disciple of the Lord Jesus has to be concerned about is to seek the Kingdom of God. I believe this means to seek the external and internal prosperity of the Church. If we seek to win souls for the Lord Jesus, we are seeking the external prosperity of the Kingdom of God. If we help our fellow-members in the Body grow in grace and truth or care for them in any way, we are seeking the internal prosperity of God.

In connection with this, we also have to seek His righteousness. This means to seek to be more and more like God—to seek to be inwardly conformed to the mind of God. If these two things are attended to diligently, we come to that precious promise: "And all these things [that is, food, clothing, or anything else you need in this present life] shall be added unto you."

Do you make it your primary business and your first great concern to seek the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness? Are the things of God, the honour of His name, the welfare of His Church, the conversion of sinners, and the profit of your own soul, your chief aim? Or does your business, your family, or your own temporal concerns primarily occupy your attention? Remember that the world will pass away, but the things of God will endure forever. I never knew a child of God who acted according to the above passage for whom the Lord did not fulfill His promise, "All these things shall be added unto you."

P191-2, The Autobiography of George Muller

Notes on Matthew 1-10

Personal notes written on Matthew 1-10:

Notes_on_Matthew_1-10.rtf

Worldly Sorrow Vs Godly Sorrow

I've been provoked by several things I've read recently, in the Bible and in my 'Redemption' book. About the contrast between worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. A few thoughts on the ways you can distinguish worldly sorrow. One or all might apply:

     1. You're more worried about other people knowing what you've done than God knowing what you've done. You're more concerned about failing in the eyes of people, about their opinions, or knowledge of your short-comings than the actual offence committed against God.

     2. You can't forgive yourself. Although you might superficially accept that you're forgiven by God, you can't bring yourself to the same conclusion. To your mind, your standards, opinions and judgement has more weight than God's. You set yourself as a higher judge than Him. In a sense, your real god is yourself.

     3. You regret the consequences of your actions rather than the actual sin itself. The sin provides (or provided) you a payoff which you enjoy and don't regret. You might relive that experience, or continue to enjoy that specific part of the sin in a habitual cycle.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
Matthew 5:4

"For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death."
2 Corinthians. 7:10

Joyful Unconcern

"Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."
Matthew 6:25-33

It's so easy to read this verse thinking "aha, if I seek first the kingdom, I'll have material provision and security." I must have read that verse so many times with that subtle thought process ticking away unnoticed. But then you realise there's a problem: your focus and heart is still set on material provision, not the kingdom of God.

Your 'seeking first the kingdom' is nothing more than a means to your true end, provision. So the kingdom of God is not first at all but second at best.

In an ironic sort of a way, if you're totally anxious about making ends meet, you actually need to just forget it. Forget it and worship God. Forget it and trust God. Be consumed with his gospel and count yourself expendable for his purposes. Pursue him first and perhaps things will fall into perspective.

But by all means, get a budget and be debt free. You're more useful to God that way.

Richard Foster on the Discipline of Simplicity

From 'Celebration of Discipline':

"Simplicity is freedom. Duplicity is bondage. Simplicity brings joy and balance. Duplicity brings anxiety and fear. The preacher of Ecclesiasties observes that 'God made man simple; man's complex problems are of his own devising' (Eccles. 7:29)"
p99

"To attempt to arrange an outward life-style of simplicity without the inward reality leads to deadly legalism."
p100

Speaking of contemporary culture: "Because we lack a divine Centre our need for security has led us into an insane attachment to things ... We crave things we neither need nor enjoy ... We are made to feel ashamed to wear clothes or drive cars until they are worn out. The mass media have convinced us that to be out of step with fashion is to be out of step with reality. It is time we awaken to the fact that conformity to a sick society is to be sick."
p100-101

"if riches increase, set not your heart on them."
Psalm 62:10

Speaking of Jesus: "He saw the grip that wealth can have on a person. He knew that 'where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,' which is precisely why he commanded his followers: 'Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth' (Matt 6:21, 19)"
p103
—
I suppose there's quite a difference between generating a high income and laying up treasures. You could have a lot of resources, being rich in terms of your bank balance, and yet refuse to use that bank balance in acquiring many possessions. Instead, we use those funds for resourcing the Kingdom. I've never thought it was wrong to be rich, but yet there is a very direct command not to lay up for ourselves treasure on earth. 'Set not your heart on them'. When you hear Christians that are very rich, but live a modest life and give really generously, it's incredibly powerful. They've adopted a level of discipline, self-control and love for Christ that is very evident in their outward behaviour.

"Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail"
Luke 12:33

"Take heed, and beware of all covetousness; for a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions"
Luke 12:15

"He calls all who would follow him to a joyful life of carefree unconcern for possessions: 'Give to every one who begs from you; and of him who takes away your goods do not ask them again"
Luke 6:30

"Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction"
1 Tim 6:9

"Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never fail you nor forsake you"
Hebrews 13:5

"Simplicity is the only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be genuinely enjoyed without destroying us."
p105

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well."
Matt 6:25-33

"The central point for the Discipline of simplicity is to seek the kingdom of God and the righteousness of his kingdom first and then everything necessary will come in its proper order"
p106

"As Jesus made clear in our central passage, freedom from anxiety is one of the inward evidences of seeking first the kingdom of God. The inward reality of simplicity involves a life of joyful unconcern for possessions."
p107

Strength For Today

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Matt 6:34

I was thinking about Rach Pavey's contribution at church a few weeks back about 'strength for today' - that God doesn't give you strength for the year, or for a decade or a month. He gives you strength for one day at a time. Rach is experiencing this to the extreme, but I was thinking that it's an incredibly important principle to learn in general life. Hard times or not.

You see it over and over again in scripture. Manner falls from Heaven - God provides out of thin air for his people when all natural means of provision are absent. But they're commanded to gather only enough for one day. God wants our confidence set firmly in him. In the Lord's prayer Jesus gives us a template - to pray for our daily bread. Nothing more. And the Lord's prayer itself sounds like a daily prayer. Daily we ask for strength against temptation, daily we forgive, daily we seek first God's kingdom and daily we pray for deliverance from evil.

I was wondering, off the back of this, if a lot of lethargy and apathy in out struggle against sin is born out of thinking too far ahead. We think about whether we can struggle and fight week in week out, year upon year, for the rest of our lives. The task seems impossibly big and we collapse under the weight of it. We don't even try. But if you broke it down and just focused on today, the next 16 hours you're awake, suddenly it sounds okay. One day at a time. And tomorrow - we wake up and do the same.

This no doubt has a similar application in a number or other areas. Provision, health, singleness, marriage, work, relationships... pretty much anything about you life that causes worry, stress and anxiety.

Fear

Last thursday at Life Group we watched the Francis Chan 'Basic Series' on the fear of the Lord. The week leading up to it I was chewing it all over, and it's been really good. I've done a few talks on the fear of the Lord before but this DVD has thrown some extra verses into the mix and shed further light. As it happens, the fear of God plays out in some quite unexpected ways.

One of the things that really strikes you from the DVD is how fearful of God we should really be. My gut reaction is this: I have a certain level of fear, but nowhere near enough.

"When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead"
Revelation 1:17a

Francis Chan relates to all these biblical characters that had an encounter with God and were absolutely terrified. Even when people see Angels in the bible they're nearly scared to death. All of this leaves certain questions spinning round your mind:

Should I have that terrifying level of fear?
Is it even possible?
Is it even appropriate for daily life?
Does it not conflict with all the hope and promise we have in Jesus Christ, that we are in fact reconciled to God, and can boldly approach his throne? (Hebrews 4:16)

On the one hand you would have to conclude that the appropriate level of fear would probably kill you. Like in Exodus 33:18-23, Moses isn't allowed to see God's face, only his back, because no one could survive that. Part of my speculation on the hiddenness of God is that it's not his plan to terrify us on a daily basis.

But on the other hand a certain level of fear is prescribed. Without it, you wouldn't even be a Christian.

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline."
Proverbs 1:7

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise."
Psalm 111:10

Some musings

These two verses highlight some really interesting points. Firstly, why is the fear of God the beginning of knowledge and wisdom? It must lay the foundation for everything else. If we don't understand that the universe and humanity was designed and created by an awesome God, all of our knowledge runs astray.

You can be really, really intelligent in the same way that you can run really fast in completely the wrong direction. All these scientific, social, biological, philosophical theories are constructed, but they miss vital ingredients and it changes everything.

Secondly, in the first verse, why does it say 'fools despise wisdom and discipline'? Surely it should say 'fools despise the LORD'. I would guess that wisdom and discipline both imply a change of lifestyle. It feels restrictive. Fools hate the idea.

But this has some personal implications. To what degrees, as Christians, are we fools? What areas do we despise wisdom and hate discipline? We've all got areas where we accommodate all sorts of sin and disobedience, lack of discipline, lack of fear. It's so easy to read about 'fools' in the bible and not think you're one of them.

Fear of God equals faith

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."
Matthew 10:28-31

This concept of fear is not just an Old Testament, Old Covenant thing. Here Jesus himself, in the New Testament, tells us to fear. But the theme develops.

He says “be afraid” and then “don’t be afraid”.

We have one type of fear that conquers all others.

And this seems to rather aptly answer the question 'what level of fear is appropriate?'. Our fear of God should quench all others. When we're on the same team as God, when eternity is secured, even death is now an upgrade. In the verse above, the threat of murder is completely annulled. Fear of God equals faith in God.

The fear of the LORD is the weight behind us

"What, then, shall we say in response to this?
If God is for us, who can be against us?"
Romans 8:31

It’s not just Christians who should fear God. It’s everyone. If we could really grasp how terrifyingly awesome our God is, we might understand the depth of our confidence in Him.

And finally...

The fear of the LORD equals life

"The fear of the LORD leads to life: then one rests content, untouched by trouble."
Proverbs 19:23

That sounds unbelievably good. Life, rest, contentment, peace – untouched by trouble even if surrounded by it.

Overcoming Mediocrity

The threat of a mediocre Christian life is one of my greatest fears. There's a sleepiness and a lethargy that is so easy to slip into. You get consumed with day-to-day life and the simple matters of provision. It's a toil and it's wearisome. You spend little time walking with God, seeking out His plan and His purpose. And the years roll by. We may spend our whole lives in that state, die, and stand before the judgement seat of Christ.

"I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you."
Revelation 3:1-3

It seems this lethargic, lukewarm Christian life comes about when we take our eyes off Jesus and fix them on our day-to-day needs. We don't trust God to provide. Just like Peter when he steps out of the boat and onto the water. He starts in faith, but sees the wind and becomes afraid. He immediately starts sinking (Matthew 14:22-33).

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."
John 14:12

So how do we overcome this sluggish mediocre Christian life? How do we break through this sleepiness? Our whole lives should be caught up imitating Christ and continuing His work. Jesus sets the bar high in John 14:12. I have a few practical thoughts which I'm seeking to apply to my own life:

– We place our relationship with God above all other things. We walk with Him every day, side-by-side, in constant, continual fellowship. If we're too busy, we systematically delete the less important things from our lives to make room. It's far better to be materially poor and spiritually rich.

– We stand on Matthew 6:25-34 for our provision. If our chief goal is to glorify Jesus Christ, to spread the message of salvation and extend His kingdom, we have assurance from God that He will meet our basic needs. (Note to self: this may not include a 40" flat-screen TV with Sky+ subscription, gym membership, a holiday to the Carribean; all of which probably compromise our walk with God anyway!)

– We pursue holiness and the continual filling of the Holy Spirit.

– We learn to love the reproach of God and let Him drive our sanctification. This is the hallmark of a true believer.

– We seek excellence in all the things God has set before us at this present time. Be an excellent husband, an excellent father, an excellent life group leader, a great youth worker. Be excellent at handling your finances. Be excellent in your giving. Everything.

Too shy, too awkward

Joel Virgo, CCK Preaching Course:

"Awkwardness may have more to do with a fear of man than a fear of God."

Ouch! Standing up in front of people and speaking is always a struggle for me. Maybe I'm just too self-aware, too conscious of the thoughts of others when really my fear of God should be much greater. It should drown everything else out.

Fear of God should result in confidence before man. God is awesome. If He's called us to a task, He will equip. And His resources are infinite.

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."
Matthew 10:28-31

The disadvantage of wealth

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
Matthew 19:23-24

"Wealth is heavily concentrated in North America, Europe, and high income Asia-Pacific countries. People in these countries collectively hold almost 90% of total world wealth."
The World Distribution of Household Wealth

It seems that simply living in one of these rich countries automatically puts you at a massive disadvantage as far as the gospel is concerned. We are the rich people Jesus is talking about. We have insurance for everything and spend most of our lives accumulating various possessions, all of which comfort us in one way or another. It totally suffocates our need for God.

The New Testament is really big on considering the poor. I wonder if this is because on one hand, these people are in need, more open to the gospel, and a real opportunity is afforded to demonstrate the love of Jesus in action. And on the other, generosity strips us of all the things we trust in place of God, who wants to train us in His faithfulness.

I read a very interesting article from The New York Times website titled 'The Sandra Bullock Trade' (click here to read). One of the observations made from research is that once our basic material needs are met, very little additional happiness is gained by an increase in income. Food, water, shelter and a hospital when you get sick. That's what you need. Everything else pursued above this level is noise, and will never satisfy.

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."
1 Timothy 6:6-8

Here's a selection of verses from the New Testament relating to the poor:

"Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Luke 12:33-34

"The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same."
Luke 3:11

"Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."
Matthew 5:42

"But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort."
Luke 6:24

"But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?"
1 John 3:17

––––––

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

Matthew 25:31-46

The Pursuit of Holiness (Part 2)

"Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God"
1 John 3:21

Aside from the fact that we sin to some degree every hour of every day, in thought, word and deed, there are prominent and deliberate sins that even our own hearts condemn us for. I guess we call that our conscience.

A heavy conscience can so easily block you off from God. You know you could pray but instead you hang your head in shame until the feeling subsides. Your confidence is gone. It's always hard to talk to someone when you've got your back to them.

How free we can be when holiness is pursued and victory over sin attained. Nothing hangs on our heart or mind.

"For my yoke is easy and my burden is light"
Matthew 11:30

I can't help but think this is what Jesus has in mind for us.

The Unforgivable Sin

"Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven."
Matthew 12:31

On a very interesting note, my ESV commentary defines this sin: "this sin is committed today only by unbelievers who deliberately and unchangeably reject the ministry of the Holy Spirit in calling them to salvation."

I think what's interesting is that the commentary defines what the sin against the Holy Spirit actually is. That verse always scared the life out of me previously, because I simply didn't know what it meant, and whether or not I was guilty of it.

All very interesting stuff. Obviously the commentary is just one man's perspective on the verse and could well be wrong to some degree. But it does spark a lot of thought. Does the Holy Spirit work in all people everywhere, calling them to Him? Has everyone on earth been ministered to in some way by the Holy Spirit? And everyone who remains unsaved – have they all rejected the work of the Spirit in their lives?

I'm not sure you can definitely back those statements up with scripture (maybe I'm wrong!). But the following verses do hint at it. They state that God desires all people to be saved, and that it can only happen by the Holy Spirit.

"The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance."
2 Peter 3:9

"No one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit."
1 Corinthians 12:3b

Frustrations, time, and spiritual muscle

A lot of life is very hard work. Constant toil and struggles –  you pretty much have to fight to get the time to do anything, and put up with being knackered as a result. But maybe that's a good thing. Maybe God's allowing it all to happen to basically put you through a training regime.

"You shall love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
Matthew 22:37

This is basically saying 'love God with everything you've got. Inside and out. Engage the whole of yourself in this task'.

When you have to engage your whole body against resistance for sustained periods of time to tend to do two things. You lose a bit of fat and gain a bit of muscle.

Maybe this is what God has got in mind for us on a spiritual level. To actually get time to read your bible and pray each day can take a lot of effort. And it makes us spiritually strong. If it was all too easy we'd become doughnuts.

Little and Often

The pastor of my church, Graham Marsh, preached yesterday on working in '15 minutes of inconvenience' into everyday. Little tiny acts of kindness, such as buying a Big Issue, or helping someone out in a way people wouldn't normally think to do. Just random little things that take a little bit of time, effort and inconvenience.

I honestly think that God dropped that into my mind about 8 years ago, but stupidly I just thought about it and never actually did it. I thought of carrying £2 coins in my bag to give to homeless people when they asked for change. I know that people think they'll just waist it on alcohol, but even if they do, at least you've expressed a tiny fraction of God's heart and grace towards them.

It's a brilliant idea when you think about it. Small acts of kindness on a day-to-day basis over the course of your life adds up to a lot of works.

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me... I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
Matthew 25:35-40

How do you know you are saved?

This is the classic question the now retired founder of my church Don Smith used to drill us with. And as long as you knew Romans 10:9-10 you were safe! But this has got to be one of the most important questions to ask. I've been at my current church for 18 years, and one thing I can definitely say is that not everyone who believes they are a Christian is one.

Faith is tested over time through the course of life. Many people start well, hit a snag, and then drift off into the abyss. As Matthew 13:21 says "since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away." Being a Christian isn't easy.

"small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life,
and only a few find it."
Matthew 7:14

I never want to sow seeds of doubt about whether or not you are saved. But sometimes it's just not clear. If certain people I know died today, I would be left wondering whether or not they had gone to Hell, even though they professed to be Christians. And I hate that. As Paul said in Acts 26:20 "I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds."

I would totally stress the need to prove your salvation to yourself and everyone around you. To make it abundantly clear that you are what you say you are. A few additional verses which I feel support this viewpoint:

"Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."
James 2:17

"Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling."
Philippians 2:12

"Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure."
2 Peter 1:10

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The sinners prayer is nowhere in the bible.

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Francis Chan (a church pastor in California) pointed this out in a preach, and I found it quite provoking. Nowhere in the bible do you see a one paragraph prayer that makes you a Christian. Not that the sinners prayer is essentially bad, definitely not if you truly mean every word you pray. But really, it's a very very condensed summary of a process that can take months or years.

So what would you find if you just read the bible and let it speak for itself? I've done my best to collate all the verses that relate to salvation. In doing this, they seem to suggest a certain process:

believe in Jesus > realise you are a sinner in danger of Hell > repent > be baptised > regeneration & new life.

In this, repentance seems to be the clear point of salvation. But I would argue that what follows (baptism and regeneration) are key evidences of salvation. When these are missing you get either carnal or counterfeit Christians. There's no real proof and a lot of uncertainty.

Below are the verses. This takes the form of a handout which I produced for one of my life group talks... hope it's useful!

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1. Believe in Jesus Christ

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"That 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. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."
Romans 10:9-10

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John 3:16

By believing in Jesus, you are not merely believing that he existed, but you are believing in everything he said and did. This includes believing that:

He is the Son of God (Mark 14:61-64, John 8:58-59, John 10:30-33, John 14:8-9)

He came from Heaven (John 6:38, 41-42, 60, 66; John 16:28)

He was sinless (John 8:46)

He is the only way to heaven (John 14:6, John 11:25)

He was crucified on a cross (Matt 27: 32-66)

On the cross he paid the penalty for all your sins (past present and future), dying in your place and purchasing salvation. (1 Peter 3:18, Hebrews 10:12, Romans 3:25-26, Romans 5:19)

Three days after his death, he resurrected (Matt 28: 1-10)

Today he is seated on a Throne in Heaven, where he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Philippians 2:9-11, Revelation 19:16, Hebrews 12:2)

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2. Realise you are a sinner, in danger of Hell

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"There is no one righteous, not even one"
Romans 3:10

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
Romans 3:23

"But unless you repent, you too will all perish"
Luke 13:3

"For the wages of sin is death"
Romans 6:23

"Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment"
Hebrews 9:27

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins"
Ephesians 2:1

"They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts."
Ephesians 4:18

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3. Repent

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"Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
Mark 1: 14-15

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord"
Acts 3:19

"I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus."
Acts 20:21

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4. Be Baptised

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"Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins" ... those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day."
Acts 2:38

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Matthew 28:19-20

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3. Regeneration and New Life

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"If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"
2 Corinthians 5:17

"Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."
John 7:38

"By their fruit you will recognize them... a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."
Matthew 7: 16-20