How can you be sure that you have accepted Christ?
A true Christian is someone who believes in God and has asked Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to be their Lord and Savior. God sent His Son Jesus Christ into the world to die for our sins. All of us have done, said or thought things that are wrong. These are called sins and we deserve to be punished for them. The good news is God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins.
 

"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
 

When you sincerely ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior and to forgive your sins, you are accepting Christ as your Savior. The Bible says “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” So when you accept Christ as your Savior, you become a child of God. Your sins are forgiven and God says you have the gift of eternal life in heaven. You can thank God every day for His wonderful gift of new life in Jesus Christ.
 

"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God." John 1:12-13
 

You are not a Christian because you are perfect, because in this life we, unfortunately, will not be perfect. You are not a Christian because you go to church, although you should definitely go to church if you can. But you are a Christian because you have sincerely asked Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior and have asked forgiveness for your sins. God loves you and wants you to be His child now and forever.
 

"This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." John 17:3

So what about you? Why did you choose to follow Jesus?

 

2 Corinthians 13:5
"Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith."
 

You need to test yourself to ensure that you really understand what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
 

John 3:16-17
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."
 

What does this "perish" mean here? And what do you think we are saved FROM?
 

Sin:

Sin is anything that is against who God is. 
For example, God is the truth and he always tells the truth, he never lies (Read Numbers 23:19) so any lying is a sin.
 

Scriptures on sin: Galatians 5:19-21, Colossians 3:5-6, Matthew 25:31-46.
 

We have all sinned but God showed his love for us even while we were sinners.
 

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

Romans 5:8
"But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners."
 

Repentance:

We need to repent of our sin.
 

What does it mean to "repent"?
 

Acts 2:38
"And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
 

Matthew 4:17 
"From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
 

See also: 2 Peter 3:8-9 and Luke 5:32.
 

Repentance is not JUST saying sorry to God, but choosing to walk away from and reject anything that goes against God.
 

Public Confession:
 

Romans 10:9-13
"If you openly declare 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 openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
 

 Have you told many people about your choice to follow Jesus?
 

"Born Again":
 

 Have you heard the term "Born Again"? What do you think it means?
 

John 3:1-7
"There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.” Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’

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