How to Become a Christian

Strange things happen when you mix Google with mindless internet browsing. Out of mere curiosity, I began typing phrases into the search bar to see what popular searches would appear in the drop down box below. 

For example...

In contrast...

But then I typed "how does one..." into the box. The top search was, "how does one become a believer in Jesus Christ," right before "how does one tree hill end" and "how does one get shingles." Now, if more people are asking about Jesus than One Tree Hill... doesn't that deserve an answer?

I clicked on the first link. To my amused disappointment, I was taken to an "about.com" page with an explanation of the gospel and six easy steps to becoming a Christian. To be fair, the woman who wrote the article used ample Biblical support and stated her doctrine clearly. But I hate it when people emphasize that becoming a Christian is easy. The last step cited on the webpage is "Tell someone about your decision," followed by Romans 10:9... "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Now, in chapel this morning, the speaker spent several minutes on this verse. He stated (and I agree) that the emphasis here is not on "confessing with your mouth," but rather on "Jesus is LORD." Confessing Jesus as Lord means that you vow to give your entire life - mind, soul, and body, to Jesus Christ. You vow that everything you do will be for Him alone. Everything. That's hard, not easy. Living the Christian life is hard.

So, if being a Christian is hard, why become one in the first place? The answer is twofold. The first reason? God created and loves human beings, and sent his Son Jesus die a horrible death in order to take the punishment we deserve. When we accept Christ, we are able to talk to the all-powerful, loving, merciful God who rules the universe. Our lives gain new meaning, and we have the opportunity to carry out His will on earth and spend eternity with Him in heaven (I talk about this reason more in my previous post, "The Story of Love... and the Throne.") 

The second reason to become a Christian is simply this: The Bible is true. According to the Biblical gospel, human beings are wretched, sinful creatures in desperate need of a rescuer to save us from the wrath of a perfect God. Jesus Christ is that rescuer, and there is no other way to life except through Him. Period. The Bible unarguably insists Jesus is the only way to reach God, and no other religion accepts Jesus as Lord. Culture today says that all religions are equal. "You can have your religion, and I will have mine," they say. "There probably is no God or afterlife, but if there is, any belief system will do the trick." Hear me when I say that this is absolutely untrue. Invalid. Incorrect. Wrong. A piece of crap. A total lie. Not all religions lead to God. You can call me intolerant, but the reason I make this claim is because I will not stand idly by and watch kind, loving human beings unknowingly walk down the path to hell. I stand by truth.

True. Have we lost the meaning of truth? I pray not. Because the truth is that living the Christian life isn't easy. The Christian life is not summed up in a thirty second prayer. Yes, a person can become a Christian with a sincere declaration that Jesus is LORD. But true belief underlies action, and therefore without action, our faith is not sincere. God requires more than thirty seconds of our time; He requires our entire existence to be dedicated to Him. So why choose Christ? Because He loves us, and He is the only chance we have to make it.

The Story of the Love... and the Throne

God spoke to me at church on Sunday. He did so intellectually through a message, and then emotionally through a song. The song is one I know well, a hymn entitled "Before the Throne of God Above." The lyrics are posted here. I encourage you to read them. Read them slowly, and as you read, create a picture in your mind of what the words describe. I have sung this song countless times over the years, but never did I pay close enough attention that I truly grasped their meaning. I pray that today, you will pay attention and learn something about Jesus Christ, our Lord who intercedes for us.

Before the throne of God above, 

I have a strong and perfect plea. 

A great high priest whose name is Love,

who ever lives and pleads for me.

My name is graven on His hands.

My name is written on His heart.

I know that while in heaven He stands,

No tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair,

and tells me of the guilt within,

upwards I look and see Him there,

who made an end of all my sin.

Because the sinless Savior died,

my sinful soul is counted free.

For God the just is satisfied

to look on Him and pardon me.

Behold Him there - the Risen Lamb

My perfect spotless righteousness

The great unchangeable I Am

The King of glory and of grace

One with Himself, I cannot die

My soul is purchased by His blood

My life is hidden with Christ on High

With Christ, my Savior and my God.

In case you skimmed or completely skipped over the lyrics to see what else I wrote (even though I told you not to), maybe this  paraphrase/elaboration will make real. Because it is real... very real.

Here you are, standing in the throne room of the perfect and holy God. It is judgment day, and you shake with fear knowing that you are guilty beyond reprimand. But into the room walks a man, who somehow appears just as radiant as the judge sitting on the throne. His name is Love. Amidst your fear you notice that on his hands, there are scars stained with blood, and with a shock, you see that the blood spells out the letters of your own name. He looks into your eyes and all your fear vanishes, because you can feel the immense power of Love all around you. He steps between you God, and you know that while Love is there, no harm will come to you.

Now you are back in your bedroom. You think about your recently cleared browser history, the carefully hidden liquor bottle in our closet, or the hateful text message you just sent to the girl who used to be your best friend. You have never felt guilt like this before... you will never be strong enough to obey God. You are a wretched and pitiful creature doomed to failure. Suddenly, you feel compelled to open your Bible and it falls open to the story of the cross, where Jesus Christ took the punishment for your sin. You realize that the man called Love whom you met in the courtroom gave his life for you, and that his death satisfied the wrath of the judge sitting on the throne. Because of Love's sacrifice, God has already pardoned you.

Love... how can you understand Love like this? You gaze upon His face, awestruck by his radiant perfection. He will never change, never run out of glory, and never withhold grace. He is the very definition of glory and of grace. As you marvel, He reaches out and places you on a throne. A throne? How is it that you, the defendant in what was sure to be an unfriendly trial, have been seated on a throne next to Love? Because when Love died, Love bought you. He bought your life with His.

Will you choose to step off the throne and go back to your computer, back to the bottle, or back to just being angry inside? Or will you choose to live in Love, sitting on a throne as His adopted son or daughter? You cannot choose to live in both places. Will you make Him your Lord?