As a beliver, you will have the opportunity to talk to others about your faith. At times you will find a person who
wants to know how he or she can become a christian. Following is a guide you can use to help a person understand what
it means to begin a relationship with Christ.
FACT: You were created by a loving God. You have great value. God loves
you and wants to have a personal relationship with you.
SET-UP: Explain to the person that the world tells us that we are accidents of
nature. We began as ooze in a pond, evolved into apes, and finally into humans. We live, we die, so we should grab for all
we can get in this life__after all, that's the only way to fulfillment. In contrast, the Bible tells us that we are not accidents.
We were created by a loving God who knew about us before we were born. We are here for a purpose, and we can find ultimate
fulfillment by finding a relationship with Him.
Read the following verses and make the following points:
God created you.
Psalm 139:13-16. You made
all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wounderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous__ how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was
woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every
moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
God knew you before you were born__even while you
were in your mother's womb. He knew all about your family and your life until now. [Be sensitive that some people have had
difficult circumstances in their lifes. Explain that God has not been absent, but has been drawing this person to himself.]
He wants to give you a brand new start and a new way of living, He can do that when you give him your life. Why would he do
that?
Because...God wants to have a personal relationship with you.
John 17:3. And this is the way to have eternal life___to know you, the
only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.
You can turn your life over to God's control because he loves you and
wants the very best for you. In fact, he loves you so much that he gave his Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for you. I'll
explain more about that in a minute. I just want you to realize that when you trust God, you are actually trusting the One
who created you. When you turn your life over to him, you are giving your life to the One who knows you inside out. Don't
you think that's a good place to put your trust?
FACT: Your sin keeps you from having a personal relationship with God.
SET-UP: Most people don't understand the concept of sin. We live in a
fairly amoral world that believes each person can decide what is right, what is true, and what is "moral"___whatever that
might mean. Television and movies don't help with their portrayals of happy people blatantly living sinful lives. You will
probably need to explain that God has set some standards about right and wrong, and that there is such a thing as "sin."
What is sin?
James 4:17. Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then
not do it.
1 John 3:4. Everyone who sins is breaking God's law, for all sin is contrary
to the law of God.
God is holy and perfect; people are sinful. You probably know that for
yourself___if you tried to be perfect for a day, you'd quickly discover that you couldn't do it. [Here, you can draw a picture
of a chasm, with a stick figure on one side and the word "God" on the other. Put the word "sin" in the chasm and explain further.]
Sin means not understanding or even caring about what is "right." You defy God when you know what is right and then refuse
to do it.
Who has sinned?
Romans 3:23. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious
standard.
Romans 5:17. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule
over many.
The Bible say's "everyone has sinned." We simply cannot help it___we're
human. When Adam sinned (way back in the Garden of Eden in the book of Genesis), sin entered the human race and sinfulness
is part of our natures. You might be asking, "So what?"
What's so bad about sin?
Romans 6:23. For the wages of sin is death.
Isaiah 59:2. It's your sins that have cut you off from God.
Sin leads to death. That's a big problem! Because God is perfect, he
cannot have anything to do with us because we are sinners. He wants to have a personal relationship with us but he can't because
of sin! So what did God do?
FACT: Only through Jesus Christ can you have a personal relationship
with God.
SET-UP: Sometimes people don't understand the concept of having a "relationship"
with a being they cannot see or touch. Yet it is a reality. That's why Jesus Christ came. He was a human being who lived on
the earth so that we could understand what God is like. At this point you may discover that the person has lots of questions
(for example, "How can God be God and also Jesus?"), the details of which can send you off the point. If that happens, explain
that you don't have all of the answers to some of those kinds of questions___in fact, some questions are simply unanswerable
because we humans cannot completely understand God and how he works. Explain that having a relationship with Christ is a spirtual
reality that must be experienced, and that doing so will answer a lot of questions. The key questions to deal with at this
point in the discussion include:
Why Jesus Christ?
John 14:6___Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No
one can come to the Father except through me."
Remember how God can't have anything to do with us because of sin? Well,
he decided to deal with our sin. Problem was, he had made it clear throughout the Old Testament that sin leads to death. In
the Old Testament, people sacrificed animals as a way to show how sorry they were for their sins. And that was only temporary.
God's plan all along was to send his Son, Jesus___a perfect human being___to be the final and ultimate sacrifice.
Why did Jesus have to die?
1 Peter 3:18. Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never
sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in
the Spirit.
Jesus died to take the penalty our sins deserved. In essence, he took
our punishment so that we wouldn't have to! Now, because of Jesus, the way is prepared for us to be able to have a personal
relationship with a holy God. [At this point, you can draw a cross in the chasm, connecting the two sides. On the cross, write
the word "Jesus." This visually shows that Jesus is the only way to God. Also add that Jesus did not stay dead. He rose from
the dead, which is a promise to us that we will also rise from the dead and go to heaven to be with him.] So what do you need
to do next?
FACT: You must personally respond by trusting Jesus Christ as Savior
and Lord.
SET-UP: The fact of salvation means nothing unless a person accepts it
for himself or herself. Emphasize that even if the person grew up in church, he or she still needs to accept Jesus personally.
Also emphasize that even if the person has led a terrible life, no one is too bad for God___a person does not have to "clean
up his act" before coming to Christ. In fact, Jesus died to take away all that sin and to help the person start anew. So emphasize
that being good is not good enough, yet no one is too bad to be able to be forgiven___God wants all people to come to him.
All people need to trust in Jesus in order to be saved. So what kind of response should a person have? Talk about the following:
You respond with belief in Christ.
Romans 10:9-10 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. For it is by believing in your heart that you
are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
You simply need to believe. That doesn't mean that you don't have any
questions or that you understand everything. It simply means recognizing that you are indeed a sinner in need of a Savior.
You recognize that you cannot be good enough for a perfect God on your own. And you understand that God loved you so much
that he sent Jesus to save you. If you believe that, say so.
You respond by receiving Christ.
John 1:12. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the
right to become children of God.
"Receiving Christ" means acknowledging your belief in Christ, inviting
him to come into your life, turning to God from your present way of living (repentance), and then beginning the adventure
of letting God direct your life! And the moment you ask, it's done. Jesus has come in!
QUESTION: Would you like to accept Jesus as your Savior?
SET-UP: If the person is ready, explain that he or she can express belief
and trust in Christ through prayer. Prayer is simply talking to God. He knows what a person means even when it is difficult
to express. Tell the person that he or she may use their own words, or they can repeat the following prayer after you:
Dear God, I know that my sin has separated me from you. Thank you that
Jesus Christ died in my place. I ask Jesus to forgive my sin and to come into my life. Please begin to direct my life. Thank
you for giving me eternal life. In Jesus' name, Amen.
That's it! You can officially welcome this person into God's family___your
new brother or sister in Christ.
Just as a baby is not born and then left to fend for himself, so a newborn
believer in God's family needs some guidance. As the one who introduced him or her to Christ, you should attempt to help this
new believer grow.
