The Most Important Question - Foursquare Missions Press · 2016-07-19 · The Most Important...

The Most Important Question

At the end of the day when you put

your head on the pillow and you’re

alone with your thoughts, does your

life have meaning? Or is something

missing—something deep down in

your inner being, in a place that no

one else can enter?

In the pages of this small book, you

might find the answers to life’s most

important questions.

Copyright © 1999, 2003, 2005, 2008 Mary Ann Lind

Published by Missions PressAnaheim, California

Fourth Edition 2008

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D o e s Y o u r L i f e h a v e M e a n i n g ?

What’s Life AboutAnyway?

Let’s face it, life is fragile.. A semi truck inIndiana crosses the median and slams into auniversity van, killing five of the occupantsincluding four gifted and talented students. Ahuge tornado roars through a pleasant, historictown in Kansas and by the time the sun comesup, the town has all but disappeared. A hurricaneof epic proportions completely reconfigures theunique city of New Orleans. In a surreal momentthat affects all of us, two planes crash into thegleaming twin towers of New York City’srenowned World Trade Center.

No doubt you remember exactly where youwere when you first heard the news of theterrorist attacks on America. That event was tous what the bombing of Pearl Harbor was to theWorld War II generation—a moment foreverseared in our memories.

But today, because of the power of televisionas a medium to bring instant news into our living

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W H A T ’ S L I F E A B O U T A N Y W A T ?

rooms, and then play it and replay it, we aredrawn into the emotions of an event in waysnever before possible. Suddenly we are jolted outof our comfortable complacency and forced tocome to terms with certain questions we wouldsometimes rather not ask. Are we safe anyplace?Where is our security? What is life all about?What’s it all for?

We get up each day, shower, have a quick cupof coffee, head for the subways or the freeways,off for another day’s work. We push our waythrough masses of people, past silent, vacantfaces which we will never see again, movingthrough the stations, spilling out into the streetor driving down congested streets. Or wemindlessly retrace the familiar route to our placeof work day after day. What’s it all for? What’s lifeabout anyway?

You might have a nice place to live, maybe agirlfriend or boyfriend, fast car, the latest CD’s,spend the weekend watching your favorite team,have a few drinks, a good time. You may bemarried, have a family and a home, but feel a bitoverwhelmed by all of the responsibilities anddemands that have to be met. Monday, it’s backto the same old routine. The cycle of theworkweek followed by weekend entertainment,responsibilities, and routine repeats itself—monthafter month, year after year. We have little freetime. Experts say that we are exhaustingourselves. Does all of this provide the ultimatemeaning to one’s life?

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D OES Y OUR L IFE H AVE M EANING ?

What Gives TheMeaning To Your Life?

Increasingly in our global culture, theemphasis is to look good, feel good, buy things,and pursue the good life. Subtle yet powerfulglobal advertising and marketing techniqueshave convinced all of us of the need forsomething more. The reality is that as we age,we lose our good looks and then feelinadequate. Or we might get sick or lose a jobor for some reason are unable to buy the houseor the car or whatever else our culture demandsof us.

Then there is the frequency with whichrelationships change as a girlfriend or boyfrienddeparts or a marriage falls apart. Inevitably, welose loved ones to death which creates a lonelyplace that seemingly can never be filled. Thefear of old age haunts many, not to mention thefear of one’s own death.

To somehow provide meaning for our lives,we might turn to involvement in civic activities,

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politics, or some good cause such asenvironmentalism. While the causes are worthy,the expenditure of our time and energies maynot bring the fulfillment and satisfaction nor theappreciation and affirmation which we sodesperately seek. Many who have plungeddeeply into a worthy cause eventually findthemselves disillusioned and even embittered.

Often, we immerse ourselves in our jobs andoccupations in an attempt to keep ourselvesbusy and occupied so that we do not have tothink about life’s deeper issues. ManyAmericans have become workaholics. Whensomeone asks “How are you?” we often cite howbusy we are as if to be busy somehow validatesour existence and therefore shows that we arevaluable. What’s more, we often work as if we“are what we do.” Our identity becomes linkedwith our place of work. But in the back of ourminds we are haunted by an awareness that wecould lose our jobs, become disabled, or willsomeday retire. If we “are what we do,” whathappens when we can no longer “do” what wehave always done? Is our identity lost? Does ourlife lose its meaning?

Increasingly, many have taken thephilosophy of the French existentialist Jean-PaulSartre who said, “Life is hard; then you die.” Hesuggested that what matters is to seek one’spleasure for the present moment in time andnot think about the past or the future. But inreality, even Sartre had doubts about his own

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beliefs and acknowledged at the end of his lifethat he had made the wrong choices.

It may seem at times that life is just somekind of cosmic joke. We come into the world,grow up, get a job, have a few friends, makesome money, maybe raise a few children, leavea small mark in some little niche of the world.Then we pass away and that’s it. Finished.

OR, could it be that life was meant to have agreat deal of meaning—that you, the veryperson reading this, might have a uniquepurpose for existence and might possibly findthat life can be very fulfilling—even joyful andsatisfying? And can it also be that when youinevitably die, there is something even greaterand more wonderful awaiting you? This is one oflife’s deepest questions.

Could it be that a search for somethingdeeper to the meaning of life was the reason somany places of worship were packed in theweeks and months following the terroristattacks? Sobering events often cause us to stopin our tracks, look more deeply into ourselves,and to ponder the direction of our own lives.September 11 reinforced the truth that wesimply do not know what a day might bring oreven when our last day on earth might be.

At the end of the day when you put yourhead on the pillow and you’re alone with yourthoughts, does your life have meaning? Or isthere something missing—something deep downin your inner being, in a place that no one else

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can enter? It may be that there is an emptyplace that can’t seem to get filled with anyoneor anything, no matter how hard you try.

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Is There A God?

Maybe the place to start in the search formeaning to life is at the beginning. There is abook called the Bible that begins with four verypowerful words, “In the beginning, God…”

Surveys indicate that over ninety percent ofall Americans believe that there is a God.Following the September 11th terrorist attacks,the song “God Bless America” became anational rallying point, sung on the steps of theCapitol building by legislators as well as byspectators at sporting events. When a recentFederal District Court declared the words “onenation, under God,” recited in the Pledge ofAllegiance to be unconstitutional, Americans ofevery walk of life were outraged. Our currencystates “In God we trust.” But do we? Can wetrust God? Is God personal and interested inour lives? Sometimes it’s very hard to believethat there is a God and that such a God trulycares about each of us when we live in a worldin which children are abused, murder andmayhem take place, and a Holocaust cost

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D O E S Y O U R L I F E H A V E M E A N I N G ?

12,000,000 lives. When terrorists canunexpectedly strike civilian targets killingthousands of innocent people, we are temptedto ask “Where was God?”

We want to believe that there is a God, butsometimes our questions remain suspendedwithout answers. We look at an orderly universethat seems to have intelligent design andwonder if all of this order simply evolved out ofchaos. In the beginning were there just floatingparticles? Most thoughtful people would agreethat something cannot come from nothing.

Even an atom or a single cell cannot comefrom nothing. Centuries ago, the Greekphilosopher Aristotle pondered the origins ofthe universe and concluded that there had tohave been a “First Cause.” In fact, Aristotle usedthe term “Unmoved Mover” to refer to the Onefrom whom all things have their essence.Medieval philosophers such as St. Augustineand Thomas Aquinas took this a step furtherand suggested that every human being hassensus divinitasis, a sense of the divine or a“knowing” that there is a divine being that ishigher than each of us. Deep within ourhumanness lies a desire to know God, a desirethat was put there by God Himself.

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What Is God Like?

Nevertheless, there might still be those who,in reading this booklet, will ask, “So what if Goddoes exist? Why in our post-modern world dowe even need a God?” Let’s consider thealternative. One could, of course, be an atheist.We do not have to look far back into theTwentieth Century to observe the offspring ofatheism. From Nietzche who stated that “God isdead!” the path ultimately led to the godlessgenocide of Dachau and Auschwitz. From Marx,who perceived man in purely material terms,the path led to the Siberian prison camps ofStalinism. From Freud’s focus on the importanceof man’s subconscious urges, we find excuse forsexual promiscuity and all of its accompanyingproblems.

It could be summarized that if there is noGod, then there are no absolutes and noboundaries can be set. The Russian novelistDostoevsky suggested that if there is no God,then anything is permissible. When we reject thetruths about God, we shift the center of our

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W H A T ’ S I S G O D L I K E ?

universe to ourselves which is a very smallcenter indeed. All things within a culturebecome relative as each person becomes a godunto himself. Instead of being created in theimage of God, we in essence create a god in ourown image, a god who suits our purposes, withwhom we are comfortable, and to whom weneed not be accountable.

But if the medieval philosophers were right,if there is an innate desire in every human beingto know God, then we are led back to the Godquestion: what is God like? In fact, just aboutevery question in life, including whether or notour lives have meaning, inevitably leads us backto God. It is normal to doubt because doubtslead to questions and questions lead toanswers. Ultimately, each person must decidefor himself or herself the answer to the Godquestion. But the answer to that most vital of allof life’s questions will determine a host of othercrucial life issues.

To be even more personal, what kind of Goddo we believe in? Are we talking about a non-threatening deity of our own making, one whoneatly fits within our comfort zone? Is thereperhaps a Christian God, a Muslim God, a NewAge God? How do we even begin to fathom ordescribe God?

It has been said that God is the One aboutwhom all words and all thoughts fail. If we couldexplain God or put Him in a box, He would nolonger be God. We cannot use a human

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W H A T I S G O D L I K E ?

measuring stick to describe God. Even thoughwe often use the pronoun “He,” the Bible (moreabout the Bible later) tells us that God is aSpirit. God has no beginning nor end but He isthe Creator of the universe and has given thegift of life to all living things. The creation of theuniverse and all living things within the universewas not something that God had to do, butrather something God wanted to do.

With God, there is neither time nor spacebecause He transcends both. Furthermore, Godwill never change. He is the same God that hasalways existed and always will; we can count onthat fact. Another way to put it is to say thatGod is infinite, yet personal. This Master of theuniverse knows us and loves us as individualscreated in His image. God is all-knowing andsovereign. He knows everything there is to knowabout everything in the universe, including eachof us. The Bible tells us that God knows when abird falls out of the sky and that He even knowsour thoughts from far off. He knows what we aregoing to say before the words come out of ourmouth. Because God knows us even better thanwe know ourselves, He understands ourquestions and our doubts. After all, He createdus as thinking, reasoning, inquisitive beings.

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God And You

But the most important characteristic aboutGod for you, the person reading this, is that Heloves you with an everlasting love that will never,ever change. To be loved by God is the greateststamp of approval any human being couldpossibly have. People will come and go. Mostcertainly, life will have its ups and downs, butGod will remain the same. God is not a humanbeing which means that He will never die, nevergrow old, never get sick, never abandon you. Hislove for you is absolutely unconditional. No loveof any human being, however genuine it mightbe, can equal God’s love for you. God sees usthrough eyes of love no matter how we mightsee ourselves. He loves us even when we are atour worst and may find it hard to love ourselves.God is love. Were this not true, there would beno love in our world because love originatedfrom the heart of a loving Creator. He cannothelp but love because He is love. Even if wereject God, ignore God, or blatantly declare thatthere is no God, He still loves us.

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D O E S T H E B I B L E H A V E T H E A N S W E R S ?

Yet the perplexing question still remains, ifHe exists, what kind of God would allow awfulthings to happen in the world? Is this a lovingGod? As one young man at a London bus stopanguished, “How can I believe in a God who letmy baby die?” Or as a young woman at a hoteldesk in Paris sighed, “I tried God and He let medown.” The tragic events of September 11, 2001have caused many to question the nature ofGod. Nearly 3,000 innocent people from manydifferent countries perished at the hands ofterrorists. What kind of God would let such athing happen?

These responses would somehow suggestthat God is powerless—this same God thatcreated our incredible universe. Could not Godhave done something, anything, to have keptthe terrorist attacks from happening? If Godknows everything about everything, why doesn’tHe step into the events of history before theyare about to happen and keep them from takingplace? If God is so good, why is there so muchpain and suffering in the world? Why is there somuch evil? Did God create and then, like a giantWatchmaker, He now sits back and lets theuniverse run on its own? Where do we find theanswers to such questions?

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G O D A N D Y O U

Does The Bible HaveThe Answers?

A majority of Americans say that they haveat least one Bible in their homes. When a newpresident is sworn into office, he places hishand on a Bible as he takes the oath of office.The Bible has long been used to hold peopleaccountable for telling the truth. Bibles aregiven as gifts, placed next to hospital bedsides,and found in hotel rooms around the world. Buthow many people are really familiar with theBible? What makes it any different than theKoran of Islam or the ancient mythologies of theGreeks? Is the Bible the place to go to learnabout God?

First of all, the Bible is not man’s efforts tofind God, but it is an account of God’s effort toreveal Himself to mankind. Therefore, it is arevelation. Over a period of 1,500 years, theBible was written by forty authors of varyingbackgrounds. Despite this variety of authors

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and long span of writing, there is a centraltheme: God’s redemption of mankind. No otherbook can boast of such a fact. Most of theauthors did not know each other and yetadhered to that central powerful theme becauseas they wrote they were led and inspired byGod’s Holy Spirit. This means that the ultimateauthor of the Bible is God. One cannot come tothe Bible like any other book: take what onewants to believe and leave the rest. The Bibledoes not “contain” the word of God, it is theword of God. If we said that parts of the Bibleare true but parts are not, we would have to askwhy God would use error to teach us truth. Howcould anyone put their faith in a book if onlyparts of it are true? Either it is all true or noneof it is true at all.

Furthermore, the Bible continues to beauthenticated by archaeological discoverieswhich validate places, events, and persons ofthe Bible. The most famous of these validationswas the 1947 discovery of the Dead Sea Scrollswhich contained precious portions of the OldTestament. The universality of the Bible inanswering the deepest of life’s questions, inoffering comfort and hope, and in radicallytransforming human lives attests to theuniqueness of the Bible as God’s Holy Word. Noother book has so stood the test of time; noother book has been translated into as manylanguages; no other book has sold as many

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copies in all of history; no other book has hadsuch an impact on mankind.

The Bible is definitely the book to read ifone wants to know the truth about God. It tellsus that first and most importantly, God is love.God is good. He simply cannot be otherwise. Hisvery essence is love and goodness, two qualitiesin our universe that originated in God Himself.Without God, this would be a loveless world withno goodness whatsoever. He is so all-powerfuland so all-loving that He created man as a freemoral agent. This is an extremely importantconcept to accept in order to understand thenature of our world. We are not puppets whoare compelled to dance on a divinely controlledstring unable to make our own moral decisions.Rather, we are free to make whatever moralchoices we desire, whether good or evil. Suchfreedom allows for the expressions of love,compassion, kindness, goodness, and generositythat exist in our world. Such moral freedomproduced a Mother Teresa. But, unfortunately,that same moral freedom allows choices such asthose which also produced an Adolf Hitler.

Then where did evil come from? Not from acreature with horns and a tail but in the infinitedistance of time past from a beautiful angelicbeing in heaven named Lucifer who rebelledagainst God and was thus expelled from heaven.He became Satan, the source of all evil. Wemust not look upon evil as an entity that existsby itself. Evil is best defined as the absence of

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good, not the opposite of good. Evil and goodcould be compared to rust and iron; if leftunchecked, rust corrodes iron just as surely asevil pushes back good when allowed to have itsway. However, the great news is that the processcan be reversed: good can overcome evil.

Satan’s powerful influence can be seenaround the world. The willful choice to give in tothe temptations of Satan is called “sin” and sinis at the basis not only of man’s inhumanity toman, but of a great many of the ills of society aswell as our own personal problems. Murder,anger, jealousy, and hatred are among the sinsmentioned in the Bible. The greatest sin of all,however, is the prideful attitude ofindependence from God, the internal voice thatsays, “Even if there is a God, I don’t need Him. Ican live without God.”

Yes, there is a great deal of pain in theworld and it has many sources. Sometimes itcomes from the realities of nature such ashurricanes and earthquakes and even thefrailties of the human body. Pain comes fromour own faulty decisions such as drug or alcoholabuse in which we end up hurting ourselves andmust then bear the consequences. And,unfortunately, pain also comes from the actionsof others against us such as drunk drivers,abusive parents, child molesters, thieves, andmurderers. Consequently, we see the innocentsuffer and sometimes we turn in frustration andshake an angry fist at God.

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But the truth is, God is anything but apassive observer. He is infinitely compassionatetoward us and intensely longs to be ourComforter in the midst of our grief, our Hope inthe midst of our hopelessness, and our Rock inthe midst of life’s uncertainties. As a nation wewere right to have turned to God after theSeptember 11 terrorist attacks. The NationalDay of Prayer and Remembrance atWashington’s National Cathedral sought to turnour nationally wounded heart to God forcomfort. God holds out His invitation to each ofus as individuals to turn to Him when we arediscouraged, when we have more questions thananswers, when life seems to have no meaning.When the storms of life assail us, He is there tospeak “Peace, be still.”

No, God is not against us; God is very muchfor us. God is not some Cosmic Killjoy who wantsus to live miserable lives of deprivation. In fact,God’s whole desire and intention in creating usis that we might have meaningful lives thatbring joy and satisfaction to us and to thosearound us.

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What Is Missing?

Why take so much time to establish the casefor the existence of a personal and loving God?Because life without a relationship with God hasno meaning. This is one of the most importanttruths a human being can comprehend. One ofthe ironies as we enter the 21st Century is thatwe have never had such good lives. We’ve neverbeen richer, never had more things, never beenmore educated, never been healthier, and neverlived longer. Yet, so many people are stillsearching for answers to life.

The rich and famous still search. We readthat Princess Diana struggled with an eatingdisorder. Marilyn Monroe was desperatelylonely. Elvis Presley was addicted to drugs.Recently, one of Europe’s leading high fashionmodels, a beautiful young woman who was atthe peak of her career, suddenly decided toquit. She complained that when all was said anddone, she felt exploited and was treated asnothing more than a product.

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A recent survey taken throughout Europeand the U.S. revealed that the most prizedvalue is individualism. It was defined aspersonal freedom, self-realization, and personalhappiness. In essence, we don’t want anyone totell us what we can or cannot do—not thegovernment, not the church, not anyone. Howstrange that the more freedom we have, the lessmeaning we seem to find in our lives.

And so we try our best to fill our lives withthings and people and experiences. “Leave mealone and give me my things” could very well bethe slogan of the Western world as we embarkon this millennium. We are manipulated byadvertisers whose goal is to convince us that weneed yet one more thing. We buy and buy onlyto discover that we still are not satisfied. In fact,we could spend a small fortune in an attempt tostay trendy and fashionable. Through a barrageof seductive advertising we become objects ofmarket manipulation.

The pursuit of physical fitness has become,for some, a form of religion. Our body is ourgod. One ad for vitamins said, “If your body is atemple, worship here.” Still another ad forhealth products taunted, “If life’s a rat race, atleast be one of the healthiest rats!” Surely, weare more than “human rats” and life is morethan a rat race.

The worldwide outpouring of grief over thetragic death of Princess Diana and thecontinued interest in Elvis Presley, Marilyn

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Monroe, and John Lennon, reveal a trendamong many persons: celebrity worship. Can itbe that many people’s lives have become soempty and devoid of personal significance thatthey somehow try to gain meaning by projectingtheir own lives onto that of a celebrity? How sadwhen we discover that the celebrity also has avery troubled life.

The popularity of the television show called“American Idol” stands as a reflection of thevalues promoted by pop culture. We now createand vote on “idols.” Why? The definition of anidol is something that is worshipped and treatedas a deity. The Bible warns us against idolatryas anything that is worshipped other than GodHimself. The Ten Commandments instructs us tohave no other gods before God.

The truth is that the greatest need we haveis the one that we are often the most reluctantto admit. There is something missing in ourlives. There is a “cosmic loneliness” that was putthere by God and can only be filled when wehave a close relationship with Him, our Creator.

Nevertheless, we want to live our lives as wewish. We want to be at the controls and putGod on a shelf. And then, when we come to theend of our lives, we hope that somehow if thereis a God and if there is a place called heaven,God will take us into heaven and we will livehappily ever after. But no pastor or priest canpreach us into heaven at our funeral. Thedecision about where we will spend eternity is a

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decision that is made by each of us, individually,while we are here, now. If we insist that we mustmaintain control of our lives now, we exchangethe destiny of our eternal tomorrow for thefleeting moments of today.

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Who Has The Answer?

If the key to living a meaningful life is foundin a relationship with God, how is such a lifepossible? On our own, it is not possible. But thegood news is that God Himself has provided aplan. Incredibly, it is God who has hadcompassion upon us and made a way that wecan have a relationship with Him and livemeaningful, happy lives. It is God who hasreached out to us with a timeless invitation torespond to Him. The account of God’s effort toreveal Himself to mankind is found in the Bible.The Bible tells us that “God so loved the worldthat He gave His one and only Son, thatwhoever believes in Him will not perish but haveeternal life.” (John 3:16) That is the best newsthe world has ever received. No greater love hasever been expressed.

The central message of the Bible is that Godloves us and wants a relationship with us. Toaccomplish that, He sent His son Jesus Christ tothis earth to live as a human being, to becrucified in order to provide a sacrifice for the

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sins of all mankind, and to rise from the dead sothat death no longer becomes the final answerto life. That is why a true Christian celebratesChristmas when Jesus was born, Good Fridaywhen Jesus died, and Easter when Jesus rosefrom the dead. These are the three mostimportant events of Christian history and formthe centerpiece around which the world’s largestreligion is built.

But wasn’t Jesus Christ just a good moralteacher? Why must we accept Jesus as divine,as the Son of God? The answer is that nohuman being has ever made the claims thatJesus made—not Confucius, not Buddha, notMuhammed, not anybody. As the great Oxfordwriter C.S. Lewis said, “Either this man was, andis, the Son of God: or else a madman orsomething worse.” (Mere Christianity) Jesusdidn’t give us the option to just accept Him as agreat moral teacher. We must either accept Himas the Son of God and as our Savior or rejectHim altogether. There simply is no middleposition.

But what about Christianity? Perhaps it’sjust a religion of hypocrites who conducted theCrusades or carried out the Inquisition. Orperhaps today it’s just a big powerful institutionwith a lot of cathedrals and stained glass. No.True biblical Christianity is neither cultural nor acollection of buildings. True Christianity, basedupon the teachings of the Bible, is a living andpersonal relationship with Jesus Christ who

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came to restore our relationship with God. Ifyou want to know what God is like, read the lifeof Jesus Christ because God’s character isrevealed in Jesus. In fact, Jesus Christ was themost radical person who ever lived because Histeachings and His life turned the world upsidedown.

From the beginning, the teachings of Christchallenged people’s thinking. With compassionHe reached out to the downtrodden andunderprivileged. He gave hope to the hopelessand peace to those in turmoil and fear. Hepierced the arrogance of religious figures of theday and displayed the love of God toward allmankind. Through Christ we see the power of aloving God to heal the sick, give sight to theblind, and cause the lame to walk. His teachingsand His power remain the same today.

Many people insist that all religions arereally about the same. After all, aren’t we allheaded in the same direction? Again, theanswer is “no.” All religions are exclusive andtherefore they cannot all be true. Judaism, whileproviding roots for Christianity, has rejectedJesus as the Messiah. Confucianism, a Chinesephilosophy, is based on the belief that man is bynature good and can get even better throughcorrect behavior. Hinduism suggests that thereare over 330,000,000 gods and goddesses andyou can choose which one you want to worship.Buddhism suggests that each person is on hisown to work out his own pathway into a state of

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eternal bliss. Islam has rejected the deity ofJesus as the Son of God and says that He wasmerely a prophet in line with Muhammed.Because the September 11, 2001 attacks wereperpetrated by Islamic Fundamentalists, whatfollowed after the tragedy was a trend towardreligious syncretism. In an appropriate attemptto be tolerant, many have gone a step further tosuggest that all religions are equal. But that issimply not the case.

What is unique about Christianity is that itprovides the solution for the dilemma that facesevery human being: what to do about sin inorder to be restored to a relationship with theGod who created each of us. No other worldreligion provides such an answer. OnlyChristianity offers a loving God who reaches outto redeem humanity. A crucial fact about God isthat He is holy beyond human comprehensionand between a holy God and sinful mankind,there exists a gap with no bridge across it. ButGod sent Jesus Christ, His very Son in heaven,to die for our sins and thus provide the bridgeacross that gap so that we can now make ourway to God. Because Jesus Christ was sinless,He did what we could never do.

The French mathematician and philosopherBlaise Pascal said that every human being haswithin him a “God-shaped vacuum.” Our heartswere created for relationship with God but sin,in a hundred different ways, has alienated usfrom a holy God. When Jesus died on the cross,

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His blood paid for our sins. This was God’s idea,not the Roman soldiers who crucified Jesus.Jesus’ death was not an execution, it was asacrifice. It was not forced upon Jesus, Hewillingly chose it.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our ownpersonal Savior, God promises to forgive us ofour sins and to cleanse our hearts from all guiltand shame. To God, it does not matter whereyou have been, what you have done, or who youare. You may feel that you are not worthy ofcoming to God. None of us is, but Jesus makesus worthy. You may feel that you have made somany mistakes and that you have messed upyour life so much, that you wish you could juststart over. The good news is that you can. Godoffers that opportunity to start anew. His tendermercy and compassion will never come to anend.

Millions of persons all over the world havediscovered the true freedom and life-changingresult that comes when we invite Jesus into ourlives. Look around. People who have acceptedJesus Christ as their Savior have had marriagesrestored, have been delivered of drugs andalcohol, have lost their anger and bitterness.They have found an ability to forgive others thatthey did not have before. Those who seeminglyhad no hope have found a reason to go onliving. Those who have lost loved ones havefound comfort in knowing that through Jesusthere is the promise of eternal life. He said, “I

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am the resurrection and the life, He thatbelieves in me will live, even though he dies; andwhoever lives and believes in me will never die.”(John 11:25) People filled with sadness andemotional pain have found a joy that cannot beexplained. In times of fear and anxiety, theyhave found peace and assurance. Jesus said,“My peace I give to you…” (John 14:27)

When we acknowledge Jesus as our Savior,God begins to change our hearts. Our attitudeschange. The way in which we relate to otherschanges. Most of all, the way in which we seeourselves changes. God gives us His peace andHis joy. We begin to see that we each arevaluable and that we are loved by the God whocreated us. Jesus referred to such living as “theabundant life.”

You might be wondering, how is thispossible? How do I accept Jesus Christ as mypersonal Savior and change my life? It beginswith a simple prayer to God. A suggestion for abeginning prayer would be:

“Dear God, I admit that I am a sinner andthat I need Your forgiveness. I am truly sorryfor my sins. I need Jesus Christ as my Saviorand I want to accept Him into my life. Pleaseforgive me of my sins and change my life. I

want to follow You and please You the rest ofmy life. I ask You to come and control my lifeand to be my Friend. Thank you for hearing

my prayer. Amen.”

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God has promised in the Bible that when wepray such a prayer and mean it with our hearts,He will forgive us of our sins and cleanse ourhearts from the sin that has separated us fromGod. It is as if we clear the slate of our spirituallives and start anew and afresh. This is whyJesus Christ died for us. He not only forgives us,but removes our guilt and sets us on a newpath. He puts His Holy Spirit within us to be ourGuide, our Counsel, and the Spirit of Truth inour lives. The Holy Spirit becomes the presenceof God in us. In essence, we become newpersons as God changes us.

Does this mean that life will suddenlybecome easier? Not necessarily. Life still hasmany challenges but the difference is that Godis there to help us and guide us through eachday. Life’s storms may swirl around us but wecan now have a deep, inner peace with God. Webecome more aware of God’s presence in ourlives on a daily basis and discover the ways inwhich He cares for us. We become moreconscious of a gradual transformation thattakes place in our desires, our relationships,and our values. As we allow God to transformour spiritual lives, other areas of our lives beginto change as well. If you have prayed such aprayer as the one above, you will no doubt wantto read the Bible and find out more about Jesusand the new life which He has promised. A goodplace to begin your reading is in the Book ofMark which will acquaint you with the life of

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Jesus Christ. The Bible can become a source ofgreat strength, guidance, comfort, andinspiration. It is truly a book that can becomethe foundation upon which to build your life.

In order to continue your relationship withGod, you can pray at any time, in any place, inany way. God is always listening. No flowerywords are needed. Just as a little child learns totalk by uttering a few words, we learn to pray bystarting simply. Feel free to share with God yourthoughts and feelings. This is what prayer reallyis and it can become a very meaningful part ofyour life. God is as close to you as your nextprayer.

If you sincerely prayed the prayer above andaccepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, this meansthat you have become a Christian. Does thatmean that you have to go to church? The Churchis not just a collection of buildings; it is a familyof God’s people. Just as you want to spend timewith your own family, so you will no doubt wantto get to know other members of God’s family aswell. Christianity is not only a relationship withJesus Christ, it is also fellowship with otherbelievers with whom you can share your life.Other Christians will help you to pray, read theBible, and grow in your relationship with God.There is a joy in the sharing of your faith withothers who have a similar faith. There are manywonderful churches all over the world whereGod has His people who, like you, are seeking toknow Him better.

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Some Final Thoughts

This small booklet began with the question,“Does your life have meaning?” You may be avery successful person with a wonderful family,many friends, and a great career. You may beable to say, “Life is good!” But ultimately eachof us walks into eternity one at a time. Death isan absolute certainty for every human being nomatter who we are or how long we may live. TheBible teaches us that there is life after deathand that there is definitely a place calledheaven and a place called hell. The decision toaccept or reject Jesus Christ as our personalSavior which we make here in this life, willdetermine where we will spend eternity. An oldQuaker saying challenges us to live our liveswith three things in mind: “The brevity of life,the certainty of death, and the length ofeternity.” Jesus asked, “What shall it profit aman if he gains the whole world but loses hisown soul?” (Mark 8:36)

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This life and this world in which we are livingwill not last forever. We were graphicallyreminded on September 11, 2001 just howfragile life is. But we can have life eternalthrough Jesus Christ as a result of what He didon the cross. When we stand before God, theonly thing that will matter is whether or not weaccepted Jesus as our Savior. Jesus said, “Noone comes to the Father except through me.”(John 14:6)

Do not settle for anything less in your lifethan what God has for you. He wants to give youan abundant, meaningful life here and lifeeternal after you die. An old hymn has lyricswhich say, “In times like these, we need ananchor; in times like these, we need a Savior; bevery sure, be very sure, your anchor holds andgrips the Solid Rock.” We are living in uncertaintimes and we need hope. Jesus Christ is thathope. He is the anchor in the midst of life’sstorms. Again and again the Bible proclaims,“Fear not.” We do not know what the futureholds, but we can know Who holds ourindividual future.

May you find hope, comfort, and peace thatcomes from knowing Christ as Savior.

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A Note From theAuthor

It has often been said that the most constantthing in our lives is change. Even as this booklet isabout to go to press, beautiful Southern California isbeing ravaged by fires. Again, our nation is gripped byshock and sadness. Television screens are filled withtragic scenes that cannot begin to capture theimmensity of the loss of almost 2,000 homes and thedisplacement of an estimated one million people. Asin the Hurricane Katrina tragedy, we see the best ofhuman nature in the countless acts of human kindnessand the worst of human nature in the looting andshocking realization that some of the hugelydestructive fires are the result of arson. The images ofdestruction are vivid reminders of how easily ourmaterial possessions can be lost. Our economicprospects and all that we have worked for cansuddenly appear very vulnerable and uncertain.

In the end, what matters is life itself and themeaning which life has. We live in a fallen worldtainted by sin in which even nature groans forredemption. But the eternal God of the universe isloving and compassionate; He longs to give us comfortand hope. That hope is in Jesus Christ who is ananchor in the midst of the storm. Again and again, the

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Bible says, “Fear not.” We do not know what thefuture holds but we can know with certainty who holdsthe future.

May you find the hope, comfort, and peace thatcomes from knowing Christ as your Savior.

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About the Author

Dr. Mary Ann Lind makes her home inColorado and continues to serve as an adjunctprofessor at Biola Unversity in suburban LosAngeles, California. She holds a Ph.D. from theUniversity of Colorado and is the author of fourbooks including “From Nirvana to the New Age.”A former missionary, she maintains a writingand speaking ministry in churches, retreats andseminars. Dr. Lind can be contacted at:

Dr. Mary Ann LindLifeline Ministries, Inc.732 Aurora StreetFort Morgan, Colorado 80701USATel: 970.867.8930

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About Missions Press

Missions Press was founded in 1981 withthe purpose of providing free Gospel literatureto the world. To date, this ministry hasdistributed over 160,000,000 pieces ofliterature to 110 countries in 50 languages. InAugust of 2002, the Press established atraining and resourcing ministry to children'sworkers around the world. The Children's GospelBox ministry assists thousands of children'sworkers and children annually. Missions Press isa non-profit organization supported by the giftsof its friends. For more information, visit ourwebsite at:

www.foursquaremissionspress.org

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The Most Important Question - Foursquare Missions Press · 2016-07-19 · The Most Important...

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