God blessed His creations
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” – Genesis 1:27-28
God’s Warning
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” – Genesis 2: 15-17
Disobedience
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. – Genesis 3:6
The consequencES OF SIN
Separation from God
Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever—” therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. – Genesis 3:22-23
god reached out to us!
Our Savior, Jesus Christ
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” – Romans 3:23
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 6:23
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” – John 3:16
1. HE DIED IN OUR PLACE
“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” -Romans 5:8
2. HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD
“Christ died for our sins…He was buried…He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…He appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred…” – 1 Corinthians 15:3-6
3. HE IS THE ONLY WAY TO GOD
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me’” – John 14:6
Judgement
“Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.”
– Revelation 20:15
WE MUST RECEIVE CHRIST
“As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” – John 1:12
WE RECEIVE CHRIST THROUGH FAITH
“By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works that no one should boast” (Ephesians 2:8,9). When We Receive Christ, We Experience a New Birth – Read John 3:1-8
WE RECEIVE CHRIST BY PERSONAL INVITATION
[Christ speaking] “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him” – Revelation 3:20
Receiving Christ
Receiving Christ involves turning to God from self (repentance) and trusting Christ to come into our lives to forgive us of our sins and to make us what He wants us to be. Just to agree intellectually that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins is not enough. Nor is it enough to have an emotional experience. We receive Jesus Christ by faith, as an act of our will.
Pray to Receive Christ
God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart.
The following is a suggested prayer:
“LORD JESUS, I WANT TO KNOW YOU PERSONALLY. THANK YOU FOR DYING ON THE CROSS FOR MY SINS. I OPEN THE DOOR OF MY LIFE AND RECEIVE YOU AS MY SAVIOR AND LORD. THANK YOU FOR FORGIVING ME OF MY SINS AND GIVING ME ETERNAL LIFE. TAKE CONTROL OF THE THRONE OF MY LIFE. MAKE ME THE KIND OF PERSON YOU WANT ME TO BE. AMEN”