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EPILOGUE |
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If,
after reading the previous ten chapters and studying the indicated
references, you view my logic as flawed then I would appreciate an
opportunity to examine your logic.
I am not interested in protecting unsound thinking even it's my
own; I am interested only in the truth.
Conversely, if you accept my logic, please continue reading;
particularly if the first five chapters have shaken your trust in the
materialistic/humanistic answers to important questions and the last
five chapters have shaken your rejection of Christianity.
In the next few paragraphs I'm going to delineate some important
truths growing out of the beliefs that Jesus is God and the Bible was
inspired by God. These
paragraphs are directed at your heart since I am assuming your head has
already been reached. The
one true God, existing as three eternal, distinct and unchangeable
persons, created the universe as a home for man and then created a man
and a woman to live on planet earth.
God loved the man and woman and wanted them to return that love.
They chose to reject God and desired to become gods themselves. Their disobedience ushered them and all their descendants
onto the path of sin. Humanity
has paid a great price for their decision: aging, disease, suffering,
hatred, despair, loneliness, war, jealousy, murder, grief, death and,
worst of all, separation from our creator.
You see, God is holy and cannot fellowship with sinful creatures
like you and I. God
knew, before the creation of the universe, that all this was going to
happen. On one hand, God
knew sin would prevent Him from fellowship with man; on the other hand,
God knew He would love each individual unconditionally and would not
want eternal separation to be the inevitable consequence of sin.
But sin could not simply be overlooked; a price had to be paid
for every crime. Unfortunately,
if you and I paid the price for our own crimes, our souls would spend
eternity in Hell. Before
the universe began, God chose an incredible, astounding and magnificent
solution to this dilemma. Two
of the three persons who are God have a Father/Son relationship.
The Father sent the Son to earth to be incarnated as a man.
If this man could live a sinless life culminating in humiliation,
torture and execution for crimes He didn't commit, that punishment would
pay the price for every sin throughout the history of the human race.
This “substitutionary atonement” is exactly what transpired
about 1970 years ago. Jesus
paid the price for the sins of every man and woman who ever lived.
But there's a catch. No
one has been or will be simply handed the gift of salvation
automatically. The
gift of salvation cannot be received until your heart is right with God.
“Getting your heart right with God” cannot be accomplished by
joining a particular Church, faithfully participating in Church
activities, tithing, dedicating your life to Christian service, becoming
a pastor, living what you and your friends consider to be a holy life,
making life-risking sacrifices for Jesus or exercising some spiritual
gift. To get your heart
right, you must make something like the following statements to God and
mean them to the depths of your soul: Father,
I come into Your presence confessing I am a sinner, having remorse in my
heart, wanting to repent, asking for Your mercy, receiving from You the
far greater gift of salvation and believing I am saved by faith, the grace of
God and the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ.
I can stand before You redeemed from eternal punishment, forgiven
my sins, justified as sinless, adopted into the family of God,
regenerated from the death of sin to a life of righteousness, guided
along the path of sanctification, reconciled
with fellow believers, united in the Church of Jesus Christ and looking
forward to glorification only
because Jesus died on the cross for my salvation.
I accept the undeserved gifts of reconciliation with You,
reconciliation with fellow believers and unification in the church.
I pray that the Holy
Spirit will occupy and purify my heart, help me discern the truth, make
known to me the will of God, be Lord of my life and keep me on the path
of repentance, faith and obedience continually reaffirmed and renewed. THINK
ABOUT IT DEAR READER...THINK ABOUT IT
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