BF1 (1 of 4): God's Way to Heaven
Date: June 10, 2009, 7pm
Speaker: Ickhoy De Leon
Here is our Biblical Foundation 1 - 1st session reading... I found myself posting this blog so that others will also know what we are truly missing... As my friend once reminded me that after everything is gone, only the things that we did for God will count...
Suite your spiritual side...
I. GOD LOVES YOU and He desires that you have:
A. Eternal life. John 3:16 says,
"For God so loved the world that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life"
B. An abundant life. John 10:10 says,
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
But most people aren’t experiencing an abundant life and aren’t sure that they have eternal life because of the second truth:
II. Man has a SIN problem that separates him from GOD.
A. According to Romans 3:23,
"For all have sinned and fall short in the glory of God."
That includes you and me, even the priest, pastors and the most godly and religious person we know. No one is exempted.
B. Let’s read Romans 6:23.
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Death as described in Revelations 21:8,
"But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
The Bible talks about two kinds of death. The first death is physical. The second death is spiritual or eternal separation from God.
We might think that we can pay for our sins and earn eternal life by doing good works or keeping the Ten Commandments. But what is God’s perspective on sin based on James 2:10? If we commit one sin, how guilty are we? God sees us as guilty of breaking all of His laws!
What about doing good works so that one can go to heaven? Ephesians 2:8-9, says
"8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast."
and in Titus 3:5,
"he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit"
In short, we cannot be saved by doing good works.
If we cannot depend on obeying the Ten Commandments and doing good works to save us, what then is God’s way to heaven?
III. JESUS CHRIST is God’s way to heaven.
A. He is the ONLY way. Read John 14:6.
"No one comes to the Father except through Him."
B. What did Jesus Christ do for us? Romans 5:8 and 1 Peter 2:24 reads,
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us"
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."
IV. The resurrection of JESUS CHRIST assures us that He can fulfill His promise of eternal life.
A. According to 1 Cor.15:3-4,
" 3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."
B. Romans 1:3-4 - the resurrection of Christ proves that He is not just an ordinary man but also the Son of God.
C. Jesus Himself said in John 11:25-26,
“… I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
But merely knowing about what Jesus Christ has done for us is not enough. Let’s go back to Romans 6:23.
What is God’s gift to us? Eternal life
How do we receive this gift? Read 1 John 5:11-12. - We must have Jesus Christ in us since He is the Source of eternal life.
V. We must place our FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST to save us.
1. Again let's go back to Ephesians 2:8-10.
"8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
We are saved by God’s grace through our faith. Grace is something we don’t deserve and can’t earn.
How do you receive a gift? You receive it by faith.
To be saved by faith means to trust in Jesus Christ alone to save you.
What about good works? Good works are not the means to salvation, rather they are the evidences or by-products of your salvation.
Once you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ alone to save you, He will give you the power to live a life of good deeds.
2. What promise does Jesus make in Revelation 3:20? Jesus will come into my heart if I invite Him in.
Perhaps you have trusted God for many things, but today He is asking you to trust Him to save you. Jesus is standing at the door of your heart and knocking. He wants to enter your heart, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life which He purchased with His precious blood. Are you willing to repent of all of your sins? To repent means to turn away from your sins. To stop doing what is wrong or sinful. Do you believe that He will save you, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life if you trust in Him to save you? That is His promise to you and He will always keep His promise.
You can pray this simple prayer to express your faith in Jesus Christ and receive him into your heart as your Lord and Savior. You only have to pray this prayer once, but with sincerity, because when He enters your life, He will never leave you.
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, thank you so much for loving me. I am so sorry for my sins. Thank you for dying on the cross for all of my sins. With your help, I will turn away from all my sins. Today, I trust in you to be my Lord and Savior and I receive you into my heart. Thank you for forgiving my sins and for coming into my heart. I accept your free gift of eternal life. Thank you for that one day, I will go home to you in heaven. From this day on, I will follow and obey you. Amen.
What has just happened to you?
1. You now have eternal life. 1 John 5:11-13
2. All of your sins are paid for and forgiven. (Past, Present and Future sins) Colossians 1:13-14
3. You are a new person in God’s eyes. A new life has begun for you. 2 Corinthians 5:17
Today you made the MOST IMPORTANT decision of your life! You accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Today is your Spiritual Birthday!
APPLICATION:
You now have a very personal and permanent relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. To grow in your relationship with Him:
1. Pray to Him every day. This is how we talk to God.
2. Read the Bible. This is how God talks to you. Begin with the Gospel of John. Read a chapter a day and ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it.
3. Be part of a small group (D12/Dgroup) to learn more about God and how to please Him.
Speaker: Ickhoy De Leon
Here is our Biblical Foundation 1 - 1st session reading... I found myself posting this blog so that others will also know what we are truly missing... As my friend once reminded me that after everything is gone, only the things that we did for God will count...
Suite your spiritual side...
I. GOD LOVES YOU and He desires that you have:
A. Eternal life. John 3:16 says,
"For God so loved the world that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life"
B. An abundant life. John 10:10 says,
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
But most people aren’t experiencing an abundant life and aren’t sure that they have eternal life because of the second truth:
II. Man has a SIN problem that separates him from GOD.
A. According to Romans 3:23,
"For all have sinned and fall short in the glory of God."
That includes you and me, even the priest, pastors and the most godly and religious person we know. No one is exempted.
B. Let’s read Romans 6:23.
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Death as described in Revelations 21:8,
"But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
The Bible talks about two kinds of death. The first death is physical. The second death is spiritual or eternal separation from God.
We might think that we can pay for our sins and earn eternal life by doing good works or keeping the Ten Commandments. But what is God’s perspective on sin based on James 2:10? If we commit one sin, how guilty are we? God sees us as guilty of breaking all of His laws!
What about doing good works so that one can go to heaven? Ephesians 2:8-9, says
"8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast."
and in Titus 3:5,
"he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit"
In short, we cannot be saved by doing good works.
If we cannot depend on obeying the Ten Commandments and doing good works to save us, what then is God’s way to heaven?
III. JESUS CHRIST is God’s way to heaven.
A. He is the ONLY way. Read John 14:6.
"No one comes to the Father except through Him."
B. What did Jesus Christ do for us? Romans 5:8 and 1 Peter 2:24 reads,
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us"
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."
IV. The resurrection of JESUS CHRIST assures us that He can fulfill His promise of eternal life.
A. According to 1 Cor.15:3-4,
" 3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."
B. Romans 1:3-4 - the resurrection of Christ proves that He is not just an ordinary man but also the Son of God.
C. Jesus Himself said in John 11:25-26,
“… I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
But merely knowing about what Jesus Christ has done for us is not enough. Let’s go back to Romans 6:23.
What is God’s gift to us? Eternal life
How do we receive this gift? Read 1 John 5:11-12. - We must have Jesus Christ in us since He is the Source of eternal life.
V. We must place our FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST to save us.
1. Again let's go back to Ephesians 2:8-10.
"8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
We are saved by God’s grace through our faith. Grace is something we don’t deserve and can’t earn.
How do you receive a gift? You receive it by faith.
To be saved by faith means to trust in Jesus Christ alone to save you.
What about good works? Good works are not the means to salvation, rather they are the evidences or by-products of your salvation.
Once you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ alone to save you, He will give you the power to live a life of good deeds.
2. What promise does Jesus make in Revelation 3:20? Jesus will come into my heart if I invite Him in.
Perhaps you have trusted God for many things, but today He is asking you to trust Him to save you. Jesus is standing at the door of your heart and knocking. He wants to enter your heart, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life which He purchased with His precious blood. Are you willing to repent of all of your sins? To repent means to turn away from your sins. To stop doing what is wrong or sinful. Do you believe that He will save you, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life if you trust in Him to save you? That is His promise to you and He will always keep His promise.
You can pray this simple prayer to express your faith in Jesus Christ and receive him into your heart as your Lord and Savior. You only have to pray this prayer once, but with sincerity, because when He enters your life, He will never leave you.
PRAYER:
Lord Jesus, thank you so much for loving me. I am so sorry for my sins. Thank you for dying on the cross for all of my sins. With your help, I will turn away from all my sins. Today, I trust in you to be my Lord and Savior and I receive you into my heart. Thank you for forgiving my sins and for coming into my heart. I accept your free gift of eternal life. Thank you for that one day, I will go home to you in heaven. From this day on, I will follow and obey you. Amen.
What has just happened to you?
1. You now have eternal life. 1 John 5:11-13
2. All of your sins are paid for and forgiven. (Past, Present and Future sins) Colossians 1:13-14
3. You are a new person in God’s eyes. A new life has begun for you. 2 Corinthians 5:17
Today you made the MOST IMPORTANT decision of your life! You accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Today is your Spiritual Birthday!
APPLICATION:
You now have a very personal and permanent relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. To grow in your relationship with Him:
1. Pray to Him every day. This is how we talk to God.
2. Read the Bible. This is how God talks to you. Begin with the Gospel of John. Read a chapter a day and ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it.
3. Be part of a small group (D12/Dgroup) to learn more about God and how to please Him.
Comments