CONVERSION TO CHRIST
Words like Pearl Harbor, D-Day, Gettysburg and
Waterloo remind us of the many turning points in world history.
In your life's history, the turning point of your eternal
destiny is whether of not you were converted to Christ. Pilate
asks a question each must answer, "What shall I do with Jesus
who is called Christ?" (Matthew 27:22). Jesus has impacted
history more than any other person who has ever lived. The
Encyclopedia Britannica devotes more words to Christ than to any
other figure in human history. Our years are reckoned by His
birth. "A.D." stands for Anno Domini, Latin for "in the year of
the Lord." How has He impacted you?
The book of Acts is called the book of conversions.
The mighty work of God in the gospel resulted in "the conversion
of the Gentiles" (Acts 15:3-4). Acts details the steps people
took to convert to Christ. Jesus was preached all over the
Mediterranean world by the apostles. Lives were dramatically
changed. "Conversion" is from a Greek word meaning "to turn
around, to return to a path from which one has strayed, to
change from the wrong way to the right way." Conversion is to
turn away from sin and turn to God (cf. 1 Thessalonians 1:9).
The gospel of Christ is for all, "to open their eyes, in order
to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan
to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an
inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me" (Acts
26:18). Without Christ, sinners in darkness are marching toward
a devil's hell. Conversion is a change of heart, a change of
spiritual relationship, a change of life and a change of
destiny. C. S. Lewis said, "Every story of conversion is the
story of a blessed defeat."
There are many false notions in the religious world
of "easy believism" and "cheap grace" that misses the divinely
ordained steps of conversion to Christ. Just "saying the
sinner's prayer" is nowhere found in the New Testament as a step
to salvation. "Accept Christ" has become an empty slogan with
little content. The media giant Ted Turner, who is now an
agnostic, purported that he had gotten "saved" 7 or 8 times in
some church, but there was no real change in his life.
In the book of Acts, we read that the steps to
conversion to Christ are: (1) Faith in Christ, (2) Repentance of
sin, (3) Confession of Jesus' Deity, and (4) Immersion into
Christ for the forgiveness of all past sins. These converting
steps are also listed together in Hebrews 10:22-23.
(1) BELIEF IN CHRIST: A CHANGE IN THE OBJECT OF YOUR TRUST
Paul preached "faith in Christ" (Acts 20:21). He
confronted Felix, the powerful governor of Judea, and his wife
Druscilla with the life-changing demands of "faith in Christ"
(Acts 22:24-25). The gospel confronts you with the greatest
person of all time -- Jesus Christ. Faith (total trust, full
reliance, comprehensive confidence) in Christ is the basis of
man's response (Acts 26:18; 16:30-34).
Are you trusting in yourself and your own
goodness to get you through life? through eternity? Jesus
boldly declares that is not good enough. "Therefore I said to
you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe
that I am He, you will die in your sins" (John 8:24). In life's
journey to eternity, we come to a fork in the road when we come
to Christ. Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me'" (John 14:6). He
claims to be the one and only answer to your life and hope for
eternity. Jesus is not a crutch...He's ground to walk on! Faith
is only as good as the object of your trust. Life often
disappoints us. At last, you can find in Jesus a divine friend
to trust in, who will never let you down. You do not have to go
it alone. He alone can bring us safely through life to that
eternal shore. True faith is not a shallow belief about Christ,
but it is a wholehearted faith in Him. You can put your full
weight down on Him.
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, about 45% of the
New Testament, present from 4 angles the person of Jesus on
center stage. Of the 12,000 days the Son of God walked among
men, these four gospel tracts give glimpses of about 40 days of
His glorious life. Before laying down the pen of inspiration,
the apostle John concludes with this parting thought: "And
there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they
were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself
could not contain the books that would be written" (John 21:25).
John lived in intimate association with Jesus. "We beheld His
glory...full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). John asserts all
the libraries of the world could not house all that could be
written on Jesus' inexhaustible works. "And truly Jesus did
many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not
written in this book; but these are written that you may
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that
believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:30-31).
John's eyewitness account gives compelling evidence of who Jesus
is, so you can make an intelligent decision to entrust your life
to Him. Imagine the folly of marrying someone without first
becoming acquainted with them! Jesus' miracles were signs
pointing to His divine glory and power. They backed up all His
amazing claims and produce wonder and faith (John 2:18-22;
5:36). At His word, literally, the sick were instantly healed,
the blind saw, the lame walked, storms ceased, multitudes were
fed, demons fled and the dead came alive! With these awesome
credentials, He is all He claimed to be.
After Christ's ascension to heaven, Peter preached
the first gospel sermon in Acts 2 on Christ's life, death,
burial and resurrection. He concludes: "Therefore let all the
house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus,
whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36).
"Christ" (Greek, Christos) means "the Anointed or Chosen One."
Jesus is God's chosen Messiah to save the world. "Behold! The
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).
Jesus is God's sacrificial lamb substituted for sinners. We all
have sinned (Romans 3:8, 23). Sin is to either actively violate
God's law (1 John 3:4) or simply to fail to do the good we ought
(James 4:17). Sin is wanting your way above all else. Such
rebellion to God's rule deserves spiritual death (Romans 6:23).
Why did Jesus come to earth to die on the cross? Look in the
mirror and you'll see one good reason. "He loved me and gave
Himself up for me" (Galatians 2:20). I must wholly trust in Him
to do for me what I can not do for myself -- atone for my sin.
He died my death and paid my debt (Mark 10:45).
During the pioneer days on the prairie, a prairie
fire literally spread like wild fire. Horses couldn't outrun it.
If you saw the fire coming, the only thing you could do to
survive was to light a match and burn the grass around you. You
could stand where the fire already passed and trust that you
would be safe. The fire of judgment was poured out on the cross
of Christ 2,000 years ago. You can come and take your stand and
find safety. By wholehearted faith, we can come to the cross
and see the greatest love the world has ever known. If He would
do that for you, there is nothing else He would fail to do for
your good (Romans 5:6-11). Faith is the open hand that accepts
the gift of God.
"Lord" means Jesus is the ruler and master of the
universe. He wants to be Lord of your life, not just your
Savior. In Acts 11, they preached "the Lord Jesus...and a large
number who believed turned to the Lord" (vv. 20-21). After their
conversion, Barnabas urged them "to remain true to the Lord" (v.
23). Life is governed by who you believe in and what you live
by. Accepting the Lordship of Christ means you will follow His
every word like a sheep follows a shepherd (John 8:31-32;
10:14,27). "Lord, what will you have me to do?" (Acts 22:10).
Christ did so much for you. You cannot do enough for Him. The
Lord knows best and reveals what He wants of you. A sincere
faith will accept Christ's Word in humble obedience every step
of the way (Romans 10:17; 2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 5:9;
Ephesians 1:22-23).
"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the
right to become children of God, to those who believe in His
name" (John 1:12). At the point of faith, you now have the right
to proceed in turning to Christ for salvation. You're not
converted and saved yet.
(2) REPENTANCE OF SINS: A CHANGE OF MIND ABOUT YOUR SIN
Repentance is the other side of faith. As you turn
to Christ, you must turn from your sin and self-centered life.
In Acts 2, many of those who heard the first gospel sermon of
Peter were "cut to the heart" (v. 37). Convincingly smitten in
conscience, they believed Jesus' identity. To discover what
they had to do to be right with God, they desperately cried out,
"`What shall we do?' Then Peter said to them, `Repent, and let
every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit'" (Acts 2:37-38). Peter repeated this call to repent
(Acts 3:19). Paul also preached it (Acts 20:31). "Truly, these
times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men
everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He
will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has
ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him
from the dead" (Acts 17:30-31).
Repentance literally means "a total change of mind."
If you are driving the wrong way, you must change your mind
about the direction you're going before you're willing to turn
around. You must change your mind about the love and practice of
your sin. You see sin as God does. "Sin" means to "miss the
mark." By sin, man lost his destiny. In sinning, you fall short
of God's glory, the purpose for which you exist (Romans 1:21;
3:23). Sin is what is wrong with the world. People's conflict
with others is traced to the selfishness of sin. Repentance has
been called "a conscience active in God's presence." We've all
felt the pangs of guilt. Repenting isn't just being sorry you
got caught in doing something bad. It's godly sorrow for your
sin (2 Corinthians 7:9f). You should want to turn away from it.
In the torment of the cross, sin is unmasked in all
its ugly enormity. Your hate, lust, lying, gossip, sexual
immorality, etc. made the cross necessary. Where divine
forgiveness is possible, Someone had to die on a cross for you.
His name is Jesus. We are not detached observers. We're
participants with those who put the lashes on his back, the
thorns on his brow and the nails in his hands! Our sins put Him
there and caused the horrible death of the pure and innocent
Jesus. The just died for the unjust (1 Peter 3:18). "Surely He
has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; ... He was wounded
for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The
chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we
are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned,
every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the
iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:4-6). The Jewish historian
Josephus called crucifixion "the most wretched of all ways of
dying." Sagging from nails through the hands and feet, the
stripped victim was exposed to the elements and taunting
rejection. There was 3 hours of eerie darkness over the land
(Mark 15:33). God the Father forsook Jesus, turning His face
from the sin-bearer (Mark 15:34). Jesus paid the penalty of your
sins of thought, word and deed.
Seeing the awfulness of sin awakens personal guilt.
We recoil from the Devil's hellish bait. Sin is moral cancer,
spiritual insanity. Jesus declared, "Unless you repent you will
all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3). Repentance is the resolve to
stop living a life of sin. How ridiculous that some want a
religion that doesn't interfere with their life. Paul preached
to all that "they should repent, turn to God, and do works
befitting repentance" (Acts 26:20). Repentance is a change of
mind toward sin and self that leads to a change of life.
(3) CONFESSION OF CHRIST: A CHANGE OF LOYALTY
In Acts 8, a preacher told a Ethiopian government
official the good news of Jesus (v. 35). Seeing water, the
African man said, "What prevents me from being baptized?" Then
Philip said, 'If you believe with all your heart, you may. And
he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God'" (Acts 8:36-37 NASB). Jesus blessed Peter in making this
same confession before others: "You are the Christ, the Son of
the living God" (Matthew 16:16). Timothy "made the good
confession in the presence of many witnesses" (1 Timothy 6:12).
It is not the confession, as some churches teach, "I believe
God, for Christ's sake, has pardoned my sins." You must confess
with your mouth the divine Lordship of Christ before or with a
view unto salvation from your sins (Romans 10:9-10).
"Confess" means "to say the same thing." You
declare the same thing about Jesus that God declared of Him:
"This is my Beloved Son" (Matthew 3:17). It is a statement of
the conviction of your heart, a public test of your intended
loyalty. Others do not know what you really believe in your
heart until you freely declare it. As a student at Florida
College, I remember a young man who visited from Canada. He had
no religious upbringing. He lived an immoral life. He tried to
drown his sorrows in alcohol and drugs. He seriously thought
about committing suicide by laying down in a snow drift to
freeze to death. But he heard the gospel of Christ. There was
hope of a better life! His life was not futile. I remember when
we gathered that afternoon to watch Paul be baptized into
Christ. When asked if he believed Jesus was the Christ, the Son
of God, his voice rang loud and clear: "You betcha!" In his
vernacular, he sincerely affirmed that he believed Jesus as
God's Son.
Confession is taking a stand for Jesus, to declare
to one and all this is what you believe most important in life.
You continue to confess to others that Jesus is the divine
answer to their life (Acts 8:4; Matthew 10:32-33). Conversion
means you should be willing to tell others "what great things
the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you"
(Mark 5:19).
(4) BAPTISM INTO CHRIST: A CHANGE OF RELATIONSHIP
Baptism is the point where your sins are forgiven
by the blood of Christ. It is for the purpose of "the
forgiveness of sins" (Acts 2:38). Baptism is the occasion of
salvation from past sins. Saul was told, "And now why are you
waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling
on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). Every verse in the New
Testament that mentions baptism and forgiveness of sins always
has baptism preceding it (Mk 16:16; John 3:5; 1 Pet. 3:21). At
this converting act, you have come to the dividing point in your
life.
Baptism is immersion into a right relationship with
Christ. "As many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were
baptized into His death. Therefore we were buried with Him
through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from
the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk
in newness of life" (Romans 6:3-4). At your baptism, don't think
of the water's temperature or those present. Fix your mind on
the Savior. You follow Christ into a watery grave. He died for
sin. You will die to a life of sin that rules your life. Jesus
shed His blood in His death. In baptism, you contact His saving
blood (Revelation 1:5; Ephesians 1:7). Just as God raised up
Jesus from the tomb to a new, resurrected life, you come up out
of the water a new, forgiven person. All your past sins are
washed away.
Some erroneously teach that you are baptized because
you have been saved and are already spiritually alive. This
destroys the form of baptism's meaning. You bury dead people.
The Bible nowhere teaches baptism is merely "an outward sign of
inward grace." If you were saved before baptism, this means that
you were buried alive! We bury the old man of sin and leave him
behind in baptism. We're raised up at baptism to a new life
"alive to God" (Romans 6:11). We obey the form of Christ's
death, burial and resurrection. "But God be thanked that though
you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form
of doctrine to which you were committed, and having then been
set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness" (Romans
6:17-18). You cannot be taught wrong and baptized right.
Baptism is the believer's wedding ceremony to
Christ, where we are joined to Christ (Romans 7:4; Galatians
3:26-27; 2 Corinthians 11:2). He adds you to His church, the
one body of the saved (Acts 2:47; Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians
12:13). Becoming a Christian is a lifelong committed to Christ ,
"see Him more clearly, to love Him more dearly and to follow Him
more nearly." Conversion entails a lifelong turning from sin and
turning to the Lord. Out of faithfulness to the Lord, He wants
you to join yourself to work and worship with a local church of
Christ (Acts 2:42-47; 11:25; 20:7).
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new
creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have
become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). A man visited an English
factory that made the world's finest stationary. He asked what
they used to make such expensive paper, he was shown a pile of
old, dirty rags. The rag content determined the quality of the
paper. Because he was amazed at this process, he later received
a box of fancy stationary embossed with his initials. A note was
attached: "Dirty rags transformed!" Sinners can be converted
from the world's filth to purified saints of God. Christ is in
the people changing business. He offers the new possibilities of
lasting change for the better. Your life can count for
something in the overall scheme of things. Conversion to Christ
offers you a new lease on life, the greatest quality of life
known to man. "I came that they might have life, and have it
more abundantly" (John 10:10).
Please, let us hear from you! Please write us at: WFrankWalton@juno.com.
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