Jesus' Invitation To You
A decision to follow Jesus Christ is the single most important decision of your life. That is not overstated. He will not only determine your eternal destiny but He is the only real source of true life and fulfillment today. He invites you to turn to Him and trust Him with your life. Read on to learn more...
"And we know that the Son of God has come, and He has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only true God, and He is eternal life."
1 John 5:20
The 3 Crowns
Where Did I Come From?
Why am I here? Where am I going? These are three important questions everyone things about, eventually. The answers can be found in the Bible, which is summarized here in the story of "The 3 Crowns." It reveals the true and perfect record of humanity's origin, purpose and destiny.
Crown 1: GOD
The first crown represents God; He is King over all creation!
"In the beginning, God..." Genesis 1:1. Before anything existed, God was there. He is all-powerful, all knowing, and present everywhere. God spoke and, out of nothing, He created the heavens and the earth. All things exist because of Him. Therefore, God is the authority of all things.
God is love and He made humanity in His image so that we could have a relationship with Him; sharing His love and life. Each one of us is uniquely created and loved by God.
"Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us..." Ephesians 1:4
Crown 2: HUMANITY
The problem is that we have chosen to turn and go our own way. In our pride, we rejected God’s plan for our lives, we rebelled against the authority of God’s crown and we crowned ourselves king. The Bible calls this sin. Sin separates us from God.
The penalty of our sin is death, both physical and spiritual. Our sin has brought a curse on creation and brokenness into the world. Pain, sickness, suffering, and despair now touch all of our lives in some way. The final separation, as a result of our self-rule, is an eternity in hell — which is a place of never-ending decay and death.
"All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own." Isaiah 53:6 "It’s your sins that have cut you off from God." Isaiah 59:2
Crown 3: JESUS
The good news is that God so loved the world that He sent His Son, Jesus, into the world -- John 3:16. He came from heaven to rescue us and to shine His light in to our darkened hearts.
Jesus taught us that by following Him as King we could have a relationship with God and live in His Kingdom forever. He challenged us to love God and others first. In His compassion, He came to heal our pain, sickness, suffering and despair.
Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life and then He died on a cross, offering His life as payment for the debt we owe due to our rebellion against God. His sacrifice not only demonstrates His absolute love for us but it also pays the price of sin and removes the curse of separation from God for all who believe.
Miraculously, three days after Jesus died and was buried in a tomb, He was raised to life again; defeating sin, death and the powers of darkness! Then, He ascended to heaven and was restored to His former glory at the right hand of God the Father. Jesus now rules and reigns over God’s kingdom as Lord of all. This is the third crown. Christ Is King!
God has sent His Spirit to open hearts and minds to this Good News. His Spirit also lives within us to bring us into fellowship with God and empowers us to fulfill His mission to love the world and spread this story.
"For [God] has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins." Colossians 1:13-14
RESPONSE: TURN & TRUST
So, which circle reflects your spiritual condition?
Are you wearing the crown?
Or, is Christ the King over your life?
To move from the right circle to the left, you must turn from depending on yourself, because you can never earn God’s forgiveness through your own good works. Instead you must trust in Jesus Christ. You must trust what Jesus accomplished for you through His sinless life, sacrificial death and triumphant resurrection. This is the only way you can be raised to life spiritually and have a restored relationship with God. You must remove the crown from your head and come to Jesus for forgiveness and restoration to life with God.
WHICH CIRCLE WHOULD YOU LIKE TO BE IN?
The Bible says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” Romans 10:13. You can call out to the Lord Jesus right now, through prayer, and ask Him to rescue you and bring you into fellowship with God.
Pray a prayer like this one: Father God, I believe you love me and you sent Your Son, Jesus, to rescue me. Forgive me for choosing my own way apart from You. Jesus, thank You for dying on the cross for me. I want to know You personally and receive Your forgiveness. I open my heart to You and choose to follow You the rest of my life. Amen!
Congratulations: if you placed your trust in Jesus and prayed a pray like the one above, you have crossed over from death to life. You now belong to God and are a part of His family. Please contact us [ HERE ] and let us know about your decision. We would like to help you with your next steps in following Jesus.
* Presentation provided by First Priority of South Florida www.firstpriority.cc