How Do I Become A Christian?
Becoming a Christian means:
- Becoming a follower of Jesus Christ
- Becoming a child of God
- Having all our sins forgiven
- Receiving the gift of eternal life
- Being saved from God's eternal wrath
How do I become a Christian?
1. You must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 John 5:11–13, NASB95)
What it means "to believe" in Jesus is explained in the following paragraphs.
2. You must believe that you are sinner separated from God and under His wrath
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23, NASB95)
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23, NASB95)
As sinners, we have sinned against God and the Bible says that our sin separates us from God, prevents us from having a relationship with Him, and that as sinners, we must be punished for our sin. That is the bad news. But the good news is that God loves us and has provided a way for us to be saved from our sin and its penalty as well as for us to be brought back into a living relationship with Him.
3. You must believe in Jesus as the one and only Savior who died on the cross to forgive your sins and rose again from the dead to give you eternal life
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, NASB95)
And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12, NASB95)
For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. (1 Peter 3:18, NASB95)
Many people believe these things about Jesus but are still not Christians because becoming a Christian involves more than giving intellectual assent to truths about God. True belief in Jesus Christ is more than intellectual assent. It is trusting Him alone as our Savior and as the only one who can provide forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
4. You must turn from your sin and unbelief and turn to follow Christ
For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.(1 Thessalonians 1:9–10, NASB95)
And He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf. (2 Corinthians 5:15, NASB95)
The Bible calls this repentance. To repent means to change your mind. It means you turn from pursuing a life without Christ to pursuing a life of serving and following Christ. It doesn't mean we have to be perfect or that we'll never sin again. It means that we have chosen a new direction for our lives.
1. You must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 John 5:11–13, NASB95)
What it means "to believe" in Jesus is explained in the following paragraphs.
2. You must believe that you are sinner separated from God and under His wrath
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23, NASB95)
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23, NASB95)
As sinners, we have sinned against God and the Bible says that our sin separates us from God, prevents us from having a relationship with Him, and that as sinners, we must be punished for our sin. That is the bad news. But the good news is that God loves us and has provided a way for us to be saved from our sin and its penalty as well as for us to be brought back into a living relationship with Him.
3. You must believe in Jesus as the one and only Savior who died on the cross to forgive your sins and rose again from the dead to give you eternal life
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, NASB95)
And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12, NASB95)
For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. (1 Peter 3:18, NASB95)
Many people believe these things about Jesus but are still not Christians because becoming a Christian involves more than giving intellectual assent to truths about God. True belief in Jesus Christ is more than intellectual assent. It is trusting Him alone as our Savior and as the only one who can provide forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
4. You must turn from your sin and unbelief and turn to follow Christ
For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.(1 Thessalonians 1:9–10, NASB95)
And He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf. (2 Corinthians 5:15, NASB95)
The Bible calls this repentance. To repent means to change your mind. It means you turn from pursuing a life without Christ to pursuing a life of serving and following Christ. It doesn't mean we have to be perfect or that we'll never sin again. It means that we have chosen a new direction for our lives.
It's that simple. But it requires a decision on your part; a decision to believe in and turn to Jesus as your Lord and Savior. If you would like to do that today you can express your faith through a prayer like the one below. We would invite you to pray and trust Jesus as your Savior this very day.
Dear Heavenly Father, I have sinned against you and I need forgiveness of my sins. I believe that JesusChrist, your only begotten Son, died on the cross to pay for my sins, that He was was buried, and rose again on the third day. I now trust you, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior. I turn from my unbelief to serve and follow you. Come into my life and make me a new person - make me a child of God today. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen.
Dear Heavenly Father, I have sinned against you and I need forgiveness of my sins. I believe that JesusChrist, your only begotten Son, died on the cross to pay for my sins, that He was was buried, and rose again on the third day. I now trust you, Jesus, as my Lord and Savior. I turn from my unbelief to serve and follow you. Come into my life and make me a new person - make me a child of God today. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen.
If you trusted Jesus as your Savior today, we would love to know about your decision so we can rejoice with you and pray for you as you begin your new life with Jesus. Would you take a minute to fill out the form below and we will send you a little book to help you get started and grounded in your new life as a follower of Christ.
