ROOTS First Steps-Following Jesus, Session Two
ROOTS First Steps-Following Jesus
How We Can Become God's Friend, Session Two
In Session One we learned…
when we become a Christian, God starts all over again with us – we’re a brand-new person!
Text Box-Sin is being independent from God
Our purpose in life? to glorify God and enjoy him. And be his friend. Forever!
We also learned why we missed our purpose in life. We chose to ignore God and put god-substitutes in our lives. (Remember what they’re called? ________1)
The result? We go our own way. We don’t honor God. We become independent. It’s called sin, being independent from God. It separates God from us, because he hates sin.
Sin produces sins. Sins are thoughts, words and actions that aren’t God-centered. Sins damage ourselves and others. They ruin our life.
"...your iniquities [sins] have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you so that he will not hear." (Isaiah 59:2)
(Helpful Hint: look up each verse in your Bible, and underline it or highlight it)
What a mess! We’re away from God,. We’ve lost our way - we can’t get back to him. How do we ever discover his purpose and become his friend? _____________________________________(your answer)
God’s Bridge to Life
Life would be full of joy. You’d not be lonely. You’d be at peace. You’d would be safe and secure in his love, in his beautiful creation.
Jesus said, "...I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10.10
Why isn’t this our experience today? We don’t love God and have life-to-the-full from Jesus because _____________________________________________________________ (your answer)
Our Choice: God didn’t make robots. No, he made you a human being. He gave you a will to decide, so you can choose. Tragically, you chose independence, not love. We all did. Everyone chose to disobey.
You picked your own way (that’s sin, remember) and got separated from God. You weren’t his friend.
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23
Where do you notice this today? I see sin and separation from God in ___________________________
___________________________________________________________________________ (your answer)
The terrible truth is, we can’t get back on our own. We’re away from God, alone. We’ll live and die without him. It’s the result of sin. A curse covers our world.
All through history, people have tried to reconnect with God. They try, but fail. Being good won't do it, because everyone has sinned. Religion won’t ...or money...or education...
There’s a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. Proverbs 14:12
God’s Great Love: Jesus Christ is the only solution to this separation. He became the bridge to connect us with God. Jesus lived a perfect life. He died on the cross and rose from the grave. He did this because he loved us. His death paid the penalty for our sins. His resurrection gave us the chance for new life. Jesus became the mediator between God and us.
Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. I Peter 3:18
There is only one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. I Timothy 2:5
God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. Romans 5:8
This is why we need Jesus. That’s why we love him. He died for us! And he came alive, to help us.
How does it affect you, that Jesus would love us enough to die for us? ___________________________
___________________________________________________________________________ (your answer)
Our response: Each of us must believe in Jesus. That means committing our life to him. How? We admit our sinfulness and accept his forgiveness. We invite Him to become Lord (Boss) of our life. He gives us his gifts of forgiveness and eternal life. We make a personal choice to receive him.
For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
[Jesus talking] I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They’ll never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. John 5:24
At ROOTS we say everyone needs a BASE (like a house’s foundation). Here’s how.
Text Box-everyone needs a BASE
B - Believe – I believe Jesus died in my place, to give me forgiveness of sins
A - Accept – I accept Jesus’ gift of a new life, of eternal life
S - Switch – I switch bosses, from myself to Jesus. I do a U-turn in life, to return to God.
E - Express – I express this with words – God, I want this, I make the choice to trust in Jesus
Do you have this BASE? Perhaps if you became a Christian in the past, you prayed something like this:
Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I’m a sinner and need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite you to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as the Lord and Savior of my life. In Your name. Amen. (if you didn’t, is there any reason you can’t pray now?)
If you've prayed a prayer like this to trust in Jesus, then the Bible says you can be sure you have eternal life. God made a great promise to us.
...everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Romans 10:13
That’s us, if we’ve trusted in Jesus. We’ve become God’s friend. Though Jesus! He’s the bridge back to God’s love and life. He helps us find God’s purpose, God’s dream for our lives.
The Jesus Centered-Life
1 God-substitutes are idols. Idols can be almost anything. People, possessions, even a dream we have.