How Do I Follow Jesus?

THE GREATEST GIFT EVER GIVEN

In Romans 6:23 (NLT), it says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” So what does this mean? The Bible says before you receive Jesus, you are separated from God because of sin; and sadly, our sin leads to death and eternal judgment. But there’s good news! Jesus, the Son of God, left heaven and came to earth to make a way for you to have eternal life in heaven. He died on the cross to pay for your sins in full, and when you receive the free gift of salvation, when you make the decision to follow Jesus, you are free, you are saved, and you become a child of God.

If you’ve never made the decision to follow Jesus, to receive Him into your heart, today can be your day. Right now, in this moment, you can become part of the family of God, you can have your sins forgiven, you can have your life changed forever.

Consider the Steps to a Relationship with God and Eternal Life

REALIZE OUR PROBLEM (SEPARATION)

“But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you.” Isaiah 59:2 (NIV)

Eternal life and having a personal relationship with God is not automatic because we are by nature, separated from God. From the beginning of time people have tried in many ways to bridge this separation—without success. We can’t earn our way to God through good deeds or by being religious or spiritual. It’s only “by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9 NIV).

THE INVITATION IS TO REPENT

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”—1 John 1:9 (NIV)

Confess means to agree with God that we are not perfect, that we are sinners. To repent means to turn away from sin and to God. The Bible tells us that God is perfect and that He and sin are opposites. Therefore, you can’t walk toward God without first walking away from sin.

ACKNOWLEDGE THE ONLY REMEDY

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”—John 14:6 (NIV)

God’s only remedy to save us from sin and death is giving His son Jesus Christ, who willingly laid His life on the cross and rose from the grave to pay the penalty for all our sins.

RECEIVE JESUS CHRIST

“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”—John 1:12 (NIV)

Receiving or rejecting Christ is a choice each of us makes freely. If we receive Christ, God adopts us as His children. Receiving Christ means you are trusting in Christ’s death and resurrection as the only way to pay for your sins. When you trust in Christ alone for your eternal life, He becomes your Savior and you become His disciple. As you choose to follow Him, He becomes Lord over your life.

The decision to begin a personal relationship with God requires receiving Christ (trusting in Christ’s sacrifice alone for your salvation) and repenting (turning away from sin). If this makes sense to you and you want to begin a relationship with God, you can tell Him right now in a simple prayer:

“Lord Jesus, I open my heart to you. Please forgive me of my sins. I believe you died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead. I believe you are Lord and Savior of my life. From this moment on, I choose to follow you all the days of my life. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!”

About the Author

Danny Saavedra

Danny Saavedra is a licensed minister who has served on staff at Calvary since 2012, managing the Calvary Devotional and digital discipleship resources. He has a Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling and Master of Divinity in Pastoral Ministry from Liberty Theological Seminary. His wife Stephanie, son Jude, and daughter Zoe share a love of Star Wars, good food, having friends over for dinner, and studying the Word together as a family.