STEPS TO PEACE WITH GOD
First Baptist Church Tawas City Michigan
Rev. Bruce A. Shields
www.TawasBaptist.org
• Step One - God’s Purpose: Peace and Life
God loves you and wants you to experience peace and life--abundant and eternal.
The Bible says...
Romans 5:1
"We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
John 10:10
"I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."
Since God planned for us to have peace and life with true meaning and purpose, why are most people not having this experience?
Does having God’s peace in your life mean that nothing bad ever happens to you?
Do storms not come?
Of course they still come. Of course we are attacked for His name sake, but God’s peace is how we handle the storms in our lives.
Psalm 107:29
”He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.”
He makes the storm clam.
And He makes the waves which are caused by the storm still.
Storms in our lives can cause other problems. These are the waves.
But God will still even those.
Here is an example of God’s peace in our lives.
We have peace because we know God is in control.
We have peace because we have faith in God.
Jesus gave us an example of this type of peace in the storms of our lives.
Matthew 8:23-27
“23Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake,
(how many times do the storms give us warning in our lives?)
so that the waves swept over the boat.
(this storm was serious. Causing huge waves.)
But Jesus was sleeping.
25The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!"
26He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.
27The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
You see, that is why they were afraid.
They did not realize that the Lord was with them.
They did not realize that God is in control.
Sometimes in the midst of the storms in our lives we can forget that God is with us.
Sometimes we can forget that the Almighty Creator of the universe is in control.
Sometimes we forget that we are His children.
If they would have had this faith in God, they would have been sleeping like Jesus.
Perhaps not sleeping, but at least not afraid of death.
If they would have had this faith in God, they would have had peace in the middle of the storm.
Philippians 4:6-7
“6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything (the STORMS in our lives), by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends (or to be superior to or greater than) all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Can you imagine having a faith so great that you are sleeping during a violent storm which is crashing over the sides of your boat?
Can you imagine having the peace that God has promised during the trials in your life?
You don’t have to imagine. God says it’s ours.
To walk through the shadow of the valley of death and fear no evil, for though art with me.
Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
What do we have to fear in the Lord?
Our good shepherd is watching over us.
I breathe my next breath because of the Father in heaven.
Each flower blooms at His control.
Do the birds worry about what they are to eat?
Does our Father not take care of them?
How much more does the Father love you then?
John 3:16 tells us.
• Step Two - The Problem: Our Separation
God created us in His own image to have an abundant life. He did not make us as robots to automatically love and obey Him. God gave us a will and a freedom of choice.
We chose to disobey God and go our own willful way. We still make this choice today. This results in separation from God.
The Bible says...
Romans 3:23
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
• Our Attempts to Reach God
People have tried in many ways to bridge this gap between themselves and God...
The Bible says...
Proverbs 14:12
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death."
Isaiah 59:2
"But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear."
No bridge reaches God...except one.
• Step Three - God’s Bridge: The Cross
Jesus Christ died on the Cross and rose from the grave. He paid the penalty for our sin and bridged the gap between God and people.
The Bible says...
1 Timothy 2:5
"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ."
1 Peter 3:18
"For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God."
Romans 5:8
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
God has provided the only way. Each person must make a choice.
• Step Four - Our Response: Receive Christ
We must trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and receive Him by personal invitation.
The Bible says...
Revelation 3:20
"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me."
John 1:12
"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."
Romans 10:9
"That if you confess with your mouth, ’Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Where are you?
Will you receive Jesus Christ right now?
There are some here today, right now who have never made a commitment to Jesus Christ.
There is someone here today who has never asked Jesus to be their Lord.
I know it’s hard to come forward, but Jesus says to you, “If you confess me before others, I will confess you before the Father in Heaven.”
Here is how you can receive Christ:
1.Admit your need (I am a sinner).
2.Be willing to turn from your sins (repent).
3.Believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the Cross and rose from the grave.
4.Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit. (Receive Him as Lord and Savior.)
If you want to do this, come forward now. Come forward and tell the world that Jesus is your Lord!
Let’s bow our heads and pray…
Pray:
Dear Lord Jesus,
I know that I am 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 Lord and Savior.
In Jesus’ name. Amen.
God’s Assurance: His Word
If you prayed this prayer,
The Bible says...
Romans 10:13
"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
Did you sincerely ask Jesus Christ to come into your life? Where is He right now? What has He given you?
Ephesians 2:8,9
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."
1 John 5:12-13
"He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."
Receiving Christ, we are born into God’s family through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit who indwells every believer.
This is called regeneration, or the "new birth."
This is just the beginning of a wonderful new life in Christ.
To deepen this relationship you should:
1. Read your Bible everyday to know Christ better.
2. Talk to God in prayer every day.
3. Tell others about Christ.
4. Worship, fellowship, and serve with other Christians in a church where Christ is preached.
5. As Christ’s representative in a needy world, demonstrate your new life by your love and concern for others.
