An Introduction to Jesus – Dr. Charles Stanley

he's not just a figure he's god he is god in the flesh who died on the cross for our sins who died and was buried and resurrected and i would say to all these other religions who claimed this and claimed that and claimed the other where is your leader dead in the grave where is jesus resurrected seated the father's right hand making an accession for us today on in touch an introduction to jesus when you hear the name jesus what comes to mind well i can tell you will come to mind depends upon what you think about him how much you know about him and what kind of relationship you have with him now many people have a wonderful relationship with jesus he's their savior lord master many other people when they hear his name they're turned off i wonder why anybody would turn off the name of jesus when he's the son of god when he never made a mistake he never sinned and even the people who just hate his name do not say i hate him because he did this or he did that but it's something deep down inside of them that would cause them not to appreciate and to love the lord jesus christ so i'd ask you this what do you think about what place does he have in your life if somebody should ask you who is this jesus what would you say would you say well he's the savior of the world he's the lord i trusted him as my personal savior i have eternal life and he's with me every day he heals me in my sickness and answers my prayers and he's in heaven and that's how i think he is if that's all you can say you have a lot to learn this morning the primary purpose of this message is simply this to give you an understanding of who is this jesus so when somebody confronts you or when somebody says you know i don't i don't believe in him and usually they can't tell you why i want to give you some reasons why you can tell them why you believe that jesus christ is the son of god the only savior there is unlike any and all other religious figures and he is the king of all kings and one day we'll all stand before him as our judge why do we believe that so i'm going to ask you to get your bible out and if you're at home get yourself a pencil or piece of paper or pen and i want to encourage you to write down the headings of this message and also the scriptures now i'm not going to tell you to write down everything i'm going to say about the scriptures but just jot them down and then be honest enough to ask yourself the question who is this jesus that i believe in or who is this jesus i have rejected all of my life and first of all i want to say that jesus lived before he was conceived in his mother's womb he lived before he was conceived in his mother's womb he was pre-existent that is before his birth he existed so let's go back to the very first book of the bible and let's go back to the very first chapter in the bible and listen to what he says in the 26th verse then god said having described his creation let us make man in our image according to our likeness and let them rule over the fish of the sea the birds of the sky over the cattle and over all the earth and over every living thing that creeps on the earth well let me ask you a question who is us somebody says well angels no angels don't create anything when god said let us he could not mean but one thing god the father god the son god the holy spirit that three the three persons that make up the trinity that is one god let us make man in our image so if you will turn to john chapter one for a moment and let's look what john says about jesus and notice and i want to explain a couple of words or so here he says verse 1 of chapter 1 in the beginning was the word and the way john said this he said it in a very perfect way when he uses the term word here it means when he says in the beginning was the word it doesn't mean something happened back there but in the beginning of time jesus was there he'd been there in eternity pass he didn't just start there listen to what he says in the beginning was the word and the word was with god and the word was god jesus is referred to here is the word and he was with god and he was god so the claim here is as john says that he and the father were one and we'll come to that later he was in the beginning with god and all things came into being through him and apart from him nothing came into being that has come into being in him was life and the life was the light of men the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it listen when you start with genesis 1 1 right here jesus respect and eternity pass with him what other religious leader in the world has existed before time ever began none whatsoever that puts jesus in a whole different position than any other religious leader who has ever lived in the beginning was the word not a dot but a present tense an imperfect tense in the greek he he was going on before that so uh the scripture says also in luke uh chapter 1 the 31st verse when gabriel came to speak to mary the bible says that jesus was named by the father given to him by the angel gabriel he named jesus this son is going to be of unto you his name jesus then he says not only that his kingdom would have no end and so jesus was not your normal baby and many people still have jesus in a crib listen that's the living god his entrance into the world was in the form of a baby he never ceased to be god even though he was in the form of a baby now one of the things that would stir up the pharisees and sadducees and make them hate him is something like this look in john chapter 8 for a moment and when jesus is speaking here and um this eighth chapter and notice if you will in this um let's start with um verse verse 58 listen what's happening um he's talking to the jewish rabbis and so forth verse 56 your father abraham rejoiced to see my day and he saw it and was glad so the jews said to him you're not yet 50 years old how have you seen abraham listen to this jesus said to them truly truly i say to you before abraham was born i am not i was but i am because he's always been and listen to what they did therefore they picked up stones to throw at him but jesus hid himself and went out of the temple they could not stand the thought that he said that he lived before abraham did but of course he did and then in the 17th chapter of john look there for just a moment 17th chapter of john and the 24th verse listen to what he says father says jesus praying i desire that they also whom you have given me be with me where i am so that they see may see my glory which you have given me for you loved me before the foundation of the world you either have to believe that jesus christ is who he says is or is not so if he's ever lied about one thing you could you could absolutely discredit him he says before abraham was way back on the thousands years ago he said i am and he says you love me he says the father loves me before the foundation of the world so when somebody says who is this jesus well he's not just a baby he was alive way long time before the virgin mary was ever born so abraham was abraham was back on the thousands of years ago jesus was back beyond him in eternity passed so when somebody says well when did jesus begin he had no beginning well how do you understand that i don't claim to understand that for the simple reason the bible says that god has reserved some things for himself that he will not reveal and so therefore i put it this way the bible is very clear that jesus existed back before abraham and he and listen he and the father and the holy spirit created all of this all the constellations and everything up yonder that go in such perfect order so somebody says well i don't i don't believe that god created this well sir tell me who do you think created it well i don't think anybody created it because you can't exceed god well then how do you think it got there it just happened my friend it takes more faith to believe that all of this just happened than to believe that god created it let me tell you why because it has such absolute perfect design everything is perfect about what god created and if you study science in the skies you think how in the world could notice there's no way all of this could have just happened because everything is perfectly designed and then ordered by god so we say he was born into a world that uh he created and uh and he said apart from him nothing came into being look if you will in colossians 1 and what paul said about him colossians 1 and uh just uh just past philippians there and notice what he says in this first chapter of colossians he says speaking of jesus in verse 14 in whom we have redemption that's our salvation the forgiveness of sins now watch this he is the image of the invisible god the firstborn of all creation i'm coming back to that but by him all things were created both in the heavens and on earth visible and invisible whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things have been created through him and for him now what does he mean when he says he was the firstborn of all creation that first what he's referring to here is simply this in the hebrew family the firstborn son he managed he was the one who received the most and so he when he says the firstborn of all creation jesus is the manager of this creation he is head of it all and if you'll notice also all the way over to uh hebrews go to hebrews for a moment just that first chapter i want you to look at a verse or two here verse one of hebrews chapter one god after he spoke long ago in the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways in these last days he has spoken to us in his son that is in jesus whom he appointed heir of all things through whom also he made the world if you believe the word of god you have to believe that jesus christ was in the process with the god the father and the holy spirit making this world creating this world which has such absolute design to believe that all of that was by chance has absolutely no validity whatsoever so you have to decide well you're going to believe what men say and cannot prove or what the bible says and all through the scriptures listen there are no errors this is the living word of god and so when we say that he was born into a world he created that's the way he did it and this is a world which expresses the wisdom of god the power of god the beauty of god and the presence of god the third statement i want to make is this jesus was born of an earthly mother and the heavenly father earthly mother in the heavenly father the scripture says in luke that first chapter when gabriel and mary were talking because she said well how can these things happen since i'm a virgin have not been with man because it was the work of the heavenly father through the holy spirit which meant that jesus was born of a virgin and some people say well i don't i don't think that's all that important let me tell you why it's all important jesus came into this world in order to forgive us of our sins the cleanses of our sins and watch this carefully all those sacrifices in the old testament were foreshadows of the ultimate sacrifice that would come so all that killing of goats and bulls and so forth that didn't make anybody save but it was a foreshadowing and theirs was of faith in the coming messiah and so when you ask the question well well why did why did jesus have to die because when adam and eve sinned every single person born after them had an old sin nature every single one of us has a sin nature that is every single one of us is possessed with a little bit of a or a very strong desire for things that are not right things that don't fit with god's plan for our life things that are sinful and idolatrous and all the rest everybody was born with it this is why your little two-year-old that you think that god sent you just straight from heaven sometimes he can be as obnoxious as he can be because you say do not touch that vase you turn your head crash so what would make a two-year-old child who doesn't even know what sin is all about because he has a sinful nature now watch this watch this carefully this is why jesus had to be born of a virgin had to be born of a virgin because in being born without man seed he had no sin nature if jesus had been born naturally and normally he would have had a sin nature and therefore he couldn't die for your sins and mine he had to die for his own sin the fact that he was virgin born and absolutely sinless and somebody says well how do you know it was sinless well let me ask you a question what did he do wrong what sin did he commit what mistake did he make his life was perfect because it was god in human flesh that's how god came to this earth in human flesh jesus had to be the perfect son of god sinless in order to die for your sins and mine god sent him for that purpose he was the ultimate final divine sacrifice that would be taking place at the cross on the cross and when he died he paid your sin debt and mine and the sins of the whole world he was the only acceptable sacrifice because he was the only sinless sacrifice animals didn't do it it was the life of the lord jesus and remember jesus is god in the human flesh so it was absolutely perfect he was absolutely sinless and therefore that made him an acceptable sacrifice in the eyes of the father and he died crucified and we think well the romans did it no god did it god sent him to die the romans were simply the ones who nailed them and who were the tools for crucifying him but it was god the father who crucified him because he came into this world for that specific reason so when somebody says well i don't believe in the virgin birth well you don't believe in the real jesus then and secondly you don't believe in the virgin birth because you don't believe the word of god you don't believe in the virgin birth listen if there were no virgin birth you wouldn't be saved the son of god came in order to save us from our sins and the virgin birth was a part of that now unbelief in the virgin birth somebody says is that important and you know you can go to colleges and seminars and schools well the virgin breath's not important you remember this if jesus christ was not sinless he would have had to die for his own sin and he couldn't die for your sin my sin and his sin he listen that would have been like sacrificing a sheep that was sick had been sick for six months they would never do that had to be a perfect animal in those days with a spotless as the bible says and jesus had to be the perfect sacrifice for us very important that he was virgin born now another thing i want you to notice here is this jesus was both god and the son of god now people say well how could that possibly be well i want you to turn to uh john chapter 10 for a moment look in john chapter 10. let's go to uh 20 27 jesus speaking to those who were with him my sheep hear my voice and i know them and they follow me i give eternal life to them and they will never perish and no one will be able to snatch them out of my father's hand once you're a child of god eternally a child of god the devil can't take you out of god's hand nothing and nobody can then he says my father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of my father's hand look at this next verse i and the father are one do you get that i am the father one jesus is the visible living god and notice what happened the jews picked up stones again to stone him they could not stand the idea that jesus would claim to be god it was beyond their comprehension then move on over to the 12th chapter of john for a moment and i want you to look if you will in verse 42. nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in him but because of the pharisees they were not confessing him for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue let me just say this to you you should never be ashamed of jesus christ never under any condition be ashamed of him or deny him listen for they love the approval of men rather than the approval of god watch this you go to work tomorrow you start talking about jesus or you would like to but you don't because you're afraid of being rejected what you watch this are you listening say amen you join up with those who love approval of others than the approval of god that's exactly what they did and jesus cried out and said he who believes in me does not believe in me but in him who sent me that is i'm representing god he who sees me sees the one who sent me he who sees me sees the one who sent me and if you go over to let's see the 14th chapter look at the 14th chapter for a moment and this is a wonderful chapter about jesus coming and heaven and so forth and then when you come into the seventh verse he says if you had known me you would have known my father also and now he says from now on you know him and have seen him philip said to him lord show us the father and it is enough for us and jesus said to him have i been so long with you and yet you have not come to know me philip he who has seen me has seen the father how can you say sure as the father because listen to this jesus is the living god the living person of the invisible father the lord god almighty whom he sent for that reason then if you move all the way over to colossians again and i want you to just notice a verse here very important we're talking about who he is and why you ought to believe in him without any question in your mind in this first chapter look if you will in the 15th verse because here it says it clearly listen to this he jesus is the image physical living man male image of the invisible god the firstborn of all creation now what does he say firstborn of all creation here's the reason because in the hebrew family the firstborn son for example uh he was sort of the maintainer and so that's the image that he's speaking of here that jesus is supreme in this life he's he manages this world and he's the one to whom we pay allegiance and so he is the image of the invisible god so when you when people say well i don't believe in that jesus then you don't believe in almighty god because he and the father are one if you've seen him you've seen the father and if you believe in him you believe in the father and so he says he's the image of the invisible god now think for just a moment how blessed we are that you and i we could have been born 3000 years ago and all of those saints of god who believed in god and trusted god they sacrificed animals in the shedding of that blood all of that was a foreshadowing of what was to come but suppose you took your bible and you turned to malachi the last chapter the last verse sliced your bible at that point and threw away the new testament think about think about how foreign god would be to you but listen the fact that jesus came in the living visible presence of a man he was still god but he was man he was the god man god sent him in order to give us a view of the heavenly father like we would never have known before as wise and as good as godly and as natural in many ways as those old testament prophets and saints they were always looking forward to something looking forward to the coming of the messiah you and i have been had the privilege of living in the time when jesus christ was born crucified resurrected and now for these 2000 years we've been sharing the gospel of jesus christ that has been transforming lives everywhere it's all wrapped up in the coming of the lord jesus christ and his personhood he is not just another man he is god the living god invisible form so we could have even a better relationship with him now jesus teaching offered oftentimes was perplexing people couldn't figure out well what in the world does that mean so let me just give you a few examples um in the fifth chapter which is the sermon on the mount of matthew turn there for just a moment and i want to look at a couple of things he says something right here that even we often times probably have to wrestle with matthew chapter 5 11-12 and you know once in a while i'll hear somebody say well i don't believe the bible except i do believe the sermon on the mount it's so beautiful and i believe the ten commandments well listen are you listening carefully watch this there are no two passages of scripture in the whole bible that demand the most of us than these two so look at this fifth chapter and the 11th and 12th verse so these are things that were difficult for those folks to accept and us today verse 11 blessed are you when people insult you persecute you falsely sell kinds of evil against you because of me rejoice and be glad for your reward in heaven is great for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you now let me ask you a question how many of you just tickle pink when somebody persecutes you you just love it you just can't wait to get some more of it under you pout and want to go home from your job because you've had your your feelings hurt and they don't appreciate you and they've insulted you and they've hurt your feelings do you know why you're to rejoice yeah that's what he says he says rejoice be glad when they do these things to you so why would you want to rejoice and be glad you know why i'll tell you why because listen to what he says paul said listen he said god causes all things to work together for good to those who love him into the call according this purpose and and somebody says well how can it be good that somebody's insulted me i'm going to tell you what do you want to know why some of you do do you want to know why you should rejoice when people abuse you misuse you do you really want to know why all right this side wants to know why this time come on tell me would you you want to know or not here's the reason because when you respond in a joyful way or a forgiving way here's what happens the bible says first of all god's going to reward you greatly for it and secondly here's the other reason more than likely you're going to be in the presence of more than one person and other people hear about it and when somebody sees you very very highly insulted hurt your feelings and just demeaned you in all kind of ways and you said well i appreciate you expressing your opinion thank you very much here's what the last person says wait a minute that can't be true because they've done that to me i don't want to suck them on and so what happens he says he says we are to rejoice well because god has given us the opportunity to be in a position to be a wonderful testimony and i can look back at sometimes in my life i have to admit as a pastor folks have done certain things to me i didn't rejoice at the moment i'll admit that but i got over it i got on my knees and i got home i said okay lord you know what i'm thinking and i don't want that in my life i'm asking you to forgive me for that and let's just move on so i i like to think i've gotten over all that in my life but i think those are the kind of things we have to deal with now look if you will in verse 43 of this fifth chapter also he says you've heard that it was said you should love your neighbor and hate your enemies but i said to you love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you you say now wait a minute god doesn't expect me to love my enemies well let me tell you how he does that doesn't mean i'm to like my enemies i don't like anything about them i don't like what they do i don't like what they believe i don't like what they stand for and i would i would not like that in my life at all i can separate everything they represent from them as a lost person who needs to be saved that's what i love i don't love i don't love them maybe the way they dress i don't love what they drink i don't love any of that kind of stuff or their religion or whatever it might be i can love the person because here's somebody who needs jesus christ as their savior otherwise what did he mean and i'm sure jesus was dealing with them in a way because the sadducees the pharisees they were just obnoxious putting burdens on people and so they had to deal with that and so that's why he said it now he says something else here that heart people have a hard time with in matthew chapter 20 and that is he says you really want to be great look in the 20th chapter of matthew and look if you will in the 27th verse he says 27th verse whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave now it's interesting the word he used to use the slave is dulos which means that the the most humble of the slaves he's the he is the slave who met you at the door and washed your feet he says he that's greatest among you will be a slave and you think about people today got to be first got to be first got to have pro high priority you got to have recognition got to have this got to have that jesus said whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave he says it's the attitude listen those who conquer have the attitude of human humility and wanting desiring to be used in a way that pleases an honest god and you may have a job for example in your industry whatever that may be and you think well i will never be a superintendent i'll never be the boss i'll never be this out of the other well you don't know whether you will or not it may be you change your attitude change your spirit no telling what god may be with you but it's the attitude that is i'm willing to be a servant and we think about servants we all have negative attitudes jesus was the servant of all servants and he said from his perspective he wishes to be first among you shall be your slave god is honored when you and i submit ourselves to serving other people whatever that may require of us then if you will turn to mark chapter 8 for a moment and uh here is another passage that's demanding of us and this is why i say passages of scripture that were very difficult for them to accept mark chapter 8 verse 35. and verse 34 says he summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them if anyone wishes to come after me he must deny himself take up his cross and follow me what does it mean by denying himself that simply means this i deny myself of anything and everything that keeps me from being what god wants me to be it doesn't it doesn't work in my life and he says for listen for whoever wishes to save his life will lose it but whoever loses his life for my sake in the gospels will save it for what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul or what will a man give in exchange for his soul and you see they didn't understand all that and people today said you know what that's just gibberish no it's not it's a sense of humility and since i've given ourselves away to the lord jesus christ to use us any way he sees fit to do so and let's go back to matthew the sermon on the mount again that fifth chapter because here is something that had to be very very difficult for them to accept in those days when he says in matthew chapter 5 verse 5 blessed are the gentle for they shall inherit the earth gentle and a roman empire where swords was what life was all about and warfare and slavery and poverty and this thing of being gentle for they shall inherit the earth a gentle heart is a humble heart a gentle heart is an easy heart a gentle heart is looking out for someone else a gentle heart is not rash and defensive a gentle heart and so they didn't understand that in those days and i think a lot of people don't today either blessed are the gentle he says for they shall inherit the earth and you see we think well uh you never get anywhere in life to unless you get tough and just you know be it over someone else and lord it over them that's that's what the world thinks that's not what god thinks that's not the way he operates then he says for example in matthew 10 34 watch this carefully do this is jesus now do not think that i came to bring peace oops what do i think that i came to bring peace don't we calling the prince of peace yes did not think that i came to bring peace on the earth i did not come to bring peace but a sword now what in the world could that mean that he's going to bring a sword and when he's a prince of peace here's what it means for example whenever there's a group and that group is unsaved and somebody gets saved he says it's like a sword in their relationship shut them out he says i came to bring a sword not peace the peace that comes comes to all of us who trust him as their savior and walk in his spirit it does not mean we will not be a weapon or a sword as he says in somebody else's life that changes their way of living and so he gets the wife saved and and the sword comes in and she lives a godly life next thing you know the husband gets saved then the kids get saved i can tell you a lot of stories of people that's exactly what happened the sword came but listen it was a sword of the word of god dipped in the love of god in the heart of that person who received christ makes all the difference in the world so then let's look at a couple other things jesus name is like no other name there's no name like his and if you look in philippians 2 for a moment and uh let's start with verse 9. for this reason also god highly exalted him that's jesus and look bestowed on him the name which is above every name that is god the father gave jesus his name god the father bestowed on him the name jesus gabriel told uh mary that's to be his name look at this bestowed on him the name of jesus which is above every name so that at the name of jesus every knee not might ever need will bow of those who are in heaven on earth and under the earth and that every tongue will confess that jesus christ is lord to the glory of god now what does that say you may not like him but i'm going to tell you this you can mark this down because god said it one of these days you're going to confess that jesus christ is the lord no matter what you've said about him here and now one of these days you will bow your knees before the lord jesus christ as your judge have foolish to live without him you will confess if you say well i'll die before i confess him you'll die before you confess him and go to hell on your own choice it only be because you chose to deny you chose to reject the son of god who is god in the flesh who came invisible form so you and i could understand better who god is and what he's like and all the rest every knee will bow every tongue will confess that jesus christ is lord to the glory of god he says it will happen and indeed it will happen and for example he says when he sent the disciples out uh preaching the gospel made it very clear what that gospel was about here's what he said in the 24th chapter of luke he said and the repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in his name jesus to all the nations beginning from jerusalem and let's think about this for example when you were baptized how were you baptized they baptized the name of the father the son and the holy spirit you were baptized in the trinity baptized in the name of the father the son the holy spirit listen the name of jesus isn't just the name it is the name of the living god it is the name of the visible god here on earth when you walk this earth and so when you think about for example when you pray in this 14th chapter of john and he says whatever you ask in my name that is you're asking according to his will according to his purpose according to what pleases and honors him he says he's going to answer it so when we pray he's there we give thanks in his name we're baptized in his name and then in the 18th chapter of matthew something that's going on right now in this service he listen to what he says in verse 20 of matthew 18 for where two or three have gathered together in my name i am there in their midst so you and i can say good morning jesus because he's here how many times is he's here he's here in every single one of our hearts who's saved this is why we give an invitation we give an invitation to invite you to accept jesus christ as your personal savior so when you step out of this place christ is in your heart to be everything he is and will be in the life of a believer now uh some people he he's just a figure what i want you to see is this everything we've said up to this point he's not just a figure he's god he is god in the flesh who died on the cross for our sins who died and was buried and resurrected and i would say to all these other religions who claim this and claim that and claim the other where is your leader dead in the grave where is jesus resurrected seated the father's right hand making intercession for us that is the testimony of the word of god now he he reminds us and warns us in this 10th chapter of matthew he warns us of what's uh what people's attitude's going to be he says we will be hated by all men for his sake so everything that's going on these days this is exactly what he said would do these things will happen but you and i take a stand listen if you believe the son of god you believe in jesus christ as your personal savior you and i should never be ashamed of him and when somebody uses jesus name as a curse word or phrase i'm here to tell you their invoice oh that's not who god is yes he is he says he bestowed on him the name jesus that makes it the number one name with all the high priorities that could be given to jesus he gave it to him and then he says uh when his disciples you will recall in this fourth chapter of acts his disciples have been preaching the gospel and they healed this man at the temple gate and the scripture says and he began to ask him about money and in this third chapter of acts and the fourth fifth verse peter along with john fixed his gaze on him and said look at us and he began to give them his attention expecting to receive some money but peter said i do not possess silver and gold but what i have i give to you in the name of jesus christ the nazarene walk and seizing him by the right hand he raised him up he began to walk with the synagogue and praise the lord and the sadducees and pharisees but have a fit because they could not do anything about it whatsoever and they finally had them arrested which was a good thing in a way because what it did it gave them an audience with the leadership they wouldn't have had that otherwise and so here's what happens they imprison them and they all get together to hear what they've got to say so they at least gave peter a moment to speak and here's what he said let it be known to all of you and to all the people of israel that by the name of jesus christ the nazarene whom you crucified whom god raised up from the dead by his name this man stands here before you in good health he is listen he jesus is the stone which was rejected by you the builders but which became the chief cornerstone and there is salvation in no one else but there is only one name no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved but the name of jesus christ no other name that'll bring salvation but the name of jesus christ himself then i'd say the last thing this and that is jesus came into the world the first time as a baby he will return as reigning king and judge of all mankind and you can look in the 25th chapter of matthew that long passage there about jesus coming and separating the sheep from the goats and the fact that he is the judge of all mankind now who is this jesus this jesus is everything we've said this morning because i've given you a text of scripture about every single one of them the next time somebody challenges you about jesus and says who do you think he is pull out your notes and what you ought to do is take these notes home this afternoon write them in the back of your bible and sort of abbreviate whatever you want to abbreviate get them in your mind and every one of these points is very important because it says this is who jesus is this is the person you accepted this is the savior who is your savior he is the only savior and by his name and his name alone we get to heaven here's what he said no one comes to the father but by me and listen the same thing that stirred up the sadducees in those days and made it them wanted to stone him to death that very statement stirs up people today you mean to tell me there's only one way only one way well that's selfish that's a greedy god or that's a prejudiced god no it's not he sent his son the lord jesus to down the cross to save you from your sins there is no other way no other place and no other person you say well i'm not so bad you need to get another look you have an old sin nature and that old sin nature is going to take you straight down and away separated from god for all eternity you have no other church you say well i'm a good person that's good in your eyes but the bible says all have sinned and come short of the glory of god the soul that sinneth it shall die the wages of sin is death every knee shall bow every tongue shall confess that jesus christ is the lord he is god it is appointed when the man wants to die and after this the judgment think if you don't trust jesus you should save you think what is your alternative when you face death if you're wise you'll ask the lord to forgive you of your sins forgive you for demeaning his name and put your life in his hands and you can do that right where you are you ask him to forgive you of your sins and maybe the things you've said about him sins that you've committed in your life tell him that today you are trusting his death at calvary as full payment for your sin you're surrendering your life to jesus who is god in the flesh who came for the purpose of saving you putting your life in his hands and from this point on by his help and his guidance and the strength of the holy spirit you choose to live a godly life through the last moment of your life i pray that you'll be wise enough to do just that and father how grateful we are today you sent us the savior and you have made it crystal clear in the word who he is why he came and why he deserves our allegiance our submission a total surrender we bless you today father and we bless jesus your son amen jesus came to bridge the gap between god and us giving all who believe salvation through faith at intouch.org learn more about following jesus and strengthening your walk with god there you can see today's message an introduction to jesus you'll also find a library of free and inspiring messages from dr stanley sermon notes and resources to help you share the gift of faith in christ with others download the intouch app to take the teaching of dr stanley on the go or follow us on youtube facebook and twitter i used to worry all the time you know the typical stuff and after you worry you second guess yourself of course but now there's like this confidence i never had that before but talking with god and listening i have this peace now it's like the ultimate conversation a promise is a powerful thing i promise to love you as long as we both shall live we all make promises in life you know i'm only a phone call away i promise how many times have you had to break that promise daddy can you play now sure sweetie let me answer one more email i promise god has kept every promise he's made and you can trust the promises of almighty god share a personal message on a beautiful note card from the lens of dr charles stanley enjoy six nautical designs featuring boats from around the world in this 18 card set i love getting a good start creating those little moments that give value to the day and time with god is the most rewarding pattern of them all every day in his presence is such an encouragement the devotions help me connect with god and he empowers my day there is no better way to live than to live every day in his presence sometimes our worst enemy is ourselves we try to control things we shouldn't we gripe gossip and worry and then we often berate ourselves long after our mistake or our sin we can be very critical of ourselves we're quick to replay our worst moments and fret about why we said that unkind word or did that unwise thing how can we let these things go by let's take a look at today's email which reads we're called to forgive others but what about ourselves is this just populist psychology or is it biblically important it is very biblically important forgiving oneself is essential to your health your happiness and your godly life and of course what you accomplish in life the difficult aspect of forgiveness think about this for a moment unforgiveness is heavy it's a very heavy weight you carry with you nobody else may see it it'll show up sooner or later but forgiving yourself is one thing god's forgiveness is something else and oftentimes we can accept his forgiveness but not our own and the truth is we're never complete until we experience three levels of forgiveness in our life the forgiveness of god forgiveness taught others and forgiveness toward our self and that last one is the one that seems to weigh the heaviest and is the most difficult to deal with now one of the reasons simply because forgiving of ourselves it's so ingrained within us we think well how how can i forgive myself for what i've done you can forgive yourself listen because god's forgiven you his grace and love and his atoning death at calvary he says if we confess our sins he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness so it all boils down to this does god lie no he does not he tells the truth yes he does and you would admit to that then why not forgive yourself since god has forgiven you you say well but there are no buts if almighty god who knows you perfectly who loves you absolutely who wants the best for you who died for you if he's willing to forgive you you must be willing to forgive yourself and that begins with an honest confession of what you think the issue is and reaffirm in your heart the promises of god's word you see if you don't read the word of god you've got a lot of reasons for believing and thinking that this thing is still in you and upon you and that you need to suffer as a result let me ask you a question how long do you need to suffer in other words what's your penalty for this whole issue of unforgiveness let me just say this whatever your penalty is you're already paying it forgiveness is a gift of god it is a gift that we receive from him and it is a gift i must express to myself if you're going to be essentially happy and healthy and live a godly life you must be willing to forgive yourself well thank you for joining us today at in touch and if you're looking for a life filled with the grace and peace of god allow jesus christ to live his life in and through you and you will experience just that leading people worldwide into a growing relationship with jesus christ and strengthening the local church in touch with dr charles stanley is a presentation of in touch ministries this program is made possible by the grace of god and your faithful prayers and gifts

Channel: In Touch Ministries

Views: 449,291

Keywords: Charles F. Stanley, Dr. Charles Stanley, Dr. Stanley, In Touch, InTouch, God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, Christian, Christmas (Holiday), Charles Stanley (Author), Jesus Christ (Deity), Television Program (Media Genre), Intro

Id: EiqRntZ4N4E

Length: 52min 52sec (3172 seconds)

Published: Wed Dec 17 2014