Life is filled with stories.
We read stories, listen to stories, act out stories, and tell stories.
People love telling stories, ESPECIALLY if those stories are about themselves.
So, it makes me wonder: "If we love talking about ourselves so much, then why don't we tell the greatest story of our lives more?"
What is this story? It is the story of how we became God's children.
And that is precisely the story that I am going to tell you today.
This story starts when I was around five or six years old. I don't remember exactly what I got into trouble for or how I responded, but I do remember that that was the day my Mom showed me verses from the Bible about my sin and my need for salvation, and that was the day when I prayed and asked God to forgive my sin and received Jesus’ salvation.
I believe that day was when I was truly saved, but the story doesn't end there.
When I was around nine, I started to doubt my salvation. I remember hearing sermons where the preachers said:
"You shall know them by their fruit! If you don't see fruit then you might not be truly a child of God. Also, if you haven't seen a change in your life since you were saved, you may not really be a Christian either!"
These are not bad statements, but they scared me. I always wondered whether or not I really had fruit, but the thing that most worried me was the fact that I felt like I hadn't changed any since I accepted Christ as my Savior. I mean, I was only five when I trusted in Jesus Christ to save me! I didn't know what I had been like before that! I didn't know if I had changed at all!
Also, I didn't feel saved. I thought if I was really saved, I would feel saved. I would feel covered. I would feel different. I would feel forgiven.
I struggled from when I was nine to when I was around eleven or twelve. I knew the truth from Scripture. I knew that my feelings weren't what mattered (truth is), and I knew that it wasn't about praying some “magic words.”
I knew the truths from 2 Timothy 2:13: “If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.”
(Basically, no matter how much we doubt or find ourselves with little faith, God’s faithfulness and love remains the same. It’s not about a feeling.)
So, I continued to pray almost every night, afraid that I would die in my sleep:
"Lord!" I would say, "If I'm not truly saved, please save me! If I'm not saved, please save me!"
But I continued to struggle.
Then, one year when I was an older junior camper at a Christian camp, I had a one-on-one conversation with my counselor. I told her about my fears, and my struggles. I admitted to her that I struggled with doubting my salvation.
She looked straight into my eyes.
"Do you believe that Jesus died for you on the cross to forgive your sins, NOW?" She asked.
"Well-yes," I stammered. Of course I believed that!
"Have you asked Jesus to save you and forgive you in the past?" She asked.
I nodded slowly, "Yes."
"Well," She shrugged. "Then you're saved!"
I was shocked. What she had just told me struck me hard. It seemed so simple, so easy to understand! How could I ever have doubted my salvation in the first place? Was that really all? There really were no “magic words” in praying a certain prayer? But I knew in my heart that what she had just revealed to me was truth. I just needed to someone to lay it all out flat for me, and that is exactly what she did.
To this day, I don't think that my old counselor knows just how much help that conversation was. Someday, I would like to tell her.
After that conversation, I still struggled some with believing that I had truly been forgiven and redeemed by God, but I found myself replaying her questions in my head, and repelling my doubts and fears by answering them. That conversation may have been the best conversation I have had in my entire life!
But why? Why did this conversation help me so much? Why did this truth that my counselor gave me hit me so hard?
Well, the answer is in the Bible. In Romans 10:9, Paul says: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
If we ask Christ to forgive us, and confess Him as our Saviour, and if we believe that he died and rose again, we will be saved. This passage doesn’t include a feeling you are supposed to have afterwards or a certain amount of good works you are going to have to do to achieve this Salvation because none of that is what salvation is. Christ is the only way. Believe in Him.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 'Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” - John 3:16-17
Even though I don’t remember if my counselor shared this verse from Romans with me that day or even if she shared with me the verses from John 3, the processes that she led me through were the same. She wanted to know if I had confessed and if I had believed.
And I had.
So THAT is the most important story of my life.
Now, I just want to say one more thing: When I was little, I remember a conversation that I had with a friend from church. It went something like this...
"I never share my testimony, because it is so boring."
"Yeah, sometimes I wish I hadn't gotten saved so early, so that I would have a more interesting testimony story to tell."
"There is really nothing to tell. Man, I wish I could be like those people who could fill a whole book with their salvation testimony!"
"Yeah, me too. But my testimony is nothing like that."
"Yeah, me neither."
My friend and I were telling ourselves LIES. Your testimony is unique. It is special. It doesn't matter if you were saved as a little child or not! Our testimonies are one of the most valuable things we have to tell. My Dad tells me that our salvation testimonies are one of our most powerful witnessing tools. I think I agree with him.
So, in conclusion, we love talking, and we love telling stories. Why don't we tell the greatest story that has ever happened to us?
We like telling others about our newest toys and gadgets, or our favorite Christmas presents, but what about the best gift ever given?
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.” - Ephesians 2:8-9
The above two verses have substance for both Christians and non-Christians. We are told what true salvation is (a gift from God and not anything we can earn on our own!) and we are also provoked to go tell about that gift by the very imagery that is used: the picture of a present.
Last Christmas, I got a really nice Bible that I had wanted for a while. I loved it. I showed it to all my family members, and obsessed (way more than necessary!) to them about how nice it was, how it had great Bible plans in it, and how it (above all things!) had the nicety of two bookmarks! Basically, I told everyone about this Bible-gift because it was one of my favorite presents!
Dear Christian, Salvation is our greatest gift. If we have accepted Christ into our lives than we have unwrapped a bigger and more important package than any wedding or Christmas gift, and the treasure that lies inside this package is both eternal and invaluable. How could we not tell others? I personally am going to try to tell my salvation testimony more! What will you do?
Dear Unbeliever, if you knew that there was a package waiting on your front doorstep that contained everlasting life and happiness, how could you not open it? How could you not rip off the wrapping paper, and accept what’s inside? No, you can’t buy it. No matter what you do, you won’t be able to pay for it. And you don’t have to. Don’t let your pride stop you from accepting this gift, and don’t ignore it either. All you have to do is open it by asking for it, and receiving it. Will you?
-- Karis Anne