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Does God require you to keep a certain law to get into heaven? Do you have to live a perfect life? Can you do this? No. God never intended for us to live by a set of laws. That would require us to try to control our lives in our own strength. When we put our trust in Jesus, we are free from laws. We live by a higher standard. We live by another life--Jesus' life. Jesus fulfilled the Law perfectly. Then He offered us an exchange. He offered to take our old dead life and give us His perfect eternal life. Wow! What a gift!
Have you experienced Christ's life living in and through you? It's the only way to live a happy life. The Christian life is impossible to live, so let go of trying to live in your own strength and watch Jesus live His life through you. You'll be glad you did.
Now, use your imagination, as we journey back through time to look at the Life Connection Story "Paul Part 6."
(Story adapted from the New Testament books written by the Apostle Paul, the Gospels, and specifically Acts 27:1 to 28:31.)
My name is Paul. I helped take the good news about Jesus to Europe. Churches started. I wrote letters to the churches and to my friends. I am excited to share with you how God is my very life.
After my trial with Festus and King Agrippa, I set sail for Rome. The wind blew hard against us. I warned the sailors that we might lose the ship and our lives. Then a storm carried the ship off course. The sailors thought they would die. I informed them that the ship would be lost, but they would not die because God assured me that we would live. Some sailors wanted to abandon ship, but the ship's officer did not let them. The high winds continued and soon the big waves broke the ship to pieces. The soldiers wanted to kill the prisoners, so that none would swim away and escape, but the ship's officer said no to that idea. God was protecting me; He wanted me to live. The officer ordered everyone who could swim to jump into the water and swim to land. Everyone else used wooden planks and pieces of the ship to float to the shore.
The amazing thing was, I had freedom in Christ--even as a prisoner. Jesus frees us on the inside even when we are imprisoned by something in our circumstances. We don't have to follow laws to earn acceptance from God. Without Jesus, we can never be good enough for God. Only Jesus is perfect, so when He died on the cross to pay for our sins, God could make us perfect, holy, clean and completely accepted.
When we arrived on the island, a snake bit me on the hand, but it didn't hurt me! The island people called me a god, but I told them it was the real God that protected my hand. Then, a leader on the island welcomed us into his home. I prayed for his sick father and God healed him too. After this, all the sick people on the island came to me, to be healed by God. After three months, we set sail for Rome. The island people supplied us with everything we needed for the journey. God turned a shipwreck into a blessing!
In Rome, I lived alone in a rented house. A guard stayed with me, since I was still under arrest. For two years, I preached about Jesus to everyone who visited me. No one tried to stop me.
I also wrote letters to the churches in other cities. Some of those letters are in the Bible. I wrote that Jesus said we had to be perfect just as God is perfect. That doesn't seem fair, does it? How can we perfectly love, forgive, and show kindness to others? The only way we can do any of this it to allow Christ to do it in and through us.
A person might follow all of God's laws, but if he fails to obey just one command, then the Bible says he is guilty of breaking the entire Law. When we try to "be good" it is hopeless! No one is good enough-except Jesus, because He is perfect. He satisfied God's requirements when He died on the cross, and He is perfect in our place! When we confess our sin to Him, we experience the forgiveness He already gave us. Everyone needs forgiveness. You can have peace with God by trusting in Jesus. The Bible says to stop trying so hard, but instead know that He is God (not us). Saving and changing us is His work, not ours! He'll give you the faith to cooperate with Him, so He can carry out His good purposes in and through you.
Let's thank God for all He has done and for His great love for us. Pray these words of praise to Him:
God, thank You that I don't have to follow laws to earn acceptance from You. As a believer, You make me perfect, holy, clean, and completely accepted. Thank You that I can stop trying so hard. You can carry out Your good purposes in and through me.
Use Acts 27:1 to 28:31 and the Life Connection Story. They will help you complete your Life Connection Response. Then do the Life Connection Activity.
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