Would You Like to Begin Your Life Over? by Eddie Foster

II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Would you like to start over?  We can’t go back physically, but we can start over. The hunger to begin again is universal. People have done all sorts of things to bring change, but they didn’t help. Is there a land of beginning again?  Paul said there is, but people have trouble getting there because of several reasons.

Wrong directions to the land of beginning again:  to go somewhere you have to get on the right road. We can all know we’re not lost, that we’re on the right road spiritually.  Not just any road goes to the destination of heaven.  Moral virtue won’t do it. Should we live a good, moral life?  Yes! But we won’t get good enough for heaven. We get right with God through Jesus Christ.  Religious education won’t do it.  Paul had more religious training than most, but he was lost. Religion is not the same as salvation. Some have a form of godliness. The Pharisees are a good example. If all we’re doing is trying to work our way to heaven, we’ve missed the mark. The only way is to go by Jesus Christ. The Pharisee was lost in spite of his goodness.  A change of opinion won’t work. This only affects the head. The change must occur in the heart. It’s in our nature to do wrong. We have to be taught the right way and our nature needs to be changed.  Conviction alone won’t do it. Herod, Felix and Agrippa were all convicted when Paul presented them with the gospel. Neither of them accepted Christ as Savior.  Convicted but not saved. 

Who can go to heaven?  Paul said we must be in Christ. Jesus died for everyone. None of us deserve it, but when we repented and asked him to save us, he did. Upper class?  Doesn’t matter.  Middle class?  Doesn’t matter?  Lower class?  Doesn’t matter.  Jesus died for all because all must be saved.  There are no mental or moral restrictions. The woman at the well was of very low morals, yet Jesus forgave her. Zacchaeus was a crooked tax collector. Jesus saved him. Paul killed Christians.  All these were saved.  From the youngest to oldest, all can be saved.

How do we reach the land of beginning again?  To be in Christ is to be a new creation. This brings about new desires, new hopes, a new purpose for living. Life begins when Jesus comes to live in our heart. Do you remember when you asked Jesus to forgive your sins?  Come to him for the satisfaction of becoming a new creature in Christ.