In Remembrance of Me

Why do you trust in Christ?

We just had a wonderful communion service at Truth Fellowship Live. At our church, Pastor Terry devotes the entire service to remembering the Lord Jesus. This processes adds greatly to the impact of the service and Pastor Terry always presents communion in new and creative ways that draw us closer to presence of God.

I was drawn during the worship time to the great sacrifice that Jesus made in coming to earth to be a substitute for me and to take my sin upon His own body. In 1 Pet 2:24 we read about His sacrifice; the passage says,

…who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness–by whose stripes you were healed.

Imagine, Jesus the Son of God came to earth in the form of a man. In that form He bore our sins in His body by hanging on a cross. Before His sacrifice for me I was dead in my sins (Eph 2:1), but because of what He did, I was made righteous—I was healed by His stripes.

As I was thinking of these things, I began to remember how it was that I was transformed from being dead in my sins to living in Christ. So, I would like to share my story with you.

My background as a research scientist

Is it possible for a scientist to believe in God? Some say certainly not. Others…well, let me tell you my story. I was a research scientist for more than 30years. During that time I wrote more than 150 scientific papers. I rose to the top in my field and ultimately became a research leader at a government laboratory. On top of that, I have a lovely wife and three great kids. I have many things for which to be thankful.

So, can a scientist believe in God? I do. And I not only believe in God, I depend upon Him and His Son, Jesus Christ. But this was not always the case.

My early life without Christ

Throughout high school I was a poor student; some would call be “not too bright.” Going to college on a football scholarship, I thought little about education or what I would do after college. After bouncing around college for a couple of years, I was challenged to consider the claims of Jesus Christ. As I did, I became more and more convinced that I was missing something in my life. I started to read the Bible to find out what was really true. As I read I began to understand more about some of the Christians I knew. Not fully realizing what I was doing I prayed and asked Jesus Christ to take over in my life. After my prayer I felt as if a tremendous burden had been lifted from my shoulders. Yet, I didn’t understand what was happening. At about the same time a fellow athlete spoke to me about God. He asked if I was a Christian and I told him I thought I was. He invited me to a Bible study; surprisingly I went.

Coming to faith in Christ

After a couple of months I still didn’t fully realize what had happened to me, but I knew something was different in my life. Then I went to a Christian conference. At the conference I learned the Bible says all people are separated from God through disobedience, which the Bible terms sin.

This was bad news for me because “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). I was missing the target with my life—I was missing the standard set by God.

The bad news, however, got even worse. I was guilty before God because of my sin but I was also condemned to eternal death. The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23). I had placed myself in the position of dying and being separated from God for all of eternity. Yet, there was nothing I could, in my own power do about my plight.

Then I heard the first bit of good news. Jesus Christ—the Son of God, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords—died for me. What really struck me was that Christ died for me when I was still a sinner. Romans 5:8 tells us, But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. God loved me so much He sent His Son into the world to die for my sins (John 3:16). Christ had taken the penalty for my sin upon Himself.

Now the news got better. Though I had been separated from God and could be reconciled to Him by trusting in Jesus the Christ (Messiah). This trust came in the form of depending on Him alone to forgive me for my sin. Only then would He give me the right to be in God’s family—only then would I receive eternal life.

And that is exactly what happened to me—I had received eternal life. I did not receive this new life because

• I go to church
• I am a good person
• I don’t lie or steal
• I have never even thought about killing someone
• I am a religious person.

These my well be good things, but none of them could get me into heaven. I knew that I needed to trust in Christ alone and then I would receive eternal life as a gift from God. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

The greatest thing in life is come to the realization that salvation comes through faith—not by our works. Salvation is the gift of God.

For this reason alone, I trust in Christ.

My life after I trusted in Christ

I have been a student of the Bible ever since that conference; sometimes I have done well and other time, not so well. Studying God’s word has given me at least some understanding of what my initial prayer meant. I find I still can’t totally understand what Christ has done for me, but I do know he changed my life. I find I have a longing to interact with people on a personal level. And I love to tell people about my Lord and how He changed me. But most of all, I have a relaxation in life that comes from knowing I have received eternal life through Jesus Christ. Can a scientist believe in God? MOST CERTAINLY.

Are you trusting in your works to get you into heaven?

Perhaps you have never realized your separation from God. He wants you to enter into a relationship with Him. He wants you to become a new creation (Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new—2 Cor 5:17). There is nothing more important than your need to trust Christ.

If you are already trusting in Christ, then are you remembering Him?

• He died for your sins.
• He is now preparing a place for you in heaven.
• He will come again.