Jesus Can Change any Life

Pray – (1/2 minute)

Read – (2 1/2 minutes) – “And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. . . . And this was his message: ‘After me will come on more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’” (Mark 1:4-8)
      Passage: Colossians 1:19-23

        Before we had GPS on cell phones or in our car, we had to follow a map for directions. Some people (like me) didn’t like looking at a map and figured we knew how to get where we wanted to go. I’ve had the experience of driving on a new road and realizing after a while that I had gone the wrong way. The answer was not to keep going in that direction. It was to stop, turn around and go in the opposite direction. That is the picture of biblical repentance.
        Repentance is not just feeling sorry for sin. It is realizing you are going in the wrong direction and making a decision to turn around. It is to stop trusting in yourself and turning to Jesus as Savior and Lord. John the Baptist called on people to turn back to God in preparation for the Messiah, but He told them that the Messiah would change their lives forever through the power of the Holy Spirit. The good news of Christmas is that Jesus can change any life, but for that to happen, one must repent and turn to Him by faith. Thank God for the change He has made in you.    

Apply - (2 1/2 minutes)
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Pray - (1 1/2 minutes)