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&In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths&

“Have You Met Jesus?”

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Friend, I would ask that before and as you read this little article, you would carefully consider the question proposed in the title. Have you met Jesus? Now, I'm not talking about the Jesus you've seen portrayed on the walls of most churches and in many homes. And I'm not asking if you've read and even studied all about Him? I'm not asking you whether you've ever joined some church or if you've ever been baptized. I'm not asking you if you've lived a good clean life. What I'm asking is the most important question you will ever have to answer and that is, Have you really and truly met Jesus Christ? If, while you are reading this little article, the Lord would strike you dead, are you absolutely certain that you would go to heaven? Please my friend, consider this question most carefully and be as honest with yourself about this as you have ever been. Your answer to this question will mean more to you than any other answer you will ever have to give. The Word of God says, "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." Hebrews 9:27. My friend, the Bible declares it and it is true. You will die and it could very well be before you finish reading this little article. We are all appointed to die, but the devil keeps us so blinded to the nearness of that most definite appointment and we tend to think it will be someday. Someday may be moments or even seconds away and the question I posed to you in the title and the beginning of this article must be answered now, for after the appointment with death is met, the question will no longer be asked.

I wrote an article on 4/4/1996 which I entitled, "How Can We Know?", concerning how one might know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus Christ rose from the grave, and just three days later on 4/7/1996, an article came out in the Spartanburg Herald Journal concerning Easter. The title of their article was, "A day for church and celebration". In this article, a man named Dennis Smith was quoted as saying, "I think somewhere deep inside there's that little spark of hope that it's all true and meaningful." What this man was speaking of was the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, giving eternal life to those who believe on Him. Now this man who was quoted as saying this is a rector, or preacher of a large Episcopal church. Mr. Smith was further quoted to say, "Even if it's just a dying ember, that true religious yearning is still there." The article went on to state that, "Martin Lawrence, a seminary intern at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, agreed." Now, these two men are both well educated men with both having high standing in the church. One is already a preacher and other is studying to be one and yet they both have something much more important in common. They are both lost. Now some may say that I am going out on a limb by making such a statement about a preacher, but a dear preacher friend of mine has said and I agree, "Praise God for that, because that is where the fruit is." It is never my intention to offend someone or to be offensive, but I would much rather offend someone than to see them die and spend eternity in hell. Now, I have never met either of these two men and I have absolutely no idea what kind of lives they live, but if they indeed said what they were quoted as saying in the Spartanburg Herald Journal, then neither of them has really and truly met Jesus Christ and that equals, LOST.

There was a man named Jeffrey Dahmer who a few short years ago was convicted of killing and mutilating and even eating a large number of young men and some other things he did to his victims, which I dare not mention in respect of any ladies and young people who might be reading this little article. Jeffrey Dahmer was killed in a prison and as far as I know, he never accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. If he indeed didn't, he is now in an eternal torment in the lake of fire which is hell. His torment will never end and yet the two men I just mentioned who said that somewhere deep inside there is that little spark of hope that it's all true and meaningful, will go there to the very same hell as Mr. Dahmer. That is unless they meet Jesus before it is everlasting too late. You see, it doesn't matter how good or bad you are, because hell is just as hot and just as painful for the good man as it is for the wicked man. Friend, there is one thing that every creature that God created fears and that thing is fire. And yet, that very thing is what hell is and the devil has men so blinded that they don't fear it. Just like they all believe that they will die someday. My purpose however is not to try and scare anyone, but to make it very clear that just as heaven is real, so too is hell and to try to get you to see the seriousness and the urgency of the question, Have you met Jesus?

Some may ask, "Can a person really and truly meet Jesus after He has already ascended back up to heaven?". Most definitely. The Apostle Paul met Jesus, "And as he journeyed, he came near to Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." Acts 9:3-5. Now, up until that time, Paul, which was then called Saul, had been a very religious man. He had that true religious yearning such as mentioned by the Mr. Dennis Smith in the article in the newspaper. But he was lost. He hung around with all the right people and he was very big in the church, but he was lost. Then he met Jesus and if you will read the rest of the 9th chapter of Acts, you will surely see that God saved him. Now, Paul could have made some changes for the better in his life and been a better man, but he would have still been lost and that is simply because he had not met Jesus.

Up until a few years ago, I was a pretty good church member. I had been baptized and attended church pretty regularly. I knew the laws and did my very best to obey them. I was sure I was saved. I was lost and on my way to hell, because I had not really and truly met Jesus and trusted Him as my very own personal Saviour and Lord. On Friday the 13th of November in 1992, through the grace and mercy of God, I met Jesus and that is why I am writing this little article today. You see, when God saved me He changed me. When God saved Paul He changed him. I did not change myself and Paul did not change himself. God did it. Paul was not perfect after God saved him and neither am I, but we two began a new life. Jesus called it the new birth. When I was born I became a human being and I began a journey toward the death that awaits me. When God saved me, He gave me a new life and I began a new journey. As a child of the flesh, I began to grow. I grew in knowledge and I grew in size. Since the Lord saved me and I have begun this new life with Him, I must grow as well. The fact is that there is but one thing that does not grow and that is something that is dead.

In the beginning of this little article, I asked you to be honest with yourself concerning the question of whether you had really and truly met Jesus. If in reading this article you have realized that you have not, please be sure that this is not the devil telling you this. Only God will call you to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you realize that you are lost and you want to meet Jesus, you can right this very minute. Just call upon Him to save you and He will. A good example of what is required for a man truly to be saved is found in the Book of Mark and chapter 10, verses 46-52 where we read of Jesus healing a blind man named Bartimaeus. Lost people are spiritually blind and only Jesus can give them their sight and make them whole. We read, "And they came to Jericho: and as He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me." Mark 10:46-47. In these two verses of scripture we see the man who knows his hopeless, helpless situation and he hears about Jesus. Friend, I have just told you about Jesus and that there is no other way for you to truly be saved. We also notice in these two verses of scripture that Bartimaeus cried out for Jesus to have mercy on him. You too my friend, if you want to truly meet Jesus must cry out for mercy. Then we read, "And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; He calleth thee." verse 49. No man comes to God through His Son Jesus Christ unless he is called by God. But I have some very good news for you. If you have realized your need of the Saviour, that's God calling you. Please answer His call for He will not beg you. Then we read, "And he, casting away his garment, rose and came to Jesus." verse 50. Notice this very important verse shows that Bartimaeus cast away his garment before approaching Jesus to receive His mercy. That's what is required of every man, woman, boy or girl who will truly meet Jesus and be saved. It's not to say that we are to take our clothes off, but that we must cast away everything that we could possibly rely upon to help save us. A lot of people rely upon how good they have been and when they decide to ask Jesus into their heart, they want to hang on to their goodness as a buffer or a help. Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made upon the cross does not need nor will He allow any help. Then we read on, "And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto Him, Lord, that I might receive my sight." verse51. In this verse we see the Lord asking him what it is he needs. Now, the Lord already knew he was blind and wanted to see, but He wanted him to tell him what his petition was. All who come to the Lord to be saved and have their spiritual eyes opened must confess their need to be healed. And finally we read, "And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way." verse 50. Praise the Lord, saved by grace through faith and nothing else. Again I ask you, Have you met Jesus? If not you can meet Him now and follow Him in the way. God bless you.