The Testimony of Brad Nelson
We should be concerned with one thing, and that is finding the truth. Why would one want to waste his or her time with deception? I am testifying now that through the grace of God I have found the truth in a person: The Lord Jesus Christ! Jesus Himself says in John 14:6, “…I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Let me explain how I came to know Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Saviour.
I was raised in a family that went to church every Sunday, I was baptized as a baby, and confirmed at the age of eighteen. Yet if I had been honest with myself, I would have had to admit, I didn’t have any real assurance of salvation. Ephesians 2:8,9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” When I look back on my life I see that there was an emptiness within me; the peace and joy the Bible spoke of I had never experienced because I had never been born again. John 3:3, “…Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
I had come to a point in my life when I knew I was a sinner and needed to be saved. Romans 3:10, “…As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one:”, Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Many people are trying to outweigh their bad with their good, but the Bible says in James 2:10, “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.” Being guilty of breaking God’s law means we deserve hell. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” This verse is not only speaking of physical death, but eternal separation from God. Revelation 20:14, 15, “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”
The good news; however, is that God in His love and mercy has provided a way for us to be saved, and that is through repentance, and faith in Jesus Christ. II Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Repentance is a change of mind, turning from self to God, admitting that He is right and we are wrong. There must be a point in our lives when we come to God with a repentant heart and then place our faith in Jesus Christ alone, through prayer asking Him to save us. Then are we clothed in His righteousness. Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”, Jude 24, “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,”
The day of August 21, 2000, I came to God with a repentant heart and was saved. I now have the peace and joy the Bible speaks of and I have real assurance of salvation. I John 5:13, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
If you have never personally come to the Lord in salvation please consider this verse, Isaiah 45:22, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” God commands each person to be saved. Have you been saved?