I'm a Christian because it's true. I'm a Christian because I need forgiveness. I'm a Christian because Jesus died for me.
I'm a Christian because it actually works. That's quite a declaration, and this is Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. I'm John Fuller. John, today we're coming back to a message from British evangelist, J. John, who we just heard in that clip explaining four reasons why he is a Christian. J. John travels the world proclaiming Christ, and he and his wife, Killie, live near London. He's authored several books, including Jesus Christ, The Truth, and you can get a copy from us here at Focus on the Family. That's right, and here's J. John speaking at an Easter service hosted by Hillsong Australia.
We'll start with a brief recap of what we heard last time on today's episode of Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. I'm going to give you four reasons why I'm a Christian. In fact, I could give you more reasons, but I've kind of, with the time that I've got, I'm going to give you four reasons why I'm a Christian, four reasons why you should be a Christian. Now, there's a very famous verse in the Bible located in John's Gospel, chapter 3, verse 16. It says this, For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, so whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
That little one sentence kind of captures the essence of what Christianity is all about. The first reason why I'm a Christian is because Jesus Christ is alive. His resurrection authenticates everything that he said, everything that he did. After Jesus rose from the dead, he spent 40 days before his ascension into heaven.
During the 40-day period that he taught, he neither withdrew nor added anything that he had taught the previous three years. That is why we can believe Jesus about the past, about the present, and about the future. I am a Christian because Christianity is true. The second reason why I'm a Christian is because I need forgiveness. I need forgiveness.
I gave a whole series of lectures at Oxford University, and the student comes up to me and he says, I've listened to all your lectures and I've enjoyed them. I said, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, and then he goes, this is what he said, but personally, I believe Christianity is a crutch. I said, really? If you broke both of your legs, would you appreciate the use of a wheelchair to get around? He says, yes, I would. I said, if you broke one leg, would you appreciate the use of crutches to get around?
He said, yes, I would. I said, I'm a broken person. So are you. I've never met a person who isn't broken, and I'm so pleased I can lean on Jesus while he's putting me back together again. I'm a Christian because it's true. I'm a Christian because I need forgiveness.
That's why you should become a Christian, because you need forgiveness. The third reason why I'm a Christian is because Jesus did something for me and for you to clear the overdraft. So for God so loved the world, put your name in there, for God so loved John, for God so loved your name in there, for God so loved you, me, he gave his only son. He gave his only son.
Jesus came into this world to do something for us. I was doing my shopping at a supermarket, and the lady at the supermarket on the checkout desk, she had a cross around her neck. So I said, oh, hello. I said, you're a Christian. She says, what? I said, you're a Christian. She says, what are you talking about?
I said, you've got a cross around your neck. She goes, oh, it's nice. I looked at her name, Tracy.
I said, Tracy. It was not nice. It was nasty.
She looked at me as though I was an alien that had just landed from another planet. So I'm putting the stuff on the conveyor belt. We're packing.
We're talking. I said, Tracy, listen, if I had an earring here and you said, what's your earring there? That's a gas chamber.
No. Gas chamber. Why are you wearing a gas chamber earring? I said, well, I want to remember how millions of Jewish people died in the Second World War. And then you said to me, what's your other earring? Oh, that one there? Electric chair.
No. Electric chair. Why are you wearing an electric chair earring? I said, well, I want to remember how certain criminals got executed in the United States. I said, Tracy, what would you think of me if I was walking around with an electric chair earring and a gas chamber earring?
What would you think of me? She goes, I think you've lost it. You've lost it. No. So I said, Tracy, is that because they're symbols of execution?
She goes, yeah, yeah, yeah. I said, so, Tracy, what do you think you're wearing around your neck? I said, Tracy, you've got to remember this. Jesus didn't wear it around his neck. He wore it on his back.
Big difference. And we were in this huge supermarket and it's like the whole place went quiet. Jesus came into this world to clear our overdraft, to clear our overdraft. There was a very famous artist who went back to the very small town where he grew up and he's walking around the stores of the little town. And in an antique shop, he cannot believe it. In the front window is one of his masterpieces. It was one that he'd painted years before he was famous. The frame was broken. It was scratched. It was dented. The painting was dirty, but it was his.
But he couldn't go into the antique store and say, that's my painting. Give it back to me. If he wanted it back, he had to buy it back before he could clean it, restore it, reframe it. Jesus bought us back. Jesus bought us back.
Jesus came into this world and died upon the cross because by dying on the cross, he was purchasing for us forgiveness from the past. You know, when I experienced this, I experienced this on the 9th of February, 1975, the light came on. Straight away, the light came on. My heart, wow. What was that? I didn't know what it was.
Now I know. It was like, wow. My mother said, you're brainwashed. I said, mother, my brain has been washed.
If you only knew, mom, what was in my brain, you'd be pleased it got washed. It is an incredibly amazing experience to be set free from the past. You and I cannot alter the past, but we can bring the past to the altar of God.
And we can be cleansed and set free. I'm a Christian. Why am I Christian?
Because it's true. I'm a Christian because I need forgiveness. I am a Christian because Jesus died on the cross for me to purchase for me forgiveness from the past. Back to our verse. For God so loved the world, he gave his only son.
So whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Jesus died on the cross, rose from the dead to give you and me forgiveness from the past. New life, new life today and a hope for the future. New life today. Today, you know, I love it when you read the Bible and you read about Jesus and you read about who he was and what he did and who he is.
It's amazing. There are so many different images in the Bible to help us capture it. Jesus is the bread of life so that bakers can understand. Jesus is the water of life so that plumbers can understand.
Jesus is the light of the world so that electricians can understand. Jesus is the cornerstone so that architects can understand. Jesus is the great physician so that doctors and nurses can understand. Jesus is a good teacher so that educators can understand. Jesus is the lily of the valley so that florists can understand. Jesus is the rock of ages so that geologists can understand.
Jesus is the true vine so that horticulturalists can understand. Jesus is the righteous one so that judges can understand. Jesus is the pearl of great price so that jewellers can understand. Jesus is wisdom so that philosophers can understand. Jesus is the word so that actors can understand. Jesus is the good shepherd so that farmers can understand. Jesus is the alpha and the omega so that scientists can understand. Jesus is the king of kings so that royalty can understand. Jesus is the way so that traffic wardens can understand. Jesus is the truth so that politicians can understand.
Jesus is the resurrection so that funeral directors can understand. Jesus is the one. Jesus is the one. Why should you be a Christian? You should be a Christian because it's true. You should be a Christian because you need forgiveness.
You should be a Christian because Jesus died for you so that you can have forgiveness from the past, new life today, and a hope for the future. The word Christian has got the word Christ in it. If you remove the word Christ from the word Christian, you're left with I-A-N. Ian isn't going to help you.
Now, I'm sure Ian's a nice guy, but he ain't going to help you. You know, I meet too many people today who say, oh, yeah, I'm Christian. Yeah, Christian.
And they've got more in common with Ian than they do with Christ. Think of your life like a car. Just for a moment, like a car. OK, the car of your life.
To be a Christian means Christ is in your car. OK, so in a few minutes, I'm going to ask you, if he's not in your car, put him in the car. I'm going to ask you to stand up.
I'm going to ask you to do that. I want him in my car. I know many of you have got him in the car. You've got him in the car.
Others of you haven't. Invite him in tonight. Those of you that have got him in the car, where is he? Do you drive your car to church, unlock the boot or the trunk, get Jesus out for a religious happy hour? And then you say, get back in there. And you're going, no, J. John, he's not in the boot, in the trunk, he's in the car.
Where? On the back seat, a bit of a passenger. No, he's in the front passenger seat. Ah, bit of a companion, but still a passenger. Now you're thinking, we know where you're going with this, J. John.
You don't actually. But you're thinking he's now going to say, ah, is he in the driving seat of the car of your life? I am actually. Is he in the driving seat of the car of your life? Now, everybody who thought, yes, he's in the driving seat of the car of my life.
I have one more question for you. Are you a backseat driver? The car gets to an intersection. Jesus turns left. I'm going down the road of generosity.
I don't want to be general. You know, a lot of people haven't yet heard the sermon on the amount. You get to another intersection. Jesus turns right.
Where are you going? I'm going down the road of forgiveness. I don't want to forgive him. But my belief in Jesus has to affect my behavior.
It has to affect what I do and how I do it. See, it's very easy to say, ah, yeah, Jesus is in my life. Some of you tonight, you know Jesus is in the car of your life, but you need to reposition Jesus. Some of you have got to get him out of the trunk, the boot, out of the back seat. And you've got to say, Jesus, I want you in the driving seat of my life.
Because if he's in the driving seat, this is what's going to happen. His spirit will produce in you and through you love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. So how long have you been a Christian, five months, five years, 15 years? OK, how fruity are you? If you're lacking some of that fruit, that means you've got a little red light in your car flashing saying it's time for a repositioning. So some of you tonight are going to stand up and say, hey, I want him in my life. I want him in the driving seat.
I want my overdraft cleared. Others of you got to say tonight I need to reposition Jesus. I'm a Christian because it's true, because I need forgiveness, because Jesus died for me. OK, let me give you another reason.
One more. I'm a Christian because it works. It works. It actually works.
It makes a difference. Our next door neighbors, they're not Christians yet. They call my wife and I the neighbors from heaven. That's quite encouraging, actually, isn't it?
You won't want to be called the neighbors from the other side, do you? Anyway, the lady, she had a stroke and as a consequence of the stroke, she fell into a coma and had to be admitted into a hospital. And the family came around. She was in intensive care.
The family came around and said, we've just met with the doctors and the doctors have told us that there's no brain activity. And we're going to switch off the life support machine in five days. And my wife said I was away that day. My wife said, oh, listen, is there any way that we can go visit her before you turn the life support machine off?
They said, oh, would you? Because she was so fond of you. And it worked out because I was away. I got back.
We went on the fifth day. So the day after they're going to turn off the life support machine, we go to the hospital, we walk into this intensive care room and she's there on her own. We walk in. I call out to her and I say, hey, the neighbors from heaven are here. My wife's like, be quiet. We're in intensive care. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sorry, sorry, sorry. So then I start speaking to her and I say to her, listen, we've come to pray for you. So Kylie gets hold of her hand. I hold Kylie's hand.
I hold her other hand. And I say, Kylie, let's pray the prayer that Jesus taught us. And we prayed. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.
As we said, your kingdom come. She woke up. She's home.
She's home. She's still not a Christian. What's all that about? Christianity works. Now, listen, listen, I've been in the ministry for 33 years.
Christians are Easter people who live in a Good Friday world. The world is broken. In our world, there is the tension between miracle and mystery.
And I realize that. And you might be in a situation where you feel overwhelmed by these mysteries that are happening to you. Burdens, whatever it is. God knows.
God knows. If you have a concern about your health. OK, wherever you are, put your hand now in your heart, just put your hand on your heart. We're now we're now going to pray for everyone that has a health need.
So, Jesus, you are the king of kings and you are the great physician. So we're asking you to release more of your healing presence and where there is any sickness, infection, disease. We pray that you will flush this out of our systems now where there has been any kind of degeneration. We're asking you for regeneration.
We're asking you for restoration. And we pray health and wholeness and well-being in body, in mind and spirit. And we pray that you will continue to minister your healing grace throughout this night, all through the hours of our sleep. Minister healing to us. And may we experience this week a tangible sign of your healing at work. We pray this in the name of Christ.
Amen. I've given you four reasons why I'm a Christian. I'm a Christian because it's true. I'm a Christian because I need forgiveness. I'm a Christian because Jesus died for me.
I'm a Christian because it actually works. If you haven't yet received this, receive it tonight in just a moment. Just a minute. I'm going to ask you to stand up if you need to say yes. If you need to reposition Jesus. I'm not asking you to stand up to embarrass you.
I wouldn't do that. I'm asking you to stand up amongst hundreds of Christians. Because if you cannot stand up here, you'll never be able to stand up out there.
If you would like to begin to be a follower of Jesus and invite Jesus into your life, or you would like to reposition Jesus in your life. Can you please stand up? Stand now.
Now's your opportunity. Please stand. Please stand. Fantastic. Keep standing. Come on. Stand up and say yes.
I want to do this. May you and all of us know God's protection as we endeavor to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author of our faith. So we ask for the blessing of the Holy Trinity. God, the Father who made us, God, the Son who died for us, and God, the Holy Spirit be with us now and forevermore. Amen.
All stand. Thank you, Lord. British evangelist, J. John, as we close out this edition of Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. And it really bears repeating, we can say that Christianity actually works.
It's so true. And you might not have seen someone come out of a coma while praying for them as J. John and Killie did. But I think all of us could say that we've seen circumstances where God was obviously working behind the scenes for our good. And get this, when we first aired the program in 2017, people actually experienced healing. Here's a note we received from Andrew. He said, we try to listen to your broadcast whenever possible and are so thankful we heard J. John's message. My wife had two mammograms and an ultrasound that confirmed she had a suspicious mass. We prayed for physical healing along with J. John and felt a real connection to God.
And we were blessed with a miracle because today, when the doctors prepared to do a biopsy, there was no mass to be found. We thank the Lord and Focus on the Family. Now that's pretty tight company there.
I'd say we thank the Lord and end it right there. God is very good. And what an amazing story. I want to tell you, that note was quite a blessing to our staff, obviously. And who knows how many other people were healed of a physical problem by praying along with J. John, but didn't have time to let us know. I think that's just a great example of how the Holy Spirit moves through the work we're doing every day here at Focus on the Family. And let me remind you, our friendly staff is here if you need someone to talk to. And if you need to speak to a counselor, we'll be happy to schedule a callback for you free of charge.
That's a service we're honored to provide to you. And when you get in touch, ask about a very practical book from J. John called Jesus Christ, The Truth. In it, he provides answers to many of the questions people have about the Gospels. On the book jacket, J. John says this, For two thousand years, the followers of Jesus have claimed that in this man, God became one of the human race. That is an astonishing claim, and whether it is true or false has profound implications. If it is not true, then Jesus becomes a minor curiosity of history.
If it is true, then to follow Jesus is quite simply the most important thing any of us could ever do. So get your copy of Jesus Christ, The Truth from us here at Focus on the Family, where the proceeds go right back into ministry and spreading the Gospel. We'd be happy to send the book to you for a generous donation of any amount. And when you visit us online, we'll give you access to a free audio bundle of four inspirational broadcasts from J. John, including today's message with extra content.
Yeah, that audio collection is almost three hours long. It's terrific. So be sure to download that today and you'll find it and J. John's book when you follow the link in the show notes or call us.
Our number is 800, the letter A in the word family. Have a great weekend and be sure to join us again on Monday. Dr. Heather Holloman will provide some tools for having warm, gracious conversation. On behalf of the entire team, thanks for listening to Focus on the Family with Jim Daly. Take a moment, if you would, please, and leave a rating for us in your podcast app and then share this compelling message with a friend. Spread the word and help others know about this great show.
I'm John Fuller inviting you back next time as we once again help you and your family thrive in Christ. My kids age emails that have tips for intentionally raising my son at his age right now. Go to my kid's age dot com. Put in your kid's age and get parenting advice you can trust.
