Raymond Berry — The Changed
Life
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
. . . Now this he [Jesus] said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive . . . John 7:39
But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God really dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. Romans 8:9-10
When I was a young boy, I attended Sunday school and church regularly, and at about the age of twelve, I was baptized. I believed this about Jesus: He was the Son of God who was put to death on a cross and was raised from the dead on the third day. It never entered my mind then or during the next fifteen years to ask questions like these:
Why was Jesus sent by God? What did His life, death and resurrection mean? Why was He put to death on a cross? Why is He referred to as "Saviour"? And how does this concern me?
I continued to be a churchgoer during high school,
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college and after college, but I remained in darkness concerning the good news of the gospel. I was very aware of the existence of God, mainly because of the many blessings He bestowed on my life. But when I prayed, there was no mention of Christ's name. Jesus just wasn't "real" to me. I didn't know Him or know of Him.
I read the Bible just enough to know that there was such a thing as "sin" and a few things that constituted "sin." I didn't think of myself as a "sinner" however, and didn't feel any particular need for forgiveness except every once in a while. When something really bothered my conscience, I wanted forgiveness but didn't know how to get it. And whenever I allowed myself to think about my fate following death, my thoughts would go something like this: "Well, from reading the Bible a little, I gather that God is, after all, a merciful God. I haven't really done too much that is actually bad. I guess everything will be all right."
Thanks be to God for rescuing me from that kind of ignorance!
Don Shinnick, a teammate, is a Christian. Over a period of time, he led me to an awareness of Christ. Finally, one night, on Don's urging, I prayed and verbally accepted Christ as my Saviour. I told God that I wanted to repent of my sins. I asked His forgiveness in Jesus' name. I told Him that I wanted to put all my faith and trust in Christ as my Saviour. I also told Him that I didn't understand this and asked that He send His Spirit to help me. True to His promise in Luke 11:13, He did.
From then on, I prayed daily. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
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The Holy Spirit's presence in my life made me more and more aware of my sins, at the same time pointing out the necessity of Christ, who paid for my sins on the cross.
Whereas before I had to force myself to read the Bible, now I could hardly put it down. Passages that had no meaning before now were full of meaning. From reading the Old Testament, I saw that the coming of Jesus had been promised by God for many years and that He was truly the promised Messiah. Those Scriptures beyond my understanding I simply prayed about. I believe God helps each believer to understand in due time (John 14:26; 16:13).
I began to understand that Christ saves us from the eternal punishment our sin has earned for us (John 3:16). But when I thought about eternal life, I just couldn't believe it applied to me. As I became acquainted with more and more Christians who were sure of eternal life, I knew my faith was falling short. I felt unworthy.
Then I came to realize that I would always be unworthy, but that my salvation had nothing to do with personal "worth." It was a gift. I came to see that if I really trusted and believed in Christ as my Saviour, He would save me and I could count it a fact!
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God — not because of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
As I grasped this truth, the Lord granted me the assurance of my salvation.
I believe in Jesus Christ as my all-sufficient Saviour, that through faith in Him my sins are forgiven and life everlasting has been given me. I know that some day
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I will "be forever with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:17). I know too that this is because of nothing I have done, but simply because of the grace of God in sending Christ.
God wants all of us to have this full assurance, for the Holy Spirit speaks through the Apostle John in 1 John 5:13 saying,
"I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life."
Prayer
Dear merciful and loving Father, thank You for sending Your Son Jesus so that we might have the free gift of salvation through faith in Him. Like the Apostle Paul we ask that we may be strengthened through Your Spirit in the inner man, and that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith. Help us to follow in Jesus' footsteps in daily life. We ask it in His name. Amen.
Raymond Berry was a versatile end for Southern Methodist University, and an All-Pro end with the Baltimore Colts. Advisory Council, Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
