Day 11 – Faith That Receives Christ

The Gospel Becomes Personal

Over the last few days, we have followed an important progression in the Gospel.

Day 8: We saw why we need salvation.
Day 9: We saw that salvation is by grace through faith.
Day 10: We saw that we are justified by faith apart from works.

Today, we come to a deeply personal question:

What does it mean to receive Christ?

John gives us a beautiful answer:

“To all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name…”

The Gospel is not simply information about Jesus.

It is an invitation to receive Jesus Christ by faith.

Christianity is not merely something we inherit.

It is not simply a culture.

It is not merely a tradition.

It is not merely participation in religious practices.

The Gospel calls every person to personally respond to Jesus Christ.

Receive Him.
Believe in Him.
Become a child of God.

Jesus Came to His Own

The opening chapter of John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus came into the world He created.

John says:

“He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognise Him.”

And then:

“He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.”

This is one of the great tragedies of the Gospel.

The Creator came to His creation.

The Light came into the darkness.

The Saviour came to save.

Yet many rejected Him.

But John then gives us wonderful hope:

“Yet to all who did receive Him…”

There is an invitation.

The Gospel does not close the door.

It opens the way to Christ.

What Does It Mean to Receive Christ?

John connects two things:

Receiving Christ

and

Believing in His name.

To receive Christ means to welcome Him by faith.

It means trusting who He is.

It means believing His claims.

It means relying upon Him as Saviour and Lord.

It means entrusting ourselves to Him and beginning a life of following Him.

This is not merely saying:

“I believe Jesus existed.”

It is more than intellectual agreement.

It is personal trust.

Knowing About Jesus Is Not the Same as Knowing Jesus

A person can know many facts about Jesus and still not belong to Him.

You can know:

• where Jesus was born,
• who His disciples were,
• what miracles He performed,
• what He taught,
• when He was crucified,

and still not personally trust Him.

Even demons know that Jesus is the Son of God.

The Gospel calls us beyond information.

It calls us to faith.

The question is not simply:

“Do you know about Jesus?”

The deeper question is:

“Have you received Jesus Christ?”

Faith Receives What God Offers

Think again about a gift.

Someone can offer you a gift.

You can admire the gift.

You can talk about the gift.

You can even tell others how wonderful the gift is.

But until you receive it, it has not become yours.

God has provided salvation through Christ.

The Gospel announces the gift.

Faith receives the gift.

We do not earn it.

We do not purchase it.

We receive God’s gracious gift through faith in Christ.

Faith Is Personal

No one can believe on your behalf.

Your parents cannot believe for you.

Your grandparents cannot believe for you.

Your church cannot believe for you.

Your pastor, friend, or spiritual leader cannot believe for you.

They may teach you.

They may pray for you.

They may encourage you.

But ultimately, you must respond to Christ.

The Gospel is personal.

Jesus calls each person to Himself.

Christian Heritage Is Not the Gospel

This is an important message for many people in the East.

There are beautiful aspects of Christian heritage, history, architecture, music, language, and tradition.

But heritage itself cannot save.

A Christian culture cannot save.

A Christian surname cannot save.

Family tradition cannot save.

Religious ceremony cannot save.

Only Christ saves.

The Gospel calls us away from placing our ultimate confidence in what we inherited and toward trusting the One who came to save us.

Children of God

Look at what happens when a person receives Christ.

John says:

“He gave the right to become children of God.”

This is extraordinary.

The Gospel does not merely offer forgiveness.

God brings us into His family.

We become His children.

We are no longer strangers.

We are no longer separated.

We belong to Him.

This is one of the greatest privileges of salvation.

Faith Is More Than Words

It is possible to say:

“I believe in Jesus.”

But the question is whether our faith is genuine.

Jesus said:

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

True faith changes our relationship with Christ.

If Jesus is truly our Lord, His Word matters.

His commands matter.

His character becomes our example.

His mission becomes our mission.

His people become our family.

His glory becomes our purpose.

We do not obey in order to purchase salvation.

We obey because we have received Him.

Receiving Christ Means Trusting Him as He Is

We cannot create our own version of Jesus.

We cannot say:

“I will accept Jesus as Saviour, but I will not recognise Him as Lord.”

The Jesus of the Gospel is both Saviour and Lord.

He is the Word who became flesh.

He is the Lamb who takes away sin.

He is the risen Lord.

He is the King.

He is the Shepherd.

He is the way, the truth, and the life.

To receive Christ means receiving the Christ revealed in Scripture, not a version created according to our preferences.

We do not decide who Jesus should be.

We listen to who He has revealed Himself to be.

Faith Comes Through the Word

How do we know who Jesus truly is?

Through God’s Word.

The Bible reveals Christ.

It tells us what He taught.

It tells us what He did.

It reveals His character.

It reveals His death and resurrection.

It reveals His promises.

Therefore, genuine faith must be grounded in truth.

We do not build our faith on rumours.

We do not build it on human imagination.

We do not build it merely on tradition.

We build our faith upon the Word of God.

The more clearly we know Scripture, the more clearly we can know the Christ Scripture reveals.

What Happens When We Receive Christ?

John says we become children of God.

But the Gospel produces even more transformation.

When we receive Christ:

We receive forgiveness.

We receive reconciliation with God.

We receive new life.

We receive a new identity.

We receive the Holy Spirit.

We become part of God’s family.

And our lives begin to change.

We are no longer simply living for ourselves.

We now belong to Christ.

The Gospel does not merely change what we believe.

It begins to change who we are and how we live.

The Invitation

John gives us one of the clearest invitations in Scripture:

“To all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.”

Notice the invitation.

All who receive Him.

The Gospel is open.

The invitation is open.

The way is Christ.

The response is to receive Him through faith.

You cannot inherit faith from your parents.

You cannot purchase salvation.

You cannot earn your place in God’s family.

But you can come to Christ.

You can believe.

You can trust Him.

You can receive Him.

And those who receive Him are given the right to become children of God.

Therefore, do not stop at knowing about Jesus.

Receive Him.

Do not merely admire Jesus.

Trust Him.

Do not merely inherit Christianity.

Follow Christ.

And when you do, remember where the glory belongs.

Not to us.

Not to our traditions.

Not to our achievements.

All glory belongs to God.