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There’s nothing more crucial in the Christian journey than starting correctly. If we start off on the right foot, we can continue down the right path. If we start off incorrectly, our subsequent journey is likely to be flawed. If anyone reading this has started incorrectly, it’s a straightforward process to start afresh correctly. The correct starting point in the Christian journey is elucidated in John 1:12, “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.” The correct way to embark on the Christian journey is by accepting Jesus Christ. To anyone who accepts Him, He instantly gives the power to become a child of God. If the reader of this text, no matter how wicked, were to accept Jesus Christ at this moment, they would immediately embark on the path to salvation. God confirms this unequivocally in the verse mentioned earlier. There’s no other way to become a child of God. Regardless of a person’s upbringing or how well they’ve been shielded from worldly vices, they won’t become a child of God until they accept Jesus Christ. We become “children of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:26), and there’s no other way.

So, what does it mean to accept Jesus Christ? It means accepting Christ for all that God intends Him to be for everyone. Jesus Christ is God’s gift. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Some people accept this extraordinary gift from God. Everyone who accepts this gift becomes a child of God. Many others refuse this extraordinary gift from God, and everyone who refuses this gift perishes. They are already condemned. “Whoever believes in the Son is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:18).

What does God intend for His Son to be to us?

First and foremost, God offers Jesus to us as our sin-bearer. We have all sinned. Not a single man, woman, boy, or girl is without sin (Romans 3:22, 23). If any of us claim not to have sinned, we are deceiving ourselves and contradicting God (1 John 1:8, 10). Each of us must either bear our own sins or have someone else bear them for us. If we were to bear our own sins, we would have to be eternally separated from the presence of God, for God is holy. “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). But God Himself has provided someone else to bear our sins on our behalf, so we don’t have to bear them ourselves. This sin-bearer is God’s own Son, Jesus Christ, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). When Jesus Christ died on the cross at Calvary, He redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (Gal. 3:13). To accept Christ is to believe this testimony of God about His Son, to believe that Jesus Christ bore our sins on the cross (1 Peter 2:24), and to trust God to forgive all our sins because Jesus Christ has borne them on our behalf. “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). Our past, present, or future good deeds have nothing to do with the forgiveness of our sins. Our sins are forgiven, not because of our good deeds, but because of Christ’s atoning work on the cross of Calvary on our behalf. If we rely on this atoning work, we’ll carry out good deeds, but these good deeds will be the result of our salvation and our belief in Christ as our sin-bearer, not the basis of our salvation. We must be extremely careful not to consider our good deeds as the basis of salvation. We’re not forgiven because of Christ’s death and our good deeds; we’re forgiven solely because of Christ’s death. Recognizing this clearly is the right start to a true Christian life.

God offers Jesus to us as our deliverer from the power of sin. Jesus not only died; He also rose again. He is a living Savior today. He possesses all power in heaven and on earth (Matt. 28:18). He has the power to keep even the weakest sinner from falling (Jude 24). He can save those who approach the Father through Him to the utmost extent (Heb. 7:25). “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). Accepting Jesus means believing what God tells us in His Word about Him, believing that He did rise from the dead, believing that He is alive now, believing that He has the power to keep us from falling, believing that He can save us from the power of sin day by day, and trusting Him to do so. This is the secret of daily victory over sin. If we attempt to fight sin on our own, we’re destined to fail. If we look up to the risen Christ to keep us every day and every hour, He will keep us. Through the crucified Christ, we obtain deliverance from the guilt of sin, our sins are completely erased, and we’re free from all condemnation. It’s through the risen Christ that we attain daily victory over the power of sin. Some accept Christ as a sin-bearer and thereby find pardon, but they don’t get past that, leading to a life of daily failure. Others also accept Him as their risen Savior, and as a result, they experience victory over sin. To start correctly, we must not only accept Him as our sin-bearer to find pardon, but we must also accept Him as our risen Savior, our Deliverer from the power of sin, our Keeper, to find daily victory over sin.

Furthermore, God offers Jesus to us not only as our sin-bearer and our Deliverer from the power of sin, but also as our Lord and King. We read in Acts 2:36, “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” Lord denotes a divine Master, and Messiah refers to an anointed King. Accepting Jesus involves acknowledging Him as our divine Master, as the One whose word we believe unconditionally, the One we’ll believe even if many of the world’s wisest people question or deny His teachings; and as our King, to whom we willingly surrender absolute control of our lives. From this point forward, the only question will be, WHAT WOULD MY KING JESUS HAVE ME DO? A correct beginning involves an unconditional surrender to the Lordship and Kingship of Jesus.

Failure to understand Jesus as both Lord and King in addition to being our Savior, often leads to a flawed start in a Christian’s journey. Our introduction to Him should be as our Savior, the one who takes on our sins and delivers us from the grip of sin. However, knowing Him as just a Savior isn’t sufficient; we must also acknowledge Him as our Lord and King. The unconditional surrender of both our thoughts and actions to Jesus is vital to a proper beginning of our Christian life. Reiterate within your heart, “All for Jesus.” Many stumble because they hesitate to give their all. They attempt to serve Jesus with divided loyalty, reserving parts of themselves and their belongings. Withholding anything from Jesus results in a miserable life marred by constant stumbling and failures.

A life fully surrendered to Jesus is joyous throughout. If you’ve never done this before, find a solitary place today, kneel down, and say, “All for Jesus,” and mean it. Speak with conviction; express it from the core of your heart. Stay there until you understand its meaning and the gravity of your action. This step forward, when genuinely taken, is a phenomenal stride. If you’ve already made this commitment, recommit often. Each recommitment brings fresh significance and newfound blessings. This absolute surrender unlocks the door to truth. Doubts quickly vanish when you surrender completely (John 7:17). Absolute surrender is the secret to power in prayer (1 John 3:22) and the paramount condition for receiving the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:32).

Declaring Christ as your Lord and King necessitates obedience to His will in every minor detail of your life. Some profess to accept Christ as their Lord and King while simultaneously disobeying Him in their professional, domestic, social, and personal lives. These people are only deceiving themselves. If you’re not striving to obey Him in every aspect of your life, you haven’t truly accepted Jesus as your Lord and King. Jesus Himself asks, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).

In conclusion, the appropriate way to begin the Christian life is to accept Jesus Christ as the one who bears your sins and to trust God to forgive your sins because Jesus Christ died on your behalf. Accept Him as your risen Savior who constantly intercedes for you, who has all the power to preserve you, and trust Him to safeguard you daily. Finally, acknowledge Him as your Lord and King, to whom you relinquish absolute control of your thoughts and life. This is the correct starting point, the only suitable starting point for a Christian life. If you’ve taken these steps, the journey ahead will be much smoother. If you haven’t, now is the time.

About the Author

EDWARD D. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House. He has authored over 220+ books. In addition, Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV).

Reuben Archer Torrey was an American evangelist, pastor, educator, and writer. He authored many books on apologetics, prayer, Christian living, and theology.