Ten Steps Toward Christ

By Jimmy Evans

Salvation isn't the last step. It's the first. What's next?

 

I've accepted Christ―now how do I live as a Christian? Practices in the church are confusing, the Bible seems overwhelming, prayer is a mystery, and I still have problems in my life. What do I do now? With these down-to-earth principles, Jimmy Evans gives you a map to navigate your new life. He explains how to:

• Connect with God
• Relate to other Christians
• See the Bible as relevant
• Understand church customs
• Find freedom from past hurts

• Language: English
• Publisher: XO Publishing
• Release date: May 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781950113972

Jimmy Evans

Jimmy Evans is the founder of and CEO of MarriageToday. The ministry’s national television program, MarriageToday with Jimmy and Karen, broadcasts daily to more than 110 million households in North America and more than two hundred countries worldwide. Jimmy and his wife, Karen, live in Dallas, Texas. 

Book preview

Acknowledgments

A project of this size takes a team to pull it off. It has been my pleasure to work alongside an excellent group of people that have made this book possible. Matt Spears has led the team that worked on every aspect of this book.

To my son, Brent Evans: Thank you for walking beside me in this mission to share God’s Good News with so many people. I love you and am so proud of you.

Of course, I always have my beautiful wife, Karen, to thank for her unending prayers, encouragement, and support. She is my biggest cheerleader. Karen, I love you and appreciate you more than I can say.

Most of all, I want to thank You, Jesus, for saving me and patiently loving me since May 1973 when I was born again into Your kingdom. Lord Jesus, You are my Rock. You have led me every step of the journey I will be explaining in this book. You alone deserve all glory and praise!

Introduction

I was born in 1953 and regularly attended church while I was growing up. I always considered myself to be a Christian, and I would have been offended if anyone had said otherwise. Like most people, I considered myself to be a good person. And don’t good people go to heaven?

In spite of my church attendance and pride in how good I was, I became increasingly immoral and rebellious. By the time I graduated from high school and went to college, I was completely absorbed in living to please myself and gratifying every desire I had, regardless of what anyone else thought about it.

I took a copy of the New Testament called Good News for Modern Man to college with me and kept it on the nightstand beside my bed. I am ashamed to say that just about the only time I read it was when I was drunk. I would come home after a night with my friends, and before I passed out, I would read a page or two of the New Testament. I didn’t understand much of it, but I liked Jesus. I thought He was a really good person.

One of the best things that ever happened to me was meeting my wife, Karen. We met in biology class when we were sophomores in high school. Our dating experience was pretty rocky because of my lifestyle, but I really loved her, and we dated throughout high school.

Karen invited Christ into her heart around the time we met. She attended a weekly Bible study and was growing in her faith as we dated. I liked how pure she was, but I didn’t share her zeal for the Lord—quite the opposite, in fact. As she grew in her faith, I became worse.

During my second year in college, Karen and I became engaged and set a date to be married. I wanted to marry her, but I had no intention of giving up my ungodly friends or unrighteous behavior. At that point, Karen didn’t know how immoral I had become and didn’t know about all the things I did with my friends, such as drinking, viewing pornography, and using profanity.

Karen appealed to me many times to become more interested in the Lord and to go to church with her. I never completely rejected her pleas, but I did everything possible to avoid what she was asking. As the time grew closer for us to get married, Karen talked with me more often about my relationship with my ungodly friends and my need for the Lord. I defended my friends and, just to pacify her, told her what I thought she wanted to hear about Jesus.

One week before our wedding, my friends threw a bachelor party for me. I was excited about it. Being the good person that I was, though, I told my friends that I only wanted to get drunk and play poker; I didn’t want to be immoral that night. And on the night of the party, that’s how it started out. We got drunk and played poker. Everything was going just as I had planned … except for one thing. As soon as I was drunk, my friends brought in some girls they had invited without my knowledge. Within the hour, I had cheated on Karen. I don’t remember a lot about that night because of how drunk I was, but I do remember that.

When I woke up the next morning, I stumbled into the bathroom with my usual hangover. What happened next changed my life forever. I looked at myself in the mirror as I washed my face, something I had done many times before. But this time, something was different. For the first time I didn’t like the person I was looking at.

I had been drunk and immoral many nights before and had never felt bad about it. Even though I typically felt empty and somewhat disappointed after my nights of sin, I never felt guilty or sensed that I had done something wrong. But as I said, this time was different.

As I looked in the mirror that morning, I knew I had sinned against God and against Karen. I stood there feeling confused and guilty, hearing the words of our preacher ringing in my ears. He would say, If Jesus isn’t Lord of all, He isn’t Lord at all. He would also say, Being in church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car. You must be saved and receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

I had never paid much attention in church. I only went because I had to and because there were pretty girls at our church. But I am thankful that on that morning in the bathroom, I could remember a few things the preacher had said. Standing in front of the sink, looking at myself in the mirror, I realized I didn’t want to live as I had been any longer.

I had lied to Karen and deceived her for years about who I really was. That had to come to an end. Even though I knew I could keep my sin the night before a secret and marry her as though nothing had happened, I decided to tell her.

Even more important than that decision was my decision to make Jesus the Lord of my life. As I stood in the bathroom, I spoke words to the Lord that changed me forever: Lord Jesus, I am so sorry for my sin and rebellion. Today I make You the Lord of my life and surrender everything to You. I will live the rest of my life for You and not turn back. This isn’t about Karen. I know she may not marry me because of what I have done. Regardless, I will follow You from now on. Please forgive me of my sins and come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior.

I was 19 years old when I prayed that prayer. Now, more than 40 years later, I can tell you that it was the best day of my life, and Jesus has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. He is real, and from the instant I prayed that prayer, I could sense something different inside me. It was Jesus filling my heart and coming into my life.

Going to church or being a good person doesn’t make you a Christian. Being raised by Christian parents or having Christian friends doesn’t make you a Christian either. You must make a personal decision to open your heart to Christ and invite Him to be your Lord and Savior. It is the most important decision you will ever make, and it won’t just change your life—it will change your eternity.

By the way, after my experience in the bathroom that morning, I went over to Karen’s house and told her what I had done. She was devastated and told me she wouldn’t marry me. I was heartbroken. But I kept my commitment to the Lord.

Later that day I also broke off my relationship with my friends. I lost every friend I had that day and never again had anything to do with any of them. It was a crucial decision in my new Christian life.

A couple of days later, Karen began hearing from her friends what I had done. She called me to talk, and she could tell I had changed. We reconciled and were married on May 11, 1973.

Since that time, we have followed Christ, and He has blessed us greatly. I always thought being a dedicated Christian would be a boring, difficult life. Not true! Having lived in rebellion and sin, I can tell you that it is an empty and painful way to live. But living for Jesus Christ is the opposite. I love it! It is the most fulfilling and exciting way to live.

In 1982 I entered full-time ministry and have been a pastor ever since. The remainder of this book will chronicle what I have learned, experienced, and taught others as essential foundations in living for Christ. But this book isn’t really about me. In fact, it’s about you. It’s about how you can draw nearer to God. I tell my story simply to illustrate truths every Christian needs to learn.

So if you’re looking for a real and intimate relationship with Jesus and a fulfilling and blessed life, this book is for you. It provides an overview of 10 crucial steps that will lead you into a deeper relationship with Christ and a victorious experience as a believer.

You will notice many Scripture references throughout the book. This is for two reasons. First, it is to make the book as brief as possible by giving you the essential information and not going into too much detail. Second, and more importantly, it is to encourage you to read the Bible and learn to study it on your own. Every time you see a Scripture reference, look it up. This will help you to learn the Bible.

If you don’t have a Bible, get one. Be sure and choose one that you can understand. I use the New King James Version because it is theologically sound as well as understandable. But there are other good translations to choose from as well. Your local Christian bookstore can help you make a good selection. Your Bible will become one of your most important possessions and an essential part of your life in Christ. May God richly bless you as you journey toward His heart.

1

Being Born Again

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.

Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus said to Him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?

Jesus answered, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.

Nicodemus answered and said to Him, How can these things be?

—John 3:1–9

Before I received Christ, I would hear people talking about being born again. It sounded spooky and too spiritual for me. Yet even though I didn’t understand it, I experienced it when I surrendered my life to Jesus. I was born of the Spirit on that day as I came alive to Christ and received the gift of eternal life (Romans 6:23).

To understand being born again, we need to take a quick trip back to the Garden of Eden and God’s creation of Adam and Eve.

The Origin of Death

When God created Adam and Eve, He breathed life into their nostrils, and they became living beings, (see Genesis 2:7). The breath God breathed into them wasn’t just air; it was His Spirit breathing life into their spirits. Thus, they were alive as triune beings—body, soul, and spirit. However, God warned them not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He warned them that on the day they ate of it they would die (Genesis 2:17).

Of course, Genesis 3 records how Satan, in the form of a serpent, tempted Adam and Eve and how they ate the forbidden fruit. At the moment they ate it, their bodies and souls didn’t die, but their spirits did. The Spirit of God departed from them, and they became spiritually dead. They could no longer commune with God intimately, as they had done when He walked with them in the garden.

They were now incapable of spiritual life or relationship and were spiritually separated from God. As a result, their minds became darkened, their emotions corrupted, their relationship divided, and their bodies aged and decayed. They passed their fallen nature on to their children and the generations after them until the entire human race became utterly evil (Genesis 6:5–6). To this day, spiritual death and the natural tendency to rebel against God are inherent in all of us as a result of the fall of Adam and Eve (Romans 7:14–21).

The Gift of Spiritual Life

Jesus came to save us by dying for us on the cross and paying for our sins. It is a debt we can never pay. But because of Jesus’ perfect life, God accepted His death as the payment for the sins of mankind. As we read in the Gospel of John:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:16–18).

By believing