AUTHOR

Sandra M. Platt

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My Testimony As a child, growing up in the Catholic Church, I believed in Jesus. I believed that he was the sinless son of God who died for our sins, was buried, rose again the third day and was seated at the right hand of the Father. I even believed that he would come again someday to judge the world. I was not however, saved. Why not? Because although I believed and trusted in Christ, I also trusted in my works to pay for the sins that I was unwilling to repent of. I was so deceived by sin, false religion and my own self-righteousness that I did not even believe that I was separated from God. The truth was, I didn’t really need a Savior, because I didn’t really think I was that bad. I thought I was doing alright on my own. “When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Mark 2:17). As a young adult, I learned that you must be born again. It was around that time that I was led through a sinner's prayer by a well-meaning Christian. I was told that as long as I really meant that prayer that I was saved. Well, I certainly did mean that prayer- just as much as I meant the Hail Mary's and Our Father's I prayed regularly. I was not however, saved. It wasn’t until well into my adult life, that I finally became convicted by the Holy Spirit of God for my sins. I knew then that I was not alright on my own. I honestly feared that if Christ came back and found me where I was in my life, that I was in big trouble. At that point I knew I needed to do something to repair my standing with God, but what? My husband and I began visiting Churches, looking for the answer. We finally settled on a Fundamental, Independent Baptist Church, where we found that answer. By then, I was well aware of my sin and inability to free myself from it. I knew that I deserved God’s punishment and quickly learned that there was nothing I could do to pay for my sins on my own because they just kept piling up. It was then that I heard the truth of the gospel that Jesus Christ paid it all, that he did for me what I could not do for myself. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). That precious verse was the final piece of the puzzle for me. That was what I needed to understand in order to truly believe in Christ alone as my Savior. For me, repentance included not only turning from sin, but also turning from dead works and false beliefs. Trusting in Christ without repentance toward God is not really trusting in Christ at all.
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