In the final article of this four part series, we consider the question, why bother with Jesus in the 21st Century?

Mark Cave answers the question by telling his story of how he became a Christian.

4. Because He satisfies!

Until I was sixteen years old, I had never given any serious thought to the Bible and could count on one hand how many times I had been to church.

As a student, I was often in pubs and night-clubs, going to parties, drinking to excess and taking drugs, all in an attempt to find satisfaction.

One day, I met my friend and his sister who had both recently become Christians. They spoke to me about God and their relationship to Him, which I found quite strange. But for the first time in my life I was challenged about the way I was living.

During our discussions I came to realise that even if I could obtain everything I wanted in this world, I still wouldn’t be satisfied.

My friends invited me to come to church the following Sunday, I told them that if I felt as I did at that moment I would come.

The Sunday arrived and I felt compelled in my heart to go. I was extremely nervous and didn’t know what to expect but I remember the preacher speaking powerfully from a passage in the Bible that says “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

I continued to attend church and my friend gave me a Bible. As I read for myself and heard the Bible explained each Sunday, I began to feel guilty about my sinful lifestyle and started to turn from it.

For the first time in my life I began to pray to God and asked Him to forgive me for my sinfulness. I struggled for some time to truly trust the Lord Jesus as my Saviour. My friend would ask me this searching question: ‘Do you believe that Jesus Christ has died for you’? I would answer ‘I don’t know’.

The Pastor of the church was preaching through a book in the Bible called Romans. He had come to chapter 5 verse 1, which says: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” Romans 5:1.

After speaking to the Pastor, he explained my need to trust in the Lord Jesus and have faith in Him. The next time I was asked if I believed Jesus Christ had died for me, I prayed in my heart ‘Lord Jesus I trust you to be my Saviour’and replied ‘yes’ to my friend. From that moment I experienced God’s saving grace and the forgiveness of all my sins.