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Personal Testimony of David W. Smith |
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From Rags to Riches I. The Rags – I would like to describe to you a little of my
life before my new birth. A.
It was 1978.
I was twenty years old and a sophomore at the Emporia State
University, Emporia, in Kansas.
I was trying to prove my self worth by being unique and by trying to be likable to others.
I wanted everyone to like me.
I was popular and well known on campus.
I always tried to give the impression
of being very sure of myself. However,
I had to continually reassure myself by
telling myself that I was a good and likable person.
I clothed myself with these
thoughts, thinking that I was well dressed, but in reality these were
only dirty rags that I wore. B.
I would seek happiness through friends and going
to parties. However there
was a great void in my life, but I did not know what this void was,
or how to fill it. I
felt alone. I could be in a
room full of people and still feel completely
alone. I did not have peace
or love, even though I had a lot of close friends
who cared about me.
In my life at that time there was a constant presence of
uneasiness and uncertainty about life. C.
There were two people who knew that I was not as
sure of myself as I tried to
make everyone else believe; my earthly father and the Heavenly Father.
The Bible says in
Isaiah 64:6, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” II.
The transformation –
Now, I would like to talk about the decision that transformed
my life A.
In the past I had had disputes and conflicts
with my father on the subject of my lifestyle, my classes (I was an art
major), and the fact that my father believed that I was wasting my time
and his money. When I came
home during Easter weekend, these conflicts started up again.
I had decided to confront my father and convince him of my
personal merits. However,
when I gave my father all my arguments, he confronted me with my need
for Jesus Christ in my life and His righteousness.
My father explained that the only way of being justified before
God was to receive Jesus Christ as my Savior.
That night, lying in my bed, I thought about what my dad had said
to me. B.
The next morning, Easter Sunday, I went to
church with a friend of mine. In
listening to the message, I had the impression that the pastor was
speaking to me personally. It
was as though someone had told the pastor about me and that he knew
everything about what I had been going through recently.
(I know now that it was the Holy Spirit that gave the
pastor the words to speak that touched my heart).
The message of Romans 10:9 and 10 was presented, “That if thou
shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart God hast raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the
mouth confession is made unto salvation.” C.
After the message, I went to ask the pastor if I
could talk to him. He took
me into his office. I was
so convicted by the message and my need for Jesus in my like, that I
couldn’t even tell the pastor what I wanted to talk about.
After a few moments, he asked me, “Do you want to ask Jesus
Christ to forgive you of your sins and received Him as
your Savior?” I said and
emphatic. “Yes!” Then
he said he would lead me in a prayer to receive Christ as my Savior.
He added, “God knows your heart and is not so concerned with
your words as He is with the attitude of your heart.”
He then led me in a prayer something like this: “Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and need
your forgiveness. I believe
that you died on the cross for my sins.
I want to turn from my sins.
I now invite you to come into my life.
I want to trust you as my Savior and follow you as Lord.” III.
The Riches (New
Clothes) – The difference in my life since I received Christ The
Holy Spirit began immediately to work changes in my life and to
re-clothe me. Just as
quickly, I began to get rid of my rags and there is a remarkable
difference between my life in the past and my present life.
A.
After receiving Christ as my personal Savior, it
was as if a great burden had been lifted from my shoulders
and I had a sense of inner peace. I
knew that God had answered my prayer to save me from an eternity
separated from Him. I knew
this by the trustworthiness of His Word, the Bible.
Romans 8:16 says, “The Spirit itself beareth witness
with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”
The Bible also says in 1 John 5:13, “These things I have
written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may
know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on
the name of the Son of God.” B.
The Spirit of God helped me to get rid of my
self-righteous attitudes. My
life over the years since then could be characterized as being a life of
peace. I have a peace that
could only from Christ who dwells in me, and enables me to live the
Christian life. Oh, I still
have my share of daily struggles and needs.
However, I now trust in the Lord and with His help… “I press
toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ
Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14) The Bible also tells us in Philippians 4:19, “But by
God shall supply all your need, according to his riches in glory by
Christ Jesus.”
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