Tools for the Christian Life
Welcome back to my blog. We are in a series exploring Biblical concepts in the Christian life. We recently about the three types of sanctifications (being set apart for holiness) which delineate our Christian experiences:
· Salvation - Our legal sanctification by the blood of Christ in faith (Romans 3:21-26)
· The Christian life - We seek to become sanctified in our actions and thoughts as God is holy (1 Peter 1:16)
· Heaven - Christ takes us to our eternal home when our bodies will be sanctified (1 Corinthians 15:50 ff)
Importantly, when one sanctification is complete and we progress to the next, we cannot return to the prior state. This helps us know that we have eternal security and confidence in our relationship with God; please review the last blog about this important lesson.
We then discussed scripturally based goals for Christian living and the tools God provides by which we can accomplish them.
· Be holy as God is holy - We should strive to develop godly characteristics in our life (1 Peter 1:16)
· Live a life of faith – God is pleased by our faith, not guilt and legalism (Romans 14:23; Colossians 2:6)
· Serve God with your entire life – In accomplishing this goal we have great freedom to live by faith within the broad bounds of the New Testament epistles’ commands (Romans 12:1-2)
From there we learned that we have tools to implement the Christian life by God's word through the power of the Holy Spirit. So, knowing this key information, how do we actually mature ourselves as Christians? As a reminder, the first step to the Christian life is to accept Christ’s forgiveness for our misdeeds by faith in His death and resurrection (Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 3:23-26; see “Our great salvation summary”). The next important step is to understand that our salvation is permanent – no matter what – and that we should not feel guilty in daily life (1 Peter 1:4-5; John 10:27-31; see “Our secure salvation summary”)! This is the foundation for the Christian life.
How then do we live the Christian life?
There are many aspects to the Christian life. However, a simple biblically-based 5-step approach to grow our relationship with God is what I call the ‘5 tools to maturity,’ taken from Acts 2:42 and 47, as follows:
· Prayer
· Praise
· Fellowship
· Receiving biblical teaching
· Reaching others with biblical truth
These 5 tools describe the activities in the very first church in Jerusalem and provide a model for the actions Christians should perform routinely. Importantly, these five activities are confirmed in later verses in the epistles.
Why are these 5 tools important? When implemented consistently, and in balance with each other, these activities produce a godly mindset and righteous actions in our daily lives.
These five tools are fundamental; we will spend the time over the next five blogs describing the importance of each in the Christian life and practically how to implement them. Please join us! We hope these blogs will help revolutionize your life and relationship with our God.
William C. Stewart, MD
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Disclaimer - This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and or do your own research into the scriptures.
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