Christianity 101
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How To Become A Christian
"For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
(Matthew 7:14)
Is There A God?
Unless we can demonstrate the world is capable of creating itself, then God is the default. The incredible design that permeates all things implies a Designer.
Is The Bible The Word Of God?
Our answer to this question will not only determine how we view the Bible and its importance to our lives, but also it will ultimately will have an eternal impact on us. If the Bible is truly God’s Word, then we should cherish it, study it, obey it, and ultimately trust it. If the Bible is the Word of God then to dismiss it is to dismiss God Himself.
Who Is Jesus Christ?
Once you examine the actual claims of Jesus, his resurrection and His eyewitness followers, there are really only three alternatives for who He really is - Jesus Christ was either a liar, a lunatic, or God.
How Christianity Differs From Other Religions
Christian teaching differs from other religious teaching in that God Himself instituted it. God, through the Holy Spirit, birthed the Christian Church on the day of Pentecost when the believers in the upper room were baptized with the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul explains it by stating that the Spirit baptizes us into one body. 1 Corinthians 12:13 says, "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body -- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free -- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."
Why We Reject God
The sad truth is that, from the very beginning, men and women everywhere have rejected God by doing things their own way. We all do this. We don’t like someone telling us what to do or how to live—least of all God—and so we rebel against him in lots of different ways. We ignore him and just get on with our own lives; or we disobey his instructions for living in his world; or we shake our puny fists in his face and tell him to get lost.
How ever we do it, we are all rebels, because we don’t live God’s way. We prefer to follow our own desires, and to run things our own way, without God. This rebellious, self-sufficient attitude is what the Bible calls ‘sin’.
Our Problem
Man has a sin problem. Our sins separate us from God. There is not an accountable person living or who has ever lived (except Jesus Christ), who can say that he has never sinned. We are all in need of salvation.
Jesus Christ's Solution
Man has been seperated from God due to sin, but God has the solution and the answer. God is truly a loving God to give His only begotten Son to die for us. That is the ultimate of love. Nothing could be greater.
Not only is God a loving God, but the Bible speaks of other aspects of God’s nature. God is a vengeful God. Most people like to think of God as only a loving God, and nothing else; but this is not true. On the day of judgment, the majority of people will find out just how fearful it is to be judged by the living God.
How To Know That You Are Really Saved
God does not want any person to have false assurance. If we trust anything other than the substitutionary offering of Jesus Christ, and claim assurance, we have a false security. Salvation is not in tears, prayers, communion, church membership, good works, sincerity, resolve or resolutions. Salvation is in a person and we must be in Him to have salvation
True Stories Of People Who Have Been Saved
These testimonies are provided as evidence that Jesus is still doing what he did 2000 years ago, healing the sick, casting out demons and setting captives free. It is hoped they will inspire you and provide evidence that your situation is not without remedy.
Since the Bible says that "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:" Hosea 4:6 , every attempt will be made to provide a scriptural, as well as an experiential understanding behind these events. However, in the final analysis we have found it isn't so much HOW, but WHO.
"To those who are called ... Jesus Christ the power of GOD and the wisdom of God." 1 Corinthians 1:24
Spending Time With God
As Christians, especially in today's busy world, it is very important for us to set aside certain time daily to be spent with God. How else our we going to hear his voice, experience his love or trust his promises? We all need to develop a close personal relationship with God, Our Father, Jesus Christ, his son and the Holy Spirit, our comforter and teacher.
Praise And Thanksgiving
Webster defines the word praise as to say good things about and it is synonymous to words such as admire, commend, extol, honor, and worship. A definition of Christian praise is the joyful thanking and adoring of God, the celebration of His goodness and grace. This simply implies that the act of praising is rightfully due to God alone.
Daily Bible Reading
Besides being the World's #1 Bestseller, filled with mystery, action, excitement and betrayal, why should we spend time with The Bible Daily?
Simply stated, we should read and study the Bible because it is God's word to us. 2 Timothy 3:16 states that the Bible is "God-breathed."
There are so many questions that philosophers and people have asked that God answers for us in Scripture: What is the purpose to life? Where did I come from? Is there life after death? What happens after death? How do I get to heaven? Why is the world full of evil? Why do I struggle to do good?
In addition to these "big" questions, it gives a ton of practical advice in areas such as: What do I look for in a mate? How can I have a successful marriage? How can I be a good friend? How can I be a good parent? What is success and how do I achieve it? How can I change? What really matters in life? How can I live so that I do not look back with regret? How can I please God? How can I gain forgiveness? How can I handle the unfair circumstances and bad events of life victoriously?
Worship
Is worship something we do just in church on Sundays, something we do all day long, or are we to personally worship the Lord in some special way daily at home?
Prayer
Prayer - powerful, effective prayer - what is it? What kind of prayer pleases God? The disciples said to Jesus, "…Lord, teach us to pray...." (Luke 11:1) Most who are reading this message would love to be faithful in prayer - but don't know how. The problem is, we don't understand the purpose of prayer.
Most of us pray only out of a sense of obligation, or when tragedy strikes or a crisis hits. Prayer is not just for our own benefit, but for the delight of our Lord! We are not to intercede only for things we need, but to ask for the things HE desires. Our primary purpose in praying ought to be fellowship with the Lord. We need to enjoy sweet communion with Him.
The Sabbath
Fellowship
Fasting
Stewardship
Service
Evangelism
Silence and Solitude
Living The Victorious Christian Life
Don't be a weak, namby-pamby Christian. Learn how to become a soldier of the Lord as you put on the whole Armor Of God and live a strong, faith-filled, powerful and victorious Christian life.
Fully Surrendering Your Life To Jesus Christ
The first thing each Christian has to do after they get saved is to completely surrender their entire life over to God the Father. Jesus has to become LORD over your life, not just your Savior.
If you want to find what God’s call and plan is going to be for your life, and exactly what He wants to do with your life, then you are going to have to be willing to completely surrender every aspect of your life over to Him. It's your all for His all.
And when I say to fully surrender your entire life over to God the Father, I mean to fully surrender everything. You can hold absolutely nothing back. If you do not fully surrender everything over to God, then you will handcuff God and prevent Him from working full force in your life.
You have to become both saved and surrendered. All Christians are obviously saved, but many are not fully surrendered to the Lord, and that is why very little happens after they initially get saved.
Being Filled With The Holy Spirit
The second step after a person makes a full surrender to God the Father is they need to become Spirit-filled. They need to receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
You cannot walk this walk without the power of the Holy Spirit operating in your life. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to guide you into all truth and to teach you all things. He cannot properly do all of this unless He is released from your spirit to come up into your soul.
Establishing Faith And Trust In God
Once you completely surrender your entire life over to God the Father and receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, the next step is to establish faith and trust in God. The only thing that will bring you into God’s realm is faith and belief. Nothing else will!
And the beautiful thing about this is God is only looking for a small amount of faith to get started. The Bible says that faith the size of a mustard seed will move a mountain. Your faith can grow, but God does not expect it to grow overnight. All God asks is that you give Him just a little bit to work with, and He will more than prove Himself to you so that you can learn to completely trust Him to guide you on your new journey.
Obedience To God
If you decide that you do want to make a full and complete surrender with the Lord and let Him guide your steps in this life into His perfect plan and destiny for your life - you will now have to make one more big decision. You will now have to make sure that you will be willing to be perfectly obedient to the Lord with whatever He will be asking you to do for Him in this life.
It is one thing to be able to start out making this full surrender with the Lord - but it is going to be quite another thing to be able to stay in perfect obedience to the Lord as you proceed along in your life's journey with Him. There will come times when God will tell you to do one thing and you will want to do another thing. At times, it may literally become a battle of wills - your will against God's will over certain issues or certain situations that will occur in your life.
Seeking After The Knowledge Of God
God places an extremely high value on the pursuit of knowledge. Once you get saved and become born again, God will expect you to grow in the knowledge of Him, His Son, His Holy Spirit and all of His ways. God does give you a wide variety of options to choose from in order to grow from the knowledge that He wants you to have about Him.
Fellowship With Other Believers
Once you enter in on this real walk with the Lord, you will need to develop relationships with other Christians. God will start to do some real incredible things in your life and you will need others to share your walk with. God will lead you to the people that He will want you to connect with. You will have to have other Christians to feed with and to share your walk with.
Joining A Good, Spirit-Filled Church
I would personally recommend that each new born again Christian ask God which church He would like for them to join. There are different levels of the anointing in all of the different churches, and God knows best which one would be best suited for your own spiritual development and growth. God will make sure that He gets through to each person as to which church He would really like for them to join.
Spreading The Good News
For those of you who are not afraid to be used by the Lord to witness to others to try and get them saved - there is a phenomenon that you will find occurring over and over again in this part of your walk with Him. Unless you understand exactly is occurring when this phenomenon does occur, you may find yourself starting to get frustrated, and you may start to think that maybe there is something wrong with your efforts in being able to effectively witness to others.
Personal Testimony Development
It may be easy for a non-Christian to argue with our theology or opinions, but he cannot argue with our personal experience. Can you articulate your personal testimony of how Christ saved you out of your sin? This article will help you learn to share your personal testimony in a concise and articulate manner.
What Do You Believe And Why Do You Believe It?
Many of us often move through life doing things or saying things that really have little Scriptural basis in our own lives. We can find ourselves have beliefs and convictions that are based upon opinions and mainstream religious viewpoints. Can we give a 'Ready Answer' to others?
How To Study The Bible
(Seeking after the knowledge of God). The Bible has been called the Christian’s sword. It is one of our primary tools in the proclamation and defence of the Gospel of Christ. However, if we cannot use it with skill and dexterity we are like a carpenter who is unable to build a structure that will stand the test of time because he is cannot properly use the tools of his trade.
Why Study The Bible
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
The Power Of God's Word
The words in the Bible have God's supernatural life in them. They are literally anointed by the power of the Holy Spirit Himself. This is why the words and the truths contained in the Bible have the supernatural ability to change and transform you into the kind of person that God wants you to become in Him.
Bible Translations
All translations of the Bible fall into one of three categories, each of which determines the value of the translation for a given use and each of which has its own advantages and drawbacks.
Bible Study Tools
In order to get the most out of your Bible study you should employ the correct tools. Just as a carpenter, or a doctor will make use of tools to perform their tasks, the Bible scholar uses tools to assist and enhance the study process. As you become skilled in the use of these tools you will find that your Bible studies will yield ever increasing rewards.
Profitable Bible Study
Many a one who is eagerly asking, "What method shall I pursue in my Bible study?" needs something that goes far deeper than a new and better method.
Structure of the Bible
The Bible is comprised of 66 books which were written over a period of roughly 1,500 years by various individuals as the Holy Spirit moved them. The books themselves fall into different categories which are determined by their literary structure.
Types Of Writing In The Bible
Prior to any study of the Bible it is important to realize that the composition of the text can and does play an important role in conveying a written message to its reader, regardless of the type of writing that is being studied. We will frequently make use of the rules of composition unconsciously as we read or write.
Inductive Bible Study
Inductive Bible study is that Bible study which occurs when the passage being studied is allowed to speak to us, our conclusions being drawn from the passage.
Memorizing Scripture
Memorizing Scripture is an important part of keeping a mind focused on Christ....The point of memorizing Scripture is not to see how many verses you can memorize. The point is what happens to your mind in the process of rehearsing Scripture. When you are rehearsing statements from Scripture, you are having different thoughts than you would be if you were watching some television show.
Meditating On God's Word
Followers of Eastern religions and New Age cults practice a mindless form of meditation in an effort to discover what they believe to be a divinity that lies hidden within themselves. Christian meditation, however, is neither mindless nor self-centered. Meditation is reflective thinking with a view to application. You think about God's ways and align your heart with His will and purpose. Meditation opens Scripture the way a knife splits a watermelon.
Becoming More Like God
The Bible tells us that God wants to transform and sanctify us by the renewing of our minds and by learning how to become more holy like He and His Son Jesus. This process involves learning how to develop right thinking in your thought process and working with the power of the Holy Spirit to develop you into the kind of person God wants you to become in Him.
Sanctification
God's ultimate and highest aim for all of us is our sanctification in Him. God wants to make us more holy like Himself. He wants to transform us into the express image of His Son Jesus Christ. He wants to consecrate and set us apart unto Himself.
Seeking After The Lord
There is one special message and revelation that comes jumping off all the pages of the Bible. This one special message and revelation is that God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit are looking to establish and make a direct, one-on-one, intimate, personal relationship with each person He has created.
Be Transformed By The Renewing Of Your Mind
And do not be conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:2
The Power Of The Tongue
As Christians, we should all work very closely with the Holy Spirit in allowing Him to help us clean up our word life and how we verbally express ourselves to other people in this life.
Fear Of The Lord
For many Christians, the only thing that will keep them from crossing over into some of the heavier sin areas is to have a good healthy fear of the Lord and all of His ways.
Hold Fast To The Lord
When trouble strikes (as it will), you can either get mad at God, lose your faith in Him and how He is handling your life, and throw in the towel and quit on Him - or you can hold your ground and tell God that you are not going to bail out on Him no matter what life, hell or the devil tries to throw your way.
In The World, But Not Of The World
God is asking all of us to walk a very fine line between being actively and properly involved "in" the world so we can reach and help other people - but at the same time making sure that we do not fall too deep and too far into the world where we then start to fall into the actual evil, depravity and corruptness of this world.
God Is No Respecter Of Persons
God will work with each person that will properly come to Him with the same amount of intensity and to the same degree that He will work with anyone else. In other words, there will be equal treatment for everyone!
The Nine Fruits Of The Holy Spirit
God the Father wants to transmit and impart 9 specific fruits of the Holy Spirit up into our personalities. These 9 fruits are major fruits and qualities that are coming direct from God Himself - and every Christian should do the best they can to work with the Holy Spirit in getting all 9 of these fruits worked into his or her personality.
Letting Go Of Your Past
Once you enter into a full surrender with the Lord, one of the first things God may do with many of you is to take you back in your past so He can begin to clean up any wreckage that may have occurred. Before you can really move forward into the divine call and destiny that God has in store for you in this life, you first may have to deal with some specific things that may have occurred in your past.
Be Anxious For Nothing
The peace of God will actually "guard" our hearts and our minds. To guard means to protect. What this means is that the peace of God can help you be anxious for nothing.
Contentment
The closer you start to draw to the Lord in this life, the further away you will start to get from the ways and material possessions of this world - especially in the obsessive and abnormal pursuits of money, power and fame.
Slave To None And A Servant To All
Once you become saved and born again by accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior - God and Jesus will now become your true Lord and Master in this life and the life to come. You no longer even belong to yourself - much less belong to anyone else in this life.
Be Slow To Anger
Unless you have the peace of the Holy Spirit operating in your mind and emotions - you are going to have a very hard time in handling all of the stress this life can throw at you.
Pride Comes Before The Fall
This cancerous, lethal, and destructive quality, probably more than any other negative quality, has brought down more kingdoms, toppled more empires, caused more wars, destroyed more marriages, ruined more friendships and led more criminals into our jail systems than all of the other negative qualities combined and put together. Insert non-formatted text here
Spiritual Warfare
This section will be specifically dealing with how to spiritually defend yourself against whatever attacks or storm clouds that may come your way. We will show you how to effectively Plead the Blood of Jesus and how to form out the appropriate battle prayers to war against any enemy that may come your way - whether it be human, demonic or any kind of illness or disease.
Know Your Enemy
To be wise as a serpent means to have basic and fundamental knowledge of what areas you can go into and what areas you cannot go into - and to always be on your guard against the snares, traps, deceptions, and tricks that the dark side will try and throw at you in order to try and knock you off course, or try to enslave you into a dark area or into a dark side group of people.
Pleading The Blood Of Jesus
I believe that we are truly heading into end time waters as prophesied in the Bible. Learning how to properly Plead the Blood of Jesus for deliverance and protection is going to be needed by all Christians in order to help keep them out of harms way as things really start to heat up in the years ahead.
Battle Verses Of The Bible
In the Old Testament, God the Father was absolutely ferocious in His defense of the Jewish people when the situation would warrant Him coming to their aid. The Bible tells us that God the Father does not change. And if God is the same today as He was in the past - then this means that He will also come to the aid of all New Testament Christians who are walking in good stead with Him.
Healing Verses Of The Bible
In this article, I will give you 93 of the best verses from the Bible pertaining to being able to get a divine healing from God the Father. As you will see in some of these specific verses, not only can God heal us, but many of the time He actually wants to heal us.
Warfare Against Demonic Spirits
You can either learn how to rise up and walk with the anointing and power of God in your life so as to be able to do battle against your enemies, whether they be demons or other bad and evil people, or you can choose to hide your head in the sand and let demons and other bad and evil people tear you and your family to pieces.
The Testing Of Your Faith
Many Christians have either lost part or all of their faith in the Lord as a result of getting hit with some severe torpedo shots. And unless you have a full understanding and full knowledge as to why God will sometimes allow bad things to happen to good people in this life, you can have your personal faith in the Lord shaken to its very core depending on the level of intensity and severity of the storm cloud that may have just struck you.
About Me
This site is being developed to glorify God and bring people to the saving Grace of Jesus Christ.
I feel that the solution to the vast National and religious divisions is for The Bible to be the only source of authority for worship, law, doctrine & morality. I believe that human creeds, catechisms, governments & statements of faith cause division because they compete with the authority of the Bible and cloud people’s ability to clearly see what the Bible actually says. Churches are not divided over what is in the Bible, but what is not in the Bible.
Randy Salars
Silver City, NM, USA
November 2007
