" Praise the Lord for that which He is about to do! "
1) Read: The
Bible ~
How do we know who God is? How do we begin to understand His character
and attributes? It is only by reading the Bible that we can know the
truth about God. In this age of information, it is easy to get caught up
in all the changing research and data which bombards us everyday. How
important it is, to remember that God's Word never changes! The Bible has
the answers for all our questions and it offers hope for our times of
hopelessness. It tells us of our origin and tells us of our eternal
destiny. Most importantly it shows us Jesus Christ: The Bible states that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God." Romans 10:17
In other words, if you want your faith to grow
and mature, read God's Word on a consistent basis. READ: Psalm 1, Isaiah 40:7-8 & 2nd Timothy 2:15
2) Pray: Talk To God ~
Prayer is simply talking to God from your heart. Your prayers don't have
to sound "religious" and you don't have to use only 'Christian
sounding words. God wants to hear from the "real" you and He
wants to hear your deepest concerns and needs. Prayer is mainly a time
for us to thank the Lord and to praise Him for the great things He has done in
our lives. Read St. Matthew 6:5-13 to see an example of a prayer, which Jesus
prayed.
One thing to remember about this Scripture is that Jesus said, “after this
manner pray.” He did not say, repeat these words. To properly talk
to anyone, one needs to first identify who they are talking to. And if
they expect to get the response that they desire, they need to praise or speak
kindly to the one their making their request to especially, if the one doing
the asking doesn’t deserve it.
Prayer is also a time for us to receive God's forgiveness for our sins. When
you sin, don't beat yourself up or condemn yourself but go directly to God and
confess your sins in prayer. God is "faithful and just" to
forgive you. Look at 1st John 1:1-10 and underline these scriptures in
your Bible. Also, remember that you now belong to Jesus and that "There
is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans
8:1
3) Fellowship: Hang Out With Other Believers ~
Now that you have entered into God's family, you need to spend time with your
new brothers and sisters. It's a good idea to develop friendships with
people who have been walking with the Lord for a long time and to spend time
with them so, you can learn from everything the Lord has shown them over the
years. Likewise, as you grow and mature in the Lord, there will be others
who begin to learn from your example. That is what fellowship is all
about -- the strengthening of all of God's people or as the Bible puts it,
"The building up of the body of Christ". READ: Ephesians 4:15-16 , Hebrews 10:19-25 & Acts 2 42-47
4)
Tell Others: Tell People About Your Faith ~
Chances are, before you gave your life to Jesus, someone close to you or even
someone you had never met before shared with you the good news about a
relationship with God. Always remember that God hasn't redeemed you,
forgiven your sins, and given you a new life so that you can hoard all of His
blessings for yourself! He wants you to share your new life with others.
Jesus said, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a
hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a
basket, but on a lamp-stand, and it gives light to all who are in the
house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father in heaven." St. Matthew 5:14-16
5)
Be Baptized: Make A Public Commitment To Jesus ~
Baptism is an outward expression of what the Lord has done on the inside.
It is not the act of baptism, which cleanses you of your sins. Jesus said,
"Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.
He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will
be condemned. St. Mark 16:15-16
Notice that it is not the lack of baptism which brings condemnation but
unbelief. However, Jesus is commanding us to be baptized and we should be
careful to obey everything that God asks of us.
To learn more about baptism, READ: Romans 6:3-4, Colossians 2:10-13
House of Prayer Sabbath Ministries
Comments? Email Us: hope@preachersteacher.org
