Whether you’ve been a Christian for years or just recently received the Lord Jesus, it’s vital that you learn how to study the Bible.

Why? The Bible reveals God Himself and His intention for man. It also conveys the divine light and life supply to live the Christian life.

So building up a proper habit of Bible study from the beginning of your Christian life can afford you immeasurable benefits–accelerating your growth in Christ and leading you to take God’s way.

And if you’re already a student of the Scriptures, a fresh perspective on how to study the Bible can revitalize your time in God’s Word.

So in this post I’ll mention some important points on how to study the Bible and recommend how you can apply them in your daily practice.

Here are 7 practical points on how to study the Bible:

1. Realize that the essence of God’s Word is spirit and life.

In John 6:63b, the Lord Jesus said,

“…the words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.”

The Bible is not merely a book of knowledge, but a book of life.

Consider… The Bible is God’s breath  (2 Tim. 3:16). It’s spiritual milk,  the bread of life and solid food (1 Pet. 2:2, Matt. 4:4; 1 Cor. 3:2). Breath, milk, bread and solid food all describe something of life.

How to study the Bible begins with a realization of what God’s Word is–spirit and life. With such a realization, you’re prepared to contact the Bible’s life essence and not just obtain knowledge from it. This realization of how to study the Bible is conveyed in the lyrics of the hymn, “Feed me, Lord Jesus…”

Try praying the chorus of this hymn before you study the Bible:

Feed me, Lord Jesus, give me to drink,
Fill all my hunger, quench all my thirst;
Flood me with joy, be the strength of my life,
Fill all my hunger, quench all my thirst.

2. Prepare your spirit and heart to meet the Lord in His Word.

How to study the Bible is more about your person, than about your method. When I say “person,” I’m referring to your spirit and heart.

Preparing your spirit means to empty out of all of your old knowledge in order to meet the Lord in a fresh way. This means to become poor in spirit (Matt 5:3). When you’re an empty vessel before the Lord, it’s easy for Him to fill you.

Preparing your heart means to make your heart pure. The Lord said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). By prayer, turn your heart  from other things to the Lord  Himself. That’s because a turned away heart becomes a veil that hinders you from seeing the Lord in His Word. Read what Paul said,

“Indeed unto this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart; But whenever their heart turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away” (2 Cor. 3:15-16). Here is a spiritual song to help you digest this point.

You may even want to pray,

“Lord, I’m coming to your Word right now.  I turn my heart to You. Make me poor in spirit to receive You and pure in heart to see You in my Bible study today.”

For more on preparing yourself by prayer you may want to read my previous post, “The First Step Toward a Vital Practice of Reading and Studying the Bible.”

3.  Pray-read a few verses with your spirit to be nourished.

Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:6,

“If you lay these things before the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, being nourished  with the words of the faith and of the good teaching which you have closely followed.”

Before you study the Bible, it’s best to come to the Lord Himself in the Word to be nourished. This is to turn the verses you’re reading into your personal prayer, praying back to the Lord what He has spoken in His Word.

You can turn the words in the Bible into your prayer, petition, thanks,  praise, and song to the Lord (Eph. 6:17-18, Col. 3:16).

For more specifics on how to pray-read the word, you may want to read my previous post, “12 Tips on How to Pray-read the Word of God to be Spiritually Nourished.”

An important point about pray-reading the word is that proper pray-reading requires the exercise of your spirit, your God-contacting organ. This is crucial because your spirit is the necessary organ to receive both nourishment and revelation from God’s word (Eph. 1:17).

4. Read the Bible in context; interpret the Bible with the Bible.

To understand any verse in the Bible requires that you see it in it’s context. Even more, one verse in the New Testament may require that you read an entire chapter in the Old Testament to understand it. For example, 1 Cor. 5:7 says,

“…for our Passover, Christ, also  has been sacrifices.”

To understand what it means for Christ to be our Passover, you need to understand the significance of the Passover feast in Exodus 12.

In order  to be a proper student of God’s word, you need to pick up a life-long habit of daily reading the Bible. For more details on this crucial practice, read “Some Simple Ways to Read the Bible” in my previous post,  Practical Points on Bible Reading…

5. Choose a literal translation for serious Bible study.

Whether you want to study book-by-book or topically, I’d recommend a literal, word-for-word translation.

Personally, my favorite is the Recovery Version. The text is very literal, transparent, and easy to read.

Sometime I’ll also refer to a Greek interlinear to see in which tense a Greek verb is in or which Greek word is being used. I’ve also  found the text of  the Recovery Version to be very true to the Greek text and the linguistic notes to aid in understanding textual ambiguities.

But what’s even more helpful to me are the outlines and expository footnotes. The outlines give you a bird’s eye view of a certain book, chapter or verse. The footnotes tap into the revelation of the truth, the spiritual light and the life supply conveyed in the Word.

If you already have a preferred study Bible, no problem. But it’s also good to have four or five different versions to refer to. I do. If you don’t have a Recovery Version and would like one, you can get a free copy of the New Testament online for starters through Bibles for America.

For more on Bible translations, you may also want to read, “What’s the Best Bible Translation to Read?”

6. Use commentaries and study helps wisely.

Commentaries can be helpful, but only to the extent that they open up the treasure store of God’s Word. The  treasures in the Word are the crucial matters related to the Christian faith–the Triune God and His eternal economy, Christ with His person and work, the Spirit, eternal life, God’s way of salvation, and the church, the Body of Christ.

For a book-by-book study, the most helpful tool I’ve found is the Life-study of the Bible by Witness Lee. You can read the entire Life-study for free at ministrybooks.org.

For short topical studies, I like the Topical Directory in the back of Using the New Testament Recovery Version - An Illustrated Guide. You can download the  pdf  for free from Bibles for America.

7. Speak the Word you’re enjoying to Bible study companions.

Colossians 3:16 says,

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly teaching and admonishing one another…”

After studying the word personally with prayer, writing down some notes and questions, it’s really helpful to get together with others that also want to “let the word of Christ dwell in them richly.”

Practice to speak what you’ve enjoyed to one another. From my experience, it’s when you speak the truth  from God’s word that it really becomes your enjoyment and possession.

So, if there is a point on how to study the Bible that has helped you or something you’d add, I’d  encourage you to share it in a comment.  

References and Further Resources:

• “Feed me Lord Jesus,”  is from Hymns, published by Living Stream Ministry, lyrics by Witness Lee.
• For more help on how to study the Bible, you may enjoy reading The Full Knowledge of the Word of God by Witness Lee.
• To strengthen the point “Read the Bible in Context” I’d recommend this post:  How to Read your Bible – Consecutively. Also ReadHisWord.com is Bible-reading Scheduler that can help  you read consistently.
• Here are  hymns or spiritual songs that may help you to enjoy Christ-filled Bible study:
  • I come to Thee, dear Lord
  • Jesus, O Living Word of God
• Photo Credit: Ryk Neethling

The post How to Study the Bible appeared first on Holding to Truth.

In my previous post, “Is there a difference between the soul and the spirit?” I presented these three parts with a particular focus on  the difference between spirit and soul.

A key verse on these three parts is 1 Thessalonians 5:23 which says,

“And the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly, and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

In this post we’ll consider how each of your three parts can be wholly sanctified by God…

First, God created you with a spirit, soul and body for His eternal purpose:

Genesis 2:7 says,

“Jehovah formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul.”

• “dust of the ground”—from the dust God formed a body, with five senses for man to contact all the things of the physical realm so that he could exist in the physical universe.
• “breath of life”—then God breathed into his nostrils the “breath of life”  imparting a spirit into man, as a spiritual organ to contact and receive God and to realize all the things in the spiritual realm.
• “living soul”—finally, God made man with a soul, a psychological part, with  mind, emotion and will so that he could understand, like and choose, that is to have his personality.

Second, Satan damaged your spirit, soul and body through the fall:

Satan did not want God’s eternal purpose with man to be fulfilled and craftily deceived  man to disobey God’s command (Gen 3:1-7).

Man did not merely disobey God but received the poisonous element of Satan into him and was thus ruined in each of his three parts—body, soul and spirit:

•  “dead in your offenses”—through the fall, man’s God-contacting spirit was deadened—losing its function to contact God—Eph. 2:1.
• “enemies in your mind”—man’s soul, especially the mind, was contaminated and became at enmity with God—Col. 1:21.
• “body of sin”—man’s God-created body was ruined and became a body of sin and death unable to fulfill God’s purpose—Rom 6:6; 7:24.

Third, God sanctifies your spirit, soul and body in three steps of His complete salvation:

To “sanctify” means to make holy not only by being separated unto God in position, but also by being saturated in your disposition with the nature of God’s holiness—Rom. 6:19.

• “born of the Spirit is spirit”—first, through regeneration, your deadened spirit is  enlivened and recovered to its function of contacting God; by the adding of the divine life with God’s holy nature your spirit is sanctified—John 3:6.
• “transformed by the renewing of the mind”—second, in transformation, your contaminated soul, is metabolically renewed by the spreading of God’s Spirit from your spirit into your soul to saturate and transform your soul. In this way your soul is sanctified—Rom. 12:2.
• “transfigure the body of our humiliation“—finally, through transfiguration, your mortal body will be “conformed to the body of [Christ's] glory.” In this way God will wholly sanctify your entire being—spirit, soul and body with Himself—Phil 3:21.

How you can cooperate with God’s sanctifying of your spirit, soul and body

 God’s way to recover man for His purpose is from the inside out.

 First, receive the Lord Jesus, to be regenerated in your spirit.

 Simply confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead (Rom. 10:9-10).

When you call on the Lord Jesus, believing that God has raised Him from the dead, you’re saved and God justifies you in His Son. As you call on the name of the Lord from deep within, your spirit contacts His Spirit and His Spirit enters and mingles with your spirit.

To be regenerated strongly call on the Lord and pray,

O Lord Jesus!  Lord Jesus! Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins, and for rising from the dead. I believe into Your name. I  receive You as my Savior and Life. Come into my spirit. Fill me with Your Spirit. Thank you for regenerating my spirit. Praise the Lord, I am born anew to be a child of God! Lord Jesus, I love You!” 

The issue of praying in this way is that Christ as the life-giving Spirit enters your spirit making your spirit and His Spirit, one mingled spirit (1 Cor. 6:17). As a new believer it is good to declare in faith, “I am one spirit with the Lord!”

By being reborn  of the Spirit in your spirit (John 3:6), your spirit is sanctified by the presence of the Holy Spirit. For more on regeneration you may want to read my previous post on this subject.

Second, set your mind on the spirit by reading, singing and musing on God’s Word with prayer.

Romans 8:5-6 encourages us to mind the things of the Spirit and to set our mind on the spirit which is life and peace.

Ephesians 5:26 gives us a practical way. It says,

“That He might sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing of the water in the Word.”

Practice to set your mind on the things of the Spirit, by frequently contacting God’s Word  by means of all kinds of prayer (Eph. 6:17-18).  In “12 Tips on How to Pray-read the Word of God to be Spiritually Nourished,” I talk in more detail about this helpful practice.

The more you cooperate by setting your mind on the things of the Spirit, the more the Spirit will spread into your mind to renew it. In this way, your soul will be gradually sanctified by the transforming work of the Spirit.

Third, by the Spirit, put to death the practices of your fallen body.

Romans 8:13 says,

“If by the Spirit you put to death the practices of the body, you will live.”

It is in this way that His Spirit can give life even to your mortal body today.

For example, you may have a bad habit of  spending too much time in vain talk, gossiping, or hanging out on social media. The Lord may remind  you that you haven’t prayed or read His Word today.

Stop. Turn to the Lord, and check with Him saying, ”Lord, do you want me to stop watching this and pray?”

When you go along with His moving within your spirit, He’ll impart more life to your mortal body. In this way the sanctifying of His Spirit will spread into your body enabling you to do God’s will.

Ultimately, such a sanctifying work will spread to point that you will be sanctified wholly–spirit, soul and body–awaiting the transfiguration of your body at the Lord’s coming back.

If your appreciation for God’s sanctifying of your spirit, soul and body has been uplifted through this post, feel free to share your appreciation in a comment.

Further Resources:

• The full salvation of God in three stages is more thoroughly covered in 1 Pet. 1:5, footnote 5 in the Recovery Version.
• You can get your own free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version from Bibles for America.
• For a further appreciation, I strongly encourage you to follow the Bible verse links as many of them also have excellent footnotes to enrich the point being covered.

The post How Your Spirit, Soul and Body Can Be Wholly Sanctified by God appeared first on Holding to Truth.

 The love displayed in this world is disillusioning. It’s temporary at best…selfish, shallow and often showy.

But genuine love is deeper. It’s not just something on the surface, something merely spoken with our lips.

Real love is both a matter of a life and a living. That is, it involves both a loving essence and a loving exercise.

Real love issues from an inner life. And because it’s something of life, it can also be cultivated, grow, and blossom.

But what is this deeper love and how can you experience it in your life…right now?

The essence of love is God Himself; It is His divine attribute.

The Bible clearly says that,

“God IS love.” (1 John 4:8).

Our human virtue of love is simply a container for His divine attribute. It’s our loving capacity. Our love is like the finger of a “glove.” It needs to be filled with the finger of a hand.

God as love is the real content. He is the real “hand,” waiting to fill us as His “glove.”

This God of love was embodied in in His Son, Jesus Christ (John 1:14; Col. 2:9). Then through His death and resurrection Christ became a life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b). Now He is ready to come into whoever opens to  Him to become their real content.

You may want to pause for a moment and pray,

“Dear God, thank you for making me as Your container, Your “glove.” Lord Jesus, praise you that You are the embodiment of the God who is Love. Come into me as the real “hand” and be my  content. Fill my loving capacity with Yourself as Love. Lord Jesus, I love You.”

Our loving action is to contact the One who is Love that we may become love.

Once we’ve received the One Who is love itself, we need to continually contact Him so that His love can grow.

As His life of love grows in us, our virtue of love will become rich, full, solid, and enduring. This is the God of love filling and overflowing from our loving virtue.

Here are eight points of love for your progressive experience:

Now let’s consider eight points concerning what love is from the side of our practice and experience. The practice of these eight points of love will enable the Lord as love to grow in us.

 1. To love the Lord is to appreciate Him.

 Mary was one of the Lord’s disciples, the one who sat at His feet and listened attentively to His word (Luke 10:39; Matt. 26:1-13). Based on her appreciation of Him, Mary poured out her best on the Lord—a flask of precious ointment. It was all that she had. It was her appreciation for the Lord  Jesus that caused her to love Him with her best.

May we also make times simply to appreciate the Lord for who He is. This will cause our love for Him to grow.

The essence of this story is captured in the words of this hymn: “Mary poured out her love offering.”

2. To love the Lord Jesus is to direct our entire being toward Him.

 1 Cor. 2:9 says,

‘But as it is written, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and which have not come up in man’s heart; things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”’

 Part of footnote 3 on 1 Cor. 2:9 in the Recovery Version says,

 “…To love God means to set our entire being—spirit, soul, and body, with the heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30)—absolutely on Him, that is, to let our entire being be occupied by Him and lost in Him, so that He becomes everything to us and we are one with Him practically in our daily life. In this way we have the closest and most intimate fellowship with God, and we are able to enter into His heart and apprehend all its secrets (Psa. 73:25; 25:14)…”

3. To love the Lord is to fully open ourselves to Him.

Every morning we need to open our whole being to the Lord Jesus. This should be our spiritual deep breathing. We breathe out all that we are and breathe in all that He is. This is to love the Lord Jesus.

One of my favorite hymns on loving Christ—”Jesus Lord, I’m Captured by Thy Beauty,” sweetly expresses this sentiment in its first stanza,

Jesus Lord, I’m captured by Thy beauty,
All my heart to Thee I open wide;
Now set free from all religious duty,
Only let me in Thyself abide.
As I’m gazing here upon Thy glory,
Fill my heart with radiancy divine;
Saturate me, Lord, I now implore Thee,
Mingle now Thy Spirit, Lord, with mine.

It would be very helpful to make the words of this stanza your personal prayer to the Lord Jesus. Opening to the Lord in such a way is a further expression of your love for Him.

4. To love the Lord Jesus is to enjoy Him.

After we’ve opened to the Lord, we need to remain with Him in our spirit to enjoy Him. At such times, our concerns and even our work for Him may become a distraction.

The example of the two sisters, Martha and Mary in Luke 10:38-42, is an excellent lesson for us all. Both sisters had Christ with them, but Martha was drawn about with much serving. Mary sat at the Lord’s feet listening to His word.

“The Lord prefers that His saved ones who love Him listen to Him that they may know His desire, rather than do things for Him without knowing His will.”  (Luke 10:42, note 1)

Stop to make daily times to enjoy the Lord by listening to Him in His word. This also is to love Him.

5. To love the Lord is to give Him the first place in all things.

In Col. 1:18 Paul said,

“…He is the beginning, the Firstborn from the dead, that He Himself might have the first place in all things.”

When we’re freshly enjoying the Lord, we desire to give Him the first place in every aspect of our lives. We want Him to be our first and best love (Rev. 2:4).

6. To love the Lord is to be one with Him.

We love the Lord by practicing to be one with Him in our living. First Corinthians 6:17 says,

“But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.”

This real love is only found in our union with the Lord Jesus,  by remaining in one spirit with Him.

7. To love the Lord Jesus is to live Him.

When we’re loving the Lord, remaining in one spirit with Him, we spontaneously “live Him.”

As the apostle Paul was expecting to be martyred for his Master, he said,

“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Phil. 1:21)

May our loving the Lord Jesus, progress to the point that we simply “live Christ.” Because we love Him, we would often check, “Lord is this You? Lord are You thinking this…saying this…or going there?”

This short song, “Lord, I’ve set my heart; I just love You,” expresses this aspect of loving and living Christ.

8. To love the Lord is to become Him.

Finally, as we’re loving the Lord, we simply become Him in His nature of love.

Another excellent hymn expresses this by saying,

What e’er thou lovest, man,
Thou too become thou must;
God if thou lovest God,
dust it thou lovest dust.

Of course we will never become Him in His Godhead, but as this hymn points out, by loving Him we become Him in His life and nature (2 Pet. 1:4)–especially in His love.

May we exercise to love the Lord to such an extent that His essence of love becomes the real content  expressed in our lives enabling us to grow into Him in all things (Eph. 4:15), build up His Body (v. 16b), and walk in love (5:2) to express Him as love to all the people we meet in our daily living.

If you’ve experienced the One who is real love filling you with Himself as love, please express your appreciation in a comment to this post.

References and further Resources:

• Inspiration for this post came from sharing by Ron Kangas in a ministry message entitled, “The Triune God Being Life to Us through Our Exercise of Faith to Receive Him and of Love to Enjoy Him.”
• For more appreciation of how God can become our contents, you may want view this video: The God-shaped Vacuum.
• Photo Credit: Clark Russell

The post What is love? appeared first on Holding to Truth.

“How is possible for those who’ve wandered far from God to return to Him?” 

You  might say you’ve strayed too far from God. You’ve  sinned too badly. God would never receive you back.

Or…you might feel your heart is too dark or hard. You could never return to Him.

Or…you might even feel,  like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, that certain people are hopelessly lost and are unworthy of  the  Savior’s compassion.

All such thoughts show that we don’t know the depth of God’s far-reaching love for sinners…even for us.

It’s God far-reaching love that enables sinners to repent and return to Him.

We need to see God’s attitude, His loving and forgiving heart toward man.

This is an aspect of God’s good news revealed in the Gospel of Luke.  Luke 15  gives us three parables to show how God far-reaching love enables even the worst of sinners to repent and return to God.

Actually, Ephesians 2:18 gives us the caption to these three parables by saying,

“For through Him [the Son], we have access in one Spirit unto the Father.”

This is exactly the steps God took in Luke 15 to enable us, who were lost sinners, to return to God, our loving Father, and to the church, His house of feasting.

First, Jesus came in love as a shepherd to find you as the one lost sheep.

Luke 15: 4-5, 7 says,

4 Which man of you, who has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?

5 And when he finds it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner repenting than over ninety-nine righteous persons who have no need of repentance.

How does this parable show God’s  far-reaching love?

First, Jesus Christ,  the Son of God, was willing to become that “man,”  as the seeking Shepherd to come find us.

We are all lost sheep in the “wilderness” of this world. (Some just don’t realize it.)

But Jesus loved us so much that He came and died to redeem us. As our good shepherd, He willingly laid down His life for us, His sheep (John 10:11).  It was in this way that He could lay us on His shoulders, rejoicing.

When we see what Jesus did for us, we  simply need to thank Him saying,

“Lord Jesus, thank you for coming into the wilderness of this world to find me,  your lost sheep. I was a lost sinner, but  You loved me so much that You came and died for me. Thank you for putting me on Your shoulders.”

Second, the Spirit searches your heart in love as the woman seeking the one lost coin.

The Lord Jesus completed the first step by coming into this world as a shepherd to find us.  But for us to repent and return to God something more was needed. Our heart was still dark, hard,  and far away from God. So God took a further step.

Luke 15:8-10 says,

8 Or what woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one silver coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek carefully until she finds it?

9 And when she finds it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I lost.

10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting.

Based on Christ’s coming and dying for us, the Holy Spirit lovingly comes to convict us concerning our sinful situation before God (John 16:8-11).  As a woman would “light the lamp and sweep the house” to find her lost coin, God’s Spirit illuminates our heart with God’s shining word to make our true condition known to us.

When the Spirit of reality convicts us of our sin in such a way, we can’t help but reconsider our way and say,

“Lord, thank you for enlightening my darkened  heart with Your shining Word so that I can now see my lost condition.  Thank you causing me to repent, to come to myself and to remember You. Lord, I’m a lost sinner, I  repent and turn to You.”

Third, the Father lovingly runs to welcome you home as a father receiving his lost son.

However, once we’ve come to ourselves and repented, we might think that God is angry with us  and would never receive us back. We’re ashamed like that prodigal son, thinking of what to say to his father. We might say like that son,

18 I will rise up and go to my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.  19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.

But look what the father did:

20 …But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion, and he ran and fell on his neck and kissed him affectionately.

The father was so eager, he ran to meet his returning son. He wasn’t interested in his son’s talk about past failures and unworthiness. Listen to what he said,

22 “…Bring out quickly the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf; slaughter it, and let us eat and be merry, 24  Because this son of mine was dead and lives again; he was lost and has been found.”

Through the Son’s coming and dying for us, and the Spirit’s enlightening and convicting us, we could repent and return to God.  When we take that step to return to Him, our loving Father joyfully runs to meet us.

On the one hand, the  Father removes our filthy rags and clothes us with Christ as our “best robe.” This meets His righteous requirements and satisfies Him.

On the other hand, He invited us to  feast on  ”the fattened calf,” that is,  to  enjoy the rich Christ, killed on the cross for our enjoyment. This satisfies our inner hunger.

When we see God’s far-reaching love toward us, we can’t help but repent, believe, thank and praise Him for His saving love saying,

“Father, thank you for running to meet me, for clothing me with Your Son as the best robe and for inviting me to feast with You  on the rich Christ as  the fattened calf in Your house the church. I praise and thank you for saving me.”

When we hear such a word, we  should also be filled with hope for those that seem far from God. We should not despise them as those Pharisees did but tell them that Lord doesn’t condemn them but wants them to return home.

He’s waiting to say, “Welcome home!”

May the Lord grant us to touch the loving and forgiving heart of our Father God and the seeking and shepherding spirit of our Savior Christ so that many more lost souls can be reached and warmly received into the Father’s house of feasting.

If the Lord has touched you with His heart of love for sinners, please share your impression in a comment to this post.

References and Further Resources:

• This post was inspired by Luke 15:1-32 in  the Recovery Version with the footnotes and the commentary in the Life-study of Luke (messages 34 and 35).
•  Here is a spiritual song that covers these verses:  Shepherd receive man
• photo credit: daftgirly

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Grow up into Him in all things… Eph. 4:15b

“How can I grow in Christ?”

Have you ever asked yourself this question?

Whether you have been a Christian for many years or just recently received the Lord Jesus, it’s very important to know how to grow in Christ.

Unfortunately, improving behavior, increasing Bible knowledge, or developing spiritual gifts may become distractions from real growth in Christ.

The real growth in Christ is the increase of God’s life in you.

For example, the believers in Corinthian were very much for knowledge and gifts, but the Apostle Paul told them that they were “infants in Christ”—short of the real growth in God’s life (1 Cor. 3:1-2).

So if you’re longing for growth in Christ, I hope you’ll keep reading…

1. The first way to grow in Christ is to love Him.

Loving the Lord Jesus is the first step we need to take in order to grow in our Christian life.  

That’s because the divine life we receive when we believed the gospel is actually this living Christ in us. There is now such a wonderful Person in us! And there is no other way deal with a person but by love.

The Gospel of John is the gospel of life (John 1:4; 3:16; 10:10b; 14:6; 20:31) showing the way to receive Christ, to be reborn as a child of God (1:12-13). It also stresses that after we believe in the Lord to receive God’s life, we need to  love the Lord Jesus.

In John 21:15-17,  the Lord Jesus, in His resurrection,  came to Peter and asked him three times:

 “Simon, do you love me?…”

Today, the Lord may be calling us by name and saying the same thing—“Do you love Me?”

 The Song of Songs, a poetic portrayal of the Christian life in four progressive stages, begins with love.

The king’s lover begins by saying,

“Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine” (S.S. 1:2)

Our Christian life is actually a romantic love story and we need to cultivate an affectionate  relationship with the Lord Jesus. We simply need to come to Him  saying,

“Lord Jesus, kiss me with the kisses of Your mouth. Show me Your love that I may love You. Lord be merciful to me and grant me an affectionate love for you.”

Each day, we need to tell the Lord Jesus that we love Him—at least in the morning and at night. Start and end your day by loving the Lord. It’s also very helpful to sing out our love for Christ with hymns or spiritual songs.

2. The second way to grow in Christ is by confession and clearance.

As we’re enjoying an intimate love for the Lord, we’ll often sense the need to confess and clear up things that separate us from Him.

In Practical Lessons on the Experience of Life, Witness Lee  points out that,

“The more we love the Lord, the more we sense our failures, shortcomings, weaknesses, and wrongdoings.” (p. 203)

This isn’t some kind of introspection. It’s simply the issue of loving the Lord.  We have an increased consciousness of  our need to confess to Him anything that darkens our conscience.

Lee goes on to say,

“We need to pray that the Lord would grant us love for Him. Then we must be faithful to make a thorough dealing with the Lord.”

You may want to pray,

 “Lord Jesus, I love you and I want to have nothing negative between me and You. Lord, I like to confess all my sins, dirtiness, failures, and trespasses so that You can grow freely in me.”

You may also want to read my previous post on how to pray confessing prayers.

 3.  The third way to grow in Christ is to know and exercise your spirit.

After we begin to love the Lord and confess those things that separate us from Him, there is a further step.  We need to know and exercise our spirit.

Sadly, many diligent, devoted believers have missed this matter. We may love the Lord very much and even do our best to deal with negative things that separate us from Him.

However, if we don’t know the difference between our soul and our spirit, we may know a lot of Bible doctrines but with little or no growth in the Lord’s life.  So we need to know our spirit and exercise our spirit.

To have the real  exercise of our spirit  depends on our love for the Lord and our pure conscience. Lee says further in this chapter,

“If we do not have a love for the Lord, we cannot exercise our spirit. Likewise, if we constantly have something accusing us in our conscience, we are finished with the exercise of the spirit. To exercise the spirit requires a love for the Lord and a pure conscience. After we have love and a pure conscience, we must learn the lesson of always exercising our spirit.”  (p. 205)

It’s really good to build up a habit of  exercising your spirit from the first thing in the morning. Calling on the name of the Lord, praying,  pray-reading His Word, and singing to Him are all excellent ways to begin to exercise your spirit.

4. The fourth way to grow in Christ is to always stay in contact with the Lord.

We need to be so simple to  love the Lord Jesus, deal thoroughly with Him,  and exercise our spirit. In this way we’ll be able to stay in contact with Him–living by Him, living in Him, and living with Him in everything.

A further quote from this chapter says,

“Only one thing avails: learn to love the Lord, deal with Him thoroughly, exercise your spirit, and contact Him. Then you will grow.” (p. 209)

It may be good to turn this word into your personal prayer saying,

” Lord Jesus, make me so simple to experience You as my life every day. Draw me to love You. Enlighten me to deal thoroughly with any obstacles to Your life in me. show me how to exercise my spirit all the time to contact You so that You can grow freely in me.”

If you’ve been helped by some of the points in this post, I’d encourage you to reply with a confirming comment.

References and Further reading:

• This post was inspired by Chapter 16, of Practical Lessons on the Experience of Life, by Witness Lee entitled, “The Way to Grow.”
• Photo credit: dixieroadrash

The post 4 Simple Ways to Grow in Christ appeared first on Holding to Truth.

What is life?

“What is life?” Have you ever asked yourself this question?

…Possibly when you were plagued by troubles and frustrations in your human life, family life or profession.

Or…maybe it was just a deep, inner sense of emptiness that caused you to consider—“what is life?”

You’re not alone. Even some of the most successful, famous, and wealthy people have reached the top only to find that they’ve missed out on that which is “really life.” They were not satisfied.

To get to the heart of the issue, we’ll first have to realize that “life” is profound. We’re complex beings and there are different kinds of life that contribute to our total life experience.

 So what is the real life that makes the human life meaningful?

 We need to see that the Bible speaks of three kinds of “life:”

 Physical life—Greek, bios

We’re all familiar with our physical life. It’s the life of our body that includes our five senses. This life enables us to contact the material world. In the Bible, this life in Greek is called bios. It’s the root for the word “biology”—the study of physical life, the knowledge of living organisms.

In Luke 8:14, the Lord Jesus referred to bios when He spoke of “the pleasures of this life” as being one of the things that can choke out the growth of God’s word  in our hearts.

 Psychological life—Greek, psuche

Concealed within our physical body we also have our distinct personality—our soul with our mind, emotion, and will. The life in our soul or “soul-life” is called psuche in Greek. It’s the root from which we get the word “psychology”—the study of mind and behavior.

In Mark 10:45, Jesus spoke of this life saying, “For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life (psuche, His soul)  as a ransom for many.”

But the good news in the Bible is that there is yet another life for us to receive and live by…

Eternal life—Greek, zoe

The focus of the Bible is on a deeper life—the eternal life. In the Bible, this eternal life is called zoe in Greek. It’s this life that we’ll focus on in this post. It’s also this life that the Lord Jesus promised to give to those who believe into Him (John 3:15).

 What is this “eternal life” that God wants to give to us?

Some people might think, based on their limited understanding of the King James Bible, that this life is simply “everlasting life” (John 3:16 KJV)—a blissful hereafter. Yes, eternal life is everlasting, but it is much more than this. It’s definitely not something that we have to wait for until we die.

Here are a few points that describe the life that God wants us to receive and experience:

The life God desires to give us is not just a better, richer, longer, physical or psychological life. Rather, it is a life of a higher nature, a life that is:

 Divine

God intends that we would receive His own life—the life of God (Eph 4:18). It is only this life that can be considered “real life.” Every other life is temporary, mortal and corruptible. The divine life is actually God Himself and possesses the nature of God.

In 2 Pet. 1:4, Peter says that we can become “partakers of the divine nature.” This is similar to parents bringing forth children. Since the children receive their life, they also share their nature with all its characteristics.

 Eternal

Since the life God gives us is divine, it is also eternal. In The Knowledge of Life, Witness Lee says,

What does eternal mean? Eternal means uncreated, without beginning or ending, existing by itself and ever, unchangeably existing. Only God is uncreated; only He is “from eternity to eternity” (Ps. 90:2, original text), that is, without beginning or ending. He is “I am that I am” (Ex. 3:14), and always “the same” (Ps. 102:27). Since God Himself is such, so also is the life which is God Himself. The life of God, just as God Himself, is uncreated, without beginning or ending, self-existing and ever existing, and never changing; therefore, the life of God is eternal. Hence the Scriptures speak of God’s life as eternal life. (p. 10)

So the life God desire to give us is not only divine in nature but eternal in it characteristics. It’s like a gold cup. The nature of the cup is gold and the characteristic is rust-resistant. Because the life of God is divine it is also eternal, because God Himself is eternal.

 God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit

 As I mentioned already, this life is firstly God Himself—the life of God. When Jesus Christ came, He was the embodiment of God who is life (Col. 2:9), so God as eternal life was in Him. As such, the Apostle John could say,

“In Him [Christ] was life [zoe], and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:4)

Later, the Lord Jesus told one of His disciples,

“I am the way, the reality and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)

 So our Lord Jesus IS this “zoe-life.” We just need to receive Him!

But how is it possible for us to receive the Lord Jesus as this eternal life?

Another step was needed. Christ, who was the embodiment of the eternal life had to become a life-giving Spirit to impart this life. So, through the process of His death and resurrection, the life in Him, is now able to reach us as the Spirit.

In 1 Cor. 15:45b, it says,

“…The last Adam [Christ], became a life-giving Spirit.”

Christ today, in resurrection, is such a “life-giving” Spirit.

How can we practically receive the eternal life?

What is so wonderful is that as the life-giving Spirit, Christ as the eternal life is now receivable.

To contact and receive the eternal life is not something that you have to wait for until you die. It is something that you can experience and enjoy right now.

…And not just once for all, but continually, moment-by-moment. Receiving this life is like breathing, drinking and eating.

You can start by praying,

 “Lord Jesus, I believe that You are God come in the flesh to be life to me. Thank you for dying on the cross to take away all my sins. Praise you that You resurrected from the dead to give me eternal life. Lord Jesus, I receive You right now as my Savior and life.”

 But don’t stop here. This eternal life in Christ is available for you to live by. You can:

• Call on the Lord’s name often to breathe and drink the Spirit of life—Rom 10:12-13; 1 Cor. 12:3, 13b.
• Pray-read God’s Word daily to eat the Lord as the bread of life—Eph 6:17-18; John 6:57, 35,  63.
• Confess your sins and failures to the Lord Jesus to remain in the fellowship of life—1 John 1:7-9.

References and Further Reading:

• The points concerning what is life were taken from The Knowledge of Life by Witness Lee, pp. 9-17. You can read it online at ministrybooks.org.
• You may also enjoy reading a previous post, “What is Eternal Life?”
• Hymns on the subject of “What is life:”
  • Life is mysterious, life is God Himself
  • Life is God the Father In Christ Jesus as the Spirit

The post What is Life? appeared first on Holding to Truth.

God…blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ. Eph 1:3

Is your view of  God’s blessings the same as His?

Consider. Have you ever been disappointed that God didn’t “bless  you” in the way you’d hoped? 

 Maybe…

• You didn’t succeed in school or sports as you had expected or…
• You didn’t get that job that you really wanted or…
• The person that you loved, didn’t love you back or…
• Your kids didn’t excel as you hoped they would or…
• You didn’t receive that answer to prayer that you petitioned for.

I sincerely hope that you’re not offended by God due to His lack of “blessing” or the lack of answers to your prayers.

But frankly, God’s commitment to us is not in material blessings…although He does promise to take care of our needs (Matt. 6:33).

But, He is no less God, and no less true and real when He withholds material blessings from us…Job found that out.

What’s my point? God’s ways are much higher than ours and His divine thought of blessing is much higher than ours.

Then you might ask, “What are the blessings that God has planned for us?”

The New Testament blessings are spiritual, not material.

Ephesians 1:3 says,

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ.”

These “spiritual blessings” are focused on “sonship”—that is, God’s heart’s desire to have many full-grown sons to express Him. When we see God’s goal of “sonship,” our view of blessing will change.

Our view of God’s blessings becomes no longer a matter of how successful we’ll be, but of how much God is able to work out His purpose for sonship in us. Practically this means how much of Himself He can dispense into us.

Ephesians 1:3-14  reveals at least three  spiritual blessings for you to receive by faith.  They’re all related to God Himself.

It’s good to give Him your thanks and praise for each one. By receiving these spiritual blessings with thanks and praise you’ll be brought further by God into the experience of His sonship.

1.  God, the Father blessed you by choosing you to be holy and predestinating you unto sonship.

Ephesians 1:4-5 says,

“Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and without blemish before Him in love, predestinating us unto sonship through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will.”

If you’re a believer reading this post, you may have realized that your salvation didn’t originate with you. That’s because God “chose you before the foundation of the world,” from among millions of people, to be “holy”–separated unto Him and saturated with His holy nature. But that’s only the process.

God, the Father’s goal is sonship.

That’s because He needs many sons to express all the riches of His divine life.

First, for God, our Father to bring us into His “sonship” requires that we experience a divine birth with His divine life (John 1:12-13).

Second, He causes us to grow in His divine life (1 Pet. 2:2-3; 1 Cor. 3:6-7).

Third,  He brings us into the maturity in His life (Heb. 6:1)  that we might be qualified to be His heirs who inherit all that God is for our enjoyment (Rom. 8:17-19).

To carry out His choosing,  the Father marked us out, so that He could dispense His divine life and holy nature into us. What a blessing! We should simply receive this blessing by faith with our  thanks and praise,

 “Father, praise you for Your eternal purpose to have many sons to express You. I thank you for choosing me to be holy. I also thank you for predestinating me unto sonship–that I might share Your life and have the position to inherit You. I ask You to dispense more of Your divine life and holy nature into me so that I can fully participate in Your sonship.”

2.   God the Son blessed you by redeeming you so that you might become God’s inheritance.

If we had never fallen and become sinful, the accomplishment of redemption would never have been necessary. However, neither would God’s wisdom and far-reaching love been revealed to us.

But see what Ephesians 1:7-11 says,

“In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of offenses, according to the riches of His grace, which He caused to abound to us in all wisdom and prudence, Making known to us the mystery of His will…In whom also we were designated as an inheritance.

We can only thank the Lord Jesus for His wonderful redemption that brought us back to God’s original intention that we might inherit God and He might inherit us.

Based on His redemption, Christ now dispenses all His unsearchable riches into us (Eph 3:8) to make us God’s inheritance for His enjoyment and God our inheritance for our enjoyment.

“Lord Jesus, thank you for accomplishing redemption on the cross for me. Praise you that through Your redemption, God’s righteousness has been fully satisfied so I can now receive the rich dispensing of Yourself into me, making me God’s inheritance and God my inheritance. Praise you for such wisdom that brought me back into God’s original purpose of sonship.”

3.   God the Spirit blessed you by sealing you and giving Himself as the pledge of your divine inheritance.

Ephesians 1:13-14 says,

“In whom you also, having heard the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation, in Him also believing, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is the pledge of your inheritance unto the redemption of the acquired possession, to the praise of His glory.“

After you’re redeemed, God’s Holy Spirit reaches you as a living “seal” to apply God’s image to your inner being, marking you out as God’s inheritance.  It’s like an ink  seal that seals a certain article as the property of it’s owner.

Every day we need to  receive more of  the Spirit’s dispensing, sealing us inwardly with more of God’s essence until we are entirely saturated with Him and fully bear God’s image.

For our encouragement and anticipation, the Holy Spirit also becomes a “pledge” to us, a sweet foretaste of the full enjoyment we’ll have when we meet the Lord and of the fullest enjoyment we’ll have for eternity.

We should simply thank and praise our God for His continual dispensing through the Spirit’s sealing and pledging us until the day that we meet the Lord,

“Father, thank you for putting Your Holy Spirit into me as a living seal to mark me out as Your inheritance. Thank you also for giving me the Spirit as a sweet pledge or foretaste of my full enjoyment of You for eternity.”   

We can only thank and praise God for the “spiritual blessings” that will cause us to participate in full sonship that we might inherit and enjoy God now and for eternity!

If you’ve appreciated these spiritual blessings in Christ please take a moment to share your appreciation in a comment to this post.

References and Further Resources:

• The inspiration for this post came from the following books by Witness Lee:
  • Life-study of Ephesians, Messages 2-4, 6, 12 & 13
  • Elders’ Training, Book 6—Points of the Truth in Paul’s Epistles, Chapter 6
• You may also enjoy this Hymn on the topic of this post:
  •  The divine dispensing starts with the Father
• Here is a post by another blogger that also addresses God’s desire for “sonship:”
  • The Center of Paul’s Gospel – Romans chapter 8, God’s dispensing, and the sonship
• Photo Credit: Clark Russell

The post 3 Blessings God Has Prepared for You appeared first on Holding to Truth.

Speak to the Rock,
Bid the waters flow,
Doubt not the Spirit,
Given long ago;
Take what He waiteth,
Freely to bestow,
Drink till its fulness
All Thy being know.

This chorus from A.B.  Simpson’s (1843-1918) classic hymn has really spoken to me! It rises up in my heart again and again! “Oh, speak to the Rock, bid the waters flow!”

It is full of light, inspiration and supply not only for me, but for every thirsty seeker of God today.

Inspired by the Lord’s words to Moses in Exodus 17:1-6 and Numbers 20:8-11, Simpson echoed God’s charge to Moses to “speak to the rock…strike not its bosom opened long ago.”

So what does this mean?’…

First, God commanded Moses to “strike the rock.”

In Exodus 17:6, God charged Moses to go before the people of Israel and to stand upon the rock in Horeb and  “strike the rock” that waters  may flow out of it for the people to drink. And Moses did so.

Moses’ “striking of the rock” signified God’s “striking Christ” on the cross for us. Not only did Christ shed His blood for our redemption, but from His pierced side poured out water for our life (John 19:34).

His blood formed a fountain for the washing away of sin (Zech 13:1) and the water became the fountain of life (Psa. 36:9). (See footnote 1, on John 19:34 in the Recovery Version, especially the second paragraph.)

You can thank God for “striking the rock”—for judging His Son for you,

“Dear Father, thank you judging your Son, Jesus Christ on the cross for Me. By His stripes I am healed. His wounded side poured forth redeeming blood for the forgiveness of my sins. But, even more I thank you that the water that flowed from His wounded side became the fountain of life for me to drink and live.”

Second, God commanded him to “speak to the rock.”

Numbers 20:7-8 says,

“ Then Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, Take the rod, and gather the assembly, you and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes, so that it yields its water. Thus you shall bring forth water for them out of the rock and give the assembly and their livestock something to drink.”

A footnote on verse 8 in the Recovery Version says,

Since Christ has been crucified and the Spirit has been given, there is no need for Christ to be crucified again, i.e., no need to strike the rock again, that the living water may flow. In God’s economy Christ should be crucified only once (Heb. 7:27; 9:26-28a). To receive the living water from the crucified Christ, we need only to “take the rod” and “speak to the rock.” To take the rod is to identify with Christ in His death and apply the death of Christ to ourselves and our situation. To speak to the rock is to speak a direct word to Christ as the smitten rock, asking Him to give us the Spirit of life (cf. John 4:10) based on the fact that the Spirit has already been given. If we apply the death of Christ to ourselves and ask Christ in faith to give us the Spirit, we will receive the living Spirit as the bountiful supply of life (Phil. 1:19). (Holy Bible Recovery Version, Numbers 20:8¹, par.2)

This time, God did not tell Moses to “strike the rock” but to “speak to the rock” that it may yield its water.

In the first stanza of his hymn, Simpson conveyed this light by saying,

Fainting in the desert,
Israel’s thousands stand
At the rock of Kadesh.
Hark! the Lord’s command,
Speak to the Rock,
Bid the waters flow,
Strike not its bosom
Opened long ago.
Speak to the Rock,
Till the waters flow.

Here’s my point.  Since Christ has already been crucified, the fountain of life has already been opened to us. We don’t need to  “strike the rock” again. That would imply that what Christ did for us on the cross was not effective—that He needs to die again.

So we don’t need to remain under any kind of condemnation related to our confessed sins. They have been fully dealt with by Christ’s once-for-all redeeming death. His blood is fully effective for us.

Now we only need to “speak to the rock” until the waters flow. Just tell the Lord,

“Thank you Lord Jesus for Your perfect redemption. I’m not bemoaning my sins for You already took them away. I believe that your shed blood was accepted by God for me. Now I just ask You to give me a drink.”

The waters flowing out of the “smitten rock,” Christ, being the Spirit.

Through His death and resurrection, Christ, the Last Adam,  became a life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45). Now He is freely available as the living water so that every thirsty one may come to Him and drink. This fulfills what Jesus said in John 7:37-39,

“…If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes into Me, as the  Scripture said, out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water. But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive…”

So in order for the life-giving Spirit to become our spiritual drink (1 Cor. 10:4), Christ, the rock, was cleft,  passing through death and entering into resurrection. Now He is able to be received by  us as this “drinkable” life-giving Spirit. 

How can you “speak to the rock” so that “the waters may flow?”

Now that you know that you only need to speak to the rock,  how can you do this?

Simpson’s third stanza gives us the most simple way. There he says,

Blessed Rock of Ages,
Thou art open still;
Thy blest Holy Spirit
All our being fill;
Still Thou dost say,
Wherefore struggle so?
Call for the Spirit,
Whisper soft and low,
Speak to the Rock
Bid the waters flow.

You just need to “call for the Spirit.”

In 1 Corinthians 12:13 Paul says that we were all given to “drink one Spirit.” But in verse 3 of that chapter he tells the way to drink the Spirit by saying,

“…and no one can say Jesus is Lord! [or Lord Jesus] except in the Holy Spirit.”

Calling on the Lord Jesus in such a way is to “speak to the Rock,” it’s to “call for the Spirit” as AB Simpson said.

Try it!

Just try  “speaking to the Rock,” that is,  speaking  to the Lord Jesus, by calling on His life-giving name.

“O Lord Jesus! Lord Jesus! I open to You right now. Lord, I receive You as the water of life.”

It’s really the simplest way to drink from the fountain of God’s salvation.

So when you’re spiritually dry, thirsty and dissatisfied, try speaking to the Rock, calling on the Lord Jesus. He’ll become your moment-by-moment supply and refreshment to live the Christian life.

If you’ve enjoyed “speaking to the Rock” to be filled with Him as your spiritual drink, I’d encourage you to leave a confirming comment…and just keep speaking.

References and Resources:

• If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, you may also enjoy a previous post on a similar topic, “Come and Drink the Living Waters!“
• For more appreciation of the practice of calling on the name of the Lord, you may want to read:
  • Acts 2:21, with footnote 1, in the Recovery Version.
  • A booklet entitled Calling on the Name of the Lord, also included in Basic Elements of the Christian Life, Volume 1, Chapter 4, freely distributed by Bibles for America.
• You may enjoy these hymns that share the same sentiment:
  • Drinking at the fountain that never runs dry
  • How we love the glorious name, the name of Jesus!
• Bible verses quoted in these posts are from The Holy Bible, Recovery Version, published and copyrighted by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim CA, 2003. The New Testament of this Bible, with its outlines, footnotes, and cross-references, may be viewed at online.recoveryversion.org.
  
• If you’d like a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version, you can also get one from Bibles for America.

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“Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved…” Acts 16:31a

This was the anxious word of a despairing jailor in the ancient city of Philippi.

A great earthquake had shaken the foundations of the prison that he guarded. And all the prison doors were opened. The prisoners’ escape meant his execution—his life for theirs. So he was ready to kill himself.

But the jailed apostles, Paul and Silas, comforted him saying that the prisoners were all there. Yet there was now a greater issue. It was not just a matter of  being saved from physical death, but of something deeper—the salvation of his soul.

Maybe this is the question you’re groping with today. If so you may want to read on…

Has an “earthquake” shaken your life and left you with no way to go on? Are you also crying out for help, not just for your body but for your troubled soul? (life is full of such “earthquakes”—family problems, financial troubles, health issues and much more.)

 “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved…” Acts 16:31a

The good news to that Philippian jailor was a word comfort and hope to every troubled soul from that day until now.

Yet you might be asking, “How can I believe in a person that I’ve never seen? My friends tell me that Jesus was just a man. It’s just another false religion…”

Yet, deep within you, you know that there must be an answer…and nobody has one. Just more talk…more psychology, more philosophy…

“And they spoke the word of God to him…” Acts 16:32a

Only the shining of God’s Word into your heart can generate the faith enabling you to believe in the Lord Jesus that you might be saved.

Listen to what the Bible says,

“So faith comes out of hearing and hearing through the word of Christ” (Rom. 10:17).

But what was the saving word that the apostles proclaimed? It was the wonderful person of Christ and the steps that He passed through to become your salvation and life.

Listen to what Jesus did for you so that you can be saved:

1. Jesus, God’s eternal Son, was incarnated, becoming a man in the flesh (John 1:14a).
2. Jesus died on the cross for your sins and for those of the whole world (1 Pet. 2:24).
3. He was buried in the tomb for three days, while in His spirit He took a tour of Hades under the earth (1 Pet. 3:18).
4. After three days, Christ rose from the dead and walked out of the tomb (1 Cor. 15:4).
5. He, God’s living Word, became the life-giving Spirit, ready and available to you—and to all people, everywhere (John 1:1; 1 Cor. 15:45).
6. As the Word and the Spirit, He has become as available to you as the air, the breath–very near to you–in your mouth and heart so that you can receive Him (John 20:22).

“The Word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart…the word of faith.” Rom. 10:8

Since Jesus has completed His process and become the Word as the Spirit in your mouth and your heart, Romans 10:9 tells you to do two things to be saved:

“That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

 First, “Confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord.”

This is to call on the name of Lord. Verses 12-13 continue by telling us that “the Lord is rich to all who call upon Him; for whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Try it right now. From your deepest part, simply declare,

 “Lord Jesus! O Lord Jesus! Lord, I open to You! Jesus is my Lord!”

 Second, “Believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead.”

To believe, is simply to receive. Don’t analyze. Just take what God freely offers. Receive God’s salvation with thanks. It is a choice. Choose right now to express your faith by saying out loud,

 “Lord Jesus, I believe into You. I thank you that You died on the cross for all my sins and rose victoriously from the grave. Lord, I receive You right now as my Savior and life. Come into me. Fill me Lord. I love You. Amen.”

Finally, as a result, “you are saved!”  Simply thank and praise the Lord!

 “Lord, thank  you for saving me! Hallelujah, now I’m saved!

This is the good news of God’s salvation to all men. Take it. Believe it. Call on the Lord Jesus. Thank God! Share it!

If you’ve received Jesus Christ as your wonderful Savior and life, take a moment to testify of your salvation in a short comment.

References and Resources:

• Once you’ve believed into  the Lord Jesus, it’s also important to be baptized. You may also want to read my post: 6 Reasons for a Believer to be Baptized.
• If you enjoyed this post you may also enjoy viewing this video:  http://youtu.be/nlvOrTq4Bes
•  Here are a few songs  that may add to your appreciation of this post:
  • Jesus! O what a name! O Lord Jesus! Life-giving name!
  • Therefore with joy shall ye draw water /  Out of the wells of salvation.
• Photo Credit: abcdz2000 (creative commons)

The post “What Must I Do to Be Saved?” appeared first on Holding to Truth.

“We have peace toward God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1b

The world is full of unrest and anxiety. People are more anxious than ever…and rightfully so. But it’s not just troubling news reports…

Hidden deep in the hearts of people, from all walks of life, is an absence of peace.  It’s not just the turmoil between nations, economic woes, and domestic problems. But within your own soul there may be an inexplicable feeling of restlessness, with no peace.

Then how can you find “the way of peace?”

Notice, I didn’t say, “the way to peace” That’s because it’s not just a destination to arrive at—like “when the problems are all solved, then you’ll have peace.”

Don’t expect the world situation, financial markets, or your personal life to become like a calm lake. And that’s not the real peace anyway.

Rather, I’m speaking of a present path, a realm, and a way to walk right now—the “way of peace.”

So, have you found this “way of peace?”  If not, you may want to read on…

This longing for peace is instilled in us by our Creator–the God of peace Himself (1 Thes. 5:23a).

Yet, the record of the Bible reveals the loss of peace.  This has been the sad history of man since his fall from God and separation from God as his source (Genesis 3).

“The way of peace they have not known”—Rom. 3:17

For mankind living independently from the God of peace, there is an absence of peace. You can just feel it being around people. The condition is universal. It is a common condition of humanity apart from God. Without God, there is no peaceful path. But there is good news…

“To guide our feet into the way of peace”—Luke 1:79

Before Jesus was  born, Zechariah prophesied concerning Him, “the rising sun will visit us from on high, to shine upon those sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

The mission of Jesus, the Savior is to guide us “into the way of peace.”

“…Your faith has healed you. Go in peace”—Luke 8:48 

Later, during His ministry, Jesus came to seek and to save the lost and suffering people–people with no peace. At that time there was a woman with an incurable hemorrhage. She was dying and all the physicians she tried could not help her.

She knew that Jesus had the power to heal her. She was so desperate that she pushed through the crowd, touched His garment, and was immediately healed.

When Jesus knew that healing power had gone out from His body, He asked, “Who touched Me?” When she came trembling before Him, He told her,

“Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

This literally means, go into peace.

Footnote 2 on Luke 8:48  in the Recovery Version says,

“Lit. into. Before a person is saved, he does not know the way of peace (Rom. 3:17). The Lord’s salvation brings man to the way of peace (1:79)”

If you haven’t yet found the way of peace, please take a moment to pray,

“Lord Jesus, I am a sinner without peace. I need you. I believe into You and receive You right now. Take away all my sins. Come into my spirit and guide my feet into the way of peace.”

 “We have peace toward God through our Lord Jesus Christ”—Rom. 5:1

Now that you’ve  received the Lord, you’ve found the way of peace. Now you need to walk on this way.

Our faith in Jesus Christ has not only saved us from God’s wrath, it has ushered us into peace—in the Christ, Who is our peace (Col. 3:15). However, we still must walk the way of peace to complete our Christian journey.

Note 1 on Rom 5:1 says,

“Our journey into God through our being justified out of faith has not yet been completed; thus Paul used the word toward, not with. Grace is for our standing (v. 2), and peace is for our walk.”

So what ‘s the point? Simple.

We’re on a journey into God. And it’s not yet complete. So how can we walk on this journey? The way of peace.

After believing in Jesus to be saved. We must go into peace…and stay there. That is the only way to finish the course of the Christian life. But how can we do this?

A practical point to walk the way of peace

Peace is the normal condition of God’s life. So when peace is gone, we know something is wrong. That’s the time to stop what you’re doing.

Come back and enjoy the Lord Jesus as your grace by calling on His name, praying, reading His Word, singing, thanking and praising Him. The issue of enjoying God’s Son as grace is a condition of peace…”grace and peace” go together (1 Cor. 1:3; Eph 1:2).

As Christians, we should learn this lesson—“Stand in grace and walk in peace.” If you don’t have the grace don’t stand there and if you don’t have the peace don’t walk there.

Learn to practice this one simple lesson. Check with the Lord about whatever is before you. If you don’t sense peace with the Lord, stop. Otherwise, there is no need to look for some big feelings. Simply walk in peace.

This lesson will be a big protection and blessing for your entire Christian life—whether it’s the small details of your daily living or the major decisions of your human life or Christian life.

Learn to walk “the way of peace.”

If you’ve found the “way of peace” by believing into Jesus Christ, take a moment to share it in a comment. If you’re learning to walk on this way, we’d like to hear that also.

References and Further Resources:

• This post was inspired by the Life-study of Romans, Message 9, Section 2, By Witness Lee, and published by Living Stream Ministry. You can read it for free on-line at ministrybooks.org.
• Footnotes referenced in this post were taken from the New Testament Recovery Version also published by Living Stream Ministry. You can get your own free copy from Bibles for America.
• If you enjoyed this post you may also enjoy reading a previous post, “Which Principle Should I Live By?”

Photo Credit:  Creative Commons By Ildar Sagdejev via Wikimedia Commons

The post Have You Found the “Way of Peace?” appeared first on Holding to Truth.