Spirituality Information |
Faith and Repentance Basics
As I listen with pastors and preachers in the body of Christ, I have become to see that we minister to people many times on a level they have not yet reached. This is a very critical point when we start to look at the Sunday morning service. When we come to bible study or mid-week service we have a totally different group of people that we do on a Sunday morning. In the average Sunday morning worship service, if we can be real for just a moment, much of the terminology and Christian jargon is foreign to the ones that we are called to reach. We are there to save that which is lost, and a sinner is need of Salvation is is not going to know what we are saying if we exchange the simple word "Saved" or salvation for the theological term Soteriology. We are, as the say, not preaching to the choir, people that are there every Sunday and have matured in the faith. We should never assume that just because a person has been in the church for a season it that we have no need to be simplistic. To be an effective minister we should still explain, as if to a child, what we mean when we say things like salvation, repentance, redemption and so on. "Foundations of the Christian Faith" After reading a chapter from "Foundations of the Christian Faith" By James Montgomery Boice I was moved to expound on his thoughts on this subject "Faith & Repentance". I would encourage all pastors to get this book, it is a very comprehensive and readable book of Theology. "Faith and Repentance" Thought many in the body of Christ have settled with viewing Salvation as a single event that takes place in the life of the believer, it is only the starting point of what I respectfully referred to as the "process." Salvation is the God's point of entry and introduction. From that initial moment, the regeneration, or rebirthing process begins to take place. The word rebirth is used to describe what happens when the life of God reanimates, quickens, and brings life to our spirit's that died because of the sin of Adam. - Apostle Wilson With in the salvation process we have to without question look at the Faith, with its companions Grace and repentance. Mistakes about Faith In this book, Boice says that there are several mistakes that we make concerning faith.The first mistake that Boice addresses is that we look at faith subjectively. This is is the faith of religious feelings divorced from the objective truth of God's Revelation"- James Boice We see this a lot more in the church today than we have ever in history. What Boice means by subjective is we have people that "Feel" they are saved and have no substantial revelation of God given in this word. They firmly believe they are saved totally based on feeling. Joh 5:39 KJVR Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. [Emphasis mine] When we say feelings we are dealing with the carnal, soulish or fleshy part of man. This verse teaches us that if we are to have the eternal life that comes from knowing God we have to search it out in the Word of God. Joh 1:1 KJVR In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word in this verse is the Greek word Logos. The Logos was the thought, intent and plan in the mind of God to bring a fallen people back to him. What was or who was the plan? If we read the verse we can see "the Word (Thought, intent & Plan) was God, God coming in a body! Joh 1:14 KJVR And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. God's plan was that he would become incarnate, embodied in flesh, born of a virgin, Emanuel God with us. Not a Feeling Just by looking at this brief theological break down of the "The Word of God" we can see that we can not possibly know God simply based on a feeling. Though there will be many times we will feel God, you can not know God with your feelings. We have to teach the people of God that to know our father we have to use the prescribed biblical method of communion. Joh 4:24 KJVR God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. If we are going to worship God who is a spirit, the verse says that we have to worship or communion, were we get the word communicate, with him with our spirits. Flesh can not communion with God. Worship in this verse comes from the Greek word pros-koo-neh'-o, which literal meaning is to Kiss. When our spirit enters true heartfelt worship, we literally kiss the Spirit of God. 1Co 1:29 KJVR That no flesh should glory in his presence. Many quote this verse and say, "no flesh shall glory". If we say, "Shall Glory" it somewhat changes the meeting. What this verse is saying is that when we are in the presence of God our flesh should not be the means of giving or receiving glory. The kiss that we give to God is our spirit communing with His. (Pro 27:6) Faithful are the wounds of a friend; bur the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. We commune with other people with our body and soul, which is the seat of our emotions and feelings. However, God causes the rebirth in our spirit man so that we can commune with Him and Him only. This is what makes the occults and false religions so dangerous. They open your spirit to demonic forces. When Adam sinned his spirit died and brought the curse of a dead spirit upon all, because all or born in sin, or with the sin nature. They Wish it to be True Boice says that the second common substitute that we use for true saving faith is credulity. Boice says, [1]"Credulity is the attitude of people who will accept something as true apart from evidence simply because they earnestly wish it to be true." In a since this is faith, but not what we could call bible faith. When we speak of faith in God it deals with more than just believing something to be true. What you believe about God has to be based on what God has said about himself. An example is when people are in a sinful situation and will argue you down, "That God understands." 1Pe 1:16 KJVR Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. I know this will not set well with the super spiritual, but God is very narrow minded when it comes to his people. No matter what anyone wants to believe about God, before you die if you desire to make it into the kingdom, you have to know what God says about Himself. God commands us to live out what He is, "be ye holy; for I am holy." This is not calling for perfection in the flesh, but a total submission of spirit to the will of God in every aspect of life. Credulity is an attitude that leaves no room for the will or the commands of God. This is without question a form of self-righteousness. Eze 33:13; KJVR When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. At the point that we began to trust in what we believe over what the Word of God says weather knowingly or out of ignorance, we move into self-righteousness. The same path that Adam and Eve took brought the curse on mankind. The second part of this problem we see is when Christians sin they think the good that they have done in the past will be enough to cover what they are doing and that God will over look it. However, Eze 33: 16 says that when a person turns from the righteousness of God to "his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousness shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. Even after reading this there would be some that would still say, "I just don't believe God is like that." Look what it says in this same chapter. Eze 33:20 KJVR Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. O ye house of Israel, I will judge you every one after his ways. I Love the message bibles translation of this verse. Eze 33:20 MSG "'Still, you keep on saying, "The Master's way isn't fair." We'll see, Israel. I'll decide on each of you exactly according to how you live." No matter what a person believes, God is going to judge us "exactly according to how you live." Heb 12:14 KJVR Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Optimism Boice says the "third substitute for true faith is optimism, positive mental attitude which is to cause the things believed in to happen." This is what I feel many churches were thinking during the faith movement. We started grabbing verse of scriptures and promise of the word, yet making the true object of the Christian faith, God, irrelevant. Again, this is a form of self-reliance and self-righteousness. It is not enough to trust the promise. We have to have faith in the one that issued the promise. Jer 1:12 KJVR Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it. Phi 1:6 KJVR Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:,B. Rom 4:21 KJVR And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. No matter what promise you have, if the one that proclaimed the promise is not faithful you have nothing. Thank God, that he is a faithful God! Not only is he a faithful God by looking at the verses above we can see he is a God that is able to perform that which he has promised. We need to know the promises of God and know how to apply them in every area of our lives. However, it is equally important that we have a relationship with the one that spoke forth the promises. We have to have knowledge of the promises that are written in the bible, but our faith has to be in God not the bible. Conclusion By seeing & understanding the mistakes about faith we can see that true life changing faith is not based on a person's attitude or feelings. When all is said and done biblical faith is our trust in the trustworthy God, who is able & ready to perform in your life. (c) 2005 Copyrights WilsonMedia Bishop Wilson is the presiding prelate and founder of Unity Fellowship Alliance Int. The Unity Fellowship Alliance International will serve as a place of Fellowship, Training,for not only Christians, but leaders around the world. Bishop Wilson is author, Motivational Speaker, Christian Life Coach, and Personal Mentor. Sign Up for Tele Seminars with M. Christopher Wilson, @ http://www.freedom.ne1.net
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting |
RELATED ARTICLES
Basic Tarot for Beginners If you would like to learn to read tarot cards, but have no idea who to ask to teach you or how to go about it, the following tips should help you get started on your path to telling fortunes just like a pro!Your first challenge is to choose a deck from the 8,000 or so published brands of fortune telling cards on the market. What works for one person often doesn't for another. 5 Steps to Passing Life Exams An exam is a test that is given at the end of a class to assess what knowledge was obtained by the student during the duration of the class. Depending on whether or not adequate knowledge was gained the student will pass or fail the test. Abundance As Spiritual Birthright I am going to remind of some simple, yet important things, that you should already know, but perhaps need a reminding of just now. I know that I need reminding from time to time and suspect that you may also need the same 'straight to the point' reminders. The Divine Self Many look outside of themselves for an experience of the Divine. Many turn to religions. Terrorists Again - 14 Prayers to Protect Your Family In the last 2 weeks or so, I havebeen posting some prayers to deal with specificissues that my readers have mentioned to me.You find prayers to help you attract whatever it is you want more of in your life. Getting Back to the Basics of Truth Anyone who has invested time, energy and effort into finding their own truth knows that ignorance is NOT bliss. Understanding the religious environment that we grew up in should be the natural first step towards defining our own belief system. Discovery of the Soul Imagine yourself marooned on a vast deserted island. You have been there for years, struggling just to survive, living within the most basic surroundings, gathering food, using only your hands and makeshift tools to scratch out an existence. A Walk With A King I seemed to have lost my heart. Now this is not just another love story gone awry. You Are Not Your Stuff We humans are a funny, funny breed. We spend our entire lives working and working and working to acquire 'stuff'. 3:33am? What is it with angels and digital clocks? I fell asleep just after 11pm and am still trying to recover from the switch to daylight savings time. I really don't need to be up and working right now, or do I? I had asked my angels earlier today to help me write some more articles. Globe Unity Most of us think of what a wonderful world this would be if only this or that. Well the Bible says that to follow the words of Jesus Christ and walk in his ways. Whats Missing from Your Nutritional Plan? IS FAITH - NOT VITAMIN C WHAT'S MISSING FROM YOUR NUTRITIONAL PLAN?Being a nutritionist in private practice for 12 years, I'm not suggesting to neglect the thirteen vitamins and seventeen minerals essential to the human body. I have made a career training over ten thousand patients the techniques of proper nutrition to manage their weight and health. Chakras 101 The chakras are different coloured energy centres that originate from seven different points in our body. Chakra is a Sanskrit (East Indian) word that means "Wheel". True Will Some may ask what is the true will of God and how do I obtain it? Well let's see what the Bible says. Look at Psalms 40:6 it says Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require. Mind, in Time and Space One cannot make a decision in the moment of now. All decisions are made from the past, and then you work in the past to recreate a future that has already passed based on that decision. Out of the Closet? We may sometimes consider the difficulty that occurs with our acceptance of ourselves and of who we are in accordance with the expectations of others.Do you understand what I am talking about? Or am I speaking alone here?I grew up in an environment dominated with the influence of the Catholic religion, and studied in the field of Engineering and Computer Science. Nurturing Your Spirit Do you ever wonder about the other "YOU ?"The one that speaks to you quietly, the one that helps you find inspiration. It is in yourspirit that the feeling of love and peace reignsupreme. A Testimony of an Ex-Mormon Mormons like to give testimonies. Unlike Mormon testimonies, I will seek to show that the testimony of my conversion to Christianity is based upon the teaching of Scripture. Communicationg Our Faith According to Internet Following are 17 questions that can be used as a start-up by your answering the 5 most important questions on this questionnaire according to your estimation.QUESTIONS ON HOW TO COMMUNICATE YOUR FAITH MORE EFFECTIVELY1-If you can't communicate your faith effectively, how strong is your faith?2-To communicate your faith effectively, you have to know it. Just Do It! "It's a big challenge. It's a journey into the unknown. |
home | site map | contact us |