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Four Immediate Benefits!
Four wonderful things happen when you first become a Christian: Your sins are forgiven, you become a child of God, you receive eternal life, and Christ lives in you. [see lesson]
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How Can I Be Sure of My Relationship with Christ?
Feelings are an unreliable source of security. We must depend on the facts of the Bible to ground our faith in God. [see lesson]
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Faith: Knowing Who You Can Trust
The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6, NIV). Faith is personal reliance on a God known to be trustworthy. [see lesson]
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Yes, You Can Have a Relationship with God!
When you invited Jesus into your life, you began a relationship with God that is very personal and intimate. Knowing about God is not the same as knowing Him personally and intimately. Many Christians find it hard to really trust God, because they don’t really know Him. When you know Him, you will love and trust Him! [see lesson]
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Becoming Like Jesus
When you made the decision to receive Jesus into your life, you began an exciting journey with Christ that will never end. God’s ultimate plan is to change you into Christ’s image! In order for Him to accomplish that, you will need to commit yourself to learning how to live for Christ. [see lesson]
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Who is the Holy Spirit?
Many people think of the Holy Spirit as a “what”, but in reality the Holy Spirit is a “who”! The Holy Spirit is a real person. When you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, the Holy Spirit entered your life and He is enabling you to do God’s work! Without the Holy Spirit, living for Christ is impossible. With Him, you can do anything and everything! [see lesson]
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Put the Truth of God’s Word into Your Life!
What you put into your mind influences your behavior! Fill your mind with God’s Word! [see lesson]
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God is Communicating with You!
The Bible is the primary way that God communicates his desires for His people to His people! By taking time to read God’s Word on a regular basis, you will grow spiritually and be able to stand firm when difficulties and deceptions come into your life. [see lesson]
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Talk to God!
Prayer is one of the most incredible privileges we have. We actually are invited to come directly into God’s presence and talk with Him about whatever is on our hearts and minds. And He promises to listen and respond! Prayer is the means God uses to give you what He wants for you. God does not just respond to your prayers, He responds to you as a person. [see lesson]
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Get Connected
When you invited Jesus into your life, you became a part of God’s family! When you are joined together with other believers who are growing in Christ, you encourage one another and help one another stay focused on your mutual faith. [see lesson]
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Obedience
Blessing comes through obedience. There’s no other way to put it. It is only when we obey God and live life His way that we truly experience Him and all that He has to offer us. Obedience is a key concept in how we relate to Almighty God. The question is not “What does God want me to do?” but, “Am I willing to do what God wants me to do?” [see lesson]
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Spend Time with God Every Day!
In order to have a great relationship with God, we need to spend time with Him every day! Just like with our human relationships, the purpose of spending time with God is to get to know and understand Him better. [see lesson]
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God’s Great Love for You!
It’s hard to imagine that the God of the universe cares about each one of us individually, but it’s true! God’s love extends to each and every person … and that includes you! [see lesson]
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God’s Purpose for Your Life
Your life matters! God has given you an identity in Christ and has a plan for your life! [see lesson]
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Living “by the Spirit”
When you sincerely ask Jesus to come into your life, the Holy Spirit makes a home in your heart. The moment you surrender your life to Jesus, the Sprit comes in … even if you don’t feel anything. He is there, waiting for you to yield to His power. It is through the Holy Spirit that we receive the ability and power to life the way God wants us to. [see lesson]
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Spirit-Controlled vs. Self-Controlled
The Bible describes two types of Christians–those who are Spirit-controlled and those who are self-controlled. Being Spirit-controlled requires allowing the Holy Spirit to control your life. It is a decision, a free choice for you to make. It is done by simply putting your life into the hands of a trustworthy God. Just as you came to Christ by faith for the forgiveness of your sins, you must by faith ask the Holy Spirit to control your life. [see lesson]
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Spiritual Breathing
One of the ways you can experience God’s transformation is through a spiritual discipline called “Spiritual Breathing.” In “Spiritual Breathing”, you “Exhale”–by confession–sin, and “Inhale”–by faith–the Holy Spirit’s control. [see lesson]
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The Holy Spirit’s Power to Resist Temptation
It is only through the Holy Spirit’s power that we can resist temptation and live victorious for Christ! Trust God …temptation is normal! Trust God … the Holy Spirit will give you the ability to withstand temptation! Trust God … He will give you a “way out”! [see lesson]
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The Holy Spirit’s Power to Overcome Evil
God has given us a way to not only resist temptation but to also overcome evil! Ephesians 6 reveals that we have spiritual weaponry for fighting our spiritual battles! We need to be prepared! Faith, salvation, truth, the Spirit … we seldom think of these as protection–but that is exactly what they are! Make sure you are wearing all the protection God gives for spiritual safety! [see lesson]
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Pray with Confidence
We serve a great God! And that great God loves us unconditionally and wants what is best for us! God is your perfect Heavenly Father and you can pray with confidence knowing that He is listening and will answer your prayers! [see lesson]
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Different Ways to Pray
We can pray in many ways! The important thing is to take time to be still with God. Enjoy His presence. Allow Him to speak quietly to you. Let the Holy Spirit fill you. Take time to be with Him every day. [see lesson]
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Share the Good News!
As followers of Jesus we have the privilege and responsibility of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those around us! You have the amazing opportunity of telling others about who Jesus is and what He has done for you! [see lesson]
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Knowing Our Great God
God is totally amazing … and His greatness is far beyond our human understanding. The Bible teaches us that God is sovereign, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, and present everywhere. Knowing God’s character will help us to really know and trust Him! [see lesson]
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Knowing Our Perfect God
We have a relationship with a big God and it is important to learn about all of His character. If we only focus on one of his attributes we will have a distorted image of who he really is. God is unchanging, holy, just, love, and truth. [see lesson]
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Hear God’s Word
There are five basic ways for you to experience God’s Word: Hear it, read it, study it, memorize it, meditate on it. All of these ways to make God’s Word a bigger part of your life are important and it is important to use a combination of all five to really grow in your relationship with God. Hearing God’s Word involves listening to it. As you are listening to God’s Word, you can evaluate your receptivity, comprehension, conviction, and transformation in order to apply the God’s truth to your life. [see lesson]
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Read God’s Word
Reading God’s Word can make a big impact on your life. The purpose for reading God’s Word is to change your life! As you read, ask yourself questions, and answer them! [see lesson]
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Study God’s Word
Studying God’s Word can make a difference in your life! When you study God’s Word you will gain insight into who God is and what He wants to do in your life. Each time you approach God’s Word in study, you need to pray for God’s direction and then, observe, interpret, and apply what you are reading. [see lesson]
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Memorize God’s Word
Memorizing God’s Word will help you tremendously! One of the most important reasons for memorizing Scripture is because our memories are short. Once you memorize a passage of scripture it will be yours to take with you wherever you go! [see lesson]
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Meditate on God’s Word
There really is no better way to abide in Christ than to meditate on God’s promises throughout the day. Meditating involves taking a prayerful, serious approach to reflecting on a specific verse or passage. Meditating means you are giving extended, careful thought to God’s Word with the intent of conforming your life to His will. Meditating on God’s Word will result in knowing Him intimately and being obedient to Him in everything. [see lesson]
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Anger
As we think about being connected to other people in the body of Christ, it’s good to stop and consider the topic of anger. What? Anger? Why? Because angry people are hard to get along with … and they disrupt life in the body of Christ! [see lesson]
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Forgiveness
Forgive is critical to our relationship with God: We experience forgiveness because of what Christ did for us on the cross. And forgiveness is imperative in our relationships with others: We extend forgiveness because we have experienced it. Forgiveness frees us from the non-productive and destructive emotions which chain and enslaved us to the object of our anger and pain. Forgiveness is the beginning of true freedom. [see lesson]
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Know What God Wants You to Do Every Day
Many times what God wants us to do is very clear. When we talk about knowing what God wants us to do this is sometimes referred to as “knowing God’s will”. We can know God’s will in two different ways: through His general will and His specific will. God reveals His will to us through His Word, through the Holy Spirit, through other people, and through providential circumstances. [see lesson]
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Jesus said, “I am …”
Jesus claimed to be God! He really did! And that’s one fact that can be proven in the Bible. In the book of John, Jesus made several “I am” statements that tell us who He is! [see lesson]
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Jesus, the “Messiah”
Jesus Christ fulfilled over two hundred scriptures that foretold of His coming to be the Messiah! His sinless life qualified Him to be God’s perfect sacrifice for all of our sins–the Savior of the world. [see lesson]
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God’s Names in the Bible–Seven Names to Hold On To!
When we study the different names of God, we discover that His names actually reveal His character and tell us about His very nature. By knowing God’s names we can understand Him more fully and in turn gain strength for times of struggle, comfort for times of disappointment, and wisdom for times of confusion. [see lesson]
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God’s Names in the Bible–Ten “Jehovah” Names You Can Rely On!
“Jehovah”–the great “I AM”! When we know who God really is and how He works in our lives, we will have confidence to fully trust Him. By learning God’s names we can depend on His very character to sustain us through all of life! [see lesson]
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What Does It Meant to “Ask, Seek, and Knock”?
Is there something specific that you need God to do on your behalf? There is a key verse in Matthew 7 that gives us a great framework for our conversations with God: “For everyone who asks receives, the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:8-8, NIV). [see lesson]
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Prayers You Can Use
There are passages in the Bible and prayers written by other people that you can use to help you as talk to God. Many verses in the Bible, the Lord’s Prayer, the Prayer of Jabez, The Benediction, and the Prayer for Peace all provide models of prayers that can be used in our conversations with God. [see lesson]
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“One Another” Body Life
One thing that is true about the body of Christ is that we need one another! Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35, NIV). Loving one another involves accepting, instructing, serving, bearing with, submitting to, and encouraging each other. When we are able to do these things, then we truly will be able to show the world that as Christians we love one another. [see lesson]
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Receive Christ into your Life (reference lesson)
The most important decision you will ever make is to receive Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord. We are separated from God because of our wrong choices—our sin. But Jesus Christ came to save us from our sin. [see lesson]