Proud to be a Christian

 

Soldiers and Internet Enthusiasts:  Due to some minor health problems and other circumstances, I have been forced to take somewhat of a break from this site.  I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.  I am, however, excited to be back and sharing some more of God’s word with you.

 

During the past few months, I have hit many “walls” or blocks in my writing.  I have attempted to put things together but without much success.  After some prayer time with a close friend, however, things began to “click” and come together much better.

 

Q:  Are we made in the image of God?

 

A:  Yes.  Men and women are made in the image of God.  (Genesis 1:27).  There exists a masculine heart as well as a feminine heart, which in their own ways reflect or portray to the world God’s heart.  Generally speaking, little girls do not invent games where large numbers of people die, where blood shed is a prerequisite for having fun. On the other hand boys don’t sit down to tea parties or talk on the phone about relationships. The movie a man or woman loves reveals what his or her heart longs for, what is set in him or her from the day of their birth. A male lion is awesome to behold, but have you ever seen a lioness? Adam is the triumph of God’s handiwork. Creation comes to its high point, its climax with Eve. She is God’s finishing touch. And all Adam can say is, “Wow.” Eve embodies the beauty and mystery and the tender vulnerability of God. We need to focus on how God sees us as men and women. These important factors came out of John Eldredge’s book, Wild at Heart Discovering the Secret of a Man’s Soul . I feel this book paints the best picture of how God sees the masculine heart and the feminine heart.

 

Q: Are you an accident?

 

A: No.  In Rick Warren’s book The Purpose Driven Life (Video Study Guide Volume 1 What On Earth Am I Here For?) Rick Warren points out specific facts about how important we are to God the Father. You are alive because God wanted to create you.  “The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me.”  (Psalm 138:8).

 

“You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Everyday was recorded in your Book!” (Psalm139:16)  God also planned where you would be born and where you would live.   “From one man he made every nation, and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.” (Acts 17:26)

Returning to Psalm139:16 - Men and women were created for God’s purpose. I want to now take the time to explain what some of the most important factors in Christianity are and in simple terms.

 

Q: What is a church?

 

A:  A lot of people think the church is a building. As a young boy growing up I thought the same way. The church, however, is a collective body of believers worshipping God.

 

Q:  How can I fit into a church?

 

A:  When you become a member of the Body of Christ and not a member on a church role, you are experiencing true Christianity.   Each member of the Body of Christ name has his or her name written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. The Lamb’s Book of Life is where every person’s name is written that has accepted Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Savior.  (Philippians 4:3)  What was described to you in the last sentence is called a testimony. Do you have a testimony for Jesus Christ?  Where is your testimony for Jesus today?  I have examples of prayers to ask Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior on this website. You could become a Christian today by asking the Lord to come into your heart in your own words from your own heart. 

 

 

 

 

Q:  How important is the Body of Christ to God?

 

A:  The Body of Christ is very important to God because it’s a collection of people who have established a relationship with Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The Body of Christ is more than a denomination! The Body of Christ is full of a gallery of unique individuals with different talents, gifts, and capabilities. This body is likened to the body of a person. All parts of the body of a person are needed for effective functioning. None is more important than the other. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13)

You see, you may not be a Tom Nelson, Rick Warren, John Eldredge, or Beth Moore but as a special person to Jesus Christ you have a place in the Body of Christ to be used by God.  I have a vision of all children, men, and women being used for God’s glory all around the world. Listen to this important fact:  We are even to encourage one another in the use of our unique talents and gifts. (Hebrews 10:24, 25)

 

Q:  What is prayer?

 

A:  Talking to God the Father about our needs and not our wants and believing God will answer in His own way and time will result in our needs being met. Do you have a quiet time?  A quiet time might be described as a time when you study God’s word and build your relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer.  To be honest, it took me a long time to develop an appropriate quiet time and to be as serious as I should. (Matthew 26:41)  The most important reason to spend time with the Lord is spiritual warfare against Satan. (Ephesians 6: 10, 20)  I can tell you first hand from experience Satan is always trying to destroy God’s children. Did you know Britney Spears doesn’t consider herself to be a religious person but she prays everyday and believes in the power of prayer? It would be sad to know that many people in the world pray more than Christians.

 

Q:  What is a pastor?

 

A:  A pastor is a man called by God placed by God in a church to lead the church by daily seeking the Lord Jesus Christ and being lead by the Holy Spirit.  I have waited to tell you about the pastor because the pastor is the leader of the church and not the slave.  Considering again Rick Warren’s second book, volume 2:  You Were Planned For God’s Pleasure.  Rick shows us some important facts.

 

Q:  What is worship?

 

A:  Worship is bringing pleasure to God. “Because of his love God had already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children this was his pleasure and purpose.” (Ephesians 1:5) “The Lord is pleased with those who worship him and trust his love.” (Psalm147: 11) Worship is more than music. Worship is not for your benefit. “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.” (Isaiah 29:13) Worship is not just a part of your life, it IS your life. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1Corinthians10:31) “Take your everyday, ordinary life- you’re sleeping, eating, going –to work, and walking- around life – and place it before God as an offering.”(Romans 12:1)

 

Q:  How can I bring Glory to God?

 

A:  First it starts with you at your home church by using your inidival spiritual gifts as a member of the Body of Christ to reach this lost and dying world. “The heavens declare the glory of God.” (Psalm 19:1) We bring God glory by worshipping Him. “Use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God.” (Romans 6:13)  We bring God glory by loving other believers. “As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34, 35) We bring God glory by becoming like Christ. (2 Corinthians 3:18) We bring God glory by serving others. (1 Peter4: 10, 11) We bring God glory by telling others about Him.

 

Q:  What is the world?

A:  “The world” is not a place or a set of behaviors it’s any system built by our collective sin, all our false selves coming together to reward and destroy each other. The world is a carnival of counterfeits, counterfeit battles, counterfeit adventures and counterfeit beauties. The world tells us to battle your way to the top and you are a man or woman. Why is it then that the men and women who get there are often the emptiest, most frightened and prideful around? They are mercenaries, battling only to build their own kingdoms. The world offers a man or a woman a false sense of power and a false sense of security. “Jesus warns us against anything that gives a false sense of power. The definition of the world came out of John Eldredge book (Wild at Heart). I feel John Eldredge hit the nail on the head. (Matthew 6:19-21)  

 

Q:  What is a job?

A:  A place you work to support you or your family lifestyle of life. A job can be your life or your income! Everyone goes to their job on days they want to stay in bed. We as Christians have to have a Christ like example in the workplace. I have to work on having a Christ like attitude on days at work when I want to be home. (Matthew 5:13-16) A sad fact in life is people think they can work their way to heaven like they work and earn money at their job. The only way to get to heaven is putting faith in Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 2:8, 9) I want to break down Ephesians 2:8, 9 so you can get a clear understanding of God’s word.

 

Q:  What is faith?

A:  Trusting in Jesus Christ alone to go to heaven.  (John 14:6)  

 

Q:  What is grace?

A:  God’s riches at Christ expense. (John 3:16) (Romans 5:15-21) Before I ask this next question I want you to think of how the world reveals to us the wrong answer daily in our everyday life.

 

Q:  What is God’s intent for sex?

A:  As Christians we need to answer this from God’s word. The sad fact is the question not answered will be Satan’s tool to destroy Christian’s lives. Growing up going to school we had Joe Bob for our answer and today you have the internet for all the wrong answers. This is a warning not advice for parents. God intended for us to appreciate sexual fun and we need to claim our birthright of sexual pleasure and intimacy within a husband and wife marriage. Being in a same sex marriage is not God’s will! (Song of Solomon)  (1Corinthians7:1, 2)

 

Q:  Why wait to have sex before you are married?

A: A known fact is guys will show love to get sex. Girls will give sex to get love. By waiting to have sex you show how much you love each other. God’s word tells us sex before marriage is sexual immorality.  We sin against our own body. It will take time and healing to take away the sin of sexual immorality.  (1Corinththians 6:18) It will break mom and dad hearts. Satan will destroy your future and your family. (1 Peter 5:8) Rebecca St. James openly admits to being a 26 year old virgin. She was ask to go to Washington to speak on spiritual and moral issues. Her book” Wait for Me” has become an international best seller. This tells me she is Proud to be a Christian. One fact I want to point out is a guy being a virgin is God’s will for him. Every soldier has a mission in life to complete. As Christians we have a mission in life called the Great Commission.  (Matthew 28:16-20) I want you to realize       you’re being disciple in this bible study right now! I have learned these lessons in life the hard way. Now let’s talk about The Passion of the Christ. This movie is the best picture of what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross. Jesus was a great man but more than that he is infinite God- Man. There are many places in the bible that talk about Jesus power but I want you to focus on (Mark1:21-28) and did you know that Jim Caviezel refused a love scene with a nude Jennifer Lopez in the movie Angel Eyes. Jim Caviezel was proud to play Jesus Christ in the movie The Passion of the Christ.   Beth Moore has five statements of faith every Christian should know by heart. The five statement pledge of Faith taken out of the bible study called (Believing God by Beth Moore).

 

1:  God is who He says He is.

 

2:  God can do what He says He can do.

 

3:  I am who God says I am.

 

4:  I can do all things through Christ.

 

5:  God’s Word is alive and active in me.

 

“I’m believing God.”

 

I feel in closing I haven’t done enough justice to this bible study. I hope this bible study will make you Proud to be a Christian.