Becoming a Christian (1979)

8/13/2019 Becoming a Christian (1979)

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Mini-studyVol.


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REPEIITA]IGE-WHATTREAttYSWhat does it mean to really repent? How can you knowyour repentance s genuine? See page 3.

TIIE APTISTSF HE IBTEWhat does Baptism mean? Didyou know there s mare ttnnone kind of baptism n the Bible? fu page 5.

H0tT OU AllBEARllEFRUITFTIESPIRITPrt melIt is imperative hat we understand ust pw the loly Writ Emanifested n a Christian's ife. *e page 7.

HOW OU AllBEARllEFRUITFTIIE PIRITPart wolThe Spirit of Christ s active-dynamic lt is a moving orcethat can't be bottled up withinyou. See page 9.

LIYI]IGYFAITIIWhat is faith? Exactly what kind of faith do we need toplease God? See page 11.

THE HRISTIA]IIGHT.HOWOU Al{WI]IGod says we have deadly enemies which must be defeated,and He tells us how to do it. See page 13.


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ness and the help we so despera te ly need in or-der to overcome.

Some have thought repentance is mere ly a

matter of being thankful tha t they are so goodthey have been able to see the t ru th and are nowaccept ing t . That is not repentance . That is se l / -r ighteousness s in - something more to berepented of .

Everyone of us must u l t imate ly come to seeGod as Job did (Job 42:5-6) - and to see our-se lves hrough God 's eyes , put t ing Him foremostin our minds . Only hen can we begin o love Godas Jesus ins truc ts us to do (Matthew 22:37) .

But how s t poss ib le or a human being o cometo tha t k ind of repentance? How can one s tar t tochange rom se lf -centered ove o God-love? The

answer: t has o come om God8. Does God 's goodness and mercy lead one

to repentance? Romans 2:4 . ls He pat ien t andloving in leading one to repentance? Sameverse .

9 . fs i t God who grants us repentance? l Tim-othy 2:25 . Also see Acts 1 l: 18.

1O. Did Jesus pla in ly say tha t no one can cometo Him unless the Father draws him? John6:44 , 65 .

In ight of the above scr ip ture , we see tha t ourca l l to rea l repentance comes from God, whoputs with in us the des ire to "come to Him. '

11 . Does rea l repentance nvolve our o ta l , un-condit ional surrender o God, put t ing Him aheadof and above a l l e lse? Matthew 10:36-38.

Before Chris t comes to impose His loving ruleon mankind and forces th is world to surrender oHim, He is ca l l ing upon indiv iduals o surrendervoluntar i ly o His author i ty over the ir l ives now.

But repentance - surrender ing o God - isnot a malle( of g iv ing up everyth ing good, as somany have erroneously assumed. Repentance sposi t ive . Not only do you escape the penal t ies ofs in through repentance , t is a lso the way to in-numerable posi t ive benef i ts n th is l i fe

Repentance emphat ica l ly does not mean wemust g ive up the use or apprec ia t ion of mater ia lth ings . What God is in teres ted n is the a t t i tudewe have toward Him and mater ia l th ings -whether we seek fiTslHis Kingdom and His r igh-teousness Matthew 6:33) .

God does wish for us to prosper and be in goodheal th ( l l l John 2) .He wants us to give up onlythose th ings ha t a re bad for us - which hurt usspir i tua l ly and physica l ly. Repentance and con-vers ion make possib le our in te l l igent use o tGod 's mater ia l crea t ion hrough he guidance ofHis laws and His Spir i t .

12 . Ancient King David is a ch ief example ofone who deeply repented of his s ins . Did Davidadmit tha t he was gui l ty of many s ins? Psalm

51:9 . Did he adn t tha t h is hear t (a t t i tude) hadnot been r ight ; ' :* Gcd? Verse 10 .

13 . Did Dav,c :^: ' :ughly abhor his s in? Verse 3 .Didhe cas t hrmse - : : - 3cd 's mercy? Verse 1 .

David did n: : - - - :e any of h is s ins . He d idnot a t tempt 3 .-s : '_ . ^:- Ncr did he b lame hemon others

Rather. he . , ,as a :^:s : a : *hat he had done' :e{ore God and im-=-?ss He made no

' ' :e ly confessed

'- : asked God to- - ' -hs is the

, , , repent

Are yoi s :His law a" :Him? Hare . . : - :u lar ly du '- ; : -

by the en : -e :you may I ,e : :to keep a r 'aoversr l i - a . . :

14 . H:r. - : -naniznl

' , . . : - 3 'e s t l l l ln a re-: : : - l : ' in th lans 13 :5 ;

Matthe ' , r 3 3Chec< â ' ' - : , . : ' . : - - '9 . By the ir f ru i ts

ye sha (^: . ' , : - : - l^ 's : sard (Matthew 7:20) .Does : , ' '+ 'e . .2 :- .

j 'u r ts of having he HolySpir i t ^ : : - - . ,e . .y, peace , long-suffer ing ,gent leêss _: : : :êss , la i th , meekness , emper-ance ise ' - : : - : ' : , (Gala t ians 5:22-23)?

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TheBAPTISI\4Sof heBible

The Good News, in conjunction with the Corre-spondence Course Department , p resen ts br ie fmonth ly excurs ions n to the s tudy of the Bib le ,de lv ing nto top ics re levant o the developmentand increased unders tanding f fu ture membersof the God Fami ly. Bib le s tudy is one means bywhich Chris t ians re renewed dai ly ( l l Corin th ians4 : 6 ) , so le t ' s re fresh ourselves wi th more of theprec ious ru ths of God's Word

Inst ruc t ions: The format o f these minis tud iesi s s imi lar o tha t o f the Ambassador Col lege Bib leCorrespondence Course . Look up and read inyour Bible the scripture references given in an-swer to the quest ions . Comments o l lowing hequest ions e labora te on the scr ip tures ust read .That ' s a l l there s to i t (These stud ies are basedon the King James Vers ion of the Bib le , unlesso therwise s ta ted . )

The re l ig ious world is in grea t confusion re-gard ing he various bapt i sms ment ioned n he Bi-

b le . We hear about bap t i sm by immersion , pr in-k l ing and pouring . There is the bapt i sm by theHoly Spi r i t , which John he Bapt i s t spoke of , andthe bap t i sm ment ioned n Mat thew 28:19 . Last ,bu t no t leas t , s the bap t i sm with f i re . Let ' s beg inth is s tudy by examining water bap t i sm as i t wasprac t iced by the orig ina l New TestamentChurch .

The most common method of bap t i sm prac-t iced by profess ing Chris t ian i ty oday is spr in-k l ing . Yet when we s tudy the Bib le , we find tha tthe word sprinkte occurs only a few times in theNew Testament and always n connect ion wi th he

b lood of Chris t- but never eferr ing o bapt i sm.

The word pouring s also ment ioned evera l imesrr he New Testament but no t once n regard o3 apt i sml

The word bapt ize s no t an Engl i sh word per se.: s a Greek word . And the New Testament was&' : ten in the Greek language . n t ransla t ing he3 : e in to Engl i sh , he t ransla tors ef t th i s word-- : 'a ' rs la ted . Li te ra l ly, n the Greek , he word i s

- 'e def in i t ion: -^ ge ln to" or

i s " immerse . " t means " to"out into." l t does not mean

"to sprinkle" or " to pour." The Greek wordfor "spr inkle" i s rant izo and "to pour"is cheo.

Therefore , spr ink l ing or pouring are not formsot bapt i sm. mmersion being placed comple te-ly down underwater - is. Water baptism symbol-izes the buria l o f the o ld carna l , s in fu l se l f . Onlyto ta l immersion can properly symbol ize deathand buria l ; spr ink l ing or pouring are not symbolsof a buria l by any st re tch of the imagina t ion

Let ' s no t ice what the Bib le teaches concern-ing the proper mode or method of water bap-t rsm.

1. Why was John baptizing n Aenon near Jeru-sa lem? John 3:23.

John would have needed only a cupfu l of waterto spr ink le , or a p i tcher u l l o pour - bu t bapt iz -ing requi res much water."

2. How does the bap t i sm of Chris t p rove thatHe was immersed? Mat thew 3 : 16 .

Jesus had to b e put down nto he water, o r He

"went up st ra igh tway out o f the water. . . " l t i sr id icu lous to th ink He could have come"up . . . ou t" o f a spr ink le or a pour

3. When Phi l ip bap t ized the eunuch, d id theyboth go into lhe water? Acts 8:38.

There was no purpose whatever or Phi l ip o gointo lhe water, except that there was no otherway he could plunge the eunuch in to the r iver.Had spr ink l ing r pouring been he proper methodof bap t i sm, Phi l ip would have needed only tobend over and scoop up the water.

The above bib l ica lev idence clear ly shows hatimmersion - be ing placed comple te ly underwater - was the only method of baptism prac-t iced by the or ig ina l Holy Spi r i t - insp i red nd ' ledChurch of God.

Water bap t i sm s an ou tward sign of inward e-pentance. t demonst ra tes o God one's wi l l ing-ness and desire to permanent ly put away his orher o ld l i fe o f s in and begin l iv ing a new l i fe o fobedience to God. lts meaning is stri ctly sym'bol ic in the sense ha t water bap t i sm tse l f has nomyst ica l or magica l e ffec ts on the person who isimmersed . t s on ly physica l effec t i s to get theperson horoughly wet Nor i s the Holy Spi r i t g iv-

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en by water bapt ism. Yet bapt ism s commandedby God lor sa lvat ion Acts 2:38) .

Surpr is ingly, here are severa l o ther dis t inc tbaot isms or immersions ment ioned n the Bible .

4 . Did John he Bapt is t speak of o ther kinds ofbapt ism? Matthew 3: .1 .

John had ust been warning he hypocr i t ica l e-l ig ionis ts o demonstra te ome frui ts or resul ts oftheir a l leged repentance (verses 5-8) . Not iceagain what he sa id : " l bapt ize immerse] ou withwater for repentance , u t he [Jesus] who is com-ing af ter me is might ier han l , whose shoes I amnot worthy o carry; he wi l l bapt ize immerse] ouwith the Holy Spir i t and I immerse you] with f i re"(verse 1 1, Revised Standard Vers ion) . Here John

referred o two other kinds of immersion nei-ther of them in water.

Firs t , e t ' s unders tand what i t means o be bap-t ized with the Holy Spir i t .

5 . Did Jesus promise His d isc ip les that theywould be bapt ized with the Holy Spir i t? Acts 1 :4-5 . When did the Holy Spir i t come? Acts 2:1-4 .

On that day of Pentecost , 50 days af terChris t ' s resurrec t ion , Jesus ' promise and theprophecy of John the Bapt is t were fu l f i l led . Godbegan His spir i tua l Church on ear th by put t ing heHoly Spir i t wi th in His d isc ip les . Not ice how thiswas the bapt ism with the Holy Spir i t .

6 . ls God 's Church he "body" of Chris t? Co-r in th ians 12 12, 14 , 27; Coloss ians 1:18.

7 . How do we become members of that Body?Can we join i t? Or must we be "put in to" i t byGod 's Spir i t? Corin th ians 12:13.

Not ice hat th is scr ip ture does not say we arebapt ized n he Holy Spir i t but by i t The receiv-ing of the Holy Spir i t in our minds as a spir i tua lbeget t ing actual ly puts us in to h e spir i tua l Bodyof Chris t , which is His Church

So ust being physica l ly bapt ized n water doesnot put you nto God 's Spir i t - led Church. You must

be put in to the Church by the Spir i t of God.In Romans 8:9 , Pau l e l l s u s pla in ly hat unlessthe Spir i t of Chris t dwel ls with in us , we do notbelong o Him. Also , each "member" of Chris t ' s"body" - His Church i s oined o the o ther bythe common bond of God 's Holy Spir i t res id ing nthem. So when we become Chris t ' s by receivingHis Spir i t , we are then "put in to" His Body - theChurch of God - by the Holy Spirit.

The Scr ip tures pla in ly show that i t i s the re-ceiv ing of the Holy Spir i t tha t automat ica l lyplunges us "in to" the Church of God. This mmer-s ion into the Church by the Holy Spir i t s te rmed

by the Scr ip tures as "the bapt ism with ," "thebapt ism by ' ' or "the bapt ism o/the Holy Spir i t ."

8 . Another "bapt ism" referred o in the Scr ip-tures , and direc t i ; ' ccnnected with the bapt ism ofthe Holy Spir r t s ment ioned n Matthew 28: 19 .Exact ly what d :es lh is verse say? Be sure toread verse 19

The key exo 'ess l r n verse 19 is the phrase"in the name : ' ^ 3 'eek i t i s e is to onoma, anexoress ion n: , , , ' ' e ' ? se : rsed n the New Testa-ment . Other ' .e"= ' - ' . - 3 'eek from hat t ime pe-r iod has bee^ ' : - - r J , :^ th is express ion andshows i ts fL -a- : - - ; -^ s phrase . . . i s f re-quent in the ca: . . - , ' , - ' . ie 'ence to paymentsmade ' to the a:- ' - - : : ' : - , : "e . . The usageis of in teres : - : : - - : : ' : - . ' . :^ l" ' la t thew 8: 19,where the mea- - l r, : - : : :+- : : be 'baPt ized

i n to the r t .q sp< :- -

- '- -

a= ."

a ' e tC. '" (J .

Moul ton an : - ; t , ' ) -1 - -- : - ' : i : - ") of theGreek Tes :e -a - ' = -==: : :

'

The Bib re : : a - - : , : ' - : - : - ' ' . : - . - : : f t heHoly Spir i t : : : , r - ;ing on of ha"cs - 'begets us as :- :8 :14; lJohr i 'sons at the ' : s -"

OefSOn aS S: - Z- , '^= ,a a" : 'e : -S . . 3SS. . rmeO l9 . Bu l wra : : : : - ' ' - : : : 3 : s - * t '^ ' re? Should

a Chris t iar se= . " i ' -z ' : : i : i r, t he Bap t i s tn rnnheqv - : ' - r, ' : "^e* 3 11 .:

The pop- a: : :a-= - j 'ea t crowds to seeJohn - r rJS: - , : - : : ' :u t ' ros i ty. But John was

speakingn

ca ' : : , ? ': ) the unrepentant e l ig ion-

is ts , as we 3s irJSe who did repent . Not icecareful ly hat s3- :e 3f those to whom John spoke- the repe r ' ia r i were to be bapt ized with theHoly Spir r t a ' te r

But the clhers present-among them manyhypocr i t ica l . unrepentant Phar isees and Saddu-cees-were going to be bapt ized with f i re-immersed in hel l f i re-unless they repented.They would be burned up as chaff (Mat thew3:1 2) .

This f i re is the u l t imate ate of a l l the incorr ig i -b le wicked (Revela t ion 1:8; Malachi 4: 1-3) .

Sure ly no one w il l seek the bapt ism with f i reonce he or she unders tands what i t rea l ly is


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HowbuCanBearthcFruitof hcSpiritThe Good News, n conjunct ion with the Corre-

spondence Course Depar tment , presents br iefmonthly excurs ions nto the s tudy of the Bible ,delving nto topics re levant o the developmentand increased unders tanding f future membersof the God Family. Bible s tudy is one means by

which Chris t ians are renewed dai ly ( l l Cor.4 :16) ,so le t ' s refresh ourse lves with more of the pre-c ious t ru ths of God 's Word

lns t ruct ions: The format of these minis tudiesi s s imilar o tha t of the Ambassador Col lege BibleCorrespondence Course . Look up and read inyour Bible the scr ip ture references given in an-swer to the quest ions . Comments ol lowing hequest ions elabora te on the scr ip tures ust read.That ' s a l l there is to i t (These s tudies are basedon the King James Vers ion of the Bible , unlessotherwise s ta ted . )

The Bible clear ly e l ls us tha t the presence ofGod 's Spir i t n one 's mind,or he ack hereof s hesole actor hat de termines whether or not an ndi-vidual s rea l ly a Chris t ian Rom. 8:9) . Therefore , ti s imperat ive hat we unders tand ust howthe HolySpir i t s manifes ted n a Chris t ian 's i fe .

1 . Did Jesus Chris t c lear ly ndicate hat a per-son is known by his "fru i ts ," or works? Mat t .- 2 : In what way did He character ize Himself- r =a 'her and heir o l lowers? ohn 15:1-8 . Does; : : e 'cec ' i Chr is t ians o bear only a l i t t le f ru i t?, :"s : :5 :

- -i s : - ; 'eas3n Chris t ca l ls and chooses Hisi : : : - : - : -- t e : ' " t i t . ' 'Ye have no t chcsen

: - : se - . , : - ard ordained y3u . i aa :

Brt *ha wri iQ36 s Sprrr t ead and guiCe ou oc:? lVhat spir i tua l ur t . or resul ts , does the Holy

Sprrr t roduce n one who is s t r iv ing o do the wil lof God?

Frui t s c lass i f ied as the edible , usable por t ionof a olant or v ine . Chris t s the "vine ," and we -i f we are His Spir i t -begot ten hi ldren - are the"branches ." Our frui t i s what we produce asChris t ians hat i s usable o Jesus Chris t .

Now the good we produce comes from the

vine - from Chris t . Let ' s unders tand. A vineproduces grapes , not thorns . An apple t ree pro-duces apples , not th is t les . The vine determineswhat f ru i t should be borne . By th is s imple analo-gy we see tha t i t i s Chr is t who determines whatkind ol f ru i t we should bear as Chris t ians . Thatf ru i t i s a resul t of having the mind of Chris t(Phi l . 2 :5) a t work in us as made possib le bythe Spir i t of God.

2 . How did the apost le Paul , who was in-spired of Chris t , out l ine the f ru i t tha t the HolySpir i t produces in a Chris t ian? Gal . 5 :22 '23.

The Holy Spir i t impar ts to you the tra i ts ofGod 's character. l f we Iack these character is -t ics in our l ives , hen we are I ikely o be produc-ing many of the opposi te f ru i ts ca l led the"works of the f lesh ." These undesirable worksare ment ioned in Gala t ians 5:19-21. They in-c lude s t r i fe , d iv is ion and var ious objec t ionables ta tes of mind All the works of the f lesh con-t r ibute to the genera l misery and unhappinessot the individual , be ing thoroughly unsat is fy ingand unfulf i l l ing .

3 . What is the f i rs t f ru i t Paul l i s ts? Gal . 5 :22.Aiso ncl ice Romans 5:5 . s love he bas ic charac '

:e r s t rc of God 's nature? | John 4:16. ls i t thegreates t a t t r ibute God t ransmits o us by the HolySprr i t? Cor. 13:13. Be sure o read a l l of chapter:3 (Char i ty n the King James Vers ion s an o ldEngl ish word tor love .)

The f i rs t and rnost mportant ru i t of God 's Spir-i t dwel l ing n the minds and hear ts of conver tedhuman beings s love . t i s not us t another orm ofhuman ove, but he d iv ine ove hat comes direc t -ly f rom God

4. ls th is the same love that wi l l enable us tofulf i l l to obey - God 's law? Rom. 13:10.

The love of God is impar ted o human beings

by the Holy Spir i t . Metaphor ica l ly speaking,God 's Soir i t uns down he r iverbed of His law -

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the Ten Commandments . t i s expressed f i rs t ofa l l in adorat ion and worshio of God and l i tera lobed ience o Him; and then in outgoing concern ,compassion, indness and service oward our e l -lowman see Matt . 22:37-4O).

The or ig ina l Greek word t ransla ted ov e n Ga-la t ians 5:22 i s agape. In context i t means de-votedness or k ind lyconcern - an in tense desi reto serve God and man. John sa id : "By this weknow that we love the chi ldren of God, when welove God, and keep His commandments . or th isis the love of God, that we keep his command-ments" ( l John 5:2-3) .

5 . What is one of the pr inciple ways in wh ich

God ' s love manifes ts t se l f toward one 's ne igh-bor? Turn o Romans 13:10 once again .

Did you not ice ha t? The kind of love impar tedby God 's Spir i t works no i l l to anybo dy Rather,God 's ove s us t the opposi te a deep concernand an intense desi re to serve , he lp and encour-age o thers .

When you receive the Holy Spir i t , he love ofGod is the f i rs t f ru i t you should begin to show.You should h ink or work no i l l oward anyone, butra ther earn , develop, h ink on and ac t on a pro-found concern and a fervent des i re o serve Godand man.

At f i rs t ha t ' s a ta l l order But over a per iod oft ime - not a l l a t once - you wi l lbegin o not iceth is wonderful ru i t in your l i f e as you exerc iseand use God 's Holy Spir i t .

The other ru i ts of the Spir i t , ment ioned y Paulin Gala t ians :22-23, and which we wi l lnow beg into cover, ampli fy th is bas ic character is t ic ofGod 's na ture - the d iv ine love given to thosewhom God begets with His Holy Spir i t .

6 . What is the second f ru i t tha t Paul l i s ts inGala t ians :22? s i t God 's wi l l ha t we be l i t e ra l lvfil led wilh joy? Rom. 15: 13.

Some people th ink of joy as the end resul t ofsome kind of se l f -gra t i f ica t ion a new toy, newcar, n ew home, new baby. Phys ica l ly speak ing ,when hings go your way, the emotion you fee l i sloy.

7- Does the Bible g ive r ich , deep meaning othis v i ta l f ru i t of God 's Spir i t? Luke 15:7 , 10.

What causes the angels to have joy? l s i tsomething personal hey receive? s i t add ing oo r gra t i fy ing he se l f in some way? l t i s no ne ofthese . Their oy i s in seeing others eceive some-thing good for them - in th is case as a resul t ofpeop les ' repentance , which eventual l y eads toe ternal Sonship in God 's Kingdom. The angelsdel ight n see ing human beings begin o learn he

way of l i f e lha t wil l resul t in the good, las t ing ,permanent bless ings of God 's Kingdom.

8 . What k ind of joy does Jesus Chris t exper i -ence? Heb. 12:2 .

Chris t was wi l l ing o suffer n ant ic ipat ion f thereal oy He would exper ience af terward n seeingfe l low heirs born in to God 's Kingdom. This wasmade poss ib le nlythrough he sacr i f ice f His i fe .

Joy received rom personal gra t i f ica t ion s on lytemporary. The car wea rs out , the ba l l game isover, the baby grows up, the s tomach empties .None of these physica l h ings - though perfec t-ly a l l r igh t o enjoy or the t ime - can ever br ingpermanent , as t ing oy. Chris t and the r ighteous

angels receive joy from lhe outgoing giving ofthemselves to God and others This kind of joylas ts for a l l e tern i ty and does not require con-s tant bols ter ing and rejuvenat ing with more andmore objects and th ings .

9 . What is the th ird f ru i t tha t God ' s Soir i t wi l lmanifes t n a Chris t ian 's i fe? Gal . 5 :22.

Peace of mind is what everyone would l ike tohave, but what so few real ly possess . Many va in -ly a t tempt to achieve peace of mind hrough es-cape in to a lcohol , o ther drugs , b izarre act iv i t ies ,e tc , A person who truly has peace of mind hasgreater control over his emotions even in t ry-ing circumstances . He en joys greater t ranqui l i tyand ca lm, quie t sereni ty, ogether wi th order l i -ness o f mind.

1O. Does peace of mind come from keepingthe Ten Commandments? s . 119: 165.

No one who consis tent ly reaks God ' s aw canhave rea l peace of mind. He wil l have fears andfrus t ra t ions , as wel l as a gui l ty conscience . No-t ice how D avid 's words apply.

Does a th ief have peace of mind when he seesa po l i ce car dr iv ing by? ls he calm and serene? fhe is a good actor, he may appear o be outward-

ly, but ins ide he is a see th ing caldron, hot ly act i -vated by his adrenal glands . Always he has to beprepared o run and escape or cover up in someway. This man can never f ind rea l peace unlessand unt i l he repents ot - qui ts - breaking God ' sTen Commandments , specia l ly he Eighthl

The person who keeps God 's law knouzs e i sdoing he r ight h in g. His goals and purposes ares tabi l ized . His l i fe isn ' t f raught wi th f rus t ra t ions ,and he is not plagued by a gui l ty conscience . Heis a t peace with Go d, wi th h imsel f and with hi sneighbor.

He has "the peace of G od, which passeth a l lunders tandins" (Phi l . 4 :7) . (This subject tobe continued.)


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HowbuCanBcarthc F'ruit fthc SpiritThe Good News, n conjunct ion with the Corre-

spondence Course Department , presents briefmonthly excursions nto the s tudy of the Bibledelving nto topics relevant o the developmentand increased understanding f future members:f the Gcd Family. Bible s tudy is one means bv

, ' . - : ' Cr ' rs t rans are renewed daily (l l Cor. 4: 16)s: : : s '{ .esh ourselves with more of the pre ': : -s : ' - :^s of God's Word

Instruct ions: The format of these ministudiess s - a ' :o that of the Ambassador College Biblel : ' -esccndence Course. Look up and read tnlour Btble the scr ipture references given in an 'swer to the quest ions. Comments ol lowing hequest ions elaborate on the scr iptures ust readThat 's a l l there is to i t (These studies are basedon the King James Version of the Bible, unlessotherwise stated.)

11. What is the fourth rui t of the Holy Sprr ' : rGal .5:22.

Longsuffer ing s an old English word for ca 't ience. l t is a lso forbearance and clemency -which is the abil i ty to have mercy. One whc sshort- tempered and easi ly upset with the fau:sand inadequacies f others s invi t ing eal t r3-a efor himself , as human elat ionships wil l inet ' , ta : 'suffer. He may also find himself suffer ing ' . - ?variety of emotional ly nduced llnessesl

Pat ience s that s teadiness cf mind bv w'rra^you wait or the resul t o be achieved O^e t '3 is

oat ient does not become frustrated becauseproblems don' t a lways end hemselves o imme-diate solut ions. The godly long'sutferrng cr pa-t ience) Paul s referr ing o can come only nrcughthe Holy Spirit.

12. ls gentleness also an important frui t orresul t of having he Holy Spir i t? Gal . 5:22.

Gentleness means f i rs t of al l usefulness, henwil l ingness, graciousness, affabi l i ty one whoobliges. A gentleman and a lady know how toat tend' to other people 's needs, hey have takenthe t ime to learn the social graces, they are

courteous.But gentleness s much more. Notice Paul 'ss tatement to the Thessalonians, But we were

gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth herchi ldren" (l Thess. 2:7) . fhe apost le used thisanalogy o describe how he and others of God'sministers deal t with the members of God'sChurch. A nurse must be firmand loving, kind andsure. able and compassionate al l a t once l t

takes a qual if ied s well as a wil l ingperson o bea good nurse.

The gentle person s wil l ing o take extra steps olcck out or he needs of others . He or she s wil l ingol , r ty he hands o do whatever s necessary.

13. s goodness also a remarkable at tr ibute oflne Holy Spir i t? Gal . 5:22.

Goodness describes a person possessinggodlike quali t ies of vir tue, uprightness and true.haracter. This rui t of the Holy Spir i t could prob-ably be described as a summary rui t - summing

-o the character of aperson who is exhibi t ing he

: ther frui ts is ted by Paul , and as a resul t s dai lycecoming more godlike.

14. ls fai th one of the vital frui ts of the Spir i t ofGod? Gal . 5:22. ls this the very fai th of JesusChrist? Gal . 2:2Q; Phil . 3:9.

Mountains of words have been writ ten andspoken about fai th. For many, fai th is nothingmore than an elusive soir i tual essence. But inreal i ty, he fai th Paul s talking about s a gif t fromCod (Eph. 2:8) imparted hrough the Holy Spir i tf rom Jesus Christ .

' 1 . How was the fai th of Chris t manifested bythe great men of God? Read al l of Hebrews,

chaoter 1 1.The patr iarchs and prophets of God possessed

God's Holy Spir i t , which was administered byChrist ( l Pet . 1:10-11). These men (and women)thus exercised the fai th of Chris t in performingrighteous deeds. "By fai th Moses . . . refused obe cal led the son of Pharaoh's daughter . . for-sook Egypt . . . kept the passover. . . passedthrough he Red Sea . . . [and others] through aithsubdued kingdoms, wrought worked] r ighteous-ness, obtained promises, s topped the mouths ofl ions" (excerpts om Heb. 1 1) .

Fai th to these men and women was notjust

amere word. Fai th was act ive and al ivel They hada charge - a responsibi l i ty efore God to keep.

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Each one had a oar t icular Work to do - and heor she did it

After ponder ing hese remarkable examples offa i th , one can bet ter unders tand why Herber t W.Armstrong says so much about the Work of Godthat mu st be done today. He has been given aspecia l commiss ion by God that he has been -and now is - fa i thful to carry out . And i t i s be ingdone by the very faith of Christ

The or ig inal Greek word for fa i th is p i s t i s -which means firm conviction, assurance, fidelity.Fide l i ty s another way of descr ib ing one who i scareful o preserve hat which has been commit-ted to his t rus t . Years of exper ienc e have shownthat those who are increas ing n he frui to f God ' s

Spirit are the ones who remain faithful o God'scharge - who have their whole hear ts in thevery Work of God - those who, in whatever waythey are able , have an ac t ive par t in he lping ofulf i l lChr is t ' s commiss ion o His Church.

16. Wil l meekness also be one of the t ra i ts of aSpir i t - led nd iv idua l? Gal . 5 :23. Who se t an out-s tanding example n th is regard? Num. 12:3 .

Many a l se ly assume hat meekness s a lwayssynonymous with weakness . Moses became sodedicated to God and f i l l edwith the Holy Spir i t ,he was considered to be the meekest man onear th . No longe r d id he seek to exal t h imself , bu tbecame lowly and humble n at t i tude .

When God was about o d is inher i t and des t roythe chi ldren of lsrae l because of the ir many ebel-l ions , Moses - in spi te of many fa lse personalaccusat ions agains t h im - entrea ted God tosave them (Num. 14) , and in meekness he in -s t ructed those who "oppose[d] themselves" (areouired ra i t of a servant of God - see l l Tim.2:24-25) . A meek person s not revengeful .

17 . What i s the las t , and one of the leas tunders tood rui ts of the Holy Spir i t ment ioned byPau l? Gal . 5 :23.

The world has of ten misunders tood he mean-ing of the word temperance . Temperance doesnot mean abst inence Temperance means se / / -control, continence, self-governmenl, moderation- par t icular ly n reference o sensu al appet i tes .The proverbs of Solomon are reple te with exhor-ta t ions about temperance - a vi ta l a t t r ibute o fGod ' s Sp i r i t .

18 . When one receives he HolySpir i t ,wi l l heseprecious rui ts uddenly ppear overnight a lmosta l l a t once? l Pet . 3 :18; Mat t . 5 :48. (Reca l l romprevious studies hat the sense of Matthew 5:48 is" Become perfect" - a gradual process.)

Frui t does no t appear overnight on a t ree . l ttakes f i rne . water. the nutr ients of the soi l and

sunl ight o groi . ; Lrkewise , t takes t ime to growspir i tua l ly and manifes t he "frui t of the Spir i t"

Spir i t must be used and renewedOne s sprrr l -a - , "r,nded o the degree hat he

has and uses G:: s Sc . ' t i n his i fe . You must drawon and usethe

- : . ,Sc ' i every day o produce he

"f rui tof he Sc ' : r . t l t19. Even F:- : - :^a -e-rbers of the Church of

God in Corrnt^ *e '? :e- t : : :en by the Holy Sp i r i tf romtheFathe ' i l : ' : ' i ) . r 'e remanyofthemnotshowing he ' ' - : : ' l : : - .S : ' , t? Verses 1-3 .

There was s :" : =- : = ' ; - ^g debat ing, onten-t ions and divrs ^s

-- : - ; ' -=l : r in th ian bre thren.

These are s r-e : ' ' ' . r ' r ' (S of the f lesh"

ment ioned n 3a a' :

.'

' . . ' :e why they weremanifes t ingtf 'ese -- : : - ' - : : - : ' : : te r is t ics .20 . Must ae - : . S : - - : : : - , :e put o use?

l lTim. 1:6-7Even houE-:- i - : - := ' . : ' l : : s lnurch a t

Corin th had tf .e S: ' : a : : : : =- : ' - : ' - e . . seemedto have los t s j ' : : ' ' - i ' : : ' ' - : ' - - - r Scir i tmust afso be -*ct- - '= ' : : '2A' - : : - ' : = ' : : - :e :sf ru i t . They we 'e : ' . : - : - ; ==s- . . A: ' . s - : : -ing what cc-es - 2 ' -"= . - : - . . t3"Sthey were no: : : ' - - : - : : -e - i : - : : ' J" ,s ; ancdrawing on : : : : ' : : - : : : - : '?s- :s : i :he mrnd ofChris t l (Pn, 2 a

Another p:3:3: a z ' : ae"ecs cbvrous easonsome in tha: : - - - : - *e ' f a : : rng carnal was be-cause they a s : a : (e l e su?ply of the Spir i t o fChris t n the 5 's : : a :e N:t rce :

21. Does l 'e 'e :e .e a l l a t once enough of theSpir i t of Chr s : : : a s l as long as he or she l ives ,or must the srco y be replenished every day?Phi l . l :19 . i l C: . 4 t6 Also not ice Jesus ' pro-found analogy rr John 7:37-39.

The Sprrr : f Chrrs t s ac t ive - dynamic t i s amoving orce tha t can ' t be bot t led up wi th in you.Jesus compared t to " l iv ing water" tha t comes

into you, and then flows oul from you.lt circulatesl ike e lec t r ic i ty n a complete c i rcui t - f rom God,in to you, and then oul f rom you manifes t ing he"frui t of the Spir i t ," and then back to God.

Since he Spir i t must low nto and out f rom us,then obviously t mus t be cont inual ly supp l i ed .Therefore , he supply of the Holy Spir i t must berenewed n us da i ly through contact wi th God inbe l i ev ing prayer (Luke 11:13) .

To put i t in the vernacular, ur sp ir i iua l bat terymust be cont inual ly harged up. We must da i lyp lug into the power source . That source of theHoly Spir i t i s GOD Once p lugged n, and as weuse he Holy Spir i t , we can indeed bea r the " f rui tof the Soir i t ."


11/14

LivingbyF.AITHThe Good News, n conjunct ion with the Ccre-

spondence Course Depar tment , presents br e 'monthly excurs ions n to the s tudy of the Brb,edelving nto topics re levant o the developme":and increased unders tanding f fu ture membe 'sof the God Family. Bible s tudy is one means c- ,which Chris t ians are renewed dai ly ( l l Cor. 4 :16)so le t ' s refresh ourse lves with more of the ore-c ious t ru ths of God 's Wordl

Ins t ruct ions: The format of these minis tudresi s s imilar o tha t of the Ambassador Col lege BibleCorrespondence Course . Look up and read tryour Bible the scr ip ture references given in an-swer to the quest ions . Comments ol lowing hequest ions elabora te on the scr ip tures ust readThat ' s a l l there is to i t l (These s tudies are basedon the King James Vers ion of the Bible , unlessotherwise s ta ted . )

What is fa i th? Exact ly what k ind of fa i th do weneed o please God - to l ive he obedient , over-coming Chris t ian i fe out l ined n the Bible and beborn as glor i f iedsons of God in the ru l ing Familyof God?

Firs t . we must unders tand hat fa i th is not thepower of posi t ive hinking - t ry ing to pul l your-se l f up by your own boots t raps . n o ther words .t ry ing to improve and overcome by your ownstrength alone.

Many people also make he mistake of conf us-ing fa i th with emotions . They try to work up fa i th .which o them means an emotional ee l ing . Thesefeel ings are not the evidence of having fa i th .They are in he class of what can be seen, heard ,tas ted , smel led or fe l t - in o ther words , they ' reof the f/esh.

Fai th s a spir i tua lmat ter not physica l Let ' sunders tand God's def in i t ion of the k i nd of fa i threquired or sa lvat ion, and how we may receiveand re ta in t .

1 . Are Spir i t -begot ten Chris t ians o walk -l ive their l ives - by fa i th? l l Cor. 5 :7 ; Rom.1.17.

2 . Do they seek and look forward o obta in ingpromises

andrewards

that are not seen? Col .3 1-2 Did Paul e lsewhere ver i fv the f ac t tha t

Chris t ians eek af ter the rea l , but unseen eternalrewards and promises of God? l l Cor.4 : 18 .

3 . Do the above scr ip tures conf i rm God's def i -nr t ion of fa i th found n Hebrews 11:1?

Fai th i s the "substance" - more accura te ly' i i l eassurance or conf idence "of th ings hoped' : r " Before you receive what you hope for, youaiready have i t in substance , and that substance- that assurance or conf idence hat you shal locssess i t - i s fa i th Fai th s your evidence hat. ,cu shal l havewhal you do not yet see .

4 . l s i t poss ib le to please God wi thout fa i th?Heb l 1 :6 .

As this verse expla ins , fa i th toward God isexpressed in absolute recogni t ion that Godexrs ts and that He blesses us both in th is l i fe andq the l i fe to come - as long as we sincere ly

serve and obey Him. This fa i th is acquired . You:annot cause yourse lf o have that k ind of fa i th

: ' t rcugh autosuggest ion More about acquir ingtnrs fa i th la ter. )5 . Must obedience to God and other good

' ,vcrks lear ly accompany one 's fa i th in order tonake i t a l ive and acceptable to God? ReadJames 2 . verses 14-26.

6 . How does one demonstra te his fa i th? Verse18 What does one 's fa i th become i f i t i s notaccompanied by works? Verses 17, 20 , 26 .

Some have le t a dead fa i th creep in to theiri ives . Fai th to them has become a mere bel ief inChris t ' s exis tence and His sacr i f ice or the s inso f mankind. They have los t s ight of the fact tha tthere is something God requires hem lo do

We dare not a l low ourselves to dr i f t in to apass ive condi t ion . We are not excused f romkeeping God's commandments Matt . |9 : 1 7- 9)- f rom str iv ing to l ive a r ighteous l i fe (Matt .5 48) . We're not excused rom overcoming, row-rng n spir i tua l character and endur ing n spi te ofopposi t ion , persecut ion, r ia l and les t unto theend. God expects us to ac tual ly do these th ingsin order to inher i t e ternal i fe .

7 . Did Noah express l i v ing fa i th when heobeyed God by bui ld ing he ark He had com-

manded? Heb. 11:7 . Was there any physica l evi-dence that a f lood would come? Same verse .

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(Notice the words, "things not seen as yet .")Noah had a t rust and confidence n the invis-

ible God to perform what He had promised. Andhe proved his fai th by his works Fai th and obe-dience went hand in hand lo produce l ivingfaith.

8. Did God prove righteous Abraham to befai thful or ful l of fai th? Neh. 9:7-8. What did Abra-ham doto prove his ai th? Gen. 26:5; Jas. 2:21 '23.

God tested Abraham's wil l ingness o obey inand through fai th. Abraham had the kind offai thful obedience God requires of al l Chris t ians.But what a sad lack of that kind of living faiththere is today All too many do not bel ieve Godwil l keep His promises. Consequently hey don' treal ly want to obey Him.

One of the most thr i l l ing examples ol l ivingfai th s that of Daniel 's hree young riends, Sha-drach, Meshach and Abed-nego. Recal l hat Neb-uchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had erected agreat golden mage and ordered everyone o wor-ship his idol at cer tain designated imes. Thosewho refused were to be thrown al ive into a fieryfurnace (Dan. 3:3-6) .

9. What did Nebuch dnezzar do when in-formed by Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-ne9othat they would not worship his golden dol? Dan

3: l9-23.What would you have done had you been in

their place? Would you have said, "Well , I haveto bow down o this image - | have o do i t or beki l led"? And perhaps you may have excusedyourself hus, "l don' t think God would be fair i fHe punished me for bowing down before his idol ,when He knows I am forced to do i t ."

Yes, i t ' s easy to use human reasoning o ex-cuse disobedience o God. But God isn ' t lookingfor chances to punish us, but rather for opportu-nities to save us through faith in His power

Thesehree

young men knew hat "we ought oobey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29) . By fai ththey knew that God makes i t possible for us toobey Him.

Notice hat God al lowed hem o go beyond hepoint of human help. No one could help now, butGod. He had to see that they would not only bewil l ing o s ay they would go all the way, but Heal lowed them to go all the way before He savedthem from the t r ia l . He expected them to go thatone step further - to bac k up their words bytheir act ions.

1O. To his amazement , what did the king f indwhen he looked into the furnace? Verses 24 '25.What did Nebuchadnezza( ay to the three menas they and one "l ike the Son of God" walked

around in the midst of the fire ' i 'e ' ses 26'28.(Notice the words, "del ivered his se ' .a":s that

t rusted n Him" in verse 28) .This is an astounding xample ol i , t :E 'e . 'Afai th hat t rusted Godlo make t possib e: : obeyHis lawl

God tel ls us through Paul that He * levertest us beyond what we are able to bea ' ( l Ccr.10:13) . Yet i t would seem that if anybcdy evercame to the breaking point , these men drd ' Butthey never even broached heir breaking pornt nthis t r ia l because hey had absolute ai th n GodAnd the God they fai thful ly obeyed did interveneto save them

Let 's understand now exact ly how i t is possi-ble for us to have the l iving fai th necessary toplease Goo

11. ls t t 'e ta th through which we receive sal-vat icn a gtl i t .3" 'Gcd? Eph. 2:8. ls this fai th anat tr ibute: ' the Htr ,Spir i t that a l l t rue Chris t iansmust cassesst 3a a 22 ls this ta i th in real i tythe fa th : , jes_s ^- . i . t Ph 3:9: Rom. 3:22.

12.C2Fa- c a- j s :3le:haiCh ' is t l ivedinh,1 '"1Ga 2 2a .a , . . : : l^ . S: , .9 n hlm? Phil .2 5 R:* 8 3- ' : r-e ' I s Pau ' e ci ' the veryfa, :2 ' C^ ' ,s ' ) t l : : , :e Ga;alrans 2.20 onceaga,n

Paul drdn iive by hrs own fai th. Jesus Christdwelt in Paul through the Holy Spir i t , and theSpir i t of God from Christ mplanted n Paul 's mindthe same kind of fai th that can be in your mindThat faith - the very faith of Jesus Christ - willenable you to l ive a r ighteous ife of obedience oGod as did the apost le Paul and al l of the righ-teous men and women of God.

lf we were able, of ourselves, o supply he fai thto obey God, we would earn our own salvat ion. twould be the resul t of self-r ighteousnesses hatare as "f i l thy ags" to God lsa. 64:6) .

But the above scriptures speak only of thefai th of Chris t . Yes, Chris t ' s fai th - not yourfai th. Jesus had l iving, act ive, dynamic fai th -God's fai th And Christ in us imparts His ownstrong fai th to you and me that t rusts God tomake our spir i tual obedience possiblel

13. Since our receiving of God's promiseshinges on the fai th of Jesus Chris t a t work in ourl ives, how do we assure our continued eceipt ofthe Holy Spir i t and he fai th of Jesus Christ? Acts5:32; Rom. 12:1-2. s this how Paul retained hefai th of Chris t? Gal . 2:2O.

f t is by yielding o God, and asking Him dailyinearnest , persevering rayer o give us the fai th ofChrist o t rust and obey Him, hat we shal l ndeedhave i t .


13/14

The ChristianfightHC\MYOT]CAI{wIN' . ' : - . : : ' ycu have read much, t not a l l , of our

' : ' : : - 'e and some have s tudied he Ambassa ': : ' l : ege Bible Correspondence Course . You. - : , . , nuch about the teachi ngs of the Word ofl : : But can you turn to the pages of the Bib le: - : readi ly ind h e scr ip tures hat form he bas is

' : ' :he b el iefs and pract ices of God 's Church?T: he lp you accomplish his , The Good News ,- : rn junct ion with the Correspon dence Course

leoar tment , presents br ief monthly excurs ions^:r the s tudy of the Bi ble , delving nto opics re l -

: .ant to the development and increased under-s :anding of future members of the God Fami ly.3 c le s tudy i s one means by which the Chris t ian

'enewed dai ly ( l l Cor in th ians :16) , so le t ' s be -^ to refresh ourse lves with some of the pre-: -s t ru ths of God 's WordInst ruct ions: The format of these minis tudies

s s- i lar

to tha t of the Ambassador Co l lege Bib le:"espondence Course . Look up and read in: - ' Bible the scr ip ture references given in an-

- i , e ' 1c the quest ions . Comments ol lowing her- :s : lns wi l l e labora te on the scr ip tures jus t'e : : raa t ' s a l l there is to i t (These s tudies are: :se : :n the King James Vers ion of the Bible . )

-^i" ' f

rd ol God el ls us that a l l who wi l l fo l low:-e l^ 's : ian way of l i fe wi l l have to face threedea: _ .eremies . These enemies end to d iscour-a-re -s ":m overcoming s in and deve lop ing hechaia : :e . r f Chris t . They put wedges in to our

mincs - a : i r i l lgrow, gradual ly separa t ing us f omthe gu .a^:e and power of God 's Holy Sp i r i t - /Fwe al lar+ ^em to. God says these deadly enemiesmust be de{eated . nd He e l l s u s how o do i t

1 . Does Pau l show there is effor t invo lved nl iv ing he Chr s t ran ife - that e ternal i fe s worthf ight ing cr ' ) | f imolhy 6:12; lTimothy 1:18-19.Whose "soldrer" was Timothy? l Ti mothy 2:3-4 .

2 . Did Paut s teadfas t ly o l low God's way of l i fe- did he know short ly before his death , tha t hehad won the Chris t ian ight? l Timothy 4:6-8 .

3 . l s the Chris t ian 's warfare agains t physica larmies? Or i s i t a sp ir i tua lwar tare? l Cor in th ians10:3-4 . Jus t what is i t tha t a Chris t ian s to f ightagains t? Verse 5.

The f i rs t enemy n the Chris t ian 's dai ly warfareis h is own nature wi th i t s inordinate us ts (Gala-t ians 5 : 19-21) . This nature n us ra t ional izes lev-er ly, somet imes producing decei t fu l and degrad-ing impulses - vani ty, lus t , greed. We are en-t iced to s in , to break God 's sp ir i tua l law, thus

cut t ing us off rom Him. Our nature can des t roy usspir i tua l ly, n less we re s i s l i t s wrong impulses .4 . What is the second deadly enemy ol a l l

Chr is t ians? Gala t ians 1 :4 . What shou ld a Chris-t ian 's a t t i tude be toward the world 's socia l orderwith i t s g l i t te r, g lamour and s ta tus-seeking ap-peal? | John 2:15-17.

John is speaking about th is world ly sys temaround us - th is "cosmos." l t i s f rom he orig inalGreek word kosmos, ransla ted "world" in I John2:15, tha t Engl ish words such as cosmop ol i tan ,cosmography and cosmopol i te are der ived

John was referr ing to the socie t ies of th isworld , many of which are l i te ra l lybui l t on and mo-t ivated by the vani ty, lus ts and greed of man 'snature . Because most peop le have been de-ceived (Revela t ion 12:9) , h ey don ' t unders tandhow so many of the world 's ways could be wrongin God 's s ight . This world 's ways bo mbard Chris-t ians cont inual ly with temptat ions that can se-duce them from fol lowing Chris t

5 . Should Chris t ians s t r ive to a void the evi ltha t i s in the world? l Corin th ians :14- 8 , Reve-la t ion 18:4 . Does th i s mean that any who wou ldlove God and seek to l ive he Chris t ian way of l i f e

should therefore move away from popula ted a r-eas? John 17:15-18. Not ice espe cia l ly the f i rs tpar t of verse 15.

Chris t ' s prayer n the 17th chapter of the gos-oel of John shows that God does not expectChris t ians o move to the mounta ins and deser tsto es cape the world 's d is t rac t ions . Rather, heyshould s t r ive to be separa le spir i tua l ly and ab-s ta in from i ts ways tha t are def ined as s in in theBible .

6 . What or who is the th i rd great enemy ofevery Chris t ian? Peter 5:8-9; James 4 :7 . l sn ' tSatan the devi l u l t imate ly e sponsible o r inspir-ing he inordinate haracter is t ics of human natureand or al l the evi l n h is world? l Cor in th ians :4 ;

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Ephesians 2:2 . Hasn ' t he indeed deceived thewhole world? Revelation 12:9.

Satan, lormerly the greal archangel Lucifer,who was originally created perfect in his ways(Ezekiel 28: 15), acquired his satanic nature byhis own reasoning and choice. Humans, n turn ,acquire Satan 's nature, which we call "human na-ture." Notice how Paul described this naturalframe of mind: " . . . the carnal mind is enmityagainst God: for i t is not subject to the law ofGod, neither ndeed can be" (Romans 8:7).

But once the Holy Spiri t of God is added to aperson 's mind, he has the power o resist he at t i-tudes of self-centeredness, ust , greed, vanity,jealousy, envy, resentment, bit terness and hate,which are "broadcast" to the mind by Satan.

No person is compelled to respond to andobey these mpulses om Satan. The devil has nopower lo force anyone o think or do wrong Butthe unsuspecting utomatically do so without re-alizing what is taking place in their minds. Mostpeople just drif t along, responding o emotionsand impulses, which often ind expression n theirfleshly drives and vain pursuits.

7 . After your begettal by God's Holy Spiri t ,which makes you a Christ ian Romans 8:9), willthe devil conlinue o try to beguile you - to de-

ceive your mind - and ead you away from Christand His ways? l l Corinthians 11:2-4. Did someChrist ians n Paul 's day begin o fall v ict im o thedevil 's promptings once again? Verses 13-15;Galatians 1:6-8: 3: 1 .

Conversion does nol disconnect Satan 's"wavelength." He continues o broadcast the at-t i tudes of his natur e and work through others tosubvert our l ife in Christ . When Jesus spoke ofovercoming, He referred o overcoming he waysof Satan, which are contrary o God's way. Thosewho have lurned from Satan 's way are to be onguard against h im a nd fight o overcome his sub-tle urgings and remain rue to God's way.

Before Jesus Christ could qualify to restorethe government of God and rule all nations, Hehad to withstand Satan 's most severe tempta-t ions. That supreme struggle is recorded in thefourth chaoter of Matthew. Notice how the devilat tempted o deceive and influence esus Christto sin against God.

8. After Jesus had fasted 40 days in the wil-derness, how did the devil appeal both to humanvanity and severe physical hunger? Matthew 4:1-4. And o the human desire or prestige, glory andpower? Verses 5-9. What were Jesus ' immediateresponses? Verses 4 ,7 , 10 What was the out-come of th is t i t anic soiri tual batt le? Verse 11.

Christ overcame the ae, When Jesus gavethe devil an order. he hac :: :ce. , He slunk away,knowing he was defea:e: - :^ s supreme spiri-tual encounter of al l t r.ne

Christ overcame he de' 3 , ' . ?s cy ' he Wordof God. He knew Gcc s * -- : ' : ' r ' e the devilcould not deceive H,n 'r, :e ' -3 :--: : : : : ihe dev-il 's temptations by cr: ^y- - a z==': : ' a:e scrip-ture that applied in eac^ s : -a : : - -= < e* theWord of God thorougn '

9 . Are Christ ians 3:a. =:- ' - ' : - r -

Becoming a Christian (1979)

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Transcript of Becoming a Christian (1979)