Tuesday, 11 July 2006

• Gospel Of Jesus-- Repent and believe!

  The way of Jesus Christ is not the way of the World…

  
  

  (nor is it accepted by the world, {see picture of a Christian})

  
  

  But… Eighty-three percent of Americans identify themselves as Christians.

  
  

  http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/beliefnet_poll_010718.html

  
  

   

  
  

  Matthew 7:13
  13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.

  
  

   

  
  

  
  
  1. Proverbs 14:12
     There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
      
  
  
  2. Proverbs 16:25
     There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.

  
  

  So just because someone thinks they are a Christian does not mean they are. Even as I, myself, believed (most of the time) that I was saved, and secure.

  
  

   

  
  

  The Bible does paint us a picture of what a believer looks like:

  
  

   

  
  

  1. Has the Spirit

  
  

   

  
  

  John 4:24  “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

  
  

  Romans 8:9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.

  
  

   

  
  

  2. Is Obedient to Him and His commands

  
  

  
  Matthew 19:17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good?^[a] No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

  
  

  John 14:15 
  15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.

  
  

  John 14:21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

  
  

  John 15:10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

  
  

  1 John 2:3-4  3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him

  
  

   

  
  

  3. Love Him and others

  
  

   

  
  

  John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

  
  

  1 John 2:7-9 7 Brethren,^[a] I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.^[b] 8 Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.
  9 He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now.

  
  

  Matthew 22:37-40 37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

  
  

  2 John 1:5 And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another.

  
  

   

  
  

  4. Believes His Word

  
  

   

  
  

  John 2:22 Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

  
  

  John 8:31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.

  
  

   

  
  

  5. Does not love the World

  
  

   

  
  

  1 John 2:15-17 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

  
  

  John 12:25 25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

  
  

  John 17:9 9 “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  6. Is Hated by the World

  
  

   

  
  

  John 15:18-25 18 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 He who hates Me hates My Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. 25 But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, ‘They hated Me without a cause.

  
  

  1 John 3:13 Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you.

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  7. Are persecuted

  
  

   

  
  

  John 15:20 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also

  
  

  Matthew 5:10-12 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
  For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

  
  

   11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.    

  
  

  Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse

  
  

  Luke 6:26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets.

  
  

   

  
  

  This IS NOT A MODEL it is a description

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  Do you believe you are saved? What do you believe saves you? For what you belive will show in your life.

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  What you believe in your heart will not stay hidden from others (even if you hide it from yourself), belief results in actions:

  
  

   

  
  

  OT Examples

  
  

   

  
  

  Noah believed God was going to destroy the earth as He said so his actions:

  
  

  “By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” Hebrews 11:7

  
  

   

  
  

  Abraham believed God was going to give him an inheritance so his actions: “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8

  
  

   

  
  

  Joseph believed God was going to take his children out of Egypt as he said so his actions:

  
  

  22 By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones. Hebrews 11:22

  
  

   

  
  

  Moses believed God was a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him so his actions:

  
  

  “24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26 esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in^[a] Egypt; for he looked to the reward” Hebrews 11:24-26 

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  NT Examples

  
  

   

  
  

  Centurion believed Jesus was able to heal from far away so His actions:

  
  

  “8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
  10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour. Matthew 8:8-13 

  
  

   

  
  

  Stephen believed Jesus was the Son of God so his actions:

  
  

  “54 When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, 56 and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Acts 7:54-56 

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  What then saves you is it a confession of the mouth? Or is it belief from the heart, and belief in what?

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  It is not righteousness, or good deeds for God’s standard is perfection:

  
  

  Romans 6:23
  For the wages of sin is death

  
  

  Matthew 5:20 

  
  

  20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

  
  

  Matthew 5:48 

  
  

  48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

  
  

   

  
  

  Confession of Him comes from a heart that believes…

  
  

  Romans 10:10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

  
  

   

  
  

  Belief in what “that He came from God”

  
  

  John 17:8 For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.

  
  

   

  
  

  That He died rose again the third day.

  
  

  1 Corinthians 15:3-5 

  
  

  3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve.

  
  

   

  
  

  That He Is and will reward you for following Him

  
  

  Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  What comes from that belief… repentance

  
  

   

  
  

  So let’s take a look at belief and repentance

  
  

   

  
  

  Belief

  
  

  Romans 10:10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

  
  

  Romans 10:9 

  
  

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

  
  

  Acts 8:37 

  
  

  37 Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.”
  And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”

  
  

  Matthew 18:1-3 (belief is simple, and only by humbling yourself and trust as a child does will you be saved)

  
  

  1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
  2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

  
  

  John 7:38 

  
  

  38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

  
  

  Romans 10:11
  For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

  
  

  1 John 5:10
  He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.

  
  

   

  
  

  Repent (which includes turning from sin)

  
  

   

  
  

  OT Examples:

  
  

  Joel 2:12 

  
  

  12 “ Now, therefore,” says the LORD,
  
        “ Turn to Me with all your heart,
        With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”

  
  

  Job 42:6
  Therefore I abhor myself,And repent in dust and ashes.

  
  

  2 Chronicles 33:10-13

  
  

  10 And the LORD spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they would not listen. 11 Therefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the army of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh with hooks, bound him with bronze fetters, and carried him off to Babylon. 12 Now when he was in affliction, he implored the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, 13 and prayed to Him; and He received his entreaty, heard his supplication, and brought him back to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God.

  
  

   

  
  

  NT Examples

  
  

  Matthew 3:7-9 

  
  

  7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

  
  

  Matthew 9:13
  But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

  
  

   

  
  

  This belief (faith) does not come from anything we do

  
  

  Ephesians 2:8-9 

  
  

  8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

  
  

  Psalm 32:1-5 

  
  

  1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
           Whose sin is covered.
   2 Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
           And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
           
   3 When I kept silent, my bones grew old
           Through my groaning all the day long.
   4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
           My vitality was turned into the drought of summer.  Selah  
   5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
           And my iniquity I have not hidden.
           I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”
           And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.  Selah

  
  

  Romans 4:5

  
  

  But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,

  
  

  Galatians 3:6
  just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

  
  

   

  
  

  Be Warned! The God who loves is also the God who judges and casts into Hell

  
  

   

  
  

  OT Examples

  
  

  Genesis 38:7
  But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the LORD, and the LORD killed him.

  
  

  Genesis 38:10
  And the thing which he did displeased the LORD; therefore He killed him also.

  
  

  Genesis 19:24
  Then the LORD rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the LORD out of the heavens.

  
  

  Genesis 6:17
  And behold, I Myself am bringing floodwaters on the earth, to destroy from under heaven all flesh in which is the breath of life; everything that is on the earth shall die.

  
  

  Deuteronomy 2:33-35 

  
  

  33 And the LORD our God delivered him over to us; so we defeated him, his sons, and all his people. 34 We took all his cities at that time, and we utterly destroyed the men, women, and little ones of every city; we left none remaining. 35 We took only the livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took.

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  NT examples

  
  

  Acts 12:21-24 

  
  

  21 So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them. 22 And the people kept shouting, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died.
  24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.

  
  

  Acts 5:9-10 

  
  

  9 Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” 10 Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband.

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  The God of the Ot is the same God in the NT, so repent and believe while there is still time

  
  

   

  
  

  1 Corinthians 10:1-5 

  
  

   1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, 2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. 5 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness

  
  

   

  
  

  Hebrews 3:14-16 

  
  

  14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, 15 while it is said:
  
     
  
        “ Today, if you will hear His voice,
        Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

   

  
  

  If we do we will have Him as our comfort and help in times of need instead of our enemy

  
  

   

  
  

  Hebrews 4:15-16 

  
  

  15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

  
  

   

  I was the kind of person who I am speaking to for more read my testimony of Him below:

  • 4:19 PM
  • 31 Views
  • 18 eProps
  • 14 Comments