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    Christian Living and Doctrine
    Christian Living and Doctrine
    Christian Living and Doctrine
    Ebook993 pages15 hours

    Christian Living and Doctrine

    By James D. Quiggle

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    About this ebook

    Christian Living and Doctrine doesn’t have stories telling you how others live their Christian life. This is a detailed explanation of God’s values for practical Christian living and the Scriptures of doctrinal Christianity. The book is divided into four sections: Salvation, Serving Christ, Practical Christian Living, and Doctrine. This is a book you can explore, study, argue with, test your understanding of the Bible through the Scriptures, and use in your ministry.

    The Salvation section: What Must I Do To Be Saved?; What Does it Mean to be Saved?; How Can I Know I am Saved?; Is it Possible for a Christian to Lose Salvation?; What Does it Mean to be Born-Again?; How To Live, Grow, and Succeed in Your Christian Life; Sanctification, Righteousness, Regeneration; Persevering Faith.
    In the Serving Christ section I explain the scriptural basis for Worship, Fellowship, Obedience, Service, Spiritual Gifts, the Doctrine of Good Works, and Suffering in the Service of Christ.

    In the Practical Christian Living section I discuss “How To” according to God: God’s rules and values for Sexual Activity, Marriage, Children, Divorce, Employers and Employees, and Doing Good Works.

    The Doctrine section is a vigorous discussion of Hermeneutics, Dispensationalism, Bibliology, Theology Proper, Christology, Pneumatology, Anthropology, Hamartiology, Soteriology, Ecclesiology, Ecclesiology and Dispensationalism, Angelology, and Eschatology. This is followed by Heresies and a Dictionary of Doctrinal Words. Two appendices conclude the book: Subject Matter Outline and my personal Doctrinal Statement. Then, Sources (bibliography).

    Here are answers to questions. Here is a resource for learning.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJames D. Quiggle
    Release dateJul 6, 2017
    ISBN9781370590353
    Christian Living and Doctrine
    Author

    James D. Quiggle

    James D. Quiggle was born in 1952 at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. He grew up in Kansas and the Texas Panhandle. In the early 1970s he joined the United States Air Force. At his first permanent assignment in Indian Springs, Nevada in a small Baptist church, the pastor introduced him to Jesus and soon after he was saved. Over the next ten years those he met in churches from the East Coast to the West Coast, mature Christian men, poured themselves into mentoring him. In the 1970s he was gifted with the Scofield Bible Course from Moody Bible Institute. As he completed his studies his spiritual gift of teaching became even more apparent. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Bethany Bible College during the 1980s while still in the Air Force. Between 2006–2008, after his career in the Air Force and with his children grown up, he decided to continue his education. He enrolled in Bethany Divinity College and Seminary and earned a Master of Arts in Religion and a Master of Theological Studies.As an extension of his spiritual gift of teaching, he was prompted by the Holy Spirit to begin writing books. James Quiggle is now a Christian author with over fifty commentaries on Bible books and doctrines. He is an editor for the Evangelical Dispensational Quarterly Journal published by Scofield Biblical Institute and Theological Seminary.He continues to write and has a vibrant teaching ministry through social media.

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      Christian Living and Doctrine - James D. Quiggle

      Preface

      Abbreviations

      SALVATION

      What Must I Do To Be Saved?

      What Does it Mean to be Saved?

      How Can I Know I am Saved?

      Is it Possible for a Christian to Lose Salvation?

      What Does it Mean to be Born-Again?

      How to Live, Grow, and Succeed in Your Christian Life

      Sanctification, Righteousness, Regeneration

      Persevering Faith

      SERVING CHRIST

      Worship

      Fellowship

      Obedience

      Service

      Spiritual Gifts

      The Doctrine of Good Works

      Suffering in Service to Christ

      PRACTICAL CHRISTIAN LIVING

      Sexual Activity

      Marriage

      Children

      Divorce

      Employers and Employees

      Doing Good Works

      DOCTRINE

      Hermeneutics

      Dispensationalism

      Bibliology

      Theology Proper

      Christology

      Pneumatology

      Anthropology

      Hamartiology

      Soteriology

      Ecclesiology

      Ecclesiology and Dispensationalism

      Angelology

      Eschatology

      Heresies

      DICTIONARY OF DOCTRINAL WORDS

      APPENDIX ONE, Subject Matter Outline

      APPENDIX TWO, My Doctrinal Statement

      SOURCES

      Preface

      In these troubled times, a book about Christian life and doctrine immediately raises the question, What kind of Christianity? There are multiple theologies and faith-traditions and denominations and flavors of this or that kind of Christianity.

      Christian Living and Doctrine is written from the Bible using a literal hermeneutic. The theological points of view are Calvinistic, Baptistic, and Dispensational. That means I subscribe to a certain point of view regarding the historic doctrines of Christianity.

      I am Calvinistic in the doctrines known as Theology Proper, Christology, Pneumatology, Anthropology, Hamartiology, Soteriology, and Angelology. I am Dispensational in the doctrines of Ecclesiology and Eschatology. My Baptistic views affect Ecclesiology, for Baptists grew out of the Puritan Separatist movement. That will not trouble us in this book.

      To the average reader the proper names for theological doctrines mean little.

      Theology Proper: the biblical knowledge of God.

      Christology: the biblical knowledge of Christ.

      Pneumatology: the biblical knowledge of the Holy Spirit.

      Anthropology: the biblical knowledge of man.

      Hamartiology: the biblical knowledge of sin.

      Soteriology: the biblical knowledge of salvation.

      Angelology: the biblical knowledge of angels

      Ecclesiology: the biblical knowledge of the church.

      Eschatology: the biblical knowledge of last things.

      I will admit to a different point of view from the Calvinistic, aka Reformed, view of Soteriology regarding the content of faith for the Old Testament believers. I will explain this in the chapter on Soteriology. But, rest assured Calvinistic/Reformed readers, salvation is always the same from Adam forward: by grace alone through faith alone. I subscribe to the five solas.

      May Christ bless this work on Christian living and doctrine for all who are striving to be followers of Jesus Christ.

      Abbreviations

      AD Anno Domini (In the year of the Lord [since Christ was born])

      ANF Ante-Nicene Fathers

      ASV American Standard Version

      BC Bello Christo (Before Christ [was born])

      BDT Baker’s Dictionary of Theology

      ca. about (an approximate date) (Latin: circa)

      cf. compare (Latin: confer)

      EDT Evangelical Dictionary of Theology

      e.g. for example (Latin: exempli gratia)

      etc. and so forth, and so on (Latin: et cetera)

      HCSB Holman Christian Standard Bible

      Ibid in the same place (referring to the source cited in the previous entry) (Latin: ibidem)

      i.e. that is (Latin: id est)

      JDQT Author’s translation

      KJV King James Version

      NASB New American Standard Bible 1995 edition.

      NIDNTT The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology

      NIV New International Version

      NKJV New King James Version

      NPNF Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers

      LXX Septuagint (Greek translation of the Old Testament completed ca. 130 BC)

      n. note (referring to a footnote or endnote in the work cited)

      s. v. under the word (Latin: sub verbo)

      TWOT Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament

      v. verse

      vv. verses

      WSDNT Complete Word Study Dictionary New Testament

      SALVATION

      What Must I Do To Be Saved?

      The short answer is, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved. This was the answer the apostle Paul gave the Philippian jailor at Acts 16:31. At Romans 10:9, Paul wrote, that if you confess, ‘Jesus is the Lord,’ and in your heart believe that God raised him out of the dead, you will be saved.

      Telling a person how to be saved by quoting those two verses is like reading the last paragraph in a book: we need to know the beginning and middle to understand the end. The Philippian jailor had heard Paul and his friend Silas testifying, praying, praising, and singing about Jesus from the jail cell, Acts 16:25. He knew something about Christ when Paul answered his question, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? The answer was, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, the one of whom you heard me and my friend testifying about, praying to him, praising him, and singing about him, and you will be saved. What the jailor had heard about Jesus led him to believe on Jesus as his Savior.

      Underlying Romans 10:9, if you confess, ‘Jesus is the Lord,’ and in your heart believe that God raised him out of the dead, you will be saved, is all Paul had previously written from Romans 1:1 to Romans 10:8. Paul had written that humankind had rejected their creator; that they were without excuse; that every person is a sinner; that good works will not save you from God’s penalty against your sins; that Jesus propitiated God for sin; that there is salvation from the penalty for sin through faith in Jesus Christ; that the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ; that there is no condemnation to those who have believed in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Therefore, knowing you are a sinner, and that no good work you might do will save you, confess Jesus Christ as your Savior.

      Paul said to the jailor, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. In the Roman’s passage he said, Confess, ‘Jesus is Lord.’ There are three teachings about Jesus that must be believed. The first is the name Jesus: the name means Savior. The second is the meaning of Christ: Christ is the English translation of the Hebrew word meaning anointed. God anointed (ordained, appointed) Jesus, and only Jesus, to be the Savior. The third is the meaning of the word Lord. What the word Lord means in these scriptures is that to be saved one must believe Jesus Christ is God. Paul frequently uses the New Testament term Lord in the same sense as the Old Testament name, YHWH, which is the name God most often uses to identify himself in the Old Testament (usually written in English translations of the Old Testament as LORD, or GOD).

      The scriptures teach that the Christ was God the Son incarnate in the human being Jesus of Nazareth. God the Son joined himself at the moment of conception to a genuine human nature and human body to become God and man, the God-man, possessing both deity nature and human nature. Because Jesus is human, he could suffer the penalty for sin, which is spiritual death (separation from God) and physical death. Because Jesus is God, his suffering and death had limitless merit by which God is able forgive the finite demerit of sin. To believe and confess the Lord Jesus Christ is to believe and confess God sent Jesus, and only Jesus, to save sinners from the penalty due their sin, because Jesus alone is the God-man.

      Paul said in Romans 10:9, if you confess, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and in your heart believe that God raised him out of the dead, you will be saved. To be saved a person must believe God raised Jesus out of the dead. In his first letter to the Corinthian church, Paul said if Christ was not risen out from the dead, the Christian’s faith in Christ as Savior was vain, empty (1 Corinthians 15:17). So faith in Christ’s resurrection is important to salvation. After Christ died physically on the cross, he was buried, and three days later he resurrected. That message is in fact the good news (the gospel): Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, he was buried, and he rose again the third day according to the scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:3–4.

      Above I made reference to sin. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23; Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:3; The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord, Romans 6:23. Here is one of two reasons to be saved: to escape the eternal penalty for being a sinner (the other reason is to possess an eternal relationship with God).

      When God created humankind in the person of Adam, he did not create Adam with sin. Adam, through his disobedience to God’s command, Genesis 2:17; 3:6, added sin as an attribute to human nature. What is sin? Sin is an attribute of human nature that influences a person to self-determine his or her course in the world in opposition to God’s holy character and revealed will. Sin is alienation from God. Sin is the absence of righteousness. Sin is the opposite of holiness. Sin is the lack of desire to conform to God’s will, the inclination to act in opposition to God’s will, and the unwillingness to be holy as God is holy. Sin is not passive opposition, it is active rebellion against God, expressing that rebellion in acts of deliberate, intentional disobedience to God’s revealed will (revealed in Scripture and in the conscience). At its most basic, sin is the failure to conform fully to God’s image and likeness (Genesis 1:27). In the final analysis, sin is any thought or action that does not conform to the essence, personality, character, attributes, or purpose of God. Sin is any want of conformity to, or transgression of, the law of God, Leviticus 5:17; James 4:17; 1 John 3:4; Romans 3:10–18. Sin is a violation of the expression of God’s holy character: anything in a human being which does not express, or which is contrary to, the holy character of the Creator, Leviticus 19:2. Sin is not only doing evil, sin is also not doing good. Sin is an attribute in human nature, which through constructive interaction with other attributes in human nature, persuasively influences a person to self-determine his or her course in the world in opposition to God’s holy character and revealed will, whether that will of God is discovered in Scripture, or in that revelation of himself God has made in human conscience. Sin is expressed in acts of deliberate self-determination, in voluntary, spontaneous, impulsive acts of the feelings and affections, and through habit and disposition. Sin is a crime against God: Every person habitually practicing sin also habitually practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness, 1 John 3:4. Every human being is born with the attribute of sin, which is why every human being needs salvation.

      Above I said that faith in Christ’s resurrection is important to salvation. Christ’s resurrection demonstrates that he fully paid the judicial penalty to God for the crime of sin—not his sin, for he was sinless, but the sins of humanity which God imputed to him, 2 Corinthians 5:21, and for which he suffered the penalty. If Christ had not resurrected, it would mean he had not propitiated God for sin. Propitiation is a word meaning Christ fully satisfied God’s holiness and justice for the crime of sin, acting in the sinner’s place and on the sinner’s behalf. If the penalty for the crime had not been fully and completely paid—if God had not been propitiated—then Jesus would not have been resurrected. Therefore belief in the resurrection indicates belief that, in the words of an old hymn, Jesus paid it all; All to him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain; He washed it white as snow. But Jesus is resurrected out from among the dead, demonstrating that he had paid the full penalty for the judicial guilt of the crime of sin.

      For which sins did Jesus propitiate God? For all the sins of every person who believes on Christ as their savior. Paul wrote to the Ephesian church, For by grace you are saved, through faith [in Christ] and that not of yourselves, it [grace-faith-salvation] is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast. The apostle John wrote, 1 John 2:2, Christ is propitiation for our sins. The apostle Peter said, Acts 4:12, There is salvation in no one else [only in Jesus Christ] for there is no other name under heaven given to the people by which we must be saved.

      How, then, can you be saved? The faith that saves has rational and supernatural aspects: there is a supernatural God-ward perspective and there is a rational man-ward perspective. First, in the supernatural God-ward perspective, faith is God-given conviction of truth: the absolute, undeniable, unquestioned, certain, and sure receipt of truth as originating in and communicated from God. God, by his Holy Spirit, gives the sinner seeking salvation absolute certainty, unwavering infallible conviction that the facts concerning his spiritual state are true. Those facts are his/her personal sin, the eternal punishment due sin, that Jesus suffered the penalty for his/her sin, and that faith in Jesus will save him or her from the penalty of sin.

      Second, from the rational man-ward perspective, man considers the facts of salvation as to their authenticity, credibility, and accuracy. Did these facts originate in God? Can they be believed? Is the information true as opposed to false? When convicted that I am a sinner, the convicted sinner seeks salvation from God. God’s super-natural intervention—his gift of grace-faith-salvation—is required to turn a rational conclusion into saving faith and change the state of the soul from sinner to saved.

      Without a supernatural God-given conviction, rationally accepted facts remain facts. In the man-ward perspective, faith is the necessary positive response to God’s convicting testimony given in the Scripture. Saving faith always consists of God’s gift and man’s response. The sinner is convicted of the truth by God and on the basis of that conviction he/she personally appropriates the truth to their specific circumstances. He/she receives God’s gift of grace-faith-salvation by means of faith: he/she believes-accepts-receives-responds to Jesus as My Savior. Saving faith, then, has two complimentary components. God convicts men about the state of their soul and men reason about the state of their soul. God gives the means to salvation and men use the means to salvation.

      What must you do to be saved? Seek salvation with all your heart. God presents this testimony to every sinner: In my love for you, Christ suffered the penalty due to you for your sin, to redeem you out of sin and death. God has made you morally responsible to have faith in Christ the Savior. God wants you to believe on Jesus as your Savior. If you will believe that you are a sinner needing salvation; that no efforts of your own can save your soul; that Jesus Christ died for your sins; then God will save your soul by applying Christ’s payment for sin to the spiritual need of your soul. God will forgive your sins and give you eternal life.

      How do you receive God’s gift of salvation in Christ? Faith is believing that God’s testimony is true; faith is taking action just because I do believe. Faith is the hand of your soul reaching out to take God’s gift of salvation and apply it to your soul to take away the guilt and penalty of sin. Right now and once for all, take the keeping of your soul out of your hands, and place the eternal destiny and well-being of your soul into the hands of Christ, for him to keep it safe for eternity. The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23). God's holiness and justice demanded that sin be paid for before there could be any relationship between you and God; and then in mercy God's love sent his Son to be the way of redemption. God himself paid the penalty for the punishment his justice demands for your crime of sin. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation [payment] for [the crime of] our sins (1 John 4:10). He has made faith in his Son—the one who paid for the crime of your sin—to be the means of your salvation.

      Call upon Christ: seek Christ, speak to Christ, cry out to Christ. Call upon Christ directly, confess your sin, confess your unbelief, and ask for Christ’s forgiveness and mercy. Repent of your sins and ask him to take away your unbelief. Believe on Christ as your Savior by trusting him as best you can, asking him to give you grace to believe and be saved. Seek Christ, pray to Christ, read and hear his word, worship with his people. Continue with these things until you know in yourself that you have believed; that you have been changed from an unrepentant sinner to a believing person with new life through faith in Christ as your Savior.

      What Does it Mean to be Saved?

      Salvation is when God rescues a sinner out of the state of spiritual death and delivers him or her into a permanent state of spiritual life. Salvation is the remission of sin’s guilt and penalty by the application of Christ’s infinite merit, which is gained by receiving God’s gift of grace-faith-salvation through the means of personal faith in God’s revealed means (way) of salvation. In this New Testament age salvation occurs when a sinner repents of his or her sins and believes on Christ as their Savior: Acts 2:38; 3:19–20; 11:18; Romans 3:22–26; 10:9–10, 13; Galatians 3:22; 1 Peter 1:21; 1 John 3:23.

      Salvation is an instantaneous act with several results (not given in a specific order of occurrence). God imparts eternal life, John 10:27–29; 17:2–3; Romans 6:23b; 1 John 2:25, which is God sharing (in a participatory way) the communicable aspects of his eternal life. It is this sharing of eternal life that causes the believer’s faculty of spiritual perception to come to life (spiritual regeneration, born-again), creating communion with God and enabling spiritual understanding.

      The righteousness of Christ is imputed to the now-believing sinner, freeing him or her from the judicial guilt and penalty of sin (justification) because Christ has satisfied God’s law on behalf of the sinner, Romans 6:23. The now-saved sinner has been reconciled to God, 2 Corinthians 5:18–19. This brings peace with God, Romans 5:1, because with sin forgiven (Ephesians 1:7), and the judicial penalty satisfied through Christ’s propitiation (1 John 2:2), there is no more enmity between God and the believer.

      The Holy Spirit accomplishes the sanctification of the believer, which is to set the believer apart from the defilement caused by sin and dedicate him to God, Ephesians 1:4; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 1 Peter 1:2. In the act of sanctification sin loses its dominating power, Romans 6:14–23, and a new principle of life, holiness, is added to the believer, Ephesians 4:24, becoming the dominating principle in his human nature, 1 Thessalonians 4:7; 1 Corinthians 3:17b; Colossians 3:12; 1 Peter 1:15.

      In what might be called both the initiating and culminating event, the Holy Spirit takes up permanent residence in the believer’s soul, John 14:17; Acts 10:44–48; 1 Corinthians 6:19. The believer now stands before God in Christ as forgiven, justified, sanctified, regenerated, filled with eternal life, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit. He is freed from the penalty, power, and pleasure of sin, with absolute assurance of the future transformation and glorification of his/her human nature and body, so that he/she will be freed eternally from the presence of sin. The believer is empowered to resist sin’s temptations, live a holy life, understand the Scripture, worship, obey, fellowship with, and serve God. God hears and answers his prayers, and he (or she) perseveres in the faith to lead a holy life, looking toward resurrection and an eternal life in God’s presence.

      How Can I Know I am Saved?

      When people are asked if they are a saved—if they are a Christian—they may respond in many ways. They may say I go to church. I serve in the church. I came forward during the invitation. I made a confession of faith. I was baptized. I was raised in a Christian home. I’ve always been a Christian. I don’t remember a time when I believed but I guess I am a Christian. I think I am a Christian. How can I know I am a Christian? The Bible says, Examine yourself as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourself. There are five questions that will help you examine yourself.

      WHAT IS MY RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS?

      There should be a definite time or moment in every Christian’s life when he or she was able to say with conviction, Jesus is My Savior. For some it may have been an intensely personal moment when they understood they were a desperate sinner facing punishment from God, and only faith in Jesus Christ could save their soul. For others it may have been a very emotional moment when God flooded their soul with the magnificence of his presence and the joy of their salvation through faith in Jesus. For some it may have been a quiet moment when Christ spoke to their soul and said, I am your God and Savior. Whether the moment was dramatic or quiet, a Christian should be able to remember a definite moment when he or she believed on Jesus and received him as My Savior. The memory need not include all the details, but a Christian should remember the experience of salvation.

      The believer delights to worship the One God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Worship is more than singing songs and listening to sermons. Worship happens inside our heart and mind. Singing a song or listening to a sermon is just a way for the believer to pour out his love, worship, and praise of Christ. Worship is focusing the heart and mind on the Triune God, in order to applaud him for who he is and thank him for what he has done. Worship is praising God as worthy of honor, and glory, and blessing, because he is God, because he made me, because he saved me. Worship is recognizing that God has power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength. Worship is saying that God is in charge and I am his servant. Believers sincerely want to take time in their life to stop everything they are doing and focus everything on God.

      The believer actively seeks to have fellowship with God in Christ. Fellowship means you share your life and feelings with God. Fellowship means you ask him for guidance in everyday matters, and thank him for all the things that happen. Fellowship means taking time to speak to God in prayer, listen to him from the Bible, and worship him under all circumstances. Fellowship with God—having God as a friend—means sharing things in common with God: love for Christ, a righteous life, good works, a moral character, kindness toward others, sharing the gospel. Christians think about God a lot, and want him to be a part of everything they do. Believers want God to be a part of their life, and believers ask God to be a part of their life.

      When you are a believer you want to serve Christ. How do you serve Christ? Some people stand up in front of others and speak about Jesus and the Bible. But most serve in ways that don’t get much attention. They are part of a ministry, such as to children, seniors, or other adults. They might change diapers in the nursery, or clean the church building after services. Some spend a lot of time praying for others. Some teach a Bible study. Some play piano, some lead singing, some sing, some devote themselves to worship and praise. There are many ways to serve. How a person serves is much less important than wanting to serve and finding some way to serve. The Christian believes Christ is in charge, that he wants the believer to serve him, and therefore he will show believers how and where and when to serve him. The believer has a very strong desire to serve Christ.

      The Christian knows that loving God and living for God requires super-natural power from God. That power is present when a person has a relationship with the Father and Holy Spirit through the Son. Simple faith in the death and resurrection of the Son saves the person from the penalty, power, and pleasure of sin. The Holy Spirit enables the Christian to understand God’s word and do the works of God. The believer seeks that power, depends on it, and uses it to live for God.

      The unsaved person tries to build a relationship with God by trying to be the best person he or she can be. But good works don’t create salvation; faith in Jesus as My Savior is what saves. Works come after salvation because they are the product of salvation, Ephesians 2:10. A person’s good works don’t maintain their salvation; the work of the Son and the Spirit keep the saved person saved. The saved person continues to worship, fellowship with, obey, and serve God because of their relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior.

      HOW IMPORTANT IS THE BIBLE?

      In the Bible God says: this is who I am; this is who you are; this is what I want you to believe; this is how I want you to live. The Bible is important to the Christian. In the Bible the believer discovers more about God and more about him or herself. In the Bible the believer learns how to live for God by following God’s rules and living by God’s values. In the Bible the Christian sees how others lived and learns from their (good or bad) example. The Bible has God’s instructions for living the Christian life.

      The Bible is important to the Christian because the Christian has a strong desire to learn about God: who he is, what he has done, how to live for him. God’s existence can be seen in the world he has created, but knowledge about God is found only in the Bible, because in the Bible God has revealed himself.

      The Christian knows the Bible is food for the soul that keeps him or her spiritually healthy and leads to spiritual maturity. To the Christian it is important to spend time reading, studying, and learning from the Bible. The Bible calls this growing in knowledge. However, the Christian knows that knowledge is not enough. The Christian wants to be like Jesus. He knows the Holy Spirit works through the Bible to tell him how to live like Jesus lived: to be completely dependent on God for worship, fellowship, obedience, and service to God. Only the Bible can tell him these things, only the Holy Spirit can help him understand these things, and only the Holy Spirit can give the spiritual power the believer needs to live for God and like Christ. The Bible is very important to the Christian. The Christian reads his Bible often. When he reads it, he wants to learn what it says so he can do what it says.

      The Bible is important for personal, private worship. Through the Bible the believer focuses his heart and mind on God. He praises and worships God for who God is and what he has done. Reading, studying, learning, and understanding the Bible will always lead the believer to worship and praise God. The Christian understands the Bible is a very important part of his or her life.

      DO I LIKE BEING WITH FELLOW BELIEVERS?

      The Christian enjoys and seeks out the company of other believers. He or she wants to be with others who believe in and serve the same God and Christ. When the believer has God for his friend, then he wants to know and be with others who also have God for their friend. The believer values the company, friendship, and advice of his saved friends above that of his unsaved friends.

      The Christian wants to participate in public worship with others who believe as he believes and worship as he worships. Their common faith in the same God and Christ draw believers together, so they can together worship and praise God. The Christian strongly desires to be with other believers and join his or her worship to theirs.

      The Christian enjoys being part of a group of believers who serve Christ. They know that their unity in faith, fellowship, and service bring honor to God. Together they supply a joint witness that God is worthy of faith and worship, and worthy of fellowship, obedience, and service. The Christian really wants to be with others of like precious faith, and really enjoys their company.

      DO I LIVE ACCORDING TO GOD’S RULES?

      A relationship with God changes a person. The saved person values the things of God more than the things they have in the world. A Christian wants to know God’s values and follow God’s rules for living. The world has a set of philosophies about how to live one’s life: a world view. The Christian believes in and strives to follow God’s view. The Christian genuinely wants to do what God says is right. In the Bible God defines do right for the Christian life. The Christian reads these rules and understands that they apply to his or her life.

      Most of God’s rules are plain and simple. For example: do not steal or lie; run away from sexual immorality; honor your parents; don’t be intoxicated with alcohol or drugs; value God above everyone and everything else. These and the other do this and don’t do that of the biblical, godly way of living are easy to understand. The Bible requires moral, ethical, and sexual purity in the way that God, not the world, defines these things. God’s values are not hard to find in the Bible. The Christian uses the Bible to seek out God’s rules for living and depends on God the Holy Spirit for the moral and spiritual power to live as God wants him or her to live. The genuine Christian earnestly desires to live according to God’s rules for living, and makes every effort to make those rules active in his or her life.

      DOES SIN AND SINNING BOTHER ME?

      Sin and sinning really bother the Christian. The believer hates sin because God hates sin. The believer defines sin just like God defines sin. Sin is doing what I want to do, just because I don’t want to do what God says. Sin is doing what I think is right not what God says is right. Sin is pleasing myself not pleasing God. The Christian’s wholehearted desire is to want the things God wants and to do the things that please God.

      Sometimes believers are so tempted by sin that they do the sin. Temptation is not sin, acting on temptation is sin. Sometimes believers follow temptation into sin. When a believer does sin he or she knows they have done wrong. When a believer sins he or she feels as though they have disappointed God. There are feelings of I am guilty, and feelings of shame (or embarrassment). The sinning believer doesn’t like what he has done, and may wonder if God can still like him. That is because a sin forms a spiritual barrier between the believer and God. The sinning believer is still God’s saved child—a parent does not disown their child just because he/she has done something wrong. But friendly relations between the believer and God are strained by sin. God must, because he is God, convict the believer of his wrong-doing and lead the believer back to fellowship.

      When a believer sins God convicts him that he (or she) has sinned. This leads to the desire to leave that sin behind and return to fellowship with God. The believer can recover from sin and be restored to fellowship with God because Jesus has already paid for that sin on the cross. What God requires from the sinning believer is confession and repentance. Confession is agreeing with God that I have sinned. Repentance is turning my back on the sin by turning myself to face God. God teaches the path to recovery in a simple verse, 1 John 1:9: if the believer confesses his or her sin (confession includes repentance), God himself is faithful and just to forgive and cleanse the believer from the sin, and restore him or her to fellowship.

      The genuine Christian thinks about obeying God. His or her desire is to obey God by not sinning. The believer is strongly bothered by sin and sinning. The believer actively resists the temptation to commit an act of sin. He doesn’t want to sin. He doesn’t want to sin because he doesn’t want to disappoint God and he doesn’t like how he feels when he sins. Sometimes the believer does sin. When a believer sins he (or she) is bothered by the sin. The believer knows sin injures his fellowship with God. The believer looks to God’s way of recovery (1 John 1:9) so he can get rid of the guilty of the sin and return to fellowship with God.

      HOW CAN I KNOW I AM A CHRISTIAN?

      How have you answered the five questions? Is God—Father, Son, Spirit—significant to your daily life? Is reading and doing what the Bible says important in how you live your life? Do you really desire the company of other Christians? Do you think about how God wants you to live? Do sin and sinning always bother you? If the answer to these questions is No, then you are probably not a Christian. To be a Christian begins with a relationship with God through faith in Jesus as Savior. Ask God for his gift of grace-faith-salvation, accept the gift from him, and receive Jesus Christ as My Savior.

      Is it Possible for a Christian to Lose Salvation?

      The short answer is No. The limitless merit of Jesus Christ secures the believer’s salvation for eternity. Although one might point to a verse here or there that seems to say Yes, the testimony of the New Testament says a believer cannot lose his/her salvation. There are clear, unambiguous scriptures that teach genuine salvation is eternally secure. The New Testament presents five witnesses testifying salvation is eternal: 1) the foundation of eternal salvation; 2) the seal of eternal salvation; 3) the assurance of eternal salvation; 4) perseverance in eternal salvation; 5) the character of eternal salvation.

      THE FOUNDATION OF ETERNAL SALVATION

      The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundation of eternal salvation. At 1 John 2:2 the apostle John wrote, Jesus is the propitiation for our sins. John does not set any limitations. Our sins refers to every sin a believer has or may commit, past, present, and future. When God chose us in Christ, Ephesians 1:4, it was before the foundation of the world, so God had in view all sins a believer would commit. John said Jesus is the propitiation. The word propitiate has the same meaning as the Old Testament atone, and the English word expiate. A good synonym is satisfied. God imputed our sins to Jesus on the cross, 2 Corinthians 5:21, and through his suffering on the cross Jesus fully satisfied God for every sin—all the sins you and I have committed or might yet commit.

      At 2 Corinthians 5:21, Paul tells us God made Jesus Christ to be sin for us. God imputed the sins of the world to Jesus, 1 John 2:2, when Jesus was on the cross. Jesus suffered God’s wrath for our sins with the result Jesus made a full satisfaction to God for the crime of sin. The Bible names this satisfaction propitiation, Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10.

      Propitiation is the complete satisfaction of God’s holiness and justice that Christ made to God by enduring spiritual and physical death on the cross for the crime of sin committed by human beings, suffering in their place and on their behalf. When by faith a sinner applies Christ’s propitiation to their sins, God is completely satisfied the debt for all his/her sins was paid, and forgives all those sins past, present, and future.

       On the cross, to make the propitiation for sins, Christ endured the penalty for sin, which is spiritual and physical death. Christ endured spiritual death when he was separated from fellowship with God (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Matthew 27:46), and physical death when he separated his soul from his body (Bowing his head, he gave up his spirit, John 19:30).

       We can understand that Christ paid the full debt for sins in three actions.

      One, before his death he cried out, Father, into your hands I commit my spirit, indicating he was no longer separated from God. He had paid in full the sin debt imputed to him.

      Two, when the propitiation was completed Christ cried out It is finished, John 19:30. The word he used, teléō, was a cry of victory, in a verb tense (perfect) indicating his work of propitiation was brought to completion. No other work is needed to satisfy God for the crime of our sin.

      Three, Christ resurrected from the dead. Each member of the Trinity participated in Christ’s resurrection (Romans 6:4; John 10:17; Romans 8:11), showing that Christ had made a complete satisfaction for sin. As Paul stated, 1 Corinthians 15:17, If Christ is not risen, your faith is futile (vain, empty).

      Because the propitiation completely satisfied God for sins past, present, and future a believer’s salvation is eternally secure. There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus . . . Who is able to bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies . . .  it is Christ who died . . . and is risen . . . and makes intercession for us, Romans 8:1, 33–34. The Writer of Hebrews said Jesus offered one sacrifice for sins forever, and then sat down at the right hand of God." The God-man sat down because his work was completed. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, there is never again a need for any sacrifice for sin, forever, Hebrews 10:12, 18.

      The writer of Hebrews says Jesus established a new covenant with God, 8:6, and through his death offered one sacrifice for sins, forever, 10:12. The result is that God has made a commitment with every person saved through faith in Christ: their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more, 10:17.

      At John 10:27–30 Jesus said he knew who his saved people were (his sheep); that he gives his saved people eternal life; that his saved people will never perish (because they have eternal life); that no person and no thing or event can remove a genuinely saved person from Christ’s hand or the Father’s hand; compare Paul at 8:38–39, Peter at 1 Peter 1:5, and John at 1 John 5:11–13.

      What Christ did on the cross fully satisfied God for the sins of every person who believes on Christ as Savior. In an illustration, the finite demerit of the believer’s sins—past, present, future—are like a teardrop in the ocean of Christ’s limitless merit. Once a person is saved, he/she cannot lose their salvation, because the infinite, limitless merit of Christ secures salvation for every person who believes on him as Savior. There is no sin a believer might commit that would cause loss of salvation, because Jesus propitiated God for every sin.

      THE SEAL OF ETERNAL SALVATION

      Sealing the believer in salvation is an act of God the Holy Spirit occurring the moment a sinner believes on Christ as personal savior. The apostle Paul wrote at Ephesians 1:13, having believed, you were sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise. The promise is a reference to the advent and indwelling of the Holy Spirit prophesied in the Old Testament (Jeremiah 31:33; Joel 2:28–32), announced by Christ (John 14:16–18, 26; 16:7, 13–15; Acts 1:4–5, 8) and fulfilled after his ascension (Acts 2:17–18; 8:17; 10:44).

      Sealing is an allusion to the method used to secure ancient documents. When a document was completed, it would be rolled up (a scroll), and a blob of wax was used to affix the end of the scroll to the rolled up body. A mark or image was impressed into the wax before it cooled. The purpose of the seal was to secure the document against damage or tampering. The purpose of the image impressed into the wax was to certify the authenticity of the document. In today’s terms, the seal was the mark of a notary, or a witness, authenticating the document and its contents. Thus, sealing indicates a completed act and means security, authenticity, genuineness, identification, and ownership.

      The sealing accomplished by the Holy Spirit is God’s witness that the believer is genuinely and eternally saved. The seal of the Spirit keeps the believer secure in his or her salvation, for no one can break God’s seal. The seal is impressed with God’s mark—the image of Christ the Savior—indicating the believer is God’s property. Sealing confirms the believer’s faith from the moment of salvation forward into eternity future.

      THE ASSURANCE OF ETERNAL SALVATION

      A believer can know for certain that he/she is eternally saved. The apostle John stated I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, 1 John 5:13. Jesus said he has given his saved people eternal life and 1) they shall never perish, and 2) no person or thing is able to take the believer out of Christ’s hand or the Father’s hand (John 10:27–29). The apostle Paul wrote that there is no more condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, Romans 8:1, and that no person and no thing shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord, Romans 8:31–39. Because the believer is no longer subject to condemnation, and because nothing can separate the believer from Christ, a believer in Christ as his/her Savior cannot lose their salvation.

      PERSEVERANCE IN ETERNAL SALVATION

      God gives every genuine believer the grace to continue in the faith by faith, and the believer uses that grace to continue in faith, righteousness, and holiness. Jesus said, John 10:28 I give them [his saved people] eternal life, and they shall never perish. Paul wrote, Philippians 1:6 He [God] who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Peter wrote, 1 Peter 1:5, that believers are kept by the power of God through faith.

      There are times when a Christian seems to fail, but the apostle John said that Christians have sin, 1 John 1:8, and Christians will occasionally commit acts of sinning, 1 John 1:10, but that God has made a remedy to restore the sinning Christian to fellowship with himself, 1 John 1:9. The scriptures do tell the Christian to strive to live holy and righteous lives, which some have interpreted to mean salvation can be lost if one’s life is not always holy and righteous. But the verses telling the believer to strive depend on the ability to strive and succeed, which is God’s grace of perseverance. God never commands what he does not also give. If the commandment is to strive, then God’s mighty power works in the believer so he/she can strive and succeed, Colossians 1:29. God gives the grace of perseverance and the genuine believer uses the grace of perseverance. Because every genuine believer possesses the grace of perseverance, he/she will always overcome sin and the world by the grace of perseverance. The salvation of the believer is eternal.

      THE CHARACTERISTICS OF ETERNAL SALVATION

      The life of the saved person demonstrates certain characteristics that an unsaved person’s life does not. The saved person habitually lives a godly life. The unsaved person habitually lives a life of sinning. The saved person may sin occasionally, but the unsaved person sins habitually. The apostle John wrote, 1 John 3:6, that every person habitually abiding in Christ is not habitually sinning, and that every person habitually sinning does not know Christ. The characteristics of daily living testify a genuine believer has eternal salvation.

      The saved person is like Christ: he/she is godly. Godliness, that is, a godly life, is when the believer’s thoughts, decisions, and actions conform to the moral, holy, and righteous standard set by God’s own character. Positively, a genuine believer loves the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; he/she enjoys associating with and worshiping with others sharing the same faith in Christ; a believer has a hunger and thirst to learn the Word of God, to read the Word, study the Word, hear the Word preached and taught; the person who is genuinely saved loves to hear about Christ the Savior. The genuine believer recognizes the truth of Scripture, 1 John 2:21; but the unbeliever does not continue in the truth, 1 John 2:19.

      Negatively, the person who is genuinely saved is bothered by sin and sinning. He/she is embarrassed by sinning because Christ has been disappointed. The believer takes no lasting pleasure in sin and sinning—there may be a moment of pleasure when an old sin habit is indulged, but in a short time the pleasure fades. The genuine believer is saddened when Christ is dishonored. The genuine believer is righteously angry when the Scripture is twisted to say what it does not mean. The genuine believer holds the world and the things of the world loosely, lightly, knowing he/she is to be in the world, but not of the world. Death is not a terror to the genuine believer, because physical death is merely the way Christ brings his saved people to heaven to be with him forever. The characteristics of a genuine salvation testify to an eternal salvation.

      CONCLUSION

      There are times of failure in the Christian life, and times of doubt. There are some verses that seem to say salvation may be lost. But the scriptures give a clear and unambiguous witness that salvation cannot be lost. So by the testimony of five things—Christ’s limitless merit; sealing by the Holy Spirit; the Scripture’s word of assurance; perseverance in the faith by faith; and the characteristics of a genuine Christian—the believer has assurance that salvation is permanent.

      Of these five the first is the most important. Jesus paid the full and complete debt for sins, completely satisfying God’s holiness and justice, such that no other action, work, or sacrifice is required. A genuine believer cannot lose his or her salvation; a genuine believer is permanently sealed into salvation; a genuine believer perseveres in the faith by faith; a genuine believer knows from Scripture they have eternal life and can never perish; a genuine believer habitually practices genuine Christianity.

      What Does it Mean to be Born-Again?

      Unsaved persons are spiritually dead, which means they are unable to discern and understand spiritual things. They are unable to understand they are sinners, that their sin keeps them separated from God, that Jesus is the only Savior—and that they need salvation! They do not understand God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, God’s Word, or the relationship God is able to have with humankind through Christ. Their sin keeps them in denial about God and in rebellion against him.

      An unsaved person is spiritually dead because his/her soul’s faculty of spiritual perception has been made grossly insensitive by the sin attribute in human nature—an attribute God did not design into human nature, but was added to it by Adam’s sin. The unsaved person is spiritually separated from God because of sin, and cannot perceive, and therefore cannot comprehend, God, nor the things pertaining to God, because these things are discerned by the soul’s faculty of spiritual perception. Paul explains at 1 Corinthians 2:14, when he says, the natural person [the unsaved person] cannot accept the things of the Spirit, for they are foolishness to him, and he/she is not able to understand, because they are spiritually discerned. At Ephesians 2:2, 5 Paul explains the unsaved person’s inability to understand spiritual things by saying the unsaved are dead because of their sin: spiritual death means separated from God and the things of God. The unsaved person only becomes alive—spiritually alive—when saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. When he/she believes on Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit gives the newly saved person spiritual perception: he/she becomes spiritually regenerated, or, as Jesus said in John 3:3, born-again.

      The concept of spiritual regeneration was foretold in the Old Testament. God had spoken of spiritual regeneration at Jeremiah 31:33, I will put my laws in their minds and write it on their hearts . . . and they all shall know me. Later, in Ezekiel 11:19; 36:25–26, God said, I will put a new spirit in them . . . and they shall be my people and I will be their God and I will sprinkle clean water on you . . . I will cleanse you . . . I will put a new spirit in you . . . and cause you to live according to my statutes and you will keep my judgments and do them. Jesus describes it, John 3:3, 5, as born-again . . . born of water [the cleansing of Ezekiel 36:25] and the Spirit [I will put a new spirit in you]. The Writer of Hebrews, 8:6, further explained that this was a new covenant God made for humankind through the propitiation (satisfaction) for sin by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. God will, Hebrews 8:10; 10:17, put my laws in their mind and write then on their heart and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more. God writing his laws in the mind and on the heart of those who believe on Jesus is spiritual regeneration, being born-again. The born-again believer will know the Lord, because the power of spiritual perception has been made alive in the believer.

      Spiritual regeneration, i.e., to be born-again, is when the spiritually dead soul is made spiritually alive. When the person is made spiritually alive it means the soul’s faculty of spiritual perception is freed from the grossly dulling effects of the sin attribute, so that the person is able to perceive and comprehend the spirit being God and the things pertaining to God. In making the person born-again, God shares his eternal life with the saved person in a measure that adds righteousness and holiness to his soul, so that his desires and choices are to please God by living a godly life. Every saved person, including the Old Testament believers, received eternal life and experienced spiritual perception. This is seen in that by faith they turned away from pagan idolatry to serve the one true God.

      Regeneration is the cure for being spiritually dead. To be dead spiritually is to be separated from God, without connection to the divine life, having no relationship with God. To become regenerated/born-again is to be made alive spiritually, to be in a relationship with God. The Holy Spirit enlivens the soul’s faculty of spiritual perception, enabling the saved person to communicate with God in a vital, living relationship. All created beings have an instinctual knowledge of God, Revelation 5:13; Romans 1:19–21; 8:22; Psalm 96:11; 150:6. Human beings have a faculty of spiritual perception built into their soul: a designed capacity for conscious communion with God; but in the unsaved it does not function because of sin. Of all material beings, mankind alone was created with the capacity to interact knowingly with God: the capacity of the human soul that perceives things of the Spirit; the faculty of spiritual perception.

      The unsaved human soul cannot have communion with God because sin has made the soul’s faculty of spiritual perception grossly insensitive to spiritual things. In the act of saving the soul God’s enlivens the soul’s faculty of spiritual perception through spiritual regeneration by sharing his eternal life, which is God communicating the communicable aspects of his own eternal life in a measure suitable for finite human beings. When the faculty of spiritual perception has been made alive through the salvation-regeneration experience, the saved person experiences communion with God, perceives spiritual things, and is capable of initiating and receiving communication with God, through prayer and the Scriptures.

      Regeneration also delivers the believer from the dominion of sin by adding to his or her human nature new life-principles, such as holiness and righteousness and love. Through being regenerated and receiving eternal life believers are able to worship, fellowship with, obey, and serve God. The holiness the Holy Spirit adds to the believer’s human nature becomes a life-principle of moral purity in the soul that overcomes the life-principle of evil, which is sin. Holiness frees the believer from sin’s dominating influence and pleasure. Sin and sinning bother the Christian, and the momentary pleasures of sin are weighed against the eternal value of life with God and found to be wanting and undesired.

      Through regeneration God the Holy Spirit comes to permanently indwell the saved soul, Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 10:16; John 14:16–17; 1 Corinthians 6:19. The believer’s soul has been made fit to be the temple of the Spirit because he/she has been cleansed from sin, 1 Corinthians 6:19–20. The Spirit communicates spiritual power to the believer, giving him or her victory over sin, writing God’s laws into the soul, guiding him or her into righteous living, and communicating the mind of Christ and the will of God, 1 Corinthians 2:10–12, 16. The Spirit seals the believer in his or her salvation (Ephesians 1:13) to secure the believer for the greater glory to come in the inheritance awaiting the Christian (Ephesians 1:14), when physical death takes him or her into the presence of his Lord (Philippians 1:21–25).

      To be born is to become someone’s child. The born-again believer is brought into a Father-child relationship with God (Romans 8:15), and formed in character through the salvation-regeneration experience to be a son of God (Romans 8:16, 29), adopted into the family of God as an adult child and heir. The rebirth from sinner to saint happens by the will and act of God, John 1:3, James 1:18; and is the work of the Spirit, John 3:1–15; and happens by the word of truth, James 1:18, 1 Peter 1:23. The re-born man or woman is the first fruits of a new creation, a spiritual creation of the living God, James 1:18. It is a rebirth to righteousness, 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 5:18; it is a rebirth to love, 1 John 4:7; it is a rebirth to victory, 1 John 5:4.

      How to Live, Grow, and Succeed in Your Christian Life

      IN THE BEGINNING . . .

      In the beginning, you were a sinner, separated from God. Your sin attribute led you to commit wrong actions, to think bad thoughts, to rebel in your heart against the Lord, and to otherwise disregard the things of God.

      In the beginning, you became convinced that you were fighting against God, that your actions and thoughts and rebellion broke his laws. That you stood guilty before God, without hope of rescue.

      In the beginning, you became convinced that the penalty for your sins was death, an eternal separation from God. That knowledge led you to seek out God for forgiveness of your sins and to find a new life.

      In the beginning you learned that God loved you, that God understood your hopeless condition. You became convinced that God had provided a rescue for you through His Son, Jesus Christ. You learned that Jesus had suffered the penalty of death in your place. You became convinced that forgiveness and new life was waiting for you in Jesus.

      In the beginning you came directly to Jesus, you found faith in him, faith in God’s testimony that by placing your sins on Jesus, by believing that Jesus could be your Savior, you would be forgiven of all your sins and given new life.

      In the beginning you believed on Jesus as your Savior, you were forgiven, you received a new life, you became a Christian. Now you are a disciple of Jesus, now you are a servant of God. Now you must learn how to live a Christian life.

      THE FIRST STEP: READ AND STUDY THE BIBLE

      When something new is begun, the first step is to find out how to do it. The new believer’s knowledge of God has come from his experiences in the world. What he knows about God is what man thinks about God. The first step is to find out what God has revealed about Himself. The knowledge of God is found in the Bible.

      The Bible is one large book containing sixty-six smaller books. The Bible is divided into Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament, which has thirty-nine books, tells us about the beginning of the world, man’s fall into sin, the beginning of God’s plan to save man from sin, and God’s relationship with mankind through one nation, the nation of Israel.

      The New Testament, which has twenty-seven books, tells us about Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection, salvation in His name, the beginning of the Church, and the return of Christ to set up His kingdom. In the Old and New Testaments, God reveals Himself and His commandments by telling us how He interacts with mankind, and how mankind interacts with him.

      The Bible is similar in one way to informative books and instruction manuals: no one can understand everything at the first reading. So, the first step is simply to read your Bible, and continue to read it throughout your Christian life. At every reading you will gain a better understanding of God, of yourself, how to have fellowship with God, and how to obey and serve him.

      God supervised the writing of the books of the Bible. His divine supervision is known as inspiration. Divine inspiration means you can trust the Bible to tell you about your faith, and how you should practice your faith. God wants every believer to have an understanding of His Word. He wants every Christian to live a life that is both pleasing to him, and productive for His kingdom. God Himself will help you to understand the Bible. Not all at once, but little by little. Understanding the Bible is a little like learning to read. First you learned the alphabet. Then you learned simple words, then how to write, then bigger words, until, today, you can read this book. God will teach you little by little, like a personal tutor teaching you at your pace. As you learn a little, He will help you to learn and understand more. I will not deceive you, understanding the whole Bible is a life-long task, but constantly reading the Bible is necessary if you are to grow and mature as a Christian. God has a purpose and many plans for your life. Reading the Bible will help you discover His purpose and plans for you.

      The Bible requires study as well as reading. As you grow in knowledge and understanding, your study may become more and more complex. However, that is for the future. Right now, here is a plan for study. I suggest you begin by reading through the New Testament. Don’t worry if you can’t understand everything. God doesn’t expect you to get it all at once. Every time you read your Bible, first ask God to help you understand. Read somewhere between one and three chapters in a day. I also suggest you keep a reading diary. A reading diary is a simple daily record of what you have read and what you have

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