There are several terms used for essentially the same process in a Christian’s life, “increasing faith”, “growing in grace”, “spiritual maturity”, and “sanctification”.
Increasing Faith # 2 PET 1:5-12 EPH 4:14-24
When we talk about increasing our faith, we are talking about spiritual maturity in terms of “putting on” something new. When we were “born again”, we didn’t get a new old (old being the Flesh). We were not made righteous in the Flesh. By the grace of God, we are being changed from the image of Adam into the image of Christ. This change comes by responding to what God puts into our heart by the Holy Spirit enlightening us as to the meaning of Scripture. He is not looking for “sacrifice” but a contrite heart. The Psalms 37:4 “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart”. I think this means He is changing the desires of our heart, not giving us what we want.
Continue reading “What is Growing in Grace?”
March 5th, 2008
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Theophilos |
Christian Life, Grace, Faith & Life, Salvation |
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Our problem is not our sin.
Our problem is that we are spiritually dead.
GUILTY and DEAD
From a Biblical perspective, everyone is born in the image of Adam, born without the Spirit of God in them. This means that we not only have the distinction of having the same basic fallen nature of Adam, but we are also dead spiritually.
If we are guilty and dead, we not only need to be forgiven, but we need life. Jesus not only came to pay the penalty for our sins, but to give us life. Romans 5:10
Chapter two of Genesis explains how Adam was created in God’s image. And that God breathed the breath of life into man.
The soul consists of the MIND, EMOTION and WILL. Animals have this, but animals don’t consider where they came from or how they came to be. Animals don’t have the “breath of life” which God gave man.
The Bible and our experience indicates that man is BODY, SOUL and SPIRIT. Man was created by God, in the image of God. Created with free- will, the ability to choose.
An unanswerable truth, for natural man, is “how are we here” and “why are we here”? These are spiritual questions which reveal the difference between spirit and soul (man and animal).
Lack of understanding of the difference between the spirit and the “flesh” is the major misunderstanding of Christianity today. Scripture talks about the contention between the spirit and the flesh. Scripture also says God is spirit and “speaks” to us Spirit to spirit.
Continue reading “New-Life Plan”
March 3rd, 2008
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Theophilos |
Christian Life, Grace, Faith & Life, Salvation, The Gospel |
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The function of conscience is knowing right from wrong coupled with an expectation that we should act accordingly.
The first part of this function tends to make us feel autonomous. We don’t need any one telling us what to do,especially God, and we certainly don’t need, nor do we even believe in, absolute standards.This puts us right up there with God, doesn’t it? I mean all I need to do is be true to myself and I will…, will what?
The problem is that our concept of what is right is not even close to what God says is right. When the rubber hits the road, we are always going to look out for our own. God says, in the Bible, that in His ideal society, we should have an attitude which puts others first, but it is our natural nature to do what pleases us.
Conscience is also coupled with the idea that we should always act accordingly. This is one of the problems. We may think that we know right from wrong in a limited sense, but we will not keep on doing the right thing. We do not have that power. That is not in our nature.
This leads to another function of conscience which is to produce feelings of guilt when we don’t act according to our conscience. Conscience not only responds to some wrong which we did, but also to something which we believe we should have done and didn’t, or even something which we believe we should have been and weren’t.
Continue reading “Conscience”
February 26th, 2008
Posted by
Theophilos |
Attitude, Christian Life, Conscience, Emotions, Law & Grace, Spiritual Maturity, Truth |
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