“FUNDAMENTALS OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE: Where do I begin . . .” - 9-12-21
INTRODUCTION
Where do I begin? I have noticed that we spend a lot of our time talking about what a person needs to do to become “saved” and how we should behave after we are saved. Walter Scott spoke of the five-finger exercise - faith, repentance, baptism, remission of sin, and the gift of the Holy Spirit - as seen in Acts 2:38. We at times will talk about moral and ethical implications of Christianity and discuss how we ought to live. I don’t think we spend nearly enough time talking about the fundamentals of the Christian life. While there certainly are moral implications behind such a study, I wish to look at the Christian life through the lens of those actions we identify as “part of the salvation process” - hearing, believing, repenting, confessing, baptism, and living a faithful life. So, I am going to begin at the beginning of our Christian life and move on from there.
VIDEO - “More to This Life” Steven Curtis Chapman
“Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.
When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.”
The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”
The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.
When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”
But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”
The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.”
Acts 16:16-40 NIV
What happened to the jailer?
I. MY TESTIMONY
A. Grew up in the church
B. Understood the Story
C. Did not see the connection to me
D. Followed God’s will
II. BECOMING CHRISTIAN
A. Hear
“for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”
Romans 10:13-14 NIV
B. Believe
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16 NIV
“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified,”
Romans 10:10 NIV
C. Repent
“So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”
Romans 2:3-4 NIV
““Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.””
Acts 17:29-31 NIV
“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
2 Peter 3:8-9 NIV
D. Confess
“For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
Romans 10:10 NIV
“Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.”
Matthew 10:32-33 NIV
“Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.”
Matthew 16:16-17 NIV
“Phillip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The eunuch answered, “ I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Acts 8:37 NIV (not in all manuscripts)
E. Baptism
“Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.””
Acts 2:38-39 NIV
“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
Mark 16:16 NIV
F. Faithful living
“For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
2 Timothy 4:6-8 NIV
“Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.”
Revelation 2:10 NIV
III. LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
“It is not what men eat but what they digest that makes them strong; Not what we gain but what we save that makes us rich; not what we read but what we remember that makes us learned; not what we preach but what we practice that makes us Christians.”
Anonymous
A. More than behavior
B. More than history
C. More than confirmation of our personal theology.
D. More than just the beginning.
E. No more than doing what you know
Don’t waste your time waiting and longing for large opportunities which may never come. But faithfully handle the little things that are always claiming your attention.
F.B. Meyer
CONCLUSION
Our testimony. Our coming to Christ. Our life in Christ. Our lives are a continuation of coming to Christ. The Christian life does not end at our Christian birth.
CHALLENGE
Journaling is an effective tool for spiritual development. Writing connects our minds, bodies, and spiritual lives. My challenge to you during this series is to journal about the topic of Sunday’s message on Monday through Friday of the next week. This weeks I would like you to journal about the moment you heard, believed, repented, confessed, were baptized, and began to live the Christian life. Write as much or as little as you would like but write something.
INVITATION
It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word. You may want to follow Jesus. You may want to proclaim your faith. You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things). Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church. If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now. If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.
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