POWER FOR CHRISTIAN LIVING

Every Christian is to grow spiritually. The following POWER acrostic will help you to remember the essential elements to spiritual progress.

Pray. The Christian who wants to grow, communicates with God through prayer. He expresses his gratitude to Him, confesses his sins, and comes to Him with his requests for himself and for others. God promises to be near to all who come to Him in prayer (Ps. 145:18).

Obey. In John 14, Jesus said that our obedience to His commands is an indicator of our love for Him (vv.15,21,23). We can’t do it in our own strength, however. That’s one of the reasons He gave us the Holy Spirit (vv.16-17). As we yield to Him, the Spirit provides the power to walk in obedience (Gal. 5:16-25).

Worship. A Christian’s devotion to God is to be continuous. Privately, he should worship God in his thoughts and prayers (Ps. 34:1). Publicly, he should unite with fellow believers in a local assembly to bring praise to God (Ps. 111:1; Heb. 10:24-25).

Evangelize. The good news of the gospel is to be shared. As we tell others what Christ has done for us, we will find ourselves growing by spiritual leaps and bounds (Mt. 28:19-20).

Read. The most direct source of a Christian’s spiritual growth is the Bible. It must be read regularly because it is his milk and strong meat (1 Pet. 2:2; Heb. 5:12-14). It tells us how to live (Ps. 119:105). It is God’s word to us today.

WHEN GOD RAN

When God Ran by Benny Hester

Mighty God
The great I Am
Immovable Rock Omnipotent powerful,
awesome Lord Victorious Warrior
Commanding King of Kings
Mighty Conqueror

And the only time The only time I ever saw Him run...
Was when He ran to me
Took me in His arms,
Held my head to His chest, Said,
My son's come home again
Looked in my face Wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice
He said, Son, Do you know I still love you?
He caught me my surprise
When God ran

The day I left home
I knew I'd broken His heart
I wondered if Things could ever be the same
Then one night...
I remembered His love for me
And down that dusty road Ahead I could see...
It's the only time
The only time I ever saw Him run

When He ran to me
Took me in His arms,
Held my head to His chest,
Said, My son's come home again
Looked in my face
Wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice
He said, Son, Do you know I still love you?

He caught me my surprise
He brought me to my knees
When God ran

I saw Him run to me... And then I ran to Him

Holy One
Righteous Judge
He turned my way
Now I know He's been waiting for this day

And then He ran to me
Took me in His arms,
Held my head to His chest,
Said, My son's come home again
Looked in my face
Wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice I felt His love for me again

He ran to me
Took me in His arms,
Held my head to His chest,
Said, My son's come home again
Looked in my face
Wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice
He said, Son He said, Son My Son, Do you know I still love you?
Ohhh,
He ran to me
When God ran

HYMN

Hymn Lyrics
by Jars Of Clay

Oh refuge of my hardened heart
Oh fast pursuing lover come
As angels dance 'round Your throne
My life by captured fare You own
Not silhouette of trodden faith
Nor death shall not my steps be guide
I'll pirouette upon mine grave
For in Your path I'll run and hide

[Chorus:]
Oh gaze of love so melt my pride
That I may in Your house but kneel
And in my brokenness to cry
Spring worship unto Thee

When beauty breaks the spell of pain
The bludgeoned heart shall burst in vain
But not when love be pointed king
And truth shall Thee forever reign

[Chorus]

Sweet Jesus carry me away
From cold of night, and dust of day
In ragged hour or salt worn eye
Be my desire, my well sprung lye

[Chorus x 2]

Spring worship unto Thee
Spring worship unto Thee

THE GOSPEL : A SIMPLE EXPLANATION

Ironically, the first news is bad news. This understanding is part of understanding the need that exists and is thereby addressed by the Gospel. There is a solution, but for what? We must first understand the problem we are in:

1. You Are A Sinner

The first fact that you need to realize in life is that you are a natural-born sinner, a natural transgressor against God:

"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23.

"As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:10.

"Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me." Psalm 51:5.

Wherefore, as by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, FOR THAT ALL HAVE SINNED: (Romans 5:12)If we say that we have not sinned, WE MAKE HIM A LIAR, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:10)

Most people have the false idea that we all LEARN to be sinners as we grow older and are influenced by evil, but this isn't true. God's word declares that we are all sinners by nature. We are all transgressors against God.

We are, from the moment of Adam’s fall, a rebellious and sinful race, a fallen race, separate from God, who alone is holy.

2. You Are Going To Die

Death isn't a very popular subject, but it is certainly a very REAL subject. Sooner or later, your heart will beat for the last time, your loved ones will mourn over your passing, and your body will be laid to rest in a grave. It's a fact of life. People die, and the Bible tells us WHY:

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Romans 5:12.

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23.

Why do people die? People die because people are SINNERS. Do you remember the story of Adam and

Eve in the garden of Eden? It wasn't until AFTER they had sinned that they were subject unto death.

God told them in Genesis 2:17 that they would "die" when they ate of the forbidden fruit. Before man had sinned, he was ABOVE death, not subject unto it. Today, however, we are all sinners, because we have all inherited our sin nature from Adam. We must all die, just as Adam died (Genesis 5:5).

3. You Will Be Judged

God is the All-powerful Creator, the Supreme Commander of the Universe. He is in complete control of all people, places, and things, so no one should think it unreasonable that God intends to judge all men. We must all give account to our Maker.

"For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Ecclesiastes 12:14.

"And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." Hebrews 9:27.

It may be a terrifying thought, but it is still the truth: YOU will stand before God and you will be judged by Him. Every sin that you have ever committed will be revealed--EVERY SECRET SIN! You may have managed to hide many things from your fellow man, but you have hid NOTHING from God. He knows all things, and He will hold you accountable. You WILL be judged.

4. You Can't Save Yourself

When God judges this world, millions upon millions of people are going to be absolutely SHOCKED to find out that NO ONE--ABSOLUTELY NO ONE--was able to earn their way into Heaven. People have the false idea that they'll be permitted to enter Heaven as long as they "do more good works than bad." The word of God tells us just the opposite:

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2:8-9.

"But to him that works not, but believes on him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Romans 4:5.

We can never meet up to God’s standards by our own efforts:

"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Isaiah 64:6.

The "good works" that you do are only good in YOUR eyes. In God's sight, you are a hopeless sinner, and your works are totally unacceptable. If you are counting on your own righteousness to save you, then you are setting yourself up for a very big disappointment. "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth." Romans 10:3-4.

The Bible clearly states that we are all cursed with sin, and that we are all totally incapable of earning our salvation by our own righteousness. Friend, unless your SINS are removed, God will NOT accept you. You are hopeless.

5. Your Only Hope Is The Lord Jesus Christ

When you are ready to accept the fact that you are a lost and dying sinner and that your "good works" are unacceptable to God, then you can begin to see your need for Jesus Christ. He came into this world to lay down His sinless life for YOU--to pay for your sins, because you couldn't. Jesus is your only hope for salvation. Only by receiving Him as your Savior can you enter the gates of Heaven. There is no other way.

"Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father but by me." John 14:6.

"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Acts 4:12.

Notice these important words from Romans 5:8-10:

"But God shows his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!"

He loves you and wants you to know it. He was mocked and tortured for you. He suffered on the cross for you. He died for you. He underwent all these because of His love.
Jesus PAID your way to Heaven for you:

To cover the sin of Adam and Eve, THE BLOOD of an innocent lamb was shed. (Gen. 3:21)

" . . . John saw Jesus coming unto him, and said: Behold THE LAMB of God, which TAKES AWAY THE SIN of the world." (John 1:29)

Jesus Christ shed His blood on the cross to pay the penalty for YOUR sin!

"Who his own self bare OUR SINS in his own body on the tree,. . ." (1 Peter 2:24)" . . . Unto him that loved us, and washed us from OUR SINS in his own BLOOD," (Revelation 1:5b)

By receiving Him as your Savior, you can be WASHED from all your sins in His precious Blood (Rev. 1:5; Col. 1:14; Acts 20:28; I Pet. 1:18-19).

By receiving Him as your Savior, you will be receiving God's ONLY means of Salvation for you.

BORN AGAIN???

In John 3:3, Jesus said that: “unless a man be born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

He also said in the same conversation the following words:

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son and that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)

The whole essence of the term “born again” or “born of above” is what it literally means: being reborn! A born-again person is a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17) He or she is indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Romans 7:6, 8:9-17). We, who were born into the fallen family of Adam and therefore to sin, are now reborn into the family of Christ. It also means having a relationship with Christ, and of being declared as sons (and daughters) of God (John 1:12).

Are you willing to forsake YOUR righteousness and receive Jesus Christ as your Savior, your ONLY HOPE for Salvation?

Romans 10:13 says, "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Romans 10:9 says, "That if you shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved."

Salvation, while being the most precious thing a person could receive, is ironically a free gift. It is not something that you can earn, that you can work on and receive in return. It cannot be earned by good works, by church going, by baptism, by religion, by penance…in fact, it is a GIFT, and as a gift, it is by definition FREE. It is given in LOVE, extended by GRACE, and received through FAITH (John 3:15-18, Acts 16:31, Ephesians 2:8-9, Galatians 2:1, 3:18, 24, 5:5, Romans 1:17, 3:20-28, 4:4-5, 5:1-2, 6:23, 10:8-13, Titus 3:5)

Of course, a GIFT must be RECEIVED in order for it to be YOURS.

The gift of God’s salvation is received by faith. As Acts 16:31 puts it “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you shall be saved…” Believe here is not simply mental assent much deeper: it is an act of faith, an act of total trust, of acceptance.

(Friend, remember, though, that while the GIFT is FREE, it is NOT CHEAP. It was bought by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. It is only free because HE BOUGHT IT FOR YOU.)

Let us look at Romans 5:6-8. It says:

“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Now try to see how this verses apply to you personally. Rephrase it as follows:

“You see, at just the right time, when ____(place your name)___ (was) still powerless, Christ died for ____(place your name)___. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for ____(place your name)___ in this: While ____(place your name)___ was still sinners, Christ died for ____(place your name)___.

Rephrase John 3:16, but and make it personal:

“For God so loved ____(place your name)___ that he gave his only begotten Son and that (if) ______(place your name)____ believes in him ___(he/she)___shall not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)

Is this how you see it? Do you see that God loves you? Consider the implications of these.

Do you recognize your inability to save yourself? Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for you? In fact, if YOU WERE THE ONLY PERSON IN THE WORLD, CHRIST WOULD STILL DIE FOR YOU. THAT’S HOW MUCH HE LOVES YOU.

Do you accept this? Will you receive Christ as your Savior?

If you do, you may want to tell Jesus. Express it to Him in prayer. You may consider the following suggested prayer:“Lord Jesus, I acknowledge that I am a sinner unable to save myself. I have nothing good in me, only my sin. I thank you because You love me nonetheless, and because of this, You died on the cross to take away my sin. Thank you for washing away my sin with your blood. Thank you for your promise of forgiveness. I place my full trust, my and confidence in You and by faith I now receive you as my Savior. Amen.”

RELIGION OR CHRIST?

Religion is something to believe and do:

Attending religious services
Enrolling children in religious schools
Showing acts of kindness
Avoiding immorality
Believing in God
Having religious affiliation
Being baptized
Receiving communion
Studying doctrine
Reading the Scriptures
Offering prayers.
Celebrating religious events
Teaching religious classes
Giving aid to the poor

Christ is Someone to know and trust:

Someone who is very near
Someone who has authority to help us
Someone who can forgive us
Someone who can declare us righteous
Someone who can set us apart for God
Someone who can bring God to us
Someone who can bring us to God
Someone who can include us in His will
Someone who can guide us
Someone who can teach us
Someone who can be our example
Someone who never leaves us all alone
Someone who can be trusted
Someone who can defend us
Someone who can intercede for us
Someone who can enable us
Someone who can respond to our emotions
Someone who can feel our pain
Someone who can give us joy
Someone who can give us peace
Someone who can give us hope
Someone who can give us love
Someone who has proven His love for us
Someone who has died for us
Someone who rose from the dead for us
Someone who can live His life through us
Someone who can take us all the way Home Someone who can assure us of heaven


WHY IT MAKES SENSE TO KEEP OUR FOCUS ON CHRIST
In exchange for our trust in Him, Christ does many things for us that religion cannot do. For example:
· He loves us (John 15:13; Rom. 8:35).
· He brings us to God (1 Tim. 2:5).
· He brings God to us (Col. 1:15).
· He bought us for God (Eph. 1:7).
· He defends us before God (1 John 2:1).
· He declares us "not guilty" (Rom. 3:24; 5:1).
· He reconciles us to God (2 Cor. 5:19).
· He sets us apart for God (1 Cor. 1:30).
· He gives us peace with God (Rom. 5:1).
· He makes us acceptable to God (Eph. 1:6).
· He forgives us (Eph. 1:7).
· He frees us from bondage (Rom. 8;2).
· He qualifies us for adoption (Eph. 1:5).
· He makes us heirs of God (Eph. 1:11).
· He gives us His Spirit (John 14:16-17).
· He gives us a new focus (Col. 3:1-2).
· He lives within us (Col. 1:27).
· He brings us into God's family (John 1:12).
· He intercedes for us (Rom. 8:34).
· He rescues us from Satan's power (Col. 1:13).
· He places us into God's kingdom (Col. 1:13).
· He gives us eternal life (Rom. 6:23).
· He shows us how to live (1 John 2:6).

A STUDY IN CONTRASTS

There are two sides to many issues in Scripture. This is true of the subject of religion. In order to keep a balanced view, it is important for us to live with the tension that holds two seemingly contradictory ideas in place.

Religion is important. The Bible is full of religious practices that either (1) point us to God or (2) provide a channel for expressing our relationship to God. Both Old and New Testaments are full of religious law, principle, belief, and ritual. If we think of religion as action or conduct indicating belief in, reverence for, and a desire to please God, then it is clear that this religion provides:

· a pattern of doctrine and belief (Titus 2:1)
· shared experience (Acts 2:37-47; Heb. 10:25).
· outward show of inner faith (1 John 3:17-18).

Religion is worthless. It is worthless if we depend on any external actions to make us right with God. Whether before salvation or after, no amount of religious knowledge or action can save us. Knowledge or action can only give us a way of expressing our personal faith in Christ. In that sense we must avoid:

· attempts to earn salvation (Eph. 2:8-10).
· any thought of perfecting ourselves (Gal. 3:1-3).
· anything that displaces Christ (Col. 2:6-8).

Religion is dangerous, not because it is bad but because it is often good enough to turn our trust away from Christ. Our tendency is to reject confidence in what Christ can do and replace it with something that we can do for ourselves.

THE TEST OF OUR RELIGION

Imagine that you are making application for heaven. What would you list as your qualifications?

· I have always believed in God.
· I'm thought of as a religious person.
· I have tried to live a good life.
· I have been baptized.
· I go to church.
· I haven't done anything really bad.
· I have friends who will vouch for me.

I hope by now you realize that if you were to list any of those qualifications on an application for heaven, it would indicate that you don't yet understand the worthlessness of religion.

The only application that would be accepted by heaven would be one on which you listed your qualifications as follows:

· I can cite no merit of my own.
· I have been a sinner from birth.
· I am coming not in my name but in Christ's.
· I believe He is the Son of God and my Savior.
· I have accepted His sacrifice for my sins.
· I believe He rose from the dead.
· I have put my trust in Him to save me.

(from a tract of the same name. RBC Ministries)

INTIMACY WITH GOD

(from the Man In The Mirror)

Jim asked, "Why is it that the only time I'm on my knees is when I'm in a crisis? Why don't I have intimacy with God when things are going well?"

The Psalmist wrote, "As the deep pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God" (Psalm 42:1-2). Is that the way you feel, or would like to?

In this article I'd like us to explore how can you find, or restore, intimacy with God. But first things first. What exactly is intimacy with God?

Let's consider an analogy from marriage. Both new and mature love help us understand intimacy better. When you were dating your wife (if you're married), do you remember how everything she said fascinated you? You shared each other's hopes and dreams for challenging careers, successful healthy children, and a vibrant spiritual and social life. In short, you couldn't get enough of each other. You wanted to know everything about her.

Twenty five years later the nature of your love for her changed (or will change when you get there). Now you have experienced, and survived, a half dozen major tests. You think each other's thoughts. You finish each other's sentences . . . or a half-finished sentence is understood.

Intimacy with God is like intimacy with your mate. It's wanting to know Him at the deepest level. It's wanting to be fully known and accepted for who you are. Intimacy with God means a full, fresh, moment by moment dependency upon His grace and mercy. And it grows deeper with time.

That's a tall order! But you can get there from here. Here's a formula that seems to help deepen all relationships-Appointment, Relationship, Trust, Task. Here's how it works. When I saw Patsy, now my wife, walking down the street the first time I thought, Now there goes the woman with whom I would like to spend the rest of my life! But I didn't walk over to her and say, "Hi Patsy, how are you doing? Would you like to get married?" No, I said, "Would you like to go out Friday night?" I asked for the Appointment. She said no, but that's a story for another time.

Eventually, though, she did go out with me and we hit it off. A Relationship began to develop as we spent time together and got to know each other.

Eventually, as we shared out of the depths of our hearts and souls, we began to Trust each other. Then, when Trust came to full bloom, I popped the question, asked her to marry me, and we did the Task-we married. But it took some time.

Intimacy with God develops like intimacy in marriage. It's exciting at first, but takes some time to deepen. As we move through these four steps with God-Appointment, Relationship, Trust, Task-we will be rewarded with a deep, profound sense of intimacy with Him. We will find that we increasingly know God, love God, trust God, obey God, and serve God. Let's take a closer look at how to build or renew intimacy by pursuing these five characteristics-Know God, Love God, Trust God, Obey God, and Serve God.

KNOW GOD

We get to know God by setting the Appointment. It takes time, though. We know God through His Works, His Word, His "Whisper", and Witnesses. God's Works in creation - sometimes called general revelation - are windows through which we peer and see clues about God's nature. For example, gaze into a star studded evening sky, watch a mother duck with her ducklings, ponder the rhythms of the tides.

God's Word - sometimes called special revelation- tells us what we can know in no other way: the history of redemption and the character of God and His attributes. The "Whisper" of the Holy Spirit is God speaking to our hearts, especially when we pray or read the Bible. Martin Luther once said, "I have so much to do today I think I'll need to pray for three hours." Also, men need Witnesses. A lot of men today - good men - slip into a jaded, cynical outlook. They need fellowship with other Christians who can testify to the life-altering power of Christ in their lives.

LOVE GOD

The more we know God, the more we love Him - that's Relationship. When Jesus was asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" he answered, "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength'" (Mark 12:28-30).

To love God with "all" is to love Him with the totality of our being, every ounce of our energy, and the sum of our strength. We are to bring an intensity to loving God. Saint Augustine saw this so foundational that he said, "Love God and do what you want." He knew that the actions of a man who truly loves God seeks to do His will.

TRUST GOD

The more experience we have with the Lord the more we realize, "You can trust God." I've had a dozen major struggles in which, if God had failed me, I would have been history. You've had yours. The beauty of walking with God a good while is that you build "experience" with Him. In fact, you can come to a level of Trust that, even when you see no way out of a gut-wrenching trial, you know from experience you can depend upon Him. The apostle Paul put it this way: "[I am] confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6).

OBEY GOD

When knowing, loving, and trusting God have become deeply etched in our own character, obedience to God-one type of Task-will be our natural (or perhaps super-natural) response. Jesus put it simply: "If you love me, you will obey what I command" (John 14:15). Daryl said, "My faith is simple. I read it in the Bible, then I do it. I don't ask questions." That's because after getting to know, love, and trust God, Daryl has surrendered his life to the pleasure of God.

The key to obedience is to embrace "the authority of the Scriptures." As one of our Board members says, "It's either true or it isn't, and you either believe or you don't." If the Bible is God's Word, then our obedience must follow.

The Bible commands us to repent, be holy, keep the Sabbath holy, tithe, don't commit adultery, and a host of other clear commands that Christians today spend countless hours debating and rationalizing. But the fruit of intimacy with God is a simple obedience motivated by gratitude for God's grace. From my own experience, I know that obedience as a grateful response to knowing, loving, and trusting God is far superior to obedience as duty. If you cannot yet be grateful then by all means-do your duty, but gratitude is better.

SERVE GOD

Intimacy with God cries out for an opportunity to express its appreciation in service-a second type of Task. The more I grow to love my wife, Patsy, the more I want to serve and please her in every way. I just can't get enough of serving her (and, of course, I always obey). What could be more natural than serving the one you know, love, and trust?

In fact, God has made us with an innate need to serve the one we love. "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (Ephesians 2:10). Jesus said, "This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples" (John 15:8).

CONCLUSION

Does your soul thirst for God? Why not give yourself increasingly and progressively to these five ideas. Start by setting the Appointment and get to know God. Then, build the Relationship and deepen your love for God. Let Trust come to full bloom through daily dependence. Then, in grateful response to your new or renewed sense of intimacy with God, obey and serve God (your Task) out of the overflow of a vibrant relationship with the living Lord.

Reflect on the questions to help you cement these ideas in your mind:

1. Describe the time in your life when you felt closest to God.
2. What one word or phrase best describes how close or distant you feel to God today, and explain.
3. What does the Bible tell us about loving God in Mark 12:28-31 and Luke 10:25-28.
4. Saint Augustine said, "Love God and do what you want." Is that good theology? Explain your answer.
5. What is the single most important thing you can do right now to have a more intimate relationship with God? Do you think you will actually do it, and why or why not?

The Five Defining Disciplines of Growing Men

(From Patrick Morley)

No man ever fails on purpose. No man wakes up in the morning and thinks, "Well, I guess I'll see what I can do to mess up my life today." Yet, every day we do see men fail morally, financially, relationally, and spiritually.

How can a man keep his life on the right track?

Five Goals: The Bible says. . .

• Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:2)

• We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5).
Our ministry has adopted five spiritual goals we want to encourage every man to build into his life to help
him be 'fully committed to the Lord.' None of these is a requirement to be a Christian. A man doesn't do these
five 'disciplines' to gain the cross. Rather, because a man has the cross he willingly, even enthusiastically,
performs these five disciplines to walk more closely with Christ to make Him Lord to keep himself on track.

1. Consistent Devotional/Quiet Time (Mat 14:23; Jos 1:8)

Bill said, "I'm drifting." He was asked, "Are you doing daily devotions?" He replied, "No, I've just been so busy lately." Nothing else will keep a man close to God like a time of consistent private devotions.

If you don't already have a consistent quiet time, set aside five minutes daily to read a chapter in the Bible and say a prayer. Start by reading a chapter in the New Testament. Underline passages that capture your attention. Memorize passages for strength, courage, and faith.

Next, use the acronym "ACTS" to help you pray.

'A' is for adoration. Worship God for His attributes His holiness, power, majesty, beauty, kindness, mercy, and goodness.

'C' is for confession. Confess and ask God to forgive all known sin keep 'short accounts' with God.

'T' is for thanksgiving. Express gratitude to God for His blessings and mercies especially things we ordinarily take for granted like a good night's rest, daily provision, health, family, and so on.

'S' is for supplication. Nothing is too big or insignificant to bring to God in prayer.

Lorne Sanny, former President of the Navigators, suggests we pray backwards through yesterday step by step, and forward through today. Praying backwards will lead to prayers of thanksgiving and confession, while praying forward will lead to prayers of supplication.

2. Organized Bible Study (Prov. 4:23, 2 Tim. 2:15-17)

Someone once asked Billy Graham, "If you were a pastor of a large church in a principle city, what would be your plan of action?"

I would have imagined that Mr. Graham would outline a mass evangelistic plan to take the city by storm. Instead, in The Master Plan of Evangelism, it is reported that he answered, "One of the first things I would do would be to get a small group of eight or ten or twelve men around me that would meet a few hours a week and pay the price! It would cost them something in time and effort. I would share with them everything I have, over a period of years. Then I would actually have twelve ministers … who in turn could take eight or ten or twelve more and teach them." Not a bad idea. It's been done before with some success (smile).

Personally, I have never known a man whose life has changed in any significant way apart from the regular study of God's Word. We can do nothing more concrete to get to know God than to study the Bible.

Most men do not have the aptitude, interest, or time to do the 'close work' to study Bible passages in depth. That's why it's valuable to attend a Bible study in which a teacher takes Scripture, helps you discover what it means, and shows how you can apply it to your life.

It will work best for everyone to pursue Bible studies offered by your church. Attend a couples study or meet with men. Try a Bible study with your wife. If that doesn't work out, there are often community-based Bible studies offered by independent Christian ministries. Examples include the Christian Businessmen's Committee, PriorityOne Associates (Campus Crusade for Christ), and Bible Study Fellowship.

3. Accountability Group (Gal 6:1-2, Jam 5:16)

Most of our lives are lived at the cliché level. The accountable relationship is a tool to get past 'news, sports, and weather'.

Most men are not accountable. They have no one who knows how they are really doing. Accountability means to be regularly answerable for each of the key areas in our lives to qualified people. Let's briefly look at the four parts of accountability:

• Answerable To be willing to give an answer, or an 'account', for the goals you have set for yourself and the standards of God's Word.

• Regularly Why do we wash our cars, mow our lawns, and clean our glasses regularly? Because if we don't they will deteriorate. In the same way we must regularly examine the different areas of our lives or they, too, will deteriorate.

• Key Areas Key areas include relationships with God, wife, children, financial decisions, career, integrity, and temptation.

• Qualified People Find three other men in similar situations, men of wisdom and skill you believe can help keep you on track. Look for co-pilgrims. Find men who will be transparent and vulnerable, especially as your trust in each other goes up. Be sure to not only find someone who will be confidential, but be that way yourself. No women, except your wife. She would make a great accountability partner in areas like child raising, family budget, and spiritual walk.

4.Active Church Involvement (Hebrews 10:24-25)

There is no such thing as a 'Lone Ranger Christian'; you can't be a Christian by yourself. Hebrews 10:25 says,

"Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another."
Notice the goal is active church involvement, not attendance. I'm constantly amazed at how many men think they can be Christians without the fellowship, encouragement, and mutual worship of God among fellow believers in the ministry of a local church. The church is God's New Community a group of people living out what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.

5. Personal Ministry (1 Pet 4:10-11, 2 Tim 2:2)

Once you have been practicing the four spiritual disciplines just discussed you will begin to notice that you are developing a close, personal, love relationship with Jesus Christ.

Your heart will be filled to the overflow with gratitude for all Christ is doing in your life, and the hope of what
He will do in the future. You will long to do something to express your faith in acts of service. God wants every believer to have a personal ministry. "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (Eph. 2:10).

Application

1. Look up each of the verses which follow the sub-headings for the five disciplines. Are these sufficient Biblical warrants to convince you of the importance of each discipline?

2. Using the legend that follows, rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 5 for each of the five defining disciplines of growing men:

5 - I regularly and consistently practice this discipline.
4 - I usually practice this discipline on a consistent basis.
3 - I practice this discipline, but irregularly.
2 - I occasionally practice this discipline.
1 - This discipline is not part of my life right now.

____ 1. Consistent Quiet Time ____ 2. Organized Bible Study
____ 3. Accountability Group ____ 4. Active Church Involvement
____ 5. Personal Ministry

What changes would you like to make? What specifically do you plan to do?

FAVORITE LINKS

My favorite sites are usually related to Christian pages. Here are a few that I heartily recommend:

http://www.bible.org/ - Excellent Christian resources for further studies.

http://www.biblicist.org - Another site for apologetics and Bible study. Friendly too! Be sure to
check out the Systematic Theology post.

http://www.gospelcom.net/rbc/ - Home of the famous Devotional "Our Daily Bread" and the "Discovery Series" booklets.

http://www.maninthemirror.org/ - Excellent resources for Christian men. Check out the Man In The Mirror
Book.

http://www.carm.org/ - Excellent apologetics ministry and very sound presentation of the Christian faith.

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/ - If you want to listen to classic hymns like "Amazing Grace" and the like, this is the site for you!

http://bible.gospelcom.net/ - An online Bible with multiple translations / versions.


If you are looking for a church in the Philippines, check these out:

http://www.gcf.org.ph/ - Greenhills Christian Fellowship

http://www.ccf.org.ph/ - Christ's Commission Fellowship

http://www.victory.org.ph/ - Victory Christian Fellowship

Praise the Lord!

THE NEW MAN

The New Man

Is a believer in Christ a sinner saved by God's Grace while possesseing a sin nature, or is the believer a new man in Christ, with a new and distinct identity, now fundamentally different from the former person prior to conversion?

A popular view among many evangelical teachers is that the New Testament terms "old man" (or old self), "sin nature," and "flesh" are all synonymous. In this view, since the New Testament clearly teaches that the Believer still has the "flesh," he must still posses the old man. And if this is so, the crucifixion of the old man in Romans 6, where Paul states that "our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin" (Romans 6:6), can not be seen as actual, but only positional or judicial. Teachers of this view would say that the old man, which is the sin nature and the flesh, is positionally crucified, but still with us in our life, that he has only been dealt a judicial death blow by the work of Christ.

The Sin Nature

Although the origin of sin begins with Satan's rebellion against God, sin came into this world through Adam.
Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned (Romans 5:12).

Here we see that in Adam all sinned, as we all participated when Adam sinned. The Biblical principle of participation is demonstrated in Hebrews 7:9-10, where Levi the priest is said to have paid tithes to Melchizedek through his ancestor Abraham, although he was not yet born. Adam's sin produced spiritual and physical death for all of humanity. His fall transformed him downward into a different being from the perfect being which God created. He propagated after his own kind and passed his corrupt nature to all of his descendents who are spiritually dead.

This transmission of sin and its manifested effects of spiritual and physical death, depravity, and hostility toward God, is referred to by some theologians as the "sin nature." The term "sin nature" finds its nearest expression in the New Testament in the words of Paul describing unbelievers, "and were by nature children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3). Though Scripture underlines the fact that believers possess the capacity to sin, it would seem to go against the emphasis of the new birth in Christ to say that "the nature" of a believer is to sin. Instead of using the term "sin nature" to describe the believer's capacity to sin, Paul uses the word "flesh."

The Flesh

Scripture never speaks of Believers having a "sin nature," but refers to their daily struggle with what it calls "the flesh."

For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so (Romans 8:5-7).

Newell explains the meaning of the word flesh when it is used to describe sin in a believer's life: The flesh is the manifestation of sin in the as yet unredeemed body. Our "old man," therefore, is the large term, the all-inclusive one -- of all that we were federally from Adam. The flesh, however, we shall find to be that manifestation of sin in our members with which we are in conscious inward conflict, against which only the Holy Spirit indwelling us effectively wars. 1

The Old Self (or Old Man)

Knowing this, that our "old self" was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin (Romans 6:6).

That, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the "old self," which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit (Ephesians 4:22).

Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the "old self" with its evil practices, (Colossians 3:9).

Newell writes: This is our old self, as we were in and from Adam. It is contrasted with the "new man" (Colossians 3:9,10) -- which is what we are and have in Christ. Also, we must not confuse the "old man" with "the flesh." 2 Believers are told to put on the new man, or self, as this is now the true identity of who we are in Christ.

And put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth (Ephesians 4:24).

And Ironside states: The "old man" is more than the old nature. It is the man of old, the man you used to be before you knew Christ as Saviour and Lord. In other words, the old man is all that I once was as an unsaved person. I am through with that man; he has disappeared, for faith, in the cross of Christ. 3

God is indeed finished with the old man with his sin nature, He has no program to clean him up, He is finished with him! As we have seen, these three terms, old man, sin nature, and flesh are distinct from each other, so a totally different picture emerges of what the life of a believer in Christ is subsequent to salvation. A believer in Christ isn't a sinner saved by God's Grace while possesseing a sin nature, but a "new man," a new creation in Christ, with a distinct identity and possessing a glorious hope.

Written by Alan Torres

1Newell, William R., Romans Verse by Verse (Chicago: Moody Press, 1938), 212.
2Ibid, 210.
3Ironside, H.A., Lectures on the Epistles to the Colossians (Neptune New Jersey: Loizeaux Brothers Inc., 1929), 135.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ: An Evangelical Celebration

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

Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.
--Isaiah 12:5

Preamble

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is news, good news: the best and most important news that any human being ever hears.

This Gospel declares the only way to know God in peace, love, and joy is through the reconciling death of Jesus Christ the risen Lord.

This Gospel is the central message of the Holy Scriptures, and is the true key to understanding them.

This Gospel identifies Jesus Christ, the Messiah of Israel, as the Son of God and God the Son, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, whose incarnation, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension fulfilled the Father's saving will. His death for sins and his resurrection from the dead were promised beforehand by the prophets and attested by eyewitnesses. In God's own time and in God's own way, Jesus Christ shall return as glorious Lord and Judge of all (1 Thess. 4:13-18; Matt. 25:31-32). He is now giving the Holy Spirit from the Father to all those who are truly his. The three Persons of the Trinity thus combine in the work of saving sinners.

This Gospel sets forth Jesus Christ as the living Savior, Master, Life, and Hope of all who put their trust in him. It tells us that the eternal destiny of all people depends on whether they are savingly related to Jesus Christ.
This Gospel is the only Gospel: there is no other; and to change its substance is to pervert and indeed destroy it. This Gospel is so simple that small children can understand it, and it is so profound that studies by the wisest theologians will never exhaust its riches.

All Christians are called to unity in love and unity in truth. As evangelicals who derive our very name from the Gospel, we celebrate this great good news of God's saving work in Jesus Christ as the true bond of Christian unity, whether among organized churches and denominations or in the many transdenominational co operative enterprises of Christians together.

The Bible declares that all who truly trust in Christ and his Gospel are sons and daughters of God through grace, and hence are our brothers and sisters in Christ.

All who are justified experience reconciliation with the Father, full remission of sins, transition from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, the reality of being a new creature in Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. They enjoy access to the Father with all the peace and joy that this brings.

The Gospel requires of all believers worship, which means constant praise and giving of thanks to God, submission to all that he has revealed in his written word, prayerful dependence on him, and vigilance lest his truth be even inadvertently compromised or obscured.

To share the joy and hope of this Gospel is a supreme privilege. It is also an abiding obligation, for the Great Commission of Jesus Christ still stands: proclaim the Gospel everywhere, he said, teaching, baptizing, and making disciples.

By embracing the following declaration we affirm our commitment to this task, and with it our allegiance to Christ himself, to the Gospel itself, and to each other as fellow evangelical believers.

The Gospel

This Gospel of Jesus Christ which God sets forth in the infallible Scriptures combines Jesus' own declaration of the present reality of the kingdom of God with the apostles' account of the person, place, and work of Christ, and how sinful humans benefit from it. The Patristic Rule of Faith, the historic creeds, the Reformation confessions, and the doctrinal bases of later evangelical bodies all witness to the substance of this biblical message.

The heart of the Gospel is that our holy, loving Creator, confronted with human hostility and rebellion, has chosen in his own freedom and faithfulness to become our holy, loving Redeemer and Restorer. The Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world (1 John 4:14): it is through his one and only Son that God's one and only plan of salvation is implemented. So Peter announced: "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). And Christ himself taught: "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6).

Through the Gospel we learn that we human beings, who were made for fellowship with God, are by nature - that is, "in Adam" (1 Cor. 15:22) - dead in sin, unresponsive to and separated from our Maker. We are constantly twisting his truth, breaking his law, belittling his goals and standards, and offending his holiness by our unholiness, so that we truly are "without hope and without God in the world" (Rom. 1:18-32, 3:9-20; Eph. 2:1-3, 12). Yet God in grace took the initiative to reconcile us to himself through the sinless life and vicarious death of his beloved Son (Eph. 2:4-10; Rom. 3:21-24).

The Father sent the Son to free us from the dominion of sin and Satan, and to make us God's children and friends. Jesus paid our penalty in our place on his cross, satisfying the retributive demands of divine justice by shedding his blood in sacrifice and so making possible justification for all who trust in him (Rom. 3:25-26). The Bible describes this mighty substitutionary transaction as the achieving of ransom, reconciliation, redemption, propitiation, and conquest of evil powers (Matt. 20:28; 2 Cor. 5:18-21; Rom. 3:23-25; John 12:31; Col. 2:15). It secures for us a restored relationship with God that brings pardon and peace, acceptance and access, and adoption into God's family (Col. 1:20, 2:13-14; Rom. 5:1–2; Gal. 4:4-7; 1 Pet. 3:18). The faith in God and in Christ to which the Gospel calls us is a trustful outgoing of our hearts to lay hold of these promised and proffered benefits.

This Gospel further proclaims the bodily resurrection, ascension, and enthronement of Jesus as evidence of the efficacy of his once-for-all sacrifice for us, of the reality of his present personal ministry to us, and of the certainty of his future return to glorify us (1 Cor. 15; Heb. 1:1-4, 2:1-18, 4:14-16, 7:1-10:25). In the life of faith as the Gospel presents it, believers are united with their risen Lord, communing with him, and looking to him in repentance and hope for empowering through the Holy Spirit, so that henceforth they may not sin but serve him truly.

God's justification of those who trust him, according to the Gospel, is a decisive transition, here and now, from a state of condemnation and wrath because of their sins to one of acceptance and favor by virtue of Jesus' flawless obedience culminating in his voluntary sin-bearing death. God "justifies the wicked" (ungodly: Rom. 4:5) by imputing (reckoning, crediting, counting, accounting) righteousness to them and ceasing to count their sins against them (Rom. 4:1-8). Sinners receive through faith in Christ alone "the gift of righteousness" (Rom. 1:17, 5:17; Phil. 3:9) and thus be come "the righteousness of God" in him who was "made sin" for them (2 Cor. 5:21).

As our sins were reckoned to Christ, so Christ's righteousness is reckoned to us. This is justification by the imputation of Christ's righteousness. All we bring to the transaction is our need of it. Our faith in the God who bestows it, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, is itself the fruit of God's grace. Faith links us savingly to Jesus, but inasmuch as it involves an acknowledgment that we have no merit of our own, it is confessedly not a meritorious work.

The Gospel assures us that all who have en trusted their lives to Jesus Christ are born-again children of God (John 1:12), indwelt, empowered, and assured of their status and hope by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 7:6, 8:9-17). The moment we truly believe in Christ, the Father declares us righteous in him and begins conforming us to his likeness. Genuine faith acknowledges and depends upon Jesus as Lord and shows itself in growing obedience to the divine commands, though this contributes nothing to the ground of our justification (James 2:14-26; Heb. 6:1-12).

By his sanctifying grace, Christ works within us through faith, renewing our fallen nature and leading us to real maturity, that measure of development which is meant by "the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13). The Gospel calls us to live as obedient servants of Christ and as his emissaries in the world, doing justice, loving mercy, and helping all in need, thus seeking to bear witness to the kingdom of Christ. At death, Christ takes the believer to himself (Phil. 1:21) for unimaginable joy in the ceaseless worship of God (Rev. 22:1-5).

Salvation in its full sense is from the guilt of sin in the past, the power of sin in the present, and the presence of sin in the future. Thus, while in foretaste believers enjoy salvation now, they still await its fullness (Mark 14:61-62; Heb. 9:28). Salvation is a Trinitarian reality, initiated by the Father, implemented by the Son, and applied by the Holy Spirit. It has a global dimension, for God's plan is to save believers out of every tribe and tongue (Rev. 5:9) to be his church, a new humanity, the people of God, the body and bride of Christ, and the community of the Holy Spirit. All the heirs of final salvation are called here and now to serve their Lord and each other in love, to share in the fellowship of Jesus' sufferings, and to work together to make Christ known to the whole world.

We learn from the Gospel that, as all have sinned, so all who do not receive Christ will be judged according to their just deserts as measured by God's holy law, and face eternal retributive punishment.

Unity in the Gospel

Christians are commanded to love each other despite differences of race, gender, privilege, and social, political, and economic background (John 13:34-35; Gal. 3:28-29), and to be of one mind wherever possible (John 17:20-21; Phil. 2:2; Rom. 14:1-15:13). We know that divisions among Christians hinder our witness in the world, and we desire greater mutual understanding and truth-speaking in love. We know too that as trustees of God's revealed truth we cannot embrace any form of doctrinal indifferentism, or relativism, or pluralism by which God's truth is sacrificed for a false peace.

Doctrinal disagreements call for debate. Dialogue for mutual understanding and, if possible, narrowing of the differences is valuable, doubly so when the avowed goal is unity in primary things, with liberty in secondary things, and charity in all things.

In the foregoing paragraphs, an attempt has been made to state what is primary and essential in the Gospel as evangelicals understand it. Useful dialogue, however, requires not only charity in our attitudes, but also clarity in our utterances. Our extended analysis of justification by faith alone through Christ alone reflects our belief that Gospel truth is of crucial importance and is not always well understood and correctly affirmed. For added clarity, out of love for God's truth and Christ's church, we now cast the key points of what has been said into specific affirmations and denials regarding the Gospel and our unity in it and in Christ.

Affirmations and Denials

1. We affirm that the Gospel entrusted to the church is, in the first instance, God's Gospel (Mark 1:14; Rom. 1:1). God is its author, and he reveals it to us in and by his Word. Its authority and truth rest on him alone.

We deny that the truth or authority of the Gospel derives from any human insight or invention (Gal. 1:1-11).

We also deny that the truth or authority of the Gospel rests on the authority of any particular church or human institution.

2. We affirm that the Gospel is the saving power of God in that the Gospel effects salvation to everyone who believes, without distinction (Rom. 1:16). This efficacy of the Gospel is by the power of God himself (1 Cor. 1:18).

We deny that the power of the Gospel rests in the eloquence of the preacher, the technique of the evangelist, or the persuasion of rational argument (1 Cor. 1:21; 2:1-5).

3. We affirm that the Gospel diagnoses the universal human condition as one of sinful rebellion against God, which, if unchanged, will lead each person to eternal loss under God's condemnation.
We deny any rejection of the fallenness of human nature or any assertion of the natural goodness, or divinity, of the human race.

4. We affirm that Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation, the only mediator between God and humanity (John 14:6; 1 Tim. 2:5).

We deny that anyone is saved in any other way than by Jesus Christ and his Gospel. The Bible offers no hope that sincere worshipers of other religions will be saved without personal faith in Jesus Christ.

5. We affirm that the church is commanded by God and is therefore under divine obligation to preach the Gospel to every living person (Luke 24:47; Matt. 28:18-19).

We deny that any particular class or group of persons, whatever their ethnic or cultural identity, may be ignored or passed over in the preaching of the Gospel (1 Cor. 9:19-22). God purposes a global church made up from people of every tribe, language, and nation (Rev. 7:9).

6. We affirm that faith in Jesus Christ as the divine Word (or Logos, John 1:1), the second Person of the Trinity, co-eternal and co-essential with the Father and the Holy Spirit (Heb. 1:3), is foundational to faith in the Gospel.

We deny that any view of Jesus Christ which reduces or rejects his full deity is Gospel faith or will avail to salvation.

7. We affirm that Jesus Christ is God incarnate (John 1:14). The virgin-born descendant of David (Rom. 1:3), he had a true human nature, was subject to the Law of God (Gal. 4:5), and was like us at all points, except without sin (Heb. 2:17, 7:26-28). We affirm that faith in the true humanity of Christ is essential to faith in the Gospel.

We deny that anyone who rejects the humanity of Christ, his incarnation, or his sinlessness, or who maintains that these truths are not essential to the Gospel, will be saved (1 John 4:2-3).

8. We affirm that the atonement of Christ by which, in his obedience, he offered a perfect sacrifice, propitiating the Father by paying for our sins and satisfying divine justice on our behalf according to God's eternal plan, is an essential element of the Gospel.

We deny that any view of the Atonement that rejects the substitutionary satisfaction of divine justice, accomplished vicariously for believers, is compatible with the teaching of the Gospel.

9. We affirm that Christ's saving work included both his life and his death on our behalf (Gal. 3:13). We declare that faith in the perfect obedience of Christ by which he fulfilled all the demands of the Law of God in our behalf is essential to the Gospel.

We deny that our salvation was achieved merely or exclusively by the death of Christ without reference to his life of perfect righteousness.

10. We affirm that the bodily resurrection of Christ from the dead is essential to the biblical Gospel (1 Cor. 15:14).

We deny the validity of any so-called gospel that denies the historical reality of the bodily resurrection of Christ.

11. We affirm that the biblical doctrine of justification by faith alone in Christ alone is essential to the Gospel (Rom. 3:28; 4:5; Gal. 2:16).

We deny that any person can believe the biblical Gospel and at the same time reject the apostolic teaching of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. We also deny that there is more than one true Gospel (Gal. 1:6-9).

12. We affirm that the doctrine of the imputation (reckoning or counting) both of our sins to Christ and of his righteousness to us, whereby our sins are fully forgiven and we are fully accepted, is essential to the biblical Gospel (2 Cor. 5:19-21).

We deny that we are justified by the righteousness of Christ infused into us or by any righteousness that is thought to inhere within us.

13. We affirm that the righteousness of Christ by which we are justified is properly his own, which he achieved apart from us, in and by his perfect obedience. This righteousness is counted, reckoned, or imputed to us by the forensic (that is, legal) declaration of God, as the sole ground of our justification.

We deny that any works we perform at any stage of our existence add to the merit of Christ or earn for us any merit that contributes in any way to the ground of our justification (Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).

14. We affirm that, while all believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and are in the process of being made holy and conformed to the image of Christ, those consequences of justification are not its ground. God declares us just, remits our sins, and adopts us as his children, by his grace alone, and through faith alone, because of Christ alone, while we are still sinners (Rom. 4:5).

We deny that believers must be inherently righteous by virtue of their cooperation with God's life-transforming grace before God will declare them justified in Christ. We are justified while we are still sinners.

15. We affirm that saving faith results in sanctification, the transformation of life in growing conformity to Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Sanctification means ongoing repentance, a life of turning from sin to serve Jesus Christ in grateful reliance on him as one's Lord and Master (Gal. 5:22-25; Rom. 8:4, 13-14).

We reject any view of justification which divorces it from our sanctifying union with Christ and our increasing conformity to his image through prayer, repentance, cross-bearing, and life in the Spirit.

16. We affirm that saving faith includes mental assent to the content of the Gospel, acknowledgment of our own sin and need, and personal trust and reliance upon Christ and his work.

We deny that saving faith includes only mental acceptance of the Gospel, and that justification is secured by a mere outward profession of faith. We further deny that any element of saving faith is a meritorious work or earns salvation for us.

17. We affirm that, although true doctrine is vital for spiritual health and well-being, we are not saved by doctrine. Doctrine is necessary to inform us how we may be saved by Christ, but it is Christ who saves.

We deny that the doctrines of the Gospel can be rejected without harm. Denial of the Gospel brings spiritual ruin and exposes us to God's judgment.

18. We affirm that Jesus Christ commands his followers to proclaim the Gospel to all living persons, evangelizing everyone everywhere, and discipling believers within the fellowship of the church. A full and faithful witness to Christ includes the witness of personal testimony, godly living, and acts of mercy and charity to our neighbor, without which the preaching of the Gospel appears barren.

We deny that the witness of personal testimony, godly living, and acts of mercy and charity to our neighbors constitutes evangelism apart from the proclamation of the Gospel.

Our Commitment

As evangelicals united in the Gospel, we promise to watch over and care for one another, to pray for and forgive one another, and to reach out in love and truth to God's people everywhere, for we are one family, one in the Holy Spirit, and one in Christ.

Centuries ago it was truly said that in things necessary there must be unity, in things less than necessary there must be liberty, and in all things there must be charity. We see all these Gospel truths as necessary.

Now to God, the Author of the truth and grace of this Gospel, through Jesus Christ, its subject and our Lord, be praise and glory forever and ever. Amen.

THE FAITH ATTITUDES OF PAUL

THE FAITH ATTITUDES OF PAUL

(Message of Pastor Peter Tanchi, Christ's Commission Fellowship)

Whether we like it or not, we impact and influence people either positively or negatively. A negative person sees the gray clouds, while a positive person sees the silver lining behind them. Two persons encountering the same problem may differ in response. It is attitude that draws the line. Our behavior is simply the external manifestation of our inner attitudes. This is reflective of the faith operating in a person's life, or the lack of it. We definitely can get pointers from Paul. Paul's faith honed his convictions and motivations that in turn shaped his positive attitudes and behavior.

POSITIVELY PATIENT

Paul's positive disposition is evident as expressed in Philippians 1:6: “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Paul gave people room for improvement. For sure, God is at work in every single life. Salvation from the penalty of sin is just the beginning. But salvation from the power of sin is what He continues to do on a daily basis until our time on earth is up through the principle of sanctification or the process of transformation.

Are you impatient with people who seem to be making slow progress in their spiritual walk? Or could it be that your eyes are growing dim for the changes you've been hoping to see in your own life? Every Christian is a work in progress. God is not One to leave something unfinished. He simply cannot and will not give up on us. Using every means at His disposal - be it problems, people, painful circumstances or the power of His Word in the Bible, He will polish our rough edges to mold our character toward Christlikeness. God is the Author and Perfecter of our faith. We can be secure in our eternal future, not because of our faithfulness, but God's.

POSITIVELY THANKFUL

To be positive is to be thankful in the middle of the worst possible scenario, believing that God can use it to open doors of opportunities to either bless us or use us to bless others. That was what happened to Paul, who says, “Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear” (Philip. 1:12-14).

Being in chains has served to further the gospel, for through him, the praetorian guards watching him were added to the church of believers. More people came to know Christ as other early Christians were encouraged to proclaim God's Word as Paul's fearless example inspired them. This account just proves that the Word of God cannot be shackled. Being in jail for no personal offense of his but for the cause of Christ could have caused Paul to wallow in self-pity or clench his fist against God. Paul's positive attitude came to the fore when he instead looked for opportunities to serve God even in the confines of a prison cell. His love for God made him respond in faith, which turned an unfavorable situation to something favorable. To which he quips, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

POSITIVELY JOYFUL

Spirituality and pure motives do not always inhabit every Christian. Even in ministry, there can be strife because of envy and selfish ambitions, as Paul cites in Philippians 1:15-18: “Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from good will; the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause me distress in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice, yes, and I will rejoice.” People are beyond our control, but how we respond to them is within our capacity. Responding correctly is possible where faith is centered on the power of God to change difficult people and overturn unsavory situations. Paul understood that the secret to happiness is to have Jesus as your source of joy. It is vital to focus on Christ so as not to be sidetracked or lose the joy of serving God.

POSITIVELY ZEALOUS

Properly motivated, anyone can become positively zealous. Someone who has received from God will give back to God by serving Him with passionate determination. It transcends the call of duty, turning into a privilege to be enjoyed. Paul's faith left his fate to God, knowing that He is in complete control. So in and out of season, mobile or behind bars, he preached and proclaimed. Paul explains: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake. And convinced of this, I know that I shall remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your proud confidence in me may abound in Christ Jesus through my coming to you again” (Phil. 1:21-26).

Out of zealousness for Christ, Paul was pulled in two directions; he was torn between living and dying. He wanted to live longer, not for self-serving reasons, but rather for the advancement of Christ's cause. One lifetime seemed too short for the work he wanted to put in for the gospel to be spread far and wide. In life or in death, Christ was his sole motivation.

How do we develop the positive faith attitudes demonstrated by Paul? Paul's prescriptive formula is: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philip. 1:21). If we live for anything other than Christ, we stand to lose everything even in death. As Matthew 16:26 says, "For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul?” May we have the faith that motivated Paul to positively and faithfully follow the Lord. And may we allow Paul's attitudes to rub off on us.

HOW TO MAKE MAJOR DECISIONS

(From The Man In The Mirror : Patrick Morley)

During the course of a year most of us only make two or three truly major decisions. These might include whether or not to change jobs, which job to take, whether or not to move to another city or across town, how many children to have, which church to attend, what kind of personal ministry to undertake, what kind of car to buy (and do I really need a new one?), how to adjust lifestyle to a reduced income, and so on. Yet, these comprise some of the most important and difficult decisions we ever make.

Most of the major decisions we make in life are not dictated by Scripture. So what do we do?

A PERSPECTIVE

Here are some considerations to help make better decisions:

1. Know that many major decisions do turn out wrong. A man became restless after twenty one years with the same company. He could not isolate the source of his feelings, but decided he needed a change. Since that time he has bounced around from job to job, never keeping the same position more than three years.

A couple decided to move to a "better" neighborhood. There was nothing wrong with their present neighborhood. In fact, they loved their neighbors, the location was convenient, crime was low, the mortgage payment was a pittance, and they couldn't really find anything wrong with their existing home. Their new house required much more upkeep than they had figured. The higher payments created a great deal of tension between them. Soon they began pointing fingers at each other, blaming one another for deciding to leave the old neighborhood. If you are not content with yourself where you are, you will not be content where you are going. It is an error to think that changing our circumstances alone will make us happy or content. Often we cling to some selfish ambition that is at odds with leading a surrendered life.

2. Count the cost of making the wrong decision. Perhaps the greatest lesson I've learned about making major decisions is the cost of making the wrong decision. When decisions turn out right, "I" am brilliant. When they turn out wrong, "you" really blew it! Think about this next statement: The greatest time waster in our lives is the time we spend undoing that which ought not to have been done in the first place. Do you agree? Usually we can recover if we make a bad choice. Sometimes, however, we can't. Never make a decision that bets the entire ranch on being right.

3. Most decisions are obvious given enough information and time. When do we make poor decisions? When we don't have our facts straight and when we are hasty. Keep collecting data. Write it down so you don't forget it. The mind by itself may blow one small fact all out of proportion. Writing it down puts things in perspective. Talk to wise counselors; get other people's perspective. Talk to experts who have skill better to operate from fact than feeling. Ours is an impatient world, a hasty world, an impulsive world. If my computer takes three seconds to sort 20,000,000 bytes of data instead of one second I get frustrated. Let's get real! It takes time to make a wise, major decision.

The mind may know quickly what to do, but it takes time for our emotions to catch up. We have vested positions which only time can change. We must wait for that "gut feeling," which is our subconscious mind informing our conscious mind of the results of its thorough and complete analysis.

THE MEANS OF GUIDANCE

The major decisions we make will come most easily if we abide in Christ daily, begin each dawn in humble surrender to God, seek to please Him in all our ways, and live our lives out of the overflow of our personal relationship with Jesus. To assist us God has given means of guidance. Let's briefly explore each of seven different means God has given us to help discern His will.

1. The Bible. The single most important question to ask is, "Has God already spoken on this matter?" The Bible is chock full of commands (which are duty) and principles (which are wise). We don't have to wonder if not reporting $1,800 of incidental income to the IRS is God's will. We know it is. As the Bible says, "Do not go beyond what is written" (1 Corinthians 4:6). Obedience is the trademark of a biblical Christian. Talk over the Scriptures together.

2. Prayer. Jesus said, "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete" (John 16:24). Over and over and over again we are invited to present our requests to God. Prayer is the currency of our personal relationship with Christ. Spend it liberally. Pray over major (why not all?) decisions.

3. The Holy Spirit. God lives in us in the person of the Holy Spirit. He is our counselor, convicter, comforter, converter, and encourager. Consciously depend upon Him and He will both guide you and intercede for you. "The Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will" (Romans 8:27). The Holy Spirit is the one Who "clothes" us with power from on high. The Holy Spirit will never lead in contradiction to His written Word.

4. Conscience. In seeking God's will we must live by the pledge of a good conscience toward God and other people. "Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God" (1 John 3:21). Keep in mind that while a guilty conscience provides clear evidence you are not in God's will, a clear conscience may not guarantee you have correctly discerned God's will. Conscience is more effective as a red light than a green light. To go against conscience is neither wise nor safe.

5. Circumstances. Some people are born short, some tall. Some black, some white. Some in America, some in Argentina. Some to poor parents, some to rich. God's will is often revealed clearly by the circumstances in which we live. "He determines the times set for them and the exact places where they should live" (Acts 17: 26). If you want to purchase a house which will require a $100,000 mortgage and you can only qualify for $75,000, then circumstances have told you God's will.

6. Counsel. "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed" (Proverbs 15:22). Often we need nothing more than a good listener to help us crystallize our thoughts into coherent words. Other times, we need the advice of a trusted friend. Seek out each other's counsel.

7. Fasting. Fasting is a lost spiritual discipline in this age. Fasting slows down the physical functions so that the mind can be more in tune with Christ. Fasting demonstrates a seriousness about your concern to the Lord.

Employ these constituted means for finding the will of God. Do them only occasionally and it will amount to nothing more than priming a rusty pump. Do them regularly and the will of God will gush forth like deep well springs.

A PROCESS

Here is a useful, practical process for finding the will of God. Keep in mind this is not a process for getting our own way. We must be cautious that we truly want what God wants. Otherwise we will twist things to our own way. Each step builds on itself, and you may find the answer becomes obvious at any point along the way. If it doesn't make itself clear, keep moving through the steps until it does.

1. Write down the decision exactly. Nothing clarifies our thinking more quickly than paper and pencil. It's said that half the solution is knowing the problem. Precisely what is the decision? What are the choices?

2. Next, write out a "purpose statement" which precisely explains why you are considering this decision. It is helpful not only to know what you are trying to decide, but why. "Why" are you trying to decide "what" you are trying to decide? What is the context? Do you have to move? Is it a need or a want? Are you unhappy?

3. Next, submit your "purpose statement" to a series of questions. Here are some suggestions:

o What are you trying to accomplish, and why?
o What is your objective, or desired end result?
o What are your expectations and why?
o How does this decision fit in with your calling?
o Are you considering this from a sense of calling or duty?
o What would Jesus do if He were you? What is the "next" right step to take?

4. If your answer still hasn't become obvious, list each option on a separate sheet of paper. On the left side list the advantages of that option; on the right side list the disadvantages. As Louis Agazziz said, "A pencil is one of the best of eyes." Usually, one option will prove itself clearly desirable, or undesirable, at this point.

5. At all times, employ the seven steps of guidance to discern God's will covered above.

6. If the answer still hasn't come, wait. You can never predict what God is doing in your life. God is not a man that He would ever work for your harm. God is committed to working for your good. Commit to let God set the agenda. Never push God. If the answer isn't obvious, trust Him to make it clear in His timing. You can rush ahead if you must, but you do so at your own peril. Better to wait upon the Lord. Give Him the time He wants to work some things into and out of your character. And remember this: God is not the author of confusion. Satan, however, is.

If you are still confused, wait. Peace is the umpire.