The power of dying

Summary of my thoughts: I think this will be a short post, only because I think more of today's lesson is introspective. I think the key point for me was straight from scripture. I think the second passage (Luke 18:28-30) was so important to keep in mind as encouragement. We are promised a reward greater than all we treasure now. Also, Luke 9:23-25 is such a vital passage. I read it over and over just to let the meaning reach me.
"And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?" Luke 9:23-25

Not without effect

Summary of my thoughts: I love this day! In the same way that Paul writes v. 9, I am so unworthy to be called a Christian. There is so little that is "Christ-like" about me. I love that He expresses the change in himself through God. "His grace...was not without effect" means that His grace brought about change is Paul's life. Everything about him was redefined through Christ and His mercy (even his name changed). We have to see God's grace and appreciate the blessing He has given us, and then do something about it. That's the point. Just like Paul spent His life furthering the message, so we must spend our lives in His service. Then we see such humility again as Paul reminds us that his works are all God's doing.
"For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed." 1 Corinthians 15:9-11

When we sin

Summary of my thoughts: I appreciate the specific questions of this lesson, but my thoughts were a little abstract. Light and darkness are polar opposites. This world is Satan's kingdom; Heaven is God's kingdom. We are called out of this world into God's kingdom. However, these bodies are bound to this world. It is only through our willing and honest confession that we can escape this darkness, that Jesus can cleanse us again and free us.
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9

Grace that teaches

Summary of my thoughts: For some reason, this is a difficult thought process for me. I feel like a kid in class who knows the answer to the teacher's question, but can't stop second-guessing. It's like all of the obvious answers are coming to mind, but they just don't seem good enough. I think God gave us His grace because He loves us as His children, and as His children, we have been set aside for good works. Almost like a family business, He has provided us with a mission, to both do good things and to not do bad things. (I realize that is a vast oversimplification.) To me, saying "yes" or "no" fosters the idea of a godly checklist: "yes" I read my Bible, "yes" I prayed today, "no" I didn't lie when Mom asked me ______. I think grace and our "education" goes deeper than that. We obey God rather than the world, because He has blessed us so greatly. We say "no" to the world not out of obligation, but out of a humble desire to thank the Lord for His mercy.

Saved for good works

Verse 1: You were dead when you lived in sin (zombie-esque?).
Verse 2: You were following the way of the world which is prescribed by Satan (because this world is his).
Verse 3: Back then, we lived like everybody else, just following our animalistic desires and instincts.
Verse 4: But God is full of grace because He loves us so very much.
Verse 5: Even when we were zombies, dead in our sins, He gave us life again through Christ by grace.
Verse 6: He even gave us a seat in Heaven with Himself and Jesus.
Verse 7: So that He could lavish His grace on us throughout eternity.
Verse 8: Because we're saved by faith by no action of our own, only through God's gift to us.
Verse 9: We're not saved by works so that no one gets the idea that they own their own salvation (ego trip).
Verse 10: Because we are His handiwork, reborn in Jesus to be put to the good work He has prepared.
God gave us grace and a purpose; that purpose is to do His work. We miss the fullness of that grace without works. We should be forgiving of those who fall and make mistakes. Otherwise, we're just hypocrites.
"Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." Ephesians 4:32

United with Christ

Summary of my thoughts: Why is baptism such a tricky subject for members of the Church of Christ? My stomach fell a little when I read the passages just because the subject of baptism has been the source of several conflicts for me in the past. I think Question 2 is phrased...oddly. We receive God's grace through baptism. Grace is a gift we can never merit. In baptism we die to sin and are buried with Christ, then raised to walk with Him. If you are dead to sin, how can you live in it anymore? To think that greater sin merits greater grace is living in ignorance. Like God's love, His grace is given to us completely. He lavishes it on us and we should try to live blamelessly.

Standing in grace

Summary of my thoughts: First of all, I love this passage. It is so comforting and promising and reassuring and filled with hope. I think the answer to the first two questions is the same: We are crummy. We are worthless, lost, sinful souls. We have turned our backs to God numerous times, and we drive the nails deeper in Jesus' hands with every sin (and let's face it, we sin pretty often). We have nothing to offer God but our pathetic, broken lives, and we have nothing to boast in apart from Jesus. Living in grace makes us free people; the chains of sin are gone and Jesus forgives our faults continually.

My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

Lavished on us

Summary of my thoughts: My translation makes 3 references to the word "grace" in Ephesians 1:1-10. Dictionary.com defines lavished as "to give or bestow in abundance, shower." Microsoft Word provides the following synonyms of lavish: plentiful, generous, sumptuous, abundant, copious, bountiful, prolific, fulsome, extravagant, immoderate, unrestrained (to name just a few).
Paul responds to this grace with such praise and joy. After reviewing the definitions and synonyms of "lavish", I wonder why we don't react the same way. Not only do we get such an amazing gift, but we spit upon the price He paid every single day. And He is still willing to give it! I feel like we should spend our days in awe, torn between humility at our unworthiness and overwhelming joy at the abounding grace of God.

Building on a rock

Summary of my thoughts: I think the people who will be turned away are the ones who "go through the motions" without any foundation or depth. The man that builds his house on the Rock has a steady foundation; his house can withstand hurricane winds. We have the choice and option to be that man, to dig deeply in the Father's Word and base our faith in Him. With God as our support system, we are infallible. I think this also points to the fact that the "house" itself does not factor into its strength. Without a foundation, a 100-bedroom mansion may be leveled to the ground with a breeze, but with a foundation, a modest 2-room home may weather any storm. We have to be deep people on the inside.
"How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers." Psalm 1:1-3.

"Seems right" or "is right"?

Summary of my thoughts: I find that this topic is both a pet peeve and a pitfall for me. It scares me to think that with all of my "opinions", I might neglect the truth of God's Word and instead preach my word. Too many people today get caught up in this mire of a situation. I think about the differences between denominations as a perfect example. Person A practices baptism because her church says it's right, but Person B believes that a confession of faith secures salvation because her church says it's right. We get so lost in petty disagreements over opinion and heated accusations of judgment when the answers are literally at our fingertips. God's authority is the highest and final authority we are held to; our personal opinions have no justification unless they are based in scripture.

today's the day

I'm going to try and post for all of the missing days this afternoon. I may be brief with a few and summarize, but they'll all be accounted for. So, here goes.

post-free weekend

After much forgetfulness and internet troubles, my computer is once again being cooperative. However, this afternoon is looking very busy. I wanted to let you guys know that I intend to keep up with my studies through the weekend, but I won't have any internet. So, I'm going to take notes and come Monday I should have quite a few blogposts to add. Love you all, and I see you later!

The Powerful Word

Things God's Word can do:
-teach
-help with reproof
-help with correction
-train in righteousness
-help me be adequate
-help me be equipped for every good work
-judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart
"But prove yourselves doers of the Word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves." James 1:22
The man who does what he has learned is approved by God and put to His service. I think that if we don't know what the Bible says or if we ignore His Word, then we are the false teachers that we spoke about earlier in the week. But, when we do what we know is right (what we have learned), we fulfill the purpose God gave us, and He uses us for His glory. We will be blessed by our actions.
I know that it is right to fellowship and be worship with fellow believers, and tonight I'll be at devo to rejoice and praise God with all of you. (That's my one example because this question stumped me a little. I think most likely I'm overthinking it.)

Sound Doctrine

Fear. It is what holds me back from sharing the Gospel. I know that seems ambiguous, but that's because it is. Sometimes I fear rejection, sometimes I fear I'll say the wrong thing, sometimes I fear the vulnerability required to effectively share my faith.
1. Myself. 2. My teaching. This is part of my fear of vulnerability. Sometimes I get the (completely wrong) idea that in order to save or reach someone, I have to be perfect. I know full well that I'm not, so I'm afraid to come across as a hypocrit.
Sound doctrine is so much of what we've talked about thusfar. It's being completely aware of the will of God. I think obviously, by our own admissions, many religious people think that reading the Bible is more of a bonus, a perk, an extracurricular. Honestly, I'm not even confident that I know how to read the Bible. However, if we don't study the Word extensively, we'll never actually know what He says. So, it's important that we read, study, and understand His commands for our sake and the sakes of others we have the potential to reach. Also, by holding sound doctrine, we can refute those who contradict. This reminds me of the topic of conversation on Rick & Bubba this morning. It's long to go into now, but they talked about the difference between discernment and judgment. Very good conversation, and pertinent.
I think it's obvious that those who don't believe in the truth of scripture are scorned in the eyes of God. Honestly, I got a little nervous when I read the part that says "he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words..." because it sounds a little too much like me. But, I think the key difference is that my intent is to refine my faith and grow in the truth of His Word.

Skill Needed, part 2

The word that stuck out to me the most from 2 Timothy 2:15 is "diligent." I think that I lack that persistance in my spiritual life. I rarely spend time reading God's word or lifting up deep prayers and praise. I think God is trying to tell me that the way I live now is not the life He has called me to; He wants me to be a deep person.
a. God's Word is final, it is the ultimate authority, it is law. Like any other law of the land, we must revere, honor, and follow it.
b. Going back to "diligence," God demands that we pursue His commands, that we know them. We can't possibly be approved or worthy in the eyes of God if we haven't invested the time to know what He commands.
c. This is a soap box topic for me. To be brief, we must "speak the truth in love." We must discern what is right and what is wrong. We must provide gentle correction with compassion. We must speak from God's will and not our own impulses or opinions.

Skill Needed, part 1

Let me start out by saying that I am not in the correct frame of mind for this study tonight. Driving home was apparently more draining than I knew. I'm exhausted, and I feel that it's very important to be contemplative and thoughtful when considering these questions. So, I'm going to take a shot at question 4, call it a night, and think about the rest tomorrow.
I think the most important difference between the Old and New Testament is the way God communicates. For the entire Old Testament, God speaks to the patriarchs and prophets and kings, guiding Israel through them. He unveils His will through the Law. However, as we all know, there is something missing from the Israelites' religion; they never get it quite right. So, in the New Testament, God voice is heard precious few times, and rather than send His people the Law, God gives the ultimate sacrifice of atonement. He sends His will to us via His Son. Jesus commands our lives, and He rules us through love. We are saved by grace, not by our works. We can never achieve salvation through a checklist of do's and don't's. We are condemned, death row inmates, if you will, but Jesus takes our place. It is only by His grace and love and mercy that we may have life. And in that sacrifice is the difference between the Old and New Testaments found.

Ungodly Religion

First impression: this question is self-explanatory. The problem with ungodliness is that it is ungodly, without God. It is everything that we as Christians should not be. Also, in giving into these sins, the power of God is denied, refused even. Side note: unfortunately, as I read through the list in 2 Timothy 3, I identified several sins that have root in my life, as well as several that I see in my peers on a regular basis.
I think question 4 is so important to address, because I think it happens all too often. First of all, I think we all know that the Bible is the word and will of God. However, collectively we never spend enough time in it. Instead of letting God speak to us, we listen to other men relate their interpretations. Don't get me wrong, I respect and appreciate preachers, but I think we all know how easy it is to evoke an alternative meaning from God's word by taking things out of context.
Also, I think it is much easier to hear men's teachings. Christianity has never been the easiest route, and God's commandments are not to be taken lightly. It's much more favorable to listen to man. Let's face it, if we were just deciding what sounds easier or more fun, the world's way would always win. Blessedly for us, God's way offers the hope of eternity.

The Final Authority

From the beginning, I can see that this study is going to challenge me. I often feel incompetent when it comes to scripture, and that's a direct result of the fact that I don't immerse myself in His word often enough. It's my job, my charge, my duty to prove myself through proficiency in Bible knowledge, and I'm falling short.
My first thought was of the song we sing at devo (I think it's called The Stand?). There's one particular line that says "Jesus controls my destiny." I think that's a simplified expression of His authority. He is in charge of my life and my future. He is benevolent and provides us grace and mercy when we fail, but His word is the law of my life and eternity.
Whoever rejects God's word is subject to judgment, and not just any judgment, but of your soul's eternal salvation or condemnation. God sent Jesus on His behalf; obviously He would like to see everyone come to Him and be saved. However, the only way to know Him and what He commands is to know His word. And the only way to know His word is to read, study, and meditate on the words that Jesus spoke.
I have too many opinions for my own good, but the example that comes to mind is my own. Once, my friend's dad came to worship service wearing a button-down and khaki shorts. Not exactly the attire you typically see around Beltline Sunday mornings. However, one of our elders proceeded to call him and "request" thay he dress appropriately from now on. First of all, I understand the desire to present yourself well before God, but the Bible does not include a mandatory dress code. I think we as a collective body have to remember that judgment does not belong to us; God has the final say. His authority is definitie and absolute.

beginnings

Though our study officially begins tomorrow, I want to say a few words in anticipation. I hope that God blesses this group and each of us individually, and I have faith that He will. I know that each of you will challenge me, and I hope that I can rise to the occassion. I ask you each to hold me accountable, to challenge me, and to show me God through your eyes from your perspective. I have nothing but high expectations for this group. I know that we are all incredible creations and I am confident that God will bless us with 'deeper convictions'. I am excited to begin this little family and watch us grow through His grace.