Knowing God: Personally, Intimately and Fully
"My
goal is to know him." (Philippians 3:10a)
Jesus said, “I have come that they
may have life and have it in abundance.” (John 10:10b)
He is saying that it is possible to
experience a quality of life that most people cannot imagine. However,
this experience is more than a “burning heart.” It is more than a
momentarily exhilarating emotional storm. It is an invitation to experience a
fullness of life grounded in reality, to know and experience God.
God is the ultimate reality. Charles
Spurgeon, a renowned 19th Century English pastor said, "The highest
science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever
engage our attention is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings,
and the existence of the great God."
God reveals Himself in His inspired
word, the Bible: “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for
teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that
the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy
3:16-17)
God’s fullest revelation of Himself
is in Jesus Christ. Throughout the Bible
we find the good news about Him. After
His resurrection, He was walking with two of His followers, and the Bible says,
“Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted for them the things
concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” (Luke 24:27)
Proverbs 9:10 says, “The fear of the
Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is
understanding.”
When the Apostle Paul wrote to
Christians in Ephesus, he expressed his desire that they might know God: “I
never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. [I pray] that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you a spirit
of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. [I pray] that the eyes of
your heart may be enlightened so you may know what is the hope of His calling,
what are the glorious riches of His inheritance among the saints, and what is
the immeasurable greatness of His power to us who believe, according to the
working of His vast strength.” (Ephesians 1:16-19)
Paul wanted these followers of
Christ to know God personally, intimately and fully.
Knowing God Personally
If you do not know God personally, you are in danger of living and dying without really living. The night before He was betrayed and crucified, Jesus was in prayer. He said, “This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent - Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3)
Speaking to Thomas, one of His disciples, concerning the way to Heaven, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)
In 1 John 5:11-13, the Apostle John was inspired to write: “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn’t have the Son of God does not have life. I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
To know God personally, you must have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. When a shaken Roman jailor asked Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They responded, “Believe on the Lord Jesus.” (Acts 16:30-31)
Concerning Jesus coming into the world, John 1:11-13 says, “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. But to all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:11-13)
Good News
No doubt, you have heard the word “gospel” all of your life. It is a translation of the Greek word euaggelion (yoo-ang-ghel-ee-on), which simply means “good news.” The New Testament begins with four books that we call Gospels. They contain the good news about Jesus Christ.
What is the good news about Jesus? Paul summed it up in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, “That Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”
Your problem, by nature and choice
To understand why this is good news, and to understand the absolute necessity of knowing God personally through a personal relationship with Christ, you must understand the truth about yourself apart from God.
Describing His mission on Planet Earth, Jesus said, “The Son of Man has come to save the lost.” (Matthew 18:11)
By nature, we are all bent toward selfishness and depravity.
We are in rebellion against God; separated from Him. We are lost; spiritually dead. We desperately need to be saved or we will die and spend eternity separated from God. This is a matter of life and death!
In the language of the Bible, we all have a sin nature. This is encoded in our spiritual DNA. King David said, “I was guilty [when I] was born; I was sinful when my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:5)
In the Old Testament, we are told, “there is no one who does not sin.” (1 Kings 8:46)
In the New Testament, we are reminded, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
You are probably familiar with the story of our ancestral parents, Adam and Eve. They were created to know and enjoy God. Surrounded by the beauty of a perfect world, they were to have dominion over all that He had made. They were given freedom of choice, because God wanted a love relationship with them, and love cannot be coerced. They were told that there was only one stipulation: “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)
Immediately, Satan, in the form of a serpent, called God a liar and tempted Man to disobey Him: “He said to the woman, ‘Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?’
“The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’
“’No! You will not die,’ the serpent said to the woman. ‘In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’” (Genesis 3:1-5)
Satan was the first created being to rise up in rebellion against his Creator’s authority and purpose. In Revelation 12:9, he is spoken of as “the ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the one who deceives the whole world.”
Jesus said, “He was a murderer from the beginning and has not stood in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of liars.” (John 8:44)
Peter warned, “Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
“Satan” literally means, “adversary.” He is a fallen angelic being. He is at war with God. Unlike the “dark force” of Star Wars fiction, he is not a threat to God Himself. He is supernatural, but he is not all-powerful. He does not know everything. Known as “the ruler of the demons” (Luke 11:15), he has multitudes of fallen angels who are at his command. In league with them, unable to touch God, he strikes at Man, the object of God’s love.
Paul warned, “Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” (Ephesians 6:12)
Man believed Satan’s lie. He disobeyed God. By believing Satan, he joined him in calling God a liar. By willfully disobeying God, he joined Satan in becoming the enemy of God. His relationship with God was broken.
Yes, Man’s spiritual eyes were opened, but not to cleanness, purity, peace, purpose and harmony. Instead, he saw himself naked, afraid, ashamed, and in discord with God and His purpose. He had turned his back on God and gone away from Him into spiritual darkness and lostness. The moment that Man sinned, he began to die.
Physically, thousands of babies are being born with the affliction of sick parents cursing their little bodies with the seed of AIDS. Spiritually, the entire human race, and all of God’s creation, has been infected with the virus of Adam’s rebellion.
Paul was inspired to write, “Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12)
You did not have to learn selfishness. You did not have to learn how to lie. You have a sin nature. The Bible says, “The heart is more deceitful than anything else and desperately sick—who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9)
You are also a sinner by choice.
Isaiah 53:6 says, “We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way.”
Rebellious Man rejects the One True God, and attempts to replace Him with gods that are without life and power. By making himself the enemy of God, Man chooses to be the object of wrath instead of mercy.
Paul describes this in Romans 1:18-25: “For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them. From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse. For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles.
“Therefore God delivered them over in the cravings of their hearts to sexual impurity, so that their bodies were degraded among themselves. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served something created instead of the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”
All of the senseless terrorism, immorality and conflict in our world are the result of man’s determination to go his own way without God. The Bible says, “As a result, people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20b)
Sin has put you in conflict with yourself and other people. Sin has separated you from God now. Sin can separate you from God forever. The Bible warns, “The wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23a)
Death is the absence of life. You can only experience real life by knowing God personally. To die without a personal relationship with Him means that you will spend eternity separated from Him.
Today, we are surrounded with warning labels. Seat belts and airbags are required equipment in automobiles. Airports must thoroughly screen all passengers in an attempt to protect us from terrorism. From childhood, we are taught to look both ways before crossing a street. We go to great lengths to protect our physical lives. However, this life will soon end. What then?
Jesus warned, “Don’t fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28)
Is there any hope?
A story is told of a submarine that was disabled on the floor of the ocean off the East Coast of North America. Since the supply of oxygen was limited, a desperate rescue operation was quickly mounted. As divers pressed around the hull of the stricken vessel, they heard tapping from inside. It was the dots and dashes of the Morse code. Over and over, a sailor was asking, “Is there any hope?”
It is impossible to see the tragic result of our rebellion against God without asking “Is there any hope?”
God’s
answer is a resounding, “Yes!”
God has built a bridge across the chasm that separates you from Him. He has made a way for you to come home and be reconciled to Him. Forgiveness is possible. A restored relationship is possible. A new beginning is possible.
The Only Way
An artist painted a picture of a young man engaged in a chess game with a satanic figure. His opponent was the personification of cunning and evil. His eyes gleamed with delight as he observed the bewilderment of what he perceived as a defeated challenger. The painting was titled “Checkmate” and hanged in a public gallery. One day, a great chess master stood before it for a long time. He studied the conquered countenance of the young man. He saw that Satan was confident of victory. Then he pondered the placement of the pawns and men on the board. His mind searched for a move that would allow the young player’s king to escape check. Suddenly, his voice rang through the gallery, “Young man, there is a move, but there is only one!”
This is God’s message for you. He wants to forgive your sin and deliver you from its bondage. He wants you to be justified and righteous. He wants you to know Him personally. He wants you to experience a fullness of life. However, He is telling you that there is only one way. Jesus said, “I am the way.” (John 14:6a)
How can Jesus say such an audacious thing? How and why is He the only way to know God personally?
First, Jesus is God. John began his good news about Jesus by writing, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:1-5)
Secondly, He became Man. Paul wrote to the church in Philippi that, “Christ Jesus…existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:5-8)
2000 years ago, God invaded human history. He came down to walk among those who were in rebellion against Him, to do for them what they could not do for themselves. He humbled Himself and, for 33 years, He lived as a man in a faith relationship with the Father. The most familiar verse in the Bible succinctly tells this good news: “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Jesus did not come to be a great teacher, a good example, a physician or merely a worker of miracles. He came to be, as John the Baptist described Him, “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)
Jesus was without sin, but He took your sin upon Himself. Hundreds of years before His birth, the prophet, Isaiah, saw this: “We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished Him for the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)
When Jesus was nailed to a Roman cross, He was dying for you. He was suffering in your place. He was bearing your guilt. He was paying the price for your deliverance from the power and penalty of sin. God the Father was judging your sin in His Son. The Bible says, “He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
When Jesus had suffered all the pain the human body can endure, when His blood had been shed for you, He cried, “It is finished!” (John 19:30)
God’s great work of redemption was finished. Sinful men thought that Jesus was finished, but they were wrong. He was raised from the dead and is wonderfully alive today.
When women, who were followers of Jesus, went to His tomb on Sunday morning, after His death on Friday, they were stunned to be confronted by an angel. “’Don’t be alarmed,’ he told them. ‘You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has been resurrected! He is not here!” (Mark 16:5-6)
Because He is alive, we can experience full and eternal life in Him. Peter wrote that God “has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)
An old hymn says, “Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain - He washed it white as snow.”
This is why there is only one Way to know God personally. There is Hope; His name is, “Jesus.”
In Ephesians 1:7, the Bible says, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.”
Your Response
How can you respond to Christ and experience redemption from the bondage and penalty of sin? First, if you are sensing your sinfulness and desiring to know God personally, you must understand that God is taking the initiative in drawing you to Himself. It is not our nature to seek God. The Bible says, “There is no one who does good. God looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is wise and who seeks God. Everyone has turned aside; they have all become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one.” (Psalm 53:1-3)
It is God who is seeking you. When you realize this, you must not take it lightly. Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.” (John 6:44)
Grace and Faith
You do not deserve it, but God’s unmerited love is being directed toward you. This is called grace. The Bible says, “By grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift - not from works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ.”
God is the only adequate object for your faith. Believe Him. Take Him at His word. Stake everything on His faithfulness. You will not be disappointed.
Psalm 100:5 declares, “For the Lord is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations.”
Jesus has accomplished all that is necessary for your salvation. You cannot add anything to what He has done. There is no work that you can do, there is no ritual that can be performed, there is no price that you can pay, there is no pilgrimage that you can take, and there is no sacrifice that you can make. The only thing you can bring to God is your burden of sin. All that you can do is surrender yourself, as a guilty sinner, to Christ, trusting Him as your personal Lord and Savior!
As a young woman, Charlotte Elliott was convicted of her innate sinfulness and wanted to come to Christ. When she asked how she could do this, a wise counselor suggested, “Come just as you are.”
After committing her life to Christ, she wrote: “Just as I am, without one plea, But that Thy blood was shed for me, And that Thou biddst me come to Thee - O Lamb of God, I come, I come!”
The Bible concludes with this invitation: “Both the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ Anyone who hears should say, ‘Come!’ And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift.” (Revelation 22:17)
Jesus promised, “Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never cast out.” (John 6:37)
If you
have read this far, you can be confident that God is inviting you to receive
the free gifts of forgiveness and eternal life that were purchased with the
blood of Christ.
Repentance
Jesus began His preaching ministry by saying, “Repent and believe in the good news!” (Mark 1:15b)
Repentance means to change your mind and to turn around. God is causing you to see yourself in the mirror of His word, the Bible. He is convicting you of sin. He is warning you of the consequences of going into eternity without accepting Christ as your only Hope.
Drawn by the Holy Spirit, you can stop right now, allow God to tear away your attitudes of pride and self-sufficiency, and turn from selfishness and rebellion toward Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Let go of your old life and receive His life in exchange. He said, “Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me and the gospel will save it.” (Mark 8:35)
He asked, “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? For what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mark 8:36-37, New American Standard Bible)
Concerning Christ, you have these promises:
“To all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:12-13)
“If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses, resulting in salvation. Now the Scripture says, No one who believes on Him will be put to shame, for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:9-13)
Those words were originally written to people who were required to acknowledge that the Roman Caesar was supreme, the only one worthy of their praise and submission. They were required to publicly declare their allegiance to him; to say, “Caesar is Lord.” The early followers of Jesus, who refused to declare that the government ruler was divine, were severely persecuted, became social outcasts and were often cruelly put to death.
It was no small thing for a person to turn in submission to Christ and openly confess, “Jesus is Lord!”
To call Jesus “Lord” means you are turning from allegiance to, and dependence on, anyone or anything that you have trusted for forgiveness, worth and rightness. You are turning from any material thing or pursuit that enslaves your affections. You are turning from every ritual, superstition, good work, saint or spirit. You are turning from self to Christ. You are trusting only Him for your salvation. You are willing to openly confess your commitment to Him. You are ready to follow and obey Him.
If you are ready to acknowledge Jesus as Lord, you can pray in repentance and submission and this can be the greatest moment of your entire life!
Remember, you will not be saved by the magic of words, or by the rush of an ecstatic experience. Christ is your only Hope. He alone can save you.
Prayer is not simply repeating words. You can say mere words and nothing will happen. Prayer is opening your heart to God, crying out to Him. Do not be overly concerned about your words; He listens to your heart. Jesus told religious leaders who were trying to impress Him with their self-righteousness and money, “God knows your hearts. For what is highly admired by people is revolting in God’s sight.” (Luke 16:15)
Understanding this, here is a suggested prayer that you can pray from your heart:
"Lord Jesus Christ, I confess that I am a guilty and helpless
sinner. There is nothing that I can do to save myself, but I have heard the
good news about what You have done for me. Thank You for dying in my place. I
rejoice that You were raised from the dead. I am turning from sin to You. I
submit to You and acknowledge that You are Lord. I am surrendering the control
of my life to You. I am turning from every other allegiance. Right now, I trust
only You as my personal Lord and Savior. In Your name I pray. Amen.”
If that is the cry of your heart to Christ, welcome to the family of God!
Your New Life in Christ
When you called Jesus “Lord” and surrendered your life to Him, a miracle took place. The Holy Spirit came to live in you, implanting Christ’s life in you. Your old person died and you became a new person. Spiritually, you were born into God’s family. You are a child of God. Your new life is eternal; you are secure in God’s hand. Now, you know God personally!
Take personally the message of these passages from the Bible:
Jesus said, “Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:7-8)
“To all who did receive Him (Jesus), He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:12-13)
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Paul said, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure that He planned in Him for the administration of the days of fulfillment - to bring everything together in the Messiah, both things in heaven and things on earth in Him.
“In Him we were also made His inheritance, predestined according to the purpose of the One who works out everything in agreement with the decision of His will, so that we who had already put our hope in the Messiah might bring praise to His glory. In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation - in Him when you believed - were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. He is the down payment of our inheritance, for the redemption of the possession, to the praise of His glory.” (Ephesians 1:11-14)
Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish - ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.” (John 10:27-30)
Is this real?
Soon, you will ask yourself, “How can I know that this is really happening. How can I know that my sins are forgiven and that I have eternal life in Christ?”
You will probably be tempted to seek assurance in how you feel, but this is deceptive and dangerous. As a follower of Christ, you are not immune to the adverse circumstances and dangers of this world. Christians can suffer financial reverses. They can lose their jobs. Their hearts can be broken by family strife. They can be stricken with sickness. They can become the victims of natural disaster, accidents, violent crime, terrorism or war. Their commitment to Christ will bring them into conflict with the world’s value system. They can be misunderstood and suffer persecution because they are submissive to His Lordship.
Jesus warned His followers: “Because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of it, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you: ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will also keep yours. But they will do all these things to you on account of My name, because they don’t know the One who sent Me.” (John 15:19-21)
Jesus said, “You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” (John 16:33b)
Your feelings will ride the roller coaster of circumstances. Do not trust them to determine the reality of your salvation. Trust God. Stake everything on His faithfulness. Believe the promises of His word. If you are trusting anything that you or anyone else can do for your salvation, you have reason to doubt. If you are trusting only Christ for your salvation, you can have absolute assurance.
Remember
the promise of 1 John 5:11-13: “And this is the testimony: God has given us
eternal life, and this life is in His Son. The one who has the Son has
life. The one who doesn’t have the Son of God does not have life. I have
written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so
that you may know that you have eternal life.”
After
the Apostle Paul surrendered to Christ’s Lordship, he was beaten, stoned,
suffered shipwreck, imprisonment and constant opposition. He wrote this
to the persecuted believers in Rome: “As it is written: Because of You we
are being put to death all day long; we are counted as sheep to be
slaughtered. No, in all these things we are more than victorious through
Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor
angels nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor
powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will have the power
to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!”
(Romans 8:36-39)
Knowing God Intimately
Now that you know God personally, He wants you to know Him intimately.
What should you do?
First, confess openly that you are committed to Christ, that He has captured your heart, that He is your Lord and Savior.
When my wife and I were married, we announced it to everyone that we knew. During the marriage ceremony, she slipped a gold ring onto the third finger of my left hand. That was over 50 years ago, and that ring has seldom been removed. It tells everyone that I have entered into a bond with her that is paramount to any other human relationship.
It is contradictory to call Jesus “Lord” and insist on a secret relationship with Him. He said, “Everyone who will acknowledge Me before men, I will also acknowledge him before My Father in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32-33)
Today, openly acknowledge Jesus as your Lord by telling someone that you have committed your life to Him.
Baptism
Spiritually, baptism is similar to putting on the wedding ring at marriage. But, it is much more. It is a public testimony that you have died to self and been raised to new life in Christ. It is a picture of life out of death.
“Baptize” is an anglicized Greek verb baptizo [bap-tid-zo]. Its primary meaning is to dip, to immerse or to submerge.
When you are biblically baptized, you are immersed in water and raised up. For those who witness your baptism, this is a vivid picture of your having died to sin and death and been raised to a new, full and eternal life in Christ. It says that He has washed away the stain of your sin; you are now immersed in Him.
Following Jesus’ resurrection, there is no New Testament record of a person acknowledging Him as Lord and not being baptized. When Peter preached the first sermon after the resurrection, “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about 3,000 people were added to them.” (Acts 2:31)
During a journey, Phillip, an early evangelist, shared the good news about Jesus with a government official from Ethiopia: “As they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The eunuch said, ‘Look, there’s water! What would keep me from being baptized?’ [And Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart you may.’ And he replied, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’] Then he ordered the chariot to stop, and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.” (Acts 8:36-38)
Paul was preaching in Corinth and “Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed the Lord, along with his whole household; and many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized.” (Acts 18:8)
Do everything possible to make your baptism a special occasion for sharing the good news about Jesus. Send invitations to everyone you know, just as you would to announce a wedding, a birth or a significant anniversary. Ask family, neighbors, friends, co-workers or classmates to attend. Print copies of your Christian testimony, stating what your life was like before you came to Christ, how you were drawn to Him, and what your life is like since acknowledging Him as Lord. Give these to everyone attending your baptism. Ask the pastor to explain the Gospel and make an appeal for people to come to Christ.
Bible Study
Begin immediately to study the Bible. It is impossible to live a victorious Christian life without knowing God’s word. It has been said that the Bible will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Bible.
As you listen to the radio, watch television, read and talk with other people, you will hear many things regarding God and the Christian life. Be careful. The Bible cautions, “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
Paul warned the Christians in Galatia that “there are some who are troubling you and want to change the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel other than what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! As we have said before, I now say again: if anyone preaches to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!” (Galatians 1:7-9)
Test everything against what the Bible says.
As a young Christian, I was encouraged to memorize Psalm 119:9 & 11, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word…Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” (King James Version)
You will probably find Bible study more meaningful if you are reading from a good modern English translation of the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts. Either The Holman Christian Standard Bible or The New American Standard Bible is a good choice. You will want to select a Bible that has a good concordance. This is an alphabetical index of principal words with their immediate contexts. References within the text, directing you to other relevant passages, are also helpful. As a student, I purchased a copy of The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, co-published by B. B. Kirkbride Bible Co., Inc. and The Zonderzan Corporation. I still keep it close at hand. It has excellent study helps.
A Bible dictionary will help you understand the history, geography, names, and context of the Bible. The Holman Bible Dictionary, published by Homan Bible Publishers, is a good choice.
As you study the Bible, remember that it is a compilation of 66 books written by many men over hundreds of years. All of these writers were inspired by God. The Bible is without error. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
It is the good news about Jesus that gives the Bible its unity. He rebuked religious leaders who failed to understand this: “You don’t have His word living in you, because you don’t believe the One He sent. You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, yet they testify about Me. And you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.” (John 5:38-40)
As you study a passage in the Bible, find answers to these questions:
- Who wrote
this?
- When did he
write it?
- To whom was
he writing?
- What was
the culture in which they lived?
- What were
the circumstances in which they lived?
- Why did he
write this?
- What was
the message for those to whom this was written?
- What is the
relevance of this message today?
- How should
this message be applied to my life?
- What
lessons are to be learned?
- Is there a
command for me to obey?
- Is there a
segment that I should memorize?
Keep a notebook with your study Bible. Record what you discover in your personal Bible study. Take notes as your pastor preaches and teaches. Take notes during group Bible study sessions. Make notes regarding suggested resources for understanding the Bible.
Beginning with one of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke or John) is a good way to start your personal Bible study. You might continue by studying the New Testament books of Acts and Romans, in that progression. Don’t rush. Absorb the word of God.
Rejoice because God has promised to help you understand His word. Jesus told his followers, “I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit—the Father will send Him in My name—will teach you all things and remind you of everything I have told you.” (John 14:25-26)
Prayer
Bible study and prayer go hand in hand. Your time alone with God should be a conversation with Him. He speaks to you from the Bible, and you speak to Him in prayer. This is why it is good to pray with your Bible and notebook open before you. If you are going to know God intimately, prayer is essential. Immediately, establish three things: a TIME for prayer, a PLACE for prayer and a PLAN for prayer.
A TIME for prayer:
When should you spend quality time alone with God in prayer? Any time is better than no time, but it is better to give God the best time. The best time is in the morning. Jesus is our example: “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He got up, went out, and made His way to a deserted place. And He was praying there.” (Mark 1:35)
A PLACE for prayer:
Wherever you are (at home, in a hotel, as a guest in someone else’s home, etc.), establish a place that becomes the right place at the right time. At any other time, it may be a place without significance, but when it is time to meet God, this is the place for prayer. What qualifies this as the right place? Again, Jesus is our example (Mark 1:35b). It should be a solitary place; a place where you will not be distracted.
A PLAN for prayer:
Without a plan, there is a tendency for your prayer times to be unfocused and repetitious. Many believers have found a plan based on the acrostic ACTS to be effective.
A - ADORATION & PRAISE
In addition to your Bible and journal, include a hymnal in your devotional time tools. Sing praises to God. If you play a musical instrument, you might play it as an expression of your worship. Just as a husband and wife give themselves to each other in exuberant celebration of their love, abandon yourself to the Lover of your soul. This is an intimate time when, without restraint, you can pour out your whole being to God in praise and worship!
Psalm 47:1 describes exuberant worship: “Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with a jubilant cry.”
There is also a place for quietness in worship. A familiar Psalm paints a beautiful picture of peaceful stillness in God’s presence: “He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.” (Psalm 23:2)
C - CONFESSION
When you wait before God, reflecting on His holiness and righteousness, you will become very sensitive to any sin in your life.
It is important to discern between the accusations of the devil and the conviction of the Holy Spirit. In Revelation 12:10, Satan is called “the accuser of our brothers.”
Because you are committed to Christ, Satan hates you. He seeks to discourage and defeat you. His accusations are general and hurtful. He will tell you that you are no good, that you never get anything right, that you are never going to be able to understand the Bible and live victoriously.
God loves you. He wants to encourage and strengthen you. Because of this, the Holy Spirit is always specific when He convicts you of sin. Don’t pray, “Forgive me of my many sins.” Be specific. If God has revealed something that is hindering your fellowship with Him, name that in your confession. As a believer, you have this promise in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
T - THANKSGIVING
Thanksgiving is not the same as adoration and praise. Just as you are specific in confession, be specific in thanksgiving. An old hymn says, “Count your blessings, Name them one by one; Count your blessings, See what God hath done.”
S - SUPPLICATION
Two things are involved in supplication, intercession and petition.
- Intercession
is
praying for other people. It is difficult and necessary work. It is vital
to world evangelism and missions.
Paul pleaded with the Ephesian believers to pray for him. He said, “Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel. For this I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I might be bold enough in Him to speak as I should.” (Ephesians 6:19-20)
When God is ready to do a great work, He calls people to prayer. The work of the prayer warrior is crucial to any Christian enterprise. Through intercessory prayer, you can participate in world missions and evangelism!
During the 19th Century, Charles Finney was used of God to lead thousands of people to Christ in the northeastern United States. A man called Father Nash seldom heard Finney preach, but he took a room wherever the evangelist went and gave himself entirely to intercessory prayer. Today, his grave is marked with a simple stone. On it is carved, “Father Nash, helper of Finney.” - Petition is bringing
your own needs to God. The Bible encourages you to do this. Philippians
4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer
and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Occasionally, you might want to try writing your prayers. Write prayers in your spiritual journal using the ACTS plan.
This is an excellent way to be alone in a crowd. You may be on a crowded airplane, sharing living space with another person, or riding with someone else in an automobile; you can still give God your full attention by quietly pouring out your heart to Him on paper. If you do this, you can anticipate spending longer in prayer and experiencing a breakthrough in praise and worship.
Christian Fellowship
A vital and exciting aspect of being a child of God is fellowship with other Christians. You cannot live the Christian life in isolation. If you attempt this, it will stunt your spiritual growth, limit your awareness of God’s plan to reach a lost world, rob you of encouragement, and cultivate introspection, selfishness, and depression. You will be more vulnerable to temptation and false teaching.
Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “Let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other.”
Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)
“Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)
Consistently put yourself in the way of blessing by meeting with other Christians for worship, Bible study, fellowship and service activities
Ministry
A pastor was asked “How many of your church members are ministers?”
He replied, “All of them.”
This is certainly God’s intention for every one of His children. One definition of “ministry” is “a person or thing through which something is accomplished.”
There is much that God wants to accomplish through you. When you were born into His family, the Holy Spirit gifted you for ministry. You may not preach or teach, but there is an important work for which you have been spiritually equipped.
1 Peter 4:10-11 says, “Based on the gift they have received, everyone should use it to serve others, as good managers of the varied grace of God. If anyone speaks, [his speech should be] like the oracles of God; if anyone serves, [his service should be] from the strength God provides, so that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”
Evangelism
Paul admonished young Timothy to “do the work of an evangelist.” (2 Timothy 4:5b)
“Evangelist” is from the Greek noun euaggelistes (yoo-ang-ghel-is-tace). It means someone who brings good news. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (Eleventh Edition) defines an evangelist as “an enthusiastic advocate.”
In other words, an evangelist is someone who has discovered something good and he cannot keep quiet about it. He is a satisfied customer, and he wants everyone to have what he has.
A Christian has an added incentive to gossip about Jesus because he has the Holy Spirit living in him. Jesus said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak whatever He hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you.” (John 16:13-15)
It is the nature of the Holy Spirit to glorify Christ. He motivates and empowers Christians to talk about their Lord and Savior. Jesus promised, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses…to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
A Spirit-controlled believer will do the work of an evangelist.
Even after Jesus’ early followers had been beaten for teaching that He has been raised from the dead, the Bible tells us that “every day in the temple complex, and in various homes, they continued teaching and proclaiming the good news that the Messiah is Jesus.” (Acts 5:42)
Persecution of Christians became so severe in Jerusalem that they were scattered as refugees throughout the known world. The Bible says, “So those who were scattered went on their way proclaiming the message of good news.” (Acts 8:4)
When the evangelists, Paul and Silas, came to Thessalonica, the Jewish leaders incited a mob against them, complaining, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too.” (Acts 17:6)
While the Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:11 that God has specifically called and gifted some people to be evangelists, evangelism is more a matter of obedience than the exercising of a gift.
Here are some things you can do to become an enthusiastic
advocate for Christ:
- Be aware
of the people around you and sensitive to their needs.
- Study
personal evangelism methods. Learn to share effectively the
good news about Jesus. If you have found the right church, it will offer
evangelism training and make good materials available to you. Ask your
pastor for this help.
- Carry a
list of at least seven people whom you know who have not acknowledged
Jesus as Lord. Pray for them daily. Be ready to share your Christian
testimony with them.
- Buy a
small New Testament, one that you can easily carry in a pocket or
purse. Mark and memorize these verses: Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23,
Romans 5:6 & 8, and Romans 10:9, 10 & 13. This has been called the
Roman Road. During the First Century, all roads led to Rome. The biblical Roman Road can lead a
person to Christ.
- Carry booklets
such as Four Spiritual Laws, which explains how to become a
Christian.
- Expect
positive results. Remember, it is your business to know whether
or not a person knows Christ as his or her personal Lord and Savior.
Remember that the Holy Spirit is going before you, preparing the hearts
and minds of those people with whom God wants you to share. Trust Him to
equip and use you. Be alert and sensitive. Opportunities to gossip about
Jesus are everywhere!
As you go through your everyday life sharing the good news about Jesus, here are two challenging and encouraging passages from the Bible:
First, concerning Jesus: “When He saw the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were weary and worn out, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.’” (Matthew 9:36-38)
Finally, concerning you and me: “We are ambassadors for Christ; certain that God is appealing through us, we plead on Christ’s behalf, ‘Be reconciled to God.’” (2 Corinthians 5:20)
Knowing God Fully
If you are confessing Christ openly
as your Lord, growing in knowledge of the Bible, spending quality time alone
with God in prayer, maintaining fellowship with other Christians in a
biblically sound church, and allowing the Holy Spirit to share the good news
about Jesus through you, you can be confident of knowing God intimately.
What does it mean to know God
fully?
Paul told the believers in Corinth,
“You are in Christ Jesus, who for us became wisdom from God, as well as
righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, in order that, as it is written:
The one who boasts must boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31)
“Sanctification” is from the Greek
word hagiasmos (hag-ee-as-mos). It means consecration, purification. It
means that, in Christ, God has cleansed you and set you apart as one
dedicated to Him. You are clothed in Christ and are justified on the basis
of His imparted righteousness. He is in the process of making you holy and
perfect.
1 Peter 1:16-17 says, “As the One
who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; for it is
written, Be holy, because I am holy.”
Jesus said, “Be perfect, therefore,
as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:8)
Obviously, we are not now perfect.
The Apostle Paul, one of the greatest spiritual giants in Christian history
said, “I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do:
forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my
goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians
3:13-14)
Sanctification - being set apart in
dedication to God, being made holy and perfect - begins the moment you turn in
repentance and acknowledge Jesus as Lord. God plants a hunger in you to know
Him fully. He is not finished with you. You are a work in progress.
Paul told the believers in Philippi,
“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who is
working in you, [enabling you] both to will and to act for His good purpose.”
(Philippians 2:12-13)
This was written to Christians, so
it is obvious that Paul is not telling them to work to earn their salvation.
That is secure in Christ.
Dr. Warren Wiersbe, a trustworthy
Bible teacher, says this concerning the Greek verb katergazomai (kat-er-gad-zom-ahee), that has been translated, “work
out:” “In Paul’s day it was also used for ‘working a mine,’ that is, getting
out of the mine all the valuable ore possible; or ‘working a field’ so as to
get the greatest harvest possible.”*
In other words we are to be all that
we can be in Christ. It is the purpose of God for us to grow into Christ
likeness. He has determined that we “be conformed to the image of His Son.”
(Romans 8:29)
Paul said, “[My goal] is to know Him
and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being
conformed to His death.” (Philippians 3:10)
As the day came near when Paul would
be executed because he could not keep quiet about Jesus, he wrote a letter to
his son in the ministry, Timothy. He said, “I have fought the good fight, I
have finished the race, I have kept the faith. In the future, there is reserved
for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will
give me on that day, and not only to me, but to all those who have loved His appearing.”
(2 Timothy 4:7-8)
One day soon, you will pass from
this life into the literal presence of your Lord, Jesus Christ: “For we know
that if our earthly house, a tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a
house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens…And the One who prepared us
for this very thing is God, who gave us the Spirit as a down payment.” (2
Corinthians 5:1& 5)
Jesus gave us this sure hope: “Your
heart must not be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father’s
house are many dwelling places; if not, I would have told you. I am going away
to prepare a place for you. If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will
come back and receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also.” (John
14:1-3)
One day we will be forever in His
presence, and we will know Him fully. In the meantime, He is preparing us for
that wonderful day. In light of this, we have this inspired directive from Paul
in Romans 12:1-2, “Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present
your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your
spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and
perfect will of God.”
Do this and you will know God personally,
intimately and fully.
Here are six exciting things you
should do to grow in knowledge, fellowship and service with believers in a
Bible preaching New Testament church:
1.
Be faithful in worship services.
2.
Be a good steward of your God-given
resources by giving through your church, beginning with the tithe (10% of your
gross income).
3.
Enroll as a faithful member of a church
sponsored Bible study group.
4.
Participate faithfully in your
church’s evangelism ministries.
5.
Explore service opportunities
available through your church’s men’s and women’s ministries, music programs,
youth and children’s ministries, etc.
* Wiersbe, W. W. (1996, c1989). The
Bible exposition commentary . "An exposition of the New Testament
comprising the entire 'BE' series" -- Jkt. (Php 2:12). Wheaton, Ill.:
Victor Books
Unless otherwise noted, all
Scripture quotations are from the Holman
Christian Standard Bible® Copyright
© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville,
Tennessee
Copyright © 2007, 2009 Wayne Bristow All rights reserved
