Focus Bible Church Tauranga | Author: Lincoln

Oct 19 2022

7 – Growing a right conscience

By Lincoln / New Christian Helps / 9 minutes of reading

What is the conscience?
Conscience is part of our humanness, and everyone was gifted with it by the Lord at birth.

However, God has entrusted the maintenance of our conscience to us. In Romans 2:15, Paul explains the two-sided operation of conscience. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them. Therefore, cconscience judges our thoughts and actions by the highest, or strongest, standards we know.

When we violate, or go against our conscience, it condemns us, triggering feelings of shame, regret, anxiety, and even fear. When we follow, or obey our conscience, it commends us, bringing joy, peace, self-respect, and a sense of well-being.

The role of conscience is NOT to teach us moral or spiritual values, but to hold us accountable to the highest, or most pronounced values that we have. These high values may, or may not, be right or good. But they are the values which will fire the conscience into action.

Conscience can be informed by culture, tradition, and society’s values in addition to God’s truth. This means, the standards society holds us to may not be God’s standards. For example, in Romans 14:14, Paul says, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean.

This is not because God says any particular food is unclean, but because the misinformed conscience tells them that it is unclean (see also 1 Corinthians 8:4-7). Because our conscience can be directed by the world’s many, and often contradicting views, it is important to have a conscience that is educated by the truth of God’s Word. Error, tradition, human wisdom, philosophy, and wrong moral influences can all wrongly educate and even cripple conscience (Colossians 2:6-8, 20-23).

This means conscience is educated through all sources of information, good, bad, and everything in between. The standards conscience holds us to may not necessarily be biblical or even good standards. Conscience is NOT the voice of the Holy Spirit, but it can, on occasions, be fired to levels of Holy Spirit conviction. It’s possible for our conscience to become so insensitive, or even crippled, that we may become ruled by hypocrisy (1 Timothy 4:1-2; Titus 1:15). This occurs when a life becomes dominated by sin.

How efficiently our Christian conscience works is determined by two things.
First, the frequency that we take in and agree with God’s truth from His written Word. This is right education of conscience.
Second, by the degree to which we obey God’s truth and keep ourselves clean from sin.

Following are a few ways in which conscience operates:
Jeremiah 17:1           Conscience REMEMBERS and writes a record of wrongs in our hearts.

Romans 2:15             Conscience ACCUSSES us when we are guilty and DEFENDS us when we are innocent.

2 Corinthians 1:12    Conscience is a WITNESS, testifying either for us or against us.

1 John 3:19-21          Conscience is a JUDGE, condemning or vindicating us begore God.

1 Samuel 24:5           Conscience fires MEMORY, inflicting grief when we discover fault in ourselves.

Society’s Weak Views Can Infect Conscience
The world has a desensitised conscience towards God and His truth (Romans 2:14-15; Psalm 36:1-2), meaning the world is not able to educate our conscience accurately with truth. At best, the worldly person compares itself with others and often concludes that it is not as bad as others. This is NOT a correct way for conscience to operate. Whereas the believer compares themselves with the law of God’s Word (James 1:25) and with the character of Jesus Christ. This creates a more accurate platform from which our evaluation can fire conscience into action.

As believers, when our conscience triggers sorrow because of a wrong we have done, the correct response to this guilt is repentance and seeking forgiveness. A conscience trained by truth seeks to expose sin for what it really is – SIN (Ephesians 5:11). Whereas a worldly person prefers a more superficial approach, ignoring or silencing signals of guilt, which leads to spiritual death because sin is never dealt with (2 Corinthians 7:10). Therefore, worldly sorrow does not lead to repentance, rather, it leads to denial and justification of the wrong done and never gets cleansed (Proverbs 28:13; Mark 2:17).

Some deny the conscience freedom to operate and seek treatment for the guilt rather than repenting of their sin which may have caused the guilt. Instead of confession, repentance, reconciliation, and forgiveness, they turn to denial, self-justification, blame shifting, self-forgiveness, or anything else that could silence the conscience. This practice flows from the idea that mankind is inherently good, and just happens to occasionally do wrong. Many deny they are sinful because they see only the big crimes as sin.

Typically, today’s world doesn’t like the word sin to enter it’s thinking. Instead, sin is replaced with words like error, mistakes, superstition, or delusion. People suffering guilt from doing wrong are often regarded as victims of some past or current dilemma. This approach seeks to justify and downplay wrong behaviour as an appropriate response to being wronged by others.

Simply excusing sin away or thinking of it as an impairment or addiction fails to deal with the seriousness of what a truth trained conscience is warning of. It also fails to accept the deadly consequences of sin which is death (Romans 6:23). In this scenario, a rebellious attitude may get falsely labelled as a medical or mental health disorder. Many of our day-to-day wrong choices act out our heart’s desires, which are often our sinful desires waring within us (James 4:1-3).

God’s response to this:
1 Samuel 5:20           Woe to those who call evil good and good evil…

1 John 1:10                If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives.

Romans 14:12           …each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Sin’s effect on an unbeliever’s conscience
The world has many people who deny God’s existence and subsequently their own sinfulness. If people can’t or won’t see their sin for what it is, they will not be able to apply the only remedy God has provided for them (Mark 2:17).

Romans 1:20 and Psalm 19:1-6 tell us that God has made His existence plainly evident to everyone so that mankind is without excuse. When people choose to ignore their awareness, or conscience of God, God allows their thinking to become foolish and futile (Romans 1:21-22; Psalm 14:1).

Notice in Romans 1:18-32 how God’s judgement works in the lives of people who refuse to listen to the truth God put in their hearts/conscience. God’s judgment appears in three progressively worsening stages. The damage a person does against his own conscience is God’s immediate judgement against them.

In verses 23-24, because they worship images resembling man and animals, God gives them over to sexually immoral relationships.
In verses 25-27, because they continued in sexual immorality while under the pretence of man-made religion, God gives them over to shameful lusts, that is, homosexuality.
Finally, in verses 28-32, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gives them over to a totally depraved mind. They are now totally controlled by the sin they love. God’s judgement is active within them through their evil desires and behaviour, which they love.

Read Ecclesiastes 11:9 and James 1:14-15. List below the consequences of simply doing what you want without God?

Of mankind’s own natural ability, a non-Christian is not able to respond to their conscience about the existence of God in a way that would express genuine faith in Jesus Christ. For this to happen, the Holy Spirit needs to get involved, stimulating faith and repentance (Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 2:25). Although humans have a conscience about God, the inescapable consequences of being dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1) means they are helpless without God’s intervention. The fact is, it takes much more than human conscience to move a sinner, who is happy in spiritual darkness, to recognise and respond to the light of Christ (John 3:18-21).

Cleansing the conscience
When we believe that Jesus died in our place on the cross, taking the judgement for our sin, God grants us salvation. Consequently, our hearts are sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience towards Him (Hebrews 10:19-22). The sprinkling spoken of there is the spiritual cleansing by the blood of Christ, that is, His life being sacrificed in death on our behalf on the cross (Hebrews 9:14).

Despite enormous effort, the Old Testament animal sacrifices could not take away the worshipper’s guilty conscience (Hebrews 9:9-10, 10:1-4). This is because the law was designed to remind people of the high cost of sin and to supply their conscience with the knowledge needed to work correctly in identifying sin (Romans 3:19-20).

Now, through faith in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross, God cleanses our conscience perfectly through His cleansing and forgiveness of our sins. This is because Christ paid the death penalty we deserved (Colossians 1:19-22; 1 Peter 2:24). Not only do we get our sins forgiven, but we are implanted (imputed) with God’s righteousness when we believe (Romans 4:22-24; Philippians 3:9). Because of this, God declares us innocent, and He receives us as righteous (Romans 8:33-34). This is our new position in Christ; washed, regenerated, innocent, and righteous.

Even though we enjoy a new standing before God in Christ, we are still responsible for maintaining our right living, ensuring our practice matches our position in Christ. And it is our conscience which plays an important role in this day-to-day part of Christian living. We educate our conscience through God’s Word. We also check the correctness of our beliefs through prayer, Bible study, and accountability to more mature Christians, then we listen to conscience. A rightly educated conscience will warn us with guilt of sin and affirm us of right behaviour with peace and joy.

It’s important to keep our conscience clear by dealing with sin that causes guilt as it occurs. Through confession and turning from sin will reset our conscience. Similarly, we should acknowledge when conscience confirms our right behaviour by praising God for His work within us.

As wonderful as conscience is, it is not a faultless mechanism, as it works with our deceitful hearts and can get caught in all kinds of traps. In the grace of God, He has provided for our safe standing before Him even when our conscience either misbehaves, or we fail to respond correctly.

When we sin, we have one who speaks to God the Father in our defence – Jesus Christ, who is our righteous one (1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 7:23-25). This does not mean that Christians can deliberately continue in sin while maintaining a clear conscience (Romans 6:1-2, 15-18; Psalm 32:1-5). No, and God’s children should not procrastinate over clearing a guilty conscience (Act 24:16). Act as soon as you become aware conscience is speaking. Sin must be dealt with quickly, otherwise your conscience will become hardened (Hebrews 3:13). Denied sin signals dulls the conscience. It leads to us falling under the slavery of sin more and more, until the conscience becomes desensitised and corrupted.

Conscience plays an important role in relationships also. If you allow your Bible educated conscience to guide your relationships, they will flow much more smoothly. Forgiveness will happen, offenses will be avoided, hurts will be reconciled, and wrongs will be put right (Numbers 5:6-7; Proverbs 6:30-31; Matthew 5:23-24; 6:14-15; Luke 19:8; Philemon :18-19).

To sum up, conscience is a brilliant part of life gifted by God and only Scripture can rightly educate our conscience (John 17:17; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Let’s choose to cultivate our conscience according to God’s Word and we will enjoy the blessings while He will be honoured.

Feel free to check out other resources at focusbiblechurch.com
If you would like to ask a question, please use the “Contact Us” page on our web site, https://focusbiblechurch.com/contact-us/

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Oct 19 2022

6 – Healthy relationships

By Lincoln / New Christian Helps / 11 minutes of reading

God is a god of relationships. From beginning to end, the Bible speaks of relationships; the good, the bad, and everything in between. And, throughout human history, we see God’s purposes for humanity being worked out through relationships. Therefore, it’s understandable that the Bible instructs us to be imitators of God, as beloved children (Ephesians 5:1). As God’s children, we can live His grace through our relationships as we assimilate God’s character.

The phrase “one another” appears approximately 90 times in the New Testament, showing us that God considers Christian relationships to be a high priority. Relationships, especially with fellow believers, are the most revealing disclosure of our relationship with God. The apostle Paul explains in Colossians 3:12-13a, that collectively and individually, we are to put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³ bearing with one another. Again, we see that our vertical relationship with God guides the nature of our horizontal relationships and serves as a template for Christian character and relationship development.

As believers in Jesus, we can positively impact the relationships that exist around us. As we are transformed in attitudes, beliefs, and behaviour, this makes an important statement for Jesus Christ to others. We could be the person who introduces someone to Jesus, and ultimately directs them on a path to salvation and a relationship with God.

So, how do we go about living an impactful life that pleases God and influences others towards Jesus?
The answer comes as we grow to know God through His Word; then, we live His character through our lives by the strength of His Holy Spirit.This requires Bible study, a soft-hearted attitude towards learning, and a self-sacrificing love for God that chooses to love others with the love of Jesus.

Let’s consider just a few essentials for healthy relationships.

Seek to know God better in your friendships
Psalm 73:28 But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all your works.
When we experience a close walk with the Lord, and we feel the safety of the relationship with Him, we are part of something unmistakable. It’s only natural that we would want to talk to others about this major shift in life. Obviously, the people who will understand your closeness with God best will be other believers. However, we should maintain friendships with our non-Christian friends and family as you will be the vehicle God uses to communicate His love and truth to them.

Psalm 22:26 …those who seek him shall praise the LORD…
It’s a fact, those who genuinely seek to know the Lord will be those who praise Him. Their love for Him will flow through appreciation which will look for ways to be expressed.

Psalm 9:10, those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you. The security found in the Lord invariably causes a believer to seek a more intimate knowledge of the Almighty. Seeking greater intimacy with the Lord is normal as you walk and talk with Him in your new life of growing trust.

1 John 2:3, by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Those who seek the Lord will find Him and knowingly walk with Him. These people’s lives are increasingly characterised by a growing obedience to Him.

1 Peter 3:15a, in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy… It is appropriate for believers to elevate the knowledge of Christ, and their relationship with Him to the highest place of respect.

Therefore, as Christians, it’s important to develop relationships with people who will walk through life with us as we seek to know God better. These people should increasingly form our primary friendships while recognising that other friendships are also great to have. Remember, it may be that you will be the influence which inspires others to know God better.

Nurture a servant attitude in friendships
A servant attitude rises directly from knowing Jesus, who said about Himself, the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28). Jesus willingly gave His life to serve sinners on the cross as His ultimate act of service. As we walk with the Lord, getting to know Him better, obeying Him more, the Holy Spirit will seek to mature within us a humble Christlike quality of service to others.

Through the many relationships of life, we should watch for two qualities in friendships.
First, do others make it easy for me to serve them? Or do they make serving undesirable and almost impossible?
Second, do my friends enjoy serving others? Or do they want the upper hand in friendships where they get more than they give.

The answers to these two questions will help direct us towards good friendships. A servant friendship will be a mutual friendship with give and take. It will have flexibility that looks out for the other and should be the normal flow of the friendship. Just as we are to serve others, so we are to allow others to serve us.

Jesus’ younger brother James had a very practical belief in God which effected the everyday events of his life. Amongst other things, James said we are to be …pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere (James 3:17). What a wonderful set of qualities to bring into any relationship. I suspect none of us would complain if we were surrounded by friends like this.

Once again, as Christians, we seek to duplicate Jesus’ qualities into our lives. So also, the Holy Spirit seeks to express Jesus’ qualities through us. Galatians 5:22-23 explains that the fruit (the expression) of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Attitudes and acts of service best give expression to the Holy Spirit’s activity and Christ’s character. Therefore, we should do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:3-4). This is the servant heart we see in Jesus, and we pray will be seen in us.

With service in mind, we nurture friendships which have a servant nature. This can take time, and patience will be required. Again, it may be that your servant attitude will influence others to follow Christ more closely.

Recognise God’s activity in friendships
When we pray, it is not simply to get what we want. No, prayer’s priority is worship. In its simplest form, worship speaks of God with thankfulness which flows from appreciation and gratitude. Jesus’ prayer template, explained in Mathew 5:9-15, begins with worship…
⁹ Our Father in heaven, hallowed (holy) be your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:9-10).

Recognising God in any way should stimulate a worship response.
The forward movement of worship desires to see and experience God’s will being achieved here on earth just as it is perfectly achieved in heaven.
When this is true in a Christian’s life, the instruction by Paul happens naturally. Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving (Colossians 4:2). Seeking to know the Lord causes a cycle of events. We pray, we worship, we ask, we watch for God’s activity, we respond with thanks or more questions, we worship more, we ask more, and we watch for Him more. This is a healthy cycle of watchful prayer for believers in Jesus Christ.

This pattern also applies to our relationships. We talk with God about our relationships as they initiate, as they grow and change, and as they either strengthen or struggle. We look for God’s involvement in our relationships, seeking to distinguish between the friendships which inspire healthy Christlike character and those that don’t. Christians want to participate with God’s activity in our relationships, so we follow His lead, beginning with good prayer communication.

Manage friendships wisely
For the most part, humans are social creatures who live through relationships. Generally, we desire good quality relationships which bring benefit and don’t cause pain. No matter what the situation, good quality friendships are pleasing to God and a blessing to us and others.

However, as we know, there are people who use friendships to extract from you whatever they can get. Therefore, we need to be wise in our choice of friendships. Paul cautioned the Corinthian church of this, as they struggle greatly with the whole concept of healthy and unhealthy relationships.
1 Corinthians 15:33 (ESV) Do not be deceived: Bad company ruins good morals.
1 Corinthians 15:33 (NIV) Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character.

Just as we are to be intentional in our friendships, so we are to evaluate the quality of friendships. Evaluation enables us to make changes within a friendship, and, if needed, to separate from an unhealthy friendship that won’t permit change.

James 4:4 points out that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Now, James is NOT saying that we can’t have friends who are not Christian. No, James is simply highlighting the fact that when a person’s primary love, or friendships, are of the world and governed by worldly values and behaviour, these friendships are in opposition to God. Believers in Jesus as Lord desire to develop friendships with godly characteristics and values, not worldly ones. This may require some thought as we navigate a changing lifestyle from worldly living to God honouring living.

Relationship transformation was included in Paul’s thinking when he wrote, do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind… (Romans 12:2). Again, Paul is NOT saying that we should isolate ourselves from the world. No, but as Christians, we are not to be molded or directed by worldly values. Instead, as our thinking is progressively transformed by the Word of God we allow the new biblical values to become our values.

When Job lost everything in life, which you can read about in Job 1:6-2:10, he unexpectantly discovered the falseness of the relationships which surrounded him. My relatives have failed me, my close friends have forgotten me… All my intimate friends abhor me, and those whom I loved have turned against me (Job 19:14, 19). What a tragic discovery. When financial disaster hit Job, plus the grief of losing all his children through death, then becoming desperately sick himself, Job’s friends and family abandoned him. Obviously, we wouldn’t wish that on anyone, so we look to be deliberate in how we manage our friendships with God’s love and the wisdom of His Word.

We do this, not only to spare ourselves the extreme pain of Job, but to spare those close to us such pain also. As we commit to being a true friend that lives the love of God, we prove that we don’t abandon others when we or they are in great need or suffering.

Honour God’s design for marriage
God’s distinction of marriage is that He created the template of one man united with one woman for life when He created Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:18–24). God’s design of marriage is a life-long, exclusive, heterosexual union of two people, which is consistent throughout Scripture wherever marriage is spoken of.

God has provided resources for Spirit filled believers to overcome the natural struggles in marriage. Through obedience to God’s Word spouses can experience fulfilment, satisfaction, and longevity of a peaceful relationship (Matthew 19:1-9; 1 Peter 3:7; 2 Corinthians 6:14; Ephesians 5:18-33).

Through God’s resources, couples can avoid the pains of a failed marriage relationship (Malachi 2:10-16). Instead, both spouses can increasingly mirror the loving relationship of Christ and His Church (Ephesians 5:18-33). This is where husbands love and lead as Christ does the Church, and wives respond as the church responds to Christ (Ephesians 5:21–28).

Conclusion
Having Jesus Christ as Lord impacts every relationship in life. Marriage, family, business, employment, educational, neighbourly, social, sports, hobbies, no relationship goes untouched by Christ. We don’t want to be the type of Christian friend who rams an unwanted gospel into our friends, but we do want our speech [to] always be gracious (Colossians 4:6) and encouraging of our friends. Therefore, be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you (Ephesians 4:32). Forgiveness is the most powerful expression of God’s love, it prevents offence being taken, and it builds robust long-term friendships.

God wants you to be a great friend to have, and, if it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:18). A necessary quality in our contribution to all relationships should be that we do all things without grumbling or disputing, ¹⁵ that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world (Philippians 2:14-15). Our character, and especially the way we treat others, makes a powerful statement to the world about our relationship with the Lord Jesus.

Through Christlike character in our relationships, we will be given opportunities to encourage and comfort fellow believers. Similarly, our non-Christian friends will give us opportunities to tell them about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our relationships have enormous potential for glorying the Lord and blessing one another, and it only takes a little love and effort.

Feel free to check out other resources at focusbiblechurch.com
If you would like to ask a question, please use the “Contact Us” page on our web site, https://focusbiblechurch.com/contact-us/

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Oct 19 2022

5 – Dealing with sin and temptation

By Lincoln / New Christian Helps / 8 minutes of reading

As a new believer in Jesus Christ, it does not take long for the battle against temptation and sin to become obvious. Things that previously did not bother you will now become a problem as the Spirit of God heightens your awareness and intensifies your conscience. Sinful habits from your past life will now cause great pain if you do not work at removing them from your life.

As believers we need to understand how to deal effectively with temptation and sin if we are ever going to become a mature Christian.

Temptation is the initial urge a person feels to commit sin. In itself, temptation is not sin and does NOT come from God. However, if not dealt with correctly, temptation can rapidly become sin with devastating consequences.

James 1:13-15 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us that we undergo no temptation that is peculiar to us alone. Paul also points out that God always provides a way of escape so that we are able to stand firm without sinning during the temptation. Therefore, we need to look for those ways of escape, they are usually obvious and just need to be acted on.
Some of sin’s consequences:

It grieves God Genesis 6:5-7
It brings guilt Psalm 32:5
It brings separation from God Isaiah 59:1-2
It brings judgement Romans 2:5
It enslaves Romans 6:17
It causes spiritual death Ephesians 2:1
It brings lack of hope Ephesians 2:12
It corrupts Titus 1:15
It condemns James 5:12

SOURCES OF TEMPTATION
The Bible teaches that temptation to sin comes from 3 basic sources:
1. SATAN is shown in the Bible as a source of temptation to sin (Matthew 4:3-11; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Peter 5:8). He is ingenious at masquerading his influence for evil in packaging that looks and feels OK (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).

2. THE FLESH is also a source of temptation. Usually, when the New Testament refers to “the flesh” it is speaking of our inherent principle/compulsion for sin. You could say that “the flesh” is our humanness with its sinful desires. The flesh is that facet of us that instinctively gravitates down to the lowest level of sin available at the time. The flesh always seeks to lure us away from God and from holiness.

Our flesh is comprised of our uniquely individual qualities that make us who we are. Therefore, one form of temptation may be a major weakness to one person but not to another. Sin expresses itself slightly different in different people’s lives, but always with the same intent.

Sin wants to dominate us through our appetites and habits. Our natural desires and instincts are not all bad, but they can become harmful if sin is allowed to take control them (Romans 6:12-13; James 1:14-15).

3. THE WORLD is a source of temptation which involves subtle conformity of a Christian to the attitudes and values of society (Romans 12:2). This can occur in many ways, particularly when society has floating and changing values. A common area of worldly temptation is thinking that security is found in possessions or accomplishments. Viewing life as liveable apart from a relationship with God is another (Titus 2:12; 1 John 2:15-17; Matthew 4:4; Luke 12:15).

VICTORY OVER TEMPTATION
Be Alert: Many Christians are defeated simply because they are not alert to the possibility of temptation. Feeling immune to temptation or thinking that temptation can easily be overcome creates vulnerability to sin. We sometimes fall into a false sense of security and self-confidence with this type of attitude (1 Corinthians 16:13-14; 1 Peter 5:8-9; 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22).

Be Filled (controlled) by the Holy Spirit: A Christian can never successfully defeat temptation in their own strength, but only through the power of the Holy Spirit. This means living according to the guidelines of Scripture (Matthew 4:4; Galatians 5:22-26; Ephesians 5:18; Philippians 4:13).

Know Biblical Escapes: The Bible’s resource for escape is to have Scripture memorised so that you can use it when facing temptation (Psalm 119:11). Matthew 4:1-11 shows us how Jesus used Scripture to overcome the attacks of the devil during 40 days of temptation.

Obey By Faith: Do as the Bible says whether you feel like it or not. Don’t rely on your feelings or motives. Faithfully trust and obey God’s Word (Proverbs 3:5-7; 1 John 5:3).

Be Fully Committed: Half-hearted Christians can only make half-hearted attempts at resisting temptation. Be fully committed to God, to His Word, and to His body which is the Church (Mark 12:30-31; Revelation 3:15; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 10:24-25).

AVOIDING UNNECESSARY TEMPTATION
Share your struggles with a stronger Christian – all Christians need each other, especially in our battle against sin. Having a Christian friend who is more mature in the faith is essential. As you share the joys and the struggles of life together, you carry each other, pray for each other, and lighten the spiritual and emotional load of each other.

James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another…
2 Corinthians 13:11 …comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.

Avoid wicked company – so often believers fall into temptation for the simple reason that they spend far too much time with bad company. A lot of time spent with a worldly living non-Christian friend will gradually cause problems if you aren’t making a consistent stand for the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:33). Usually, non-Christians will progressively wean off the friendship once they realise that you are serious about living for the Lord.

Likewise, spending a lot of time with a worldly living person who falsely claims to be a Christian will wear you down to their level of godless thinking and behaviour.

Proverbs 4:14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men.

The Lord wants His children to keep good company. This in itself will help you to grow stronger in Christ. However, this doesn’t mean that we should avoid unbelievers altogether, otherwise we would never have opportunities to witness or help those in need, our testimony would be damaged.

Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.

Genesis 39:10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.

This is NOT an excuse to isolate yourself from non-Christians. It is good and beneficial to have non-Christian friends. However, you should choose to be the greater influence with the higher values, living out the character and gospel of Jesus Christ. Never give in to sin.

Keep your mind clean – one of the quickest ways to bring temptation upon yourself is to feed your mind on impure thoughts. What we look at, listen to, and think about has a direct connection with our vulnerability to sin. The internet, and social media can have a dangerous influence on us if we allow it. Avoid all degrees of pornography and sexual temptation. Seek help from a stronger Christian if these issues are present in your life.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.

Remove yourself from the place of temptation – many times when we are being tempted we stay in the place of temptation and often in our own strength. By moving we could easily get away from the temptation. Better still, try not to allow yourself to get into a place of known temptation (Psalm 1:1).

Genesis 39:10-12 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.

Submit to God – this is your greatest act of resisting the devil.
Instruct Satan to get away from you.
James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Matthew 4:10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.

Stand firm – stubbornly, yet graciously, refuse to conform to temptation.
1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain.

NOTE:
Sin will take you further than you want to go; it will keep you there longer than you want to stay; and you will pay a higher price than you want to pay.

Memorise conditions for victory, James 4:7 and Psalm 119:11.

Feel free to check out other resources at focusbiblechurch.com
If you would like to ask a question, please use the “Contact Us” page on our web site, https://focusbiblechurch.com/contact-us/

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Oct 19 2022

4 – Why the Bible is critical to your survival

By Lincoln / New Christian Helps / 6 minutes of reading

The Bible is the inspired Word of God, totally true and absolutely reliable. Which makes it the final authority for Christians. Above all else, the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself to mankind. This is why we refer to the Bible as God’s Word. The Bible instructs us in all areas of life. For nonbelievers, the Bible presents God’s law, causing them to identify sin and then discover the gospel. God’s Word directs God’s children and guides them into God’s way of life as it transforms their attitudes, speech, and actions to be more like Jesus Christ.

The Bible is God’s only written message to mankind, for all of time. It is made up of 66 books, all written by men as they were led by God to write (2 Timothy 3:15-17). When first written, the Bible did not contain any mistakes and it has only one true meaning as intended at the time of writing (John 17:17; 2 Peter 1:20-21). The Bible is able to meet a person’s every spiritual need as they read, believe, and obey it (Proverbs 2:1-10).

David speaks of the supremacy of God’s Word many times as he tells of its greatness, …you have exalted above all things your name and your word (Psalm 138:2b). The Lord places His Word above all else, therefore it is worthy of our highest attention and diligent study.

The Bible is:

Perfect (Psalm 19:7, Proverbs 30:5)
Inerrant, that is, it’s without error (Psalm 119:138, 144)
Authoritative (Hebrews 4:12, Psalm 33:9,119:4)
Eternal, it stands throughout all ages, and is just as relevant and applicable today as it was when written (Isaiah 40:8, Psalm 119:89, 160).
Immutable, that is, it’s unchanging (Malachi 3:6, James 1:17, Hebrews 6:17-18).

We can rest assured in God’s Word because God remains faithful to His Word and fulfils all His promises. Through His Word He makes it possible for us to know Him.

IT IS ESSENTIAL TO READ GOD’S WORD
God’s Word tells us that when we put faith in Jesus Christ, we become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), and we are born-again, which means we are spiritually regenerated (John 3:3, Titus 3:5). Spiritually, immediately following salvation, we are like an infant who needs to begin to grow to maturity. God’s Word is the spiritual food for our new lives. The Word of God tells us; like new born babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation (1 Peter 2:2).

The milk referred to here is the Word of God, the Bible. We need to read this regularly, meditate on it, and obey it. This is basic for Christian growth and maturity. Without it we will remain as spiritual babies and never grow.

The Christian life is a walk with the Lord, that’s why God’s Word is described as: A lamp to my feet and a light for my path (Psalm 119:105).
The Bible is our Creator’s handbook. It gives us instruction, plus it helps us understand God and who we are from His perspective. It shows us how to please God in every area of our lives and how best to serve Him. God speaks to us through the Bible and He guides us as we read and meditate on it. Therefore, take time to read and study God’s Word daily.

REASONS WE NEED TO KNOW THE WORD OF GOD

It makes us wise (Psalm 119:98-104).
It gives us the light of understanding if we receive it (Psalm 119:130).
It gives us peace and prevents us from stumbling (Psalm 119:165).
It builds us up and gives us an inheritance in Jesus (Acts 20:32).
It enables faith (Romans 10:17).
It teaches us, gives encouragement, and enables hope (Romans 15:4).
It is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in right living (2 Timothy 3:16).
It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow (Hebrews 4:12).
It judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).

WAYS TO KNOW THE WORD OF GOD
HEARING:            For example, take time to attend Bible teaching/preaching, listen to recorded Bible teaching, through personal or group Bible reading, and gospel witnessing.

READING:            When we read we need to ask the Holy Spirit to give us understanding. It can be helpful to follow a Bible reading plan, attend a Bible teaching Home Group, or get in a Discipleship relationship.

STUDYING:          Aim to study your Bible. Once again, ask God to bring an older Christian into your life who will be willing to disciple you. It may be helpful to follow a Bible study lesson. Write key notes into your Bible so that you can relive the learned truth repeatedly. Write down anything that God reveals to you. God wants to build your knowledge of Him, but you should be able to remember and share with others whatever God reveals to you.

MEDITATING:      This is taking a verse, or verses, and spending time prayerfully contemplating and reasoning through the passage while making application to your life. Ask yourself questions like:

What does this passage say about God?
Is there something God says is true of you?
Take note of how God sees you?
Is there a command to be obeyed?
Is there a sin identified that you should turn from?
Spend time talking with the Lord about what you’ve been meditating on

MEMORISING: Memorise Bible passages for the following reasons:

To use when being tempted. I have hidden your word is my heart that I might not sin against you – is what David said in Psalm 119:11.
To help you remember lessons learned from Scripture.
For use when meditating without a Bible.
For quoting to others, including witnessing to nonbelievers.
For quoting when praying.

God wants us to know Him and His will correctly (John 17:3). That is why we should study the Scriptures to understand the intended meaning.

John 17:17 Sanctify them by the truth, Your Word is truth.
Truth is God’s revelation given through the Scriptures by prophets of the Old Testament (Hebrews 1:1) and the disciples and apostles of the New Testament.

Galatians 1:11-12 I want you to know brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:21; 1 Thessalonians 2:13).
The Bible doesn’t specifically describe truth in a form of a definition in any one given passage. But throughout the Bible it does deal with specific attributes, standards, and the origin of truth. In fact, in Scripture we find only two forms of knowledge, TRUTH and ERROR. Truth originates from God (Exodus 34:6, Psalm 96:13, James 1:17-18) while error and wrong attitudes originate from Satan and human wisdom (John 8:44, James 3:15, 1 John 4:1, 4-6).

It is God’s design for your life that you develop your faith and grow your trust in God’s Word by placing your confidence and reliance in the Bible. This growth is accelerated by regarding His Word as authoritative, absolute, and literal truth. Your relationship with the Lord will flourish as you discover more of Him through His revelation of Himself in the Bible.

The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple (Psalm 19:7). The law of the Lord (The Bible), is uniquely able to revive you through the work of regeneration carried out in your spiritual heart. Likewise, the statutes of the Lord (The Bible), equips you by producing wisdom. Wisdom, in itself, is the actual applying of the Scriptures to every area of your life. Therefore, it is imperative that you regularly store up God’s Word in your heart.

Feel free to check out other resources at focusbiblechurch.com
If you would like to ask a question, please use the “Contact Us” page on our web site, https://focusbiblechurch.com/contact-us/

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Oct 19 2022

3 – Strength to live for Jesus Christ

By Lincoln / New Christian Helps / 10 minutes of reading

After a person responds to God through faith in Jesus Christ, the immediate challenge is living an obedient, victorious Christian life. The ability to live such a life does not come from our efforts, our abilities, or our determination, even though they may play a part.

The immediate question which arises is: If I can’t live an obedient life in my own strength, is it even possible? The answer is YES!

God, in His goodness, has provided a way to live a life pleasing to Him and satisfying to us. The answer is to live in the power of the Holy Spirit, which we shall explore by answering the following 3 questions:

Who is the Holy Spirit?
What is our relationship with the Holy Spirit?
What role does the Holy Spirit play?

1. Who is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is not some vague influence, or an inane force without intelligence. HE IS A PERSON. This means He is knowable; He can communicate, and He can make Himself real to us. As such, He has all the characteristics of personhood. We cannot necessarily see Him, but He is real and has great impact upon our lives.

The Holy Spirit is God. 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, now the Lord is the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third equal member of the threefold Godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).

Like God the Father and God the Son, the Holy Spirit is:
ETERNAL: With no beginning and no end (Hebrews 9:14)
OMNIPRESENT: Present everywhere (Psalm 139:7-8)
OMNISCIENT: All knowing (1 Corinthians 2:10)
OMNIPOTENT: All powerful (Job 33:4; Luke 1:35)

2. What is our relationship with the Holy Spirit?
He spiritually renews us
Titus 3:5 He [God] saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

At the time of salvation, it was the Holy Spirit who performed the invisible operations of spiritual rebirth, that is, the spiritual washing of our sin and inner renewal. This is what Jesus explained to Nicodemus in John 3:1-8. The unseen working of the Holy Spirit is impossible to predict or dictate. He, being God, works in agreement with God the Father and Son to make a believing sinner a new person in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

When we confess our state of sin before God, believing that Jesus took our judgment in our place on the cross, and we confess Jesus to be Lord (Romans 10:10), the Holy Spirit renewed.

He lives in the body of every believer
1 Corinthians 6:19 …your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.
Again, it was an invisible action that took place, and we most likely had no physical realisation of the Holy Spirit entering us. From that point onwards, the Spirit of God carries out His service from within. Where we go, He goes. What we do, He does with us. From within, He knows us intimately and feels all that we feel. Therefore, the sole ownership of our body has been relinquished, as we have been purchased by God with Christ’s death. The Holy Spirit is our personal, resident, heavenly owner.

He is the seal (security) of the believer
Ephesians 1:13 You also were included in God when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.
Paul tells the Ephesian Christians that at the moment in which they believed in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit not only entered them but sealed them. Meaning, believers are safe and secure in an unbreakable relationship with the Lord. Jesus explaining to His disciples about those who believe in His said, I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand (John 10:28-29).

It is the indwelling Holy Spirit who actualizes the working of God the Father and Jesus Christ within every believer. There is no falling out of Christ, no deconversion, and no undoing all that God has accomplished in salvation. The Holy Spirit is the constant guarantee of God’s fulfilled purpose in us.

3. What role does the Holy Spirit play?
God the Holy Spirit has many critical functions within the believer’s life. He patiently leads and matures us in Christlike development. Therefore, He is best experienced as we are filled (Controlled) by Him.
Ephesians 5:18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery, instead be filled with the Spirit. (Debauchery is excessive or riotous living).

In the original Greek language of the New Testament, the word “filled” means, “being kept filled.” That tells us that it’s a moment-by-moment state of mind and will. It’s our new attitude as a Christian, to be daily filled, controlled by the Lord who is the Spirit within us. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to live in willing surrender to His control of our lives. This means our thinking, speech, and actions, will be in alignment with the Bible, which the Holy Spirit wrote (2 Peter 1:20-21).

Below are a few ways in which the Bible guides us concerning our living. If we follow these guidelines, we will in effect, be living a Holy Spirit filled life.

Keep a clean record with God of your sins. Turn your back on recurring sins that hold you back in your Christian life (2 Timothy 2:21; 1 God 1:9).
Daily surrender your body and mind to God’s transformation (Romans 12:1-2).
Hunger after a life of righteousness (Matthew 5:6).
Bathe yourself in the Word of God (Colossians 3:16).
Consciously live daily for the Lord Jesus Christ (Colossians 3:17). Regardless of life’s circumstances or events, live in each moment knowing that the Spirit of God is within you, participating in that moment.

4. Evidence of a Spirit filled life
We will show the Fruit of the Spirit
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

A Spirit filled Christian is often easy to pick in a crowd. Their life will be characterised by the qualities listed above. These are the observable expressions of the Holy Spirit’s activity in a believers’ life. They are unmistakable because they are so different to the norms of this world.

Sometimes, with the busyness of life, plus the difficulties and distractions of life, it can be easy to think independently God. Over time, as we walk with the Lord and develop Christian disciplines, those moments become less frequent. It is the Holy Spirit who progressively enables those disciplines to grow us towards maturity in Christ. So, as time goes by, our relationship with the Holy Spirit strengthens as we spend time in God’s Word and walk in obedience.

We will be worshipful
Ephesians 5:19-20   Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord God.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of God dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

When a believer has God’s Word richly (abundantly) indwelling them, they will be controlled by God’s Spirit. God’s Word dwells richly when we regularly read and study the Bible with an intentional attitude of surrendered listening. The primary goal of Bible reading is to explore and discover God more! It’s really about our attitude as we read God’s Word. While there will be times when we quickly read through a passage, there should also be regular times when we read slowly and thoughtfully, pausing to pray as we read. Other times it’s beneficial to listen to others read, or even listen to an audio Bible.

The Holy Spirit can then produce His fruit in our life that flows out of the influence of His written Word. When we observe this happening, our response will be thankfulness and praise to our heavenly Father for all of life. Sadly, the reverse is true also. If we are not residing in God’s Word, we will fail to express the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and we won’t be marked by thankfulness.

The Holy Spirit intercedes with the Father on believer’s behalf
Romans 8:26 …the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

There are often times in our Christian walk, when words fail us in our prayers. We may be grieved and can’t find the words to express our pain. Maybe we are so excited about something that our words are jumbled. Or maybe we simply can’t find the right words to explain to God what we are feeling in our hearts. Whatever the case, God the Holy Spirit, who lives within us and knows our hearts perfectly, takes our case to our heavenly Father. There in the throne room of God Almighty, the Holy Spirit accurately and intimately presents our inner most thoughts and feelings to the Father with a divine language that we can only recognise as groaning.

This intimate service that the Holy Spirit offers on our behalf picks up where our words fail. There are no human words or vocal sounds that can compare to this loving communication between Spirit and Father in our place.

The Holy Spirit distributes spiritual gifts to believers
1 Corinthians 12:4, 11 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit …All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one, just as he determines.

At the time of salvation, the Holy Spirit placed within each believer a gift, which is a blending of spiritual abilities uniquely designed for each believer. While your gift may include some of your natural abilities and talents, your gift will be used by God for the blessing of others.

Over time you will recognise acts of service that you want to do and which you enjoy doing. Added to that will be the people you serve will comment on how blessed they are by your service. This can be a good indication of your spiritual gift.

The New Testament lists a few such gifts as a guide. Our gift is not intended to be ignored or left dormant. Rather, the Holy Spirit has graciously provided our gift to be used for the betterment of others, never for self-gratification.

Romans 12:6-8   Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; ⁷ if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; ⁸ the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

The Holy Spirit teaches and reminds believers of Jesus’ words
John 14:26   But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name [Jesus’] will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

The Holy Spirit always seeks to bring the words, the example, and the teachings of Jesus into believer’s lives. The Holy Spirit does this primarily through the written Word of God. This is why personal Bible reading and study is so important. Second, the Holy Spirit uses gifted Bible teachers to accomplish this in your local church (Ephesians 4:11-14). Third, the Holy Spirit achieves this through faithful believers who actively make disciples of others (Matthew 28:19-20). Fourth, the Holy Spirit achieves this through faithful Christian parents who teach God’s Word to their children (Deuteronomy 11:19).

The Holy Spirit strengthens believers
Ephesians 3:16   according to the riches of his glory he [God] may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being.

This ministry of the Holy Spirit generally operates through the believer’s motives and desires, causing determined faithfulness and courage in their service for God. However, at times, as required, the Holy Spirit will dramatically elevate a believer’s strength to meet the needs of extraordinary circumstances. Again, Holy Spirit strength is internally integrated in such a way that much of the time Christians simply think their strength was what they felt like doing.

Memorise Romans 12:1-2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. ⁽²⁾ 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.

Feel free to check out other resources at focusbiblechurch.com
If you would like to ask a question, please use the “Contact Us” page on our web site, https://focusbiblechurch.com/contact-us/

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