Word for Today, Thu, 15 May 2003: Mature Belief

#1 · May 15, 2003, 10:38 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on May 15, 2003, 10:38 pm
Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Today I'd like to share with you a message from Neil Anderson's
Daily in Christ devotional series. In yesterday's message, Neil
wrote about the spiritual need to really depend on God. In
today's message, Neil writes about the importance of getting
your belief system into proper shape. Mature believers in the
Word of God and in the true salvation that comes only from Jesus
Christ must understand why these things are true, where they come
from, the principles upon which they are based, and so forth.

We needn't be intellectual giants to do this, for the Word of God
is available to young and old, rich and poor, sick and well
alike. We needn't (and shouldn't) get hung up on too many
intricacies, yet at the same time, we should learn what the Word
says and how to apply it daily to our lives.

Bill Keller, founder of LivePrayer.com, also writes about
focusing on the core elements of our faith. Christians are most
criticized for arguing amongst themselves instead of
demonstrating love toward one another, even if they sharply
disagree about biblical principles or elements of our faith.

I'm not sure that I agree 100% with anyone on anything, but
that's no reason that I can't have fellowship with people,
whether they share my faith or not. How else can I ever
encourage others, how else can I ever draw anyone to Christ? It
most certainly will not be through coercion, angry debate, or
anything of the sort. Instead, I must personally seek God
earnestly and completely, read His Word, pray continually, look
to Christ as the true Vine, the Good Shepherd, the Source of
everything I need.

Whether you're a new Christian, a long time believer, or someone
who's not even sure they're a Christian at all, but someone who's
curious, do you think it is worthwhile to invest time, energy,
and belief into something of lasting value? If you love your
spouse, do you invest time and energy into your relationship? If
you want a good job, do you learn all you can about your
profession and do your very best? I suspect the answer is yes.
Well, the same is true about our faith, what we believe in. In
order for it to really be OUR faith, we must act upon what we
believe.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian
____________________________________________________________
AD | Find your Christian Soul Mate Today!
www.oneplace.com/newslink.asp?slink=2466
____________________________

NEIL ANDERSON'S DAILY IN CHRIST
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

May 15

AN INTACT BELIEF SYSTEM

In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good
servant of Jesus Christ, constantly nourished on the words of
the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been
following (1 Timothy 4:6).

One problem with Christian maturity is trying to base spiritual
growth on practical sections of the Scriptures and spending too
little time internalizing the doctrinal sections. Each of Paul's
letters tends to fall into two major parts. The first part is
generally doctrinal, such as Romans 1-8, Ephesians 1-3,
Colossians 1-2, etc. These sections reveal what we need to know
about God, ourselves, sin and salvation. The second half of each
letter is the practical section: Romans 12-15, Ephesians 4-6,
Colossians 3-4, etc. These passages describe what we need to do
to live out our faith in daily experience.

In our zeal to correct the problems in our lives--doubt,
temptation, satanic attack, conflict in families, friendships
and churches which are falling apart--we jump to the practical
instructions of God's Word. We want a quick fix, a rule or
instruction which we can apply like a Band-Aid to make things
better.

Perhaps you have already discovered that a Band-Aid approach to
daily living doesn't work. Why not? Because when you don't
understand the truth pertaining to your position in Christ, you
have no ground for success in the practical arena. How can you
rejoice in hope and persevere in tribulation (Romans 12:12)
without the confidence of knowing you have been justified by
faith and have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ
(Romans 5:1)?

When your basic belief system about God and yourself is shaky,
your day-to-day behavior system will be shaky. But when your
belief system is intact and your relationship with God is based
on truth, you'll have very little trouble working out the
practical aspects of daily Christianity. Show me someone who
knows who they are in Christ and who is filled with the Holy
Spirit, as taught in the first half of the Epistles, and I will
show you someone who will instinctively live according to the
second half of the Epistles. It will be the "natural" thing to
do.

Loving Father, I desire to know what I need to know about You so
I can live the way You desire for me to live.

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Neil Anderson at
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.1.293748.

=== parable.com - WOW of the WEEK - parable.com ===

ONLY $4.99 for My Utmost for His Highest! Come see this
collection of My Utmost for all ages-kids, teens & adults:
www.parable.com/parable/group_1836&rid=872.htm

===================www.parable.com===================

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.2.293748.
-----------
To read current World news stories, National news stories, and
commentaries, visit
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.3.293748
-----------
For Copyright Terms visit
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.4.293748

____________________SUBSCRIPTION INFO_______________________

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Providers. All rights reserved.

Crosswalk.com is a proud member of the Salem Web Network, a
division of Salem Communications.

Please visit our other websites at:

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www.oneplace.com

SermonSearch.com
www.sermonsearch.com

TheFish.com
www.thefish.com

____________________________________________________________

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
The New Yahoo! Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo.
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Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Today I'd like to share with you a message from Neil Anderson's
Daily in Christ devotional series. In yesterday's message, Neil
wrote about the spiritual need to really depend on God. In
today's message, Neil writes about the importance of getting
your belief system into proper shape. Mature believers in the
Word of God and in the true salvation that comes only from Jesus
Christ must understand why these things are true, where they come
from, the principles upon which they are based, and so forth.

We needn't be intellectual giants to do this, for the Word of God
is available to young and old, rich and poor, sick and well
alike. We needn't (and shouldn't) get hung up on too many
intricacies, yet at the same time, we should learn what the Word
says and how to apply it daily to our lives.

Bill Keller, founder of LivePrayer.com, also writes about
focusing on the core elements of our faith. Christians are most
criticized for arguing amongst themselves instead of
demonstrating love toward one another, even if they sharply
disagree about biblical principles or elements of our faith.

I'm not sure that I agree 100% with anyone on anything, but
that's no reason that I can't have fellowship with people,
whether they share my faith or not. How else can I ever
encourage others, how else can I ever draw anyone to Christ? It
most certainly will not be through coercion, angry debate, or
anything of the sort. Instead, I must personally seek God
earnestly and completely, read His Word, pray continually, look
to Christ as the true Vine, the Good Shepherd, the Source of
everything I need.

Whether you're a new Christian, a long time believer, or someone
who's not even sure they're a Christian at all, but someone who's
curious, do you think it is worthwhile to invest time, energy,
and belief into something of lasting value? If you love your
spouse, do you invest time and energy into your relationship? If
you want a good job, do you learn all you can about your
profession and do your very best? I suspect the answer is yes.
Well, the same is true about our faith, what we believe in. In
order for it to really be OUR faith, we must act upon what we
believe.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian
____________________________________________________________
AD | Find your Christian Soul Mate Today!
http://www.oneplace.com/newslink.asp?slink=2466
____________________________

NEIL ANDERSON'S DAILY IN CHRIST
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

May 15

AN INTACT BELIEF SYSTEM

In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good
servant of Jesus Christ, constantly nourished on the words of
the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been
following (1 Timothy 4:6).

One problem with Christian maturity is trying to base spiritual
growth on practical sections of the Scriptures and spending too
little time internalizing the doctrinal sections. Each of Paul's
letters tends to fall into two major parts. The first part is
generally doctrinal, such as Romans 1-8, Ephesians 1-3,
Colossians 1-2, etc. These sections reveal what we need to know
about God, ourselves, sin and salvation. The second half of each
letter is the practical section: Romans 12-15, Ephesians 4-6,
Colossians 3-4, etc. These passages describe what we need to do
to live out our faith in daily experience.

In our zeal to correct the problems in our lives--doubt,
temptation, satanic attack, conflict in families, friendships
and churches which are falling apart--we jump to the practical
instructions of God's Word. We want a quick fix, a rule or
instruction which we can apply like a Band-Aid to make things
better.

Perhaps you have already discovered that a Band-Aid approach to
daily living doesn't work. Why not? Because when you don't
understand the truth pertaining to your position in Christ, you
have no ground for success in the practical arena. How can you
rejoice in hope and persevere in tribulation (Romans 12:12)
without the confidence of knowing you have been justified by
faith and have peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ
(Romans 5:1)?

When your basic belief system about God and yourself is shaky,
your day-to-day behavior system will be shaky. But when your
belief system is intact and your relationship with God is based
on truth, you'll have very little trouble working out the
practical aspects of daily Christianity. Show me someone who
knows who they are in Christ and who is filled with the Holy
Spirit, as taught in the first half of the Epistles, and I will
show you someone who will instinctively live according to the
second half of the Epistles. It will be the "natural" thing to
do.

Loving Father, I desire to know what I need to know about You so
I can live the way You desire for me to live.

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Neil Anderson at
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.1.293748.

=== parable.com - WOW of the WEEK - parable.com ===

ONLY $4.99 for My Utmost for His Highest! Come see this
collection of My Utmost for all ages-kids, teens & adults:
http://www.parable.com/parable/group_1836&rid=872.htm

===================www.parable.com===================

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.2.293748.
-----------
To read current World news stories, National news stories, and
commentaries, visit
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.3.293748
-----------
For Copyright Terms visit
link.crosswalk.com/UM/T.asp?A1.14.11898.4.293748

____________________SUBSCRIPTION INFO_______________________

Crosswalk.com is a proud member of the Salem Web Network, a
division of Salem Communications.

Please visit our other websites at:

Oneplace.com
http://www.oneplace.com

SermonSearch.com
http://www.sermonsearch.com

TheFish.com
http://www.thefish.com

____________________________________________________________

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: http://www.geocities.com/masinick/

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
The New Yahoo! Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo.
search.yahoo.com