Practical advice for new Christians to help you grow in
your faith in Jesus:
1) Get to know the Bible especially the New Testament and
allow the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth of His Word to you. The main
purpose of the Old Testament was to provide a path for the Messiah (Jesus) to
come into this world. All of the Old Testament prophesies concerning the
Messiah have been or will be fulfilled, when Jesus returns. The Old Testament
validates Jesus as the Messiah and Savior and when Jesus died on the cross He
said, "It is finished" and the Old Testament law gave away to a new covenant of
faith through Jesus. The Old Testament is also important to give us an
understanding of God's Holiness and His power. When reading the New Testament
for the first time, don't concern yourself with the things that you do not
understand as there will be plenty of clear and understandable instructions that
will help you know and follow God and as you get to know God, many of the other
things will become clearer later when God's Holy Spirit is ready to reveal them
to you. Be very careful when trying to apply a single verse by itself as
interpretations need to consider the original context plus all the rest of what
the Bible has to say on any subject. Study Bibles can help offer
understanding on the background, traditions and culture of that time period.
2) It is not about rules, rituals or our personal rights but it is all about relationships. As a
Christian, you now have a relationship with God your heavenly Father through
Jesus His one and only Son. It is this relationship that allows us access to
God and eternal life in heaven. God not only wants you to have a relationship
with Him but also to have Christian love and forgiveness for everyone else (see
Luke 6:37 and
I Corinthians 13). Talk to God through out each day and He will speak to
you though His Word (the Bible) and His Holy Spirit.
3) The Christian life was not intended to be lived alone. You not only need God's
help but He has designed that if at all possible, believers get together on a
regular basis to help and encourage each other (we call this the church).
In America, we have many different types of churches to choose from. As
long as they are staying true to the core Bible beliefs (Jesus is the one and
only way to God and He died on the cross and was raised from the dead and the Bible is
true and accurate and applicable for us today) and they are also ministering and
teaching others to minister in love, then the style of a church is not important so
try to find one that appeals to your whole family. Remember that there is
no "perfect" church and that we all are saved by grace and we all do things
without thinking that later we wish we had done differently. Everyone is
at a different stage of growth so keep your eyes on Jesus and not on the church
or else you will be disappointed.
4) It is not about you but it is all about God, so try not to focus on yourself
but focus on God. It is important to understand our short comings, but do not
dwell on them. Instead, give them to God and ask for His forgiveness and ask for
His help as you desire to please Him. Be honest with God and when you have a
sin that you are struggling with, then ask God for His help. A prayer that I
learned from my Pastor goes like this, "Lord Jesus, I give you permission to change
the way I feel about ___________ (an issue I am struggling with), as I
want to view ___________ in the same way that you view it". Trust Him,
knowing that we do not have the power to overcome temptation ourselves without
becoming proud. Give
him the praise and thanks whenever He helps you do what is right. We need to
give God permission to change us from the inside out. If we change ourselves
outwardly without asking for God's help, then we will become proud of our
accomplishments and pride is the worst sin of all.
5) We receive power when we give praise and thanks to Jesus. Some people like
to do this though song and there are many types of worship music as many people
have different music tastes. The praise and thanks that we give to God is
actually to our benefit as it brings our attitude into alignment with God's
purpose for us.
6) Many people are under the wrong impression that once they become a Christian
that all their problems will go away. The truth is that you may have more
problems than ever before but now you have a helper (the Holy Spirit) to help
you through your problems with a healthy attitude. God will often allow problems to help build your
character (if you allow Him to help you through them). The Christian life is
not a destination but a journey as you grow in love and faith through the trials
of life. As you walk with God, you will see your attitude toward your problems
change as God helps you become the person that He designed you to be. Jesus can
give you a joy and a peace in spite of the troubles you may be facing. You can
rest assured that as a child of God, nothing can happen to you that God has not
allowed to happen for a reason and if you take your problems to God, He can use
them to make you into the person that He wants you to be.
7) Share your faith when someone is interested. Look for opportunities to
share what God has done for you so you can help others. Don't try to force your
faith onto someone but pray for those that God brings into your life and look
for ways to gently introduce them to Jesus. You don't need to have an answer
to
every question in order to share your faith. Keep it personal and keep it real. People do not become Christians just
because someone gave them the "right answers". Becoming a
Christian is not just a mental "vote" for Jesus. It is a complete
submission to God to obey Him and become "little Christs" as you follow the
Bible and the Holy Spirit. If someone is honestly seeking God,
then you can always say, "I don't know the answer to that question, but let me
see if I can find out and get back to you" and ask other Christians to help you
with a Biblical understanding. Many of the toughest questions are answered when you
see the "Big Picture" from an eternal
perspective. It is the power of the Holy Spirit through God's love and a
changed life that brings people to God, not the argumentative "Mr-Know-It-All"
cold, accusative and uncaring answers. Build relationship "bridges" and try to avoid
subjects like politics that distract from the message of Jesus as they usually
"polarize" others against you and nothing else you say will have an impact.
Remember not to focus on a non-believers lifestyle as
they do not understand why it displeases God.
If you are asked if "such and such" is a sin be honest but try to help them see
that ALL disobedience to God is sin and they need to focus on the only one who
can forgive sin. Bring them to Christ first and then allow Him to renew their minds.
