Basics For New Believers

Some of these things might seem unnatural to a new believer. But as we grow as Christians they will become ingrained and they will become the delights of our life.

Be secure!

When we receive Jesus as Saviour and commit ourselves to Him we are in the most secure position that exists. Being a child of God is more secure that the strongest bank vault man can devise. It is more secure than the Rock of Gibraltar. If Mount Everest fell on you, you would still be God*s child. You will be God*s child no matter what.

Romans 8:38-39: For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Stop sinning!

When Jesus forgave people their sins He often said Go and sin no more.

John 8:11: She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Pray always!

1 Thessalonians 5:17: Pray without ceasing.

It would be very strange to walk down the street side-by-side with someone and never talk to them. Christ comes into our hearts in the person of the Holy Spirit. He has promised never to leave us. It would be even stranger not to talk to a person who is in your heart 24/7. Particularly if that person is the source of everything you need and wants you to ask Him for it and thank Him for it. It is so unnatural for us to ignore Him and yet we often do that.

Luke 18:1: And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

Be thankful!

My Strong*s Concordance has a wonderful definition for the word grace: The Divine influence upon the heart, including gratitude. It seems to me that something like 90 percent of the time the first thing out of people*s mouths after receiving Jesus is Thank you. Sometimes I ask shouldn*t you be thanking the Lord? They always understand immediately.

The Bible calls lost people unthankful.

Luke 6:35: But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

Rejoice evermore!

1 Thessalonians 5:16: Rejoice evermore.

The Ethiopian Eunuch after he trusted Christ went on his way rejoicing.

Acts 8:39: And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.

I have heard people rejoice shortly after accepting Christ over the peace that came into them, the freedom they felt, the heavy weight they felt lifted from them and many rejoiced over other things.

Study the Bible!

2 Timothy 2:15: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

When young people fall in love they study everything about the one they love. A young man will gaze admiringly at his young lady*s hair, eyes, nose, ears, figure and everything he finds attractive about her. He will enjoy being in her company. When he must be absent from her as I was from my fiance when I was in the Army he will be thrilled with the letters she writes. He will read them over and over.

The Bible is, among other things, a love letter from the Lord. It is the thing that will teach us to know Him intimately. A Christian who does not read the Bible is like a young lover who doesn*t read the love letters from his love. Very strange indeed.

Attend church regularly!

Hebrews 10:25: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Ephesians 4:11-12: And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

In the first passage being part of a fellowship is commanded. The second passage gives two of the benefits of attending a good church:

The perfecting and the edification. If God wants me perfect I ought to want that. If God wants to feed me I ought to want that. The Lord gives the pastors and teachers. We should want everything the Lord wants us to have. If we don*t faithfully attend a church, we shortchange ourselves and the other people God wants to bless through us.

Wipe the slate clean every morning!

By the end of a day the cares and difficulties we face may have diverted us from enjoying God and serving Him. We commit ourselves to Him and then promptly forget our commitment. We need to recommit ourselves to Him every day and many times each day.

Lamentations 3:22-23: It is of the LORD*S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Isaiah 33:2: O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

Psalms 61:8: So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.

Proverbs 8:34: Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.

Luke 9:23: And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Acts 17:11: These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Pass it on!

When we buy something good we don*t hesitate to recommend it to others. We have all heard our friends speaking highly about certain makes of cars, restaurants, books, TV programs etc. Many famous people give testimonials in commercials about how wonderful their product is. When we have the Lord we have something wonderful. Are we willing to tell others that He has blessed us and that they should give Him a try?

Luke 9:26: For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father*s, and of the holy angels.

Ezekiel 3:18-19: When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

This article will also appear under the title: Starting Out With God.

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