The Christian life? And a wonderful experience. It began with a supernatural work performed by God’s undeserved grace in a person’s heart and life. The Spirit of God applies the work of Christ, on the cross, to all who are spiritually dead. Does this regenerate them, lead them to repent of their sins, and exercise faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is called salvation, what is it? It is a glorious work of grace and the Spirit of God.
Often, new converts ask what happens after they are born and begin their Christian life. Once God has saved them, does He let them continue to be motivated in their own resources and in the works of their own flesh, to come to?His presence in heaven? The supporter Paul responds: Are you so foolish that, having begun in the Spirit, you are now perfecting in the flesh?(Galatians 3. 3).
- Christian life?begins with grace.
- With the activity of the sovereign Spirit of God.
- And must continue in the same way.
- This does not mean that there is no activity on the part of the believer.
- On the contrary.
- The Word of God affirms that the saved were created in Jesus Christ for good works.
- Which God prepared beforehand to walk in them (Ephesians 2:10); e: Develop your salvation with fear and trepidation; because it is God Who in you is willing and capable of both wanting and performing.
- According to his goodwill (Phil 2:12-13 note: these verses.
- Which have been widely abused by sects.
- Do not teach salvation?by works.
- Rather.
- Numerous verses emerge that demonstrate the complete gratuitousness of salvation.
- )In addition.
- Believers are instructed to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18).
What did the merciful and loving God of heaven give believers to help them develop their salvation, do the good deeds he has determined, and grow in grace?God offered them specific things to achieve these desired results; offered them what the theor-logos call the means of grace. Then we will see these means of grace and growth.
When you use the means of grace, you perceive the results of your own life: spiritual growth, maturity, joy, holiness, and Christlikeness. If these qualities are put into practice in your life, will there be any? Communion with God the Father. , the Son and the Holy Spirit. You will be strengthened and encouraged to walk with Christ. You will receive the spiritual strength and power necessary to overcome temptation, sin, and Satan. I have indescribable help in all aspects of the Christian life.
The Aure Dictionary? Lio defines the word medium as a resource used to achieve a goal. Therefore, the means of grace are the instruments by which God bestows blessings on His people. The Westminster Catechism defines the term “means of grace” as the visible and common resources because Christ conveys to his church the benefits of his mediation [ie your death].
To illustrate this, consider a garden hose. However, the hose is not special per se and is the channel through which water produces life and cools, the same goes for the means of grace, in themselves they are nothing special, but they are the instruments or channels through which divine blessings flow that give life and refresh the soul. Through grace, God grants strength, peace, comfort, instruction, discipline, direction, joy, and many other things necessary for God. Christian life?.
Although the phrase “means of grace” is not found in the Bible, and?A name adapted to what is taught there, there are two types of means of grace: private and public. The rest of this article covered the different aspects of each of these types.
1. Is the first of them? read the Word of God
God has given us a book through which He speaks to us, no longer communicates with men through his audible voice, as He did in the past, now God speaks through his Son (Heb 1-1-4), who transmits his word to us through the Holy Scriptures, the Bible. In the pages of Scripture, He manifests His voice, capable of awakening the dead, of giving them life.
The Bible was written by holy men, while God inspired and guided them, by the Holy Ghost. The? The perfect treasure of instruction and heavenly knowledge. God is the author of the Bible, salvation? His goal, and the truth without any mistake. and its contents. He primarily teaches us what we should believe about God and the duties He requires of us. Does the Bible reveal the principles by which it will judge us?And it demonstrates the supreme standard by which the behaviors, beliefs, and opinions of all men should be studied. Therefore, JCRyle wrote:
Set aside a part of each day to read and meditate on a part of God’s Word. Won’t yesterday’s bread feed you? worker today; Will today’s country not feed itself either? the worker of tomorrow ?. Do you get your mana back? every morning ?. Choose the right time and occasion. Don’t take a nap or rush while reading. In? The? your Bible is the best and not the worst of its time. Read the entire Bible, doing it constantly. I’m afraid there are various parts of God’s Word that some believers will never read. This attitude translates into a lack of broad and balanced opinions about the truth, a lack so common today. I create a good plan and? read the Old and New Testaments at the same time, cover to cover; then start over. Read the Bible in a spirit of obedience and self-application. Make yourself comfortable to study it with the determination that you are. lived? according to your rules, do you trust? in your statements and behave? according to your commandments. The most read and the most used.
It is the instrument by which God speaks to His people. As you read the Bible, God blesses and gives believers everything they need for their daily lives.
2. The second particular means of grace is prayer
What does prayer mean? One of the ways in which the believer cultivates an invigorating relationship with the living God. Prayer is indispensable in personal devotion. This means speaking and having fellowship with God, in this communion, we present our intimate desires. prayer Dios. La talk to God face to face. The Old Testament offers many examples: Ge? Nesis 18. 23, ss. ; Exodus 5. 22, 6. 1,10,12,28-30; Deutero-medium 3. 23-26; Psalm 27. 8 The New Testament presents a summary of the prayer in Acts 13. 1-2.
Ask God for the good things he promised his children and?A vital part of prayer (Mt 7. 7. 11; Luke 11. 5-13; Cl 1. 9-12; Stg 1. 5-6). According to Philippians 4. 6-7, prayer is a key for the believer to experience God’s peace. Is it also a means that facilitates our delivery? God’s will (see the example of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 26: 39,42,44).
Prayer has several parts. It may include one or more of these aspects: worship and praise, thanksgiving, confession of sins, supplication, intercession, and the gift of ourselves to God.
According to Ephesians 6. 18 and Jude 20, prayer must be done in the Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who helps the believer pray. Does this reflect the spirit of the believer he is? Son of God, leading him to shout: Abba, Father (Rom 8:15; Go 4:6) The Holy Spirit exhorts the believer to pray, bringing words and promises to his spirit. It also lights our hearts for the benefit of others (Rom 10:1; cf 9:1-2). So, when are you? You do not feel the desire to pray, I ask the Holy Ghost to help you participate in prayer.
Christ offered his people a pattern to help them in prayer; In general, he has been called the Lord’s prayer and is found in Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:1-4. This pattern of prayer was not given for the purpose of being repeated, either as a ritual, either privately or in public. Reciting this prayer does not take away our obligation to pray. Christ taught it so that believers can pray correctly. There are six requests in this prayer: the first three are linked to God’s priorities, the last three are related to our needs. In this model prayer, the Lord Jesus teaches us that before we pray for our needs, we must pray for divine priorities.
3. The third particular form of grace is meditation
Suppose the believer has come to God’s presence, through Bible reading and prayer, feeds on what he has already received through meditation. Thomas Watson, one of the Puritans, said, “Meditation is what it is. “Similar to watering a plant, it brings out the fruits of grace.
Meditation is and for our souls what digests it?For the body. C. H. Spurgeon presented excellent instruction, stating: Our body cannot be sustained simply by ingesting food through the mouth; but the digestion process results in muscles, nerves, bones and bones. Through digestion, outdoor food is assimilated by inner life. The same goes for our souls: they don’t just feed on what they hear here and welcome. Reading, listening, observing and learning everything requires internal digestion; and digestion: the inside of truth occurs when you meditate on it.
The attitude of the Psalmist David was this: I will meditate on your precepts and in your ways I will respect; I will accept your decrees; I will not forget your word (Psalm 119:15-16). Seven hundred years before The Birth of Christ, is David already?Did you know the value of meditation?
1. Gather to worship and worship, the first of these means
God never wanted the true believer to live alone. After Christ’s ascension, the Apostles traveled all over the world, planting churches and establishing elders in each of them (Acts 14:23). They did this so that the new believers would be strengthened, encouraged, guided, educated, and, most importantly, worship God together. God, not men, has ordained that through collective meeting, for worship, the believer should receive blessings and divine help for future days. Gathered together, God’s people would not only receive their blessing, but also strengthen each other. Christians have been commanded not to surrender or gather for public worship (Heb 10:25).
Historically, Christian churches have always loved Sundays; It was the first day of the week, on Sunday, when the Lord Jesus rose from the dead and secured the disappearance of Satan’s dominion fifty days after Christ’s resurrection at Pentecost, again on the first day. of the week, the Holy Spirit came upon believers to fill them with power; Since then, Christians have not gathered on Sunday, the first, best and most admirable day of the week, to worship the first, best and most admirable beings, the Lord God of Exe rites and his Son Jesus Christ (Acts 20. 7; 1 Co 16:2).
The elements of public worship are: public scripture reading, accompanied by preaching and teaching; sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual chants; offers and prayers. As we read and display the scriptures, God speaks to us; in channels, offerings, and prayers, we don’t talk to him. Preaching the Word, our parents understood it when they wrote:
The Spirit makes reading (especially the preaching of the Word) the effective means of convincing and converting sinners, building them into holiness and comfort (Bref catechism of Westminster, question 89).
2. The second public means of grace are the ordinances of the gospel
An ordinance is a custom and practice initiated by the Lord Jesus Christ while on earth. In the true churches of the Lord Jesus, huh?Only two ordinances: baptism and the Lord’s food.
Is baptism the first ordinance instituted by the Lord Jesus Christ while among men. He ordered that baptism be performed by his apostles and their churches until then. at the end of the world (cf. Mt 28, 18-20). A person who claims to be a believer and neglects baptism, the first ordinance of Christ, has no right to be called a Christian. Baptism must be performed by complete immersion in water, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
Baptism is reserved only for believers, isn’t it?For little non-believers. There is not a single example of baptism of children in the New Testament. Baptism has always been applied to those who have repented and believed, and to those who have become and saved (see Acts 2. 41; 18. 8). This ordinance was designed to be a testimony to the world to show that we are disciples of Christ and strengthen our decision to follow Him.
The Lord’s Supper and the second ordinance instituted by the Lord Jesus while on earth. They were “divinely designed ways to strengthen faith” exercised by believers. The Lord’s food is not a sacrifice offered to God, but only a celebration of this offering that Christ made of himself, once and for all, on the cross, in payment for our sins. Every time we participate in the Lord’s Supper, we do so. thus in memory of Him (1:11:24-26).
The elements of the Lord’s Supper, bread and wine, are only symbols; each element represents a different aspect of the sacrifice of Christ; the country symbolizes the pierced and dead body of the Savior, for our sins; the wine represents the blood of Christ that was shed to cleanse our sins. There is nothing magical about the country and the wine. They don’t change, they literally become the body and blood of Jesus; they remain what they are.
Careful scripture study demonstrates the conditions required to participate in the Lord’s Supper. A person must be truly converted to Christ, baptized, seeking to walk in a way that pleases God and be a member of one of Christ’s churches. We should remember that this ordinance was not given to individuals, but to local churches and their members.
3. La fraternity with brothers and sisters in Christ and?The third public means of grace.
God’s people come from all kinds of people; However, there is one thing that unies them: in Christ, they are one!Christ loved them with eternal love and attracted them with kindness. All obstacles were removed before Christ’s choice, redemption, and salvation. love (see Ephesians 2:14-16).
Communion means sharing life together or sharing life, especially when it comes to other believers. When Christ saved us, he did not intend for us to live in isolation. He designed us to be part of one of his churches and enjoy communion with other believers. (see Acts 2: 41-42). One of the deepest truths we understand in support of conversation is our connection to true believers.
Communion does not mean meeting other believers to talk about sport, entertainment, climate, economy or politics, although there is nothing wrong with doing so, on the contrary, communion and sincerely sharing among us the things of life. The Lord Jesus and His Palabra. La uniqueness of the Christian community lies in being able to speak and share together the joys, joys, victories, problems, temptations, pains and blessings of our walk with God. Proverbs 27. 17 says: How iron with iron sharpens a man, so his friend. Enjoy communion with brothers and sisters in Christ, in a local church, and?similar to sharp iron; and is the means of grace that keeps us spiritually healthy and vigorous.
4. La fourth public half of grace is collective prayer (Hch. 2:42)
Not only did the first Churches remain in the doctrine of the Apostles, in the Lord’s food, and in communion, but they also persevered together in prayer; Church meetings, praying, were one of the ways to bear the burdens of others and to fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6. 2). In the book of Acts, there are several examples of brothers praying together in the early church. On the day of Pentecost, what were the believers doing?Praying (Acts 1: 12-14; see 2. 1). Through collective prayer, the Church has contemplated the Lord God freeing him from the hands of her enemies (4:23-33). Peter was released from prison because the believers were together in prayer for him (12:5). New Testament churches illustrates the blessing and need to pray together.
That’s all? The truth about private prayer is also true. This is true for public prayer, except that it is done collectively. If God is? with his people and bless them individually with their presence, how much more does this happen when the church gathers for collective prayer?If he hears and answers a believer’s prayers, how much more will he hear and answer the prayers of many?? A Puritan, David Clarkson, said: The presence of God, appreciated in private prayer, resembles only a stream, but in collective prayer it becomes like a river that delights the city. Gods.
A loving, healthy and funny Father who lives in heaven has given his children these means for his good (cf. Dt 10:13). He did not give them to enslave his children to the rules of man, but to bless, strengthen, and encourage them. Were we given special means of grace to support us in our Christian life?Day by day, in a world of daily activities. The public means of grace are for our benefit, in the local church that belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ. Do you practice them now? In the growth and fruit of our Christian life. Will the use of these God-designed means lead to redundancy?in glory to Him, expand His kingdom and give us peace and joy.
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Christians must enter the world without being a part of it. John Blanchard