I wanted to let you know about our next Wednesday night series. How many times have you 'tried' to live the Christian life--but failed miserably? We're supposed to have a quiet time, we're supposed to pray, we're supposed to worship. But when it comes down to it, those things never really seem to have any impact on 'real life.' You know the feeling?
And when it comes down to it, how do I really know for sure that all this Bible stuff is even true? These are normal questions, and normal feelings. The Christian life is full of ups and downs. The trick (if you want to call it a trick) is to learn how to live what you believe.
I hope you'll join us at Southbrook Church for the next four Wednesday nights as we look at these questions. We will look at the Bible and learn that we can know for sure that when we die we will meet Jesus face to face. We'll talk about the importance of personal devotional times. Prayer and worship are also very important. How do we take these practices and make them effective in our daily lives?
Come Wednesday night and find out...see you there!
November 26, 2007
November 15, 2007
Knowledge & Instruction
In our quest to build a solid foundation (our worldview which is based in doctrinal truth) we must accumulate knowledge. That's just the way it works. We do because we know. Knowledge comes through study and experience. It can be our own experiences or the experiences of others. What you believe is going to be partly rooted in what you know.
Knowledge – A good atheist spends time getting to know her beliefs. A good Mormon spends time learning about what they believe. In order to defend your beliefs, you have to know facts about your beliefs. Today it seems to be pretty common for people to claim that what they believe doesn’t have to agree with what we believe. What’s true for you may not be true for me. But that’s ok, we can agree to disagree. But in order to know what you believe, you have to know facts about what you believe.
As a Christ follower I can claim that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died to take away my sin so that I could experience an eternal and personal relationship with the Creator of the universe. But if I have nothing to base that on, what’s the point? How do I even know it’s true? I have to read and study the Bible, the book that contains the claims of Christianity, so that I can build on the foundation of my doctrinal beliefs.
Reading and studying the Bible happens in several ways. Yesterday I wrote about personal devotion. That is a great way to begin to gather knowledge about what I believe. Church attendance, small group or Bible studies are important as well. The important thing is that you have some kind of systematic instruction in your life. This means consistency. This means orderly, not just a shot in the dark hope I learn something today approach.
Systematic Instruction – Having personal times of devotion is good, but is usually rather unstructured. It is important to pursue some kind of systematic instruction. Whether it be through schooling, or classes offered through a volunteer organization such as the local church. It is essential for followers of Jesus Christ to pursue a systematic study of God’s Word. We can learn a lot on our own. We can learn so much more from those who are gifted in the area of teaching.
Knowledge – A good atheist spends time getting to know her beliefs. A good Mormon spends time learning about what they believe. In order to defend your beliefs, you have to know facts about your beliefs. Today it seems to be pretty common for people to claim that what they believe doesn’t have to agree with what we believe. What’s true for you may not be true for me. But that’s ok, we can agree to disagree. But in order to know what you believe, you have to know facts about what you believe.
As a Christ follower I can claim that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that He died to take away my sin so that I could experience an eternal and personal relationship with the Creator of the universe. But if I have nothing to base that on, what’s the point? How do I even know it’s true? I have to read and study the Bible, the book that contains the claims of Christianity, so that I can build on the foundation of my doctrinal beliefs.
Reading and studying the Bible happens in several ways. Yesterday I wrote about personal devotion. That is a great way to begin to gather knowledge about what I believe. Church attendance, small group or Bible studies are important as well. The important thing is that you have some kind of systematic instruction in your life. This means consistency. This means orderly, not just a shot in the dark hope I learn something today approach.
Systematic Instruction – Having personal times of devotion is good, but is usually rather unstructured. It is important to pursue some kind of systematic instruction. Whether it be through schooling, or classes offered through a volunteer organization such as the local church. It is essential for followers of Jesus Christ to pursue a systematic study of God’s Word. We can learn a lot on our own. We can learn so much more from those who are gifted in the area of teaching.
November 14, 2007
Personal Devotion
If doctrinal truth is the foundation on which our worldview is built, then we need to understand how to build that foundation. The fact is, the foundation is being built and has been built over the years - with or without any effort of my own. I either intentionally built the foundation, or it gets built for me. Every experience, every relationship, every book I read, every person I talk to has some input on my worldview - the foundation on which I base my decisions.
Personal Devotion – You will spend your personal time devoted to the things that support what you believe. If you believe there is no God, then to what do you devote your time? If you believe that money is the goal of life, then you will likely devote yourself to making more of it. If you believe that fun and excitement is what it is all about, you will spend a lot of time chasing fun and excitement. If you believe in a personal God who loves you and desires to have a relationship with you, then you will likely spend time getting to know this God through His Word – the Bible.
While there is only one way to God (through Jesus Christ His son) there are many ways to grow in our relationship with Him. It all starts with His Word - the Bible. Personal devotion for the Christ follower means we spend time in the Bible, reading, praying, meditating, memorizing. It is His word spoken to us. We have access to the very words of God! If I want to build my foundation on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, I must spend time digging for truth. The bible is the source of all truth. I must devote time to the study of the Bible.
With so many resources available today, it is not hard to come across a devotional guide to help us get started. The bottom line is this - does the book, study guide, or devotional book base its teaching in the Bible? If it does, use it! If not, then find something else. Be very careful what you choose to spend your time doing, your personal devotion time. Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you.
Personal Devotion – You will spend your personal time devoted to the things that support what you believe. If you believe there is no God, then to what do you devote your time? If you believe that money is the goal of life, then you will likely devote yourself to making more of it. If you believe that fun and excitement is what it is all about, you will spend a lot of time chasing fun and excitement. If you believe in a personal God who loves you and desires to have a relationship with you, then you will likely spend time getting to know this God through His Word – the Bible.
While there is only one way to God (through Jesus Christ His son) there are many ways to grow in our relationship with Him. It all starts with His Word - the Bible. Personal devotion for the Christ follower means we spend time in the Bible, reading, praying, meditating, memorizing. It is His word spoken to us. We have access to the very words of God! If I want to build my foundation on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, I must spend time digging for truth. The bible is the source of all truth. I must devote time to the study of the Bible.
With so many resources available today, it is not hard to come across a devotional guide to help us get started. The bottom line is this - does the book, study guide, or devotional book base its teaching in the Bible? If it does, use it! If not, then find something else. Be very careful what you choose to spend your time doing, your personal devotion time. Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you.
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