INTRODUCTION
Today God is calling Christians to fulfill His plan for our lives, that we become Like Christ and do what He saved us to do,
BECOME TRUE DISCIPLES
The Mystery of the Ages
Eph 3:1-10
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles — 2 if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace which was given to me for you; 3 that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery , as I wrote before in brief. 4 By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; 6 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, 7 of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God's grace which was given to me according to the working of His power. 8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; 10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. NASU
Rescued from the Kingdom of Darkness
Col 1:13-14
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. NASU
Eph 1:13-14 The Holy Spirit in Us is His Promise of His Kingdom within Us
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation — having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance , with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory. NASU
A New Heart and New Spirit
Eze 36:25-27
26 "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. NASU
2 Co 5:17 A New Creation
17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. NASU
Make Disciples…Teaching Them to Observe (do) all that I commanded you
Mt 28:19-20
19 " Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." NASU
The Messiah Is to Be Revealed in Us
Eph 4:11-16
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. 14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; 15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. NASU
Parable of the Talents
Matthew 25:14-30
" For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. 15 "To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey. 16 "Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. 17 "In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more. 18 "But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. NASU
What Must We Do To Become True Disciples?
John 3:16, Ephesians 4:11-13, Acts: 17-11 Joshua 24
Acts 17:11
11 Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. NASU
Choose you this day Whom you Serve"
Joshua 24
"Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 "If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." NASU
Every Day we must choose to say yes to Jesus and no to ourselves and the ways of the world.
I am constantly on the look out for effective ministries that have both integrity and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. One such ministry is Life Builders. I have found Charles Hefton, the founder to be a man after God's own heart, a man who is humble and whose cup overflows with the presence of the Living God. I have taken material from his site and pasted it below as well as placed a link to this life changing ministry. I highly recommend this ministry!
