Steps For New Christians
To accept Jesus Christ as your Lord
and Savior is the most important decision you will ever make in your life. In
reality, it is the beginning of a brand new life in Christ, and as a new-born
child of God, there are many important things you need to understand. As you
read this, please note the scripture references and look them up in your Bible.
(Bible quotations are taken from the New International Version, © The New
York Bible Society, 1978.)
1. You are saved by
Faith -- Your salvation is
based purely upon your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. In other
words, salvation is not something that can be "earned" by how good
you try to be or some religious act that you perform. Salvation is a free gift
from God, and came as you simply put your faith in Jesus, His death and
resurrection, and trusted him to forgive your sins and become your savior and
Lord. The scripture says "For it is by grace you have been saved, through
faith -- and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by
works, so that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
2. You're not saved by
feelings -- Good feelings are
nice to have, but feelings do not prove whether you're saved or not. There may
be times when you "feel" that God is close to you, and other times
when you "feel" that He's not. But remember that He has promised to
always be with you and never leave you, regardless of feelings (Hebrews 13:5).
Always remember that the Christian lives by faith, not by sight or the feelings
of our natural senses. The Bible says "We live by faith, not by
sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7).
3. You may experience
doubts -- One of most common
things that happens to a new believer is that the Devil tries to whisper doubts
in your thoughts: "You're not really saved," or "nothing really
happened to you." But don't buy into Satan's lies and deceptions! If you
placed your faith in Jesus Christ, then you are saved, regardless of whether
you feel it or not. God's Word promises, "If you confess with your mouth,
Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you
will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
4. You are Forgiven of
all your sins -- The Bible teaches
that all mankind has a sinful nature which keeps him separated from God's
presence and will result in eternal death. But Jesus came to suffer the
consequences of that sin as our substitute, so that we could be forgiven of sin
and have access to God's presence. When you repented (turned away) from your
sins, and asked Jesus to forgive you and become your savior, that's exactly
what he did. He forgave every sin you've ever committed, regardless of how
awful or evil they may have been. God can forgive more sin than man can commit.
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our
sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
5. You're perfect,
just forgiven -- Being a Christian
doesn't mean that you won't make mistakes, but it means that you are forgiven
of sin and that your goal is to live like Christ and not live in the old sinful
way anymore. Don't ever let the Devil condemn you if you stumble or make a
mistake! God loves you and wants you to ask Him to forgive you (1 John 1:9),
then He wants you to get back on your feet and keep walking for Him! Don't ever
let other people or the Devil bring condemnation upon you! God loves you and
will correct you, but He will not condemn you. "There is now no
condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus..." (Romans 8:1).
6. You are a New
Creation -- At the moment you
accepted Jesus, He came into your heart by His Spirit, and now His presence and
nature lives and dwells in your heart (1 Corinthians 6:19). You did not merely
become a better person, you were "born again" spiritually as a brand
new person! Now He wants you to learn to live your life according to the new
nature of His Spirit inside you. The Bible says "Therefore, if any one is
in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!" (2
Corinthians 5:17).
7. You have the promise
of Eternal Life -- God's Word says that
when you place your faith in Christ, you are given eternal life. That is,
someday when your physical body wears out and dies, your soul will go to be in
the Lord's presence to spend eternity with Him! "For God so loved the
world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall
not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
8. You must keep living
for Christ -- You must understand
that your salvation is based upon your "continued" relationship with
the Lord. He has promised to keep you saved, as long as you keep believing and
living for Him. As a new Christian, you need to grow in your relationship with
God and deepen your faith, so that discouragements, temptations, or trials will
never cause you to drift away from God. Remember, if you depart from the Lord,
you also depart from what gives you the promise of salvation. The Bible says
that Christ will one day present you before God, holy and unblemished
"...If you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from
the hope held out in the Gospel" (Colossians 1:23).
9. You need to go to
Church -- You should attend
church regularly so that your faith can be strengthened by the preaching of
God's Word, and so you can grow spiritually and be encouraged by the fellowship
of other Christians. Church is where you can go to express your love,
faithfulness, and worship to God. Church is where we can learn how to be a
Christian, and where the Pastor and spiritual leaders can help you and
encourage your faith. The Bible warns us not to absent ourselves from church attendance,
because we need the strength and encouragement it brings. "Let us not give
up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage
one another..." (Hebrews 10:25).
10. You need to Pray
every day -- Prayer is vital to
your spiritual growth. God is your Heavenly Father, and He wants to hear from
you and have daily fellowship with you. Not only does He promise to answer your
prayers, but as you pray He will also provide guidance and spiritual strength.
The Bible tells us to "Pray continually," that is to pray faithfully
every day (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
11. You need to read the
Bible daily -- The Bible is God's
Word, and as you read from it every day, it will cause you to grow spiritually
(2 Timothy 2:15). As you study His written word (start with the Gospel of
John), He will strengthen your faith, speak to your heart, and give you
guidance and direction for every need and decision in your life. "Your
word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path" (Psalms 119:105).
12. You need to be
baptized in Water -- At your first
opportunity, you should obey the Lord's command to be baptized in water as a
confession of your repentance and faith in Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19). Water
baptism in itself, (not to be confused with baptism in Holy Spirit) does not
save you or wash away your sins, but is an act of your obedience in God's Word.
It symbolically shows that you have died to the old sinful life, and have risen
in the newness of the Life of Christ. The scriptures say "...Repent and be
baptized, every one of you..." (Acts 2:38).
13. You need to live a
Holy life -- As we have
mentioned, Christians are not perfect. However, God wants you to
"aim" toward perfection. That is, your goal must be to grow in
submitting yourself to the new nature of His Spirit in your heart, follow the
example of Jesus, and live a godly and wholesome life (Hebrews 12:14). You
repented and asked Him to forgive your sins, and now you need to grow closer to
Him each day, which will take you farther away from sinful thoughts and
behavior which are displeasing to God. Your faith in God will cause a desire to
obey Him and do those things pleasing in His sight (Colossians 1:10).
Should you continue to
live in an unrestrained, sinful lifestyle, this would lead you away from God
and back into the old ways which lead to death. But as we grow in our
relationship with God, His strength in our life will increase to overcome
sinful behavior and habits. "Since we have these promises, dear friends,
let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit,
perfecting holiness out of reverence for God" (2 Corinthians 7:1).
14. You need to be
Filled with the Holy Spirit
-- We already said that the Holy Spirit was born in your heart when you
received Christ and now resides in you. But the Bible also says that the Holy
Spirit can "immerse" you with a special power for service, to enable
you to live a powerful Christian life, and to be bold in your Christian witness
and testimony. "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on
you: and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). To receive this special power,
all we have to do is ask Christ to baptize us with His Holy Spirit, and He promises
that He will.
15. You need to tell
others about Christ -- It is important for
you to openly declare Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord to others, as it
establishes the testimony of your faith. Once you have accepted Jesus Christ,
tell someone. Don't keep it a secret. The Bible says that "Whoever
acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in
heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown before my Father in
heaven" (Matthew 10:32-33).
This article (VL-121) is copyrighted © by Dr. Dale A. Robbins, 1990-2015 and is a publication of Victorious Publications, Grass Valley, CA - Nashville, TN. Unless otherwise stated, all scripture references were taken from The New King James Bible,
© Thomas Nelson Inc., 1982. You may download this article for personal
use as long as you retain credit to the author. Obtain permission before
reproducing copies for any reason, by filling out our simple permission form. Many of our writings are also available as free pdf tri-fold pamphlets, which can be downloaded for reproduction from our Online Catalog. For media reproduction rights, or to obtain quantities of this title in other formats, email us.
How you can grow as a new Christian.
by
Complete Gospel
on
15:42:00
Steps For New Christians To accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior is the most important decision you will ever make in you...
