HOW TO AVOID RELIGIOUS DEAD ENDS.
"How To Avoid Religious Dead Ends" is based on
the N.I.V. Bible version of a letter Paul wrote
about A.D.60 to Christians in the town of
Colosse in present day Turkey. Chapter
references follow and our comments are in
brackets.
(What follows assumes you are a real believer
in Jesus Christ. Here's how to become one:
God made you in His own image, so you
could enjoy real life, sharing in His
love, friendship and creation. He is
totally interested in you, having
specially prepared plans for your life.
God loves you too much to force His
plans upon you. He leaves you free to
choose His way or your own. In fact,
everyone begins by choosing to go their
own way - "do their own thing." This
breaks His law of love and separates
us from Him, a spiritual and physical
death penalty. Even so, He continues
to care for us. He shares our resulting
pain and sorrows. The good news is that
He showed the depth of His love for you
by paying your penalty and eliminating
the cause of separation. He did this by
dying in your place at Calvary and
opening the way for you to be re-united
with Him.
The Cross shows how valuable you are to
Him. All He asks in response to His
love is belief in what Jesus Christ has
done for you and a genuine desire to go
His way rather than your own. If you want to do
this, then tell Him in your own words like
these:
Dear God, I have been going my own way
but now I want to turn and go your way.
I believe you will forgive all my past
sins and give me a new life as a
member of your family. I trust in
your Son Jesus Christ.
Thanks for accepting me.
You have done the most important thing possible
- become a member of God's family. God now
lives within you in the person of the Holy
Spirit. This means you have become God's
masterpiece. You can't be more special than
that. To grow you will need to meet with other
members to give and receive encouragement.
You can do that by joining a loving and
accepting Christian denominational church or
meeting in your home. Our book, "How to Meet
with God at Home" has details).
As the certainty grows that after this life
you'll be in heaven, so will your faith in
Christ and your love for Him and others.
The above good news (Gospel) has brought life
all round the world. (Chapter 1, verses 1-8).
May you be filled with and grow in the
knowledge of God's will through spiritual
wisdom and understanding.
Get on with the good work God wants you to do,
living a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing
Him in all you do. You'll be strengthened with
His power and be given endurance and patience
so that you'll joyfully give thanks to the
Father.
You have been ransomed from Satan's dark
dominion by Christ's death as your substitute.
Now your sins are forgiven and you are in the
Kingdom of the Son God loves. (Chapter 1,
verses 9-14).
(You'll find that people will try to make you
fit into some religious system but all you need
is Christ and regular meetings with a few other
true believers {church}).
The invisible God became visible through
Christ. He created everything for Himself -
heaven, earth, visible, invisible, thrones,
powers, rulers, authorities etc. He was there
before He made them and He holds them together.
(Chapter 1, verses 15-17).
When a few real believers in Him meet together
(church), they are His body and He is the head.
Christ is the beginning of a new way of living
and the only one to rise from the dead and not
die again, so He really is Supreme.
God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell
in Christ and through Him to reconcile
everything to Himself, whether on earth or
heaven, by making peace through His blood shed
on the Cross.
You used to be alienated from God, being His
enemy in your mind because of your evil
behaviour. But now God has reconciled you to
Himself by Christ's death. In His sight you
are holy, without blemish and free from
accusation, as long as you continue, established
and firm in your faith, with total confidence
in the good news of Christ. (Chapter 1, verses
18-23).
Your job now is to pass on the good news to
others. Guide and teach people with God's
wisdom, the goal being that Christ may live His
life freely through each one. Keep on with this
work empowered with Christ's energy.
There is no mystery to life. God has made
everything plain and all anyone needs is Christ
living in them, their certainty of eternal
life. (Chapter 1, verses 24-29).
Encourage believers and hearten them to be
united in love and have complete understanding
of Christ who has all wisdom and knowledge.
(Chapter 2, verses 1 to 5).
Avoid groups of "believers" (churches) who try
to make you conform to their man made
traditions and ideas. You only need to conform
to Christ. All the fullness of God lives in Him
and He is the head of every power and
authority.
You have been given Christ who lives in you in
all His fullness. He enables you to put off your
sinful nature, through your faith in God's
power which raised Christ from death. You were
dead in your sins but God forgave you and
made you alive together with Christ. He
disarmed the devil and His helpers and made a
public spectacle of them triumphing over them
by the Cross. (Chapter 2, verses 6 to 15).
You'll find groups of "believers" will try to
make you conform to their man made rules and
regulations in order to be right with Christ -
they'll say you have to eat this or drink that,
don't handle this, touch that or taste this, or
that you must meet on a certain day and in a
certain way. Such systems appeal to human
wisdom, to man's sinful pride by making him
think he can earn credits with God by what he
does. These people have lost connection with
Christ, the head of the church. Their
activities have form but no substance. Keep
away from them, for you, reality is found only
in Christ. When He is the real head of His body
(the church) it grows in a strong and healthy
way. (Chapter 2, verses 16-23).
Christ has raised you from the deadness of your
old life so your life is now hidden with Christ
in God. When Christ returns to earth you will
also appear with Him in glory. Therefore set
your heart on heavenly things where Christ is
seated at the right hand of God.
Keep your mind off earthly things, "put to
death" and get rid of what belongs to your
earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity,
lust, evil desires and greed which is idolatry,
anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language
and lying. God's wrath is coming because of
these things.
Instead, by letting Christ have continual
control, put on the new self which is being
renewed in the knowledge and image of its
Creator, where Christ is all and in all. As
God's person, holy and dearly loved, let His
love be your motivation. Put on compassion,
kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, bear
with others , be forgiving as the Lord forgave
you and above all, be loving. Love binds all
virtues together in perfect unity.
Be thankful, let Christ's peace rule in your
hearts, let Christ's word dwell in you richly.
Teach and admonish other believers with wisdom
and sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with
them with gratitude in your hearts to God.
Whatever you do, in word or deed, do it in the
name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks to the
Father through Him. (chapter 3, verses 1-17).
If you are a husband, love your wife.
If you are a wife, respond submissively.
If you are a child, obey your parents.
If you are a father, do not discourage
your children.
If you are an employee, serve with
sincerity of heart and reverence for the
Lord working for Him and not for men.
(Chapter 3, verses 18-25).
If you are an employer, pay your employees
what is just and fair.
Devote yourself to prayer, being watchful
and thankful. Act wisely toward non
believers and make the most of every
opportunity to share the Good News of
Christ. Always speak with Christ's grace
so you'll know how to answer anyone.
Finally may God's grace be with you.
(Chapter 4)
HERE ARE SOME MAIN POINTS FROM COLOSSIANS:
1. You used to be God's enemy, but now God
has reconciled you to Himself by
Christ's death. Now God will live through you to
get others reconciled and at peace with Him.
2. When a few of Christ's believers meet (have church) they
are Christ's body and He is their head. Encourage them to
be united in love and understand Christ. Avoid churches
who try to make you conform to their man made traditions
and rules. These people have form without substance. All
you, or any group of believers need, is Christ, plus
nothing.
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