6 More Things Every New Believer Should About Their Christian Faith

Jacob was cooking venison stew one day with some of the vegetables he had grown. His brother Esau came up and it smelled so good to him. Being a known Outdoorsman he had been out walking the land and feeling especially famished. He asked his brother for some of the stew. His brother looking doubtful–ughh, I don’t know I only cooked so much. Please give me some of that stew! Jacob shrewdly baited him, ‘How about your birthright, I’ll give as much as you want. Even the whole pot, if you want. Esau flippantly, Sure, you can have it. Jacob, ‘Have what?” ‘You can have my birthright blessing! Just give me that stew before I starve.’

Long story short, later their mother convinces Jacob that he deceive his father into giving him the blessing. She heard him saying it was about time to make sure he did that. Reluctantly, but he did it. He covered his arms with hairy animal skins and the smell of the outdoors to convince nearly blind father he was Esau. The writer of Hebrews tells this story briefly in about two sentences to warn us about the blessing blocker called bitterness.  Bitterness is defined as anger and disappointment at being treated unfairly. It is synonymous with resentment and envy. One of the most well-known stories of bitterness in the Bible is the archetypal tale of Cain and Abel. In a figurative sense, extreme enmity, grudge, hatred; or rather an excessive degree or implacableness of passions and emotions; as the bitterness of anger. –Holman Bible Dictionary

REVIEW OF LAST TEACHING (WEDNESDAY IN THE WORD)

In preparation, for the Foundation of Christian Faith teaching coming up, we have been discussing a few other things that we should know about our most holy faith. Last teaching, we discussed the top 5 gifts that all of us want to embrace. Here are five of those gifts, he will never change his mind about:

    GIFT OF SALVATION. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8

    GIFT OF ETERNAL LIFE. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23

    GIFT OF GRACE. Grace is considered the umerited favor and blessing of God. …of which I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me (us) according to the working of His power. Ephesians 3:7 and also, But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore, it says, when he ascended on high, he led captive a host of captives and he gave gifts to men. -Ephesians 4:7-8

    GIFT OF HOLY SPIRIT. Peter said them, ‘Repent and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

    GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. The simple definition for righteousness is ‘right standing with God.’ For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:17 and again in 1 Cor. 1:29,30 So that no man may boast in His presence. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

WORD OF THE WEEK: RIGHTEOUSNESS – Right standing with God or the Greek word Dikaiosune, justice or righteousness, means living in right relationship with God, other people, and all creation. –Holman Bible Dictionary

We are teaching this week from Hebrews 12. We’re still skipping around a bit following the leading of the Holy Spirit. We’ve already begun laying the foundation (not a new one) but the same one Christ and the early church Apostles laid. We rightly divide word of God, so again it’s not new but a continuance the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

1. Receiving the spirit of adoption. “You have received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, “Abba Father!” The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8: 15-17).

• Running the race of life with patience. Laying aside every weight and the sin. In Hebrews 12:1,2, the writer encourages us to endure: 1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off every encumbrance and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with endurance the race set out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

• Realize as God’s Child, we receive discipline. Father God disciplines us so that we may become partakers of holiness. The writer of Hebrews 12:11 reminds us it doesn’t feel good and most times feels downright awful but afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto those that are being disciplined. So stay encouraged, don’t get weary and give up. Stay busy–don’t let your hands be limp or your feeble knees give way. The writer was quoting the Psalms. Then he says follow PEACE with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. So, yes we are called to live holy. ‘Be ye holy as I am holy’ is a command. It also means he helps us. He wouldn’t tell us to do something that’s impossible to do.

• Be diligent with guarding against bitterness. Here’s the ‘big one’, the clincher that seems to trip us up so often. We think Father God is after us to rob us of all the fun in life. Or He’s holding it over us, even if we’ve repented and showing the fruit of repentance. Meaning we’ve changed our mind, our heart and our ways. But he’s not he is faithful and just to cleanse us of all unrighteousness, when we repent. The Apostle is reminding us about ‘guarding against bitterness’ because it’s one of the biggest blessings blockers. The Scriptures tell us that Jacob deceived his father with the help of his mother into giving him the birthright blessing of firstborn. Esau his brother had already sold his birthright blessing to that same brother for a bowl of soup when he felt famished. After it was done, he sought to get it back with tears but to no avail.

• Seek 1st the kingdom of God. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all other things will be added unto you. We have received a Kingdom that cannot be moved. In chapter 12 of Hebrews the writer about middle ways starts telling us how Moses had the bright idea that the people join with him in hearing God. He wanted them to know God was their God too. So, Father God gave instructions to Moses that the people could come up to the mountain with him. But they were not to touch it nor any animal was to touch it. Long story short, the day came when they all went up-to mountain but it burned with fire, blackness and darkness and tempest was around. God’s voice speaking to the people that sounded like a trumpet. It was such an ordeal and terrible that even Moses said, “I exceedingly fear and quake.” So much so, the people said, “That’s o.k. Moses you go on –meet with God on our behalf…”

• Knowing this Kingdom Can Not Be Shaken. What’s my point, Father God says he’s that same God. Through the mediator, Jesus Christ, we have come unto mount Zion (the church) and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels. The Apostle says they didn’t escape those who refused him that spake on earth. How much more shall we not escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.

Whose voice shook the earth: but now he hath promised saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. So, He is and will be shaking–removing those things that can be shaken–so that what can not shaken shall remain.  I reminded us of all that to say, in Christ, we have received a Kingdom which can not be moved. So, let us with and through God’s grace serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For God is a consuming fire.

Growing in Knowledge of God’s Covenants of Promise. Ephesians 2:12. ESV remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. So as a Christian, we want to know more and more about God’s Covenants of promise. There are five basic ones that originated in the Old Testament. The top ones that we will discuss in future Bible Studies are God’s Covenant of Blessing, Covenant of Protection and His Covenant of Peace. And of course the New Covenant or the Covenant of Grace in Hebrews 13:20, 21 20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.

Pastor Earma, 12 book Christian author and Publisher, Founder of Grace Covenant House @ http://gracecovenantonline.org

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