Bible Study

Dear Friend,

Welcome to the Kingdom of God.

God loves you so much and wants you to read his word, the Bible, so you can grown in him. I have a short Bible study to get you started.

But before we start, let's pray a prayer we should pray before reading the word.

Dear God, speak to me through your word.

Read the following verses out loud. Slow down and listen to the words and let God speak to you.

Jesus replied,
"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching..." John 14:23, 24a

The Bible says:
Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Questions to Think About:

1. What is God’s will for me?
2. Can I commit to having a daily prayer time?

You can talk to God about anything, antime. Talking to God is Praying.

When you pray...
P - Praise God for who He is, and what He has done for you.
R - Repent. Ask forgiveness for your sins. (Be specific)
A - Ask for others.
Y - Ask for Yourself

The Bible says:
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another... Hebrews 10:25

You need encouragement and now you know you can find it by meeting with other believers. Do you have a church you can attend?

The Bible says:
“Whoever acknowledges me before men, I (Jesus) will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” Matthew 10:32, 33

Will you tell someone you've given your life to Jesus?

The Bible says:
As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on Him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:16, 17

Will you follow Jesus’ example of being baptized? If you don't know how you can manage this, ask God to show you a way.

The Bible says:
“I (Jesus) tell you, ...unless you repent, (turn from your selfish ways and turn to God) you too will all perish” (be lost eternally). Luke 13:3

Here's how it works, when you love God, you will want to stop doing wrong things, because of His love for you. No one is perfect, but ask God for strength to help you in this area. He will help you. There will be times you will fail, as we all do, but ask God to forgive you and get back on your feet. With God's help you can do it!!

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30, 31

You know, love is what it's all about.

Now about the collection for God’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income...
1 Corinthians 16:1, 2a

If you've been a believer for a while, you should be giving a percent of your money back to God.

If you are a young person or if you are a new believer, do what you can, when you can. God will bless you.

The Bible says:
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.
1 Peter 4:10

Really, this verse goes back to loving others. What act of kindness can you do today?

The Bible says:
Then He (Jesus) said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” Luke 9:23-25

Give every ounce of your life for God. Don't live for yourself, live for Him. He can put your life back together.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. (under His authority) Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7

Okay, let's have a little talk.

We do have an enemy you know. He will try to tempt you to do wrong; but if you say "NO" to him, he'll HAVE to leave you alone.

When you hear a 'thought' that says, "Who do you think you're fooling?" "God doesn't love you. You have no hope," or even, "Why don't you just be done with it and die!"

That is not the voice of God speaking to you. That's the voice of the evil one. DON'T LET HIM WIN. God has a purpose for you, dear one. Don't let the lies of the enemy defeat those purposes. God loves you with and everlasting love. Tell the enemy to shut up!

Here's a prayer to do just that:
"Devil, SHUT UP, is Jesus name. I am His. He loves me. He has a purpose for me. I am covered and protected by the blood Jesus shed when he died on the cross for me. Devil, you cannot have my life!"

Then thank God that your life now belongs to Him.

WHAT TO DO NEXT:

Read your bible every day. Start with the book of John.

Talk to God every day.

Live as if you are forgiven and loved by God. BECAUSE YOU ARE. Don't listen to the lies of the enemy. He'll try to discourage you. But tell him to "SHUT UP" in Jesus name.

Just know how much God loves you and live for Him.

If you're not going to church. Think about finding a church home. We all need encouragement and that's what you will find at a good church; encouragement, friendship, good teaching from the Bible.

If you are not in a church that's meeting these three needs, either pray that your church will change and be a part of that change or ask God to move you to another church. Here are some "church finder" web sites:

Any Church, For Travelers, Christian, Lutheran ELCA, Assemblies of God

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COMMITMENT PRAYER

Dear God, thank you for your gift of eternal life. I want to know your purpose for my life. I want to become more and more like your Son, Jesus. Lead me to grow in my relationship with you as your disciple. Give me strength to always obey your teaching. Guide me to develop and use my God-given gifts and abilities in serving You. Show me with whom to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen.