Basic Preparation for Transformation
Week 1, Email 2, Wednesday
Week 1, Email 2, Wednesday
Introduction: Part Two
Christianity goes far beyond accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior. That was only the start of the wonderful journey.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has gone, the new has come!
2 Cor 5:17
the old has gone, the new has come!
2 Cor 5:17
Our journey today begins with salvation and continues all the way to heaven through the path of sanctification. God works through our lives to conform us ever more into the image of his Son.
You were taught, ...
to put off your old self, . . .
and to put on the new self,
created to be like God
in true righteousness and holiness.
Eph 4:22-24
to put off your old self, . . .
and to put on the new self,
created to be like God
in true righteousness and holiness.
Eph 4:22-24
Spiritual growth in Christ is not passive. The job of this new self is “to put on Christ,” shedding the old self as quickly as we can because there is so little time and so much transformation possible.
. . . continue to work out your salvation
with fear and trembling.
Phil 2:12
with fear and trembling.
Phil 2:12
Each of us should be as scared as a teenage girl invited to attend a presidential ball in the White House because she won the spelling bee. She would be terrified that her dress would not be appropriate and pretty. She would be fearful of not knowing the correct etiquette. Since we will one day go to an even greater banquet in heaven, we should be fearful and tremble when we consider what will happen if we do not put hard work into changing to be clothed ever more in Christ.
Perhaps you think that working to conform yourself to Jesus is not necessary because you believe that simply walking through the gates of heaven will make you perfect. And, by that you mean “complete”, that you will know everything you did not learn and be changed into a replica of Christ without making all the biblical choices necessary for that to happen.
However, there is so much in the Bible that instructs us to seek godliness that it is mere wishful thinking that we will be totally transformed just by death and entrance into heaven. Yes, we will enter heaven perfect because only that which is like Jesus will be admitted – the new self. How much of Christ is in you now? How much more is possible?
The old self must be stripped away and left behind. The new self needs to be put on. We want to be putting on the new self now, as much as we can, because the quality of our eternal life depends on it. And, time is short!
Putting on the new self means obedient living in the ways of God as revealed in Scripture. This requires obedient Christian relationships as the environment for any real transformation into the character of Jesus. Therefore, these significant biblical relationships are necessary to prepare for heaven.
This Crucibles for Transformation into Exceptional Christlikeness presents a way to keep in mind hundreds of Scriptures detailing God’s desires and expectations for His people when they are together. You will find the biblical mandates for Christian relationships in these Togethers of Scripture. These 65 Togethers, each representing a number of Bible verses and passages, will accelerate your spiritual growth into more and more Christlikeness.
Before proceeding to learn the life-changing aspects of each Together, you must understand the biblical background for them. This will take 5 more weeks of emails on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. During this time you will learn the following:
Perhaps you think that working to conform yourself to Jesus is not necessary because you believe that simply walking through the gates of heaven will make you perfect. And, by that you mean “complete”, that you will know everything you did not learn and be changed into a replica of Christ without making all the biblical choices necessary for that to happen.
However, there is so much in the Bible that instructs us to seek godliness that it is mere wishful thinking that we will be totally transformed just by death and entrance into heaven. Yes, we will enter heaven perfect because only that which is like Jesus will be admitted – the new self. How much of Christ is in you now? How much more is possible?
The old self must be stripped away and left behind. The new self needs to be put on. We want to be putting on the new self now, as much as we can, because the quality of our eternal life depends on it. And, time is short!
Putting on the new self means obedient living in the ways of God as revealed in Scripture. This requires obedient Christian relationships as the environment for any real transformation into the character of Jesus. Therefore, these significant biblical relationships are necessary to prepare for heaven.
This Crucibles for Transformation into Exceptional Christlikeness presents a way to keep in mind hundreds of Scriptures detailing God’s desires and expectations for His people when they are together. You will find the biblical mandates for Christian relationships in these Togethers of Scripture. These 65 Togethers, each representing a number of Bible verses and passages, will accelerate your spiritual growth into more and more Christlikeness.
Before proceeding to learn the life-changing aspects of each Together, you must understand the biblical background for them. This will take 5 more weeks of emails on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. During this time you will learn the following:
> Why it is so very important that Christians get together and what they should do.
> How Satan’s strategy of “individualistic faith” cripples Christianity. > How Jesus wants to be loved most; the Togethers are that way. > That Christian friends, Christian families, and Christian marriages can become the powerhouses of the church. > Why and how preparing for heaven must be now. > How the quality of life for eternity in heaven can be increased by focused preparation now. > Places of service in heaven will be our rewards for how we live right now. > How the Togethers can be used as a blueprint for becoming like Jesus. > How the Togethers are a handbook for Christian relationships in the kingdom of God. > How the Togethers are a field guide of lifestyle worship. > How the Togethers are a manual for preparing for heaven. > How the Togethers are a guide for a more personal relationship with God. |
We at the Lamb’s Bride Project hope that you will devote yourself to becoming more and more thoroughly like Jesus week after week for the rest of your life. You will not likely get this instruction at your organizational church. We wish you would. Unfortunately, the sermons of pastors and the writing of authors is and has been for centuries almost exclusively individualistic in nature. This is a problem if what God said as recorded in Genesis 2:18 is correct - that we need help from one another for life and to obey God. You will hear about this soon.