XML FeedsR 12 Session 3
By robert on Feb 28, 2009 | In Bible Study, Discipleship, Encouragement | 1 feedback »
We held Session 3 of Chip Ingram's Romans 12 series at Perry and Michelle's house and it was yet another wonderful move of God!
Good food as always and wonderful fellowship preceded a purposeful time of study as we discussed verse 2 of Romans chapter 12 - being separate from the world system. I was expecially honored that the teenagers among us felt free to talk about their view of the world system in an honest and forthright way. The young people of our church face many challenges in dealing with what the world entices them with and many more challenges from within themselves as they wrestle with the curiosity that comes natural to young people on the verge of adulthood.
Being separate from the world system is not such a challenging task for many of those who have spent their life in church and have their heart set on the things of God. However, there are many people coming into the church today that are bringing a lot of worldly baggage with them and they think it's okay to try and be a Christian while still hanging on to it.
If you've been a Christian for a while and have dedicated your life to God, you'll know that interacting with people like this can be difficult. How do you encourage new converts to live for God when they still seem to want to hang onto so much of the world system and their old ways? Obviously something out there is still appealing to them.
It takes prayer and patience. It takes trusting God, and it takes knowing His word. Encouraging new Christians to surrender to God and become separate from the world is necessary! Otherwise they will simply not last. Falling away is easy to do for dedicated people, many of us have seen it. Those new to the faith don't really stand a chance if they don't see seasoned Christians demonstrating the Romans 12 lifestyle.
That is why we are studying Romans 12. We want to be authentic disciples of Jesus Christ.
As always, we finished our lesson and discussion with prayer. God has been moving in a powerful way during these prayer times and you can feel His strengthening and uplifting presence. I can't find the words in the short amount of time I have to explain phenomenon but I can tell you that we're all exciting about where the Lord is going to take us as we continue to move forward, preparing ourselves so that He will always be free to work His will in us.
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It is hard to understand, and at this time unclear, what God is doing for this small group of people who use their time to draw closer to God.
Here is a peculiar verse that James wrote to the Church, Ch.4:7-8 "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you..." and then in vs.10 "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." If we read over this too quickly we will assume that is simply just going to church services, or praying and reading your Bible every now and then. I think that is a wrong assumption. We can attest to the fact that in in recent meetings we have gone beyond a church service and beyond studying the Bible with a lackadaisical attidude. Not everyone who claims to be a Christian is a Christian. Not everyone that goes to Church is a Christian. Paul said in Romans 9:6 "Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel." Not to boast or to think more highly of ourselves than we should that we would fall into temptation, but to know that James understood that drawing close to God and him drawing close to you is a special event. This goes beyond corporate worship. This is an individuals own personal desire to have a true relationship with God.
I'm am still under the effects of the Saturday meeting. Sunday came and it was as though the meeting had never stopped for me. I hope this continues.
What effect will there be when God draws close to a person, or when he allows his true presence to be felt?
Moses desired to see God's glory, but God allowed Moses to only see his back parts, God covered the eyes of Moses while his glory or face passed by.
Now think of this we are only witnessing a very small portion of God. As He draws close to us He and He alone controls what shall be revealed to us. What happens when God lifts a person up? We can only wait and see. I know I have jumped around some, but sometimes it is hard to find the correct words to descibe what God is doing. How does the God who created the world draw close to us or lift us up?
I want more of Him and less of me.
R12 Rocks! Keep up the good work Rob.
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