e.r.m.
Church of Christ
Luke 14:25,28-33 And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them, [28] For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it ? [29] Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it , all that behold it begin to mock him, [30] Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. [31] Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? [32] Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace. [33] So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
Acts 17:10-11 And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. [11] These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
Romans 10:14-15,17 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? [15] And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! [17] So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
As with the following account, although they instructed the Philippian jailer to believe in Jesus, he couldn't until they spoke the word of the Lord to him and he knew in whom he would believe.
Acts 16:29-34 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, [30] And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? [31] And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. [32] And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. [33] And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. [34] And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.
Acts 8:26-32,35-36 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. [27] And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, [28] Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. [29] Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. [30] And Philip ran thither to him , and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? [31] And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. [32] The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: [35] Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. [36] And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
Acts 8:5,12 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. [12] But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Luke 8:11-15 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. [12] Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. [13] They on the rock are they , which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. [14] And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. [15] But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
So many times I hear, like recently when a coworker shared her conversion, how a person "decides to surrender" to Jesus making a sincere, but uninformed, decision based on experience, instead of scripture.
I quoted passages that include both belief and baptism, but this is not a thread on the particulars of conversion although it may overlap, rather that the Word of God needs to be opened, looked at, and taught prior to deciding to follow Jesus and not just after one has been saved. Many instead subscribe to the idea of "you've been saved, now it's time to 'start' learning the Word of God."' It seems so normal because this practice became a culture over time. But this culture, that so many have adopted and become used to, stands in contradiction to scripture.
To clarify, I'm not saying one's search "begins" with studying the Bible, although it can, but it should be in there somewhere before deciding to follow Jesus.
I'm also not saying one should be a theologian before deciding, but some exposure and learning from the word is in order.
The floor is open. Thank you.
Acts 17:10-11 And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. [11] These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
Romans 10:14-15,17 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? [15] And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! [17] So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
As with the following account, although they instructed the Philippian jailer to believe in Jesus, he couldn't until they spoke the word of the Lord to him and he knew in whom he would believe.
Acts 16:29-34 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, [30] And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? [31] And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. [32] And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. [33] And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. [34] And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.
Acts 8:26-32,35-36 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. [27] And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, [28] Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. [29] Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. [30] And Philip ran thither to him , and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? [31] And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. [32] The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: [35] Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. [36] And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
Acts 8:5,12 Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. [12] But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Luke 8:11-15 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. [12] Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. [13] They on the rock are they , which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. [14] And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. [15] But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
So many times I hear, like recently when a coworker shared her conversion, how a person "decides to surrender" to Jesus making a sincere, but uninformed, decision based on experience, instead of scripture.
I quoted passages that include both belief and baptism, but this is not a thread on the particulars of conversion although it may overlap, rather that the Word of God needs to be opened, looked at, and taught prior to deciding to follow Jesus and not just after one has been saved. Many instead subscribe to the idea of "you've been saved, now it's time to 'start' learning the Word of God."' It seems so normal because this practice became a culture over time. But this culture, that so many have adopted and become used to, stands in contradiction to scripture.
To clarify, I'm not saying one's search "begins" with studying the Bible, although it can, but it should be in there somewhere before deciding to follow Jesus.
I'm also not saying one should be a theologian before deciding, but some exposure and learning from the word is in order.
The floor is open. Thank you.
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