Beginnings 4 – Prayer

This is part of a 12-week series designed around some basic Christian disciplines that will propel you to spiritual growth!

 

If the above player does not work for you, simply click this link: Bible Reading

Here is the podcast above in a nutshell…

Welcome back to Beginnings, I’m so glad you’re on this journey!
This week we focus on a Christian discipline that is already widely practiced by most of humanity: Prayer.

Because there is a God-shaped hole in the heart of every human being, people have been praying since the beginning of time, in every culture, in every language.

Even people who claim not to believe we’ll find themselves crying out and in times of difficulty. It’s just a part of who we are!

The key is to remember that prayer is a conversation: we talk, listen,  consider our circumstances and remember the role we play… He is God; we are not.

But many of us have been intimidated over the years. We think there’s some special language full of thees and thous that need to be spoken. There is not.

We think that people who ‘really’ pray can drone on and on for hours. They do, and it’s not necessary.

And we have heard so many people pontificate with particular expertise in their prayers that we think we could never do that. Good, they’re usually not praying, they’re performing.

The book of Romans says that the Holy Spirit will interpret even your groanings, so no need to get wordy. The book of Hebrews says that we have permission to enter the presence of God with boldness and confidence.

So why are we waiting?

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray (The Lords Prayer) He gave them an incredible model:

  • Adoration – Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” Matthew 6:9
  • Submission – “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10
  • Provision – “Give us this day our daily bread,” Matthew 6:11
  • Confession  – “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Matthew 6:11
  • Protection and Direction  – “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Matthew” 6:11

If we can learn to “pray then like this” we will truly be growing in Christ.

Make your goal this week to memorize the Lord’s Prayer, to download the Bible study/prayer card listed below and then get to praying!

Make sure to listen to this week’s podcast to hear all this content and much more. Many blessings my friends!

Seeking more of Him and less of me,

Andy Addis
Pastor, CrossPoint Church
John 3:30

Beginnings 3 – Bible Reading

This is part of a 12-week series designed around some basic Christian disciplines that will propel you to spiritual growth!

 

If the above player does not work for you, simply click this link: Bible Reading

Here is the podcast above in a nutshell…

Welcome to this edition of Beginnings! This week we tackle one of my favorite disciplines in all of Christianity: Reading the Bible!

It’s so important that we develop this discipline, and let me encourage you with a few reasons why. First, the Bible is a bestseller year after year. If you’re not reading it, you’re missing out. Second, History is dotted with people whose lives have been changed by God’s word. You should be in it simply because it’s a life changer. Third, it is spiritually powerful. There’s no way I can prove this to you. You can only learn by experience, but God’s word is “living and active” (Hebrews 4:12) and will interact with you as you read it.

Don’t be hampered by the common roadblocks that keep some people from learning to read the Bible. Find a translation that works for you. I’ll recommend a few from the easiest to understand to more difficult but accurate: the New Living Translation, The New International Version and/or the English Standard Version. Each one of these has its merits, but the most important thing to remember is if you have a translation that makes you want to read it… that’s the best translation.

Now, you may query, how do I read the Bible? I am so glad you asked!

What if I told you there was a legend to the map, right in the Bible? Something that told you how to read the Bible from the pages of Scripture itself.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

There it is, God’s instructions for how to read the book He gave us. When this passage says that the Bible is, “Profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness” it is giving us four filters to pass our Bible reading through that will help us get the most out of our study.

  • I have condensed these concepts into four simple words:
    Summarize (for teaching) – after you’ve read a passage, summarize it in a nutshell. Don’t apply it, or hyper-spiritualize it, just restate what it said in the simplest way possible.
  • Expose (for reproof) – once you know what the meaning of the passage is, explore what it says about you? God’s word always interacts with us, either affirming our current situation or giving instruction as to what to do next.
  • Change (for correction) – once something has been exposed, it’s a gift that gives you the opportunity to make a change. What’s the next step for you to line your life up with this passage? What needs to happen as a result of applying what you just learned?
  • Prepare (for training in righteousness) – if I make the change(s) this passage suggests, what are the long-term effects in my life? If I change to line up with God’s word how could that be preparing me?

It’s as simple as that! Reading It Right is a tool to help you grow spiritually and understand God’s word more completely. You can find out more by going to www.readingitright.com, or simply listen to the podcast linked above for much more than we covered in this short article.

Many blessings and may you continue to grow as we take part in these Beginnings.

Seeking more of Him and less of me,

Andy Addis
Pastor, CrossPoint Church
John 3:30

Beginnings 2 – Baptism

This is part of a 12-week series designed around some basic Christian disciplines that will propel you to spiritual growth!

 

If the above player does not work for you, simply click this link: BAPTISM

 

Here is the podcast above in a nutshell…

Welcome back to Beginnings! We are on our second week in this journey of spiritual growth, and I want to invite you to a discussion on baptism.

For some, this topic is of utmost importance to the spiritual life, for others, it’s a minor issue. But, the only way we will know just where to place it on the scales of importance in our spiritual life is to prayerfully investigate and see what God’s Word says.

Here is what it isn’t:
Baptism is not essential for salvation. Jesus work on the cross was complete, and our efforts do not make it any better, nor can our lack of effort diminish its value.

Here is what it is:
A Symbol – going into the water and coming out reflects on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
A Testimony – our personal baptism declares our identification with Jesus.
An Obedience – even though it is not essential to salvation, it is essential to obedience. Jesus commanded us to go into all the world and make disciples and baptize them in Matthew 28.

So that leaves us with some pressing questions.

Q: Who should be baptized?
A: Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ. Acts 2:41 describes the story of a day in which 3,000 people became followers of Jesus, and everybody (every say everybody) got baptized that day.

Q: How should I be baptized?
A: The word baptism literally means “to dip under water” in the original Greek. In fact, the word in Greek is pronounced “bap-tee-zo.” So, even though there are many forms of baptism in existence today, baptism by immersion is the Biblical model.

Q: When should I be baptized?
A: As soon after you have believed as possible! But, that is the key. It’s very important that your baptism reflects a personal decision you have made to follow Jesus Christ. So, a baptism before your personal understanding and decision to follow Jesus is just a religious activity and not a true act of obedience or worship.

There are many more questions that people have like how do I get baptized? What will I have to do, or say? What if I am afraid of crowds/water/preachers? What does it look like the day of my baptism?

To hear the answer to these questions and hear a word on one of the greatest baptisms in the Bible, make sure to check out the podcast link below!
Seeking more of Him and less of me,
Pastor Andy Addis
CrossPoint Church
John 3:30

Beginnings 1 – Assurance

This is part of a 12-week series designed around some basic Christian disciplines that will propel you to spiritual growth!

 

If the above player does not work for you, simply click this link: ASSURANCE

Here is the podcast above in a nutshell…

One of the most critical and necessary steps towards spiritual maturity is establishing confidence in your salvation. Doubt concerning the Bible can be investigated. Doubt surrounding God can be philosophized. But doubt about your own salvation is a tool of the devil used to cause you frustration, weariness, and anxiety.

Doubting your own salvation is not uncommon… the struggle is real, and you’re not alone!

And, those doubts may come from a variety of sources: lack of spiritual education, some personal failures, a difficult time in life, etc.

But, understand that God wants you to have absolute confidence in your salvation and a reoccurring theme throughout His word is joy. So, if you’re not experiencing confidence in your relationship with God and joy because of it… then this is where we need to start!

First John 5:11–13 says, “11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.”

So there it is, God wants you to have confidence in what He has already done in your life! And that’s the key… What HE has done.

First John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Notice what we do: confess.

Notice what He does: faithful, just, forgive, and cleanse.

We can have confidence in our salvation because it’s not on us. It doesn’t come from us. It is not dependent on anything we can do. But, it comes from God, and He is faithful and just.

To learn more about this, to join someone in a prayer of assurance for your faith and to explore issues like “losing your salvation,” make sure to listen to the podcast for the rest of the story!

Until then, be confident in what God has done and be filled with the joy that He has provided salvation for you and me.