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Whoever
we are, regardless of our
race or color, whether we are rich or poor, and whatever is our social
status in life, we face one serious problem-we have sinned in the
eyes of God, and we will eventually suffer the consequence of our sinfulness,
in this life and in the life to come. Yet
God loved us so much that He offered His Son as a perfect sacrifice for
the forgiveness of our sins. By his crucifixion, Jesus fulfilled the laws
of the old covenant and the prophecies so that through him we might have
faith and be made righteous in the eyes of God.
We cannot deny our sinfulness.
There comes a point in our life when we desire for the freedom to
do anything we please, without having to be accountable for our behavior.
Lured by the pleasures of this world, we disobeyed the teachings of our
parents and the will of God. Our disobedience is an act of self-will that
initiates our rebellion against God. It is written:
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"Children, obey
your parents in the Lord. Honor your father and mother, which is the
first commandment with a promise." |
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Ephesians
6:1 |
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"Children
obey your parents in everything for this pleases the Lord." |
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Colossians
3:20 |
And as we are separated from God, we become slaves to sin. Evil controls
our thoughts and deeds. Satan, the prince of the world, is our provider
of worldly pleasures, for a costly price. Eventually, money becomes the
object of our faith because of its power to acquire material possessions
to satisfy the lust of our eyes. We also have that uncontrollable urge
to possess what we do not now own, and to boast of what we have and what
we do. We squander time and money in wild living, drunkenness, addiction,
sexual immorality, and such other works of the flesh.
Our acts of sinfulness
are obvious:
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"The
acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity
and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy,
fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness,
orgies, and the like. I warn you as I did before, that those who live
like this will not inherit the Kingdom of God." |
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Galatians
5:19-21 |
Sinfulness is not from the Father:
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"For everything
in the world -- the cravings of a sinful man, the lust of his eyes,
and the boasting of what he has and does -- comes not from the Father
but from the world." |
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1
John 2:16 |
Out of our hearts come evil thoughts:
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"For
out of our heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality,
theft, false testimony, slander." |
| Matthew
15:19 |
Instead of repenting of our evil ways, we attempt
to justify them. When confronted, we readily make excuses, and instead
of humbling ourselves, we cover up our acts of sinfulness by putting the
blame on circumstances beyond our control.
Then, without warning,
tragedy strikes. It comes in a variety of forms: serious illness,
strained family relationships, bankruptcy, mounting debts, loss of job,
addiction, a failed career, and a host of unwanted sufferings, but
most of all, we suffer a guilty conscience. This is the consequence of
our disobedience: we will eventually experience a feeling of deep sorrow
for the things that we have lost. We will all suffer, one way or
the other, as a result of our disobedience. Paul says so:
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bound all men over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them
all." |
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Romans 11:32 |
Perhaps you are one of
those who hopelessly need help. Will your friends be there to help you
out, or have
they abandoned you? You'd hope that you can struggle free from this perpetual
tragedy and start all over. Is there a way? You know that there is a God,
yet doubt whether He will help you out. Yes, my friend, God loves you,
but you need faith.
Do not let your disappointments
and sorrow ruin your life. Let your sufferings remind you that there is
a merciful God. Make that sorrow work for you by humbly laying your troubles
before God. Paul declares:
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"Godly sorrow brings
repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret but worldly
sorrow brings death." |
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2 Co 7:10 |
You now encounter a forked
road. The road to the left will lead you back to where all your troubles
began -- the road to destruction: the road to the world. The road to the
right leads you to a life of peace where Jesus with outstretched arms
beckons on you. You have a choice. Yes,
my dear friend, Jesus can set you free from the bondage of sin!
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"Come all of you who are heavily burdened and I will give
you rest." |
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Mt 11:28 |
If you are still with
me at this point, I want you to know that I am overjoyed by your desire
to learn more about the will of God for your life. I am happy that you
have chosen the road that leads to Jesus.
On the left side of
this page is the table of contents of our Seeker's Guide. It contains
eight lessons that prayerfully, will help build up your faith. Before
going to the first lesson, please read the following very important pointers:
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Click
on each and every link that leads to the scriptures.
On the succeeding web pages, you will find the sidebar on the right
side of the screen where all scriptures, articles and commentaries
are displayed when a click is made on the link. The scriptures are
your communication line with Jesus. Therefore, the more you read
and reflect on his words, the closer you get to him.
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The
Seeker's Guide does not attempt to explain the holy scriptures.
It simply aims to provide you with a clear path towards these holy
words, which will explain and help build up your faith in God. By
faith you will be saved and by faith you will remain saved until
the day of judgment. The Bible states plainly that faith comes
from hearing the word of Christ.
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"Consequently,
faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through
the word of Christ." |
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Ro
10:17 |
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"This
is why I tell you that no one can come to me unless he is enabled
by the Father." |
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John 6:65
Ponder upon the scriptures with humility
and a repentant heart, and you will find that God's plan for your
life is so easy to understand and easy to learn. With a prayerful
heart, the Holy Spirit guides you into a deeper knowledge and understanding
of God's scheme for your redemption from the bondage of sin.
Enjoy the Lessons!
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Acknowledgements |
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To publisher
of Thompson Chain-Reference Bible 5th
Edition that provided us with a wealth of topical chain references
indexed in the most organized manner. |
Scripture quotations were taken from the
HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, Copyright
1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.
Used by permission.

To
be a Christian Ministries
Copyright
2003. All Rights Reserved. Ver 7.0
Contact
us at: tobeachristian@cox.net
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