Boldly Standing for Christ
Remain faithful to Christ and live a life of obedience. You must remain obedient to Christ. Difficult times will come, but never turn your back on Jesus and do not betray any other Christian.
Standing firm for what is right is difficult, so we must pray for strength.
Jesus understood that our humanity is weak, but prayer will strengthen our resolve. In the Garden of Gethsemane, before the Roman soldiers came to take Jesus away and crucify him, Jesus spoke to the Apostle Peter and told him to pray because Peter was afraid. We all are sometimes afraid. So, let us pray that God will give us the strength to remain faithful to Christ.
Should good Christians be embarrassed about their own values? Christians in many cases are afraid to speak openly about their faith in Jesus the Messiah (Christ). Be bold and have courage. Let your good deeds be seen by all people.
Never deny that you are a Christian and follower of Jesus, because if you deny your relationship with Jesus, then Jesus will deny you before God the Father.
The person who continues to endure to the end will be saved. So, never never quit speaking out boldly for Christ and God's purposes.
Self examination to see if we are true christians
If we say that we are Christian and yet do not act according to God’s commandments, then we are fooling ourselves. All Christians need to self examine themselves in order to make sure that they are staying in the faith.
The Bible says, “Examine your own selves, whether you are in the faith. Test your own selves…”
2 Corinthians 13:5
Will God forgive us each time we sin?
Yes, God will continue to forgive all our future sins for the remainder of our lives. But that does not give us license to sin. We must make a sincere effort to always act righteously so that our relationship with God is not broken. And if we do sin, then we only need to ask God for forgiveness to get back on the right track.
As the Apostle John said;
“If we say that we have fellowship with Him [God] and walk in the darkness [continue to sin], we lie, and do not tell the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He [God] is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.”
1 John 1:6-7
Jesus said something similar, “I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man doesn’t remain in me, he is thrown out as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
John 15:5-6
The Apostle James spoke to Christians and warned them from turning back to their old sinful ways.
“Brothers [all christians], if any among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”
Apostle James 5:19-20
Repent means to change from your former sinful lifestyle
Repent means a personal, absolute and final unconditional surrender of your life to God. In other words, you make God the Boss of your life and you act like God is the Boss of your life. The Bible meaning of repentance includes sorrow and regret, but it is more than that. When repenting, one makes a complete change of direction towards a lifestyle that pleases God.
Persecution and rejection
Life as a true dedicated Christian will bring difficulty. Be strong and never deny Jesus, and never abandon nor betray another Christian. Be brave and never quit.
Jesus said, “You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake, but he who endures to the end will be saved.” Apostle Matthew 10:22
The Apostle James said that life’s troubles produce spiritual endurance that enable us to not give up the faith when facing difficulties. Christians should be joyful when life presents troubles because it will cause us to become more perfected in our faith.
Apostle James said, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let endurance have its perfect work, that you may be [spiritually] perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Apostle James 1:2-4
Apostle James said, “Blessed is a person who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love him.”
Apostle James 1:12
Becoming Christian may cause you to lose your job, friends, wealth and all other things that are dear to you.
Be ready to stand strong for Jesus.
Jesus said, “Don’t think that I came to send peace on the earth. I didn’t come to send peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man at odds against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s foes will be those of his own household. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me isn’t worthy of me. He who doesn’t take his cross and follow after me, isn’t worthy of me."
Apostle Matthew 10:34-38
Standing firm for what is right is difficult, so we must pray for strength.
Jesus understood that our humanity is weak, but prayer will strengthen our resolve. In the Garden of Gethsemane, before the Roman soldiers came to take Jesus away and crucify him, Jesus spoke to the Apostle Peter and told him to pray because Peter was afraid. We all are sometimes afraid. So, let us pray that God will give us the strength to remain faithful to Christ.
Should good Christians be embarrassed about their own values? Christians in many cases are afraid to speak openly about their faith in Jesus the Messiah (Christ). Be bold and have courage. Let your good deeds be seen by all people.
Never deny that you are a Christian and follower of Jesus, because if you deny your relationship with Jesus, then Jesus will deny you before God the Father.
The person who continues to endure to the end will be saved. So, never never quit speaking out boldly for Christ and God's purposes.
Self examination to see if we are true christians
If we say that we are Christian and yet do not act according to God’s commandments, then we are fooling ourselves. All Christians need to self examine themselves in order to make sure that they are staying in the faith.
The Bible says, “Examine your own selves, whether you are in the faith. Test your own selves…”
2 Corinthians 13:5
Will God forgive us each time we sin?
Yes, God will continue to forgive all our future sins for the remainder of our lives. But that does not give us license to sin. We must make a sincere effort to always act righteously so that our relationship with God is not broken. And if we do sin, then we only need to ask God for forgiveness to get back on the right track.
As the Apostle John said;
“If we say that we have fellowship with Him [God] and walk in the darkness [continue to sin], we lie, and do not tell the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He [God] is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.”
1 John 1:6-7
Jesus said something similar, “I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man doesn’t remain in me, he is thrown out as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
John 15:5-6
The Apostle James spoke to Christians and warned them from turning back to their old sinful ways.
“Brothers [all christians], if any among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”
Apostle James 5:19-20
Repent means to change from your former sinful lifestyle
Repent means a personal, absolute and final unconditional surrender of your life to God. In other words, you make God the Boss of your life and you act like God is the Boss of your life. The Bible meaning of repentance includes sorrow and regret, but it is more than that. When repenting, one makes a complete change of direction towards a lifestyle that pleases God.
Persecution and rejection
Life as a true dedicated Christian will bring difficulty. Be strong and never deny Jesus, and never abandon nor betray another Christian. Be brave and never quit.
Jesus said, “You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake, but he who endures to the end will be saved.” Apostle Matthew 10:22
The Apostle James said that life’s troubles produce spiritual endurance that enable us to not give up the faith when facing difficulties. Christians should be joyful when life presents troubles because it will cause us to become more perfected in our faith.
Apostle James said, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let endurance have its perfect work, that you may be [spiritually] perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
Apostle James 1:2-4
Apostle James said, “Blessed is a person who endures temptation, for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to those who love him.”
Apostle James 1:12
Becoming Christian may cause you to lose your job, friends, wealth and all other things that are dear to you.
Be ready to stand strong for Jesus.
Jesus said, “Don’t think that I came to send peace on the earth. I didn’t come to send peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man at odds against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man’s foes will be those of his own household. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me isn’t worthy of me. He who doesn’t take his cross and follow after me, isn’t worthy of me."
Apostle Matthew 10:34-38