You are now a Christian. You belong to the Lord. This means a great many things but most of all it means you now have a new reason for living. You have a new Master—the Lord Jesus Christ. As Paul said to the Christians in the region of Galatia, "ye have come to know God, or rather to be known by God" (Galatians 4:9). What a thrill and honor this ought to be for the child of God.
Coming to know God and that Jesus is His Son is necessary for eternal
life. As Peter expressed it to Jesus, "Lord, to whom shall we
go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we have believed and
know that thou art the Holy One of God" (John 6:68-69). Unless
one truly knows Jesus (through obedience to His word [1 John 2:3]), Jesus
will not know him at the judgment day. Consider what he said with
regard to those who would "claim" to be His followers on judgment day:
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter
into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who
is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we
not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name
do many mighty works? And then will I profess unto them, I never
knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Matthew 7:21-23).
By definition, one who is "Lord" is one having authority and power; one who is master, to whom service and honor is due. How much authority does Jesus claim for Himself in Matthew 28:18? "ALL authority hath been given unto me." Vital for our understanding is to know that Jesus is the only Lord. Note what Paul said, "there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Ephesians 4:5). When we say that Jesus is our "new" Lord, we do not speak with reference to time for He has been made Lord and Christ for two thousand years (Acts 2:36). But He is our new Lord in relation to our "old manner of life", our "old self" who lived by what we wanted rather than what God expects. Paul speaks to this point when addressing the Corinthian brethren, "Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old things are passed away; behold, they are become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). As Christians, we are no longer living to serve sin but God. Paul again said, "Even so reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:11). This "death to sin" took place when we were baptized into Christ's death, burial and then raised to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:3-5). It was explained this way to the Ephesian brethren: "that ye put away, as concerning your former manner of life, the old man, that waxeth corrupt after the lusts of deceit; and that ye be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man, that after God hath been created in righteousness and holiness of truth" (Ephesians 4:22-24).
Have you ever faced death? Were you ever to the point where you really believed you were going to die? Imagine that you are facing death due to a disease but then your doctor says, "Wait! You do not need to die. I have the answer. If you will take this, you will live!" Friend, you were facing death—spiritual death and separation from God forever! Yet, Jesus, the Great Physician, had the medicine for your good health. You are a Christian now because you took the Doctor's advice and His medicine and now, you live. As Paul said, "Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift" (2 Corinthians 9:15)!
This healthy medicine is actually the word of Christ. Paul wrote to Timothy about "sound words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness" (1 Timothy 6:3). This word "sound" means "healthful" or "healthy". It is the word of God that gives us the spiritual medicine which sustains life. This is why Jesus came. He said, "The thief cometh not, but that he may steal, and kill, and destroy: I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly" (John 10:10).
At our new birth when we confessed our faith, repented of sins and were baptized into Christ for forgiveness of sins (John 3:3), we became as Paul says "babes in Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:1). Now, we must continue to grow up from babyhood to adulthood. Peter confirms this saying, "as newborn babes, long for the spiritual milk which is without guile, that ye may grow thereby unto salvation" (1 Peter 2:2). Hear him again, "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). The Ephesians were told, "that we may be no longer children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, in craftiness, after the wiles of error; but speaking truth in love, we may grow up in all things into him, who is the head, even Christ" (Ephesians 4:14-15).
Now as a Christian, a new creature, a new babe in Christ, and one who has received the promise of eternal life, can you think of someone who needs this new life also and who we can send these materials to for study? Now, study the questions and the Bible verses in the study sheet and answer them.