2 Corinthians 5:17
“..The new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
After the party’s done your new life as a Christian begins!
You are saved and now a, Christian But this is not the end, yes, it is the end of getting saved, but that is not all; in fact, it’s the opposite! It’s really a new beginning! Now that you know the truth/the gospel, are saved from hell, have been forgiven of your sins, and have been born again you have become a true Christian! The old you now have died and a new you have been made; you are in fact a new creation right now according to the Bible:
2 Corinthians 5:17
“…if anyone is in Christ (saved), the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
This new life will be a life in which you try to rid your life of all sin you see (as you promised to do) and try to never do them again for as long as you live. You also will begin your new life in following Jesus in your new Christian life.
To summarize what this new Christian life is all about; it’s all about what getting saved is all about:
Getting rid of the old sinful/wrong way of living/thinking and getting the new godly/truthful way of living/thinking:
Because your old self died with Christ in Baptism:
Colossians 3:9
“…you have taken off your old self with its practices.”
Though you have taken your old self off by being saved, the Christian life is a daily commitment each day to keeping those promises of salvation and continue to follow Jesus/God: to do this you have to choose to put your old self off and put the new self and thinking differently on every day
Ephesians 4:22-23
“…with regard to your former way of life,…put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; …be made new in the attitude of your minds;…put on the new self,…”
And
Ephesians 5:8-9
“For you..[Use to be]….darkness (sinful/evil), but now are you light (Godly/righteous) in the Lord (Jesus): walk as children of light (live a Godly righteous life)…”
So that you can continue living a new life:
Romans 6:4
“…Just as Christ was raised from the dead…, we too may live a new life.”
“But how do you keep putting off the old self and put on the new self-every day?”
You do it by living out a Christian life day by day
Now that you are saved it’s time to begin living like it every day:
As the Bible says, you need to show proof of your salvation by Deeds:
Acts 26:20
“Demonstrate (show proof of)…[your]… repentance(salvation) by…deeds(actions).”
Jesus says this is one of the reasons he saved you:
John 15:16
“I chose you and appointed you (saved you) so that you might go and bear fruit (actions)…”
So, what exactly are the actions that Christians are supposed to do?
There are two main types of actions that Christians produce:
Christians were saved to do good works (Good actions and missions God wants them to do) that God has prepared for them!
Ephesians 2:10
“…created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
And obedience to what God and Jesus says:
For Jesus says:
Matthew 28:20
“…obey everything I…command… (Teach) you.”
and God also says:
Ezekiel 18:21
“..Keep.. All my decrees and do… what is just and right,...”
And
Micah 6:8
“…And what does the Lord require of you?
…to walk humbly (in obedience) with your God.”
These two things:
Good Godly works and obedience to Jesus/God are the actions that God/Jesus desires of you and are the core of living out a Christian life.
As a Christian, since you are saved and are promised eternal life through Christ; because he did all this you owe him your life (it’s going to cost you) and because you are alive because of him, he owns you and your life, and he wants you to live for him and serve him now by living this life:
2 Corinthians 5:15
“And he (Jesus) died for all, that those who live (Are saved) should no longer live for themselves but for him (Jesus) who died for them and was raised again.”
So you have an obligation to live for Jesus from now on (as said before, symbolically in the phrase “carrying your cross”) your obligated to do these things for your savior and lord!
As a new born again Christian you have been born BUT it’s important to realize you are a new born baby and need to take time to grow!
As the Bible says you are
1 Corinthians 3:1
“…[a]…mere infant… in Christ.”
And like newborn babies, you need milk to grow:
1 Peter 2:1-3
“As [A] newborn baby…, desire the sincere milk of the word (the Bible), which you may grow so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good (been saved). ”
This milk is the basic parts of the Bible, also called the milk of the word; you need milk (the basics) because you are still worldly (still act/think in a sinful/wrong human way):
1 Corinthians 3:2-3
“I g[ive]… you milk(the basics)…[because] You are still worldly(think like your old self).”
So now that you are a new born again Christian like a real baby you need milk (the basics) of the Bible in order to begin learning truths in your Christian life and begin to grow and mature in putting off of your old self and putting on your new self-every day.
But where do you even start in growing in your Christian life?
Join a Church
To begin with as a new Christian (if you haven’t already) you need to start by joining a Church. While it might be more comfortable for you to live your Christian life alone and be a solo believer the Bible reveals this is neither what Jesus nor what God wants for you as a new born again Christian.
As the Bible says:
Hebrews 10:24-25
“And let us…not giv(e)… up meeting together(the Church)....”
You need to go to Church (by that I mean join in companionship with a group of fellow believers in your local area) and even if you don’t live in a very “Christian” area there is bound to be a group of fellow believers somewhere, If you happen to live in an area that is not necessarily “Christian” and especially if your friends or family(Social and emotional supports) are not Christians then it’s all that more important to seek a church and bond with fellow believers: You need companionship!!!
you can start by seeking the Church that your Baptists came from. or other local churches but be warned while searching for a church you need to know not all churches sadly are the same. Some churches are very deceived (that is Biblically speaking) and teach, act, and believe what is very far from what the Bible teaches. While others might have the name “church” on the building where they meet but, are biblically speaking, not really churches at all!
Sadly, you will run into this problem sooner or later while looking for a church to join. Though no church doctrine (Called denominations) are perfect, some are more closer and open to Biblical truth than others: you need to try to look for a group of believers that at least believe Jesus is the son of God, that he is the only way to salvation, the Bible is the ultimate authority/true and that believe in receiving full body baptism as well as receiving the holy Ghosts. For the time being my suggestion would be to aim to join a traditional Protestant church (such as Baptists, Pentecostal etc.) In general, they seem to follow the Bible and act on it better than non-Protestant (Catholic, Orthodox etc.) .
(If you don’t know what these denominational terms mean it's okay you really shouldn’t have to know right now, but sadly since we live in a world where many churches are deceived you must be warned. Also, this subject [Denominations and deception in the Church] will be cover in detail later)
Ultimately you need to join a church to have fellowship and obey Jesus/God. But don’t fret about finding a church, ask God in prayer about what church would be okay to join and the Holy Spirit will show you to the right church.
Start off living your Christian life with what you already know
As of right now you should live your new life with what you know already:
don’t commit sins you know are wrong which by now you should at least know the nine main commandments:
1.Don’t worship other God’s/things
2.Don’t make any God or thing to worship or in the image of another God
3.Don’t use God’s (or Jesus’s) name in vain (as a cuss word)
4.Respect your parents
5.Do not Murder or hate another Christian
6.Don’t cheat (have sexual relationships with another partner) your husband (or boyfriend) or wife (or Girlfriend)
7.Do not steal
8.Don’t tell lies about other people
9.Don’t be jealous of someone else’s property or life
And obey Jesus/God
Like giving up your desires, dreams and time to do what Jesus desires you to do (“Carrying your cross”)
Begin to learn more about God’s will and Jesus’s will for you and Spiritual truths through the Bible
Then while you live your Christian life continue to learn and grow in what is considered sin, what is Jesus’s/God’s will for you, and spiritual truths. This is how you will mature and grow!
You should begin to try to read the Bible every day, now that you have the Holy Spirit you will be able to understand if you didn’t understand it before. And if you have never read the Bible or have read very little you should start small (like a goal would be reading a verse/Chapter per day) or getting a Bible reading plan together of some sort either way you need to be exposed to the Bible every day in some way .You also should be able to have access to the Bible every second of the day, while this can be done modernly through an online Bible or app (like BibleGaitway)[1] I would highly suggest you have your own physical Bible that you could pick up and read anytime you want. Because while there is nothing wrong with an online Bible or a Bible app you never know when your internet access will go out or you will not have power to access your Digital Bible. However even if you didn’t have those things, you could still pick up a physical Bible anytime you want. So, if you do not have one you need to try to invest in one! And if Bible’s are rare or forbidden where you are at, you could try to go to a local church and ask them for one, either way you need to make an effort to have access to a Bible (especially since you have access to the internet).
Listen to your Churches sermons/ other sermons about the Bible
While you read the Bible you should listen to sermons in your church where they preach about different topics about the Bible and also you could listen to sermons in other churches, Books, radio, T.V., or internet. Reading the Bible ALONG with other sermons will help you understand topics and subject more clearly and how it could apply to you. Infact you can find lessons here in The Christian life section with lessons straight from the Bible on how to learn to live a Christian life.
Ultimately with all this, you will Grow and mature in no time!
Finally continue in your belief and Christian life for the rest of your life
because it is your only hope to stay right with God and live forever, continue in your Christian life no matter how hard it gets don't take your eye off what truly matters:
Colossians 1:23
“…continue in your faith (salvation into Christian life), established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel…”
God has truly blessed you with all the steps you have taken and how far you have come! And may God continue to bless you as you continue in your life as a Christian from now on and wherever it may lead!
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Sources:
[1]
BibleGaitway.com
Website: