True Disciple: A Follower of Jesus

A disciple of Jesus is a follower of Jesus. Someone who merely acknowledges Jesus as a great religious leader is not a disciple. Many people have only a mental nod to who Jesus is.

The first step of becoming a true disciple is when an individual receives a spiritual revelation of the reality of who Jesus is and their own need for a Savior. The seed for this revelation is the Word of God when one hears the Gospel. This revelation creates a strong desire to follow the One, who has the words of eternal life.

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The Bible in a Capsule: God’s Plan of Redemption

The story began long before Jesus was born in Bethlehem. It begins even before the events of the book of Genesis. The Bible tells us that the Son of God is eternal, not only in the future but also in the past.

The Word of God proclaims, “He [Jesus] indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (1 Pet. 1:20 (NKJV). God the Father designated God the Son to be the one and only sacrifice for sin from before the beginning of time.

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Instinct and Discernment: Radars of Protection

I am amazed at the programming in creation by our Creator. Mankind, being the pinnacle of His earthly creation, has the greatest capacity for logical reasoning. Animals including man also have instincts. Instinct is part of the intellectual design God “hardwired” into his creatures for them to survive in this world. Instincts are not things that need to be learned, yet they can be sharpened by experience and reasoning.

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God’s Christmas Gift

Christmas is known as a season of gift-giving. We could complain about the commercialization of Christmas, but I doubt it would change anyone’s mind. Of course, as Christians we realize the most important gift associated with Christmas is the gift of Jesus by our Heavenly Father. One of the most quoted scriptures affirms this, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 NKJV).

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And the WORD Is…

If you have traveled to a foreign country and not been able to communicate, you quickly appreciate the ability to understand a word. The very concept of a “word” is amazing because it brings understanding from one person to another. The important thing about a word is the meaning or concept behind it. A written word without a meaning is nothing more than random marks on a page.

The Gospel of John begins with a description of “the Word”. In the context of the first chapter, it is undeniably a synonym of Jesus Christ. Grammatically, it is very simply stated, yet it is a very deep concept. It says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1 NKJV).

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