God is the creator of all things.
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Gen 1:1 He also created Light, Heaven, the land and the seas, vegetation, the sun and moon, animals, man and woman.
God is a loving God.
God is a just God.
This means He cannot tolerate sin. But we all sin. So our sins must be atoned for before we can be His.
The original covenant
Man was given a set of Laws to live by. However, man could not live perfectly according to the Law. When you break one of God's laws it is called sin. Atonement for sin was originally accomplished by blood sacrifices of animals by the priests.
The 10 commandments:
The new covenant
We now have a new covenant. God loves us all so much that He sent His Son (Jesus) so that whoever believes in Him (Jesus) shall not perish (burn in hell) but have everlasting life (in heaven). John 3:16
Jesus is God incarnate.
That means He is God, but He was also a man who walked this earth. Flesh and blood, emotions, everything you and I have.
Jesus was perfect.
He is the only perfect man who ever lived or will be. Even though He was tempted just as you and I are, He never sinned.
Jesus died.
He was crucified on the cross, so that we may have life. He has become our perfect sin-sacrifice.
Jesus is the Saviour
His blood atones for our sins. Through belief in Him, our sins are washed away. It's as if we never sinned. His sacrifice covers all of our past, present and future sins. All we have to do is believe in Him and turn over our life to Him. That is what it means to be a born-again Christian.
Jesus was resurrected
If we are born again, even though our body may die, we will be resurrected just as He was. We will be given a glorified body just as He was. We will get to live in heaven for eternity, just as He is.
Jesus will return.
To reap the harvest of His believers.
Jesus is King of Kings
He will rule the new earth for eternity.
The Trinity
There is one other part of God all Christians need to be aware of. We've already discussed God and Jesus - God incarnate. There is one more expression of God. That is God - The Holy Spirit.
The Gift Giver
We all can be given gifts of the spirit. These include wisdom, knowledge, healing, working miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, various kinds of tongues and the interpretation of tongues.(See I Cor 12:4-11) These are not 1st church gifts. These are gifts available to every Christian.
Our Guidance Counselor
The Holy Spirit becomes a part of us when we become Christians. He teaches and guides us in our daily lives. It is through fellowship with Him that we can become more like Jesus. He tells us where to preach the word. He sprouts the seeds we plant in non-believers.
The Comforter
He reproves the world of sin, and of righteousness and of judgment. (John 16:7-11)
The Spirit of TRUTH
He will guide you into all truth. (John 16:12-15)
The Bible
The Bible was written by God-inspired men. We should all spend time reading and pondering the Bible. As we do, it will become a part of us.
One Book
Written by some 44 writers through twenty centuries. They produced a perfect harmony of doctrine in progressive unfolding.
A Book of Books
66 books make up the one Book. Each is complete in itself, but may be considered chapters of the One Book.
Categories of the books of The Book
The Old Testament is the preparation for Christ. The New Testament Gospels manifest Christ to the world. He is preached to the world in Acts. His Gospel is explained in the Epistles. The purposes of God in and through Christ are consummated in The Revelation.
Tells the human story
From the Creation of man to the future of man.
Christ is the central theme.
The Gospel is the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus #Christ. All prior scripture leads to this. All following scripture proceed from it.
The Church is the body of Christ
It is not a building. It is the Christians.
Jesus is the head of the church, we are it's body.
The first church
The church consists of all who are saved.
I Corinthians 12:27
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
Acts 2:
41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.
44 All the believers were together and had everything in common.
45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Present in the church:
Jesus is the head of the church
Colossians 1:18
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the first born from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.
Find a local church
We encourage everyone to seek out the fellowship of a God-fearing, Bible preaching, local church. One that preaches salvation through Jesus Christ. As an option, cell churches are popular in some areas of the world.
You should attend your local church regularly.
Worship God, fellowship with other believers, give prayer and pray for others, be inspired by the pastor's message, be baptised into the body of Christ, partake in communion (the Lord's Supper), experience the Holy Spirit as he ministers miracles and joy.
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or The VPC for short
I will be using the tag #VPC for articles about it.
Image Sources - I created them back around '95
