The Next Step After Submission

Introverted1293 · Sep 18, 2017

When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ for the first time, or I should say recommit their lives to Jesus Christ after falling away, what is the next step that they should do?

mukk_in · Sep 19, 2017

Introverted1293 said:
When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ for the first time, or I should say recommit their lives to Jesus Christ after falling away, what is the next step that they should do?

I'd say being sensitive to and being led by the Holy Spirit, i.e., growing in the grace of God. A sanctified life should manifest itself in christian service ("faith expressing itself in love.")

.

longwait · Sep 19, 2017

Be careful, alert, watchful and don't fall away again. Study and memorise the Word. That will keep you more focused on the Lord.

~Anastasia~ · Sep 19, 2017

I don't know a single "next step" ... unless you haven't been baptized. That should be done asap if not.

But otherwise it's many things. Pray, pray, pray regularly. Go to Church. Receive communion. Read the Scriptures. Seek to treat everyone with love and serve others however you can. Finding a way to be discipled is good. Begin to read edifying writings that will help you seek to grow in holiness. Discipline the flesh. If you fail (when you fail) ... repent and get up and keep going.

Keep doing those things that bring you closer to God. Stop doing those things that pull you further away.

paul1149 · Sep 19, 2017

Introverted1293 said:
When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ for the first time, or I should say recommit their lives to Jesus Christ after falling away, what is the next step that they should do?

I would say the best thing to do would be to sit at Jesus' feet like Mary at Bethany. Completely fall in love with Him, and drink in everything He says. He who is forgiven much, loves much, and in love is the power to overcome everything, because even faith works through love. Establish that love relationship, through prayer, Bible reading, listening, and fellowshipping, and everything else will fall into place.

Mountainmanbob · Sep 19, 2017

Introverted1293 said:
When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ for the first time, or I should say recommit their lives to Jesus Christ after falling away, what is the next step that they should do?

Work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

Study our bible.
Attend a solid church.
Examine ones self often.
Pray for mercy.
Repent often -- Repent should have been my middle name!
M-Bob

Hidden In Him · Sep 19, 2017

The answers you received so far have all been good, Imo. Focus primarily upon the two commandments our Lord stressed the most (Matthew 22:36-40). Several answers addressed the first, and keeping the second simply involves continually asking yourself, "What would I want me to do if I were in their shoes?"

GandalfTheWise · Sep 19, 2017

Some good stuff in this thread. The only thing I'd add is that each of us is different because God made us different. Learn how God made you to walk with Him. I know some Christians that have been on the same Bible reading plan and devotional time schedule for decades. One of my pastors reads the One-Year-Bible daily and has his prayer time at the same time every morning and has been doing it for decades. As an FYI, he was an accountant/business person before he went into the ministry and is extremely organized and punctual. Speaking for myself, I run in seasons where one particular spiritual discipline (prayer, Bible reading, etc.) will come to the forefront for a number of months and then I need to move onto the next thing. God just simply made me in a way where I focus intently on one thing for awhile putting a lot of energy into it, and then need to move onto the next thing to keep growing.

Look around at how a number of mature Christians structure their private spiritual life (prayer, Bible reading, devotions, meditation, their circle of Christian friends). This can be people you know or reading biographies of Christians in history. Learn from them and adapt what they do to work for you. Don't just copy something and assume it will work as well. (Been there, done that.) You need to figure out how you best walk with God and grow. I spent years trying to discipline myself to do the same thing everyday and it never worked for me. As soon as I started pouring time and effort into what was best for me for a given season of my life, I started growing much more. We're all different to some extent.

LoricaLady · Sep 19, 2017

Lots of good advice above. The main thing I would say is to learn to not try to grow Spiritually or to get rid of faults through your efforts. On anything. Whenever we do things with our own efforts we only get so far, and frequently we get nowhere at all.

Pray daily for dependence on the Savior at all times. He said "Without Me you can do nothing." And we are also told "Trust in YHWH" aka God "with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths."

Oh what years, sometimes decades, we have all wasted by following our own "bright" ideas and attempting to make spiritual progress by trying real hard. You will zoom ahead of many who have been Christians and Bible students for a lifetime, if you will learn to not try, but to always rely...on the Savior.

Citizen of the Kingdom · Sep 19, 2017

An accurate academic study to understand God's Word is commendable because of the importance of understanding the written word by paying attention to the details of the words. But we don't simply want an understanding academically of philosophy or fact. That does no one any good. The reason that we're given understanding is to live within understanding's light. Knowledge in comparison to wisdom.
1 John 1:6; Romans 8:14 The work of the Holy Spirit in our lives thru illuminating and leading is a confirmation that we are indeed children of God.
Recieving God's grace initially is your power tool. But you must learn how to use it. Understanding with Whom you have your dealings is paramount also. The important things are living right with God, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. We're seated with Him in the heavenlies having been given all power and authority over the enemy of our souls. We've been sent out to preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, commissioned and empowered to disciple all nations because in doing those things thru the leading guidance of the Holy Spirit it brings more into His rule and discipline and does great damage to satan's rule over other's lives.
Be aware of where you are working from, whether it be from the old nature or from the new nature. He must increase I must decrease as John the Baptist has said.

Citizen of the Kingdom · Sep 19, 2017

It's interesting the steps that are taken in the parable of the prodigal son.

Steps away =
1) rebellion against the father
2) desire for total independance
3) waste of the inheritance
4) desperate need
5) debasement
6) bondage

Steps back=
1) an awakening of one's true condition
2) an honest confession of true sin
3) an actual return to the Father

In doing so the prodigal became no longer a hireling but embraced as a true son.

LoricaLady · Sep 20, 2017

P.S. I thought of something else that is ultra important. Let's say you are the world's greatest Bible scholar and that all your prayers and praises (we are told to praise more than we are told to pray) are Scriptural. Let's say you even fast regularly. Well all that would be like having a beautiful luxury car with all the bells and whistles. Buuuuut.....It's not going anywhere without gas, is it? Prayers with heart have the fuel.

That's why someone who doesn't really yet understand the Bible but prays with a sincere heart can be like an ol' jalopy full of gas, zooming past the stalled luxury car that isn't going anywhere.

aiki · Sep 20, 2017

Introverted1293 said:
When a person gives their life to Jesus Christ for the first time, or I should say recommit their lives to Jesus Christ after falling away, what is the next step that they should do?

The Bible is very clear what comes next:

John 15:4-5
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Does a branch strive and strain to remain attached to the vine? Does it quiver with the effort of being a part of the vine or of sucking the sap out of it? No. It just...abides. The branch exists, really, only as a work of the vine and it cannot continue to exist except the vine continues to give it life. But as the branch abides, remains, continues in the vine, it naturally and effortlessly grows and brings forth fruit. The key, though, is abiding, not straining and striving; it is seeing Christ as your very life, not just a partner in the labor of your righteous living.

Colossians 3:1-3
1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Is your mind set on things above where Christ is seated at God's right hand? Is your life occupied with eternal, heavenly goals? "Only one life 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last." The more your mind is occupied with temporal, earthly things, the more difficult it will be to live with eternity and your Saviour properly in view. And without such a spiritual view, you cannot please God and glorify Him with your life.

Romans 8:5-6
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Are you living according to the direction, and in the power of, the Spirit? You must. "The flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh and these are contrary the one to the other..." If you aren't walking in the Spirit, you are walking in the flesh. There is no middle ground. And if you're walking in the flesh, you're heading unavoidably away from God into death.
Abiding in Christ requires a mind fixed on him and his spiritual and eternal purposes. As you are so fixed in your attention, the Spirit brings you into conformity to Christ. Where do we find Christ revealed? In the pages of Scripture. Steep your mind in the word of God. Memorize it. Meditate upon it. Study it. Let it saturate your thinking and shape your living.

Introverted1293 · Sep 20, 2017

LoricaLady said:
P.S. I thought of something else that is ultra important. Let's say you are the world's greatest Bible scholar and that all your prayers and praises (we are told to praise more than we are told to pray) are Scriptural. Let's say you even fast regularly. Well all that would be like having a beautiful luxury car with all the bells and whistles. Buuuuut.....It's not going anywhere without gas, is it? Prayers with heart have the fuel.

That's why someone who doesn't really yet understand the Bible but prays with a sincere heart can be like an ol' jalopy full of gas, zooming past the stalled luxury car that isn't going anywhere.

I never thought of it that way.

Introverted1293 · Sep 20, 2017

aiki said:
The Bible is very clear what comes next:

John 15:4-5
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Does a branch strive and strain to remain attached to the vine? Does it quiver with the effort of being a part of the vine or of sucking the sap out of it? No. It just...abides. The branch exists, really, only as a work of the vine and it cannot continue to exist except the vine continues to give it life. But as the branch abides, remains, continues in the vine, it naturally and effortlessly grows and brings forth fruit. The key, though, is abiding, not straining and striving; it is seeing Christ as your very life, not just a partner in the labor of your righteous living.

Colossians 3:1-3
1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Is your mind set on things above where Christ is seated at God's right hand? Is your life occupied with eternal, heavenly goals? "Only one life 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last." The more your mind is occupied with temporal, earthly things, the more difficult it will be to live with eternity and your Saviour properly in view. And without such a spiritual view, you cannot please God and glorify Him with your life.

Romans 8:5-6
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Are you living according to the direction, and in the power of, the Spirit? You must. "The flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh and these are contrary the one to the other..." If you aren't walking in the Spirit, you are walking in the flesh. There is no middle ground. And if you're walking in the flesh, you're heading unavoidably away from God into death.
Abiding in Christ requires a mind fixed on him and his spiritual and eternal purposes. As you are so fixed in your attention, the Spirit brings you into conformity to Christ. Where do we find Christ revealed? In the pages of Scripture. Steep your mind in the word of God. Memorize it. Meditate upon it. Study it. Let it saturate your thinking and shape your living.

Wow

That seems hard aiki. I have been carnally minded all my life. But I understand.

Introverted1293 · Sep 20, 2017

GandalfTheWise said:
Some good stuff in this thread. The only thing I'd add is that each of us is different because God made us different. Learn how God made you to walk with Him. I know some Christians that have been on the same Bible reading plan and devotional time schedule for decades. One of my pastors reads the One-Year-Bible daily and has his prayer time at the same time every morning and has been doing it for decades. As an FYI, he was an accountant/business person before he went into the ministry and is extremely organized and punctual. Speaking for myself, I run in seasons where one particular spiritual discipline (prayer, Bible reading, etc.) will come to the forefront for a number of months and then I need to move onto the next thing. God just simply made me in a way where I focus intently on one thing for awhile putting a lot of energy into it, and then need to move onto the next thing to keep growing.

Look around at how a number of mature Christians structure their private spiritual life (prayer, Bible reading, devotions, meditation, their circle of Christian friends). This can be people you know or reading biographies of Christians in history. Learn from them and adapt what they do to work for you. Don't just copy something and assume it will work as well. (Been there, done that.) You need to figure out how you best walk with God and grow. I spent years trying to discipline myself to do the same thing everyday and it never worked for me. As soon as I started pouring time and effort into what was best for me for a given season of my life, I started growing much more. We're all different to some extent.

Thank you

This was helpful. I should do the same thing: you know pick a certain time to pray and study the Bible.

Introverted1293 · Sep 20, 2017

LoricaLady said:
Lots of good advice above. The main thing I would say is to learn to not try to grow Spiritually or to get rid of faults through your efforts. On anything. Whenever we do things with our own efforts we only get so far, and frequently we get nowhere at all.

Pray daily for dependence on the Savior at all times. He said "Without Me you can do nothing." And we are also told "Trust in YHWH" aka God "with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths."

Oh what years, sometimes decades, we have all wasted by following our own "bright" ideas and attempting to make spiritual progress by trying real hard. You will zoom ahead of many who have been Christians and Bible students for a lifetime, if you will learn to not try, but to always rely...on the Savior.

Thank you, LogicaLady. I have tried to get rid of my faults on my own. I failed a lot.

Introverted1293 · Sep 20, 2017

Mountainmanbob said:
Work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

Study our bible.
Attend a solid church.
Examine ones self often.
Pray for mercy.
Repent often -- Repent should have been my middle name!
M-Bob

Yes, thank you. Very helpful.

aiki · Sep 20, 2017

Introverted1293 said:
Wow

That seems hard aiki. I have been carnally minded all my life. But I understand.

Do you? I didn't understand when I first heard these things. Abiding in Christ sounded like mystical mumbo-jumbo to me. I had only a vague idea of what being spiritually-minded meant and not a clue how to go about obtaining such a mind. Like you, I was a carnally-minded person. The thought of setting my mind on spiritual, eternal things sounded pretty, well, dry and boring. I mean, I was carnally-minded because I enjoyed being so! How was I just supposed to stop liking the carnal things I enjoyed? God's answer was to make me really, really desperate for Him. He put me in a place where all the carnal things I indulged in were utterly useless to me. He showed me just how far I had strayed from Him and how vulnerable and weak I was. I saw the wilderness of a carnal, temporal life and its dangers clearly and cried out for the Good Shepherd to rescue me. And He did.

Is God crowding you to Him? Is He showing you just how weak and needy you are? Is He stripping away all the usual props and forcing you to cry out to Him? If so, take heart: God is moving you "farther in and higher up" with Him. Coming to the end of yourself is a necessary part of the journey to spiritual maturity and a joyful, stable walk with God. When you see that the Christian life isn't just hard but impossible, then you may begin to rely upon God rather than yourself which is the only way anyone truly walks with Him.

Introverted1293 · Sep 21, 2017

aiki said:
Do you? I didn't understand when I first heard these things. Abiding in Christ sounded like mystical mumbo-jumbo to me. I had only a vague idea of what being spiritually-minded meant and not a clue how to go about obtaining such a mind. Like you, I was a carnally-minded person. The thought of setting my mind on spiritual, eternal things sounded pretty, well, dry and boring. I mean, I was carnally-minded because I enjoyed being so! How was I just supposed to stop liking the carnal things I enjoyed? God's answer was to make me really, really desperate for Him. He put me in a place where all the carnal things I indulged in were utterly useless to me. He showed me just how far I had strayed from Him and how vulnerable and weak I was. I saw the wilderness of a carnal, temporal life and its dangers clearly and cried out for the Good Shepherd to rescue me. And He did.

Is God crowding you to Him? Is He showing you just how weak and needy you are? Is He stripping away all the usual props and forcing you to cry out to Him? If so, take heart: God is moving you "farther in and higher up" with Him. Coming to the end of yourself is a necessary part of the journey to spiritual maturity and a joyful, stable walk with God. When you see that the Christian life isn't just hard but impossible, then you may begin to rely upon God rather than yourself which is the only way anyone truly walks with Him.

Very good questions. But I think he is showing me how week I am, and how much I need him.

God is using people as well to show me how much I need him. You are saying that the Christian life is not hard but impossible, which is something I need to remember.

I started another thread about being celibate and never lusting again. I was determined to stop at all cost. I thought this was going to earn favor with God more, and I will be able to enter the kingdom of heaven just because I was celibate.

But this was a self made effort. And I failed at not lusting. It is such a bad habit that I do it subconsciously sometimes. Then I beat myself up.

So I do understand what you are saying.

I can't depend on myself.

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