Hi DC...I love all the above you posted, and tomorrow God willing, I am ready for my next step as the Holy Spirit leads me, to find out who I am in Christ now that I truly know how I have been saved with no works added or anything that I have done
...But what really sticks out for me from your post is g Jesus starts and finishes and COMPLETES the good work of faith in me
...I am going to write this at the top of my Journal for notes that I take down, then should the evil one come and try to snatch from me, I will read this allowed...xox...It`s been a bumpy road for me in here sometimes, started of not really knowing much, I believe God through me in at the deep end and I am so glad He did, and thank you also for your persistence...I will be back to post what I learn, but I will be coming in with my full armor, just in case I get a telling off lol...Blessings to you...xox...
Here is a verse to write at the top of your Journal:
Philippians 1:6 (HCSB)
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6 [/SUP] I am sure of this, that
He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ
Jesus.
John 14:16-18 (HCSB)
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16 [/SUP]
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor {the HOLY SPIRIT} to be with you forever.
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17 [/SUP]
He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive Him because it doesn’t see Him or know Him. But you do know Him, because He remains with you and will be in you.
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18 [/SUP]
I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you.
Deuteronomy 31:6 (HCSB)
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6 [/SUP] Be strong and courageous; don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For it is the LORD your God who goes with you;
He will not leave you or forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5-6 (HCSB)
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5 [/SUP] Your life should be free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for He Himself has said,
I will never leave you or forsake you.
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6 [/SUP] Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
Matthew 28:18-20 (CSBBible)
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18 [/SUP] Jesus came near and said to them,
"All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
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19 [/SUP]
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
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20 [/SUP]
teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
1 John 4:4 (NKJV)
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4 [/SUP] You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because
He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
I like to encourage New Believers to Read through the GOSPEL OF JOHN first, because John's Gospel focuses on the fact that Jesus is God in the flesh.
Then I like to have them read 1 John, because it focuses on what our Christian lifestyle should be like. Some find 1 John hard to understand because of the Fourth Primary Verb Tense (in the Greek) that John just Loved to use. It is the Perfect Tense, where English only has THREE Primary Verb Tenses, {past tense, present tense, and future tense}. That Greek Perfect Tense
does not imply perfection, but rather
an ongoing lifestyle of striving to do that verb. Most of the verbs in 1 John are in that Perfect ongoing lifestyle verb tense.
For Example:
1 John 1:9 (HCSB)
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9 [/SUP] If we
confess {ongoing lifestyle of confessing each new sin} our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 2:3-5 (HCSB)
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3 [/SUP] This is how we are sure that we have come to know Him: by
keeping {ongoing lifestyle of striving to keep} His commands.
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4 [/SUP] The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” yet doesn't
keep {ongoing lifestyle of striving to keep} His commands, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
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5 [/SUP] But whoever keeps
{ongoing lifestyle of striving to keep} His word, truly in him the love of God is perfected. This is how we know we are in Him:
John 14:15 (HCSB)
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15 [/SUP] “
If you love Me, you will keep {ongoing lifestyle of striving to keep} My commands.
And when we fail, we go back to
1 John 1:9 and confess it as sin and immediately get back to continually striving to Keep His Commands
, BECAUSE WE LOVE HIM!