There are four things needed to for someone to grow as a Christian. They are study of the word, prayer, Fellowship, and witnessing. They are essential in the growth of a Christian I can compare it to if you want to school and there are four subjects in school. Math, language, science, and history,. Now imagine if you went through school and didn’t feel the need to learn one of those for subjects. Would you be able to function in society without learning history or science you can’t even function within one of those fours without math because you can’t do science unless you can measure if you don’t learn language you can’t learn history they all tie in together the same with the four things needed to grow as a Christian they all tie in together.
Starting with study of the word. I could see the word of God to be like a puzzle you have to put all the pieces together they’re all mixed up in different places and you have to put it all together to see a picture of the will of God and his plan for your life. If people start leaving puzzle pieces out like they leave out verses of the Bible because they don’t like what it says or it doesn’t line up with what they want to believe. They will never see the picture of God’s will and they’ll have no idea what he wants them to do so we must use all the Bible and our Doctrine should be based on all of scripture if something contradicts what we believe we need to change what we believe. I’m not picking on women but a big one is it says in scripture women should be silent in church. But most people take a black marker to that and say it doesn’t apply to me. Without that one piece of the puzzle and many others they will never see God’s will.
The next part prayer. I’ve observed how many people pray some people complain to God telling him all their problems and feel much better because they vented to him and say that as prayer but it is not. Others will beg of God for their will to be done and everything that they want in their life begging and pleading for God to give them what they want and say that that is prayer. Others will bargain with God if you give me this I will give this to you or do this for you. God doesn’t like Bargains it is not good to try to strike a deal with God to make a vow. There’s a good example of that in scripture about a man who made a vow to God that the first person who will come out to my house I will dedicate to the Lord. He assumed it would be a dog or a sheep or something but no it was his daughter who came out first so she had to become a nun and bear no children so his lineage ended. All because he tried to bargain with God. Then I also see people demand of God try to tell God what they want what their will is and we’ll use what he says in his word against him to try to force his will. Telling God what to do. That’ll never work to truly know what prayer is you have to look at what Jesus said in the Our Father prayer. He simply said thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven. And that’s ultimately what prayer should be asking for God’s will. If we have surrendered our life we are not trying to do our will we are trying to do his will and we ask for his will over an issue in our life. Whether it be buying a home or buying a car or looking for a job we ask for his will because he knows what’s best.
Fellowship this is one thing that people never really consider is that we are not to have any fellowship with those who are in darkness who are those who are practicing sin but only those who are Christians we need to learn who our friends are and that is the ones who are in the body of Christ and everybody else is just an acquaintance you can associate with them but they’re not their friends if they are practicing sin. Another thing about Fellowship we are told not to fellowship with those who are idle who those who show up to church but do nothing for the lord they’re easy to spot by what they discuss. I observe this many times in church the women want to talk about food and clothes and men want to talk about destruction or repair about their chainsaws or car or computer or whatever else. If we are doing the work of the Lord we should be able to talk about it one day out of the week when we get together for Fellowship. But if we’re doing nothing for the Lord all through the week and just doing things of the world that’s all they have to talk about. So if you are doing this work of the Lord then find others who are doing that as well who are talking about it asking questions about it.
Then finally witnessing to start with I’ve asked many people what they think salvation is. And they can’t really even tell me many people believe they are saved because they believe they are it’s all in their head. So how can they explain something that happened to them by God to somebody else if they don’t know if they can’t simply say this is what God did. All they have to say instead is I think I am therefore I am. Without evidence they have nothing to support their salvation. So if we need to go out and witness to share the word we need to know what we’re sharing and we need to share the whole gospel. Many people preach just believe in Jesus and you are saved and you’re a christian. So you just believe he exists. Or believe that he died on the cross that’s all there is to it. That’s only one part. We are supposed to believe and then repent and then receive salvation. In that our sins are taken away. It is very essential to share the gospel God made it a high priority so must be done thoroughly. Not just for other people’s sake for our own as well. Like John warned the church in Revelation about losing their first love the reason why it was because they stopped witnessing. Every time you see somebody come to the Lord because you shared your faith with them and they accepted what you said and received Jesus Christ as their Savior and he took their sins away and you see the joy it reminds you of the joy you felt when you first met him when you first met your first love. Just as they are now. That constant reminder every time you lead someone to Lord you will never forget your first love. There’s much more I can add to this but I think this post is long enough.
Witnessing? Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.” That doesn’t translate to tell people about Jesus in any language.
Daniel Hutch that’s the problem. They’re making the main thing a footnote at the end. It’s like having reading at the end of maths class when kids need to learn to read.
Oliver Kent well if you have been in deceived by the positive thinking teaching then you never read the book of Jeremiah.
When we read the word of God we need to evaluate the context. You stated that women should be silent in church. This is a misinterpretation. You need to study the context of his letters to understand that he was addressing a specific problem in the a specific area, it is not a universal truth. It does hold truth for the church. The women he was addressing were coming from the pagan worship of Artemis. They were unlearned in the gospel, but sought to gain power over the men, the same power they had in their false religion. His instruction can be applied to ALL new believers coming out of pagan beliefs. We must first learn how to follow Christ before we start speaking in the church.
I can tell you, you are correct concerning salvation and witnessing. You cannot have one without the other. To be a witness is to allow God to work through you at a crucial moment which He is the author of.