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Christianity is beyond mere going to
church, and worshiping with others, as many suppose it to be. The word Christian
simply mean Christ-like that is to say, living like Christ. Today people are
deceiving themselves and not God, living the way they like, and yet, called
themselves Christ-like. Christ has its own values that he expect in us, as
displayed in the volume of him. I have identified ten virtues or value of a
born again Christian. These values/virtues
are extracted from the seven heavenly virtues: Prudence, justice, temperance,
courage; faith, hope and love.
1. Love God with your whole heart,
soul and mind {Mathew 22: 37}: That is the greatest commandment, make Christ
your number one factor in life, value and give him more time than your spouse, career,
academics, mobile phone. Let Christ take the centre of your thought always.
Make him your first vision, goal, ambition, and future; seek to please and know
him more than you strive to achieve your ambition and goals. When you seek to
please God first before any other things in life, you will surely Get every
other thing you so desire {mtt 6: 33).
2. Love others like yourself
{matt.22: 39): How can you say you love
Christ when you don't love your neighbor, be ready to lay your life for others
as Christ lay his life for you"1john 3:16". The truth is that you
need to love others unconditionally, sacrificially, not because of what you
tends to gain. Be ready to sacrifice your own happiness for their happiness,
especially the brethren; respond to the
needs of others, stop being selfish; stop judging others, love the lost souls. John
11: 34-35..A new commandment I give to you, that ye love one another; as I have
loved you, that ye also love one another, by this shall all men know that, ye
are my disciples,,,
3.Be patient with God, others and
yourself: Remember that you can't get all you want in this life but in heaven.
Prov. 23:17-18 says "never mind the affluence of those that fear not
God,,, for there is an end and your expectation shall not be cut off". Be contented with what you have, believing in
God to provide more. Life is up and down, when you are down; God strength is
perfected in your weakness{2cor.12:9}. See your present situation as a training
ground, that is meant to transform and mould you for a higher responsibility.
No testimony without trials. Patient is one of the good virtue of a Christian
and a sign of spiritual maturity.
4. Pray always for yourself, pray
for others and more so pray for the salvation of the lost soul: Prayer is
taking God's word back to him, it show your dependence on his ability to scale
through. God expect you to always remind
him, how helpless you are in your ability to help yourself. That is same reason
1Thessalonians 5: 17, says, "pray without ceasing" Start all prayer with thanksgiving and end
with thanksgiving,, remember, if there are men to pray there is a God to answer
prayer, and a closed mouth is a closed destiny. Don't be anxious for anything,
but always pray phil.4:6-7. Prayer solve all things, it is the master key.
5. Study your bible more than any
other book: Everything you are looking
for in this life is in there. John 1: 1-5, 14:6, the bible is God's word and
the same word is Jesus and through him was all things created; he is the way,
the truth and life. Life is hopeless without Christ, and you can only know and
please Jesus through studying the bible. You cannot know God without the bible.
Pant and hunger for it like you hunger for physical food. {matt. 4: 4, john
5:39, 1 peter 2:2, 2tim.3:16}
6. Give praise to God instead of
complaining: Phil. 4:6-7, learn to see
challenge as part of life because they are there to refine and transform you,
remember others are passing through more harder situation than what you into
now, nobody is without issue many don't like discussing it. When you thank God
you commit him to act, because he does not take glory in what he did not do.
7. Overcome fear, Anxiety and
Worry: When fear knock remind him that
you have nothing to lose because you have Christ. If Christ be for us who can
be against us. Rom 8:31," mtt.6:32...for your heavenly father knoweth that
ye have need of all these things, and that is more than anything. Remember God
can do all things for you,,, if God can freely gives us his son, what more can
he not give us his children {Rom. 8:32} Live for Christ and be willing to die
for him, just like Paul that said, "for to me to live is Christ, to die is
gain".
8. Service your alter: Your alter is your body, so glorify God with it. {1Corri.
6:20, Rom. 12 :1}, Paul said, " I beseech you therefore, brethren... to
present your body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable before God. No
alter can be effective without sacrifice, so sacrifice in your alter by living
a holy life, by way of giving to God, and others.
9. Obedience: Obedience is better than sacrifice, stop a
hypocrites life, he says, if you love me, keep my commandment. Love is not a
feeling, it is a choice. So decide to stop all form of lies, envy, proud,
idolatry, fornication, make effort to do please God. The bible says, he that
sinneth is of the devil, 1 john 3:8,, hell is not a good place at all, the
little enjoyment on earth cannot be compared to life of eternity.
10. Faith: Faith is the substance of
things hope for, the evidence of things not seen. It is a complete confidence
and trust on someone or something; a belief
without proof or fact. Today people want to see before they believe, you
should rather believe to see. Heb. 11:6 says, " for without faith, no man
can please God". So for you to have eternal life, you must have faith in
God's saving power. john 3: 16, For God so love the world,,,,,, that whosoever
believes in him shall not perish,,,, the point here is " believe"
that the only condition.
Remember, of all these virtues, the
greatest is love, because God is love. If God is love are we not ought to love
so that we can be like him, he love us first so we need to love him and others
also.
My prayer for you is that the grace and power
to live for Christ and overcome sin will come upon you and none of your heart
desire will be cut short in Jesus name. Amen,,, remember God love you and want
you to reciprocate, love him back. To get more of my write up click here
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