Welcome to the second edition of the e-Grace convention 20-14 happening right here on nairaland. It is with great joy that we welcome you all to this second edition of the e-convention of the religion section, theme: Ephphatha - Be opened (Mark 7:34 & Acts 26:17-18).

This edition of the e-Grace convention is organized to be an invasion of Grace of God in the life of Christians. Ladies & Gentlemen, we have manifold riches of God’s Grace deposited in us through the finished works of Christ. We trust God for the speakers for revelation knowledge to unfold and explore this great Grace of God to us.

The Christian life is how much of us is opened (ephphatha) to God’s unending revelation of the word. Many have struggled to understand what have been willed to them through the Grace of God and the finished works of Christ which is not what you worked for but what you inherit by the Grace of God. God had done it all for you before the foundation of the earth and you’re only invited to come and receive with the currency of faith what is already available for you.

We therefore trust God who gives the utterance through our speaker to open the mind and\or eyes of understanding of the participants and that lives will be graciously changed for our Lord and the Spirit of God will do the moving of the Pentecost unto our viewers\readers\partakers of this great event. We welcome you with the gracious love of Christ and this convention is hereby declared open in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit!

Please note:

There will be questions after each teaching session and our teachers will be around after their presentation to answer your questions. We encourage everyone to be orderly as in a Christian gathering. All questions must\should come after a teacher has come to the end of each presentation not in the middle of their teachings.

Today, as the convention begins, we shall be having 3 sessions and for each day of the 3 days gathering:

1st session:
(Genesis): The New Creation in Christ & our inheritance - MrAnony1 @9.00am

2nd session:
(Social Issues): The Christian and his Environment – Yooguyz @2.00pm

3rd session:
(Power of the Spirit): The Power of the Holy Spirit in Christian Living – trustman @ 6.00pm

Order of event shall follow thus for today/each day:

Praise\worship\Hymns

Teachings\Presentation

Questions and answer

Closing prayer\Grace be multiplied

Enjoy this praise and worship in his presence as we continue to other aspects of today’s schedule.

You’re blessed in His presence!!!

[size=20pt] RULES FOR THE CONVENTION: For Presenters and Audience[/size]


1. Presentations should occupy only two or three posts with minimum of 2000 words and max 4000.

2. We encourage a neat presentation for ease of readability. If possible employing bold, italics, coloring and other Nairaland editing features for aesthetics and enhance readership.

3. edited.

4. Audience are encouraged to present their questions in a concise and straight to the point manner for a presenter only after a presenter has made his/her presentation.

5. Audience are not to ask presenters "leading" questions which are designed to ridicule a presenter. A presenter may decline to answer a question if they so wish

6. Goshen360 and DrummaBoy shall act as moderators to ensure order and to protect presenters from attacks.

7. Use of foul languages are prohibited on the convention thread. All nairaland forum rules subsist here too.

8. Only individuals with monickers that have been nominated and have accepted their nominations on this thread are permitted to make presentation on the topics of the convention or in other topic. Anyone who flaunts this rule shall banned.

9. The audience are advised to refrain from posting in between the posts of a presentation by participant. Anyone who breeches this rule will have his comment hidden. They however have full liberty to comment or ask questions after the presentation has been made.

10. Audience are enjoined not to "dissect" presentations by commenting on every line of a presentation, after quoting them, that is common with nairalanders. Anyone who does this shall be banned. You may quote an aspect of a presentation only with the aim of asking a question or making a point.

[size=20pt]TIME TABLE FOR GRACE CONVENTION 2014[/size]

[size=16pt]Thursday, 14th August @9.00am[/size]
(Genesis): The New Creation in Christ & our inheritance - MrAnony1
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14#25465060

[size=16pt]Thursday, 14th August @2.00pm[/size]
(Social Issues): The Christian and his Environment - Yooguyz
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14#25475935

[size=16pt]Thursday, 14th August @ 6.00pm[/size]
(Power of the Spirit): The Power of the Holy Spirit in Christian Living - trustman
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14#25478150


[size=16pt]Friday, 15th August @ 9.00am[/size]
(Grace 1): The Demands of the Law and the Supply of the grace of God - Alwaystrue
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/1#25492791

[size=16pt]Friday, 15th August @ 2.00pm[/size]
(Unity/Ecumenism): Towards a United Christian Voice on Nairaland and Elsewhere - Ihedinobi2
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/1#25500037

[size=16pt]Friday, 15th August @ 6.00pm[/size]
(Church History): Where Did We Come From and Where are We Headed? - BabaGnoni
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/2#25506104

[size=16pt]Saturday, 16th August @ 9.00am[/size]
(Christian Ministry): The Ministry, Life and the Message - PastorOluT
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/3#25523321

[size=16pt]Saturday, 16th August @ 2.00pm[/size]
(Nigeria): An Emerging Nigeria via the Gospel - Striktlymi
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/3#25525180

[size=16pt]Saturday, 16th August @ 6.00pm[/size]
(Grace 2): The wonders of God's Grace - MarkMiwerds
https://www.nairaland.com/1856979/e-grace-convention-20-14/3#25530159

Link to 2013 GRACE CONVENTION: https://www.nairaland.com/1416947/welcome-e-grace-convention-2013

We indeed welcome all to the convention thread, as we proceed I request that we glean a word of wisdom from a post by alexleo in the making of the convention thread:

alexleo:

I personally look forward to the presentations and pray that God will use the presenters in a mighty way. I also want to plead with those who refused to be part of this based on the long drawn battle over some differences in our biblical teachings to pls have a rethink and participate in this conference by contributing to presentations.

There is time for everything. Time to disagree and time to agree. i think this is time to agree and make successful input in this conference. Those who feel offended in anyway should forgive and move forward. We are still brethren irrespective of our differences. God bless us all. Amen.

www.nairaland.com/1826244/making-grace-convention-2014-begins

OPENING PRAYER:

Father, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for yet another Grace Convention.

We commit everything we shall be doing at the convention: the teachings, the contributions, the questions, etc, to your hands, asking that you will use everything to bring your good pleasure to pass in our lives.

We pray that everything that shall be discussed in the convention will only help increase the course of your kingdom.

We ask that those who are not saved, who do not know Jesus as Lord and Savior, by reading the various presentation will come unto living faith in Christ, breaking forth into a new relationship of Sonship with you.

We ask that as many that are Christians and are lacking in an experiential power of your grace, will come to know this practically.

We ask these and lots more through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.

AMEN!

HYMN

debosky:

Hymns before the message:

All creatures of our God and King
Lift up your voice and with us sing,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam,
Thou silver moon with softer gleam!

Refrain

O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou rushing wind that art so strong
Ye clouds that sail in Heaven along,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou rising moon, in praise rejoice,
Ye lights of evening, find a voice!

Refrain

Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light.

Refrain

Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfoldest blessings on our way,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
The flowers and fruits that in thee grow,
Let them His glory also show.

Refrain

And all ye men of tender heart,
Forgiving others, take your part,
O sing ye! Alleluia!
Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on Him cast your care!

Refrain

And thou most kind and gentle Death,
Waiting to hush our latest breath,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou leadest home the child of God,
And Christ our Lord the way hath trod.

Refrain

Let all things their Creator bless,
And worship Him in humbleness,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One!

Refrain

[size=18pt]The New Creation In Christ And Our Inheritance[/size]


Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. - 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)

What does this even mean?

Let us start from the beginning. In Genesis 1:1, God created the heavens and the earth . . . .and then God made man in His own image and likeness that he may have dominion over all that had been created (Genesis 1:27-30).

And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. – Genesis 1:27-30 (NKJV)

This was the first inheritance as people created in God’s image without any sin. When man first sinned, he lost this inheritance. Instead of blessings, he had curses. Instead of the earth yielding to his rule, he now had to strive against the earth.

“Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it. All the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread. Till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, And to dust you shall return.” Genesis 3:17-19 (NKJV)

Man had fallen and his relationship with God was severed. Man gave away control of his inheritance to the devil and took on a nature of sin. (We can discuss in further depth how this is so if clarification is needed here).

It will be interesting to study how God’s relationship continued with man with respect to his inheritance from the point of the fall onwards but time/word count won’t permit us to go into all the times God gave his people an inheritance: these times are scattered all over the Old Testament – From Abraham to Noah to Moses to the major and minor prophets prophesying about the inheritance which God has prepared for His people. These prophesies were fulfilled in the person of Christ. (We can discuss in further depth how this is so if clarification is needed here).

Basically fast-forwarding/skipping through all of that Old Testament stuff, we come to the point where we learn what Christ’s death and resurrection means for the Christian. From 2 Corinthians 5:17, we learn that if we are in Christ or old Adamic sin nature is passed away and now all things have become new. We are no longer slaves to sin but now we have been adopted into God’s family and are now heirs to God’s righteousness i.e. we become His offspring not only in name but in deed.

As Paul said in his letter to the Romans:

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. – Romans 8:15-17 (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit which we received is a Spirit of adoption; rescuing us from our slavery to sin and bringing us into a relationship with God the Father. It is interesting to notice that Paul continues (in verses 18 onwards) by reassuring us that our present physical sufferings do not take away our inheritance. He talks about how the whole of creation groans in expectation of a liberation from the bondage brought upon it and into the freedom and the glory of God’s children (Does Genesis chapter 1 ring a bell to anyone? Especially as concerning the state of creation before the fall?).

The inheritance we have is therefore not new at all but is actually the original inheritance which God intended for man to have.

Now, how do we get this inheritance?

Well the answer is simple: We are God’s children through faith it is not something we can possibly work for. You are either a son or not. You cannot work your way up to sonship. It is only a slave that works to attain rights, sons are born with the rights inherent from birth. I think the bible explains it perfectly here:

For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness…For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression. Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all - Romans 4:2-5, 13-16 (NKJV)

We did not choose ourselves, God chose us and brought us into his family. What we inherit is not necessarily material blessings rather we inherit God’s righteousness and the gift of sharing in His glory on the last day. It is not something we can possibly earn it is something given. Something only the Father of all righteousness can give.


I apologize for how rushed this is and it's brevity. I am off to to work until 10:00pm tonight and I have not had the time to type all that I have written in preparation for the topic. Hopefully when questions arise they will give me an opportunity to flesh out the sketchy parts of this post


P/s: I may not be able to respond to questions until later tonight or tomorrow as I'll be at work but I will respond even if it means emailing the questioners directly.

Cheers brothers and sisters and may God's love be with you always.

Read christian articles, you will get better.... Share with your friends.... And let's the very gospel on all hearts.

www.walkactive.

Great presentation you have there but please I need to ask a question. A bit confused here...

You said:

"Man gave away control of his inheritance to the devil and took on a nature of sin"

and:

"You cannot work your way up to sonship. It is only a slave that works to attain rights, sons are born with the rights inherent from birth"

I need you to help me reconcile both comments please.

If our rights as sons are inherent from birth and we cannot work our way up to sonship how then is it possible to lose our inheritance via sin? If our inheritance is tied to sin, can't it be said that we are inadvertently working our up to sonship?

1) Genesis 1:27-30 and "This was the first inheritance as people created in God’s image without any sin"

• I will rephrase Genesis 1:27-30 with the latter above to mean:
* Genesis 1:27-30 was among other things inherited from God man lost as opposed to saying the first inheritance

---

2) "Instead of blessings, he had curses. Instead of the earth yielding to his rule, he now had to strive against the earth." and Genesis 3:17-19

• Why was the ground cursed for Adam sake or how was the the ground cursed for Adam's sake.
Is there relationship/connection between them for the ground to be cursed on Adam's account?

---

3) "Man had fallen and his relationship with God was severed.
Man gave away control of his inheritance to the devil and took on a nature of sin.
(We can discuss in further depth how this is so if clarification is needed here)."

• What explicitly, is sin?
• What was the first sin committed by man and who first committed it?
• What nature of sin, with examples, did man take on? What happened when man took on the nature of sin? (i.e. any implications?)

---

4)"The New Creation In Christ And Our Inheritance"
"The inheritance we have is therefore not new at all but is actually the original inheritance which God intended for man to have.
Now, how do we get this inheritance?"

• More info on how the original inheritance got blocked and what was the idea behind devising THIS solution of restoring the inheritance
- Why this particular solution on offer or provided?
• What was the process(es) of restoring the inheritance path or link and how do each carry out or implement this inheritance remedy?

We did not choose ourselves, God chose us and brought us into his family. What we inherit is not necessarily material blessings rather we inherit God’s righteousness and the gift of sharing in His glory on the last day. It is not something we can possibly earn it is something given. Something only the Father of all righteousness can give.

i quite couldnt swallow the above underlined well... we inherited God's righteousness? the bibile said they which have receive the abundance of grace AND THE GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS... I thought the good book lets me know the righteousness i have is a gift imputed to me for believing in the Christ?

sharing in his glory on the last day was a gift? We have come to mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem... I'm in that glory now, the glory Adam threw away, it's here on earth, for the good book says, Christ in me is the hope of that glory... not on the last day, but on earth here.

can you please explain further when you are less busier? thanks, in all, i loved the presentation, you didn't say what the actual inheritance is...what is that inheritance the new creation has in Christ as Acts 20:32, Acts 26:18, Col 1:12, Eph 1:18 admonishes. Kudos bro

Reserved for Reply to Gombs

You quoted where I said:

We did not choose ourselves, God chose us and brought us into his family. What we inherit is not necessarily material blessings rather we inherit God’s righteousness and the gift of sharing in His glory on the last day. It is not something we can possibly earn it is something given. Something only the Father of all righteousness can give.

Thanks Gombs, to answer your questions:

You said:

i quite couldnt swallow the above underlined well... we inherited God's righteousness? the bibile said they which have receive the abundance of grace AND THE GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS... I thought the good book lets me know the righteousness i have is a gift imputed to me for believing in the Christ?

Without delving much into the semantics of the difference between "gift" and "inheritance", I don't think that one necessarily excludes the other. I.e. saying that something is a gift does not mean that it can therefore never be said to be an inheritance and vice versa. The meanings of the words are not mutually exclusive.
So yes righteousness is a gift of God imputed to you.You did nothing to earn it. It is your inheritance in Christ by nature of the New Birth.

sharing in his glory on the last day was a gift? We have come to mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem... I'm in that glory now, the glory Adam threw away, it's here on earth, for the good book says, Christ in me is the hope of that glory... not on the last day, but on earth here.

Actually I'm afraid that the bible doesn't teach that. The bible teaches us of a glory which is to come and not that we presently walk in it rather that we shall share in it in the future. You even quoted Colossians 1:27 "Christ in you, the hope of glory". How can you hope for something you already have? Is it not that which you don't have that you hope to have? If this is true, how then can you say that "the hope of glory" means a present glory and not a future aspiration? Please study Romans 8:15-25.

can you please explain further when you are less busier? thanks, in all, i loved the presentation, you didn't say what the actual inheritance is...what is that inheritance the new creation has in Christ as Acts 20:32, Acts 26:18, Col 1:12, Eph 1:18 admonishes. Kudos bro

I actually did say what the actual inheritance is and you even quoted me saying it i.e. God's righteousness and the glory that will be bestowed upon us when we finish running this race. God bless you bro.

P/s: If you have further questions we can discuss via email. I wouldn't suggest that we continue here on this thread so as not to break the flow. Alternatively, you can open another thread for further discussion after the convention is over.

Reserved for Reply to BabaGnoni

Reserved for Reply to striktlymi

striktlymi: Great presentation you have there but please I need to ask a question. A bit confused here...

You said:

"Man gave away control of his inheritance to the devil and took on a nature of sin"

and:

"You cannot work your way up to sonship. It is only a slave that works to attain rights, sons are born with the rights inherent from birth"

I need you to help me reconcile both comments please.

If our rights as sons are inherent from birth and we cannot work our way up to sonship how then is it possible to lose our inheritance via sin? If our inheritance is tied to sin, can't it be said that we are inadvertently working our up to sonship?

Thanks for your question.

When a person gives his life to Christ, he is now born into God's family. Christ talks about this in John 3 when He tells Nicodemus that one must be born again (of the Spirit) in order to enter God's kingdom. It is either you are born of God or you aren't. You cannot work your way into sonship. The rights of a son in God's family i.e. righteousness/justification whereby you can shout "Abba Father" are inherent from birth. We cannot attain them by our good works.

How then can we lose our inheritance via sin? This happens when through sin we reject God as our father hence effectively disowning ourselves as His sons and therefore losing the inheritance that comes with sonship.

P/s: I hope my explanation has been sufficient. We can always continue the discussion later but I will recommend a separate thread or wait until the convention has been concluded.

Thank you MrAnony1 for the presentation and for keeping to time. I believe God that this has set a good precedence for all other presentations.

To God be all the praise.

Good Job and before i go on i wish to apologise for mutilating your post. I just wanted to pick out the main points where i'll like some clarifications

MrAnony1:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. - 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)

What does this even mean?
From 2 Corinthians 5:17, we learn that if we are in Christ or old Adamic sin nature is passed away and now all things have become new. We are no longer slaves to sin but now we have been adopted into God’s family and are now heirs to God’s righteousness i.e. we become His offspring not only in name but in deed.

As Paul said in his letter to the Romans:

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. – Romans 8:15-17 (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit which we received is a Spirit of adoption; rescuing us from our slavery to sin and bringing us into a relationship with God the Father.

The inheritance we have is therefore not new at all but is actually the original inheritance which God intended for man to have.

Now, how do we get this inheritance?

Well the answer is simple: We are God’s children through faith it is not something we can possibly work for. You are either a son or not. You cannot work your way up to sonship. It is only a slave that works to attain rights, sons are born with the rights inherent from birth.

we cannoy work our way to sonship for sons are born.

How are we "born of God"? How does God bestow this sonship?

Is the new born simply an endowed son or does this status give him new responsibility? What does living as a new creature consist of?

Gombs:


i quite couldnt swallow the above underlined well... we inherited God's righteousness? the bibile said they which have receive the abundance of grace AND THE GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS... I thought the good book lets me know the righteousness i have is a gift imputed to me for believing in the Christ?

sharing in his glory on the last day was a gift? We have come to mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem... I'm in that glory now, the glory Adam threw away, it's here on earth, for the good book says, Christ in me is the hope of that glory... not on the last day, but on earth here.

can you please explain further when you are less busier? thanks, in all, i loved the presentation, you didn't say what the actual inheritance is...what is that inheritance the new creation has in Christ as Acts 20:32, Acts 26:18, Col 1:12, Eph 1:18 admonishes. Kudos bro

2 Cor 5: 21

Oh, i forgot this one.

If as you have explained man lost his inheritance the first time it was given him, is it possible for him to reject it again?

Reserved for Reply to Ubenedictus

Ubenedictus: 2 Cor 5: 21

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.


now, why did you quote me?

Apologies.

Yooguyz has requested permission to make his presentation at 4pm. I have granted his request.

Please forbear with the little set back.

I'm blessed with the first teacher in the word. Thank you @MrAnony1, DrummaBoy and Goshen360 for this year convention. My heart illuminated the more.

Following....

the christian and his environment

Social issues

When we talk about social issues we are talking about social problems that are percieved as harmful to members of a society.

Why is it of concern to a christian?
This is because a christians lifestyle and conduct is of paramount interest to Jehovah God, such the bible expressly stated that only those with a pure conduct shall see Jehovah.

"...holiness without which no man shall see the Lord" Hebrews 12:14.

Examples of social issues that concerns a christian include;
Sexism, gay marriage, robbery, deliquency, abortion e.t.c.

For the sake of space and the audience, I would be discussing just abortion.

ABORTION

Five Bible Reasons Why It Is Wrong


Prior to the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision of 1973, about 500,000 illegal abortions were occurring per year. By 1975, over 1,000,000 babies were being aborted in the United States. Today, about 1,500,000 abortions occur each year. That's over 4000 per day, and nearly three per minute!

Ninety-three percent of the abortions in America are for convenience. The mother's health is an issue only three percent of the time, and the baby's health is an issue only three percent of the time. Rape or incest are issues only one percent of the time. Ninety-three percent of all abortions in America are performed just because someone doesn't want a child!

There are four basic types of abortion being performed in America today, while two more types may be added in the near future.

First, there's the suction type abortion. This is where the unborn child is literally vacuumed from the mother's womb during the early stages of pregnancy.

The currette-type abortion is where the child is cut from the mother's womb with a spoon-like object.

A third type is similar to a Caesarean operation. The baby is surgically removed from the mother and allowed to suffocate, because the child's lungs aren't developed.

The fourth type of abortion is the Salt Brine technique. With this method, the unborn child is literally "pickled" to death by the injection of a strong salt solution. A few days after the injection the child is still born.

There is currently much debate about partial-birth abortions. This is where a child is partially delivered, then stabbed in the skull to have his or her brains sucked out.

There is also much talk about the RU-486 abortion pill from France, also called "mifepristione" in America. This pill works by inhibiting pregnancy hormones, and is normally used within seven weeks from conception. At the present time, mifepristone is illegal in the U.S., but there is much political pressure to make it legal.

1.Abortion Is An Act of Murder

In reference to pregnant women, the term "with child" occurs twenty-six times in the Bible. The term "with fetus" never occurs once.

In Luke chapter one, verses 36 and 41, we are told that Elisabeth conceived a "son" and that the "babe" leaped in her womb. God does not say that a "fetus" leaped in her womb! He says THE BABE leaped. This is the exact same word that God uses to describe Christ in the manger AFTER He is born (Luke 2:12, 16). In God eyes, an unborn babe and a newborn babe are the same. They are both living human beings!

Dear reader, please answer a question: What is an "infant?" Get the answer in your mind and keep it there for a moment. Do you have it? Okay, please consider Job 3:16: "Or as an hidden untimely birth I had not been; as infants which never saw light." Did you see that? Job referred to unborn children as INFANTS. Not fetuses! Not masses of tissue! INFANTS! In God's eyes, an unborn child is a living human baby. God never says once that an unborn child is anything less than a human being.

David said in Psalm 51:5, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me." He did not say that a fetus was shapen in iniquity and conceived in iniquity. David, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, said that HE was conceived. David, not a blob of tissue, was conceived.

The same is the case in Psalm 139:13-16:

"For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them."

Who was in the womb? David! A literal and living person. The Bible never uses anything less than human terms to describe the unborn.

Notice that in Jeremiah 1:5 we are told that God KNEW Jeremiah:"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations."

To further confirm the fact that God views the unborn child as a person, please consider Exodus 21:22-23:

"If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,"

If the woman has a premature birth and the child lives ("no mischief follows", then there's no death penalty. However, if the child dies (or the woman dies) God says the death penalty applies: "thou shalt give life for life." Why would God require the death penalty if He didn't consider the unborn child to be a human being?

Friend, like it or not, God says that life begins at conception, and the unborn child is a human being.

But the Bible isn't alone in declaring this truth. Science also declares that an unborn child is just as much an independent human being as you. The original human cell consists of 46 chromosomes, 23 from each parent. At no point during pregnancy does the mother contribute any new cells to the child. The original cell divides itself and multiplies to provide development and growth for the child. Scientifically speaking, the child is just as independent at six months before birth as he will be six months after birth. Yes, the mother does provide nourishment to the unborn child, but she also provides nourishment to the newborn child!

At two weeks pregnancy, the "fetus" can move alone. By four weeks the child has limbs, muscle tissue, a heart and heartbeat. Ears, eyes, and small hands are visible by the fifth week. The child responds to touch sensations by the sixth or seventh week. At eight weeks, the baby sometimes tries to take a breath when removed from the mother. At twelve weeks, the child will often struggle for life two or three hours when removed from the mother.

Friend, abortion is wrong because abortion is MURDER!


2.Abortion Involves the Shedding of Innocent Blood

Proverbs 6:16-17 says that God HATES those who shed innocent blood! Deuteronomy 27:25 says, "Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say, Amen."

Who could possibly be more innocent than an unborn baby?! Yet, our society has become so wicked that it condones the slaying of 1.5 million innocent children every year. The Bible says that God HATES people who do this.

3.Abortion Is A Violation of the Golden Rule

In Matthew 7:12, the Lord Jesus Christ said, "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."

Would it be your desire to suffer and die while someone traps you in a cage and literally tears your arms and legs from your body?

4.Abortion Attempts To Destroy A Work of God

"I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him." (Ecc. 3:14)

God is eternal, so His work is also eternal. Abortion is an attempt to do away with unwanted people--an attempt to make a liar out of God by bringing an end to His work. However, Jesus said you can destroy a person's BODY, but not their SOUL (Mat. 10:28). Parent, if you've had an abortion, your aborted child is in Heaven right now, because you only destroyed the body!

5.Abortion Often Brings Shame, Heartache, and Deep Regret

After his sin with Bathsheba, King David confessed these words to God: "For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me." (Psa. 51:3) David was living under constant conviction and regret for what he had done. He couldn't get away from it!

Most women who decide to have an abortion spend the rest of their lives regretting it. Are you thinking about an abortion? I challenge you to visit with some woman who have had abortions. Ask them if they would do it again. Ask them if they have any regrets.

In the book, The Christian and Social Issues, by Tom Wallace, a reference is made to a full page Washington Post ad, dated June 13, 1983. A lady who had undergone a saline abortion six months earlier describes the mental torments that she now suffers every day. She speaks of her "...everyday hell of never hearing a baby cry without crying within myself; counting days to see how old the baby would have been; wondering what contributions my baby would have made to our desperate society; and wondering if there will ever be another chance for motherhood."

Of the abortion itself, the lady recalls, "...sitting in a crowded waiting room studying each others fearful, anxious faces...signing death certificates for what is very much alive within you...seeing crying women given tranquilizers and sent home to recuperate and try to forget."

Your questions and contributions are welcomed.

^^

Is abortion TOTALLY wrong? let's look at it from this stand point... WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY if;

1. should a child be brought into this world unprepared for, for him or her to suffer i.e forcefully?

2. what if a girl was rrape.d by robbers and she is not mentally, psychologically, biologically and physically able to keep the child? let's assume she is 13 years old

3. what if a married couple has a child on the way, and due to medical reasons to save the mum from complications that would lead to her death, would you advice her not to go through an abortion like the doctors prescribed? would you then say abortion is ok when the mother's health is threatened? or the mum should just die with the unborn kid?

these said, let me ask you this, why term abortion as murder of an unborn child when in reality, a child's name is written in the book of life ONLY when he is born into this world? what is the biblical definition of murder?

i am of the opinion that No child should be brought into this world by force, if a lady has been raped, it is left for her to make a decision of whether to keep the baby or not. If you have never been raped or someone close to you haven't, you may not agree with this statement.

It is never mentioned anywhere in the Bible, for example, to keep a child from a woman who was raped!


please throw more light on the above questions. thank you, so very much for your time.

Beautiful presentation @Yooguyz. No reason whatsoever for abortion. But what does grace got to do with abortion?

Yooguyz you deserve a resounding round of applause. God has indeed used you to deliver such a powerful message. I would have loved to contribute a thing or two with respect to the questions Gombs asked but I will refrain from doing so because it may lead to arguments which I believe is against the spirit of this convention. In any case, I have some questions of my own which I hope would be answered satisfactorily, given the sensitive nature of the topic...

1) Is there any passage in Sacred scriptures where it is advised that we kill the unborn when we are faced with cases such as r*pe, incest etc?

2) If there is no passage that explicitly state the above, would it be appropriate as Christians to take matters into our own hands in such cases, knowing fully well that it may go against the commandment: "Thou shalt not kill"? As you said, God looks at the unborn as humans, thus killing them would go against that commandment.

3) What do you think should be the Christian approach to social issues like IVF et al that are not explicitly mentioned in Sacred scriptures, considering that God is not an author of confusion? I hear Christians make comments like: "Let's be silent about those things not contained in scriptures". That for me would mean confusion. What in your opinion should the Christian do in such cases?

[size=18pt]The Power of the Holy Spirit in Christian Living[/size]

Part 1 – GOD’S POWER PROVISION FOR THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

This paper seeks to look at the place or work of the Holy Spirit in enabling the believer live his Christian life as God intends for him. The first part will look at who and what the Holy Spirit is while the second part will deal more on his place in empowering the Christian to live as God would have him do.

Acts 1:8
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

John 14:26
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

The Christian life can be said to be a beyond-the ordinary kind of life. To be able to live this life God provided for the believer two main divine operating assets – the Word of God and the enabling power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the source of the supernatural power which along with the Word of God enables the Christian to live this beyond-the-ordinary kind of life.

The Person of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is a person. The Holy Spirit is not some ‘influence’ or a ‘force’. He is as much a personality as God the Father and the Son. Unfortunately the use of the term “ghost” in some translations of the Bible makes it seem that He is not quite the personality that the Father and Son are. But this is not so. The word “ghost” is really a misleading translation of the Greek word pneuma, which means spirit. There is no word in the Greek for ghost. So the Holy Spirit is a true person in the sense that the father and Son are persons.
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be
with you all”
- 2 Corinthians 13: 14

“According to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may
obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood”
- 1 Peter 1:2
Since God is spirit the Father and Son are also spirit so the term spirit in relation to the Holy Spirit has to do with the distinct role of His person. The Holy Spirit as the unseen power of God is the one through whom the power of God is conveyed. He is therefore the one that reveals God to mankind and is the one who enables the Christian to execute his spiritual life to glorify God.

The Holy Spirit is variously called “Spirit of holiness” (Romans 1:4), “Spirit of life” (Romans 8:20), “Spirit of truth” (John 14: 17), “Spirit of your father” (Matthew 10:20), “Spirit of Christ” and “Spirit of Jesus Christ (Romans 8: 9, Philippians 1:19) and many others.

The Attributes of the Holy Spirit
As God, the Holy Spirit possesses the same qualities and perfections which belong to the Godhead.
The Holy Spirits attributes include sovereignty, love, eternal life, omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, immutability, veracity, righteousness and justice. The function of any one of these attributes never compromises any other. In other words, God cannot for example, in the expression of His love ignore or disregard his justice. God’s love is always compatible with His justice. He loved the world so much but in his justice he still ensured that the penalty for sin was taken care of.

Sovereignty means God is the Supreme Being of the universe.
• Psalm 83: 18 – “That they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth”
• Isaiah 45: 5-6 – “I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other.
• Acts 17: 24 – “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man”

See also Isaiah 11:2, Acts 28: 25.

Love is the expression of the kindness of God. God is said to be love – 1 John 4:8 “God is love”. This means it is an integral part of who he is. For example, even though the Bible states that God so loved the world, before he created this world he loves he loved. So His love is not really a response to things or people. His love is something that is innate in Him.
God’s love never diminishes or increases because He is changeless. God’s love exists with or without a created object because in eternity past he had always had this attribute.

Eternal life is God’s self-existence. God exists eternally. His existence is unalterable. God has neither beginning, nor end.
• Exodus 3: 14 – “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you’”
• Deuteronomy 33: 27 – “The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms”
• Job 36:26 – “Behold, God is great, and we know him not; the number of his years is unsearchable”
• 1 Timothy 1:17 – “To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever. Amen.”
• Revelation 1:8 – “I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty”


Omniscience means God knows all the knowable. His knowledge is infinite. He is infinite in wisdom and understanding. He knows the end from the beginning. For example, God knows what would have happened if you were born at different times and places in history, yet he knows the exact one that will actually happen. God is not ‘surprised’ by any happenings.
• Job 37: 16 – “Do you know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him who is perfect in knowledge”
• Psalm 139: 1-6, 12 – “O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it” … … “even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.”
• Romans 11: 33 – “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

See also Psalm 147: 4, Hebrews 4: 13, 1 John 3:20

Omnipotence means God is all-powerful, limitless in ability, authority and power. God’s power is without measure. God’s exercise of his power is always consistent with every other attribute of his essence: Therefore even though God can do all He wills he may choose to limit the use of his omnipotence to conform to His plan and purpose at any point in time.
• Genesis 17:1 – “When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless”
• Luke 1:37 – “For nothing will be impossible with God”

See also Genesis 18: 14, Job 42: 2, Matthew 19:26, Revelation 19: 6.

Omnipresence means God is present everywhere. He is not limited by time or space. He is personally a witness to every activity of every creature everywhere.
• Jeremiah 23: 23,24 – “Am I a God at hand, declares the LORD, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD.
• Proverbs 15: 3 – “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.”

See also Job 34: 21-22, Psalm 139: 8, Acts 17: 24b, 27.

Immutability means God is neither capable of nor susceptible to change. He is unchangeable. He cannot change. His word and works are unchanging.
• Malachi 3: 6 – “For I the LORD do not change; …”
• Hebrews 1: 12 – “Like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end.”

See also Psalm 102: 26-27, Ecclesiastes 3: 14, 1 Peter 1: 25.

Veracity means God is absolute truth. He honors truth. He honors the truth of his Word in the soul of any Christian.
• Psalm 25: 10 – “All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.”
• John 17: 3 – “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent”

See also Psalm 33: 4, John 14: 6, 17, 2 Corinthians 6: 7.

Righteousness refers to the absolute integrity of God or holiness of God. He is absolute good. He is free from sin. He is perfect in character and person. He is perfect in his standards, attitudes and actions.

• 1 Samuel 2:2 – “There is none holy like the LORD; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God.
• 1 John 1: 5 – “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all”

See also Psalm 25: 8, 1 John 2: 29.

Justice is the function of God’s integrity. It is impossible for God to do anything that is unfair. He deals with all of his creation in fairness.
• Deuteronomy 32: 4 – “The rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.”
• Romans 3: 26 – “It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

See also 2 Chronicles 19; 7, Job 37: 23, Psalm 89: 14.

It is important to understand who and what the Holy Spirit is (which we have briefly attempted to do here through His attributes) in order that his workings in the life of the Christian will be easier for the believer to grasp. After the point of salvation the Christian belongs to God; therefore he must seek to understand the thoughts and function of the God to whom he is now to relate in a more personal way.

For example, because God’s Justice took care of the sin problem at the cross, he is free or faithful (veracity) when the Christian confesses his sins, to forgive and cleanse him from his sins – 1 John 1: 9. In so doing, God does not compromise any of his attributes in any way.


Christian living is under two portfolios (offices)
After salvation (the new birth) the Christian essentially functions in two ways – as a royal priest and as a royal ambassador (1 Peter 2:9). In these two areas the Holy Spirit has been provided to enable the Christian perform in such a way as to ultimately glorify God.

When Jesus said in John 16: 7:
“But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you”
he was pointing out that the Holy Spirit was crucial to his followers living the kind of life expected of them. They will come to see that He (the Holy Spirit) will be the one to enable them handle everything that will come at them and empower them for the Christian life. He (the Holy Spirit) is the only possible explanation how any of us can live the Christian life in a way that is acceptable to God.

END OF PART 1, CONTINUED IN PART 2

striktlymi: Yooguyz you deserve a resounding round of applause. God has indeed used you to deliver such a powerful message. I would have loved to contribute a thing or two with respect to the questions Gombs asked but I will refrain from doing so because it may lead to arguments which I believe is against the spirit of this convention. In any case, I have some questions of my own which I hope would be answered satisfactorily, given the sensitive nature of the topic...

1) Is there any passage in Sacred scriptures where it is advised that we kill the unborn when we are faced with cases such as r*pe, incest etc?

2) If there is no passage that explicitly state the above, would it be appropriate as Christians to take matters into our own hands in such cases, knowing fully well that it may go against the commandment: "Thou shalt not kill"? As you said, God looks at the unborn as humans, thus killing them would go against that commandment.

3) What do you think should be the Christian approach to social issues like IVF et al that are not explicitly mentioned in Sacred scriptures, considering that God is not an author of confusion? I hear Christians make comments like: "Let's be silent about those things not contained in scriptures". That for me would mean confusion. What in your opinion should the Christian do in such cases?

@IvF, bros inventions and helps in medicine, science and tech is not in d bible, what should we do about them?

Gombs: ^^

Is abortion TOTALLY wrong? let's look at it from this stand point... WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY if;

1. should a child be brought into this world unprepared for, for him or her to suffer i.e forcefully?

Every child is gift from God irrespective of how he comes, prepared or unprepared. Would you destroy a gift from Mr president just because you were not prepared to have it?

2. what if a girl was rrape.d by robbers and she is not mentally, psychologically, biologically and physically able to keep the child? let's assume she is 13 years old

That's the more reason why she should keep the child because abortion would hide the molesters crime and give him the impetus to do more

3. what if a married couple has a child on the way, and due to medical reasons to save the mum from complications that would lead to her death, would you advice her not to go through an abortion like the doctors prescribed? would you then say abortion is ok when the mother's health is threatened? or the mum should just die with the unborn kid?

The decision in the case lies in the hands of the mother.

these said, let me ask you this, why term abortion as murder of an unborn child when in reality, a child's name is written in the book of life ONLY when he is born into this world? what is the biblical definition of murder?

i am of the opinion that No child should be brought into this world by force, if a lady has been raped, it is left for her to make a decision of whether to keep the baby or not. If you have never been raped or someone close to you haven't, you may not agree with this statement.

It is never mentioned anywhere in the Bible, for example, to keep a child from a woman who was raped!


please throw more light on the above questions. thank you, so very much for your time.

Christians who are heaven bound are killed and persecuted everyday, would you justify the murder of belivers because they will go to heaven when they die?

[size=18pt]The Power of the Holy Spirit in Christian Living[/size]

Part 2 – THE HOLY SPIRIT’S MINISTRY TO BELIEVERS

Acts 1:8
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

John 14:26
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

The Holy Spirit has been provided for the Christian, as a royal priest to grow up spiritually and as an ambassador for Christ to give witness to Christ and spiritual service. The Holy Spirit is therefore involved in helping the Christian grow up spiritually and also for empowerment to live a life of productive service for God.

The Holy Spirit’s ministry at the point of salvation
First, let’s see what the Holy Spirit does for the Christian at salvation before then looking at how he enables him fulfill his dual functions as a priest and an ambassador.
1. Baptism of the Holy Spirit
At salvation the Holy Spirit enters every Christian into Christ to make him a member of Christ’s body.
• 1 Corinthians 12:13 – “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”
• Galatians 3: 26-28 –“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
As a result of this work of the Holy Spirit we are in union with Christ. Several “in Christ” passages in the New Testament emphasize this union. This baptism, amongst other things, imputes the righteousness of Christ to the Christian (2 Cor. 5:21), eternal life, and so on.
2. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit resides in the body of the believer to enable him confront the old sin nature or “flesh”.

• 1 Corinthians 6: 19, 20 – “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

The “flesh” always seeks to control the Christian. But God the Holy Spirit indwelling the believer provides the power needed to cancel out the constant activity of the sin nature. The two are in constant opposition.
• Galatians 5: 17 – “For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.”

3. The sealing ministry of the Spirit
This ministry of the Holy Spirit highlights our security.

• 2 Corinthians 1: 21, 22 – “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”

See also Ephesians 1:13, Eph. 4: 30.
The sealing is a mark of God’s ownership of the Christian, setting him apart as belonging to God.

4. Distribution of Spiritual gifts
The Holy Spirit bestows on every believer at least one spiritual gift.

• 1 Corinthians 12:11 – “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.”

Whichever gift is given to the Christian is a matter of divine prerogative. No one earns or deserves any gift but the Holy Spirit graciously bestows them.

The Holy Spirit’s ministry in Christian living
As previously mentioned the Christian is both God’s royal priest and ambassador. As royal priest he has been provided resources to function in that office:

• Revelation 1: 6 – “and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.”
• 1 Peter 2: 9 – “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
• 2 Corinthians 5: 20 – “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ …”

The Jewish age had a specialized priesthood: only members of the tribe of Levi could be priests and every other Israelite had to go through them to reach God. Unlike this, every church age believer is a priest. As a priest he represents himself to God. The Christian then does not need to go through anyone to reach God for worship, prayer, confession or any other priestly duty he needs to perform. He can “come boldly before the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16) because of this priesthood.

As priests Christians must know what God demands of them and how to perform their priestly duties. It is in taking in the Word of God and growing up spiritually that this is accomplished.

As ambassadors Christians represent God to man. Again the ‘terms of reference’ for this function is found in the Word of God. By speech and by life the Christian witnesses to the world about the kingdom he belongs to and of which he is a citizen and an ambassador – heaven.

In enabling him fulfill these two-pronged functions the Holy Spirit works in the Christian in the following ways:

1. The Holy Spirit enables the Christian to understand the Word of God.
As the “spirit of truth’ who Jesus said “will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13) the Holy Spirit makes clear to the Christian the Word of God. He makes the receptive Christian’s heart open to both receive the Word of God and also let it be formed in his heart for life application. He opens “the eyes” of our understanding to God’s revealed truth.
• Ephesians 1: 18: - “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people”
• Ephesians 3: 16-19 – “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

2. The Holy Spirit brings out Christ’s character in the Christian
• Galatians 5: 22, 23 – “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”
The passage above shows the fruit the Holy Spirit will bear in the life of the Christian who allows him to control his life. Notice that it is said to be “the fruit of the Spirit”. It is what the Spirit produces. This one fruit with various expressions is brought out in the life of each one of God’s child.
3. The Holy Spirit strengthens the Christian
The Christian is not immune to testing, pressures and adversities of life. The enabling power of the Holy Spirit helps him face and cope with these situations.
• Ephesians 3:16 – “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being”

4. The Holy Spirit gives power to the Christian to pray aright
• Romans 8:26 – “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

5. The Holy Spirit enables the Christian to remember and apply the Word to his daily living

• John 14:26 – “the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

You may be going through some pressure of one type or the other and a passage such as “If God be for us who can be against us …” (Romans 8: 31) comes to mind. At such instances the Holy Spirit is bringing the Christian to recall the Word of God for him to apply to that particular situation he is facing.

His attributes are ever at Work
Being all-knowing, all-powerful and ever-present the Christian can rely on the Holy Spirit for wisdom (spiritual insight), power and presence to live his spiritual life. As the spirit of truth the Christian can rely on the Holy Spirit to give him the truths that will both make him grow up spiritually and also glorify God continually. As love, the Christian can be assured of the Holy Spirit’s constant and continuing love because He is eternal and changeless.

The Christian can depend on the other attributes of the Holy Spirit to help him live his spiritual life the way God wants him to. He can always be sure that HELP is ever available from the HELPER. Jesus Christ promised that the Holy Spirit will be with us forever.

Maintaining the Power of the Spirit

"Be filled with the Spirit" (Eph.5:18). The verse actually means - keep being filled. It's not a one time experience, but a daily refill, a recharge of our spiritual battery by perpetually coming to the Source of strength. (See Mat. 5:6).

"Walk in the Spirit" (Gal.5:16). This calls for constant fellowship with the Holy Spirit, and being aware of His presence with us at all times. He is a Person. He will talk to you. Allow yourself to "Be led of the Spirit" (Gal.5:18). This calls for submission to His directions, to His will. We must permit Him to direct our lives. "Live in the Spirit" (Gal.5:25).
By ensuring that he fulfils these two mandates the Christian ensures that the power of the Holy Spirit is always available to him.

Closing Words
The place of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian must not be underrated. He enters us into union with Christ, makes the Word of God understandable to us, provides and empowers us with spiritual gifts for our Christian walk and service, enables us to develop Christ-like characters, guides us and gives us the stability we need for life.

A productive and successful Christian living can only be possible when the Christian allows the Holy Spirit to work in him and through him. As the ‘Helper’ he comes along side the Christian to encourage, strengthen, give help and resources needed to live the Christian life.

The Christian must allow the Holy Spirit, our companion and guide, to constantly empower him if he is to live a fruitful and impactful life as a witness to the world and as he represents himself before God.

PRESENTATION CONCLUDED

@All Presenters/Teachers

I request that you indicate when you have finished your presentation.

We should also take advantage of the two or three posting the convention permits us so presentations do not appear too long.

Let's remain in the 4000 words max please.

Thank you.

Booked for questions

christemmbassey: Beautiful presentation @Yooguyz. No reason whatsoever for abortion. But what does grace got to do with abortion?

SOCIAL ISSUES!!! (The Christian And HIS Environment.)