You must be in fellowship prior to your Bible study, so that the spiritual information you receive can become a source, of blessing to your soul and produce spiritual growth.
1 John 4:14-15
14 And [kai] we [hemeis] have seen [theaomai] and [kai] do testify [martureo] that [hoti] the Father [pater] sent [apostello] the Son [huios] to be the Saviour [soter] of the world [kosmos]. 15 Whosoever [hos] [an] shall confess [homologeo] that [hoti] Jesus [Iesous] is [esti] the Son [huios] of God [theos], God [theos] dwelleth [meno] in [en] him [autos], and [kai] he [autos] in [en] God [theos]. KJV-Interlinear 14 And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. NASB
John is drawing toward a conclusion. 'We know' (previously referred to), refers to the knowledge which, when taught to the believer who is in fellowship, will be learned and understood.
By following the rules of the spiritual life, the believer will come to the knowledge of Christ, of God, and will through that knowledge, bear witness even experientially, of the Father and His plan, within the circumstances and events of their own life.
Now, no one has seen the Father. No one has seen God (any member of the trinity) in their original essence. But we have seen the incarnate Christ, first by the Apostles and the many people who followed Jesus around in those days, and then second by each one of us through our study of the scriptures and the unfolding of the events in our daily lives.
Through the scriptures we see God, His truth, and come to know the real from the fake in life.
Whoever confesses Christ then, is now in the family of God with respect to the eternal life they now possess. Anyone who confesses their sins (on a regular basis) resides in the presence of God and has an open and un-interrupted audience with Him.
The Son of God is the one and only savior of the world. The world is lost, and there is no one who can save mankind except the one and only Son of God. There is no other savior. There is no other prophet. All the other religions of the world, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and the many cults and other beliefs, are lies and nothing more. They are not even honorable. They deceive with their sincerity and passion, and they drive their followers to destruction and eternal loss. They are all therefore evil to the core and should never be supported.
All spiritual life begins with belief in Jesus Christ. The spiritual life function begins with fellowship with God. Fellowship is accomplished through the confession of sin. The Holy Spirit is the flowing oil of doctrine which moves from God through your human spirit into your soul.
All abiding in God, all dwelling in the spiritual life is accomplished through the acquisition of fellowship. Fellowship is the main topic of 1 John. You cannot have a spiritual life apart from fellowship. You cannot have fellowship apart from the confession of sin. Confession is not a one time event, but a daily cleansing of any and all 'new' filth (sin) which you acquire from your daily thoughts, decisions, and actions.
God will not receive you when you are dirty. You must be clean before you can approach God.
Everyone is born into this world as a potential. Without the proper decisions, your life will end up in the Lake of Fire and a total loss. But with the correct decisions, then through faith in Christ you open the door of eternal life in heaven. Infinitely better than the alternative. If you confess your sins then you open up the door of a personal audience with God. And no, you cannot talk directly with God in a dialog, nor will you hear Him. If you do then you best check your medication.
If you study daily while resident in the fellowship sphere, then you will begin to learn. If you apply what you learn (while in fellowship) then you will begin to understand, and thus grow up spiritually.
At the point of physical birth (perhaps at conception) we all have certain physical gifts. Genetic gifts. Some of us can excel in sports. Some of us can build rockets. Some of us can speak dynamically. Some of us can entertain. Some of us can change diapers, etc., etc., etc. These are gifts for jungle survival.
When we believe in Christ we are given certain spiritual gifts. Often times these enhance our physical gifts. Often times these gifts are totally different from our physical gifts. Both sets of gifts will blossom even more, when we advance in our spiritual lives.
Most people never realize their full potential in life because they make wrong decisions in life. Bad decisions lead to loss of opportunities. Good decisions lead to more opportunities. What are you missing in life? Why?
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End Of Lesson
Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.
