Trouble with faith and life

[Kentucky86]

Hello everyone. I am new on here and would like to get some input on a problem I have been having. When I was around 18 a good friend of mine finally got to me and I decided to give god a chance. It felt good and I actually came to a point where one afternoon I was outside and just stopped in my tracks and said, "God I accept you in my life and need you". Since that point in time I have obviously had many ups and downs and have had problems maintaining my faith and consistently reading and studying the bible.

 

[Adrianv125]

My friend. Your concern is not a coincidence. I am very grateful that you had the courage to voice your concern here and it will be answered. I've been through many things in my life and God has done amazing things and shown me much through my life. But what He has shown me just a couple months ago (I accepted Jesus in my life when I was 16 Im 20, and I wasn't truly born again) Is that to be truly born again like it says in John, you must do as Jesus did and said. First He denied Himself, being completely God He came in the flesh and humiliated Himself and gave His life for us. He picked up His cross, and it was only through His suffering and death that we are ever forgiven of our sins. And He followed His father's will always. So we must deny our desires and ambitions and replace it with the will of God. We must confess our sins to Him and nail them to the cross being completely dead to practicing sin. And we must follow Him by reading His word and praying to Him always, and through this we will know what His perfect will is. Following Christ means dying to yourself and asking the Holy Spirit to reside in you and to lead you until the day you die. Once you do this you will truly know. You will become dependent on Him and He'll strengthen you. All it takes is an honest heart towards Him and recognizing who we are, who He is, and how much He loves us. Once we understand this He'll truly give us a faith that doesn't break.

God Bless you!

 

[CoreyRyan]

Kentucky86 You are blessed in christ and god loves you. We all have ups and downs i pray that god strengthen you and us all. I Pray that god will flow blessings into your life. Cause every single person on this planet needs jesus. We can't live without his help!

some people say....
The darkest hour is just before the dawn



TO BE BORN AGAIN. I ask anyone who doesnt know exactly how you are born again to please read JOHN chapter 3

1There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Now i didnt understand for along time. But think about what Nicodemus said, he called jesus a teacher. So what jesus is saying is you must believe that he is the son of god. Not merely a "teacher"... a few verses later Jesus said the following.

15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

So there it is. You are born again and "saved" by faith in jesus christ.

Ephesians 2
8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9Not of works, lest any man should boast.

 

[Adrianv125]

Yet still faith without works is dead. A faith of one who is truly born again brings about fruit. You can't call yourself born again unless the desire to practice sin has been taken away from your life. Like Jesus said:

John 3:6 (New King James Version)

6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Notice He says THAT and not HE. If fruits are born from us that are from the flesh then that signals we're carnal. If fruits that are born from us are of the Spirit we can rest assured we were born of the Spirit. We can't serve two masters.

 

[CoreyRyan]

Ephesians 2
5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved
8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

We are born again and saved through faith in Jesus. Praise jesus christ!!

14For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
16And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby

Galations 2
16Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

17But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.



Matthew 12:31
Wherefore i say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men.

Romans 3:22
The rightousness of GOD which is by faith in Christ Jesus

 

[CoreyRyan]

Galatians 3

Justification by Faith

1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth,[a] before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you[b] as crucified? 2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? 4 Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?
5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— 6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”[c] 7 Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”[d] 9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.

11But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”[h]), 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

22But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

23But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.
24Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
25But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
26For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.