METAMORPHOO - TRANSFORMING POWER MINISTRIES, INC.
NEW CONVERT STUDY OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
We wish to welcome you into the family of God. When you
recently made the decision to give your heart and life to the Lord
Jesus Christ, you became a new member in His family.
STUDY OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study is to explain what comes next as you begin
your new life in Christ Jesus.
STUDY DESCRIPTION
This study is comprised of the following parts:
Part I - Your New Relationship With God
Part II - How To Survive This New Way Of Life
Part III - Now That I have Become Saved, What Is Expected Of Me
Part IV - The Holy Spirit Now Living Within You
Part V – What Is Tithing
STUDY ENDORSEMENT
This is an approved study of Metamorphoo - Transforming Power Ministries, Inc. and recommended for all believers in Christ Jesus
NEW CONVERT STUDY
PART I - YOUR NEW RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD:
1. God's love towards you is revealed in the Word of God, the Bible. As you read your Bible daily, you will learn more about the relationship He wants to establish with you. The following scriptures will help you to realize what Gods will is for each of us:
a. John 3:16-18 (The Message) - This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that persons failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.
b. John 10:10 (The Message) - A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
2. The sins we commit cause us to hinder our developing a true relationship with Him. The following scriptures will show you how our sins work against us:
a. Romans 3:21-24 (The Message) - But in our time something new has been added. What Moses and the prophets witnessed to all those years has happened. The God-setting-things-right that we read about has become Jesus-setting-things- right for us. And not only for us, but for everyone who believes in him. For there is no difference between us and them in this. Since we've compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us, God did it for us. Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we're in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ.
b. Ephesians 2:1-5 (KJV) - 1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
3. Once you have made a decision to accept Jesus Christ into your heart, the next step is to see yourself no longer living in your sins, but rather your sins (past, present and future), nailed to the cross along with Jesus Christ, as depicted in the following scriptures:
a. Romans 6:10-12 (KJV)- 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
b. Romans 6:22-23 (The Message) - But now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.
4. Our access to God does not come through the good works we do or the church where we may be a member. Our access to and fellowship with God can only come through His Son Jesus Christ, as outlined in the following scriptures:
a. John 14:6 (The Message) - Jesus said, "I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me.
b. Romans 5:8 (The Message) - But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.
c. I Corinthians 15:3-6 (The Message) - The first thing I did was place before you what was placed so emphatically before me: that the Messiah died for our sins, exactly as Scripture tells it; that he was buried; that he was raised from death on the third day, again exactly as Scripture says; that he presented himself alive to Peter, then to his closest followers, and later to more than five hundred of his followers all at the same time, most of them still around (although a few have since died);
5. We must open our hearts and receive Jesus Christ. The following scriptures reveal how the Lord truly desires for us to become part of His family by accepting His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ into our hearts:
a. John 1:12 (The Message) - But whoever did want him, who believed he was who he claimed and would do what he said, He made to be their true selves, their child-of-God selves.
b. John 3:1-8 (The Message) - 1-2There was a man of the Pharisee sect, Nicodemus, a prominent leader among the Jews. Late one night he visited Jesus and said, "Rabbi, we all know you're a teacher straight from God. No one could do all the God-pointing, God-revealing acts you do if God weren't in on it." 3Jesus said, "You're absolutely right. Take it from me: Unless a person is born from above, it's not possible to see what I'm pointing to -- to God's kingdom." 4"How can anyone," said Nicodemus, "be born who has already been born and grown up? You can't re-enter your mother's womb and be born again. What are you saying with this 'born-from-above' talk?" 5-6Jesus said, "You're not listening. Let me say it again. Unless a person submits to this original creation the 'wind-hovering-over-the-water' creation, the invisible moving the visible, a baptism into a new life it's not possible to enter God's kingdom. When you look at a baby, it's just that: a body you can look at and touch. But the person who takes shape within is formed by something you can't see and touch the Spirit and becomes a living spirit. 7-8"So don't be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be 'born from above' out of this world, so to speak. You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it's headed next. That's the way it is with everyone 'born from above' by the wind of God, the Spirit of God."
PART II - HOW TO SURVIVE THIS NEW WAY OF LIFE:
1. When you begin to experience doubts concerning your salvation, realize that this is a normal feeling brought about by Satan, to discourage you and attempt to cause you to give up on your salvation. When this happens, consider the following scriptures of encouragement:
a. Romans 5:1-2 (The Message) - By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us -- set us right with him, make us fit for him we -- have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that's not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might standout in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.
b. Ephesians 2:4-9 (KJV) - 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
2. It is important now that you are saved, that you begin to open your mouth and confess your new found life in Jesus Christ to others. We are taught in the Word of God to do this, as we read in the the following scriptures:
a. Romans 10:8-12 (NLT) - 8In fact, it says, The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart. And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: 9 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.11 As the Scriptures tell us, Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced. 12 Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him.
3. Now that you are saved, consider the things in your life which will hinder your spiritual growth. These things must be dealt with, as outlined in the following scriptures:
a. I Peter 2:1-3 (The Message) - So clean house! Make a clean sweep of malice and pretense, envy and hurtful talk. You've had a taste of God. Now, like infants at the breast, drink deep of God's pure kindness. Then you'll grow up mature and whole in God.
4. Once you have become saved, it is essential for you to learn all you can about your new found life in Jesus Christ. This can be best done by attending regular church services and classes which may be available. Be sure that what you are being taught lines up with the Word of God and not manmade doctrines or beliefs. This is essential to your continued spiritual growth as we read in the following scriptures:
a. Romans 10:17 (NLT) - Yet faith comes from listening to this message of good news the Good News about Christ.
b. Hebrews 10:25 (The Message) - Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching.
PART III - NOW THAT I HAVE BECOME SAVED, WHAT IS EXPECTED OF ME:
1. It is important to learn and understand what Prayer is about and how it will help you to grow spiritually. Prayer is how we commune with the Lord and is an essential tool in all Christians lives as we read in the following scriptures:
a. Matthew 26:41 (The Message) - Stay alert; be in prayer so you don't wander into temptation without even knowing you're in danger. There is a part of you that is eager, ready for anything in God. But there's another part that's as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire."
b. Philippians 4:6-7 (The Message) - Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
2. Do I need to be Baptized in water to have my salvation secured? No, it is important to understand that water baptism is simply an outward testimony to others of the inward spiritual change you received when you accepted the LORD Jesus Christ into your heart and life.
a. Colossians 2:12-14 (The Message) - It's not a matter of being circumcised or keeping a long list of laws. No, you're already in -- insiders -- not through some secretive initiation rite but rather through what Christ has already gone through for you, destroying the power of sin. If it's an initiation ritual you're after, you've already been through it by submitting to baptism. Going under the water symbolized a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ. When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive -- right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ's cross.
3. How to be of service for the Lord is a question many, if not all, new Christians ask. Your focus should be learning to love the Lord with all your heart and then to love others as you love yourself.
a. Matthew 22:37-39 (The Message) - Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.'
b. I Corinthians 13:1-13 (NLT) - 1 If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. 2If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. 3-7If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.
Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut, Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.
8-10Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled. 11When I was an infant at my mother's breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good. 12We don't yet see things clearly. We're squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won't be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We'll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! 13But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.
c. I John 2:15-17 (The Message) - Don't love the world's ways. Don't love the world's goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world; wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important, has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.
PART IV -- THE HOLY SPIRIT NOW LIVING WITHIN YOU:
1. Now that you are saved (born again), the Work of the Holy Spirit living within you is designed to bring you into a closer relationship with God. The Holy Spirit will convict you when not trusting Jesus for your needs. He will convince you of your righteousness in Christ. He will guide you into all truth. He will glorify Jesus Christ to you. This closeness is accomplished as the Holy Spirit guides us into an understanding of what God expects of us and how He will help us to be right in His sight and His will for our lives.
a. Acts 2:1-4 (NLT) - (1) On the day of Pentecost, seven weeks after Jesus resurrection, the believers were meeting together in one place. (2) Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm in the skies above them, and it filled the house where they were meeting. (3) Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. (4) And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
b. Romans 15:13 (NLT) - So I pray that God, who gives you hope, will keep you happy and full of peace as you believe in him. May you overflow with hope through the power of The Holy Spirit.
c. I Corinthians 6:9-11 (The Message) - Don't you realize that this is not the way to live? Unjust people who don't care about God will not be joining in his kingdom. Those who use and abuse each other, use and abuse sex, use and abuse the earth and everything in it, don't qualify as citizens in God's kingdom. A number of you know from experience what I'm talking about, for not so long ago you were on that list. Since then, you've been cleaned up and given a fresh start by Jesus, our Master, our Messiah, and by our God present in us, the Spirit.
2. Seek to receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. It is the Lord's desire to give all believers the power to endure in this evil time. This power comes by being filled and baptized by the Comforter who is also known as the Holy Ghost and Holy Spirit. Look at how this is explained in the Word:
John 14:26 (KJV) – But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
To receive the power that our Heavenly Father wishes to give us, open your mouth and pray this prayer out loud:
My Father in Heaven, I need Your power to live in this life. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. By faith, I now receive and thank you for baptizing me. Holy Spirit, I welcome you into my life.
As you continue praying, some syllables from a language not familiar to you will rise up from your heart to your mouth. We read this in:
1 Corinthians 14:14 Amplified Bible (AMP) - For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unproductive [because it does not understand what my spirit is praying].
This is known as speaking in tongues. Look at how this is explained in the Word:
1 Corinthians 14:4 New Living Translation (NLT) - A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.
If you pray and do not speak in tongues, do not become discouraged. Sometimes, this will come in progression. Remember what the Word of God tells us:
Mark 11:24 Amplified Bible (AMP) - For this reason I am telling you, whatever things you ask for in prayer [in accordance with God's will], believe [with confident trust] that you have received them, and they will be given to you.
3. Sharing the Word of God with others should be something we enjoy and look forward to doing. This is our way of showing God and others how appreciative we are for the price our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ paid for our salvation. If we are ashamed or afraid to tell others about the wonderful redemptive work Jesus Christ has done for us, He warns us that when we stand before God the Father, that He will deny us. We can read this in the following scriptures:
a. Matthew 10:32-33 (The Message) -- Stand up for me against world opinion and I'll stand up for you before my Father in heaven. If you turn tail and run, do you think I'll cover for you?
b. Mark 5:19-20 (NLT)-- But Jesus said, No, go home to your friends, and tell them what wonderful things the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been. (20) So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to tell everyone about the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them.
c. Romans 1:16-17 (The Message) It's news I'm most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God's powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God's way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: "The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives."
PART V – WHAT IS TITHING:
1. Tithing is the giving of one tenth of your income into the church or where you're being continually taught the true Word of God, to enable that work to continue in its service unto the Lord. When God's people or nations are not faithful to this commandment of God, it causes the people and nations to be in disobedience to God and places them under a curse rather than the blessings of God.
a. Malachi 3:8-10 (NLT) - (8)Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me! But you ask, What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you? You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me. (9) You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me. (10) Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do, says the Lord Almighty, I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Let me prove it to you!
b. Luke 6:38 (NLT) - If you give, you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, and running over. Whatever measure you use in giving large or small it will be used to measure what is given back to you.
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