Now That You Are a Christian!

by Les Grant

Many years ago I became a Christian. As I write this, it has been 62 years since I became a follower of Jesus. I found out later in life that what I knew 52 years ago was very little of what I needed to know. This article is an effort to save you the years of learning some of the basics.

If you noticed it or not, there was no mention of your joining the church when you were baptized. This is important to understand because as a baptized believer you are the church, or part of it. The Church of Christ is His spiritual body here on earth, formed by human beings. When you were baptized in obedience to the Holy Spirit’s command, God added you to His Church and His roll book in heaven, just like He did those baptized believers on Pentecost (Acts 2:47).

1. What church did you join?

According to the Holy Spirit, you didn’t join any Church. You were added to the same group God added the first baptized believers to. Talking about those first believers, here is what is said:

Acts 2:46-47 - 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. NIV

Ephesians 3:14-15 - 14For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. NIV

In God’s record, there is only one Church, the one He has named in heaven and on earth. Jesus built His Church here on earth and the name for this Church came from heaven. It is not given to any man to name the Church. The Church is the Church of Christ. The Holy Spirit clearly states this fact about the Church in several places.

Ephesians 1:22-23 - 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. NIV

(Also, look at Colossians 1:17-18; Ephesians 2:11-18)

2. What should we call the Church?

For years I heard it could be called by any Bible name. Church of God (1 Corinthians 1:2; Acts 28:28); Church of the Firstborn (Hebrews 12:23); Church of Christ (Romans 16:16); Church of the Nazarene (Matthew 2:23). All these refer to Christ. Also, a name describing first Christians was the Way (Acts 9:2).

My answer to this question is these names were all used by the Holy Spirit, but near the close of the apostles” lifetime, the Holy Spirit used Church of Christ as the name of the Church.

Romans 16:16 - All the churches of Christ send greetings. NIV

Colossians 3:17 - And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. NIV

The Church is His body, so why not name the body after the Head? I wouldn’t say my head is Les Grant and my body is John Henry. The name is vitally important as stated in Colossians above, but the practice must be in accordance with the head. This is how you can find the Lord’s Church…by its practice. Just because somebody says this is the Church of Christ or Church of God does not make it one.

Isaiah 9:6 - For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. NIV

This was speaking of Jesus when He comes. Then John says this:

John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:14 - The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. NIV

Conclusion

God and Christ are one in the Godhead and are used interchangeably by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit makes it clear in Romans 16:16 that He addressed the Church as Churches of Christ. Where the difference comes in is deciding if Jesus was God when on earth. In Revelation it refers to the Lamb doing everything we have always assigned to God. Somehow I see Jesus and God as one and the same. God is Spirit, and therefore cannot be seen. Jesus, as John said, is God in the flesh.

3. The Bible Speaks of One Church

The Bible states very clearly that men would rise from among the Church and start new churches, change the truth and follow myths. (Acts 20:28-32; 2 Timothy 4:1-6) Each body has one head, so it is with the church being the body of Christ. He is the head. There isn’t one head, Christ, with all the divisions making up the parts of the body like an arm, leg or eye. In your body, the arm works in harmony with the leg and the eye. One part sees (eye) what is coming and tells the brain so that the other parts know what is next. They all agree with one another. (Look at Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 for more understanding of this concept.)

Not so in the religious world. Each denomination protects the teaching of their denomination with strong feelings. As an example, if you left the Presbyterians to join another denomination, you would have to go through a series of studies to learn the new doctrine. I am told that one church takes six months to teach you what their church believes. You cannot just leave a Baptist church and join a Lutheran church. There are specific doctrinal differences that you must learn.

Does the division seen in the denomination doctrines sound consistent with the one body concept that Jesus taught us? By no means. It is contrary. The only hope to please the Lord is that we all agree with the Head; that is Christ. How can we speak different than the Head and be consistent within the body? We cannot. The only way to be under one head is to submit to the teachings and authority of the one Head.

Romans 12:4-5 - 4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. NIV
4. The Church of Christ is Not a Denomination or Part of the Denominational World

The Bible states very clearly that men would rise from among the Church and start new churches, change the truth and follow myths. (Acts 20:28-32; 2 Timothy 4:1-6) A body has one head so it is with the church being the body of Christ. He is the head. There isn’t one head, Christ, with all the divisions making up the parts of the body like an arm, leg or eye. In your body, the arm works in harmony with the leg and the eye. One part sees (eye) what is coming and tells the brain so that the other parts know what is next. They all agree with one another. (Look at Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 for more understanding of this concept.)

Not so in the religious world. Each denomination protects the teaching of their denomination with strong feelings. If you left the Presbyterians to join another denomination, you would have to go through a series of studies to learn the new doctrine. I am told that one church takes six months to teach you what their church believes. You cannot just leave a Baptist church and join a Lutheran church. There are specific doctrinal differences that you must learn.

Does the division seen in the denomination doctrines sound consistent with the one body concept that Jesus taught us? By no means. It is contrary. The only hope to please the Lord is that we all agree with the Head, that is Christ. How can we speak different than the Head and be consistent within the body? We cannot. The only way to be under one head is to submit to the teachings and authority of the one Head.

5. New Christians Need to Know the Divisions of the Bible

The Apostle Paul told the young evangelist, Timothy, to “correctly handle the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15) Most people do not understand the place of the Old Testament in relation to the New Testament.

Genesis: The first book covers the creation up to Moses. About 2500 years. In the first eleven chapters, the following things are covered:

  • Garden of Eden
  • Tower of Babel
  • Flood
  • Dispersion of people as they left the ark
In chapter twelve, Abram is called by God, and he has two sons: Ishmael and Isaac.
  • Ishmael, the son of Hagar, is the father of twelve nations of Arabs promised in Genesis 17:19-21
  • Isaac is the son of the promise born to Sarah at age 90.
  • Isaac has two sons, Esau & Jacob.
  • Jacob becomes the son of the promise and has twelve sons.
  • Jacob’s name was changed by God to Israel.
Soon after the name change, Jacob (Israel) took his family to Egypt to live and was there about 400 years. These people, descendants of Israel, became known as the Israelites.

Near the end of 400 years in Egypt, Moses is born and leads the Israelites out of Egypt to the Wilderness of Paran, also called Wilderness of Sin. (This area is where Ishmael and Esau settled.)

Exodus: The Second Book

  • Birth and beginning life of Moses
  • Ten Plagues and Israel leaving Egypt
  • Crossing the Red Sea
  • The Ten Commandments
  • The Tabernacle and how it would be served
Leviticus: The Third Book

In this book, God continues and builds upon Ten Commandments and the requirements for worship of the Israelites.

Numbers: The Fourth Book

This book describes the actions to be taken when people broke the commandments plus other events as they wandered in the wilderness.

Deuteronomy: The Fifth Book

This book is a summary of the former four books. It ends with Moses being taken from this world.

From chapter 32 of Genesis through Malachi, we have the history of these people called Israelites. From Moses (Exodus 1 through the end of the Old Testament) all commands were specifically for the Israelites. No other people.

Deuteronomy 5:1-3 1Moses summoned all Israel and said: Hear, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them. 2The LORD our God made a covenant with us at Horeb. 3It was not with our fathers that the LORD made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today. NIV
Old Testament from Moses to Calvary

Joshua is the first of the history books. Joshua took over leadership when Moses left. Joshua leads the people into the Promised Land. In this book, you have spies, Rahab, conquering Jericho, and then going into Canaan. From Joshua to Malachi, you have events in the lives of Israel in Canaan.

Following Joshua, we have judges ruling Israel. Following that period, we have some prophets, but Samuel is the most important and he appointed the first king in Israel, Saul. Kings and judges ruled Israel until 587 B.C. when King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and led the people to Babylon. They returned about 525 B.C. and never had a king after that. They existed as a religious community with a High Priest ruling.

From Moses to Calvary, the people were controlled by the law the LORD gave them at Mount Sinai. You can read about this in Exodus 20. The people of God from Moses to Calvary were called Israelites. Listen to what Jesus said about Moses.

Matthew 23:1-3 - 1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach."

New Testament Overview

We come to what is called the New Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are not part of the Christian age. The Christian age starts with the coming of the Holy Spirit. These four books, known as the Gospels, are still under the laws Moses gave at Mt. Sinai. People living during the time period of the Gospels had to obey the laws of Moses.

Matthew 23:1-3 - 1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach."

There are books in the New Testament that direct us in Christian living, but the Gospels are a record of how Jesus lived as an Israelite under the Law of Moses. He obeyed the laws of circumcision, Sabbath days, Jewish feast days and other laws under the Old Testament law given to the Israelites.

We are Christians. Jesus was an Israelite. Many things Jesus did that we do as Christians are because of the Holy Spirit’s commands in the New Testament. The apostles were guided by the Holy Spirit following the direction from Jesus Himself.

Matthew 28:18-20 - "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” NIV

John 16:13 - …when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. NIV

Acts Through Jude is the Dispensation of the Holy Spirit

This is called the Christian age. It is called this because the disciples of Christ are called Christians during this time period.

Acts 11:26 - The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. NIV

The Holy Spirit is our teacher. He came as Jesus had promised and ended the period under Moses leadership known as the Old Testament. Jesus set up His own control guided from heaven. The Holy Spirit’s commands guiding God’s children came from heaven.

John 16:12-14 - 12"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. NIV

The Apostles wanted to know when the kingdom would come and this is what He told them:

Acts 1:7-9 - 7He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." 9After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. NIV

Jesus had already promised the Apostles that the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth (see John 16:12-14 above). Acts 2 is when this promise is fulfilled.
Acts 2:1-4 - 1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. NIV

This is why we call this time period the Christian age.



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