Thursday, October 8, 2009

Teaching Your Friends-directed toward teen girls

There are many aspects of being a Christian. One of the most difficult is probably talking to other people about what we believe. However, we are commanded to pass on the good news. Mark 16:15- “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature”.

1. Know what you believe.
If you aren’t sure what you believe, how can you teach someone else? Study. Read books about what your friends believe so that you can prepare yourself to talk to them. But above all, read and study the Bible to prepare yourself to explain what you believe to your friends.
11 Timothy 2:15- “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needed not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
You cannot truly believe something just because your parents raised you to believe it. Study it for yourself. If you don’t, one day you will be questioned and challenged and will have no idea how to defend the truth.
Galatians 6:4-5- But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden.”

a- dancing
It is very difficult to find anything in the Bible saying “do not dance”. You have to look at it from a different angle. Start out looking at verses like these-
Galatians 5:19-“ Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, Adultry, fornication, uncleaness, lasciviousness…”
Mark 7:22- I
f you look up the definition of lascivious, you will see that it is lust, or provoking lust. We can definitely see that as wrong. So we have to ask ourselves if our dancing could provoke lust, and if it does, we should avoid it!

b- smoking
Again, you cannot find anything specifically banning smoking in the Bible. Besides it being repulsive and disgusting, it can also end your life. Think of all the other things you could do with the money that you will spend on cigarettes that are physically harming your body. Add to that the medical expenses if you develop cancer, breathing problems, gum disease, tooth decay, etc. You probably hear this talked about in school. But have you ever stopped to think what God has to say about the subject?
Romans 6:12- “Let not sin reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” When you have an addiction, you have to have that substance. You are essentially obeying the lusts of your body. Your body wants it, and you will do whatever you can to get it. This verse speaks of that as sin.

C- drinking
The Bible has much to say about drinking.
Proverbs 20:1-“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging, and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.”
Galatians 5:21- “envying, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Proverbs 23:29-35- tells of the effects of alcohol.
Drinking alcohol is not cool. It harms your body and makes you appear like a fool. If you are not in control of your body, how can you be glorifying God?
1Corinthians 6:20- “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are Gods”.

d- sex
The word sex is not used in the Bible. However, the word fornication is and it is highly warned against!
Galatians 5:19-“ Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness”
1 Thessalonians 4:3- “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication”.
There are so many more verses that tell us to avoid fornication. God knew what he was doing when he told us that sex was for marriage. The emotional strain and physical problems that can occur from sex outside of marriage are overwhelming. Consider the number of single mothers. It makes sense to not have sex before marriage, but it is also God’s plan.

e- instrumental music in worship
Many of your friends probably think it is odd that we do not worship with at least a piano. Full bands are not uncommon in many religions. How can we explain to them why we do not use instruments in our worship to God?A verse that I found very interesting tells how an instrument is lifeless and cannot be understood. Many musicians and people who love music would say that music has a life of its own, or the notes speak to them. While in a figurative way that may be true, literally, they do not speak words or offer understanding.
1 Corinthians 14:6-17- although this passage is directed at the gift of speaking in tongues, what is said is easily applicable to the songs that we sing.
Ephesians 5:19- “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”
Colossians 3:16- “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord”.
I challenge you to find a verse in the New Testament which gives us authority to use instrumental music in worship. So far all that we see is for our voices to be used and to teach each other through the words that we sing. We do all things by the authority of the New Law!

f- baptism for salvation
This is one of the most debated topics in religion. Some believe that babies must be baptized, some believe you can be baptized on others behalf, some believe baptism occurs after one is already saved, and some believe that baptism is not essential at all. What do your friends believe? Do you know how to show them the truth?
1 peter 3:21- “The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ”
Mark 16:16- “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”

2. Stand up for what you believe.
If you don’t compromise, people will notice. They will ask you questions and respect your decisions. Your influence will do good. If you do compromise, people will notice that too. You will have a very hard time convincing your friends that you are telling the truth, that you truly believe it, and that you want them to believe it to, if you are constantly backing down and doing things a Christian shouldn’t. Lets look at some areas that seem to be compromised the most.
a-language
We need to be very careful that the language we use is language that God would approve of. Imagine saying some things if Jesus was beside you. Would you feel ashamed?
Colossians 4:6- “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.”
Titus 2:8-“ Sound speech, that cannot be condemned, that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.”
1 Timothy 4:12- “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation…”
We do not need to use foul language and cuss words. We can express ourselves using words that would not be deemed inappropriate. Think of the words that you use on a daily basis and examine them to see if they are really words that you should be saying.
b-dancing
I have heard the argument of “I can still go to the dance, I just won’t dance.” I would not condemn someone for doing that, but I would ask them to examine their motives. If you have studied and come to the conclusion that some of the activities at the prom or homecoming dance are not Godly, than why would you want to attend? It could send the wrong message to your friends and those that see you there. Question your influence.
Romans 12:2-“ And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
c- drinking
We understand that being drunk is condemned in the Bible. Do not compromise by just taking a sip. Do not compromise by being around friends who drink. How can you tell them that you do not drink because the Bible says not to, if you will sit by and joke around with them while they do? It sends the wrong message. It tells them that you don’t do it, but you are fine with them doing it. And that in essence says that you do not care about their soul. Do not encourage activities that God condemns.
d- making fun of people
How can you be the example that you need to be if you are making fun of people? We are supposed to be loving and show the nature of Christ.
Romans 13:10-“Love worketh no ill t his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”
e- clothes
1 Timothy 2:9- “In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel…”
1 Peter 3:3-“Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel” – our focus should not be on drawing attention to how we look.
Matthew 5:28- “But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.”
1 John 2:16- “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
Any guy will tell you that he is tempted by sight. The more we show him, the more he will lust. We need to not be a stumbling block to those around us. Be careful what clothing you wear that you do not reveal too much. Help your friends think through their fashion decisions. Decide what kind of attention you want to receive. Is it for your body and your looks? Or would you rather be known for the person that you are on the inside?
f- church attendance
By choosing to be at every church function that we can, we show our friends what is truly important to us. Make it a positive choice! Be excited to go and be with your Christian family and friends! Let your friends see that excitement. On the other hand, if you choose to go to the movies with your friends on a Sunday evening instead of worshiping God, or a soccer game on Wednesday instead of Bible study, you will be a walking contradiction to your friends. They will hear you saying that God is important to you, but they will see that he is less important than other things. Show them your priorities are where they should be! Invite them to come with you. Stand up against coaches who line up practice during a church service.

3. Understand the value of a soul.
Do you really believe that everyone must be saved by Jesus in order to go to Heaven? Do you believe that one must hear, believe, repent, confess, be baptized, and live faithfully to be saved? If so, then you must realize the importance of teaching as many people as we can.
You love your friends. You spend time with them. You share secrets with them. But do you tell them about whats most important? If you do not tell them the Gospel, they could go to hell. And so could you.
Mark 16:15-“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
James 5:20-“Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.”
Luke 15:10-“Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”
John 14:16-“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Maybe some practical ideas on how to start approaching your friends about their souls would be helpful.
First, apply everything we have talked about earlier.
If you realize that you are saying things you shouldn’t, break yourself of that habit and ask your friends not to use those words either. They will ask you why, so plan to tell them. There is an open door!
If you realize that you have some clothes in your closet that do not portray the image of a Christian, clean out your closet! When you are out shopping with your friends, stick to your new guidelines and steer them away from making wrong choices. Little comments like “I think that shirt shows too much cleavage” or “that skirt is really too short” can go a long way in showing them that you care.
Secondly, if you look at what you are doing in the first step, you will see that by doing certain things doors will be opened to explain your beliefs. Try and look for casual ways every day to mention Jesus, God, the church, and your faith in a positive light.

2 comments:

  1. Good job, Molly! I wish I could be there to hear you give your lesson - I know you'll do great. And, by the way, your post about RH pretty much broke my heart. I can sympathize with you there. And just so you know, several times during the week, I actually did think... "I wish Molly was here." I love you!

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  2. ah julia i loves you too! And yeah the day I wrote that was a really hard day. i was much better by the end of the week! thanks for thinking of me :)

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