DISCOVERY FELLOWSHIP CHURCH
“…We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” Colossians 1:28
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QUESTIONSDo you have a Bible Question or a question about Discovery Fellowship? Send your question to Greg and your question and the answer will be posted here. Contents
What is baptism all about?In 1st Corinthians Paul wrote, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” This is the gospel, the good news about Jesus, and baptism dramatizes this historical event for the church every time a person is born again. At Discovery Fellowship we completely bury the new believer in water. Whether we do it in our baptistery at the building, or in a lake, or a river, or a pool, or a hot tub, the new believer acts out Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection when they go under the water and come back up. Baptism is one of the things that Jesus left for us to remember Him by until He returns. When a new believer is publicly baptized, they are saying to the church that they have turned from living life their own selfish way and have decided to follow Jesus and live life His way as a servant of others. The new believer is showing they now have eternal life because of Jesus’ death on the cross and they no longer have to fear death. It’s why both Hosea and Paul wrote, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” Do you have eternal life? Have you let the your friends know about your decision to follow Jesus? Baptism is one of our best ways to publicly acknowledge your commitment to Jesus and celebrate with your friends and family. It allows the church to support and encourage you in your spiritual journey.
Back to TopWhat does it mean to be born again or saved?Many people believe that there is some type of existence after death. The Bible says that people will either spend eternity in heaven with God or separated from God. The Bible says that those who do not know God or acknowledge Jesus as their Savior will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and the majesty of his power (2 Thessalonians 1:9). The problem is that mankind is already separated from God because of the wrong things they have done. Everyone of us has disappointed God or harmed someone by lying, stealing, or wishing bad things upon our next door neighbor. This is called sin and it separates us from God. The Bible says that " All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) and "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ." (Romans 6:23). In the Bible, death means separation. We will all die physically which means that the immaterial part of us will be separated from our physical bodies. Those who reject Jesus will die another death involving separation from God for eternity. The amazing thing about God is that he loves us even though we are sinners. God's desire is to be reconciled with you so that you can have peace with Him and have eternal life and be a part of his family forever. To accomplish this God sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins. Although we deserve death because of our sins, Jesus died in our place when he was crucified. The Bible says "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16), and "Christ died for our sins...and that He rose again the third day" (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Through Jesus God is offering forgiveness of our sin and the gift of eternal life. Jesus is the only way to God and is the bridge that spans the gap between us and God. The Bible says "...God is on one side and all the people on the other side, and Christ Jesus, Himself man, is between them to bring them together, by giving his life for all mankind." The Bible also says "...He died once for the sins of all...that He might bring us safely home to God." God did this wonderful thing for you and all of mankind. But this is not automatic and a response from you is required. Each person must decide for himself whether to accept Christ. The Bible says," to as many as received him to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name" (John 1:12). As this passage says, you must receive Christ. This is really not a complicated thing. When Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, he paid the penalty for your sins. If you are ready to turn from rejecting Jesus and receive Him into your heart and follow Him, you can receive Christ simply by sincerely asking him through prayer-- Lord Jesus, please come into my life and be my Savior and Lord, Please forgive my sins, and give me the gift of eternal life. If you have received Christ then you have eternal life and have been born again. Jesus said: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die" (John 11:25-26). The Bible also says "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13). As a believer you will want to grow in your faith. Here are some good first steps:
Back to TopWhy is the Bible important?The Bible is God's revelation about himself to man. Therefore, studying this book is the best way to know God. It is one book that was compiled over 1500 years and has about 40 different authors. The book is a unified whole and God has preserved the Bible and it's message throughout the ages. The Bible is inspired by God. That means that God superintended the work of the human authors so that they recorded the words of His revelation without error. Each author's personality was used by God but every word was inspired by God. The Bible claims that every word is "God breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16) and that the writers themselves were "carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter1:21). Jesus himself claimed that every letter and every word was important and that the prophecies in the Bible would be fulfilled exactly as written (Mathew 5:18). From a historical viewpoint many of the events in Biblical history have been verified through archeology and many of the prophetic passages have come to pass just as the Bible foretold hundreds of years before. These things all testify that the trust that we place in the Bible is well founded.
Back to TopWho is Jesus?It could take many pages to answer this question completely. The main biblical teachings concerning Jesus are summarized here. There is one God but within the Godhead there are three coequal and eternal persons. Jesus is often referred to as the second person of the Godhead or trinity. This means that Jesus is God. Jesus became a man and this is often referred to as the incarnation. As a man Jesus retained all of his divine attributes and took on the limitations of humanity in that he hungered, thirsted, grew tired and was capable of dying. Jesus was the perfect man and did not have man's sinful nature or the ability to sin. Jesus' purpose in becoming a man was to reveal God to men, provide an example for living, destroy the works of the devil and die in place of sinful men so that those who believe in Him would have eternal life. The fact that Jesus is God was proven many times by the miracles that he performed. The most significant miracle was that he rose from the dead three days after being put to death on the cross. After the resurrection he continued to teach, walked among his disciples and was seen by many people before he returned to heaven. Back to Top |
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