Appendix
In this Appendix, a few other subjects need to be addressed to help you become a fruitful Christian and an ambassador for Christ who rightly represents Jesus.
The first subject we will address is Baptism. According to the Bible, when people are baptized, they are lowered under water for a brief moment and then raised back up above the water. This is done in obedience to Jesus’s command to His followers:
Jesus said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
The act of baptism is a new Christian’s way of publicly declaring and confirming his or her choice to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. This outward physical act is representative of what has already taken place inwardly and spiritually with the new believer.
The following portions of Scripture from the Bible demonstrate that it was a common practice to baptize people after they believed:
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the Gift of the Holy Spirit. Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about 3,000 were added to their number that day.
But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the Name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?" And Philip said, If you believe with all your heart, you may. And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him.
"Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have." So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.
Crispus, the synagogue ruler, and his entire household believed in the Lord; and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized.
The act of baptism is a believer’s way of identifying with the substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
“Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”
Therefore, you will want to be obedient to Christ’s command to be baptized. This is a wonderful way to declare your new life in Christ to others. Pray that God will direct you to a fellow believer, that you would like to baptize you, maybe the person who gave you this book.
It is also important for you to meet with other followers of Jesus Christ on a regular basis. Fellowship with other Christians who love Jesus and His Word can help strengthen you and them. What God has done for you in Christ can be a great encouragement to other believers, and what God has done in the lives of other believers will be an encouragement and blessing to you.
As you have read in Chapter Seven, the new believers would meet together daily for fellowship and prayer, to eat together, to listen to, and learn, God’s Word, to sing praises to God, to meet one another’s material and spiritual needs, and to go out and share the Good News about Jesus with others who had not yet heard it.
“Praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the Church daily such as should be saved.”
“Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto God for him.”
The believers met in different places at different times. Where they assembled wasn’t important, but rather that they did regularly, especially so that the believers who were stronger could help those who were weaker. Those who had been entrusted with God’s resources could share with those who were in need.
Nowadays the building where believers meet is often called the Church, but the Bible teaches that the Church is a group of believers of Jesus Christ. The Church is the actual people, not the building or house in which they meet.
"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.”
Jesus said, “For where two or three come together in My Name, there am I with them." God’s Spirit will be with you in a special way when you join together in Jesus’s Name to worship God, to build each other up, and to encourage one another in your walks with the Lord.
It is also important to remember that you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. God lives and resides in you by His Spirit. He is such a loving and personal God. Be very sensitive to the Spirit of God within you, not only when you are alone, but also when you meet together with other believers. Honor God with your body.
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”
In Chapter Seven, you read how the Holy Spirit worked through the early followers of Jesus, revealing Him to unbelievers everywhere they went. This went on daily. They fellowshipped together, meeting the needs of one another, encouraging each other, and then they went out and proclaimed the Good News about Jesus to others.
This is what your life is now all about: making Jesus known to others in both Word and deed. You are God’s chosen vessel, not only to live in, but to live through. The Jesus Who lives in you is now the hope for those you come in contact with each day. You are special and God needs you to carry out His plan and will on earth.
Give yourself entirely to living for God. It won’t always be easy, but it will always be worth it. You may be persecuted by others as many Christians have been, but the glory that will be revealed in you far surpasses any light and momentary troubles you may experience. Read the recorded words of one great servant of God:
“For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.
It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken." With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the One who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence.
All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
So when we are faced with hardships, trials, and temptations:
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
Perseverance is a very important part of our Christian experience. We must develop this quality in our lives because without perseverance, our faith will not be able to become refined and perfected.
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
“So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.”
The bottom line of your daily walk with Jesus is “faith expressing itself in love.” No matter how difficult the circumstances seem, you must not stop believing God’s Word, and you must not stop living a life of love. You must not be moved away from the promises of God.
There will be times when your faith in God’s Word does not seem to be working, but that is the time to persevere rather than quit. When you are mistreated by others, don’t stop loving them and don’t “pay back evil for evil, but rather overcome evil with good.”
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
Remember “you are now Christ’s Ambassador to a lost and dying world. You are also a soldier in God’s army. Fight the good fight of faith. If God be for you, who can be against you. Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world. You are more than a conqueror through Him who loved you. Take hold of that for which Christ Jesus has taken hold of you. Love your enemies, bless those who persecute you, and pray for those who despitefully use you.”
Be a giver. Whatever God has given to you, share it with others who are less fortunate than you. Freely you have received, therefore freely give. It is more blessed to give than to receive. When you see someone in need, don’t hold back; meet their need in the Name of Jesus.
Jesus is coming soon! While He was still on earth, He said to His followers, “In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, Who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
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