LESSON 1. Benefits of Being a Christian
- HERE ARE SIX BENEFITS.
FIRST BENEFIT. Read John 3:16. What is God’s feeling toward the people of the world? ______ (1). (answers are below) (The “only son” is Jesus.) Read what Jesus says in John 15:9. What is Jesus’ feeling toward you? ________ (1).
| The God of Christianity, who created the universe, is also called LORD. Jesus, Father, and Holy Spirit together are one God). |
SECOND BENEFIT. What benefit will believers have after they die? ________(2).
THIRD BENEFIT. Read Hebrews 13:5. When I feel lonely, I can remember that _________ (3) is with me.
FOURTH BENEFIT. Read John 14:27 (Jesus is speaking). What does God give believers who are worried? _____________ (4).
FIFTH BENEFIT. (freedom). Read Galatians 5:13. What has God given to us? ________ (5). Read Hebrews 13:6. God gives us freedom from _____(6).
To understand the value of freedom, look at the word list below, and check all the things that you need Jesus to set you free from:
__fear of the future __fear of death __ guilt__control by Satan __fear of ghosts
__ misunderstand God__the power of sin __sadness __control by our feelings
| NOTE: Whenever you have fear, remember that Jesus has already made you free. You can fight your fear by trusting in Jesus. You can show your trust by thanking Jesus that He has already set you free. |
SIXTH BENEFIT. (forgiveness) Read 1 John 1:9. What does God promise to give us when we say we are sorry that we did not obey Him? 7 ____________ (forgiveness). To better understand sin, below we consider God’s laws, so we will know when to ask for forgiveness.
- GOD’S LAW.
Read First John 3:4. Sin is the breaking of the _______(8). God’s law is in his commandments. Over 3000 years ago, in the Old Testament, God gave the “Ten Commandments”.
Please read the First Commandment, In Exodus 20:3. If we let God’s rightful place in our life be taken over by anything except the God who made us, we will pray “I am sorry, God, please _______ (9) me.”
Read the Second Commandment, in Exodus 20:7. If we speak about God in a foolish or disrespectful way, we will ask for forgiveness.
Third Commandment. In Exodus 20:8 God told the Jews not to work on Saturday (The sabbath is Saturday.). Since Jesus has come, the meaning of this command is not limited to Saturday. Read Hebrews 4:9-10. every day is a day to find ______ (10) in God.
The first three commandments are about the relationship between God and people. The other seven are about relationships between people. These laws tell us how to have a happy life as we “love other people”. Use Exodus 20:12-17 to fill in the blanks below.
In the blanks below, write the verse number that tells us __ don’t be greedy __ don’t cheat __ have respect for life __ don’t lie __ don’t live as a married person with someone you’re not married to __ respect others’ property __ respect your parents
- The New Testament explains more God’s laws in more detail.
- Read Colossians 3:9. Sin is not only what you do, but also includes what you ________(11).
- Read 1 John 3:15. Sin is not only what you do, and not only what you say, but also what you ___________ (12).
Because of God’s laws, we realize that we are sinners, and so we need a savior.
III. GOD’S GOSPEL (THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT JESUS)
Jesus solved the problem of sin. Read 1 Peter 2:24. What did Jesus take onto his own body when he was dying on the cross? ________ (13).
REVIEW:
Read Colossians 1:21. What is our situation with God before we are a Christian? _________ (14)
Read Colossians 1:22. Because of Jesus, what is our situation with God now? ____________ (15)
Read Romans 5:1, first 8 words. God calls us just (justified) through what? ___________ (16)
From this word list, check which ones tell you how to be accepted by God:
__ love __ prayer __ reading the Bible __faith in Jesus __ good behavior
| NOTE: Your good relationship to God depends only on faith in God. It does not depend on the other four items. Those other four items are results of your good relationship, but not the cause of your good relationship. Because you have a good relationship with God through faith in Jesus, God will change your life, and so the other four items will appear in your life. For example, you will love more, you will want to do the right thing, you will find it natural to talk to God in prayer, and you will want to know God more deeply, so you will read the Bible. Because you rely on Jesus, you do not need to have doubts that your relationship with God is broken if you have failings in these four areas. When you fail, God does not leave you. God is still with you. God will forgive you. God will change you. |
ANSWERS. 1-love. 2-eternal life. 3-God will not leave us, God is with us. 4-peace. 5- freedom. 6-fear. 7-forgiveness. 8-law. 9-forgive. 10-rest. 11-say. 12-think. 13-our sins. 14-far from God. 15-brought near. 16-faith. Word list: only Faith in Jesus.