Looking for advice for people more bible savvy than me

[paladinkc]

I have been seeking a closer relationship with my God, and there is something that I have been looking for answers on:

Matthew 11:29-30 Take my yoke upon you- What is Jesus' yoke, and what does it look like, I have gotten better with sharing my stuff with him, but find myself continually frustrated at how easy it is to get back into old habits that are unhealty

[Iscool]

“Catholic” means “universal”. The Catholic faith is the one true faith, ordained by God himself, not by man.

I was going to leave your post alone until I read that pile of Schiff...Your claim is the same claim the Mormons and Izlamaniacs claim...Their claim is just as legitimate as yours...

First off, you're directing this person to your headquarters because you obviously don't have a clue what the verse/bible teaches so you can't respond...And I'm sure your Church doesn't either...

Secondly, the bible; the words of God where this scripture is found condemns your Catholic religion in so many places it's hard to count them all...

Your pope is now trying to convince the Izlamnuts that the Catholic Church is the One True Mosque...

Pick up a bible and LEARN OF JESUS...Throw off that bondage your One World Religion has put you into...

[GBA]

but find myself continually frustrated at how easy it is to get back into old habits that are unhealty

^This!^

With or without Jesus, the inner battle, the dying to oneself, mastering the ego’s and the body’s wants and desires and hungers is a constant struggle all of life.

Remembering to ask Him for strength and peace, remembering to consult with Him about all things, especially that which distresses me most, keeping that inner conversation going with Him always ... it all has become a daily conscious evolution of my thoughts and habits, with His Sayings and Scripture’s references helping to shape my clay.

Jesus and Scripture makes me more mindful of my integrity, or lack of integrity, in the many small things that the life I’ve chosen requires of me each day.

I have become more aware of the inner argument I have with my ego’s preferences for laziness and lethargy and Scripture makes me more aware of what/who encourages my ego in these battles and the techniques being used against me. Satan’s stuff is fascinatingly simple, yet devastatingly effective.

I don’t feel His Yoke as being light ... yet ... but Yoke lifting is good exercise for my good.

[Hebrews 11:6]

God bless you! Here's Jase Robertson addressing your question: watch from 36:30 - 40:50 (or, for a real treat, watch the whole sermon).

[MHGinTN]

"The key is "learn from me"; that is, this is not an invitation to salvation, as many suppose." A saying worthy of acceptation indeed! But wait, there's more!

Matured Christ ians are called to discipleship as a natural out growth of 'learning of Him', 'taking His yoke' upon them. The Word tells us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

The teaching from Jesus was first to a personal level, then when matured, onto a discipleship level. The way to grow in Christ is to be completely open to HIS voice calling us away from the worldly, to activate and keep the sanctification process going. When I sin, I short circuit the growth process, putting my 'renewing of my mind' -moving away from the world and the urgings of the flesh- to walk daily in the humility of knowing just how sin prone our inherited-from-Adam flesh is.

The world will recognize a different walk as we walk with Him. Those who GOD calls when they see the difference are to be disciple: faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. As we mature the essential meat we need comes from being in the Word as much as possible and for renewing of our minds. THEN we will be sharing the natural blossoming of the Word in us, and fruit results.

[MHGinTN]

IF you are born again, then there is an aspect of you that cannot sin because it has been separated from the soul unto the Glory of The Son. [1 John 3:9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.]

The soul/flesh sins, but the sinless spirit within, come alive with eternal LIFE, cannot sin. That is the real basis of OSAS, His Life abides in our before-dead-spirit which He has brought to LIFE. [Hebrews 4:12]

And of all these born again, we are destined to have a new flesh -a new body and new soul (behavior mechanism)- created for us at the moment of the Rapture. We are destined to be transformed to incorruptible beings fit to carry the eternal Life God's seed gave u at the born again moment. [1 John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.]

In the natural man state it is impossible to see Jesus as He really is now. At the snatching away of ALL in Him, we shall be transformed to a state like Him and so we will then be able to see Him as He is.

Jesus did not die om that cross to save our sinfil flesh. He died to bring eternal life to the dead spirit within us (justification by faith in The Promise of God in Christ Jesus). Once the new life is in the alive now spirit, He beckons us to be renewed in the mind of our flesh so that the astonishing new Life shows in our walk, thus causing us to be disciples by our mere living in the world but not of the world. If matured, we then have the obligation of His family members to share the Word which can separate new life spirit from old man flesh/soul.

[BrandtMichaels]

James 1:27 - The only true religion takes care of widows and orphans AND is not corrupted by this world. Seems to be saying there is no true religion unless you know any not corrupted by this world, any that don’t bend and twist with the culture. Any that do not sock away large sums of money in the bank that is intended for the poor, the widows and the orphans - any one?

Now go back and do a word search on how many times the Bible mentions faith vs religion. All religion is manmade even when based on the Bible simply because they violate God’s word to not add to nor subtract from the word.

[BrandtMichaels]

It helps to pray early each morning to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Being spirit controlled is the best way to attain ‘self’ control because the fleshly selfish man is corrupt and needs to be bound - daily.

[BrandtMichaels]

A couple of other helpful perspectives. Daily reading of the word often leads to wrestling with the word until you gain new insights.

Next thinks of yourself transitioning from a rowboat to a sailboat. In the rowboat one usually sets a direct course to the goal and often struggles against wind and waves while in the sailboat one goes where the wind takes you often times seemingly off-course yet usually into new adventures where you help friend, foe or simply strangers in your quest.

And even if you don’t reach your original destination you’ll notice inner peace and joy abound.

[metmom]

I have found that if I stay in the Word daily, it makes a huge difference in the amount of peace I have and how I am able to deal with things that come up.

I miss more than one day and I can tell.

[BrandtMichaels]

One more that I’m struggling with, even when I do read in the morning and/or meditate on it throughout the day, I often neglect re-reading or reading some ‘new’ scriptures again in the evening.

I heard a good sermon on this and reasoned that Adam and Eve, before they sinned, got to ‘walk with God in the cool of the day’ so morning and evening is implied there and I think also what naturally occurs when walking together - talking, asking questions, listening and learning.

[MHGinTN]

Selah ... pause here to hear what the spirit is saying!

[MHGinTN]

Enjoyed reading your profile page.

[imardmd1]

I think and teach a little differently than what you describe, my Bro. To me, discipleship is the process clearly enunciated by Apostle Paul (discipled by Jesus Himself, and appointed to apostleship) to his own disciple whom he taught doctrine, and given succinctly in the select verses as follows:

2 Timothy 1:13-14, 2:1-2 (AV):

^1:13 Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
^1:14 That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.
^2:1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
^2:2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.
========

To make this very clear, the making and developing of a disciple is a one-on-one process embodying the making and keeping of a relationship between a spiritually mature servant of Christ and an initially less doctrinally mature learner, with the goal of communicating Bible truths ith accountability always present. Biblical discipleship involves a continuing, perhaps years-long intimate relationship of friends, of which the interaction is the living-out of doctrinal truths, not merely a sterile theoretical stating of them.

What discipleship is NOT, is merely attending a Christian assembly, sitting with many others in a non-participatory lecture by a preacher, and/or getting into cottage-style Bible studies, and/or the bootstrapping of oneself by one's own unsupervised Bible study or reading self-help-oriented books issued by popular religious writers. That is not to say that such endeavors are not to be undertaken or approved of, but they are not and cannot be a substitute for the mode and manner of communicating truth demonstrated by Jesus with His disciples, continued by them, and sustained by subsequent generations of older (spiritually ones) training younger followers in the ways, the will, and the work of generational transfer in a very personal way.

Without engagement in proper discipleship, it is obvious that this system lacks any accountability for learning and living a Spirit-directed life, or any makeup classes for those missed; no answering for interactive participation, or even being present at the assembly when the church doors are opened for meetings one is summoned to. Being on the church membership rolls is not disciplship, though the title of the denomination may even proclaim it.

The well-known commentator John Nelson Darby in /his "Synopsis of the Bible" discusses this mode of transmitting The Faith as follows (with my emphases using underlining or bolding, explanation superscripted):

"The truth was the especial treasure committed to him; and he has not only to keep it, as we have seen, but to take care that it was propagated and communicated to others after him, and perhaps still farther. That which he had heard from Paul in the presence of many witnesses (who could confirm Timothy in his convictions respecting the truth, and certify others that it was indeed what he had received from Paul) he was to communicate to faithful men, who were capable of teaching others. This was the ordinary means. It is not the Spirit in the assembly, so that the assembly was an authority; it is no longer ^specialrevelation.

Timothy, well instructed in the doctrine preached by the apostle, and confirmed in his views by many other witnesses who had likewise learned of Paul, so that it was common to all as known, received truth^{(from Paul)}, was to take care that it should be communicated to other faithful men. Neither had this anything to do with giving them authority, with consecrating them^{by 'ordaining' them}, as has been said. It is the communication to them of the truth which he had received from Paul.

This procedure shuts out the idea of the assembly as the propagator of the truth.

It was the business of the faithful son in (T)the (F)aith of the apostle, of the ministry.

Timothy himself was not an authority either. He was an instrument for the communication of the truth and was to enable others to be so likewise: a very different thing from being the rule of the truth. That which he had heard--and the other witnesses served as a guarantee against the introduction of anything false, or even of his own opinions, if he had been inclined to entertain them--that he was to communicate.

It is thus that, in the ordinary sense, ministry is continued; care is taken by competent persons for the communication, not of authority, but of the truth, to other faithful persons.

God can raise up any one whom He chooses, and give him the energy of His Spirit; and where this is found, there is power and an effectual work: but the passage we are considering supposes the careful communication of the truth to persons fit for this work.

Both principles equally shut out the idea of the communication of official authority, and the idea of the assembly being either an authority with regard to the faith or the propagator of the truth.

If God raised up whom He pleased, in whatever way He pleased, the means which He employed (when there was no special operation on His part) was to cause the truth to be communicated to individuals capable of propagating it. This is a widely different thing from bestowing authority, or the exclusive or official right to preach. And it was known, revealed truth he was to communicate, that had the direct authority of revelation--what Paul's writings can alone furnish us now, or of course other inspired writings^{(Holy Scripture)}.

What I want you to see here, my Brother, is that pretty much the conduct of the typical churches, especially denominational ones, have abandoned the genuine Biblical model for conveying Truth as put into practice not only by Jesus, but by holy men of old either in the family context (Abraham to Isaac, Isaac/Rebecca to Jacob, Jacob to his sons; etc.) or by God's selection (Eli to Samuel, Elijah to Elisha); and in the New Testament times Peter to John Mark (, Beloved John to Gaius (3 John), Paul to Timothy and others, etc.

What the churches have done is to supplant the Biblical model and its life-long continuity with their own, supposedly more economic and efficient model of congregating believers into large groups, on one or two days a week, and placing before them all a talking head seminary-trained and practiced in speech-giving, to dispense a modicum of filtered Biblical material, unstructured in an ordered, progressive, graded style, that only seves to ebtertain the group and give them the mistaken belief that they are progressig in spiritual maturity (which most are likely not), leaving them unable to even relate to a seeker even the milk of the Gospel, let alone the meat of it.

So this is a rather lengthy attempt to draw you and others along toward a system where Biblical method is being followed. And let me tell you, that method is not only unpopular, but shunned since it is likely to produce believers who will put the ruling elder's capability to the test. And the ordained clergy really does not want that eruption of spirituality in the midst of a laity in their churches whom they have tamed, ones who obey them by and latge, but not the challenges of true discipling that produce (unsalaried, influential) spiritual equals.

Eh?

I believe that the whole clergy/laity organization of some churches is, in fact, the apostasy from Scriptural discipleship, as found in @ Thessalonians 2:3 and following. That institution of sacerdotal ministers and priests started way back in Constantine's day, and has been with us for a long while. It is evident in most "Protestant" denominations as well, who deny following Biblical transmission of Scriptural truths by and through faithful regenerated believers alone.

Dying churches and their denominations refuse to employ the Lord Jesus Christ's command to go forth, make committed disciples in close individual intimate instruction, and officially induct them into the Company of The Committed Servants, to follow a continuing life of personal spiritual growth.

A 4-year-old FR post on this:

Why Some Churches Choose to Die

[Elsie]

Thanks ... but, surprise .... this is standard LDS Christian philosophy

Shouldn't Christian be Christian?

[Elsie]

or even MORE often!

[Elsie]

"While intelligent people can often simplify the complex,
a fool is much more likely to complicate the simple."

~ Gerald W. Grumet

Thanks!

We'll no doubt see BOTH in this thread!

[imardmd1]

Daily reading of the word often leads to wrestling with the word until you gain new insights.

That's a nice thought, one not to be discarded. But--not to belittle your challenge--trying to grow spiritually mature (=progressively becoming more Spirit-conrtolled in behavior) by a self-improvement path; that is, by "bootstrapping oneself," is not a very effective approach. Neither is congregating in large groups for preaching/teaching that has no accountability nor intimate personal instruction.

The approved method for growing in Christ as fast as God whants you to, is by personal involvement with a discipler, a mentor, who him/herself has likewise subjected himself to learning through having been personally discipled. Sadly, that is not the typical way offered (or even only available upon request) by most church programs. But having a local, personal teaching companion is what the thread author, paladinkc, needs.

Stepping back a little, there are some distance-learning material available to him/her. Here are a few links to very usedul discipleship resources: "The Basic Stage of Discipleship" byPaul J. Bucknell (click here) I believe this ongoing course is not free, but reasonale to pay for the materials.

The Navigators (click here) The Navigators is a globally-known and respected llively group of disciplers whose theme comes from 2 Timothy 2:1-2, the pasage I previously cited. If you could find a Navigator in your area, that would be great!

How To Mature In Christ" from Happy Heralds, Inc. (click here). I personally use the materials from this site. They are absolutely free, and mailed to you upon request. Some of them are downloadable as PDF files.

[smvoice]

AMEN.
2 Timothy 2:15.

[SkyPilot]

#47 - well put.

[af_vet_1981]

What is Jesus' yoke, and what does it look like, ...

Definition of yoke
a wooden bar or frame by which two draft animals (such as oxen) are joined at the heads or necks for working together.

• Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
• And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
• And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
• Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
• And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Second Corinthians, Catholic chapter six, Protestant verses fourteen to eighteen,
as authorized, but not authored, by King James

1. Jesus is the Master.
2. He is asking for volunteers to take his yoke upon them willingly.
3. The yoke is to do all his commandments.
4. One is not yoked alone, but in partnership to do the work set before them by the Master.
5. It is significant who one is yoked to.

Yoke