Ring, Ring!

Bowser

Tribe of Judah StarCraft Series Chapter Leader
This is a Bible study I wanted to do that would be directed at the younger teens in our community. Enjoy!
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Pick up your phone, because God is calling!


. The first question we ask as Christians is, “what is God calling us to do? What does He want in our lives?
. Would you guess that God isn’t calling us to be great, popular, or to be rich? We are called to act as Ambassadors first and foremost. We have to make sure we live a life of Christ above all else, and before we can do anything else. We have to act first, and then and only then will He entrust us to carry out His tasks for an even greater calling. But what does that mean?!

. It means to put aside the distractions of your life, and to do away with worldly things. To be an ambassador of Christ you are to become a disciple, and everyday you are supposed to live as a disciple. That means that you must read the Bible and pray daily.
. Think of it this way: you are an ambassador of your country to China, and you are living there in China speaking on behalf of your home government. Once you become an ambassador do you stop receiving phone calls and reports from the country that you represent? Not at all! You get all kinds of tips, calls, advice, and are required to attend meetings, etc; and you must be willing to listen, take notes, and work hard! These are the same things we are to do as Christians! We have to read the Bible, pray up and be spiritually prepared, and then finally we have to act and represent well what we are a part of.
. Did you know that the Bible says you are not of this world? Jesus says it in John 17:1-26 and Peter in 1st Peter 2:11-12. We are, indeed, not of this world! We are from the kingdom of Heaven, and we are representing God Himself! Live your life as God’s ambassador, and as Christ’s disciple. Be a servant to those around you, and live such a righteous and outstanding life that people will recognize where you’re from, and whom you represent.

. To be a good ambassador we need to know what keeps us from hearing the call, and what stops us from listening to what God has to say.
. One really big thing that really drowns out the volume of God’s voice is our busyness. Since we are a part of western civilization we are involved with school, sports, church, friends, entertainment, and jobs. As Christians we need to turn down the busyness of our daily lives and be sure that there is a quiet time so that we can hear the phone ringing.
. Two really big things that keep us from answering the phone once we hear it ringing is our worry and self-consciousness, and they almost go hand in hand. In fact, in a way they go with busyness, because of the time we spend worrying and being self-conscious. Being self-conscious means being really concerned with your self-image; what you wear, and what you eat, and even how you exercise when you really shouldn’t be that concerned. It’s really funny because we all stand in front of the mirror for several minutes looking at ourselves and adjusting what we’re wearing when we’ve worn those same exact clothes before, and yet we still feel the need to look in the mirror as if it will give us some re-assurance. Not only does it never reassure us, but it also makes us a little bit more selfish in the time we spend looking at ourselves. The second thing that actually stops us from hearing God’s word is our worry. We’re worried about what God has planned for us, and are waiting for a roadmap to be revealed before we commit to anything He wants us to do; don’t be! Just let go! Worrying stops us from doing the work that needs to be done and we spend more time asking questions and waiting, than we do actually carrying out and living God’s word. God isn’t going to lay out this big plan for us anyway; we have to live day by day, and each day that we remain faithful He will reveal to us a new piece of the puzzle.

That’s it for now, God bless guys!

-Bowser
 
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I don't believe it directly means we are not of this world. I think it more means, our spirits arent, as we are joint with the spirit of Christ, He has removed some of our actual self with Himself. We are of this world my friend, I know it because I live here, sure we have higher purposes, and His purpose was most high. In His ways, we can never fail in this world. But I will strongly disagree with you on the declaration of "We are not of this world" as a literal term in which I think this study would emphasize. Because truly we cannot seperate ourselves from the world, but we must interact with the world serving the purpose of One who is above the world. This is why we are prepared to live in the world, with our minds on Heaven and His will. But yet He created the world and man in it, therefore I determine I am apart of the "world" as a person, not a part of the "world" as a general term in one who does not believe.

I think that can be clarified more.
 
Phix said:
I don't believe it directly means we are not of this world. I think it more means, our spirits arent, as we are joint with the spirit of Christ, He has removed some of our actual self with Himself. We are of this world my friend, I know it because I live here, sure we have higher purposes, and His purpose was most high. In His ways, we can never fail in this world. But I will strongly disagree with you on the declaration of "We are not of this world" as a literal term in which I think this study would emphasize. Because truly we cannot seperate ourselves from the world, but we must interact with the world serving the purpose of One who is above the world. This is why we are prepared to live in the world, with our minds on Heaven and His will. But yet He created the world and man in it, therefore I determine I am apart of the "world" as a person, not a part of the "world" as a general term in one who does not believe.

I think that can be clarified more.


Phix,

I think you have to look at what is being said when Christians say they "are not of this world" as this study talks about. Of course we are flesh and blood and part of this world, even Paul talks about this struggle with our sinful nature that we get from being part of the world. But when it comes to what the world holds value in, we as Christians are not supposed to hold those same values the way the world says to hold them. We are to hold Christ high and glorify God in everything we do. This goes against what the world is all about, and has since original sin. In Christs final prayer before the cruxifiction, it was about how the disciples believed what he taught and accepted the covenant that was given to them to take unto the world. His prayer for the apostles was not that God would remove them from the earth since they no longer held the values that the world held so dearly, but that God would keep them from evil.

Henry's concise comentary states it like this:

11-16 Christ does not pray that they might be rich and great in the world, but that they might be kept from sin, strengthened for their duty, and brought safe to heaven. The prosperity of the soul is the best prosperity. He pleaded with his holy Father, that he would keep them by his power and for his glory, that they might be united in affection and labours, even according to the union of the Father and the Son. He did not pray that his disciples should be removed out of the world, that they might escape the rage of men, for they had a great work to do for the glory of God, and the benefit of mankind. But he prayed that the Father would keep them from the evil, from being corrupted by the world, the remains of sin in their hearts, and from the power and craft of Satan. So that they might pass through the world as through an enemy's country, as he had done. They are not left here to pursue the same objects as the men around them, but to glorify God, and to serve their generation. The Spirit of God in true Christians is opposed to the spirit of the world.

That last part is very important. If we are wrapped up in worldly ways, the Spirit of God will not shine through us. This one was a tough battle for me when I was using drugs. We can justify anything in our minds but that does not mean it is of God. We can fool ourselves into thinking it is, but in the end, the truth will show through.

I think your on the right track with what your trying to say about Bowsers lesson, but I also do not believe that his lesson implies what your stating it does. :) We must remove ourselves from sin (the ways of the world) and place upon ourselves a Godly dicipline to follow the commandments of God every day. Sure we will stumble and have setbacks, but we must keep the goal in mind while living our lives. We are attempting to immitate the life of Christ.

Cory
 
I understood what he meant, I was meaning for the nonbeliever, when they hear such a statement it needs to be clarified, and it needs to be spoken in a different way...but I have thought that I am a part of the world. I am valued here, as Christ was the one to decide to put me here.

And I clearly stated that I thought it wasnt mean directly as I had assumed, but I also said it can be interpreted in such a way by different people. And I wanted to offer my thoughts to help avoid that. I just think it needs to be clarified more. But thats just me.
 
the greek word worlded used here is someone/something that opposes God, same word that is used in Jn 3:16 if i remember right, any other greek majors care to check?
 
Strong's Ref. # 2889

Romanized kosmos
Pronounced kos'-mos

probably from the base of GSN2865; orderly arrangement, i.e. decoration; by implication, the world (in a wide or narrow sense, including its inhabitants, literally or figuratively [morally]):

KJV--adorning, world.


<3 for Strongs.

Cory
 
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