As the year 2008 just went by, the time for the new resolution has come.
The International Bethel City Church suggests, if you identify yourself
as a child of the living God to try these eight new resolutions for year 2009.
Resolution 1: A new beginning
When we are baptized, we begin a new life. We are "buried
with him (Christ) by baptism into death" when we are immersed in the water
at our baptism. The life we have lived up to that time comes to an end - it is
a thing of the past. Then, as "Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory
of the Father", we too have to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).
Such a change is only possible through the grace of God. Being children of our
Father in heaven, we can come to Him through Jesus. We shall fail often as we
try to please Him, but when we ask for forgiveness, He will hear us for Jesus'
sake.
"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain
mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4: 16)
Resolution 2: Feeding on God's Word
A baby needs food, and makes this need known in no uncertain way. Food is
essential for growth. And those who are born to a new life by baptism can
only grow in Christ if the new life is fed and nourished by God's Word. So
the apostle Peter says:
"As new born babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow
thereby" (1 Peter 2: 2)
God has given us the Bible for our guidebook. It will help us to live as He would
have us live, and grow up into that "new man" in Christ. We read in 2 Timothy 3: 16, 17:
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be
perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works"
Resolution 3: Looking forward to the Kingdom
The apostle Peter tells us that God is "not willing that any should perish"
(2 Peter 3: 9), and John 3: 16 we read that God sent Jesus, His only begotten Son,
so that "whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life".
God wants to give us eternal life in His Kingdom. And so He is preparing us now for
that life. He wants us to be there, and He will help us in every possible way.
He has given Jesus to help us, and through Jesus we can come to Him in prayer.
Resolution 4: Help from Jesus
Jesus once said to his disciples:
"Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you
the kingdom" (Luke 12: 32)
Jesus once offered a wonderful prayer to God for those who believe in him. You can read
it in John 17. Notice the words of verse 24:
"Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they
may behold my glory which thou hast given me"
Jesus also wants us to be in his Kingdom. So he will help us on the way. We will never
be left to struggle alone. Jesus is not only the Saviour through whom our sins are
forgiven; he is also our guide through life. He will share our life, with all its ups and
downs and joys and sorrows, and help to fit us to live with him in God's Kingdom.
So the apostle Peter, who knew Jesus so well when he was on earth, says:
"Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you" (1 Peter 5: 7)
Resolution 5: Belonging to a worldwide family
"As many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor
female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3: 27, 28)
It does not matter who you are, or where you are; if you have become a Christadelphian
by being baptized into Christ, all other Christadelphians are your brothers and sisters.
(Remembering the name "Christadelphian" means "brethren in Christ".) It is a great joy
to belong to such a family, who are to be found throughout the world.
Jesus said to his disciples before his death - and he still says it to us today:
"This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you" (John 15: 12)
He loved us so much, that he suffered death for us. He laid down his life for us, so,
says the apostle John, "we ought to lay down our lives for our brethren" (1 John 3: 16).
We know how we should behave to each other but, in practice, it is very hard. Our old self
takes a long time to die! Some of us are quick-tempered; some are moody and easily irritated
- all of us have our faults.
These are things we have to fight against, as we try to show to our brothers and sisters in
Christ the love that Jesus has shown to us. There is a picture of that love in 1
Corinthians 13. "Charity" is an old-fashioned word for "love". Below are verses 4-7 of the
chapter from the Revised Standard Version.
"Love is patient and kind: love is not jealous or boastful: it is not arrogant or rude.
Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice
at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all
things, endures all things."
Resolution 6: Loving our neighbor
A lawyer once came to Jesus, and asked him which was the greatest commandment. Jesus said
to him:
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and with all
thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Matthew 22: 37-39)
Read the story Jesus told about a good neighbour in Luke 10: 30-37. If anyone is in need,
we are to help him. We are not to stop and think whether we like him or not, or whether he
really deserves our help.
The greatest thing we can do for others is to pass on to them the good news of the kingdom
of God, which we ourselves have come to believe. As God has invited us to keep His ways and
to share the joys of His kingdom, so we should want to invite others to share these things.
Resolution 7: Praying and worshipping
When we are baptized into Christ, we become God's children, and we can come to Him in
prayer, to worship Him and to ask for His help in our lives.
Yet we must never forget how great God is. His glory and His majesty are beyond our
understanding. We read in Isaiah 57: 15:
"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell
in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive
the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones"
James tells that God "resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble" (James 4: 6).
Even the Lord Jesus, God’s Son, spoke of himself as being "meek, and lowly in heart"
(Matthew 11: 29)
So when we come to God in prayer, we need to remember the words of the apostle who says we
should "serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear" (Hebrews 11: 28). If we come
in this spirit, He will certainly hear us.
Resolution 8: Remembering Jesus
We set out, when we are baptized, on the straight and narrow way that leads to God's Kingdom.
But we are still very human, and we can easily forget how much Jesus did for us when he died
on the cross.
Jesus knew how easily his disciples would forget; so he told them to do something to remind
them. Turn to the Gospel of Luke, and read chapter 22: 14-20. This happened at that last meal
we have just spoken about, when Jesus washed his disciples' feet.
See how the bread and the wine were to remind his disciples of how Jesus gave his life for
them. He said to them, "This do in remembrance of me".
Now read 1 Corinthians 11: 23-28. The early Christians met on the first day of each week to
remember Jesus in the way he had commanded them.
True disciples of the Lord Jesus will meet together, as the first disciples did
(and usually Sunday is the most convenient day for such meetings), to break bread and
to drink wine, remembering how Jesus' body was given and his blood was shed for them.
As we grow up in Christ, remembering Jesus in this way will become more and more important
to us, helping us to realise that he is with us all the time.
Walking in newness of life means:
- Reading God's Word every day:
"The entrance of thy words giveth light: it giveth understanding to the simple"
(Psalm 119: 130)
- Praying to God and praising Him at all times:
"Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known unto God" (Philippians 4: 6)
- Loving our brethren and sisters:
"Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and everyone that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God" (1 John 4: 7)
- Being considerate to other people, and helping them whenever we can:
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to
them" (Matthew 7: 12)
- Not taking part in the ungodly activities of the world:
"Come ye out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean
thing; and I will receive you, and I will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and
daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6: 17, 18)
- Above all else, loving God with all our being:
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all
thy might" (Deuteronomy 6: 5)
Chapters to read: 1 Corinthians 13; Luke 10: 30-37, Luke 22: 14-20; 1 Corinthians 11: 23-28
A good verse to memorize: 2 Corinthians 5: 17
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold
all things are become new."
