Master the Bible: How to Get and Keep the Big Picture of the Bible's Story

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Mas ter the B i b l e : How to Get and Keep the B i g P i c ture of the B i b l e ’ s Stor y

D. First steps toward maturity: infant and early childhood spiritual care

1. Confess your faith in Christ as Lord, and be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Matt. 28.18-20; Rom. 6.1-4; Mark 16.15-16.

2. Be grounded in the “first things” of the doctrine of salvation and the Kingdom, Heb. 5.12-6.4; 1 Cor. 15.1-4.

3. Be established in the life of the assembly of believers, Eph. 4.9-15.

a. Become a member of a healthy, vital Christ-centered local church.

b. Join a small group.

c. Faithfully participate in the life of the body.

4. Seek God alone and in community by practicing the disciplines of the spiritual life, 1 Tim. 4.9-16.

5. Celebrate the Lord’s Supper with other believers (i.e., the Eucharist), and engage in the discipline of worship in the body of Christ, 1 Cor. 11-14.

6. Share your story of personal faith in Christ with your immediate family and associates, e.g., John 1.41-45 – He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). [42] He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter ). [43] The next day