Welcome to Day 2! For the next several days, we will be focusing on understanding our Relationship with God! The most valuable piece of information I can give you as you start your journey is that your relationship with God is everything. That relationship happens through reading Scripture, prayer, and obedience to the Holy Spirit. In the coming days, we will go into greater depth on each of these topics, but the main idea is that we must know Him by spending time with Him. There are no substitutes for this part of your spiritual development. The closer you press into your relationship with God, the greater your clarity and understanding of His love and truth will become.
 
As we begin, I encourage you to get familiar with the image below, which displays the 4 pillars of our faith in Christ. Understanding this can be useful as you begin your new journey in Christ. I pray that by the time you have completed this journey, these 4 pillars (Relationship, Community, Mission, and Commitment) will be a part of your daily spiritual journey.

Figure: 5

As a new believer, you might be asking yourself, "Now that I'm a Christian, what am I supposed to do?" You might have questions about reading, prayer, music, friends, and many other aspects. To help build your foundation before we approach any of these questions, we need to define a major piece of this approach. If you look at the image above, you will see a phrase that says "Christ-Centered".
 
To explain "Christ-Centered," it simply means everything (actions, decisions, worldview, etc.) is now filtered through our newfound relationship and understanding of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we commit and obey His ways through the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit and His word (Bible). Through this, we may honor and glorify God by fulfilling His will in our lives (John 15:5).

Any relationship in the world takes work. There is no difference in our relationship with God: we must put forth the effort. There are no shortcuts to spiritual growth; it takes effort. In (James 4:7-8) it says, we must submit ourselves to God, resist the devil, and draw near to Him, and through that God will draw near. Also, (Jeremiah 29:13) says, "You will seek and find God when you seek him with all your heart". There is something about the idea of fully committing your entire being (mind, will, emotions) to God, not just the convenient parts of your life, but the entirety of your life. There is no substitute for time; we must and should spend time with God because it is the only way to develop a real relationship with God. (Galatians 2:20)
 
We do this through the following:

• Reading the Bible with intentionality and purpose. Hebrews 4:12, Hosea 4:6
• Confessing sin to God . 1 John 1:9
• Prayer (we will go more into it later this week).
• Listening to worship music. Ephesians 5:19-20
• Reflecting and having gratitude. Colossians 4:2
• Find a church and being committed to those gathering together. Acts 2:42-47
• Having trusted Christian friends who hold you accountable while confessing sins, struggles, and wins with one another. Proverbs 27:17; James 5:16
• Listening and/or watching sermons/podcasts/audible/books, etc. 1 Thessalonians 5:11
• Being obedient to His way and putting forth the effort to live out what the Holy Spirit is teaching you. (Example) Giving up pornography in your life because it is very destructive in so many ways for the Christian. 1 John 2:16-17

Due to the fall of man and our inherited sinful nature, temptation will be a part of life until we die, but sin is optional for the believer (1 Corinthians 10:13). Through Christ, we now have victory over sin. It does not have to dominate our daily lives and enslave us any longer. We have the power to overcome through the Holy Spirit, which provides self-control (Galatians 5:23). The catch is that we must continue to submit ourselves to the direction and guidance of the Holy Spirit, so we can have the power to overcome. We also have the responsibility to resist (James 4:7).

The concepts of temptation and sin appear throughout the Old and New Testaments. In scripture, you will find that Jesus was tempted in Matthew 4:1. Side note: It's important to state that Jesus never sinned. We see great people of faith, like Paul, confessing sin in Romans 7:15. To clarify, you can think of temptation more like the attraction, desire, or suggestion toward sinful acts. We must not confuse temptation and sin; they are not the same. Sin occurs when the temptation becomes actively pursued in thought or action.

Temptation can come from inward desires stirred by the sinful nature (James 1:14-15). Temptation can also come from external spiritual forces (Genesis 3:1). Lastly, even our family, friends, and significant others can lead us into temptation if we are not careful (1 Corinthians 15:33). Jesus encourages us that we need His guidance, wisdom, and assistance to avoid temptation. In Luke 11:4, Jesus says, "Lead us not into temptation." Notice he doesn't say, "lead us not into sin," but specifically temptation. I point this out because even Jesus understands the strong, compelling factor that temptation has; we need to be cautious.

Also, we can be wise in how we position ourselves in our daily choices. For years, I have said, "The best way to avoid temptation is not to put yourself into a situation to be tempted." One example I use is if you struggle with alcohol and drunkenness, going to bars or parties with alcohol would not be wise; avoid these environments. Over the years, I’ve heard many Christians say, ‘The devil made me do it.’ But the truth is, as believers, we must own our choices. The reality is, he didn’t make you do it; you pursued the act of sin.

In addition, Christians cannot be possessed by demons because the Holy Spirit has sealed us (Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 4:30). However, we can open ourselves up to a longer struggle with a certain sin by the choices we make (Romans 6:12). These choices weaken our defenses and create what we call strongholds or footholds. Scripture shines a light on this important subject in Ephesians 4:27, which states, "And do not give the devil a foothold." Paul also speaks directly to believers in Ephesians 4:25-32 about certain sins like anger, slander, and stealing. These sins were becoming patterns of sin or footholds in the believers' lives.

This was destroying the church's unity and individually causing them to stumble, which was pushing them away from God. We must be aware that strongholds can develop when we consistently reject God’s correction and counsel in our lives. Correction and counsel can come through conviction of the Holy Spirit and His Word, or through the body of Christ (other believers). Strongholds are also mentioned in 2 Corinthians 10:4–5, where Paul explains that strongholds are formed in our minds when we believe lies. This is not demonic possession, but rather the sinful nature aligning itself consistently with the lies, accusations, and persuasion of the enemy. If not addressed quickly through confession, prayer, and repentance, strongholds can take root deep within a believer’s life. (1 John 1:9; James 5:16; Proverbs 28:13).

When a stronghold takes root, it will try to distract and destroy our relationship to God and His will for us.

Matthew 26:41 - “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
 
Matthew 6:9-13 - “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."

Galatians 5:16 - "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh."
 
Galatians 5:22-23 - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law."

Psalms 119:11 - “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."

Matthew 4:7 - “Jesus answered him, it is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test."

James 4:7 - “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
 
Ephesians 6:11 - “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes."

Commitment to Scripture (the Bible), the Holy Spirit, and the Church must be consistent pieces as you build the foundation of your new life with Christ. Read the Bible with the intent to truly learn it. Don’t race through it just to check a box or accomplish a goal or task. We must understand how it can be applied to our lives. I challenge you to memorize Scripture because it brings life to you by helping you combat sin, teaching you what pleases God, and reminding you of the promises of God. Lastly, learn how to hear the Holy Spirit’s guidance in your life—it is so important. Be committed to the church and build Christ-centered friendships.

If you haven't already, I highly suggest you check out Day 0 - Biblical Foundations (Parts 1 & 2) Click Here.