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Paul writes to Timothy and says, that he serves God with a “pure conscience.” Paul probably wasn’t perfect all the time, but he knew how he needed to live and he lived that way.
Three basic verb tenses. Past. Present. Future. There are more, but we’ll keep it fairly simple here.
Past tense: Jack jumped – Sometime before this moment Jack jumped. It could have been weeks, minutes, days, years ago – but it happened before this moment.
Present tense: Jack jumps – Jack is currently jumping. It’s happening right at this moment.
Future tense: Jack will jump – In the future, at some point after now, Jack will become active and he will jump. Could be near future or it could be far in the future.
The Christians life also has a past, present and a future.
In the Past
- Christ died
- Christ was buried
- Christ ascended
- There is a past event in the life of the Christian as well that is vital – I said yes. I gave my life to Christ. What do you want me to do?
In the Present
- Acts 2 – An ongoing part of life – “being saved”
- Abiding with him – Apart from him we can do nothing. The Christian is to be part of the vine, connected and receiving nutrients from Christ.
- John 17:21-22 – That they may be one, as Jesus is with the Father. A present, ongoing relationship with Jesus.
- 1 John 1:7 – There is a continued sanctification as the Christian grows.
- Jesus is currently interceding for us.
- The Spirit is doing an ongoing work in our hearts – convicting us of sin and shortcomings where we have failed. He is working on our “self” to make us into something that reflects more fully the character of our Savior.
In the Future
The future for the Christian is bright. There is coming a day when we will be with Jesus!
I Have Decided to Follow Jesus
This song is a simple song, but it has a profound message. The story behind this song is even more incredible. A martyr, when asked to recant or his children would be killed said, “I have decided to follow Jesus.” They murdered his children. They asked him to recant again and he said “the cross is before me, the world is behind me.” The murdered his wife. Then he said, “even though there are non left to go with me, still I will follow Jesus.”
I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
No turning back, no turning back.
The cross before me, the world behind me,
The cross before me, the world behind me,
The cross before me, the world behind me,
No turning back, no turning back.
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
No turning back, no turning back.
May God bless us each one. Right now and always.