Christian Living

PART 5 WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE?

by james rondinone 
12/30/16
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Now that you are a Christian, then what?

What is the Christian life all about?

â—Who Should I Associate With That Will Help Me to Grow Spiritually?

CHAPTER 4

Who Should I Associate With That Will Help Me to Grow Spiritually?

When I got saved, I received an incredible saturation of God’s divine love, joy, and peace. However, as the anointing of the Holy Spirit dissipated my mental tendencies, as they were before I was saved, began to resurface. Here I was a single guy in his mid-twenties, who even though I was attending worship service on Sunday morning along with a bible study mid-week there were still five other nights that were not accounted for. I continued to go to night clubs, dancing, drinking, and looking for girls. The difference this time was that the messages I would hear twice a week would remind me that I should start to make better decisions concerning these involvements.

       Due to certain circumstances I left the initial church that I got saved in. As time went on I found a church that was newly established. I attended the once a week worship service. It was dynamite. The Holy Spirit would impact me with his presence. The word was insightful. But again I had six other nights free. Eventually, a second night for gathering together was established. Soon I was told of another meeting that was taking place not too far away from where I lived by an affiliated branch ministry. Now I had three nights where I attended the worship services in order to hear the word of God and be impacted by the Holy Spirit’s presence.

       On one particular occasion I attended a worship service with two of my friends, both of whom were born again. When the service ended a fellow believer asked us if we could give him a ride home to which I responded, sure. On the way to his house he pulled out of his pocket a couple of marijuana cigarettes and asked us if we wanted to indulge in this drug. We all agreed. I found a hidden place to park the car, and all of us participated in this endeavor. After a few minutes we were in a zombie like state. A period of time went by and eventually I drove everyone home.

       This interaction of going to church, hearing a message, being impacted by God’s presence, driving this particular person home, and then partaking in marijuana went on for about three weeks. At that point I told him this had to stop. If he still needed a ride home after church service, then fine. However, I told him that if he asked any of us again as we were driving him home to smoke a marijuana cigarette we would no longer be giving him a ride. A short time later following worship service he asked for a ride home. While on the way he asked if anyone wanted to get stoned. I spoke up and told him that was it. We would no longer be giving him rides home anymore.

       As most of us are aware, Jesus called some unsavory people to be his disciples, some of whom later became his apostles. During his three years of public ministry I’m sure there were plenty of instances when the disciples’ fleshly tendencies were on display. However, their sinful ways didn’t cause Christ’s walk to deviate from God the Father’s plan for his life.

       Why not?

       Because he was continually submissive to the Father by listening to his voice and obeying his directives. As a result his life impacted his disciples instead of their lives impacting his.

       If you want to have God’s wisdom in making decisions concerning who to associate with it first starts with you making decisions to take advantage of listening to the teachings of the assembly. Some of these teachings should assist you in addressing areas of weakness that have inhibited the ministry of the Holy Spirit from operating in your own life. As you learn to appropriate new thoughts for those areas of mental dysfunction and reflect upon them throughout your day you will begin to recognize the responsiveness of the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

       What I would like to present to you next are some scriptural sections that will help you in determining who to associate with.

 Let’s begin by taking a look at the book of 1 Corinthians.

 Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners:

1 Corinthians 15:12-33

12 Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?                

       There were some skeptics in the church of Corinth who believed there was no bodily resurrection.

       14 And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.    

       The apostle Paul said that if this was true, then our preaching would be in vain (has no meaning), and your faith would also be vain (without value).

       15 Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.

       He goes on further to say that if this was the case, then he would be considered a false witness of God. The gospel (good news) of Christ therefore that he preached would become useless and worthless.

       17 And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

       Again he stated that if Christ was not raised, then their faith likewise was vain (without results); and they would be still yet  in their sins (meaning that they are unpardoned sinners).

       Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

       It is only by means of Christ’s atonement (sacrifice) for sins, that sin is no longer an issue concerning the demands of God’s justice. By Christ giving of his own life he annulled the devil’s power over death, a sovereignty of which the souls of all who died would go to one of the two compartments of hell, Paradise or torments, never being able to be released from either place. Romans 4:25 speaks of the judicial act of God the Father delivering God the Son to the justice that required the payment of the penalty for human sin. After which he was raised from the dead for our justification (in order to reconcile us to God). The Resurrection was God's validation that the redemption paid by Christ on the cross was accepted.

       Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners. (1 Corinthians 15:33)

       Some of the Corinthian believers rejected the resurrection in order to rationalize their sin, because according to them if there was no resurrection then what they did with their bodies would have no bearing on their future. Paul goes on to say, be not deceived, don’t believe something that is not true. Conversations or companionship with those who deny the resurrection will result in the ruin of your morals, good character, and cause your faith to be weakened. So don’t associate with them, not even for the sake of their pleasing conversation, literary accomplishments, and glozing (to explain something away) speeches.

       These verses are very clear. If there are those who are teaching or holding to the belief that Christ was not raised from the dead, don’t associate with them in any way, shape, or form.

       Some might say that this response is not very Christ-like. Was Christ’s response to the religious tenets of the Pharisees Christ-like? Was Christ’s response to Peter Christ-like when Peter said to Him that He would not go to the cross and suffer and die?

The next verse that we will look at is taken from the Old Testament.

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise:

Proverbs 13:20

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

He that habitually and continuously keeps company with people who have wisdom shall be wise, but one who has intercourse and companionship with those who act stupidly will lose their mind and suffer moral ruin.

      This verse is addressed to the Jews of the Old Testament. We will use it as an application for Christians today. Wise men will refer to Christians who operate in Godly wisdom. Fools will refer to those who are ungodly (unbelievers) that operate in human reason.   

       After reading this verse you might respond by saying that the message being conveyed is telling us to not associate with those who act stupidly. If this was the case, then this would intimate that as Christians we should stay in our own circles and stay away from unbelievers. But what this verse is really saying is that we should not be intimate with them, but rather intimacy should be with those who have divine wisdom.

       Why should we be around those who have divine wisdom?

       So that we will have the divine wisdom which is needed in order to impact those who act stupidly.

       Are you having problems with alcohol abuse? Get divine wisdom.

       Are you having problems with lust toward men or women? Get divine wisdom.

       Are you having problems with your temper? Get divine wisdom.

       The following verse conveys this idea very well.

       There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

       Let’s take a look at one more section of scriptures which in this case conveys the idea of not associating with certain believers. I think that for many who are in the leadership positions of the church the circumstance which will be presented next is one that they would rather not address; and likewise if they did I wonder how many of the assembly would not agree with their approach.

Please go to the book of 1 Corinthians Chapter 5.

Purge out therefore the old leaven:

1 Corinthians 5:1-13

1 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

Paul has received a report concerning someone in the church, who was involved in an illicit sexual relationship with his step mother. This sin is so public that it cannot be concealed and it is so certain that it cannot be denied.

       2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.

       He told them that they, the believers in Corinth, were living in pride, because they were afflicted and troubled in taking the proper means for removing the offender.

       3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed,

       If he (Paul) were present, he would know what judgment to administer to him that had committed this sin.

       6 Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

       7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

       A single sin corrupts the whole church. Therefore, they were to remove this person from their company.

       12 For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?

       It is our business to judge [used of the disciplinary judgment to which Christians subject the conduct of their fellows, passing censure (to find fault with, to criticize harshly) upon them as the facts require] fellow believers, when the sin committed is commonly known by the church assembly.

       13 But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

       Evidently there were plenty of witnesses (one who can or does state as the truth what he himself has seen, heard, or knows)to the egregious sin. The protocol for handling this sin is as follows: the accused is rendered innocent or guilty before the judicial court of the elders or those who serve in this judicial capacity with input from the eye or ear witnesses, but without the congregation being present. If the accused is found guilty, an announcement of the offense would be made before the church assembly without the accused believer being present along with such a censure as the case demands. Paul described here an official church meeting at which the offender was dealt with according to divine instructions. Public sin must be publicly judged and condemned. The sin was not to be "swept under the rug