Faith

The New Age movement is one of many religions and belief systems in the world today. Here’s the problem—all religions and non-Christian belief systems teach that we have no need of a savior or that we can earn salvation by good works or attaining higher spiritual levels.

God is the creator of life. He is life. In Him no death or darkness exists.

When God created Lucifer, He created an eternal being. God did not create him to die or cease to exist, but to live forever. Ezekiel 28 tells how Lucifer was created perfect and then iniquity was found in him (see also Isaiah 14:12-15).

Every believer has been given faith. And that’s just part of the story. Jesus said for each believer, that measure is more than enough to move mountains (Mark 11:23)!

There’s a lot of faith at our disposal the moment we are born again. So how do we develop ourselves to increasingly access faith for the challenges of everyday living? The Bible answers that question clearly: “So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ” (Romans 10:17). So to start the process, find out what God has said. Open your Bible and discover what belongs to you.

The Bible certainly teaches there is an unpardonable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. But fearful thoughts of whether you have committed this sin are designed by the devil to keep you out of fellowship with God. Think about it: if you’re concerned about having committed the unpardonable sin, you’re proving by your concern you have not!

But what about others? Time spent trying to judge whether another has committed the unpardonable sin removes you from the proper place of love and intercession for that person.

“Pleading” is actually a legal term, and in a court of law it is “a formal statement of the cause of an action or defense.” Think of it like a lawyer pleading his case before the judge. He presents evidence and facts to support his case.

There has been much discussion about whether salvation is available to all mankind, or if it is only reserved for a special group of elect people whom God has already chosen to be born again. (This is commonly referred to as “predestination.”) But the simple answer is found in Acts 2:21: “Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.”

The Bible does not say what happens to animals when they die. What we do know is animals have a special place not only in man’s past and present, but also in his future. God cares for them and not one dies without His noticing (Matthew 6:26, 10:29). God created animals and saw that they were good (Genesis 1:20-25), brought them to Adam to see what he would call them (Genesis 2:19-20), and assigned man the responsibility of taking care of them (Genesis 1:28).

Yes, we will be able to recognize one another in heaven. There are many examples of this in the Bible. Jesus said we would be able to sit down with people like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8:11). This would imply that we will keep our individual identities and be able to recognize each other.

At Eagle Mountain International Church, the church at Kenneth Copeland Ministries, our common practice is to hold baby dedication services where parents and guardians pledge to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. 

The difference—and it is major—is that under the Old Covenant, those who trusted God in regard to the Law could not be born again like we are under the New Covenant. Their new birth could not take place until Jesus died for their sins, was raised from the dead and glorified. (See John 7:37-39.) 

When God made us, He gave us the ability to choose. It was an act of mercy and love. God’s desire was for pure love to exist between Himself and His creation. God did not want to create robots that could only do what they were programmed to do, nor did He want to make slaves out of any creature. God gave man a will as part of His goodness, knowing the potential for love and sin is there. 

God does not desire that any believer be filled with fear—even when it comes to meeting Him:

“God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love” (1 John 4:16-18).

Harmless fun is certainly what many parents would label trick-or-treating and other Halloween observances. Some Christian parents are aware of a darker side to what presents itself as innocent fun. 

That’s why each year during Halloween, Christian parents may struggle between letting their children participate in what the world calls “harmless fun” and being led by their own concerns about the spiritual significance of Halloween. Even though Halloween can seem harmless, it does have dark pagan roots, and as believers we should never celebrate fear and terror. 

Scripture tells us not only when the disciples were born again, but also how. The answer may surprise you: They were born again the very same way you and I, or any other person is.

We know the disciples walked and talked with Jesus on a daily basis. But like every Christian, each individual disciple had to accept that Jesus was raised from the dead and make Jesus his Lord (Romans 10:9-10). The Bible describes how and when this took place after Jesus’ resurrection:

You don’t have to debate or fight or plead your case to evangelize. In fact, KCM’s Minister of Evangelism, Riley Stephenson, says that will actually hurt your cause. Instead, he recommends the following:

The enemy tries to discourage or confuse all believers on this issue. Think about it: Anytime he can get believers to spend time wondering if they are saved is time he is keeping them from discovering how much authority this new life gives them over the kingdom of darkness. 

Here is some really good news—you can know without a doubt that you are born again! 

The word kill in the sixth commandment in Exodus 20:13 can more accurately be translated as “murder.” In fact, most modern Bible translations, like the New King James Version, translate Exodus 20:13 as, “You shall not murder.”

True Christianity is not a religion. It is a relationship with God. 

Religion is any system of attitudes, beliefs or practices to honor or appease a god or supernatural force regarded as creator and governor of the universe.  The number of religions and belief systems in the world today is in the thousands. God is not interested in religion. He is interested in our hearts. He wants to have a relationship with us because He loves us. 

The Bible is clear. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). This declaration by Jesus answers the question whether all faiths lead to God. Salvation can only be found in Jesus.

Nothing Jesus did in His earthly ministry was done by His own power. Everything was accomplished by the anointing of the Holy Spirit that was on Him. Jesus said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me” (Luke 4:18).

This is a very important concept for Christians to understand. The fact that Jesus did all His earthly ministry by the anointing of the Holy Spirit means although Jesus is God, He lived in this earth as a man filled with the Holy Spirit. The same Holy Spirit who was at work in Jesus to heal, save and deliver men is in every believer.