SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES 22-09-2019

RECAP OF OUR LAST STUDY “Redemption through Christ”: Every unconverted person is a slave to sin and urgently needs rescue. The Lord Jesus Christ shed his blood to redeem all mankind. One becomes a beneficiary of Christ’s redemption through repentance, forgiveness and cleansing by His blood. As believers, we enjoy His divine protection, daily victory over satanic forces and access to God’s presence. However, we must abide in these benefits of redemption, pray and watch till the end to get to heaven.

TODAY’S STUDY: LESSON 761: CALL AND COMMITMENT TO PERFECTION MEMORY VERSE: …… “Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Colossians 1:28). TEXT: Colossians 1:21-29

INTRODUCTION Adam’s sin introduced the principle of sin to all mankind. Through Christ’s death, we have redemption, whereby we are reconciled with God. The intention is for us to be presented on the last day without blame in the sight of God. For this to happen, we must continue in the faith, grounded and settled. We should not be moved away from the hope of the true, universal and unchanging gospel, which we have heard. We should walk in God’s holy principles; we must walk in perfection. Christ must remain in us as the hope of glory. The aim of Christian ministry is to preserve believers in holiness.

THE CASE FOR CHRISTIAN PERFECTION Colossians 1:21,22,28; Luke 1:74,75 To be perfect is to be complete, “wanting (or lacking) nothing”. It is to be faultless, flawless or mature. Christian perfection is not God’s exclusive attributes of absolute perfection, infallibility (incapable of making a mistake), or perfect knowledge. Rather, it is deliverance from sin (Luke 1:74,75), upright life (Job 1:1,8), freedom inward sin (Romans 6:6,7), perfect love and full maturity. It is all by God’s grace. QUESTION 1: What is the literal meaning of the word ‘perfection’? QUESTION 2: What do you understand by Christian perfection? – Deut. 30:6; 2 Cor. 6:17,18; 1 Peter 1:13-16.

THE CALL TO CHRISTIAN PERFECTION Colossians 1:22-27; Genesis 17:1 The aim of redemption is to present us faultless before God. We are called out of the enticing pleasure of the world to take our salvation seriously. We should be diligent to renounce the old life of lying, envy, hatred, quarrel and walk consistently in purity. We are called to be like God. We are called, not unto uncleanness like the world around us, but unto holiness like the One who has called us (1 Thes. 4:7; 1 Peter 1:16). To achieve this, we must yield our lives unto God. QUESTION 3: Why are Christians called to perfection? – Matthew 5:8,48; Hebrews 12:14; 1 Peter 1:14-16.

COMMITMENT UNTO CHRISTIAN PERFECTION Colossians 1:28,29 The gospel ministry is to perfect believers. Paul preached deliverance from the power of sin and the power of the devil. He taught the translation of believers from Satan’s kingdom into the Kingdom of God. He warned believers against sin and its every appearance, against error and its teachers, against backsliding and self deception. He kept back nothing that was profitable. Our ministers, individual believers and the entire Church should labour to uphold the truth. QUESTION 4: Describe the role of sound doctrine in the perfection of believers – Colossians 1:28; Acts 20:32; Ephesians 4:11-13.

CONCLUSION God’s grace has called us from sin to present us in holiness before God. It is our duty to renounce the old life and yield our lives to God so He can perfect His work in us. Christian perfection means to be without fault, to be free from sin and inward corruption. It is to be perfect in love, to be mature. God demands holiness from us because He is holy. We are made perfect through the ministry of the Word: teaching and warning us in wisdom until God’s glory is perfected in us.