“I praise Jesus for this book! It its pages you will find rich encouragement in Jesus and practical help in building your life around Him – the One who is our life. I would encourage every Christian to get a copy for yourself – and your friends! 5 Pillars of Christian Growth will be a wonderful companion on this journey into more of Jesus Christ!”
– Amy, amazon review
Many Christians today seem lost.
- your faith will deepen
- you will be more in love with Jesus than ever before
- you will have a simple system to study, know, and understand God’s Word
- your life will be continually renewed, refreshed, and transformed ever more into His likeness
- your Christian life is becoming more vibrant and victorious as it’s built upon and around Jesus Christ.
Published: 2016
Pages: 114
ISBN: 1943592349
Table of Contents
Build Your Life Around Jesus Christ
the foundation of the Christian life
Pillar 1: Worship Him
the pillar of daily living
Pillar 2: Study Him
the pillar of knowing Jesus
Pillar 3: Talk With Him
the pillar of constant intimacy
Pillar 4: Share Him
the pillar of giving what you have
Pillar 5: Grow In Him
the pillar of lifelong transformation
Bonus
the disciplines of the Christian life
Conclusion
a blueprint to build your life around Jesus Christ
Introduction
Build Your Life Around Jesus Christ
The foundation of the Christian life
Christians today seem lost.
We are told to study the Bible, but we don’t know how. We know we are supposed to pray, but we’re unsure where to start or how to pray for longer than a few minutes. We read Scripture and realize that our lives are to be free and victorious, but we’re often marred with sin, defeat, and despair. Our lives often feel like they lack substance, meaning, and power—but isn’t the Christian life supposed to turn the world upside down? If Jesus has truly changed our lives, shouldn’t we want to tell others about it?—rather, we are often passive and lifeless, wondering if there’s more to this thing called Christianity.
If you have ever felt this way, you’re not alone.
We live in a Christian culture where we know there is supposed to be more to following Jesus than what we are living—we are just unsure how to get it. We want a Christianity that actually works, not the weak, limp-wristed version many of us tote around.
We desire growth and maturity as believers; we just don’t know how to obtain them.
I understand. I really do. I too grew up in the church, knew the Bible stories, did devotions, tried to pray for more than 10 minutes a day, and lived a “good moral life.” But it just didn’t satisfy. I wanted more …
- I wanted to live with victory and not be held under the thumb of sin day after day
- I wanted a Christian life that was real, actually worked, and produced fruit
- I wanted to please God, be obedient, and be challenged to live completely for Jesus Christ
- I wanted to know and understand God’s Word, not merely open it from time to time
- I wanted to know how to pray with effectiveness, share my faith my boldness, and know Jesus in a personal, intimate way
- I wanted a vibrant, growing Christian life—I just didn’t know where to turn
Can you relate?
More than a decade ago, God radically transformed my life, and I’ve never been the same. God has fulfilled my desire for “more” and has gone far beyond all that I could have ever asked or imagined. I am passionate about Jesus, love studying God’s Word, enjoy prayer, am walking in victory, and am living a Christian life that actually works.
How did things change?
I built my life around Jesus Christ. And I want to help you do the same.
I have spoken to and taught thousands of people throughout this past decade about how to build their lives around Jesus Christ, how to study God’s Word, and how to move beyond complacent Christianity into a vibrant, passion-filled, all-in, victorious Christian life.
It IS possible to live a godly life in the midst of this dark world. It IS possible to have incredible intimacy with Jesus Christ. It IS possible to know and understand God’s Word.
By reading this book, you’ve taken a step forward. While it may seem like a small step, the five pillars we will explore have the potential to radically change your life, deepen your faith, and give you a foundation to build your life around Jesus.
It sure has in my life and in the lives of countless others like you.
As I’m sure you know, the Christian life is much more than showing up to church on Sundays, doing the occasional devotional, and saying a quick prayer before a meal—our lives are to be centered and focused on Jesus Christ.
The Centrality of Jesus Christ
Jesus is the central point of all of Scripture. Whether you read the Old Testament or New, everything points to Jesus.
While Jesus’ Name never shows up in the text, all of the Old Testament points toward and eagerly awaits His coming. In fact, New Testament writers explain several times that the Old Testament was about Jesus. For example …
Soon after the resurrection, Jesus was on the road to Emmaus with two disciples. They didn’t recognize Him and got into a discussion about the Messiah. Luke writes, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures [referring to the Old Testament]” (Luke 24:27). Jesus walked the two disciples all throughout the Old Testament and showed how it pointed to Him.
Prior to the resurrection, Jesus was in a discussion with the Pharisees. In John 5:39 He declared, “You search the Scriptures [the Old Testament], for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.” The Pharisees were studying the Scriptures with the hope of having eternal life, but Jesus said that the Old Testament, in fact, pointed to Him (the source of eternal life).
Over and over, whether it’s Philip’s encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch (see Acts 8:35), descriptions of how the Prophets of the Old Testament proclaimed Jesus Christ (see Acts 26:22-23; 28:23; 1 Peter 1:10-12; 2 Peter 1:19-21; Hebrews 1:1-3), the unveiling of the mystery hidden for ages and generations (see Colossians 1:25-27; Ephesians 3:4-6), the entire book of Hebrews, or the realization that Jesus has always been the Word made flesh (John 1:1-18)—we can see that the focal point of the entire Bible is Jesus!
And just as all of Scripture and God’s workings in human history center on and point to Jesus Christ, so too our lives must enthusiastically do the same.
The Christian life is all about a Person and His work upon the Cross. So may we …
Cherish Him. Adore Him. Worship Him. Know Him. Believe Him. Trust Him. Yield to Him. Follow Him. Obey Him. Marvel at Him. Suffer with Him. Live unto Him. And die for Him.
And to cherish His Work on the cross. Know it. Reckon it. Yield to it. Believe it. Be transformed by it. Let it free us. Remake us. Renew us. Protect us. Preserve us. Shield us. Acquit us. Redeem us. Wash us. Resurrect us. Seat us in the heavenly place. And supply reason, purpose, and meaning to our lives.
How to have a Christian Life that actually works
The more we build our lives around Jesus Christ (make Him the center), the more we find that the Christian life actually works. But it’s all about focus.
A mentor of mine once told me, “What we focus on grows bigger and stronger in our lives.” I’ve found it to be true.
If I focus on temptation, it’s only a matter of time before I give into it. When I keep my life focused on Jesus Christ and His Word, I begin to have victory over sin, experience the fruit of the Spirit, and find that it’s a lot easier to live the Christian life—for I have found, like Paul, that “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
An old story is told of an Indian Chief who had two dogs. The dogs were going to be pitted against each other in a fight to the death the next week, and everyone was trying to determine who would win. The Indian Chief smiled and said the answer was simple—the winner would be the dog that he fed.
The same is true in our lives. What are we feeding? Are we feeding our spiritual life, or are we feeding sin and selfishness? Remember, what we focus on (feed) grows bigger and stronger in our lives.
5 Pillars of Christian Growth
To mature and progress in our Christian lives, we must be intentional about growing.
Our spiritual lives don’t automatically deepen and develop just because we go to church or read an occasional devotional book. Spiritual lives grow and deepen because we feed them.
What we each need is a spiritual growth plan.
Yet it is important to stress that the Christian life is not about what YOU can accomplish. Rather, it is all about keeping your focus on Jesus Christ and allowing Him, through the Holy Spirit, to do His work in and through you.
These five pillars for spiritual growth are not a slick gimmick or helpful hints to slip into your life when convenient. The truth is, transformation and growth are ONLY possible through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. But these five concepts lay the foundation for a Christ-built life. To build our lives around Jesus Christ, we must allow Him to cultivate a spiritual fervor and focus in our lives.
For a cheesy illustration—the easiest way to bake a cake is in an oven. While you could roast it over a fire, let it sit out on a hot day, or attempt some other varied method of heating your batter, the cake will bake faster in an oven and, in my opinion, will taste better. Similarly, I want the Holy Spirit to create a foundation (an oven, if you will) for spiritual growth in my life. I and countless others throughout history have found that when these five pillars are in place, spiritual growth deepens, matures, and lays a foundation for a Christ-honoring, world-changing life.
While there are far more than five pillars you could build in your life (there are some additional bonus ideas at the end to help), I am convinced that if you allow God to establish these key arenas, you too will soon find that:
- your faith will deepen
- you will be more in love with Jesus than ever before
- you will have a simple system to study, know, and understand God’s Word
- your life will be continually renewed, refreshed, and transformed ever more into His likeness
- your Christian life is becoming more vibrant and victorious as it’s built upon and around Jesus Christ.
Are you ready?
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