2. Luke 7:44-47

3. Not All Baptized Become True Disciples of the Lord
Matthew 13:18-23
Fall away & give up outward appearance of serving Christ
Never rise above level of being “nominal” Christians
Fall repeatedly into temptation & Struggle year after year
Frustrated with failure to progress

4. Causes of Unfaithfulness & Unfruitfulness
Why do so many fall away from Christ?
Why do so many fail to reach maturity as Christians?
What is involved in true conversion & consecration to the Lord?
What are the elements that produced real disciples: people deeply devoted to Christ?

5. Humility and Penitence
Humility – first principle of spiritual progress Matthew 5:5
James 4:10 - “He will lift you up”
Matthew 5:3 “poor in spirit”
Penitence – humility produces penitence in our hearts
Matthew 3:7,8; 7:7; 5:3-6
Hebrews 11:6

6. Acceptance of God’s Forgiveness
Hear and Believe – John 8:24
Repent – Acts 17:30
Confess Faith – Romans 10:9,10
Baptized – Acts 2:38
Christian who sins:
Repent- 2 Corinthians 7:10
Confess – 1 John 1:9
Pray for Forgiveness- Acts 8:22

7. Must Truly See Ourselves as Forgiven
Looking to the Past – wonder if God can really forgive us
Secret doubts about quality of our own repentance – not see God’s grace/mercy as reality
Looking to the Future – not sure of eventual salvation in heaven
Must Accept God’s Forgiveness emotionally as well as intellectually

8. Must Truly See Ourselves as Forgiven
IF the reality of God’s forgiveness is not fully accepted, there is no way we can have the gratitude & love that should flow from this acceptance
Romans 5:1,2; 8:1

9. Gratitude and Love Gratitude Luke 18:9-14 Acts 9:1-9 1 Timothy 1:12-17
2 Corinthians 5:14,15
Do we take for granted the fact that God loves us?

10. Service and Steadfastness
Matthew 22:36,37
John 14:15
1 Corinthians 15:9,10
1 Corinthians 15:58
Matthew 28:20
Philippians 3:7-11
1 Thessalonians 1:3

11. Service and Steadfastness
2 Timothy 1:12
James 1:12
John 8:10,11
Acts 20:24
2 Peter 1:9-11
1 John 5:3

12. Service and Steadfastness
Luke 7:41-43
Do we Really Love the Lord at a Deep, life-changing level?
Are we taking for granted the fact that the Lord Loves us?
Have we really & truly accepted the Lord’s forgiveness?

13. What About the Depth of our Penitence?
Do we really see the magnitude of what the Lord has Forgiven us? What about the sins he has to continue to forgive us of daily? Humility > Penitence > Gratitude> Love> -- Somewhere along here the reason why our devotion to God is not as Deep as it should be.

14. Until We:
Honestly face our emptiness & brokenness Genuinely accept God’s forgiveness Learn to appreciate God’s grace at a deeper level We will never rise above the level of being “nominal” Christians Always vulnerable to Temptation, Discouragement and Defeat

15. Steps to Real Conversion & Consecration to Jesus Christ
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” These are the things that produce Real Disciples of the Lord These are the Keys to being Faithful Christians