
CROSSROADS
INTERNATIONAL BIBLE COLLEGE
We have prepared this guide on how to approach the study of God’s Word so that you may gain the maximum benefit from each study, deepen your relationship with the Lord and strengthen your walk with Him. The study of the Word requires more than just casually reading the material. We need to examine the teachings by looking into each section and challenging ourselves as to whether we have understood what we have read - firstly at an intellectual level, and then at a spiritual level with, of course, the help of the Holy Spirit.
God’s Word has the answer to every problem we will ever face, for it leads us into all truth. Indeed He is sufficient in every situation. But we need to seek Him and His Word with a sincere and honest heart, really desiring to know the truth. We also need to rid ourselves of our biased attitudes and preconceived ideas in order to clearly understand what God is saying.
Firstly we need to separate ourselves, through true repentance, from all sin - for we are a holy people unto God, set aside for His use and His purposes. As we seek His Word diligently, His truths will be revealed to us and written on our hearts. Then as we act on it, the implanted word will produce the salvation of our souls (minds) at a conditional level.
It is impossible to overestimate the importance of being baptized in the Holy Spirit - for it is impossible for Christians to meet all the requirements of the day and walk effectively in their callings unless they are baptized in the Holy Spirit.
In this teaching we will cover various questions which people often raise concerning the Baptism in the Holy Spirit. There has been much controversy surrounding this subject, and it is important to discover or at least reaffirm what God’s Word really teaches on the matter.
Like other vital doctrines, the Baptism in the Holy Spirit has been under much attack from the enemy, with Satan trying continually to surround this doctrine with as much confusion, doubt and unbelief as he can. His purpose in this is to discredit the Spirit Baptism so that people are prevented from knowing the fullness and power of the Holy Spirit. Satan knows that if Believers could fully comprehend and take hold of this promise, his reign on earth would be extremely restricted. So he and his forces work tirelessly to instigate much wrong teaching concerning this subject, examples of which are as follows: “This experience is not for today,” “Speaking in tongues is of the devil,” “The Spirit Baptism passed away with the Apostles,” and so on.
In this booklet we will learn about the term known as “the baptism of regeneration,” more widely known in terms of the phrase “to be born again.” Strangely enough, although every Christian has been through this experience, many have no real concept of what happened to them spiritually when they were saved.
Through this action, we become righteous children of God, and citizens of the household of God. It is important, however, to understand something of the nature of the process by which salvation takes place - for as we grow in understanding, we can also grow in faith.
Christian Doctrine (the word, “Doctrine,” as stated, means literally “teaching or instruction.”) may be defined as the fundamental Truths of the Bible arranged in systematic form. This study is commonly called Theology, which means literally “a treatise or reasoned discourse about God.” (The two terms will be used interchangeably in the following description.)
Theology or Doctrine may be described as the science that deals with our knowledge of God and His relations to man, according to His Word. It treats of all things insofar as they are related to God and the Divine Purposes.
Today, however, the word “disciple” and the word “Christian” can have quite different meanings. If a person is identified as a Christian, it does not necessarily mean that the person concerned is a disciple of Christ - for just being Christians does not automatically make us disciples.
At one time, the words “Christian” and “disciple” were almost synonymous. Years ago, many a person who was a Christian, would also have been a disciple - to some extent. This applied especially at a moral level, in bringing Christian standards to the home, the school and the community in general.
The celebration of communion is an extremely important aspect of Christian worship. This study will focus on the purpose of communion, what it represents, the requirements for partaking of communion and the benefits it provides. Before He ascended into heaven, the Lord gave the Church two New Covenant ordinances - communion and water baptism. And it must be understood that these are not to be voluntary additions or accessories to the Christian life. They are both commanded by the Lord and important for our ongoing spiritual growth.
Through sinning, Adam placed himself and all his offspring in a position which can be likened to that of a criminal. So when Adam separated himself from God by choosing a different path to the one which God had originally given him, he lost the rights heaven had to offer.
Adam would have fully realized who God was, for he communicated with Him on a daily basis, face to face, as we learned previously.
God told Adam not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - but Adam disobeyed God, and in so doing, showed that he was really saying, “No, I’m going to do it my way.” Adam, knowing what God had said, chose to self-rule, as most people in the world are doing today.
The Old Testament sacrifices needed to be done, day after day and year after year. But Calvary’s holy perfect sacrifice brought Atonement to a new level because it was a once and for all time completed sacrifice. It put an end to all sacrifices (Matthew 5:17) by fulfilling the law of sacrifice for man. Through this Atonement, redemption was made possible. Never before had this been the case.
As we have learned, it appears that demons originated from a creation before man - for they are obviously not fallen angels. As we have said, the strongest evidence to suggest that they once had their own bodies actually lies in the fact that they constantly seek to embody (to live in) the flesh of people or animals. Scripture tells us of this, and also shows us that ever since the fall of Adam, a spiritual battle has been raging for the possession of men’s minds, bodies and spirits.