This study was first taught on November 20, 2016

Topic: Before the Acts (2.4)

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Background
After our marathon study on the necessity of the development of the divine nature by a person being discipled, as an essential part of Christian discipleship, and before getting involved in acts for God, we can summarize our study as follows:
1. You cannot be or act like Christ, unless you possess the nature or mind of Christ.
2. God promised that all those who will be called and chosen for His purpose will have the nature of Christ.
3. God made the provision to make it possible for all those whom He has called to have the divine nature.
4. The divine nature is attained through a combination of, abiding in Christ and His word; the operation of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in Christ; and, the yielding of the believer in Christ to the operation of the Holy Spirit in his/her life.
5. Having acquired the divine nature, the believer in Christ must learn, and put to practice, the new life arising therefrom.
6. The divine nature in a believer in Christ also known as the “new man”, can only manifest after the old sinful nature of man which was in the believer in Christ, also known as “the old man” or “the carnal mind” or “the flesh” has ‘died’ or been crucified—an operation that the believer in Christ must submit to the Holy Spirit for.
7. In practical terms, the divine nature is expressed and manifested as we interact with other people in our daily living, and engage in our everyday activities, such as family life, work life, church life, etc.
8. In manifesting the divine nature, there will be challenges along the way. These challenges will come in the form of temptations arising from what people are doing to you. It is expected that having dealt with the old sinful nature along with its passions, affections, and lusts, you will be able to overcome such, and manifest the new life in Christ, with the fruit of the Spirit, as the indicator of this new life.
9. The divine nature is maintained so long as the believer in Christ remains in Christ and His word, and lives and walks in the Spirit.

Scripture Text(s)
Galatians 2:20
Now that we have the nature of Christ, we must express that life in every aspect of daily living, as we interact with other people, regardless of their beliefs, skin colour, nationality, tribe, tongue, gender, socio-economic status, political affiliation, etc. This is not something that can be done with human effort, but rather, it is to be done by faith in the Son of God—that is, by totally depending, trusting, and relying on Christ, every day of your life. Indeed, the old sinful nature (the natural man) has always failed to express the life of Christ in interactions with others, hence, the essence of having the divine nature (the spiritual man)!
Having developed the divine nature, proper Christian discipleship requires that the disciple now live out the life of the new man, which in Christ Jesus, has been created in God, in true righteousness and holiness—and this is the fourth prong of our four-prong approach to Christian discipleship, which must precede the Acts! Interestingly, many people want to perform miracles, signs, and wonders, when they are unable to manifest the divine nature in everyday living. We pray that the Holy Spirit will help us to live out this new life with purpose and understanding.
John 10:30; 14:9-14, 20; 17:21; Proverbs 3:5-6; Philippians 4:6-7, 8-9; Isaiah 11:1-5; John 5:17, 19, 30; Mark 1:35-38; John 7:16-17; Colossians 3:23; 2 Corinthians 5:15, 20; 1 Corinthians 12:1-7; 1 Peter 2:11-17, 18-23; 3:1-6, 7, 8-18; Matthew 5:13-16.

Conclusion
True Christian discipleship must result in the disciple being able to live the life of Christ, or have the life of Christ, lived through him/her. The necessity of the life of Christ lived through us is thus accomplished when we have the divine nature, and through the word of God, and the deeds of the Holy Spirit, we can express that nature in our daily lives, as we interact with other people—God never intended that we will be isolated from the world (John 17:15-16).

It is God’s intention to ensure that the knowledge of Him spreads throughout the world. Thus, the believer in Christ, who has allowed the Holy Spirit to transform him/her into the image of Christ, can thus become the heart and hands of God in a dark, sinful world, manifesting the goodness, forgiveness, and love of God to countless numbers of people, all over the world! And this is where the Acts become significant!

Christian discipleship is thus not an academic discipline culminating and terminating in a certificate; rather, it is the channel or means through which the nature of Christ is worked in the disciple, which then allows God, through the Holy Spirit to manifest His grace upon all of mankind, as disciples interact with them—working miracles where necessary, preaching where it is needed, and teaching as is appropriate (Luke 4:16-21; Acts 10:38). Hence, the Lord Jesus asserted in John 9:4-5 AMP, “We must work the works of Him Who sent Me and be busy with His business while it is daylight; night is coming on, when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the world’s Light.”

Brethren, there is work to be done, but it can only be acceptably done, when we have been properly discipled, and can practically demonstrate the divine nature in our daily interaction with other people, without being enticed by the lure of sin and the world, or offended by the entrapment of Satan’s wiles. Indeed, before the Acts, there must first be a becoming like Christ; and before the manifestation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, there must first be the producing of the fruit of the Spirit! May the Lord help us!

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