Scripture References:
Ephesians 4: 17-19; 22-31
Matthew 6: 24
1 Peter 1: 14-16
Revelations 3:15-16
 
Lesson:
  “So you just got saved now what are you going to do?” Well you say that I am going to be the best Christian ever! I am going to go to youth camp, read my bible, and surround myself with Christian people. Then reality sits in, and after that week of being on a spiritual high, you start to hang around the same bad crowd. You might think, ” Oh it’s okay I can look at this porn, it’s not like I’m actually having sex”.’I can smoke this one joint and not do it again.” I guess the real question is why are you doing the things that you did before you were saved. It states in 1 Peter 1:14-16: “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance. But as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct; for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy.” We need to stay away from the temptation of the things that we struggled with because we might be tempted to do them while being around them… We have to be on our best behavior. Matthew 6:24 talks about how you can’t be devoted to two slave masters, and how you can’t be slaves to God and money. It’s one or the other.. “Therefore, I say this and testify in the Lord: You should no longer walk as the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their thoughts. They are darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them and because of the hardness of their hearts. They became callous and gave themselves over to promiscuity for the practice of every kind of impurity with a desire for more and more.”-  Ephesians 4:17-19 After giving your life to Christ, you should be a testimony to none believers. But while doing this, keep an eye out for the temptation to go back to the things that you did before you were saved.. Being around the wrong crowd is one of the main reasons why people give in to temptation. Another way to be tempted is even when you are alone.  One of the ways that you can avoid that is surround yourself with Christian brothers who will help guide you in your life and hold you accountable for the decisions that you make or you can journal about it.  In Ephesians 4:22-31 it talks about once you have accepted and allowed Jesus into your life, you are wanting to make a change in your life. When you do that, you are throwing away those bad lifestyles. You don’t need to depend on drugs, sex, or people anymore because you have a relationship with Jesus. With a relationship with Christ, we must hold ourselves to a higher standard. If you were a thief, then don’t  steal. If you were a liar, speak the truth. Now we make mistakes, that’s why we are allowed to repent and ask God for forgiveness. That’s why God sent Jesus to die for our sins Now as we walk through our Christian life, God knows that we will make mistakes. God also knows when you are taking him for a joke. He wants F.A.T. (Faithful, Available, and Teachable) people, and we can’t be that if we are living a double life. In  Revelations 3: 15-16 it clearly states “ I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. How can we different?