Traillblazer Ministries - Missionary to China

All of us have heard from the platform when making an altar call, “it is now time for you to make a commitment to Christ”. All of this has been done for all the right reasons, and of course with in mind that a person will become a follower. I know I have done this in the past too.

Jeremiah 50; 9 (part D) Their arrows shall be as those of a skillful, mighty man; none shall return in vain.(MKJV)

The Lord has given us arrows to use that means we need to see the target, once we have then for us to take aim and fire. If we have been trained and prepared well with sequential and logical teaching our arrow will hit the target.

Q1/ Teaching will place arrows in your quiver. (True or False)

We need to understand the meaning of two words Commitment and Conversion.

Matthew 18:2 And Jesus called a little child to Him and set him in their midst, 3 and said, Truly I say to you, Unless you are converted and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of Heaven. (MKJV)

Q2/ Jesus called for people to be committed. (True or False)

Q3/ Jesus called for people to be converted. (True or False)

Both words are used in Christian literature and in some cases are used incorrectly. Some people have the wrong understanding and definition of theses words which clouds the perspective.

Commitment

The word Commitment does not appear in the MKJV Bible.

Commit is mentioned 46 times in the MKJV

 40 times relating to committing sin.

 6 times as a pledge to give or do something and Christ surrendered His Soul to God.

Committed is mentioned 58 times in the MKJV

 54 times in regards to abomination and Sin

 2 times as action of defense

 2 times for a Calling in God

Committing appears 3 times in the MKJV

 All are in regards to sin.

Committal does not appear in the MKJV

The evidence is overwhelming that the words of commit, committing and committed is in the most parts related to sin, but never is it related to salvation, that does not mean that it is a bad word.

We can see that it is also used for a calling, defense, a surrendering and pledge to do something, but this only happens 10 times out of 107 times.

Psalm 31:5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O Jehovah, the God of truth. (MKJV)

Commitment is an obligation to something, it is a process of committing oneself to make a pledge or give an undertaking to: one person or a group. Also it can be that, I have made a decision to do something or make a change.

Q4/ The word commitment in the Bible in most cases is related to the act of sin. (True or False)

To be committed to something and someone is a good place to start but it shouldn’t end there it needs to develop.

Psalm 37:5 Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. (KJV)

Commitment is the beginning of trusting God and when we Commit our dreams, plans, desires and hopes for our life and ministry to God in prayer and mediation we will see them come to pass in time.

Proverbs 4:26 Ponder the path of your feet, and all your ways will be established. (MKJV)

In the above scripture we see the process of pondering which means to meditating, thinking and to mule over.

Q5/ Taking time to think about any commitment is good for you. (True or False)

Q6/ God will establish our path of life if we commit all our plans to Him. (True or False)

Joshua 1:8 This book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it by day and by night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall act wisely. (MKJV)

It is a big thing for some people to hand over their life to a God they can not see, and I don’t mean salvation. I mean their everyday life where will I go, who will I see, and which Church should I get involved in?

Q7/ There is more to hand over to God than our soul. (True or False)

Ephesians 4:13 And this until we all come into the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full-grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 so that we no longer may be infants, tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine, in the dishonesty of men, in cunning craftiness, to the wiles of deceit. (MKJV)

It is sad to say that some who have not surrendered their personal life over to God have wondered around the Body of Christ looking for a place of fellowship and have fallen into groups who follow heresies. We need to take a certain amount of responsibility for our own Christian walk. It is a disappointment to see people who approach their walk just based on a feeling because they are the first to be trapped in cults.

Q8/ Wondering around the Body of Christ and not settling in a Home Church is not good for us. (True or False)

Some look at a commitment to a local Church based on a Supermarket mentality, I will only take what I want and not what I need. They want the music and the worship but not the teaching because the teaching may bring correction into their life and they don’t want that. They want to make their life difficult and not get set free by sound teaching.

2Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. (KJV)

Q9/ Sound teaching will help a person to overcome personal difficulties. (True or False)

When we attend a church we should see if it is manage according to the word of God. Is it a Church committed to sound teaching and does it have worship that leads you into His presence.

2Timothy 2:2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit the same to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. (MKJV)

Look to see if the leaders are faithful to God’s word and are they faithful to the people. Is the teaching bringing growth is it releasing people into ministry and if it doesn’t question why and possibly move on.

Q10/ We should look at the leader and see if they are teaching sound doctrine. (True or False)

1Timothy 1:18 This charge I commit to you, my son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before about you, in order that you might war a good warfare by them, (MKJV)

Our commitment to local Church must be consistent so that we can grow and develop to the maximum of our potential. One week in this church and one week in that church will not develop a logical sequential teaching in the Christian but produce a flake of snow which will melt under pressure. Lack of commitment is a good indication about a person who has difficulties with submission to leadership.

Q11/ We should attend the same local Church regularly. (True or False)

After a long period of commitment to one local Church we see a change take place in the person, they develop to a place where they become converted into the doctrine of the teachings of Jesus Christ taught in that Church.

This conversion is not to be confused with the conversion we should have experienced at salvation.

Conversion

When we are making an altar call in the local Church for people to come to Christ, we are not calling for commitment to Christ, but we are seeking those who want to experience conversion.

A person could make a commitment to Christ as many have, but is some cases they never come to the place of conversion. The crowed followed Jesus but not all of them became a disciple to Jesus.

Q12/ Jesus asked for people to be converted. (True or False)

The evidence is that 100% of the use of the words convert, conversion, converting and converted is related to salvation.

Is commitment to Jesus wrong? “No”. It lacks potency and does not bring about true repentance. Commitment simply means I will walk with you as long as it works for me and I don’t have to face the difficult issues.

Conversion on the other hand is an act, process, legal standing and our literal state simultaneously.

ACT

The act is that through the presence of the Holy Spirit, a sinner can see the depth of his or her own sins and how that separates them from a loving God. At the same time they see the saving grace of a loving God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ His Son as the atoning sacrifice for sin of man.

This can be termed as the act of Justification, simply meaning, “just if I never sinned”

PROCESS

The process is again by the power of the Holy Spirit. The newly converted saint starts on a journey of Regeneration; this is where the Holy Spirit through the quickening of the word of God brings about steady and progressive change in the believer until the day of resurrection. We all go through the remolding process being shaped into the likeness of Christ

This can be termed as the Process of Regeneration.

LEAGAL STANDING

The legal standing of the newly converted believer is immediately at the moment of salvation. We have been transformed and are now legally in the Kingdom of God seated with Christ. The knowledge of this is librating because we now can confirm that we are set free of sin and we belong to God. Old things have passed away behold all things are new.

Our New Legal Standing

LITERAL STATE

The literal state is that we know by the presence of the Holy Spirit and by what the word of God says. We are saved legally and we are bound for heaven, but we are still on this earth to walk around serving God until we are taken home to with Him. We still need to face temptations knowing that when we have endured and overcome we will receive a Crown of Glory in heaven.

Our New Literal State

Conversion is a more powerful word than commitment and it has all the connotations that God wants to express in a persons salvation. The word of God must strike like a hammer into the heart of man to bring about true repentance, which in turn brings the gift of eternal life.

We do not have to wait for the glory of eternal life to have the knowledge of conversion, but we can have it now through the act, process, legal standing and our literal state which are there instantaneously at the moment of salvation.

Q13/ Conversion is an act, process, legal standing and our literal state simultaneously. (True or False)

Q14/ Converted means to walk away from things when they get difficult. (True or False)

Areas where Commitment is good for us

 To wife or husband for it will for you now

 To your family for it will for you now

 To a local Church for it will for you now

 To a Bible study for it will for you now

 To your job for it will for you now

 To Jesus for it will for you now

 To a Bible teacher for it will for you now

 To a not sin for it will for you now

 To the mission field for it will for you now

 To becoming a servant of God for it will for you now

 Etc.

2Timothy 2:2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit the same to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.18 This charge I commit to you, my son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before about you, in order that you might war a good warfare by them, (MKJV)

There are many things that we can make a commitment too and they will be of great benefit to us and I believe that we should be committed to such things. Some are weakened in their faith by traveling around the different Churches without making a commitment to any one church. Their movement can of course be for many reasons but commitment to one home can be the beginning of healing and deliverance.

Q15/ Our faith can be weakened by going from Church to Church. (True or False)

Ephesians 4:14 so that we no longer may be infants, tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine, in the dishonesty of men, in cunning craftiness, to the wiles of deceit. 15 But that you, speaking the truth in love, may in all things grow up to Him who is the Head, even Christ; (MKJV)

Commitment is good to build maturity, but commitment can’t get us to heaven, although at the end of a Christian’s life we can commit our soul into Gods hands. Giving at the end is the key factor.

Luke 23:46 And crying with a loud voice, Jesus said, Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit. And when He had said this, He breathed out the spirit. (MKJV)

Psalm 31:5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O Jehovah, the God of truth. (MKJV)

1Peter 4:19 Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls in well-doing, as to a faithful Creator. (MKJV)

Q16/ The word Commit in the above three scriptures is related to someone giving some thing to God. (True or False)

Q17/ Commitment to our wife can get us to heaven. (True or False)

The only thing that can get us to heaven is to be converted to follow Jesus walking in a different direction to destruction.

Q18/ God give us salvation when we have been converted to Christ through repentance. (True or False)

Areas where Conversion is good for us

Salvation- It has eternal consequences

Psalm 51:13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways; and sinners shall be converted to You. (MKJV)

As we teach the word of God faithfully, people will be led by the Holy Spirit to repent and this will cause a person to be converted. It must not be by persuasive words, because you may only get a commitment. A person who has come through to conversion will find making commitments easy to handle.

Q19/ The Holy Spirit is very capable of bring someone to repentance. (True or False)

Acts 28:27 For the heart of this people was fattened, and they have heard with their ears dully; and they closed their eyes; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them." (MKJV)

When God hears the heartfelt prayer of repentance He is quick to forgive, heal and save man. Still after all this some may still come to Church via commitment and that shouldn’t be a major problem, because under the teaching of Jesus conversion may still take place.

We are not to judge a person but we should understand and teach the difference between commitment and conversion.

Q20/ A convert to Christ will be a person who finds commitment easy. (True or False)

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