NOTES

50

getting started

IN YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

BOOK 1

GETTING STARTED IN YOUR

RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

What This Booklet Contains

Getting Started in Your Relationship with God 1

Lesson One – What Happened to Me? 2

Lesson Two – How Long Does Salvation Last? 7

Lesson Three – What Happens if I Sin? 12

Lesson Four – What is Prayer? 17

Lesson Five – Is the Bible for Me? 21

Lesson Six – Who Needs the Church? 25

Lesson Seven – what Else is Important? 31

Lesson Eight – How Do I Overcome Temptation? 37

Conclusion 42

What Do These Words Mean? 42

NOTES

49

NOTES

48

GETTING STARTED

IN YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

Congratulations and welcome to the family of God. Everyone

who has trusted in Jesus Christ alone for salvation has been born

again into God’s family. Just as a new baby has many things to learn

about his family, so a new Christian has many things to learn about

his new relationship with God. This booklet will help you to under-

stand many basic truths which you will need to know to grow in your

new life with God. Being a Christian is both challenging and exciting.

So dig in and learn some of the blessings in God’s family.

How To Use This Booklet

You will need a Bible, a pencil, this booklet and some determina-

tion to complete this study. Look up the reference in the Bible. For ex-

ample, John 3:16, “John” is the name of the book in the Bible, “3” is

the chapter in the book of John, and “16” is the verse in chapter 3 of

the book of John. Then answer the question based upon that refer-

ence. You may need to use the table of contents in the front of the Bi-

ble to find the individual books. Remember that the Bible is divided

into two big parts, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These

big parts are further divided into 66 smaller parts called books. The

individual books are divided into chapters and the chapters into vers-

es. Determine to finish the entire booklet. Ask God to help you to un-

derstand His word and to do what it says. May God bless your study

of His Word. It would be helpful to use the New Scofield Reference

Bible in its updated King James test or a similar version to understand

some words and questions in these lessons.

1

LESSON ONE

WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?

Being born into a loving family is a wonderful experience. The Bible

tells us that people who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ have been born

again into God's family. They have received eternal life as a free gift. A

profound change begins within them. They have new life from God.

But how does this come about? What happen to me? We will study

what the Bible says about how to receive eternal life in this lesson.

1A. Eternal Life: It is possible to have

eternal life and to know it

I John 5:11-13

1B. Who gives eternal life (v. 11)?

________________________

2B. Where is eternal life found (v. 11)?

________________________

3B. Who has eternal life (v. 12)?

________________________

4B. Who does not have eternal life (v.12)?

________________________

________________________

5B. Is it possible for a person to know that he has eternal life (v.12)?

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2

Saved—Saved is a form of the word salvation. Being saved in the Bible usually means to be delivered from the eternal punishment of our sins (Acts 16:30-31: Romans 10:13).

Sin—Sin is breaking God’s holy standards. It can be doing what God said not to do such as lying, stealing, commiting murder, commiting adultery, being disrespectful to parents, taking God’s name in vain (swearing), or some other evil thing (Exodus 20:1-17). Sin can also be not doing what God says we should do such as worshipping God or lov-ing others (Matthew 22:37-39). All people are sinners. (Romans 3:10,23) Our sin has separated us from God (Isaiah 59:2).

Temptation—Temptation is leading someone to do something. The New Testament usually uses it in a bad sense to refer to being led to do evil (James 1:13-15)

Trinity—Trinity means tri-unity or three-in-one. The word trinity is not used in the Bible, but it accurately explains how the Bible describes God (Matthew 28:19). God is one Being who exist in three separate Persons of Gather, Son, and Holy Spirit. There is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4; James 2:19). But this one God exists in three distinct and equal persons (Matthew 2:16-17). The trinity is indicated in both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible (Isaiah 42:1; 48:16; Luke 1:35; 2 Corinthi-ans 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2).

Trust—Trust means to place confidence or dependence in someone or something. Trust and faith mean basically the same thing. The Bible tells us to trust in the Lord to be saved (Psalm 2:12; Ephesians 1:11-13), and to keep us until we get to heaven (Proverbs 3:5-; Isaiah 26:3-4).

Will of God—God’s will means according to God’s plan or what God would want (1 John 5:14-15).

Witness—To witness means to tell what one knows about something or someone. Christians are to witness or tell others about the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8).

World—The Bible uses the word world in three major ways. It describes the physical world of earth, water, plants and animals (Acts 17:24), the world of people (John 3:16), and a world system of evil that ignores and actively opposes God (Ephesians 2:2; James 4:4). The evil world system is controlled by the Devil (1 John 5:19—wickedness is literally “the wick-ed one”). The evil world system uses the pleasure, prosperity, and pow-er of the physical and human world to draw people away from God (1 John 2:15-17).

47

Justification—God declares a person to be righteous or justified who has trusted in Jesus Christ to have paid for his sins (Romans 3:24). God is righteous and must punish sin (Psalm 11:4-7). But God is also loving and has paid the penalty for our sins Himself (John 3:16). Jesus, being God, is perfect (1 Peter 2:22), and limitless (Colossians 1:15-17). This means that Jesus’ substitutionary death was good enough and big enough to justify any sinner who trusts in Him (1Peter 3:18). Jesus not only paid for our sin but He also gives His righteousness to those who trust in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). True Christians are justified or declared to be right with God by faith (or trust) in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:28).

Propitiation—Propitiation means to satisfy the righteous demands of God (1 John 1:1-2; 4:10). Jesus satisfied the righteous demands of God when He died on the cross as a perfect substitute for our sins. Jesus has paid for all our sins; past, present, and future. All we must do to be saved is to accept His payment.

Receive—Receive means to take in. Receiving Jesus means to take Jesus as our Savior (John 1:12). Receiving is the same as believing or trusting in Jesus.

Redeem—Redeem means to purchase and set free (Titus 2:14a). Jesus paid the penalty of our sins on the cross, and sets us free from that pen-alty when we trust in what He did (Romans 3:24).

Repent—Repent means to change the mind. The New Testament often uses the word to indicate a change of mind about sin (2 Corinthians 12:21). Repentance automatically takes place when a person trusts in Christ as a Savior (Acts 17:30-31).

Resurrection—Resurrection means to come to life again after being dead. Jesus was raised from the dead never to die again (Revelation 1:18). True Christians will be resurrected never to die again as Jesus was (1 Corinthians 15:20-24; 1Thessalonians 4:13-18).

Saint—Saint means a holy one. It is used to describe true Christians (Romans 1:7; 15:25). All believers are saints (2 Corinthians 1:10). Chris-tians do not earn sainthood because they do good things. Rather, they should do good things because God has made them saints (Ephesians 1:1; cf. 4:1). A saint is not a sinless person, but a saved sinner who has been set apart unto God as God’s possession for God’s service (1 Co-rinthians 1:2; 6:9-11; 19-20).

Salvation—Salvation means to be saved, rescued, or delivered form something. A person who trusts in Jesus Christ has been saved form the eternal punishment of their sins (Romans 10:9; John 3:16). He is being saved from the power of sin to control his life (Romans 6:11-14) and one day he will be saved from the very presence of sin (Rev. 21:27).

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2A. Sin and Separation: People are sinners and separated from God.

Romans 3:9-10, 23

1B. How many people are righteous in God’s Sight (v. 9-10)?

____________________________________________

2B. How many people have sinned (v. 23)?

____________________________________________

(Sin is breaking God’s holy standards such as “Don’t lie”,

“Don’t steal”, “Don’t covet”, “Honor your parents”, and not doing what God says we should do.)

Isaiah 59:2

3B. What has sin (iniquities) done to our relation with God?

____________________________________________

Romans 6:23a

4B. What is the result (wages) of sin? _________________

2 Thessalonians 1:7-9

5B. What happens to people who do not know God through Jesus?

____________________________________________

3

3A. God’s Love and Salvation: God loves us and sent His Son

Jesus to pay for our sins.

John 3:16

1B. How has God shown us that He loves us?

____________________________________________

John 1:1-2, 14 (The “Word” is a name for Jesus)

2B. Who is Jesus (v.1)? ____________________________

I Corinthians 15:3-4

3B. What did Jesus do for us (v. 3)? ____________________________________________

4A. Receiving Eternal Life: Each of us must personally trust in Jesus to save us and take us to heaven.

John 1:11-12

1B. How does a person become a child of God (v.12)?

____________________________________________

(“Receive” means to take in. “Believe” means to know

and to trust in what is known.)

4

Grieve—Grieve means to hurt or to feel sorrow. Our sins grieve God (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Heaven—Heaven is a perfect, happy, glorious, beautiful, and loving place where true Christians go to live with God forever (John 14:1-3; Revelation 21-22:5).

Hell—Hell is a place of fire and torment where the Devil and all others who have rejected God and His salvation through God’s Son Jesus will be condemned forever (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10-15).

Holy—Holy means to be pure from evil or to be separated for service to God. God wants Christians to live holy lives because He is holy (1Peter 1:15-16).

Holy Spirit—The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the trinity of God

(Matthew 25:19). He lives inside of true Christians (1 Corinthians 6:1-20). He convicts people of sin (John 16:7-11). He enables Christians to overcome evil and to do good (Galatians 5:16-23). See Trinity.

Hope– Hope means confident expectation in the New Testament. It is not wishing that something would be true or will take place. It is know-ing that something is true or will take place. Salvation or having eternal life is the subject of the Christian’s hope (Titus 1:2). Christ is the object of the Christian’s hope (Colossians 1:27).

Inquity—Iniquity means sin, wrong or evil (Psalm 66:18; Isaiah 59:2).

Inspiration—The word inspiration in the Bible means God breathed. The inspiration of Scripture means that the very words of the Bible have come from God (2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21).

Jesus Christ—Jesus Christ is the second Person of the Trinity of God ( Matthew 28:19). Jesus is the only begotten (unique, one of a kind) Son of God ( John 3:16), who came to earth as a man (John 1:14), to save people from the penalty of their sins (Luke 19:10), by dying in their place as a perfect substitute (1 Peter 3:18). Jesus is God (John 1:1-3), and is equal with God the Father (John 10:30; 14:9).

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Eternal—Eternal means forever or never ending. God is eternal (Deuteronomy 33:27). Heaven and hell are eternal (Matthew 25:46). People who exist or live in eternity in one of these places.

Faith—Faith means to trust. Faith that saves a person from going to hell is personal trust in Jesus Christ to have paid for our sins by His death and resurrection (Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:8-9)

Fellowship—Fellowship is the warm, personal friendliness of a

relationship (1John 1:5-7).

Flesh—The word flesh is often used in the New Testament to describe the evil desires of our old sin nature (Ephesians 2:1-3).

Forgive—To forgive means to stop holding something against someone. True Christians have had their sins forgiven by trusting in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ in payment for their sins (Ephesians 1:7). Christians are to forgive others of their offenses against them as God has forgiven them )Ephesians 4:32).

Grace—Grace mans unearned favor. God’s grace is special ability to do something that we could not do on our own. God gives unsaved people grace to trust in Jesus Christ to be saved (Ephesians 2:8-9). God gives Christians grace to be like Jesus even through difficulties in life (II Corin-thians 12:9).

Gospel— The word gospel means good news. The word gospel is used in the New Testament to describe the good news that trusting the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ will save a person from the penal-ty of his sins (Romans 1:16, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4).

God—God is the supreme unlimited, perfect Spirit who created, keeps, and brings all things to completion (Genesis 1:1). God is one Being who exists in three distinct Persons of Father, son and Holy Spirit ( Matthew 28:19). There is no other God, nor is there anything or anyone like God (Isaiah 46:9-10). See Trinity.

Good Works—Good works means to do good things like being bap-tized, taking communion, serving in the church, or helping others. Chris-tians are not saved by doing good works, but rather are saved to do good works after they are saved (Ephesians 2:8-10).

44

John 14:6

2B. Is there another way to God than through Jesus?

____________________________________________

Ephesians 2:8-9

3B. Is salvation (being saved) a reward that we can earn by do ing good works (such as being baptized, church member ship, helping others, etc.) or a gift that we receive?

____________________________________________

(“Grace” means unearned favor. “Faith” means trust)

God created people to have fellowship with Him. But sin has separated people from God. This separation leads to eternal separa-tion from God in hell. But God loves us and has sent His holy son Je-sus to earth to die and be raised from the dead to pay the penalty for our sins. Each of us must personally trust in Jesus to save us and take us to heaven.

Our debt of sin has been paid. All we must do is to receive eter-nal life as a free gift.

If you have never truly received the gift of eternal life, of if you are not certain that you have, you can make certain right now. We only have to trust in Christ once to be saved. But there must be that once.

5

Here is a Sample Prayer:

“Dear Lord, I know that I have done things that are wrong. I believe that Jesus died and rose again to pay for sins. I trust in Jesus to save me and take me to heaven. In Jesus name. Amen.”

If you know that Jesus has died to pay for your sins and you trust Him alone to save you and take you to heaven, you have been born again into God’s family. You have received the gift of eternal life! Wel-come to the family of God!

Here is a verse of the Bible that you can memorize which tells about receiving eternal life:

“For god so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlast-ing life” ( John 3:16).

NOTES

6

Born again—Being born again means to have a spiritual birth in addi-tion to one’s physical birth. A person who trust in Jesus as his savior is spiritually born into God’s family even as physical birth brings a person into a human family (John 1:12; 3:3).

Chastise—Chastisement means to be corrected by punishment. God corrects sinning Christians here in this life, not in the next life (1 Corinthi-ans 11:30-32; John 5:24).

Christian—A Christian is a person who trust in Jesus alone for salvation (Acts 11:26). Not Christ and church membership, baptism, good works, or any other personal merit to earn salvation (Titus 3:5-7; Ephesians 2:8-9).

Church—The word church means “ a called out assembly”. It is used in the New Testament to describe a new group of believers which Jesus started (Ephesians 3:1-10). The New Testament talks about the Local church and the Universal church. Local means a particular group, part or place. A Local Church is a particular group of people who claimed to be true Christians, who joined together under the direction of recognized leaders, to regularly worship God according tot the Bible (Philippians 1:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:1). Universal means whole or entire. The uni-versal church is made up of every true Christian and the Lord Jesus Christ. The Universal Church is also called the body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23).

Communion—Communion is a special service in which people who claim to be true Christians eat bread drink grape juice together to re-member that Jesus died to save us and is coming again for us (1 Corin-thians 11:23-26).

Confess—Confess means to say that something is true. A person who confesses Christ as his Savior says that he is trusting in Jesus Christ to have died and risen again to pay for his sins (Romans 10:9-10). Con-fession of sin means to admit to God that I did something wron that I should not have done (1 John 1:9)

Convert—Convert means to turn around. It is often used in the New Testament to mean turning to God to be saved. (Acts 3:19; 11:21 “turned” means converted).

Devil—The Devil is a fallen angel who is in active rebellion to God, who tries to ruin people and keep them from being saved (1 Peter 5:8). Other names for the Devil are Satan (Adversary), serpent, and dragon (Revelation 12:9)

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CONCLUSION

Well, how are you doing in your relationship with God? Do you know that you are saved? Do you know how to confess sin, and be re-stored to fellowship with God? Are you trying to spend 5 minutes talking to God in prayer and 5 minutes listening to God by reading the Bible each day? Have you joined a Bible-believing local church? Have you shown that you belong to Christ by being water baptized, taking com-munion, and actively serving the Lord? Are you taking the steps to over-come temptation and to replace bad habits with good ones? Have you memorized the 8 verses at the end of the lessons?

All this stuff may be new and seem strange but it is important to do. These truths are like basic training. Doing them will protect us from danger, and help us to know God better. Our heavenly Father loves us and has a good plan for our lives. Following these basic truths will help us to grow in our relationship with God. This is just getting started. Keep growing. God has a lot more for us.

WHAT DO THESE WORD MEAN?

Here are some words that are used in the Bible that you should know. There is a brief definition of what these words mean, and a reference in the Bible where the word is used or described.

Baptism—Baptism means to immerse or to put something under or into something else. The Bible talks about Spirit Baptism and Water Baptism. Spirit Baptism is inner work of the Holy Spirit which places a person into the universal church or body of Christ at the moment he is saved (1 Corinthians 12:12-13). Water Baptism is placing a person, who claims to be a true Christian, under water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as an outward sign of identification with Jesus Christ and His Church ( Matthew 28:19; Acts 8:35-38).

Believe—The word believe means to know, accept, as fact, and to trust the fact is true for you. A person must know that Jesus is God’s only son who died and was resurrected to pay for our sins, accept this as truth and trust in what Jesus did in order to be saved (John 3:16; 6:47).

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LESSON TWO

HOW LONG DOES SALVATION LAST?

Being saved from the eternal penalty of our sins is the greatest gift that any of us could ever receive. But sometimes we wonder how long does our salvation last? Will our decision to trust in Christ today keep us saved in the future? Can we lose our salvation? What if I do not feel as if I am saved? The enemy of our soul wants us to doubt our sal-vation. Our only certainty is what God says in His Word. God tells us in the Bible that a truly saved person will be saved for all eternity. We will study reasons that the Bible gives that our salvation will last forever in this lesson.

1A. The Meaning of Eternal Life: God gives eternal life not merely a chance for eternal life.

John 3:36

1B. What does a person do to be saved? ___________________________________________________________________________________________

(“Believe” means to know and to trust in what is know.)

2B. What type of life does God give to believers? __________________

3B. How long does “eternal” life last? ___________________________

2A. The Promise of God: God promises to give eternal life to those who come to Him through Jesus.

Titus 1:1-2

1B. Can God be trusted to do what He says? Why? ___________________________________________

John 6:37b

2B. What will Jesus do to those who come to Him? ________________________________________________

________________________________________________

John 5:24

3B. What do people who believe, receive? ________________________________________________

4B. What will people who believe not come into?

________________________________________________

7

John 10:27-30 (Jesus uses an illustration. He is like a shepherd and believers are like His sheep.)

5B. What three things does Jesus promise believers (v. 28)? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6B. Is anyone able to take a believer away from God (v.29)? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7B. Why can we believe that what Jesus says is true (v. 30)? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8

The Christian is under attack. The world, the flesh and the Devil are all trying to ruin his life with sin. But the Christian also has a new power to overcome temptation to sin. It is a new nature which is trying to obey God, strengthening his mind with Bible, prayer, Christian fellow-ship, and by staying away from the evil.

Here is a verse to memorize to help overcome temptation.

“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is commonTo man; but God is faithful, who will not permit you to be

tempted above whatyou are able, but will with the temptation,

also make the way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it”

(1Corinthians 10:13)

NOTES

41

Matthew 26:41

2B. What did Jesus tell the disciples to do to avoid temptation? _________________________________________________________

Psalm 119:11

3B. What does this verse say will help to keep a Christian from sin? _________________________________________________________

2 Timothy 2:22

4B. What is a good way to escape temptation (v. 23a)? __________________________________________________________________________

(A strong Christian is not one who tries to find temptation to show that he can resist it. That is a fool. A strong Christian recognizes the danger of temptation, and his own weakness and tries to avoid it. Joseph is an ex-ample of this, see Genesis 39:7-12.)

Acts 19-18-20

5B. What did these Christians do to get rid of evil things that they had

(v. 19)? _______________________________________________________

1 Corinthians 15:33

6B. Should a Christian choose to be around people who will tempt him to sin? ________________________________________________________

(God does not want us to separate from an unsaved marriage partner, see 1 Co. 7:12-13. But we may need to change the friends that we choose to be around and some of the places where we go. )

40

3A. The Power of God: God saves believers and God keeps believers saved.

I John 2:1-2

1B. How many sins did Jesus pay for (v. 2)? __________________________

(“Propitiation” means to satisfy the righteous demands of God.)

Titus 2:14a.

2 B. How many sins did Jesus redeem us from? _______________________

(“Redeem” means to purchase and set free.)

Hebrews 10:10-14

3B. How many times did Jesus have to offer Himself to pay for our sins (v. 14)? ________________________________________________________

The good news of the gospel is that God’s Son Jesus has paid the penalty of our sins for us. That payment is applied to our accent when we trust in Jesus to save us. God has provided salvation for us and God keeps us saved.

Ephesians 4:30

4B. What is the seal that god gives to believers? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9

5B. How long does the seal last? ___________________________________

4A. A Changed Life: God changes a believer from the inside out.

2 Corinthians 5:17

1B. What happens to a person when he becomes a Christian? ___________________________________________________________________________

2B. Have you experienced any changes in your life or attitudes?

Please check the ones you have noticed.

__________ New love for God

__________ New love for other Christians

__________ New desire for the Bible

__________ New concern for pleasing God

__________ New desire to tell others about God

__________ New inner peace

__________ New sensitivity to sin

__________ New inner joy

__________ New turning away from bad habits

__________ Other

Eternal life is a gift that we receive not a reward that we earn. Jesus has paid for it. God gives it as a free gift to those who trust in Je-sus to save them. Our salvation rests upon God’s promise not our feel-ings. God saved us and God keeps us saved. Our salvation will last for-ever.

It is good to write down the date that you trusted in Jesus to save you in your Bible. Then if you doubt that you are saved you can turn to that date and remember that God keeps His promise to save all who come to Him through Jesus.

Here is a verse from the Bible that you can memorize that ex-plains that salvation lasts forever.

“And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish

Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28)

10

2A. The Assurance of Victory: The Bible tells us that we can overcome temptation to sin.

1 Corinthians 10:13

1 B. Have others been tempted as we are tempted ? ____________________

2B. Does God limit our temptations? _______________________________

3B. What is the limit that God puts on our temptations? ______________________________________________________________________________

4B. What will God do for us if we can not safely go through the tempta-tions?

________________________________________________________

3A. The Steps to Victory: There are several things which we can do to keep temptation from leading to sin or to escape temptation altogether.

James 4:7

1B. What must a Christian do before he can resist the Devil? _________________________________________________________________________

(“Submit” means to yield to another. A Christian who submits to God tries to do what God says in the Bible or what God would want. )

39

James 1:13-15

6B. Who does not tempt people to sin (v. 13)? ____________________________

7B. From where does temptation come (v. 14)? ________________________

(Lust is intense personal desire. It can be for good or bad. Here it de-scribes the evil desires of our old sin nature. Our old sin nature is often called the flesh n the Bible, see Ephesians 2:1-3).

8B. Lust (evil desire) brings forth(v.15) __________________.

Sin (doing wrong) brings forth (v.15) _________________________.

1 Peter 5:8

9B. What is our adversary (enemy)? ________________________________

10B. What is the Devil like? ______________________________________

11B. What does the Devil want to do to Christians? __________________________________________________________________________________

(The Devil can not take a Christian away form God, see Romans 8:38-39. But the Devil can ruin our fellowship with God, and our testimony for God by getting us to sin. )

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NOTES

11

LESSON THREE

WHAT HAPPENS IF I SIN?

It’s great to be saved. It is wonderful to be born again into God’s family and to have a clean, new life. But what happens if I sin? Will I have to be saved again? No, because salvation lasts forever. Well then, can Christians sin as much as they want and still go to heaven? No, be-cause God corrects disobedient Christians. What if I really trying to please Go and I still do something wrong? How does a Christian handle sin?

Sinning Christians are like disobedient children. They are still part of the family, but they need to be restored to fellowship with their Heavenly Father. We will study what the Bible says Christians need to do to handle sin in this less.

1A. Sin: Sin breaks a believer’s fellowship with God but not his mem-bership in God’s family. (“Sin” is breaking God’s holy standards. It is do-ing something God says is wrong, or not doing what God says we should do.)

I John 1:5-6

1B. What does a Christian lose if he sins (walks in darkness) (v. 6)?

________________________________________________________

(“Fellowship” is the warm, personal friendliness of a relationship.)

Ephesians 4:30

2B. How does a believer’s sin affect God? ____________________________

(“Grieve” means to hurt or to feel sorrow.)

Psalms 51:1-4a

3B. Who is sin always against (v4a)? ________________________________

Psalms 51:10

4B. What does sin do to a believer’s heart? ___________________________

Psalms 51:12a

5B. What element of salvation does sin always destroy? ___________________________

12

LESSON EIGHT

HOW DO I OVERCOME TEMPTATION?

We do not have to be saved very long before we will be tempted to do something wrong. Temptation to sin is a constant struggle. The Bible describes this struggle as a war with evil. God is good. Christians have a new power to do good because they belong to God. Christians will not be perfect until they get to heaven. But the Christian can have a life that is not controlled by sin. Bad habits can be changed. Temptation can be overcome. The Christian can have a better life than he had be-fore he was saved.

We will study some things that we can do to overcome tempta-tion to sin before it overcomes us in this lesson.

1A. The enemies of the Christian: The Christian faces three powerful enemies: the world, the flesh and the Devil which are trying to ruin his life with sin.

1 John 2:15-17

1B. What are we told not to love (v. 15)? ____________________________

2B. Loving the world will take away love for (v.15)?

_________________________________________________________

(The world described here is not the world of water, and plants, and soil upon which we live. The world mentioned here is the world system which ignores and actively opposes God. This world system is controlled by Satan, see 1 John 5:19.)

3B. What are the three ways that the world tempts us to sin (v. 16)?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4B. Briefly describe what a possible temptation would be from each of the three (v. 16)? _________________________________________________________

5B. What does a person have to do to overcome the temptation of the world (v. 17)? _______________________________________________________

(Doing the “will of God” means to do what God says in the Bible or what God would want.)

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“Go ye, therefore, and make all disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20.

NOTES

36

2A. Confession: Confession restores a believer’s fellowship with God.

I John 1:8-9

1B. Do Christians sin (V. 8)? ______________________________________

2B. What are Christians to do when they sin (v.9)? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(“confess” means to say that something is true. Confession of sin means to admit to God that I did something wrong which I should not have done.)

3B. What two things will God do for the Christian who confesses his sin (v. 9)? ________________________________________________________

Proverbs 28:13

4B. What else should a Christian do when he confesses his sin? ________________________________________________________

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3A. Correction: God corrects Christians who refuse to confess and turn away from sin.

1 Corinthians 11:30-32 (The Christians in Corinth were not respectful about the church services. God corrected His disrespectful children. v30).

1B. What three things did God do to correct His disobedient children (v. 30)?

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________(This word :sleep” means to die.)

2B. What can a Christian do to keep from being corrected by God (v. 31)?

________________________________________________________

3 B. What does God do to Christians to keep them from being con-demned as unbelievers will be (v. 32)?

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

(“Chastise” means to correct by punishment. Chastisement happens here in this life for Christians, not in the next, see John 5:24; Romans 8:1.)

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9B. How far does Jesus want our witness to go in the earth? ________________________________________________________

The Bible says, “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so (Psalms 107:2).” Three ways that Christians can confess Christ as their Savior are to be water baptized, to take communion, and to serve Christ by doing good and telling others about Jesus. Water baptism shows that we are trusting Christ to save us. Taking communion reminds us that Jesus died for us and is coming for us. Serving the Lord is being an open wit-ness for Christ to others.

A Christian only has to be baptized once as a believer. We should take communion regularly. Serving the Lord by doing good and witnessing should be done all the time.

Well, how about you? Have you been baptized after you have become a Christian? Are you taking communion? Are you serving the Lord by doing good and telling others about Jesus?

These are three important acts of obedience to Christ that show the world that we belong to Christ.

Here are some verses that you can memorize that tell us to do what Jesus said.

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3A. Service: Christians are to serve the Lord by doing good and telling others how to be saved.

Ephesians 2:8-10

1B. Is a person saved because he does good works (v. 8-9)? _________________________________________________________

(Good works means to do things like being baptized, taking communion, serving in the church or helping others.)

2B. Is salvation a reward that we earn or a gift that we receive (v. 8-9)?_____________________________________________

3B. Why has God left us on earth after we are saved? What does He want us to do (v. 10)? ___________________________________________________

Galatians 6:10

4B. What does God want us to do for others, especially other Christians (household of faith)?________________________________________

5B. Should Christians help other people_________________________

Romans 1:16

6B. What should a Christian’s attitude be toward telling people how to be saved? _______________________________________________

(The gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, 1 Cor. 15:1-4. Telling someone the gospel means that we tell them three things about Jesus.

1. Jesus is God’s holy Son.

2. Jesus came to earth, died and was raised from the dead to pay

for our sins.

3. We can be saved and go to heaven by trusting in what Jesus

did for us.)

7B. What is the message of the gospel able to do for everyone who be-lieves (trusts) in Christ? _______________________________________________

Acts 1:8 (Jesus told His followers this after He rose from the dead and before He ascended into heaven.)

8B. What does Jesus want Christians to do for Him? ________________________________________________________

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4A. Cleansing: God has provided cleansing that restores fellowship for Christians who sin.

1 John 2:1-2

1B. Are Christians allowed to sin (v. 1a)? ____________________________

2B. What has Jesus done to provide for a Christian who would sin (v. 2)?

________________________________________________________

(“Propitiation” means to satisfy the righteous demands of God.)

1 John 1:7

3B. What cleanses a Christian of sin?

________________________________________________________

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Sin is ugly, rotten stuff that pollutes all that it touches. Christians should try to avoid sin, because sin makes us dirty. It hurts God. It breaks our fellowship with God. And it brings us under the correction of God.

Jesus’ death will keep Christians from eternal punishment for sin. Confessions of sin to God will restore a Christian’s broken fellowship with God.

How does a Christian handle sin? He confesses it. Here is a verse that you can memorize that explains how a Christian is to handle sin.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

NOTES

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2A. Communion: Christians are to eat bread and to drink grape juice in a special service to remember that Jesus died to save us and is coming for us. This special service is called communion (1 Cor. 10:16), the Lord’s Table (1 Cor. 10:21), and the Lord’s supper (1 Cor. 11:20).

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

1B. Who started the communion service — the Lord, the Apostle Paul, or the Corinthian church (v. 23)? ________________________________________

2B. What does the bread symbolize or represent (v. 24)? ______________________________________________________________________________

3B. What does the cup of grape juice symbolize or represent (v. 23)? _________________________________________________________

4B. How “often” should we have communion (v. 26)? _________________________________________________________

5B. What does communion “show” (v. 26)? __________________________

6B. How long should we continue to have communion services (v. 26b)?

________________________________________________________

1Corinthians 10:16 (The word “communion” means fellowship or being closely associated with someone. Taking communion is an outward sign that a person belongs to Jesus and is part of the body of believers, the church.)

7B. Should unsaved people take communion? _______________________________ Why?_____________________

_________________________________________________________

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Acts 8:12

8B. What did the people do after they believed in Jesus? _____________________________________________________________________________

Acts 8:35-38(This Eunuch was a government official from the country of Ethiopia.)

9B. What did Philip ask the Eunuch before he would baptize him (v. 37)?

________________________________________________________

10B. What did the Eunuch have to do before he could be baptized (v. 37)?

________________________________________________________

11B. Would Philip gave baptized the Eunuch if the Eunuch had not be-lieved in Jesus Christ as His Savior (v. 37)? ________________________________

12B. Does this tell us that a person must be saved before he is bap-tized?

__________________________________

Romans 6:3-4

13B. Baptism identifies a Christian with what three things that happened to Jesus? ________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

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LESSON FOUR

WHAT IS PRAYER?

Being able to talk to others is a great gift. Christians have the privilege of talking with God. Imagine, the God of the universe not only allows us to talk with Him , but He wants us to talk with Him. God is not lonely, but He loves us and wants to help us. God understands our problems and inner needs. He cares about our concerns, and He can help us. Talking with God is called prayer.

We will study some of the things that the Bible says about prayer in this lesson.

1A. The Privilege of Prayer: Christians can talk directly to God.

Hebrews 4:14-16

1B. Where is Jesus now (v. 14)?____________________________________

2B. Does Jesus understand our needs (v.15)? _________________________

3B. Why does Jesus understand our needs (v. 15)? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4B. Can a Christian talk directly to God (v. 16)? _______________________

5B. What two things can we expect to get when we pray (v. 16)?

________________________________________________________

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2A. The Promise of Answered Prayer: God promises to answer our prayers.

Jeremiah 33:3

1B. What does God promise to do if we pray? ___________________________________________________

Matthew 7:7-8

2B. What does prayer change? __________________________________

3A. The types of Answers to Prayer: God usually answers prayer in one of three basic ways—”yes,” “no,” and “wait.”

Matthew 7:9-11

1B. What kinds of answers does god give to the prayers of His children (v. 11)?

___________________________________________________

2B. How would God probably answer a request for something that He knew would be bad for a Christian? ______________________________________

3B. How would God probably answer a request for something that would be better at a later time? _____________________________________________

4A. Some Hindrances to Prayer: Praying with sin in our life, or for the wrong reason, or for the wrong thing may keep our prayers from being answered “yes”!

Psalms 66:18

1B. What will sin (iniquities) in my heart do to my prayers? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________

James 4:3

2B. What is wrong with this type of prayer? ___________________________________________________

1 John 5:14-15

3B. To what type of prayer does God always say “yes”? ___________________________________________________

(God’s “will” means what God would want.)

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LESSON SEVEN

WHAT ELSE IS IMPORTANT?

Trusting in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as pay-ment for our sin is all anyone needs to do to be truly saved (John 3:36). Prayer, Bible study, and being an active part of a Bible-teaching local church will help a Christian to grown in his relationship with God. There are some other important things which our Lord tells us to do such as being water baptized, taking communion, and serving the Lord by doing good and telling others about Jesus. Christians do not need to do these things to be saved. But we should do these things because Jesus told us to do them, and doing them tells other people that we belong to Je-sus. We will study three important things that Jesus told us to do in this lesson.

1A. Water Baptism: Christians are to be baptized by being put under water and brought up again in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit to show that we are trusting in Jesus to save us.

Matthew 28:18-20

1B. Who is speaking in these verses (v 18)? __________________________

2B. How much authority or power does Jesus have (v. 18)? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3B. What are three things that Jesus tells His followers to do (vv.19-20)?

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(The word “teach” in verse 19 literally means to make disciples. “Baptism” means to immerse or to put under. Being baptized in water is an outward sign of a person’s inner trust in Jesus to save him.)

4B. Does Jesus want His disciples (Christians, people who are saved) to be baptized (v. 19)? _________________________________________________

5B. Is what Jesus tells us to do important? ____________________________

6B. Should Christians be baptized? __________________________________

7B. In whose name should a Christian be baptized (v. 19b)? ________________________________________________________

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Here is a verse to memorize which tells us to be a faithful part of the local church:

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the More, as ye see

the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25)

NOTES

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5A. Instruction on Prayer: Prayer should be regular, about anything, and in Jesus’ name.

1 Thessalonians 5:17

1B. How often should a Christian pray? _____________________________

2B. Does God have office hours (can we only pray at certain times and places)? ___________________________________________________

3B. Do we have to have our eyes closed or be in church to pray? ___________________________________________________

Philippians 4:6-7

4B. What are we told to do (v. 6)? __________________________________

(‘Careful” means to be full of cares, anxiety, or worry.)

5B. What are we told to do with our worries (v. 6)? ___________________________________________________

(“Supplications” means making humble requests.)

6B. What will keep our heart and mind when we pray (v. 7)? __________________________________________________

John 14:13-14

7B. In whose name should we pray? ________________________________

(To pray in “Jesus’ name” is to pray by our relationship to Jesus for what Jesus would want. )

Prayer is as important as breathing to the Christian, and it should be just as natural. It is good to have a regular time when we try to talk to God alone. It is also important to talk to God in our hearts throughout the day. Prayer keeps our lives in touch with God. Prayer changes our problems and brings peace to our troubled heart. Prayer is a great privi-lege that we should use everyday.

How’s your prayer life? Does God hear from you as He should? Set a time (preferably first thing in the morning) and get alone to talk with God for 5 minutes each day. Thank God for saving you, pray for someone who needs to be saved, and tell God your needs, concerns and joys. Regular prayer will change your life.

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Here is a verse that you can memorize that commands Chris-tians to pray.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and

Supplications with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. “ ( Philippians 4:6).

PRAYER REQUESTS

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(“Join” means to bind closely together or to unite.)

5B. Do you think people knew who had joined the church and who had not (v. 13)?

_______________________________________________________

6B. Should Christians join a local church today? ________________________________________________________

1 Corinthians 16:1-2

7B. What is the Apostle Paul telling the church about (v. 1)? ______________________________________________________________________________

(“Collection” describes Christians giving money to the Local Church)

8B. What other churches did Paul also tell about giving (v. 1)? ____________________________________________________________________________

9B. What day of the week were the Christians to give money (v. 2)? ______________________________________________________________________

10B. What day of the week did the Christians meet together to worship as a church (v. 2)? __________________________________________________

11B. How were Christians to know how much they should give (v. 2)?

________________________________________________________

(The word “prosper” means money made by work or business. It refers to financial income.)

The church belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ. The church is a unity of all true Christians and Jesus. The universal church is seen by the local church. Jesus wants Christians to attend, join, and give to a local church. But be careful. Not every church believes or tries to follow the Bible. Pick a church where the Bible is taught, and where people are told to be saved by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ alone.

How about you? Do you feel as if your relationship with God is growing cold? Are you embarrassed to tell others that you are a Chris-tian? Becoming part of a Bible-teaching local church will strengthen your relationship with God and your witness to others. We need the church. Why not decide today to find a good local church, or if you have a good local church, to become a member there and faithfully attend and give to support it.

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5B. Who are the two groups of leaders in the church at Philli which Paul mentions? _____________________________________________________

4A. The Christian and the Local Church: God wants Christians to be be part of a Bible-believing local church.

Hebrews 10:23-25

1B. What does this verse tell us to do 9v. 23)? ______________________________________________________________________________________

(Profession of faith means to openly declare one’s faith.)

2B. What does this verse tell us not to stop (v. 25)? ______________________________________________________________________________

(“Forsake” means to abandon or to quit. “The assembly” describes Christians coming together for church.)

3B. What is one thing that a Christian should do to openly profess his faith in Christ (v. 25)?_________________________________________________________

Acts 5:11-13

4B. What were the unsaved people afraid to do with the Christians in the church (V. 13)? __________________________________________________

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LESSON FIVE

IS THE BIBLE FOR ME?

You may be wondering, “Is the Bible for me?” Yes! The Bible is for you. The Bible is God’s message for people. God loves us and has many important things to tell us that we need to know. So He wrote them down in a book for us to read. Prayer is talking to God. Reading the Bi-ble allows God to talk to us. The Bible is as important to a Christian’s relationship with God as food is to the body. The Bible tells us how to be saved and go to heaven, and how to live here until we go there.

We will study some of the important things that we need to know about the Bible in this lesson.

1A. The Bible is the Word of God: The Bible is the true message from God to people.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

1B. Where doe the Bible (Scripture) come from? ______________________

(“Inspiration” means “God Breathed.” This means that God spoke the words of the Bible.)

2B. How much of the Bible (Scripture) is from God? ___________________

3B. What are four things that the Bible is good for (v. 17)?

___________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

2 Peter 1:20-21 (Prophecy is receiving a direct message from and deliv-ering it without error. “ Prophecy of the Scripture” is describing how the Bible was written.)

4B. How did the men who wrote the Bible know what to say (v. 21)? __________________________________________

1 Thessalonians 2:13

5B. Is the Bible the word of men or the word of God? __________________________________________________

How is the Bible described? ______________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

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John 17:17 (This is Jesus’ prayer for people who would trust in Him.)

6B. What does Jesus think about the word of God (v. 17b)?

__________________________________________________

2A. The Bible is powerful: God uses the Bible to change peo ple’s lives.

1 Peter 1:23

1B. What does God use to help people to be saved (born again)? ____________________________________________

1 Peter 2:2

2B. Milk is necessary for babies to grow just like ___________ is nec-essary for Christians to grow.

Psalms 119:9

3B. What type of change will hearing and obeying (“taking heed to”) the Word of God produce in a person’s life? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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3A. The Local Church: A local church is a particular group of Christians who meet together as a church. Local means a particular group, part or place. A local church is a group of people who claim to be true Christians, who join together, under the direction of recognized leaders, to regularly worship God according to the Bible. A group meeting for Bible study is not the same as a local church.

2 Corinthians 1:1

1B. In what city is the local church to which Paul is writing? _____________

2B. In the church in the city of Corinth a part of the universal church? _________________________________________________________

3B. Tell why. __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________

Philippians 1:1

4B. Name the three groups to whom Paul write this letter? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

(“Saint” means holy one. Saint is another name for true Christian.)

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Ephesians 5:29-30 (The unity between Christ and Christians in the uni-versal church is like the unity between the parts of a person’s body with it’s head)

1B. Do Christians belong to Christ (v. 30)? ___________________________

2B. How are Christians described (v. 30)? _________________________________________________________

3B. What is the body of Christ called (v. 29b)? ________________________

1 Corinthians 12:12-13 (The subject of these verses is the body of Christ or universal church.)

4B. How are people place into the body of Christ or universal church (v. 13)?

________________________________________________________

(Spirit baptism is not water baptism. Water baptism is placing a person who claims to be a true Christian under water as an outward sign of identification with Jesus Christ. Sprit baptism is an inner work of the Holy Spirit which places a person into the universal church or body of Christ at the moment he is saved.)

5B. How many true Christians are baptized by the Holy Spirit (v. 13)? ________________________________________________________

6B. How many true Christians have the Holy Spirit (v. 13)? ________________________________________________________

7B. How many true Christians are placed into the body of Christ or universal church (v. 12)? _________________________________________________________

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Psalms 119:11

4 B. Hiding the Word in your heart (or memorizing verses of the Bible) will help to keep a Christian from ______________________________________

Psalm 119:105

5B. A light gives us direction because it helps us to see the right way in the dark. How is the Bible (the Word of God) like a light? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3A. The Bible is necessary: God wants believers to read and to obey the Bible.

Acts 17:10,11

1B. What did the people in the city of Berea do when Paul told them about Jesus? ________________________________________________________

2B. How often did these people study the Bible (“search the Scrip-tures”)?

________________________________________________________

James 1:22

3B. Is it enough to only hear the Bible? ______________________________

4B. What does god want us to do when we hear the Bible? ________________________________________________________

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John 14:15 (The “commandments” of Jesus are the things that He told us to do in the Bible.)

5B. How so we show Jesus that we love Him? _____________________________________________________________________________________

Wouldn’t it be great to receive a direct message from God?

Imagine, God telling us that He loves us, how He wants us to live, and what’s going to happen to us in the future. Well God did just that! He wrote down what He wanted us to know and give it to us in a book called the Bible. The Bible is God’s true message to people. Reading the Bible will help us to know what God says. Obeying the Bible will help us to do what God says. Reading and obeying the Bible will show us the difference between right and wrong, and it will help us to do what is right. Our love for God is demonstrated by the way we obey the Bible.

Do you read the Bible? Reading the Bible is letting God talk to us. We need to hear from God every day. Set a time (preferably first thing in the morning) and get alone to let God talk to you through the Bible for 5 minutes each day. You may try to read one chapter during that time. Ask God to point out something that you need to know through your reading.

Here is a verse that you can memorize that describes the im-portance of the Bible:

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (1

Timothy 3:16).

NOTES

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LESSON SIX

WHO NEEDS THE CHURCH?

Who needs the church? We do! A Christian who does not attend church is like a piece of wood that is removed from the fire. That piece of wood would burn brightly with other pieces of wood in the fire. But alone it’s flame will flicker and grow cold. A Christian who attends church will be encouraged to love the Lord and to serve Him. A Christian who chooses to stay away will grow cold to God. Being a part of a Bible teaching local church is God’s plan for Christians. We will study several important things about the church in this lesson.

1A. Christ and the Church: The church was begun for Christ and be-longs to Christ.

Matthew 16:16-18 (Notice Jesus’ relationship to the church.)

1B. Who is speaking in verse 18 where it says, “ I will build my church” (v. 18)? ________________________________________________________

2B. Was the church God’s idea or man’s idea (v. 18)? ______________________________

3B. Who started the church (v. 18)? _________________________________

Ephesians 5:23-25

4B. Who is the Head (the leader, the one in charge) of the church (v. 23)?________________________________________________________

5B. Who is the church to obey (v. 24)? ______________________________

6B. How does Jesus feel about the church (v. 25)? ______________________________

7B. What did Jesus do for the church (v. 25)? __________________________________________________________________________________

2A. The Universal Church: Every true Christian is united with Christ and other true Christians in the universal Church or Body of Christ. Uni-versal means whole or entire. The universal church is made up of every true Christian and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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