Breaking Ground: A Six-Week Foundational Study for New Christians

By B. J. Condrey

Written primarily for new Christians, this discipleship-oriented book is designed to help people lay a biblical foundation in six weeks. In Psalms 11:3, David wrote, "If the foundations are destroyed, what will the righteous do?" A solid, biblical foundation is key to long-term spiritual success. With this goal in mind, this book is uniquely formatted to encourage the reader to interact with the Bible, spend time with God daily, meet with a mentor or small group, and explore topics that are vital to cultivating a biblical worldview.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Release date: Aug 21, 2019
• ISBN: 9781532678790

B. J. Condrey

Dr. B.J. Condrey has a B.A. in both Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Missouri-KC, an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Southern Mississippi, and a Ph.D. in Ethics & Practical Theology from the University of Edinburgh. He served as a youth, college, and small group pastor in the local church for over 12 years. Currently, he serves as Faculty Chair of the Bible Department at Enlightium Academy while also teaching courses in both Philosophy and Ethics at Pearl River Community College and Hutchinson Community College. In his spare time, he enjoys writing, biking, fly fishing, board games, disc golf, and spending time with family and friends. He also appreciates a good cup of coffee.

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Breaking Ground

A Six-Week Foundational Study for New Christians

B. J. Condrey

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Breaking Ground

A Six-Week Foundational Study for New Christians

Copyright © 2019 B. J. Condrey. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical publications or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Write: Permissions, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3, Eugene, OR 97401.

Resource Publications

An Imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers

199 W. 8th Ave., Suite 3

Eugene, OR 97401

www.wipfandstock.com

paperback isbn: 978-1-5326-7877-6

hardcover isbn: 978-1-5326-7878-3

ebook isbn: 978-1-5326-7879-0

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.comThe NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

When indicated, Scripture quotations are from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

When indicated, Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible®(NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Manufactured in the U.S.A.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Tips Before You Get Started

Key

Chapter 1: The Beginning

Chapter 2: What Went Wrong?

Chapter 3: A Real Enemy

Chapter 4: God’s Solution

Chapter 5: By Grace, Through Faith

Chapter 6: New Creation

Chapter 7: New Identity

Chapter 8: Time with God

Chapter 9: Prayer

Chapter 10: Worship

Chapter 11: Reading the Bible

Chapter 12: Hearing God

Chapter 13: Trusting God

Chapter 14: Obedience

Chapter 15: Repentance

Chapter 16: Who is the Holy Spirit?

Chapter 17: Role of the Holy Spirit

Chapter 18: Fruit of the Holy Spirit (Part 1)

Chapter 19: Fruit of the Holy Spirit (Part 2)

Chapter 20: Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Chapter 21: Church: Hope

Chapter 22: Church: Belonging

Chapter 23: Church: Action

Chapter 24: Church: Giving

Chapter 25: Church: One Another

Chapter 26: Biblical Worldview

Chapter 27: Extravagant Giving

Chapter 28: Heart of a Servant

Chapter 29: Make Disciples

Chapter 30: Sharing the Gospel

Bibliography

To my precious Daddy, who suddenly and unexpectedly died before this book made it to print. You were so proud. With this book, I celebrate your beautiful life. You were a passionate man with a servant’s heart, a fun and faithful husband, an ever-present and encouraging Daddy, a great granddad, a relentless pastor, and a great preacher. You are with Jesus now, the one you loved and served with your whole heart. You are so desperately missed, but we will see you soon.

To Billy Martin—a special mentor, spiritual father, and friend—who also suddenly and unexpectedly died during the writing of this book. One of my only disappointments in publishing this book is that I cannot hand you a copy, give you a hug, and say, Thank you.

Acknowledgments

First and foremost, I would like to thank my wife, Allison, for encouraging me to follow the deep desire to write. Your wisdom, encouragement, input, and patience with me have been invaluable. This book would not have been written without you. I love you.

Second only to my wife, I would like to thank my mom and dad for always believing in me. You have always encouraged me to pursue everything that God has placed in my heart. Never once have you laughed at a silly dream of mine. You listen, fan the flames, and tell me to take the leap. I am so thankful for your friendship and support. So much of what you have taught me is in this book.

I also want to say a special thanks to Pastor Allen Hickman in Picayune, Mississippi. When I told you that I would like to write a book for new Christians at our church (I was on staff as a pastor at the time) rather than use a book already written, you agreed. You allowed me to work on the initial draft of the book during office hours. Thanks for giving me a thumbs-up and for allowing me to serve on your staff.

A special thanks also goes to Todd Goodwin, who has helped me with my cover art for every book that I have self-published in the past. You have always done your best to make my books look good and, in this day and age, this is of the utmost importance.

I also must mention Dr. Dan Finley. Dan, thank you for taking me under your wing during my last couple of years on staff at RLM. You have been a spiritual father to me and always point me to Jesus.

Last but not least, thank you Wipf and Stock for believing in me and giving me a chance to do what I love. Also, I want to say a special thank you to Matt Wimer, the assistant managing editor, for answering so many of my questions along the way.

Introduction

(Including a Brief Word to Pastors)

This book is written for new Christians and Christians who do not have a strong biblical foundation. In Psalms 11 : 3 , David wrote, If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? ¹ When construction workers erect a building, they work in vain if they build upon a faulty foundation. In time, no matter how nice the finishing, all will crumble. Your walk with Jesus Christ is no different. This book has been designed to help you lay a solid biblical foundation.

How do we love and follow a God that we do not know? How do we live obediently if we do not know what he has said? How can we know the difference between God’s voice, Satan’s voice, and the thoughts in our own head? Questions like these and more require that every follower of Jesus know how to open the Bible, enjoy God’s presence, hear his voice, and obey. Francis Chan wrote, Somehow many have come to believe that a person can be a ‘Christian’ without being like Christ. A ‘follower’ who doesn’t follow.² There are too many people in the church today who have not been transformed by the Jesus who they claim to trust and serve. When you said yes to a relationship with God by trusting in Jesus Christ, it was only the beginning. Think of this initial decision as stepping over the threshold into the house of faith. Once inside, you are still only in the foyer. The entire house now lies open before you.

Whether you have grown up in church or have never set foot in one, this book is for you. You are not expected to know anything. I am starting from scratch. With this in mind, I have designed this book to help you cultivate the invaluable habits (i.e., a spiritual discipline) of spending time with God on a daily basis, reading the Bible, praying, applying the truth to your own life, and talking with another believer about spiritual issues.

I know that discipleship does not happen by merely reading information in a book. However, a book like this can play a pivotal role in the process. God once told Hosea, an Old Testament prophet, My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.³ There are certain theological truths as well as habits (what we call spiritual disciplines) that need to be put into the foundational concrete of your existence. As you pass through these pages, I pray "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may