<h1>NEW LIFE IN CHRIST</h1> BIBLICAL REFERENCES: Rom. 6:1-4; 15:18-19 CONTENT <ol> <li>Meaning of New Life in Christ</li> <li>The Need for Change (Rom. 6:1-4; 15:18-19)</li> <li>Characteristics of the New Life</li> <li>The Need to Stick to the New Life</li> </ol>   <h2>Meaning of New Life in Christ</h2> New life is a lifestyle that pleases God. It is a life that is built on the fear of God.   <h2>The Need for Change (Rom. 6:1-4; 15:18-19)</h2> According to Paul, anyone who has acquired a new life in Christ will have some virtues that distinguish him from others still in the old life. He also lay emphasis on the sacrament of baptism, a rite during which the convert declares publicly his union with Christ. Paul asks: <em>“do you know that all of us who are baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into his death, so that as Christ was raised from the death by the glory of the father, we too might walk in newness of life”. (Romans 6:3-4)</em> <strong>Baptism</strong> is a sacrament which marks the transition from the old life of sins to the life of holiness. It is done by immersion indicating that one is buried with Christ and by bringing one up from under water, he resurrects with Christ. This is what baptism by immersion symbolizes. The new convert, after being baptized, begins a phase of entirely new life, cutting himself totally from former lifestyles and assuming a new pattern of life modeled after Christ.

<h1>SONSHIP</h1> BIBLICAL REFERENCES: Rom. 8:3, 17, 32; 8:1-39, 4:6,7; Eph. 5:3 CONTENT <ol> <li>Jesus Christ the Son of God (Rom. 8:3, 17, 32)</li> <li>Christians are Also Children of God (Rom. 8:1-39, 4:6, 7; Eph. 5:3)</li> </ol>   <h2>Jesus Christ the Son of God (Rom. 8:3, 17, 32)</h2> Jesus Christ the son of God is the foundation of the Christian faith. Jesus’ sonship of God sets Him apart from the other messengers of God, such as Elisha, Amos, Hosea, and Isaiah. During the annunciation as recorded by St. Luke, the Angel revealed to Mary that the child to be born will be called the son of the Most High (Luke 1:32). At the baptism of Jesus, a voice from heaven introduced Jesus as the son of God. This was repeated at the transfiguration. Jesus also recognized himself as the son of God and on many occasions referred to God as His father. At the raising of Lazarus from the dead, Jesus referred to God as His father (John 11: 45). Also at Gethsemane during his prayer of agony, Jesus called God His father. In the same way on the cross, He referred to God as his father ‘Father into thy hand I commit my spirit’ (Luke 23:46). The gospel of John started with the emphasis on Jesus as the son of God. ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God ...’ This means that Jesus existed as the son of God before incarnation. EVALUATION <ol> <li>Using biblical passages, show how Jesus portrayed Himself as the son of God.</li> <li>Describe the event in Gethsemane in which Jesus called God His father.</li> </ol>