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7-Day Devotional: New Life in Jesus Day 4 – You Are God’s Child Text: Romans 8:15 _“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’”_ When you are born again, God does more than forgive you. He adopts you. Adoption means He takes you from the orphanage of sin and places you into His family forever. This is not based on your behavior. It is based on Christ’s work and God’s grace. Ephesians 1:5 says, “He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ.” The Spirit of God gives you a new relationship with God. You are no longer a slave living in fear, trying to earn His love. You are a child who can call Him “Abba, Father.” “Abba” is an Aramaic word like a small child saying “Daddy.” It means close, personal, loving relationship. This does not mean God will spoil your sin. A good father disciplines Hebrews 12:6. But discipline proves you are His child, not that you lost your place. John 1:12 says, “But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” You do not have to beg God to love you. In Christ, you are already His child. A chief adopts a poor orphan from the village. The child does not work to become part of the chief’s family. The chief’s word makes it so. Now the child eats at the chief’s table and bears the chief’s name. That is you with God the Father through Christ. Reflection: Do you live like a fearful slave trying to please God, or like a loved child resting in your Father’s care? What would change if you truly believed you are God’s child today? Prayer: “Heavenly Father, thank You for adopting me through Jesus Christ. Forgive me for living in fear like a slave. Teach me to cry ‘Abba, Father’ with confidence. Help me live as Your child who trusts, obeys, and rests in Your love. Amen.”

I John 2:6 NKJV [6] He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. https://bible.com/bible/114/1jn.2.6.NKJV

7-Day Devotional: New Life in Jesus Day 3 – You Have Eternal Life Text: John 10:28 _“I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”_ Reflection - Eternal life is not something you earn after you die. Jesus said, “I give them eternal life” — present tense. The moment you repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you pass from death to life. John 5:24 says, “Whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life.” This life is “eternal” because it comes from the eternal Son of God. It does not depend on your performance. It depends on Christ’s finished work on the cross and His resurrection. Titus 3:5-7 says He saved us “by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit… so that being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Jesus also promised security: “no one will snatch them out of My hand.” Salvation by grace means God keeps you, not just you trying to hold on to God. Your faith may be weak, but Christ is strong. He holds you. You do not have “a chance” at heaven. If you are in Christ, you have eternal life right now. A child holds his father’s hand while crossing a busy road. The child may stumble, but the father’s grip is firm. The child is safe not because he holds tight, but because his father holds him. That is how Christ keeps you. Question for reflection: Do you rest in Christ’s promise of eternal life, or are you trying to earn God’s love by your works? What fear about your salvation do you need to bring to Jesus today? Prayer: “Lord Jesus, thank You for giving me eternal life as a free gift. Thank You that I am safe in Your hand. When I doubt, remind me that Your grip is stronger than my weakness. Keep me trusting You alone until You call me home. Amen.” 1. Scripture as final authority 2 Tim 3:16 2. Salvation by grace through faith alone Eph 2:8-9 3. Perseverance of the saints – Christ keeps those He saves John 10:28-29 4. Assurance based on Christ’s work, not human effort 1 John 5:11-13

Masiku 7: Umi Upya mwa Yesu Lisiku 3 – Mli ni Umi Wangaliŵa Nkhani: Yohane 10:28 _“Ngukuwapa umi wangaliŵa, nipo nganaŵe ngasikujonanga, soni nganakusumula munyumba jangu.”_ Kuliganisyaga - Umi wangaliŵa nngawa chinhu chiŵajipata pakwawula. Yesu jwasasile, “Ngukuwapa umi wangaliŵa” — paŵalipano. Ndaŵa jiwulapile ni kukulupilila Ambuje Yesu Klistu, wajilokwisye kulola kwa umi. Yohane 5:24 jwasasile, “Jwawupikana lisyu lyangu, ni kukulupilila Jwalakwe ŵannele, ali ni umi wangaliŵa.” Umiwu ni “wangaliŵa” ligongo ukutyoka kwa Mwana wangaliŵa wa Mlungu. Ngakulikamula ni yamtendaga. Ukulikamula ni masengo ga Klistu gagaŵagaŵalile pa mtanda ni kuyuka kwakwe. Tito 3:5-7 jwasasile ŵatukamulile “ni kogaŵa kwa kubelekwa upya ni kulandulila kwa Mchelenje Jwetu… kuti, patuyiche ŵakwete ngani ya chisungu chakwe, tukawulolela pa chikamuchilo cha umi wangaliŵa.” Yesu jwasasile chitetezo: “nganakusumula munyumba jangu.” Kupulusigwa ni chisungu kutyochele Mlungu jwakuŵika, nngawa wejo kujesima kugamba Mlungu. Kukulupilila kwaŵe ngakukombole, nambo Klistu ali ŵamachili. Jwalakwe ŵakugamba. Nngawa ni “mpata” wajilokwisye kwinani. Ndaŵa muli mwa Klistu, mli ni umi wangaliŵa paŵalipano. Mwana agamba chanja cha babaye pakuloka msewu wa magalimoto. Mwanajo nganaŵe ngakukombole, nambo kugamba kwa babaye ali ŵamachili. Mwanajo ali ŵachitetezo nngawa ligongo agamba mwamachili, nambo ligongo babaye jwalakwe ŵakugamba. Myoyo Klistu ŵakukugamba. Swali lya kuliganisya: Kodi ukulola pa malagano ga Klistu ga umi wangaliŵa, kapena ukuyesya kupata chisungu cha Mlungu ni masengo gaŵe? Kodi woga wuli wakutendela umi waŵe wawutenda kubweleta kwa Yesu sono? Lupando: “Ambuje Yesu, asante ligongo nipele umi wangaliŵa mpela chipo chaulere. Asante kuti nguli ŵachitetezo munyumba jaŵe. Paŵaliji nganukayikile, ndukumbuusye kuti kugamba kwaŵe kuli ŵamachili kupunda ukombole wangu. Undigambe ni kukulupilila wejo mpaka unducheje kunyumba. Amina.” Nkhani jikulungwa: 1. Lisyu lya Mlungu ni ulamusi wamalisye 2 Tim 3:16 2. Kupulusigwa ni chisungu mwa kukulupilila pe: Efe 2:8-9 3. Kupikana kwa ŵajwela - Klistu ŵakugamba ŵaŵapulusile Yohane 10:28-29 4. Chitetezo chilikamula pa masengo ga Klistu, nngawa yeso ya muntu -1 Yohane 5:11-13

7-Day Devotional: New Life in Jesus: Day 2 – You Are a New Creation Text: 2 Corinthians 5:17 _“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”_ Salvation is not God improving your old life. It is God giving you a new life. The moment you repent and trust Jesus Christ alone for salvation, God makes you a new creation. Ephesians 2:8-9 reminds us this is by grace through faith, not by works. “Old has passed away” means your life before Christ — the guilt, the slavery to sin, the empty religion — is gone in God’s sight. Romans 6:6 says, “We know that our old self was crucified with Him.” You are not the same person anymore. “Behold, the new has come” means God gives you a new heart, new desires, and new power through the Holy Spirit. Ezekiel 36:26 promises, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.” You now have new love for God’s Word, new hatred for sin, and new hope in Christ. This new life is not perfect yet, but it is real because it comes from God. You do not become a Christian by trying harder. You become a Christian because Christ makes you new. A dry maize stalk is cut down and burned. But from the same ground, new green shoots come up after the rain. The old stalk is gone. The new plant is not the old one patched up. That is you in Christ — old life gone, new life given by God. Reflection: What “old thing” from your past is God calling you to leave behind today? Do you see any evidence of new desires for God in your heart? Prayer: “Lord Jesus, thank You for making me a new creation. I cannot change myself, but You have given me new life by Your Spirit. Help me walk in this newness daily. Let my old habits die and let Your life grow in me. I trust You alone. Amen.