What Is a Good Starting Point for a New Convert? What Are the Basics?

Where should new Christians begin as they grow in their faith? Today, Stephen Nichols discusses a few timeless practices that have helped generations of Christians in their walk with Christ.

NATHAN W. BINGHAM: This week on the Ask Ligonier podcast, we are joined by Dr. Stephen Nichols. He is president of Reformation Bible College and is also a teaching fellow with Ligonier Ministries. Dr. Nichols, what advice or counsel do you have for a new believer? What are some of the basics of the Christian faith?

DR. STEPHEN J. NICHOLS: First, I would say read, and not just read, but study your Bible. Now, let me give you a few pointers here on how to be a good student of the Bible.

The first is to remember the number one rule about interpreting the Bible: Context is king. Now we can look at the initial context. So, we like to read verses, especially, I think, when we’re a new convert—we may hear like John 3:16 or Romans 5:1. And so, we sort of come into Christianity many times through verses, and so we love verses. But remember, verses are in a context. In the Epistles, they’re in contexts of paragraphs. In the narrative sections, the histories—and that’s a lot of the Bible: the Gospels, the Historical Books of the Old Testament, Acts—there, it’s sections. And so, we pay attention first to the literary unit—that is, the context of that verse.

We also need to pay attention to the book. Biblical authors of the biblical books have themes. The narratives have a narrative arc that the story is unfolding. And so, we need to take this particular passage in light of the book. And then, of course, we also need to see it in light of the other books of the Bible. And there we can look at it two ways. We can look at it in terms of where this text fits in the context of history, a chronological understanding of the Bible, where it fits in the grand plan of redemption, that grand story that goes from creation to fall to redemption to recreation. And also then within the context of the canon. So, first is read and study the Bible, and that means context is king.

Along these lines, speaking of context, we also have to apply the Bible to the context of our life. And so, let me just give you a couple quick questions you can ask of every text that you’re reading, and the first is simply, What does this passage teach me about God? What do I learn about the triune God as I’m reading this passage? And then secondly, What does this passage say about me? The Scripture itself calls itself a mirror, and when we look into Scripture, it’s like a mirror, and it’s shining back on us those parts of our life that we need to work on. So, what does this passage teach me about God, and what does this passage teach me about me and what I need to do? So, first basic for a new convert: Read and study your Bible and be a lifelong student of the Bible.

The second is to pray. And here, I would encourage you to use some biblical models to help to teach you to pray. Of course, the disciples asked Jesus this question, and He gave them the Lord’s Prayer. And the phrases of the Lord’s Prayer are wonderful gateways into thinking about what Christ is saying we should pray for. Many Christians love to read the Psalms, and some commit to reading a psalm every day. And the Psalms are, by and large, prayers, and as we read the Psalms, again, we have a model for us learning how to pray. There’s also specific examples of prayers in the Bible that can be very instructive. So, for instance, in the Old Testament at Nehemiah 1, there’s Nehemiah’s prayer. And a good New Testament example, if we go to Ephesians, we’ve got Paul’s prayers in Ephesians 1 and in chapter 3. So, new converts need to read and study their Bible, number one. Number two, they need to pray.

Number three, I would encourage you to grow as a theologian. R.C. Sproul wrote a book, Everyone’s a Theologian, but we need to grow as a theologian. So, start with the creeds. And that’s the Apostles’ Creed, and just like the Lord’s Prayer, the phrases of the Apostles’ Creed are gateways that open these broad vistas of rich theological material. Alongside the Apostles’ Creed, there are the two creeds from the early church that summarize the Bible’s teaching on Christology—that is, who Christ is and what He has done—and that’s the Nicene Creed from the 300s, and then the Chalcedonian Creed from 451. And then I would encourage you to study the solas. This is from the Reformation. So, you’ve got sola Scriptura, the authority of Scripture; and then you’ve got sola fide, faith alone; sola gratia, grace alone; solus Christus, Christ alone—all again summarizing the great doctrine of justification and salvation and the person of Christ—and then soli Deo gloria. So, grow as a theologian. Start with the basics—the early creeds, the solas, and keep going from there.

Lastly, I would encourage you to spend time with the great hymns of the faith. And I think this will help you grow in your reflection and devotion. Some of these hymns, the hymns of Isaac Watts or the hymns of Charles Wesley, these are beautiful pieces of literature, and they’re also so theologically rich.

So, those are some things that can help you get started as a Christian. This is a wonderful journey. And remember that God began this work in you, and He will complete it and bring you to that point of glorification and bring all of us to that point where we are conformed to the image of our dear Savior, Jesus Christ.