Week 10 - MATURE
CONNECT
What are you thankful for?
What challenge are you facing?
Have there been any answers to prayer?
Pray for each other.
How has practicing V.I.A. (Vision/Intention/Action) worked as a way of following Jesus?
Did anything stand out to you from last week’s follow-up Bible readings?
How did your “I will …” statement from last week go?
How did your sharing goal from last week go?
How is your memory work coming along?
John 8:31-32 (NAB)
31 Jesus said to those who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, 32 you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
DISCOVER
Let’s start with a review. We’ve worked through these freedom truths and freedom responsibilities:
OBEY
Obedience leads to freedom while disobedience leads to bondage, so obey the Lord and be free.
RESIST
Jesus resisted Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word, so resist Satan by reciting the truth of God’s Word.
FORGIVE
God has forgiven you, so forgive others.
RUN
We are to be holy as God is holy, so run from temptation and sin and run to God for help to be holy.
RENOUNCE
Involvement with evil spiritually pollutes us, so renounce (openly confess and verbally reject) any current and past involvement with evil and in Jesus’ name break its power over your life.
REPLACE
Satan uses lies to control our lives, keeping us in bondage, so replace these lies with God’s truth and find freedom.
TRUST
God has not given us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control, so step out in faith and boldly follow Jesus.
STAND
God has given us spiritual armor, so intentionally put it on to stand your ground against the devil’s schemes.
SUBMIT
As a good Father, God disciplines those whom He loves, so submit to His discipline and grow in holiness.
And now …
MATURE
God’s goal for us is to become fully mature in Christ, so make every effort to mature in your faith.
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word
2 Peter 1:1-11 (NIV)
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive (or unfruitful) in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Have someone retell the passage in their own words.
What stands out to you in this passage?
What does this passage say about God (The Father, His Son Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit)?
What does this passage say about people, including ourselves?
What does this passage say about the life God invites us to live?
Fully Mature
Colossians 1:28-29 (NIV)
28 [Christ] is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.
What is the goal of Paul’s ministry?
How much effort did Paul put toward reaching this goal?
How much effort are you putting into your own maturity?
Truth & Responsibility
This week’s freedom truth is:
God’s goal for us is to become fully mature in Christ.
This week’s freedom responsibility is:
So make every effort to mature in your faith.
Saving Grace
2 Peter 1:1-2 (NIV)
1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Whose righteousness saves us?
Why is this Good News?
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Why are we saved by grace through faith?
Empowering Grace
2 Peter 1:3 (NIV)
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
God’s grace doesn’t just save us, it also empowers us to live a godly life. Grace, then, isn’t just pardon for sin, it’s power for living. By grace through faith, we can mature and become more like Jesus.
2 Timothy 2:1
And you, my child, be empowered by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 12:9 (NLT)
“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
Which brings us back to the phrase we have repeatedly used throughout FREEDOM, namely, Not Able but Enabled. What we could never do on our own, we can do through God’s empowering grace.
God's gift to us is His ability.
Our gift to God is our availability.
Make Every Effort
2 Peter 1:5, 10 (NIV)
5… make every effort to add to your faith …
10 … make every effort to confirm your calling and election.
Hebrews 12:14
Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
If we are saved by grace and empowered by grace, why do we need to make every effort to mature as followers of Jesus?
What happens if we put little to no effort into our maturity?
What’s your reaction to this quote?
Dallas Willard
Christlikeness of the inner being is not a merely human attainment, of course. It is, finally, a gift of grace. Nevertheless, well-informed human effort is indispensable. Spiritual formation in Christ is not a passive process. Grace does not make us passive. Divine grace is God acting in our life to accomplish what we cannot do on our own. It informs our being and actions and makes them effective in the wisdom and power of God. Hence, grace is not opposed to effort (our actions) but to earning (our attitude).
Why is grace not opposed to the action of effort but it is opposed to the attitude of earning?
To Add to Your Faith
2 Peter 1:5-7 (NIV)
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.
Work through Peter’s list of things to add to your faith and answer:
How would you put this character quality in your own words?
Why is each character quality important to add to your faith?
Which character quality do you need to work on right now?
How will you work on adding this character quality to your faith?
How can your group help you with this?
To Be Fruitful
2 Peter 1:8-9 (NIV)
8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive (or unfruitful) in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.
Why are we to add these character qualities to our lives?
What kind of fruit does a Christlike maturity produce?
Keep Maturing
As we finish FREEDOM and Follow The Way, how can we keep growing in our faith? How can we keep pursuing Christlike maturity by grace through faith?
1. Stay Connected
John 15:5 (NIV)
I am the vine; you are the branches. If you REMAIN in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (emphasis added).
2 Timothy 2:22 (NIV)
Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, ALONG WITH those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart (emphasis added).
Why would staying connected with Jesus and each other be important to maturing and becoming like Jesus?
Continue to use Daily Connect to stay connected with Jesus.
2. Disciple Someone Else
Let’s face it, there’s no better way to mature in your faith than to give that faith away and help someone else come to faith and mature in their faith. Now that you have been discipled through Follow The Way, what about starting back at the beginning and discipling someone else?
Whom is God calling you to disciple?
How could you invite them to start the 1-week introduction called FOLLOW?
Everyone Discipled / Everyone Discipling
Returning to Give Thanks
How has Jesus brought greater freedom into your life as we worked through FREEDOM together?
Are there other areas in your life where you still need greater freedom?
Spend some time thanking the Lord for the freedom He has brought and pray for each other as you continue to maintain and grow in your freedom.
LIVE
What truth have you discovered from today’s Bible passage(s) and conversation?
What would stop you from believing and obeying this truth?
How will you live out this truth this coming week? Finish this statement: “I will ….”
Who else needs to hear this truth? How could you share it with them?
When will we meet again?
Who will facilitate that meeting?
Pray for God’s help as you seek to follow Jesus this coming week.
FOLLOW-UP BIBLE READINGS
Let’s finish off FREEDOM with 3 more passages.
BUDDY SYSTEM
Connect with your buddy this week and ask each other these questions:
How are your readings going?
How’s your “I will …” statement coming along?
How’s your sharing goal coming along?
How can I pray for you?
PRINTABLE PDF
Whom is God calling you to disciple?
How could you invite them to start the 1-week introduction called FOLLOW?
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