HIM-U Discipleship Manual

LESSON 1: THE NEW BIRTH

“We believe that salvation is obtained by grace through faith in the shed blood of Jesus. This

salvation is received through repentance and submission to Jesus as Savior and Lord (Ephesians

2:8-9; John 3:1-16; Romans 10:11; Titus 3:4-7)¹

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Explain what the new birth really is and what it is not.

• Understand the nature of the new birth.

• Appreciate why the need exists for a new birth experience.

• Comprehend God’s role as the author or the new birth.

• Explain how one can know that they have experienced the new birth.

Introduction

The new birth is the state of being born again. It was necessitated by the fall in the Garden

of Eden when Adam and Eve disobeyed God.

“ nd the Lord God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden you may freely

eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day

that you eat thereof you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17).

Since Adam and Eve disobeyed God and partook from the tree of Knowledge of Good and

Evil, they died spiritually. The communion that existed between humans and God ceased to

exist.

The new birth is the restoration of communion between the spirit of man and the Spirit of

God as experienced by Adam and Eve before the fall in the Garden of Eden.

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. Marvel

not that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it wills, and you hear

the sound thereof, but cannot tell where it comes, and where it goes; so is everyone that is

born of the Spirit” (John 3:6-8).

¹ Manual of Policies, Practices and Procedures, Harvest Intercontinental Ministries Unlimited, p.7

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II.

Understanding the new birth

In essence, when humanity fell into sin, we needed to be saved, re-born, or restored unto

the Father. This process involved Him and us that is why salvation needs to be considered

from two viewpoints—the divine and the human. God’s work is to regenerate, to justify, to

sanctify, and ultimately to glorify. Our responsibility is to believe, accept and repent.

This act of being saved or brought back into fellowship with God is sometimes also referred

to as regeneration. Some theologians also call it the “new birth,” or “birth from above”

(John 3:3). This new birth excludes altogether any effort or work on the part of the

individual who is born. Personally, we have no more to do with our spiritual birth than we

had with our physical one. Again, regeneration is likened unto a spiritual resurrection

(Ephesians 2:1; John 5:24). Clearly, resurrection is outside man’s ability. No corpse can

quicken itself. No human can reanimate a dead body. Only the Living God can speak the

word which will call forth a Lazarus from the tomb; and He alone can quicken into newness

of life one who, spiritually, is dead in trespasses and sins.

Because regeneration is the work of God, it is a miraculous thing. The new birth is no mere

outward reformation, no mere turning over a new leaf and endeavoring to live a better life.

It is a supernatural operation of God upon man’s spirit. It is a transcendent wonder and a

marvel of divine grace, wisdom and beauty. It is a miracle which is being repeated all

around us every day.

Because regeneration is the work of God, it is a mysterious thing. ll God’s works are

shrouded in impenetrable mystery. Life, natural life, in its origin, its nature, its process,

baffles the most careful investigator. The existence and Being of God transcend the finite

grasp. How then can we expect to be able to understand the process by which we become

His children? Our Lord Himself declared that the new birth was a thing of mystery, “The

wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes

from or where it is going. So, it is with everyone born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). The wind is

something about which the most learned scientists know next to nothing. Its nature, the

laws which govern it, its causation—all lie beyond the purview of human inquiry. It is the

same with the new birth; it is profoundly mysterious.

Regeneration is an intensely solemn thing. The new birth is the dividing line between

Heaven and hell. In God’s sight there are but two classes of people in this world—those who

are dead in sins, and those who are walking in newness of life. In the physical realm, there is

no such thing as being between life and death. A man is either dead or alive. The vital spark

may become very dim, but while it exists life is present. Let that spark go out altogether,

and, though you may dress the body in beautiful clothes and deck it out with all imaginable

finery, it is, nevertheless, nothing more than a corpse. That is how it is in the spiritual world.

We are either sinners or saints; spiritually alive or spiritually dead; children of God or

children of Satan. In view of this solemn fact, how momentous is the question, “Have I been

born again?” The answer to this question settles our eternal destiny. And we would say in

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love to all who never have been born again, that if you die in your present condition, the

day is coming when you will wish that you had never been born at all. Let’s consider:

A. The nature of the new birth.

What is the new birth? What is the fundamental difference between one who is dead in

trespasses and sins, and one who has been quickened together with Christ? Various are

the answers returned to these questions; confusing and contradictory are the thoughts

often entertained upon this subject. The effects of the new birth are frequently

confounded with the new birth itself. Lack of knowledge concerning God’s answer to

these questions has often caused regenerated persons to doubt whether or not they

have actually passed from death unto life. In considering the nature or character of the

new birth we shall deal first with what it is not.

B. It is not reformation.

The new birth is not a process of reformation. Reformation is the work of man;

regeneration is the work of God. Reformation is the attempt to eliminate evil from the

old nature; regeneration is the impartation of a new nature. Reformation aims to earn

salvation by our own efforts; regeneration is due to the gracious operation of the Holy

Spirit. Reformation seeks to improve the old creation; regeneration is the bringing into

existence of an entirely new creation. Reformation is external; regeneration is internal.

Reformation is turning over a new leaf; regeneration is the beginning of a new life.

Reformation is a tedious and protracted process; regeneration is instantaneous and

complete. In short, reformation is human; regeneration is divine.

C. It is not the purification of the heart.

Regeneration is not a “change of heart” as we often hear or teach. This is misleading. A

“change of heart” is an expression nowhere to be found in the Holy Scriptures even

though the concept is implied in a few scriptures. Regeneration does not change the

heart, though it results in a radical change of life.

In Jeremiah 17:9 we read, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately

wicked.” The word which is here rendered “desperately” is usually translated “incurably,”

and ought to be so here. The heart is never changed for it is incurably wicked. John 3:6

sets forth the same truth, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh,” and it never becomes

anything else. There is no process by which a horse can be developed from a tree.

Neither does a son of Adam ever develop into a son of God. Regeneration is not a

process of transformation. It is altogether a new creation.

D. It involves the impartation of God’s divine nature.

Regeneration is neither the changing of anything in man, nor the removal of anything

from man. It is the implanting of an entirely new nature within man. Birth in the spiritual

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realm is precisely what it is in the physical—it is the gateway of life, the starting point of

a new existence. Everything that is born partakes of the nature of its parents. That which

is born of the vegetable is vegetable; that which is born of the animal is animal; that

which is born of man is human; that which is born of God is divine. Like always begets

like. This fundamental law is expressly stated and reiterated on the frontispiece of divine

Revelation.

In the first chapter of Genesis, we read no less than nine times that each order of

creation brought forth after its own kind. The herbs of the field brought forth after its

kind. The fowl of the air brought forth after its kind. The fish in the sea brought forth

after its kind. Here is God’s refutation of the infidel theory of evolution. Those begotten

of God are the children of God.

When we are born again, born of God, we are made partakers of the divine nature just as

really and actually as we were made partakers of the human nature at our first birth.

Regeneration, then, is the reception of a new nature, a spiritual nature. Regeneration is

the very life of God Himself, communicated to the human spirit. Regeneration gives us a

place in the family of God by means of a spiritual birth.

III.

The need of the new birth.

The new birth is an absolute necessity. It is something for which there is no substitute.

None can enter the Kingdom of God, save those who have been born again. That the new

birth is an imperative necessity is clear from the words of our Lord to Nicodemus,

“Marvel not that I said unto thee, you must be born again” (John 3:7). He did not say,

“You may be born again,” or “You ought to be born again,” but “You must be born

again.”

Nowhere else did Jesus Christ put a single statement so strongly or insist upon it with

such emphatic repetition. Said He, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the

Kingdom of God.” nd again, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot

enter into the Kingdom of God.” nd yet again, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh;

and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, you must be

born again” (John 3:3, 5-7).

On other occasions, He threw wide open the door of mercy when He said, “Come unto

Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” But here He

deliberately bars the gate of Heaven against all the unregenerate. Hence, His words to

Nicodemus become the more solemn when we remember that they fell from the lips of

the One who never excluded a single soul from eternal blessedness unless truth

compelled Him to do so. It is none other than the Son of God who says, “You must be

born again.”

But why is the new birth an imperative necessity? Why is it that no unregenerated

person can either see or enter the kingdom of God?

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We are spiritually dead.

The new birth is a necessity because by nature, man is spiritually dead. “By one man sin

entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all

have sinned” (Romans 5:12). On the day that Adam ate of the forbidden fruit he died

spiritually and we with him. A person who is spiritually dead cannot beget a child who

possesses spiritual life. By natural descent we enter this world “dead in trespasses and

sins” and in consequence “alienated from the life of God” (Ephesians 2:1; 4:18). This is

no figure of speech, but a solemn fact. Every child which is born into this world enters it

entirely destitute of a single spark of spiritual life. Therefore, dead person cannot see or

enter God’s kingdom. We are devoid of spiritual life from birth, and if ever we are to

enter the kingdom of God, which is the realm of spiritual life, we must be born into it.

The Spiritual Kingdom requires a spiritual nature.

The new birth is necessary because the Spiritual Kingdom requires a spiritual nature.

Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people. Heaven is the habitation of the thrice

Holy God and only those who are holy can dwell in His presence for “without holiness no

man shall see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). For a man or woman to be happy they must

be in harmony with their surroundings. If you were to take several live fish out of the

water, place them on a silver salver, carry them into a garden full of fragrant flowers,

and were to produce from a harp the sweetest strains of music, those fish would not be

happy. Why? Because they are out of their natural element. They are not in harmony

with their environment.

So, it would be if an unregenerate person were to enter Heaven. He has no faculty for

discerning spiritual things; he has no capacity to appreciate the divine glory; he has no

power to worship in the beauty of holiness. An unregenerate person could no more

enjoy heaven than could a deaf and dumb man an oratorio. To take such a person there,

would be like leaving a blind man to walk through the halls of our art galleries.

The Spiritual Kingdom demands a spiritual nature. This follows a universal law. To

appreciate or produce music, one must possess musical gifts. Take a young man and

place them in the hands of an efficient music teacher. For several years they take

lessons from this professional instructor. They diligently study the theory of music and

endeavor to master the laws of harmony. They practice regularly for several hours a

day. In a few years’ time, will that child be a musician? That depends altogether upon

one thing—do they possess a musical nature? Musicians are born, not manufactured!

It is the same in art. Artists are not the product of mechanical training, but the outcome

of inherent genius. One cannot be an artist unless one possesses the artistic talent. To

be a real mathematician, one must have a mathematical turn of mind. To enter the

realm of music, one must be musical. To enter the realm of art, one must have an

artist’s soul. nd to enter the Kingdom of God, one must have a godly or spiritual

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nature, and the only way to acquire this is by being born again. Hence, “Marvel not that

I said to you, you must be born again” (John 3:7). It is self-evident. It is a logical as well

as an imperative necessity. It is a requirement which follows a universal law.

Take the purest woman to Heaven who has never been regenerated, and she would be

miserable. She cannot really enjoy a spiritual prayer meeting now, much less could she

enjoy Heaven. She prefers the social gathering, the dance, the picture show, and if she is

deprived of them, she is discontented, and if she is compelled to spend an hour in the

company of godly people, she is wretched.

Man is totally depraved

The new birth is also an imperative necessity because man is totally depraved. Every

member of dam’s race is a fallen creature, and every part of our complex being has

been corrupted by sin. Our heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked,

our mind is blinded and darkened, and our thoughts are only evil continually.

Without being born again, our reasonings are unsound, are affections are prostituted,

and our will is alienated from God. We are without righteousness, under the curse of

the law, and in bondage to sin and Satan; truly our case is desperate and our condition

deplorable. Of course, we cannot better ourselves, for there dwelleth no good thing in

us. We cannot work out our salvation for we are “without strength.” It goes without

stating that we cannot live a better life, because we are dead in trespasses and sins. We

need, then, to be born of God. “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means

anything; what counts is the new creation” (Galatians 6:15).

Man is a fallen creature. It is not that a few leaves have faded, but that the entire tree

has become rotten, roots and branches. There is in everyone that which is radically

wrong. The word “radical,” comes from a Latin word which means “the root” so that

when we say a man/woman is radically wrong, we mean that there is in him or her, in

the very root and fiber of their being, that which is intrinsically corrupt and incurably

evil. Sins are merely the fruit; there must of necessity be a root from which springs the

fruit. We sin because we are sinful by nature; we are sinful by nature because we are

fallen creatures. It follows, then, as a natural consequence, that we need the aid of a

Higher Power to effect a radical change. There is only One who can affect the change.

God created man, and God alone can re-create him. Hence the imperative demand,

“You must be born again.”

Nothing else can take the place of new birth

The new birth is a necessity because nothing else can take its place. There is no

substitute for it. Education cannot take the place of the new birth. Education is simply

the training of the natural man. Education can cultivate, but it cannot create. This

should be apparent from the analogy furnished by the physical realm. The sense of

touch may be trained to a high degree of proficiency, but it cannot give sight. Hearing

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may be developed to the utmost acuteness, but it will not give the sense of taste or

smell.

Neither is it possible to produce a spiritual nature by the cultivation of the flesh. Nature

maybe educated to the highest standard attainable, but it cannot be developed into

something of a totally different order. There is no process by which a man may be

developed out of a horse, nor a beast out of a bird. So also, between the natural and the

spiritual a wide gulf is fixed. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh,” and it never

becomes anything else. But, “that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). A

spiritual nature is the result of a spiritual birth, and not the outcome of cultivating the

natural man.

Reformation cannot take the place of the new birth. Reformation has to do with a man’s

habits, and not the man himself. If the works of your watch are out of order, no altering

of the hands or polishing of the case will make it keep correct time; the trouble is inside.

So it is with the sinner. We may be correct in our deportment, clean in our habits and

punctilious in our dealings, and still be dead in trespasses and sins. To one of the

Pharisees, our Lord said: “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Now then, you Pharisees clean the

outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness’” (Luke

11:39).

This means that no amount of reformation can change the heart. “The Spirit gives life;

the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you, they are full of the Spirit

and life” (John 6:63). You may gather some weeds out of a field and transplant them in

your garden; you may fertilize and irrigate them, but no amount of attention will

transform them into rose bushes. In other words, a new environment will not change

our sinful nature. We need to be born “of God.”

Religion cannot take the place of the new birth. Spurgeon, a great theologian, once said:

“It is difficult to say how far a man may go in religion and yet die in his sins.” The

Pharisees read the Scriptures, fasted oft, gave tithes, and made long prayers, and yet

they rejected the counsel of God. It is possible to have one’s name inscribed upon a

church register, and yet not have it written in the Lamb’s book of life. No performance

of religious duties can take the place of the new birth. How many there are who rely

upon the fact that they say their prayers, read their Bibles, attend church, and partake

of the Lord’s Supper, but who, nevertheless, are building upon the sand, rather than the

Rock which is Christ!

The need of the new birth is universal. It was not to the woman taken in adultery, nor

the thief on the cross, that our Lord said, “You must be born again.” It was said to

Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a teacher in Israel, a man of unblemished character. Unless

Nicodemus was “born again,” he could not enter the Kingdom of God. Neither can we!

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Sinners, of which we are without Christ, in a little while at most we will be lying upon

our deathbed (if deathbed we have). Then, it will matter nothing how large the fortune

we have accumulated, how considerable the learning we may have acquired, nor how

great the popularity or fame to which we may have attained; all that will matter then

will be, have we been “born again?”

The logical question that follows should be: “How can I be born again? How can I find

Christ?” The best answer that we can give is contained in the words of the Lord Jesus

when He said: “Search the Scriptures...they are they which testify of Me” (John 5:39).

IV. The Author of the new birth

The new birth is due to a sovereign act of God. We have no more to do with our second

birth than we had with our first. It is entirely the work of the Holy Spirit. This fact is clearly

set forth in John 1:13, “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of

the will of man, but of God.” Let’s examine this verse in detail.

The new birth is not a matter of heredity

Salvation does not run in the blood. Natural descent cannot account for this

supernatural phenomenon. There were those in our Lord’s earthly ministry who boasted

that they were the descendants of Abraham. But He said unto them, “Think not to say

within yourselves, we have braham to our father.” Many a good man has had a bad

son, and many a bad father has had a good child. Isaac was the one of whom it was said:

“In Isaac shall thy seed be called” (Hebrews 11:18), yet he had Esau who was a profane

person. Eli, the high priest, was a real man of God, yet his sons Hophni and Phinehas

were slain by the Lord for their wickedness. David was a man after God’s own heart, but

his sons were idolaters. On the other hand, Jonathan was born of Saul who,

subsequently, became possessed of an evil spirit; while Amnon, one of the worst of

Israel’s kings, had a godly son, Josiah. Salvation, then, does not run in the veins.

The new birth is not a product of the sinner’s will

Regeneration does not come by human resolution or effort. It is not the outcome of

carnal volition or activity. Because we are alienated from God, we can never move

toward Him until we have been renewed. “It does not, therefore, depend on human

desire or effort, but on God's mercy” (Romans 9:16). “No one can come to me unless

the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44).

The new birth, then, is not the outcome of the will of the flesh.

The new birth is of God

This is self-evident. If the new birth is the communication of the divine nature, then God

Himself must be the Author of this work. God alone is the Author and giver of life, and

He bestows His gifts as He pleases, and quickens dead souls according to His own

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sovereign pleasure. Accordingly, it is written, “Of his own will he brought us forth by the

word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures” (James 1:18).

V. The instrument of the new birth

How is the new birth brought about? What are the means which God uses to accomplish

it? What is the instrument the Holy Spirit employs to effect regeneration?

The Apostle Paul says, “For in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel” (1

Corinthians 4:15). The apostle went from place to place preaching the Gospel of God’s

grace and, as it found lodgment in their hearts, the Holy Spirit brought them from death

unto life. In Philippians 2:16, the Scriptures are termed “The Word of Life,” because they

alone are capable of quickening those who are dead in trespasses and sins. Said our Lord

Jesus Christ, “The words that I speak unto you they are spirit, and they are life.”

An illustration of this was furnished in the resurrection of Lazarus. As our Lord stood before

the tomb, He cried, “Lazarus, come forth,” and His words were demonstrated to be spirit

and life. Jesus Christ is still performing the same miracle in the spiritual realm, “Verily,

verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead [in trespasses and

sins΁ shall hear the voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall live” (John 5:25).

VI. Evidence of the new birth

What fruits shall we look for in those who have been regenerated? What are the marks of

the new birth? How may a person know that they have passed from death unto life? These

are most important questions, and ought to engage the serious attention of all earnest

inquirers after truth.

A. Personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not

see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36). We also read in John, “Truly,

truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal

life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24).

In these passages, we learn that those who believe in the Lord Jesus are already in

possession of eternal life, which is only another way of saying that they have previously

been regenerated. Wherever there is a real reposing on Christ for salvation, there is

clear evidence of the new birth. If you have abandoned all hope of being saved by your

own works, if you have rejected the filthy rags of your own righteousness as the ground

of acceptance with God; if you have come as a lost, helpless sinner to Christ and have

cried unto Him for mercy and are depending on Him alone for salvation, it is proof that

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you have already been born again. Just as a baby instinctively clings to its mother, the

newborn babe of God clings, in its helplessness, to the Savior.

Genuine repentance for sin

According to the Scriptures, one believes and then repents. There is a difference

between repentance in a sinner and repentance in a Christian. In the unregenerate,

repentance is the abhorrence of self, the realization of my ruined condition, the taking

of the place of a lost sinner before God. But with the believer repentance is a hatred of

sin and a grief of heart whenever he is overtaken by it. In the believer, “godly sorrow

worketh repentance.” But “godly sorrow” implies that we have the divine nature within

us, and this no sinner has.

Repentance is more than sorrow for sin, it is a “godly sorrow.” Many a criminal lying in

our penitentiaries has the former, but none save the children of God experience the

latter. I repent not because I am fearful of or miserable in the punishment of my

wrongdoing, but because I know that sin is hateful to God and grievous in His sight.

Repentance is more than an act; it is an attitude. Repentance is taking sides with God

and against sin. What this means is, God is Holy and hates sin and if I am His child, I have

His holy nature within me, and consequently I shrink from sin and grieve over it when I

am guilty of its commission.

Real love for God

God is holy, and having His nature within us, we hate sin. But this is merely a negative

thing. God is love, and having been begotten by Him, we love the One who is our Father.

Here is the positive principle in regeneration. “͙.God is love, and whoever abides in love

abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 John 4:16). It is the normal condition for

children to love their parents, and those who have been born again will love the One

who has begotten them. But the question is this: how may we know whether or not we

love God? We cannot truly love anybody without our being conscious of the fact. If we

love God, our affections have been drawn out toward Him.

His excellency has won our hearts. We can now say with the psalmist, “Whom have I in

Heaven but you? And there is nothing on Earth that I desire besides you” (Psalms 73:25).

Moreover, if we love God, our chief desire will be to please Him. Said our Lord, “If you

love Me, keep My commandments.”

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been

born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because

God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). This is another way of expressing the thought of the previous

paragraph.

Observe the order—love precedes the knowledge of God. In the human realm, we have

to know a person before we love them, but God has to be loved before He is known.

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God is known by the heart and not by the head. “The fool has said in his heart there is

no God.” Have we then a real love for God? Do we see in Him every beauty that we

should desire Him? Are our meditations of Him “sweet?” Is He the One before whom we

bow in adoring worship? If so, this is an evidence that we have been born again.

Love for the brethren

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God” (1 John 4:7). God is love, and if we

have His nature within us, we will love His children—love them all, irrespective of their

social standing, their intellectual attainments, their denominational affiliation; love

them whether they be black or white, rich or poor, cultured or illiterate.

In the human realm, it is the normal condition for members of the same family to love

each other. A tie of blood binds their hearts together. That is how it should be in

measure, without limitation, in the family of God. His children, also, are united by blood

tie—the blood of Christ, in which all believers have a common interest. In the early days

of the Christian era, it was a customary thing for the pagans to say of the saints, “See

how they love one another!”

How is this love to be manifested? Read 1 John 3:17-18. It says, “But if anyone has the

world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does

God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in

truth.” If we love my sisters and brothers in Christ, we must seek to defend their

characters, promote their interests, minister to their need, and seek their well-being.

Life of practical righteousness

Faith is evidenced by its works exactly how a tree is known by its fruits. A godly nature

manifests itself in a godly life. “If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that

everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him” (1 John 2:29). One

evidence that we have been born again is the performance of righteousness. The

unregenerate are termed “children of disobedience.” They have no respect for God’s

law, they refuse to submit themselves to His authority; they are more concerned about

their own interests than they are with the glory of God.

But those who have been begotten by the Spirit “yield their members as instruments of

righteousness” and God’s Word. They recognize that they are no more their own but

have been bought with a price. They have been “created in Christ Jesus to do good

works” (Ephesians 2:10). Therefore, they pray that the fruit of the Spirit may adorn their

lives. The believer’s life is not regulated by the fashions, methods, maxims, and pursuits

of the world, but by Christ who has left us an example that we should follow His steps.

Growth in grace

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Stagnation breeds disease and death. A limb that is never used becomes paralyzed. A

living being is expected to grow. Hence, we are exhorted, “ s newborn babes, desire the

sincere milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2). As we feed upon

the Bread of Life, our spiritual nature is developed, and the inward man is renewed day

by day. As we live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord, we

become strong in His strength and the power of His might.

The life of the regenerate is a going on from strength to strength and from glory to

glory. “The path of the just...shineth more and more unto the perfect day” (Proverbs

4:18). Here, then, is our standard of measurement. Are we becoming more Christlike?

re we “growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord?” If so, it is an evidence that

we are numbered among the children of God.

Steady perseverance to the end

Here is a fundamental difference between professors and genuine believers. There is a

class of people who “hear the Word, and anon with joy receive it; yet have they no root

in themselves but lasts for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of

the Word, by and by they are offended” (Matthew 13:20-21). But these people have

never been regenerated. The divine nature has never been imparted to them,

consequently they have “no root” in them.

In contrast with them, God’s children “hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the

hope firm unto the end.” They may fall, but they are not utterly cast down (Psalms

37:24). They may backslide like Peter, but, like Peter, they shall go out and weep

bitterly, and be restored. He that has been born again has been made a partaker of the

divine nature (2 Peter 1:4); and God is eternal, therefore shall they never perish. At the

close of his earthly pilgrimage, every regenerated soul shall be able to say, in measure at

least, “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have

fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is

laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give

me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing” (2

Timothy 4:6-8).

Study questions:

• What is the difference between regeneration and reformation?

• Why do we need to experience a new birth and what does it mean?

• What is the instrument of the new birth?

• How does one know he/she has experienced the New Birth?

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LESSON 2: FOUNDATIONS OF GRACE

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of

God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ

Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

-Ephesians 2:8-10

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to understand:

• The definition of grace.

• The difficulties associated with the grace message.

• The demands for grace.

• The dividends of grace.

I. Introduction

“Grace” is the most important concept in the Bible. It is most clearly expressed in the promises

of God revealed in Scripture and embodied in Jesus Christ. Grace is the love of God shown to

the unlovely; the peace of God given to the restless. It is in essence, the unmerited favor of

God.

Grace is most needed and best understood in the midst of sin, suffering, and brokenness. We

live in a world of earning, deserving, and merit, and these result in judgment. That is why

everyone wants and needs grace. Judgment kills. Only grace makes us alive.

Grace is the basis for:

• Our Christian identity: “By the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians 1:10)

• Our standing before God: “this grace in which we stand.” (Romans 5:2)

• Our behavior: “We behaved in the world ͙ by the grace of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:12)

• Our living: Those who receive “the abundance of grace and the free gift of

righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ,” (Romans 5:17) by the

“grace of life.” (1 Peter 1:7)

• Our holiness: God “called us to a holy calling ͙ because of his own purpose and grace.”

(2 Timothy 1:9)

• Our strength for living: “Be strengthened by the grace that is in Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy

2:1) for “it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace.” (Hebrews 13:9)

• Our way of speaking: “Let your speech always be gracious.” (Colossians 4:6)

• Our serving: “serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace.” (1 Peter 4:10)

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• Our sufficiency: “My grace is sufficient for you.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) “God is able to

make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you

may abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)

• Our response to difficulty and suffering: We get “grace to help in time of need,”

(Hebrews 4:16) and when “you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace...will

himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” (1 Peter 1:10)

• Our participation in God’s mission: As recipients of grace, we are privileged to serve as

agents of grace in the harvest field. Believers receive grace (Acts 11:23), are encouraged

to continue in grace (Acts 13:43) and are called to testify to the grace of God (Acts

20:24). Jesus says, “ s the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you” (John 20:21).

God’s mission is to the entire world.

• Our future: God, and his grace, is everlasting. “Set your hope fully on the grace that will

be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 1:13)

• Our hope beyond death: “grace [reigns΁ through righteousness leading to eternal life

through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 5:21)

II. The definition of grace.

In Ephesians 2:8-10, we learn a few critical truths about salvation that will help us define grace.

Let us examine them briefly:

A. We have been saved; it is an accomplished fact. The Greek word (sozo) “saved”

carries the idea of both deliverance and wholeness. A saved person has already been

delivered or rescued from the kingdom of darkness, the curse of the law and the

wrath of God. And they have been healed or made whole again. When Jesus cried

out, "It is finished,” our deliverance and healing became a wonderful spiritual reality.

The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, not anything we did, accomplished this

enormous feat.

B. Salvation is "by grace." The text provides us with insight into the nature of grace; it

originates in God, not in man. It offers gifts, not wages. It does not factor in human

works or performance as a basis for approval or favor. It leaves absolutely no room

for man to take credit for any of its benefits. It produces spiritual transformation.

Good works are not its root, but its fruit.

C. Grace works in conjunction with faith. Grace supplies, faith receives. Grace is the

hand of God extended to bless. Faith is the hand of man extended to receive.

Redemption requires both actions.

With these thoughts in mind, let us define grace. One very common definition of grace is

"unmerited favor." Another is, "God's riches at Christ's expense." Both definitions are

good, but incomplete. Grace is also ability, God's ability. Grace as God's supernatural

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ability, unlimited favor and unmerited resources made available to undeserving people

through faith in Jesus Christ.

Grace offers not just pardon from sin, but power over sin. It is not just God's willingness

to overlook sins; it is God's power to overcome sin and everything connected to it,

including the curse.

II. The difficulties with grace.

“For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to

the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both

Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”

-I Corinthians 1:22-24

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid! How

shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? What then? Shall we sin, because we

are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid (Romans 6:1, 15).

“And why not say, ‘Let us do evil that good may come,’ as we are slanderously reported and

as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just” (Romans 3:8).

“I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ,

to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to

pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from Heaven, preach any other

Gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said

before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other Gospel to you than what you have

received, let him be accursed.” -Galatians 1:6-9

A. The Jews, who looked to their ability to keep the law for favor and blessings from God,

found the message of grace to be a stumbling block. The notion that one could be

righteous in God's sight and find favor with Him apart from the law contradicted

everything they had learned. The Greeks, who placed their faith in wisdom and

knowledge, considered the message of grace pure foolishness.

B. Paul was charged with giving people a license to sin. Religious people, understanding

the importance of holy living and the propensities of the unregenerate heart, feared

that without the threat of punishment that the law imposes, people will choose to make

sin a way of life. They felt that to teach that God was no longer imputing sin to the

account of those who sin, but was offering wholesale forgiveness to sinners instead, was

tantamount to encouraging people to sin.

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C. The influence of the Judaizers, those who defamed the message of grace as Paul

preached it, promoted a watered-down mixture of grace and law that nearly destroyed

the Galatian Church.

D. The radical preaching of the Gospel, the message of grace alone (apart from works)

meets similar opposition today. Fearing that God's grace is not sufficient, that the fear

of judgment must be present or men will see no reason to resist temptation, many

insist on maintaining a mixture of grace with an element of law. To preach grace

without making demands of men and requiring human self-effort and sacrifice is

considered “cheap” grace.

E. Paul responded immediately and uncompromisingly to this error, even going as far as

pronouncing a curse on any minister that diluted the Gospel by introducing even a little

bit of legalism into the message. Just a little leaven, Paul warned, would be enough to

leaven the whole lump.

III. The demand for grace.

“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked

according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the

spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted

ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and

were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. But God, who is rich in mercy, because

of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us

alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Ephesians 2:1-5).

“The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law” (1 Corinthians 15:56).

“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that

every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore,

by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge

of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by

the law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all

and on all who believe. For there is no difference; being justified freely by His grace through

the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:19-22, 24).

“For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed is

everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do

them...Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a

law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But

the Scripture has confined all under sin that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be

given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law,

kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore, the law was our tutor to

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bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no

longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians

3:10, 21-26).

The human condition demands grace—God's supernatural ability, unlimited favor, and

unmerited resources. The following verses show us why.

A. Unredeemed human beings do not just commit acts of sin; they are dead in

trespasses and sin. Sin is imbedded in their nature and they are powerless to change

themselves. They are children of wrath.

B. The law cannot justify sinners because they cannot keep it perfectly. It can only shine

the light on their sinfulness and awaken in them great shame and condemnation. In

fact, the more they try to keep the law, the stronger sin gets and the more frustrated

they become (Romans 7). Consequently, the law cannot bless; it can only curse those

who fail at trying to obey the commandments perfectly.

C. Since sinners are dead in their sins, they cannot help themselves. What they need,

therefore, is not law, but life͙something the law is unable to provide. Since this is the

case, God never intended the law to be a means of salvation for the world. It was

given to Israel, not to Gentiles, for one reason only—to show them their need for

grace and lead them to Christ. Like John the Baptist, all the law can do is point a man

to Christ; it cannot save him or make him holy. Only Christ can do these things. And

like John, when Christ is present, the law must decrease that He may increase.

D. Man's hopeless human condition demands grace because only by not taking into

account their works can sinners be justified and declared righteous in God's sight. Only

by not requiring any work or effort on the part of "dead" men can they be made alive.

Thus, salvation from beginning to end is God's work.

E. Even as the law cannot justify sinners, neither can it sanctify saints. Once it brings a

man to Christ, it has done all it can do. Jesus alone sanctifies (1 Corinthians 1:30; 6:11;

Ephesians 5:26). He sanctifies the saints by offering His blood for them, imparting His

Spirit-Life and cleansing their minds and emotions with His word.

F. God does not require His saints to add anything to what His Son has done for them in

order to receive everything He died for them to have. They have nothing they can add

and nothing more is needed. It is finished and we are complete in Him. Man's part

is simply to repent of self-effort (dead works) and to believe the Gospel—the good

news of substitution and identification. Not I, but Christ! Christ in my place!

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G. These truths are captured in the Grace Equation:

Jesus + Nothing = Everything

Jesus + Anything = Nothing

D.L. Moody was confronted by a man who said, “I want to take 30 seconds to tell you

something it took me 40 years to learn.”

• I can do nothing to earn my salvation.

• God never asked me to do anything to earn my salvation.

• God has done everything necessary for my salvation. His grace is sufficient.

IV. The dividends of grace.

A. Better promises: Grace establishes a better covenant based on better promises than the

law-based Old Covenant. They are better because under the Old Covenant, the promises

depended on man's performance. In the New Covenant, the promises depend on Jesus'

performance. They are, therefore, sure.

“But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the

mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises...For I will

be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember

no more” (Hebrews 8:6, 12).

B. Imputed righteousness: Grace puts the ungodly in right standing with God. It declares

sinners fully justified in God's sight apart from any works they do or do not do. This

righteousness does not increase, or decrease based on how well we perform.

Righteousness is given by promise, not by performance, through the cross of Christ, and

is received simply by believing. Since it is Christ's righteousness, it is perfect, needing

nothing from us to complete it.

Even as David also describes the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputes

righteousness without works, saying, “Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and

whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin...”

(Romans 4:6-8).

C. Wholesale forgiveness: When a person receives the gift of righteousness through Jesus

Christ, grace offers forgiveness for all sins, past, present and future, once for all time.

Because of Jesus' blood sacrifice, God is merciful to our unrighteousness and does not

remember our sins and iniquities any longer. Individual sins are not charged to the

believer's account because they have all been charged to Jesus, who has been

condemned and punished already. To charge them again to the believer's account when

they are committed would dishonor the sacrifice of Jesus and discredit the claim of

Hebrews that He put away sin once for all by the offering of His blood. It would make His

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sacrifice no better than that of goats which could not settle the sin issue once for all,

either.

“By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ

once for all. And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same

sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this man, after He had offered one

sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His

enemies are made His foot stool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who

are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:10-14).

D. Supernatural supply: Law requires sinners to produce what they do not have. This always

leads to failure, frustration and more death. Grace, on the other hand, supplies sinners

with what they lack. This leads to faith, fruitfulness and more life.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every

spiritual blessing in the Heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the

foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,

having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the

good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us

accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness

of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” -Ephesians 1:3-7

What makes grace delightful and superior to law-based religion is that righteousness,

sanctification, life and victory are gifts. Grace does not demand that we achieve any of

these things. It only invites us to receive. Under grace, we are expected to be receivers,

not achievers!

V. Key questions related to grace.

Question #1: What is the focus of the grace message or teaching in HIM-U?

The bottom line when it comes to understanding grace is to know that it's all about taking

people's eyes off themselves and focusing on the obedience of Christ and the work of the

cross as the source of everything we need to please the Lord. We teach grace so radically

because there is no other way to be and do the things that please God than by faith in the

grace of God. "The just shall live by faith." But the law is not of faith; preach law and you

will produce fear. Preach grace and you produce the faith that works by love. Mix the two,

law and grace, and you neutralize both, making neither of them fully effective.

We are committed to holiness now and forever. We are just more convinced than ever that

true holiness, the type that flows from within (and not the kind imposed from without by

fear) is what God wants. This can only happen to the degree God wants it when a person is

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immersed in the grace of God. Grace does not minimize sin. Its teaching should be

magnifying the answer to sin.

Question #2: ccording to Matthew 6:5, “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your

Father will not forgive your sins͘” If our sins need no confession because they are already

forgiven, why is Jesus saying that the Father will not forgive our sin based on this

condition?

Part of the difficulty we have in understanding the differences between the Old Covenant

and the New and recognizing that some of the things Jesus said was said to the Jews and

were meant for people under the old dispensation. According to Hebrews 9:6-13, the first

covenant had faults that made it necessary to replace it with a better one, established on

better promises. Hebrews 9:13 says the Old Covenant is obsolete, which means there are

many things that were true under that covenant that are no longer in effect because it has

been replaced with something better.

When Jesus ministered before His resurrection, the Old Covenant was still operational and

determined the way God related to people. But a lot of things changed once the Old

Covenant became obsolete, and the New and better covenant established on grace and not

law came into effect.

Regarding forgiveness, it is true Jesus spoke those words. But that was before He shed His

blood and obtained forgiveness for all our sins through His sacrifice. Now we are told in

Ephesians 1:7 that "we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins,

according to the riches of a His grace." Notice, we have forgiveness—we do not need to get

it; we have it as a gift of God made possible by the blood of Jesus. The fact that we have

forgiveness through His blood is the core blessing of the New Covenant and is what makes it

so much better than the Old. Take that away and you are back under the Old Testament,

where people were still trying to be forgiven.

Also, look at Ephesians 4:32. We are told to forgive one another, not so God can forgive us,

but because God has forgiven us. Here again, we see that under the New and better

covenant we have with God through the blood of Jesus, God forgives us for Christ's sake—

because of what Jesus did, not because of what we have done. And we are to forgive others,

not so we can be forgiven, but because we are. Do you see the difference?

Does the Bible contradict itself? No, the Bible reveals different covenants that were in effect

at different times which we need to recognize to correctly interpret Scripture. Failure to

rightly divide the Word and acknowledge the different audiences and covenants leads to

confusion and wrong applications and interpretations.

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Question #3: Read I Peter 3:7. Why would the sin of unforgiveness cause prayers to be

hindered if all sins are already forgiven and need no confession?

There is no mention here of the sin of unforgiveness causing prayers to be hindered. It says that

husbands should be considerate of their wives so that nothing will hinder their prayers. This

does not necessarily mean that the thing hindering their prayers is a sin that needs to be

confessed in order to be forgiven.

So, what could this hindrance be? Isn't it true that when a husband and wife do not have a good

relationship it affects their prayer life? Is it not true that when a man is mistreating his wife it

will affect their ability to pray in agreement and together? Isn't it true that when we have a bad

attitude towards people, especially those very close to us, our emotions and thoughts

suffer? For these reasons, a poor relationship with your spouse will indeed hinder your prayers.

And until you fix it with your spouse, your prayer life will never reach its fullest potential.

The bottom line: A bad attitude is a poor attitude for prayer. It creates a lot of "static" that

interferes with your prayer equipment, making you less able to pray effectively. The hindrance

is within us, not within God.

Questions #4: James 5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other

so that you may be healed͘ The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective͘” Does

confession of sins promote healing?

Yes, confession of sins can promote healing. But notice, he said confess it to one another. He

did not say confess it to God in order to be forgiven. Apparently, he does not think the problem

is with God, or that the believer needs to make sure he has confessed all his sins to God in

order to receive healing.

However, it is true that there are indeed times when the effect of unforgiveness,

condemnation, and guilt on a believer’s mind and conscience can hinder a person's faith for

healing. To receive healing, he will need to tell somebody what he has done and have someone

pronounce forgiveness for him to get it off his chest. That person can be God, or it can be

another believer. But again, it is not God withholding the healing because of unconfessed sin. It

is the effect of the unconfessed sin on the person's faith and conscience that is the problem.

Even though a believer is forgiven for Jesus' sake, he may be having difficulty receiving that

forgiveness by simple faith and need help from brothers and sisters. By confessing it aloud to

them and have them pronounce forgiveness like Jesus did before healing the lame man, he can

get the release he needs emotionally in his soul to be able to receive his healing by faith.

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Question #5: HIM-U teaches that we do not need to fear God. Is it true? If so, how do you

explain the following passages of scripture?

“Wherefore we receive a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may

serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear” (Hebrews 12:28).

“By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his

family” (Hebrews 11:7).

“Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was

strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in

numbers” (Acts 9:31).

“By the fear of the Lord men depart from evil” (Proverbs 16:6).

There is a difference between reverence for God, which all His children should have, and "fear"

of his wrath and judgment. The Scriptures cited above make it clear that we are to reverence

the Lord always. Other scriptures make it clear that God does not want his children to be afraid

of Him and His wrath.

Read John 5:24. Here we are told that we who hear and believe the Word (the Gospel) "have

everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but have passed from death to life."

What this means is that we who are believers in Christ do not have to fear the wrath and

judgment of God against us, because his wrath against our sins has already been poured out on

Jesus and all our sins. Every single one was judged on the cross 2000 years ago.

And Romans 5:8-10 says, “But God commands His love toward us, in that, while we were yet

sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved

from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the

death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

Notice, the extent to which we have been saved from God's wrath and the high level of

confidence God wants every believer in Jesus to have with regard to not ever experiencing His

wrath. God makes a point of saying "much more" we shall be delivered from His wrath.

If God will still pour out His wrath upon us for the very sins for which Christ was judged, then

Jesus shed his blood in vain. And if He said He will never do this, then we question His integrity

when we talk as though we who are in Christ could yet face His wrath.

It is wrong to use threats of God's wrath to scare believers into obedience. Instead, we should

use the law and passages that reveal the wrath of God against sin to show unbelievers their

need for Jesus and to show believers what Jesus has delivered us from. The more we see this,

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the greater will be our appreciation for our salvation, the blood of Jesus and the gift of

righteousness.

Obedience that is motivated primarily by the fear of judgment does not glorify God. It suggests

that God is not good enough for people to serve Him willingly. They have to be forced into

it. That is sad, because those who serve Satan do so willingly. Surely, God is much better than

that snake.

I John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear hath

torment. He that fears is not made perfect in love.”

The person who is relating to God on the basis of fear is still immature — “not made perfect in

love." He needs to grow up and get to the point where his obedience is motivated by love, not

fear. And obedience that is motivated by love, not law and judgment, is what the Gospel of

grace produces. This is the type of obedience that the Father wants.

Question #6: Matthew 7:21-23 says, “Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the

Kingdom of Heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. Many

will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name

drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, I

never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” In light of grace, what does Jesus mean by

His statement, “Only the one who does the will of my Father will enter the Kingdom of

Heaven.”

What is the will of the Father that needs to be done to enter the kingdom under the New

Covenant? Is it to keep laws? Is it to do your best and try as hard as you can to be holy? Is that

what Jesus had in mind?

Romans 3:19-20 says, “Now we know that what things the law says, it says to them who are

under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before

God. Therefore, by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the

law is the knowledge of sin.”

Notice that God does not use the law to save anybody or give them entrance into the Kingdom

of Heaven. He uses it to reveal your sins and prove your guilt, not to make you righteous and

take you to Heaven. Therefore, trying your best to keep the commandments, thinking that is

the will of God for you and the way to enter the kingdom of God is a sure way to end up outside

the kingdom. Just ask the Pharisees.

And what about those quoted in Matthew 7:21-23? They did a lot of good works. They said they

prophesied, healed, drove out demons and worked many miracles in the name of Jesus. Those

are good works, not sins.

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Yet, they were called evil doers. Why? They made the mistake of depending on their good

works to get to Heaven. Anyone who depends on anything other than the grace of God will in

the end be judged as evil doers because their good deeds will never be good enough in the

court of justice. The law demands perfection. Adam only committed one sin before he was cast

out of the Garden of Eden. When perfection is the standard, good is evil. Trying to do good

works in order to qualify for grace, or for salvation, is the way of religion; it will always leave

you on the outside.

In spite of their many good works of those men in Matthew, they were rejected because Jesus

said to them, "I never knew you." What this demonstrates is that salvation is by grace, and that

entrance into the kingdom will not be based on the works you do, but on whether or not you

have a personal relationship with Jesus. No matter how much good a person does, if his faith is

in his works rather than in Jesus' work, he cannot enter the Kingdom.

So then, what is the will of the Father in the New Covenant that must be done before a man can

enter the kingdom? Here it is:

John 6:35-40 says “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that comes to me shall

never hunger; and he that believes on me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, that you also

have seen me, and believe not. All that the Father gives me shall come to me; and him that

comes to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from Heaven, not to do mine own will,

but the will of Him that sent me.”

“And this is the Father’s will which has sent me, that of all which He has given me I should lose

nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of Him that sent me, that

everyone which sees the Son, and believes on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise

Him up at the last day.”

This is the Father's will and only the one who does it—who sees the Son and believes on Him

(not in their good works)--will enter the Kingdom. Only those who do God's will by believing in

the Son (grace and not works) will He raise up at the last day.

Too often we confuse the will of the Father with human effort. The will of the Father is that we

have faith in the Son—in the cross, the blood, the Spirit. His grace is sufficient. And that by

faith, we allow the Son to manifest His life in us and bear His fruit through us.

Question #7: HIM-U teaches that “we are the righteousness of God in Christ.” We know that

we have no righteousness of our own because our own righteousness is filthy rags in the sight

of a holy God. Also, Romans 8:4 states that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in

us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit. Please explain. It is confusing because I

think I need to work out my salvation with fear and trembling.

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Salvation should not be the result of, or dependent on, any work we do or do not do. To do so is

to contradict the clear teaching of the New Testament (Ephesians 2:8-10).

We are made righteous by our faith, not by our works. We are the righteousness of God in

Christ, not because of what we do, but because we have faith in what He's done. It is God's

work and God's gift, which we can receive, or reject. Many reject the gift because they feel

better about making an effort to achieve it. Grace requires humility.

Please read I Corinthians 1:26-31.

Works follow after we are made righteous. They do not cause us to be righteous. While God

does not make our salvation dependent on our works, either before or after salvation. He has

created us in Christ Jesus for good works and promised to work in us both to will and do His

good pleasure. So, while personal holiness is not the cause of our salvation, it will be the fruit of

it.

Godly, Christ-like works do not produce or maintain our salvation, but they do reveal it. In other

words, if you are truly saved by grace, your salvation comes with a God-given desire to please

God. We may struggle with our walk and live a defeated life based on our failure to renew our

mind with the Gospel of grace, but if we are righteous by faith, God created us for good works

and we will not have peace unless we are living according to what we are designed for—a holy,

God-glorifying life. If a person can live continually in sin and have peace, such a person does not

have saving faith.

Finally, concerning “walking after the flesh.” What do you think Paul means by that? You may

be thinking he is referring to someone who is living a worldly life of sin without any real desire

to walk in personal holiness. But that is really not what walking after the flesh means.

Paul said in verse 4 that to walk after the flesh is to set your mind on the things of the flesh;

that is to focus on the ability of the flesh. By that definition, a huge number of people trying to

be holy are walking after the flesh. Why? Because they are going about it as though it depends

in them, instead of exercising faith in the grace of God.

To walk after the flesh is to rely on it to lead you and to depend on the ability of the flesh to

perform. It is to put confidence in the flesh. A heathen can do this, and a very sincere Christian

can do this as well. Instead of trusting the grace of God, he tries to live holy and overcome sin

through self-effort, hard work, and fleshly discipline. All religious people, not just blatant

sinners, who are trying to achieve holiness by self-effort are in fact guilty of walking after the

flesh and Paul said, such persons, will never succeed in pleasing God.

On the other hand, the righteousness of the law will be fulfilled in those who walk after the

Spirit—who put confidence in the Spirit (grace), not themselves (flesh) and depend on the Spirit

to produce the fruit of the righteousness they have received by faith in the grace of God.

HIM-U Discipleship Manual

LESSON 3: GRACE VS. LAW

To understand the Grace of God is to understand the love of God. He blesses our lives for our

good and His glory. Acts 20:32 says, “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word

of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are

sanctified.”

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Explain the purpose of the Law of Moses.

• Understand the difference between grace and law.

• How has the erroneous understanding of law undermined grace and believer’s identity

in Christ?

I. Introduction

"For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."

-John 1:17

The law was given by Moses for people to obey, but grace and truth came through the person

of Jesus. Unlike the law, grace is not something we do, but it is someone we receive, in the

person of Jesus. When we received Jesus as Lord and Savior, we receive grace.

A. The misuse of the law

The law is good.

"We know that the law is good if one uses it properly.” -1 Timothy 1:8

God makes the purpose of the law clear in the Scripture and declares that the law is good

when it is used to expose unrighteousness and reveals our need to be saved from our sins.

The problem is that many have assigned the law a different role different from God

intended. The New Testament clearly reveals the very special purpose of the law. Let us

examine it.

2. Keeping the law in order to be righteous alienates us from Christ.

"I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law,

Christ died for nothing!" -Galatians 2:21

“You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have

fallen away from grace.” -Galatians 5:4

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Notice that it is actually the law that causes one to fall from grace. When we use the law to

gain and maintain righteousness it is an offense to God. On the other hand, the Scriptures

teach that sin causes grace to increase (Romans 5:20). The Scriptures also teach that

misuse and the wrong application of the law can:

• Alienate us from Christ (above)

• Nullify God's grace (above)

• Dishonor the work of Jesus on the cross (above)

• Curse God's people (Galatians3:10)

• Give power to sin (1 Corinthians15:56)

• Provoke sin (Romans 7:5)

• Produce lust (Romans 7:8)

• Increase sinning (Romans 5:20)

• Condemns us (2 Corinthians 3:9)

• Bring God's wrath upon us (Romans 4:15)

3. There are various law systems that affect us.

It is worth noting that we all live under several systems of law:

First, there are natural laws. These are scientific laws like gravity, inertia, sowing and

reaping. Generally, we are bound by these laws. However, when we move in the

supernatural and miraculous, natural laws can be overcome.

Secondly, there are secular laws. They are sometimes referred to as the civic law of the

land. We are called to obey the civic law when they do not oppose the Word of God.

Thirdly, there are spiritual laws. The Scriptures define several spiritual laws. The main ones

are:

• The Law of Sin and Death (The Old Adamic Covenant): If you sin, you die both spiritually

and physically (Genesis 2:16-17 and Romans 8:2-4).That is what we see in the Law of

Moses (The Old Mosaic Covenant): If you obey all

the Ten

Commandments all the time, you will be blessed. If you fail in any one aspect at any

time, you are cursed (Deuteronomy 28:1-68).

•

Blessing and curses: They are based totally on your performance. It is bad news!

• The Law of the Spirit of Life (The New Covenant): If you are 'born again," the Spirit of

Christ lives in you. You are righteous and in grace. You have full abundant physical and

spiritual life along with God's abundant blessings (Romans 8:2-4 and John1:16-17). It is

good news.

These are spiritual laws are the laws we are concerned with. The world cannot

understand the spiritual (1 Corinthians 2:14), but as Christians these spiritual law

systems need to be understood as they affect both our spiritual and physical well-being.

The Law of Moses: Where did the Mosaic Law come from?

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The Torah is the first five books of the Old Testament which were widely believed to have

been written by Moses under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Hebrew word “Torah”

means written instruction or teaching. Within the Torah, several covenants are revealed.

The last covenant, which still applies to Israel, is the Law of Moses which God gave to Moses

on Mount Sinai. This Law Covenant contains 613 Mitzvot or commandments, ten of which

we know as the Ten Commandments.

Over the centuries, the Jewish rabbis (teachers) have added thousands of sub-laws or

traditions to the Laws of Moses. These are recorded in the Jewish books known as the

Talmud and Midrash. Each rabbi formulates a set of interpretations of the Torah and these

were referred to as "his yoke" as they were often, heavy, controlling and burdensome (Luke

11:46). One of Jesus' roles was that of a Jewish rabbi. Jesus thought that the teachings of

the rabbi of the day had missed the point and that they were burdensome, legalistic, and

lacked God's grace. His teachings, on the other hand, were light, graceful and good news.

5. The Torah revealed both God’s grace and law.

It is a mistake to think that the Torah only revealed the law. The Mosaic Law was just one

part of the Torah and prior to Moses being given the law on Mount Sinai, God had revealed

grace, righteousness and faith to Abraham and his offspring. In fact, the Abrahamic

Covenant is a great blessing, and it is the overriding covenant of the Old Testament which

pointed to the coming New Covenant in Christ. The Torah shows the contrast between

Abraham who lived by faith and Moses who commanded people to live by laws.

6. Legalism

The law is not actually the problem; the problem is the legalistic application of the law for

purposes for which it was not intended. "Legalism" in Christian theology, is a usually

pejorative term referring to an over-emphasis on discipline, or conduct, or legal ideas,

usually implying an allegation of misguided rigor, pride, superficiality, the neglect of mercy,

and an ignorance of the grace of God, or an emphasizing of the letter of law at the expense

of the Spirit. Legalism is alleged against any view that obedience to law, not faith in God’s

grace, is the pre-eminent principle of redemption.

The erroneous concept of legalism, being that salvation can be earned by obedience to

laws, is referred to in various New Testament books, including Galatians. In this case, Jews

who had become Christians believed that in order to obtain salvation, both faith in Christ

and obedience to the Mosaic laws were required. Examples of this legalism are the issue of

circumcision and the incident at Antioch where Jewish believers would not eat with Gentile

believers. In the New Testament these cases are referred to as the "Judaizer" controversy,

rather than the "legalism" controversy, but the two are basically the same issue.

Legalism can also be thought of as a works-based religion. Groups in the New Testament

said to be falling into this category included the Pharisees, Sadducees, Scribes, Judaizers and

Nicolaitans. Jesus very clearly condemned all forms of legalism (Matthew 23).

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Legalism is sometimes confused with obedience and this should be avoided, as in the New

Testament grace and obedience are spoken of together. An example is found in Romans

1:5 speaking of Christ through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring

about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles, for His name’s sake͙

The goal of receiving grace is to bring about obedience of faith. Here grace, faith and

obedience are tied together (Acts 5:29, 32; Romans 16:19; 2 Corinthians 7:15; Hebrews

5:9). Sometimes legalism is also confused with discipline, but again this should be avoided.

Discipline is spoken of in a positive light and is part of our training in Christ (1 Corinthians

9:17; 1 Timothy 4:7; 2 Timothy 1:7 and Hebrews 12:5-11).

Jesus condemned the Pharisees.

"From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and

suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law,

and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life" (Matthew 16:21).

The Pharisees and teachers of the law set themselves up as enemies of Jesus and the

Gospel. They were more concerned with defending their positions and traditions based on

the law and Moses than they were with truth from God. They actively and willingly

opposed God's will and the revelation that Jesus bought of the New Covenant of grace.

It is very significant that the teachers of the law were the only people that Jesus ever

condemned. He forgave sinners and showed grace, but He called the Pharisees and

teachers of the law “snakes” (John 23:33) and sons of Satan (John 8:44). Strong stuff and a

warning to us today not to take on the same judgmental and legalistic spirit as the

Pharisees. He condemned them because they misused the law for their own advantage; to

control, manipulate and hold people in fear of them and the religious system they had set

up that gave them power, prestige and money.

"Jesus replied, ‘And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down

with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help

them" (Luke 11:46).

8. What aspect of the law was being misused?

"Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said,

"The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the Law of Moses" (Acts 15:5)

In the Apostle Paul's day, as today, the Law of Moses was being misused to control and

condemn believers. The Law of Moses was being used by some believers to deny the

effectiveness of the cross. The legalism that Jewish background Christians were preaching is

the problem that Paul addresses in most of his letters. Likewise, today the misuse and

misapplication of the law and legalism are still undermining the Gospel of grace and causing

division within the church.

9. The purpose of the law: The great New Testament debate

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"What, then, was the purpose of the law?" (Galatians 3:19)

There is a great debate that runs throughout the New Testament concerning the purpose

and use of law that was given by God to Moses. Jesus challenged Israel's understanding and

misuse of the law and through Paul completely turned the whole law-based religious system

upside down.

In the early church, grace preachers like Paul, were heavily persecuted by Christian preachers

who focused on the Old Testament Law. The early church experienced major divisions and

conflicts over doctrines concerning law and grace. Most of Paul’s letters deal with this debate,

along with the consequences of the false doctrines that focused on the law instead of on the

finished and sufficient work of the cross.

Sadly, the church is still plagued by the misuse of the law and a lack of understanding of the

place of the law in the New Covenant. It is important that we understand what the law is,

why God gave the law to Moses, what His intentions were and how the law affects us today.

Without this understanding we may be susceptible to manipulation, condemnation and

control by law preachers, as well as be guilty of dishonoring God's grace and Jesus' finished

and sufficient work on the cross.

10. The Law of Moses is performance-based.

"If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today,

the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will

come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 28:1).

At first appearance, the above terms and conditions of the Law of Moses may seem like

good news as it appears that blessings are for the taking. However, close scrutiny of the

terms of the covenant show that the blessings only come to those who fully obey the law in

all its aspects all the time͙not such good news after all. The blessings under the law are a

big "if." It is only our constant obedience and performance that can result in a blessing. The

law is extremely conditional: "If you, if you, if you͙Η is repeated over and over.

The bad news concerning the law is that there are only 13 blessings (Deuteronomy 28.1-13)

but 54 curses (Deuteronomy 28.14-68). This is not good news, as the curses outnumber the

blessings four to one. It is symbolically significant that the law was written in stone—it was

rigid and unchangeable. In contracts the New Covenant of grace are written on living hearts

of flesh. The law is an outside thing of works through self-effort and it is imposed on people

by others. The law covenant fell short because of everyone's inability to perform to the

degree the law requires (Hebrews 8:8-9).

11. The Mosaic Law brings a curse.

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"All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone

who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law" (Galatians 3:10).

The law curses us for our failure, but the good news is (Galatians 3:13) "Christ redeemed us

from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: Cursed is everyone

who is hung on a tree." Most people think that it is sin that curses us, but in fact it is that it

is the law.

The curse of the law is bad news because everyone breaks the law, and therefore everyone

falls under the curses of the law. The other bad news is that the law increases the dominion

of death as the law gives sin and death increased power over us (1 Corinthians 15:56) "The

sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law."

12. Mosaic Law was only outward cleanliness.

"The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are

ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more,

then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to

God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living

God! For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called

may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set

them free from the sins committed under the first covenant" (Hebrews 9:13-15).

The Old Covenant fell short because of sin and a lack of faith. It could not take away sin and

it only gave an outward appearance of holiness. It never changed peoples’ inner sinful

condition.

13. Mosaic law cannot bring real righteousness and holiness.

"Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather,

through the law we become conscious of sin. But now a righteousness from God, apart

from law, has been made known, to which the law and the prophets testify. This

righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no

difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by

his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:20-24).

14. The law condemns.

"Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God.

There it will remain as a witness against you” (Deuteronomy 31:26).

“This day I, Moses call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set

before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your

children may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19).

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The New Testament teaches that the law is a ministry that condemns and sentences us to

death (2 Corinthians 3:9). The above Scriptures make it clear that even Moses knew that the

law actually stood as a witness against us. It is a witness for the prosecution and not for the

defense.

The law exposes and announces everyone's failure and guilt. In contrast, when we are in

Jesus' grace, He stands in our defense (1 John 2:1) and intercedes for us (Hebrews 7:25).

The law condemns, but grace acquits. Since the cross there is now no condemnation for

those in Christ (Romans 8:1). Condemnation is one of the major conditions that grace

addresses and sets us free from.

15. Moses represents the law.

"By calling this covenant ‘new,’ he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete,

and aging will soon disappear" (Hebrews 8:13).

Moses represents God's law and wrath, just as Jesus represents God's grace and love.

Because of Israel’s failure to keep God's commandments, Moses eventually became very

angry with Israel. This did not please and honor God, therefore God took away Moses

leadership. Moses died at God's command and he never entered the Promised Land.

This was a prophetic and symbolic act indicating that the law could never take God's people

into the Promised Land only Joshua could do that (Jesus’ name in Hebrew is “Joshua”). Only

Jesus can take us into all the promises of God makes throughout the scriptures.

16. The Mosaic Law brings a fading glory.

"He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the

Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry that brought death,

which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not

look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the

ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?" (2 Corinthians 3:6-8).

We know that these verses refer to the Ten Commandments as only the Ten

Commandments were ever written on stone (Exodus 24:10). This scripture confirms that it

is the Ten Commandments that bring death and condemnation when preached. It is

interesting to note that there is a degree of glory in the ministry of law which brings

condemnation. It came with occasional miracles and signs. Even today many law preachers

still manifest glory through signs and wonders. But Scripture teaches that the ministry of

the Spirit is much more glorious. Mixing law and grace causes the glory to fade.

Legalism and control lead to in-fighting in the church which grieves the Holy Spirit

(Ephesians 4:30). This control issue is one of the reasons we have seen so many anointings

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and revivals fade away. As we plunge deeper into grace and free ourselves from legalism, so

we will see the work of the Holy Spirit being permanently established in our ministries.

17. Pentecost

The Jewish feast of Pentecost celebrates the giving of the law at Mount Sinai. Under this Old

Covenant of the law, Moses shone with glory (Exodus 34:30), but he also bought God's

wrath and condemnation through the decrees of the law. This caused sinners to flee in fear

and 3000 died when the Ten Commandments were given, and God's wrath was provoked

(Exodus 32:28).

In contrast, the first Christian feast of Pentecost was a completely different affair

contrasting the difference between the Old and New Covenant and law and grace as under

the New Covenant of Grace the glorious ministry of the Spirit attracted sinners and caused

3000 to come to the Lord (Acts 2:41).

18. Is the Law of Moses simply a moral code?

"’Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!?’ These rules, which have to do with things

that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and

teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed

worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value

in restraining sensual indulgence" (Colossians 2:21).

Christianity is not about obeying the Ten Commandments, nor is it about trying to get other

communities to do the same so that we can all be moral people. Christianity is about

transformed lives that come about through being saved and having an intimate relationship

with a loving God through Jesus Christ.

It is this proclaiming of the good news to others and seeing them saved that changes lives,

communities, and the moral atmosphere of society. Christianity is not about living by a set

of biblical principles and rules; one does not need a relationship with God to do that. All one

needs is a list of biblical “dos and don'ts.”

Christianity is about a loving relationship with a God who speaks with us and whose Spirit

and Word guides us in everyday life. Our morality and righteousness can never come

through the Ten Commandments, but only through being in a right and intimate

relationship with a loving God.

Most of us have grown up believing the Ten Commandments are God's moral code for

mankind. There is no doubt that it is good to keep the Ten Commandments and that they

offer good values for society, however from a biblical perspective, this is not the purpose

for which God gave the Ten Commandments.

There are many religions and societies that enforce very high moral standards like Islam, but

this does not make them righteous in God's eyes. The Pharisees had very high moral

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standards but were far from God and were called Sons of Satan by Jesus. It is only grace that

enables us to live righteously and morally (Titus 2:11), in contrast a life focused on law-

keeping ultimately leads to moral failure, condemnation and a judgmental attitude towards

other.

19. God’s high standard of holiness: the law reveals God’s high standard of righteousness.

"For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who

obey the law who will be declared righteous" (Romans 2:13).

"For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the

teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew 5:20-

28).

From day one, mankind thought they could get right (righteousness) by their own works or

ways (Genesis 3). However, the Law of Moses was given to emphasize an impossible

standard of righteousness that no man can keep, except Jesus. Even the Pharisee's fanatical

self-righteous law keeping was not good enough (Matthew5:20). Jesus confronted them in

their wrong belief and exposed the truth that any righteousness based on self-effort and

good works simply fell short of God's holiness.

Jesus even preached a type of hyper-law (Matthew 5:20-48); pluck you eye out, cut your

hand off, just for even thinking or saying bad things --just in case anyone thought they were

righteous enough. Jesus came to kill off any hope in our own independent self-

righteousness. Jesus was pointing to a new type of inner righteousness by the Spirit.

20. The law exposes our inability to save ourselves.

"Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law” (John 7:19).

“But Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because they

pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the ‘stumbling stone’”

(Romans 9:31-32).

"Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is

proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you

could not be justified from by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38).

The law was given to bring us out of our deception that we could ever save ourselves. God

revealed what real holiness is for those who think, “I am close. I am a pretty good person.”

He gave a standard of holiness that was so detailed, that it was impossible for anyone to

ever keep it. The purpose of the law was to drive us to our knees, saying, “If this is what God

demands, I can’t ever keep it!” Once we are aware of this, we know we need a savior. We

realize that forgiveness and mercy is the only avenue on which we will ever have right

standing with God. That was the purpose of the law. Here is a comparison of the gospel of

the law and the gospel of grace.

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The Gospel—The Good News of Grace

The Law of Moses: The 10 Commandments

•

Give me your life, then you will do good.

• If you do good, then you will live.

•

God forgives your all your debt and sin.

• Pay back what you owe in full.

•

I will give you a new heart and a new Spirit.

• Get yourself a new heart (Ezekiel

18.31)

•

God loves us (1 John 4:10)

• We must love God with everything.

•

Blessed are those whose sin is forgiven

• The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)

(Romans 4:7)

•

Eternal life is a gift from God (Romans

• Curse are those who do not do

6:23)

everything in the law (Deuteronomy

27:26)

•

God gives us holiness through Jesus

• He demands our holiness.

(1 Corinthians 1:30)

•

Says, “It’s done—Jesus did it!” (John 19:30)

• Says, “Go and do on your own”

• Demands unwilling service of a

•

Wins the loving service of a son.

servant

•

Our obedience flows from being blessed

• Our blessing is conditional on our

as His beloved children.

obedience as a slave or servant.

•

Says, “Therefore”

• Says: “If” (Deuteronomy28:1-13)

•

Gives freedom to our new nature (2

• Reinforces and exposes our old

Corinthians 5:17)

sin/law/flesh nature (Romans 7:13)

•

Salvation is a free gift given by God.

• Salvation is a wage to be earned by

man.

•

Frees us from condemnation (Romans 8:1)

• Brings guilt and shame.

21. Law exposes our sinful nature

"Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4)

“Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather,

through the law we become conscious of sin" (1 John 3:4).

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“What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have known

what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was

if the law had not said, ‘Do not covet’” (Romans 7:7).

“Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because ‘The righteous will live by faith.’

The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, ’The man who does these things will live by

them’" (Galatians 3:11).

Here is a description of the law: “ stick is crooked, but you do not notice how crooked it is

until you place a straight rule by the side of it. You have a handkerchief, and it seems to be

quite white. You could hardly wish it to be whiter. But you lay it down on the newly fallen

snow, and you wonder how you could ever have thought it to be white at all. So, the pure

and holy law of God, when our eyes are opened to see its purity, shows up our sin in its true

darkness, and in that way, it makes sin to abound. But this is for our good, for that sight of

our sin awakens us to a sense of our true condition, leads us to repentance, drives us by

faith to the precious blood of Jesus, and no longer permits us to rest in our self-

righteousness.

It was the practical result of the giving of the law that men became greater sinners than

they were before, and it was the design of the law that they should see themselves to be

greater sinners than before. The law is the looking glass in which we see our spots, but it is

not the basin in which we wash them away. The law has a provoking power, for such is the

perversity of our (old) nature that, no sooner do we hear the command, ‘You shall not do so-

and-so,’ that at once we want to do it.” (Charles Spurgeon)

22. The law increases sinning to make us desperate.

"The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace

increased all the more" (Romans 5:20).

When we realize the problem, we have with sin we are able to turn to God for forgiveness

and grace. However, the proud and self-righteous often cannot see their sin problem as well

a humble sinner can. The law points out all, but especially the religious and self-righteous,

to the need of God's grace.

23. The law reminds us of our sin and need for grace.

“The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves.

For this reason, it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make

perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being

offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all and would no longer

have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins." -Hebrews

10:1-3

The law is a constant reminder of both sin and failure to attain God's holy standard. It could

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never make anyone clean of sin or perfect. The annual reminder of sin, on the day of

atonement was in fact an annual reminder that Israel needed a savior as they could not stop

sinning by themselves. Likewise, today, we all need to be saved.

24. The law points to the need for a blood atonement.

"In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the

shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22).

Through shadows and types the law as always pointed to Jesus, the Lamb of God, and His

blood atonement for sin. This is the glory of the law, to point to Jesus. Starting from God

shedding an animal's blood to cover Adam and Eve’s nakedness, through Abel's lamb

sacrifice, the Passover lamb of Exodus, and the animal sacrifices of the temple, we see that

Jesus, the Lamb of God that would take away the sin of the world was being revealed (John

1:36).

25. Law highlights our need for super grace.

"Moreover, the law entered that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded,

grace abounded much more" (Romans 5:20-21).

The New Testament teaches that the law actually adds to our transgressions, showing even

more clearly our need for grace. We all blow it, we all sin, all the time! Albeit to lesser or

greater degrees. In response to our weaknesses, God provides us with super abounding

grace (Greek word “huperperisseuo”).

On the cross, Jesus overpaid mankind's debt of sin. Through Jesus, the Father now gives us

grace not only for our sins but also for our blessing. A helpful analogy would be one of a

rich person depositing a huge amount of money into a bankrupt friend’s bank account that

not only paid off all his debt but put him into a place of huge credit, enabling him not only

to buy all the things he needed but also all the luxuries he desired.

Grace did not set aside God's Law and the debt we incurred through it, but rather grace

completely satisfied it. s deep as sin goes, God’s grace goes deeper. s deep as sin is, God’s

grace is wider.

When sin abounded, grace super-abounded even more. God’s grace is greater than all our

sin. Grace is the only thing that truly enables us to overcome sin (Titus 2:11-12). However,

performance-oriented Christianity makes us double-minded in this regard. We believe that

when we are good, we are in grace and can receive God's love and blessings. But when we

are bad, we fall from grace and we become legalistic, and sin focused.

26. The law points to Jesus who alone can save us from sin.

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"What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of

transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come"

(Galatians 3:19).

"So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith”

(Galatians 3:24).

“Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the

Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph"

(John 1:45).

"They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day and came in even larger numbers to the

place where he was staying. From morning till evening, he explained and declared to them

the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and

from the Prophets" (Acts 28:23).

The most excellent and the primary purpose of the law is to show all people their

depravity, sin and self-righteousness so that they come to a realization of their need for

Jesus as Lord and Savior. This is the ultimate and most critical purpose of the law.

27. The law is for the wicked.

“We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the

ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers,

for murderers, for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and

for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine.” -1 Timothy 1:9-10

The law has a place in the church as we reach out and are salt and light to the world. It

especially has a place in the lives of unbelievers so as to set a godly standard for society

and define sin. Unbelievers are not led by the Holy Spirit and therefore "sinners" need the

law to define in a godly way what they already really know in their consciences but often

choose to ignore.

However, it is not appropriate to use the law in this way for mature believers who are led

by the internal law of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Study questions:

• Is the law good or bad? Why or why not?

• What are the different law systems that affect us?

• Why is the Law of Moses considered to be performance-based?

• How is grace different from the law?

• What does the law point us toward?

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LESSON 4: BAPTISM

“Water baptism is commanded in Scripture as an outward expression of an inward work. It is a

declaration to the world that the believer has died and risen with Christ to walk in newness of

life. All who repent and believe on Christ as Savior and Lord should be baptized (Matthew

28.19; Acts 8:37-38, 10:47; Romans 6:4).²

“The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is an experience subsequent to and distinct from the new birth.

It endows the believer with power for life, witness, and service, and is accompanied by

supernatural manifestation, deepened reverence for God, an intensified dedication to God and

His work, and a more active love for Christ, His word and the lost (Acts 1:4,8; 1 Corinthians 12;

Acts 8:12-17; Hebrews 12:28; Acts 2:42-43; Mark 16-20)³

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define water baptism.

• Discuss what happens in water baptism.

• State the necessity of water baptism.

• Distinguish water baptism from the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

• Give the evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Introduction

This lesson focuses on water baptism and Holy Spirit baptism. It is geared toward

discussing and presenting the biblical perspectives of both.

II.

Water baptism

The word baptize is from the Greek word “baptizo” which means to immerse, plunge, or

dip into. Water baptism is one of the two ordinances of the Church. It is commanded in

Scriptures as an outward expression of an inward work. In baptism, the believer

declares to the world that he or she has died and is raised with Christ to walk in

newness of life. Baptism is a powerful event. The story of the Ethiopian Eunuch allows

us to see what joy that accompanies baptism (Acts 8:38-39). Baptism is a means of grace

to believers.

² Manual of Policies, Practices and Procedures, Harvest Intercontinental Ministries Unlimited, p.7

³ Ibid.

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A. What does water baptism signify?

1. Water baptism signifies our union with Christ. It represents our being saved. Water

baptism is an outward physical sign of your inward spiritual union with Jesus Christ.

2. Being immersed in water symbolizes or is a picture of your death and burial with Christ

(Romans 6:3-4). When a person gets saved, he or she has died with Christ.

3. The saved person has died to sin and their old way of life. This means that your

relationship with sin is ended.

4. Water baptism signifies that the believer is saying farewell or goodbye to the old life.

The power of sin over the believer is broken, and they are no longer a slave of sin

(Romans 6:7). Water baptism speaks of the coming into view of a new life. The

Christian has been raised with Christ and walking in the light of peace with God.

5. When raised from the water, it is a symbol of your resurrection with Christ (Romans

6:5). When you were saved, you were made alive with Christ. That is, you became alive,

in a spiritual sense, to God. When you become “alive” to God, it means that you have

begun a relationship with God (John 17:3). You now have a new life, or you have been

born again (John 3:1-8).

6. When Christ got baptized, He was identifying with the sinful human race. In the

believer’s baptism, they identify with Christ. It is a way of saying that they are not

ashamed to be known by his name. What a powerful declaration! It goes beyond just

being a symbol.

7. In baptism, you are saying that you are committed to discipleship (the process of

following and growing in Christ). When you are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ,

you are publicly declaring your faith in Him and your intention to become His disciple

(Matthew 5:14-16).

B. Who should be baptized?

All those who repent and believe on the Christ Jesus as Savior and Lord should be

baptized (Matthew 28:19; Acts 8:37-38; Acts 10:47). We believe that baptism is a symbol

of salvation and not that baptism saves a person. It is the saved person that must be

baptized. The new believer is baptized as a way of welcoming him or her into the body of

believers. It is like saying “welcome” to the fellowship and family of believers. It is

important to note that the person to be baptized must:

•

Be born again.

•

Be aware of and understand the spiritual significance of the act of baptism.

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•

If the person is a minor, their parents or guardians should be involved in the

process of deciding if they understand what baptism entails and has confessed

Jesus as Lord and Savior.

The necessity of baptism: Why must the believer be baptized?

This question is important because many tend to treat water baptism as insignificant.

We stated earlier that water baptism does not save a person, however it is a significant

rite of the Christian faith. Here is why the believer must seek to be baptized:

• Water baptism is commanded by Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18-20). As such, it is

something we must do since now Jesus is Lord of our lives. Those who believe the

message of the Gospel by trusting Christ as Savior must be baptized. In this way, they

are witnessing their identification with Him in his death, burial, and resurrection.

• Jesus, our example, was baptized Himself (Matthew 3:13-17).

• Jesus and His disciples baptized those who believed and repented (John 3:22-26).

• New converts or believers in the early Church were always baptized (Acts 2:38-41;

8:26-38; 16:31-34).

How and when should the believer be baptized?

As a ministry, we subscribe to the mode of baptism by immersion (Matthew 3:13-17).

The Lord Jesus commanded His disciples to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son,

and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). This formula shows that the covenant relationship

that the believer now enjoys is with the entire Godhead or Trinity. This means that the

baptized person is under God’s control and direction. In the early church, baptism took

place very soon after conversion (Acts 10:47, 48; 22:16). Therefore, the new believer

must seek to be baptized as soon as possible.

III. Baptism in the Holy Spirit

In John 14:16-17, Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the third person

of the Trinity. That means the Holy Spirit is just like God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son

in His nature, power, and purpose. The Holy Spirit knows all things and has all power. The

Holy Spirit was sent to live in those who will accept Jesus as Savior.

Jesus said further in John 16:7 that he will send “another comforter.” The word translated

“comforter” is the Greek word “paraclete.” It means “someone called alongside to help.”

Other words like counselor, strengthener, helper, adviser, intercessor and friend are all

equivalents to the word paraclete. These all indicate the powers and responsibilities of the

Holy Spirit and how He goes about helping the believer live the Christian life.

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Jesus said He will send “another” helper. The word “another” is the Greek word “allon”

which means, “another of the same kind.” The Holy Spirit or Helper to be sent will be just

like Jesus. “A friend who understands all our weaknesses” (Romans 8:26). As the Helper of

the believer, the Holy Spirit does many things to help the child of God live victoriously. He is

a special gift to the believer. One of such works is that the Holy Spirit fills the believer. It is

important to note that the Holy Spirit wants to fill you. The filling of the Holy Spirit or the

Baptism with the Holy Spirit is what this lesson is all about.

A. What is Baptism in the Holy Spirit?

As a ministry, we believe that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is “an experience

subsequent to and distinct from the New Birth (Acts 1:4,8, 2:42-43, 8:12-17). By this,

we mean that the Baptism of the Holy Spirit is an experience that comes after one is

saved or born again. This experience “endures the believer with power for life, witness

and service.” The baptism of the Holy Spirit further enables the believer to love God

more, have a deep appetite for the word of God, and have a burden for those without

Christ to hear the gospel. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is one of the central teachings

of the New Testament (Acts 1:4).

B. Who can receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is for all believers all those who have accepted Christ’s

forgiveness and have surrendered to Him as Lord. In short, those who are born again

are candidates for the baptism. When one is born again, the Holy Spirit comes to live

in them. This is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and not the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

See Acts 8:14-17 for this clear distinction.

C. How to receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit

To be baptized in the Holy Spirit means to be “filled with the Holy Spirit” ( cts 1:5;

2:4). The word baptized means to immerse or to dip into. As it relates to the Holy

Spirit, it means an overflow of the holy within a person. When one gets saved, the

Holy Spirit comes to dwell in that person. When filled with the Holy Spirit or baptized

with the Holy Spirit the person becomes soaked and overflowing with the Spirit. You

got saved by receiving Jesus by faith. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is likewise received

just as you received salvation—by faith. The Holy Spirit is a promised gift, as such the

baptism is received by faith (Luke 11:9, 11-13)

Reach out and take hold of the gift and make it yours by faith. Do this in prayer

knowing that God wants to fill you with the Holy Spirit. Believe that the Holy Spirit

wants to fill you. Surrender to the Holy Spirit your will, your desires, and let them have

their will in your life. Ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit. Experience had shown

that some people got filled with the Holy Spirit while praying by themselves. Others

got filled while being prayed for. Like in the Bible, when there was news that the

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people of Samaria had received the Gospel, they sent Peter and John who prayed for

them and placed their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:14-17).

D. Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit

In the Acts of the Apostles, the initial outward evidence that a person had received the

baptism of the Holy Spirit was that they spoke in tongues as the Holy Spirit gave the

ability (Acts 2:4; 10:45-46; 19:6). This speaking in tongues may be a language that the

believer has never learned (Acts 2:4; 1 Corinthians 14:14-15). It may also be a heavenly

language unknown to natural minds. It is important to note that the purpose of the

Baptism of the Holy Spirit is to primarily create boldness and power of the Spirit of God

in the life of the child of God. This will enable the believer to accomplish the purposes

of Christ with great authority.

The overall goal is to make the believer to be effective in spreading the message of

Christ to those who have not heard it (Acts 1:8; 2:14-41; 4:31). It is worth noting that

you are not seeking tongues when you desire the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, rather it is

an opportunity to use the gift to share the message of Christ with others.

IV. Summary

Water baptism is an outward form that demonstrates an experience of the heart. When a

person accepts Jesus as his Savior, then baptism is a symbol by which that person says to the

world, "I have given my life to Jesus, who has taken away my sins. I belong to him and will

follow him from now on."

So, water baptism is the symbol of my surrender to God, indicating

that I am willing to do His will and live by his standards. Baptism of the Spirit put simply, is the

work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the one fully surrendered to God. Water baptism is a once-

for-all experience. The baptism of the Spirit is an “immersion of the Spirit.” When you are

baptized with the Holy Spirit, you will receive strength, power and boldness from God to

accomplish your work and overcome sin in your own life. It is accompanied by the evidence of

speaking in tongues.

Study questions:

• What is water baptism?

• What is Holy Spirit baptism?

• What are the necessities of each baptism?

• Who should be baptized by water?

• How does one receive the Holy Spirit baptism?

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LESSON 5: BIBLICAL STEWARDSHIP

“I am convinced that the devil has caused the subject of giving to stir up resistance and

resentment among God’s people because he knows there are few ways of spiritual enrichment

like the exercise of faithful stewardship.” -Stephen Olford

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• State the meaning of Christian Stewardship.

• Give the difference between tithe and offering.

• List two principles of stewardship.

• Describe the role and responsibilities of leaders and members in the local church.

• Express on what basis healthy relationship is achieved in the local church.

I. Introduction

Christian Stewardship refers to the responsibility that Christians have in maintaining and

using wisely the gifts that God has bestowed. God wishes human beings to be His

collaborators in the work of creation, redemption, and sanctification.

II. The Principle of Ownership

The psalmist begins Psalm 24 with, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world,

and all who live in it.” God owns everything, we are simply managers or administrators

acting on His behalf. Therefore, stewardship expresses our obedience regarding the

administration of everything God has placed under our control, which is all-encompassing.

Stewardship is the commitment of one’s self and possessions to God’s service, recognizing

that we do not have the right or control over our property or ourselves. Reading

Deuteronomy 8:17 we might be inclined to think, “My power and the strength of my hands

have produced this wealth for me.” But Deuteronomy 8:18 counsels us to think otherwise:

Remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth.

III. The Principle of Responsibility

lthough God gives us “all things richly to enjoy,” nothing is ours. God owns everything; we

are responsible for how we treat it and what we do with it. While we complain about our

rights here on earth, the Bible constantly asks, what about your responsibilities? Owners

have rights; stewards have responsibilities. We are called as God’s stewards to manage that

which belongs to God. While God has graciously entrusted us with the care, development,

and enjoyment of everything He owns as His stewards, we are responsible to manage His

holdings according to His desires and purposes.

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IV. The Principle of Accountability

A steward is one who manages the possessions of another. We are all stewards of the

resources, abilities, and opportunities that God has entrusted to our care, and one day each

one of us will be called to give an account for how we have managed what the Master has

given us. This is the maxim taught by the Parable of the Talents. God has entrusted

authority over the creation to us and we are not allowed to rule over it as we see fit. We are

called to exercise our dominion under the watchful eye of the Creator managing His

creation in accordance with the principles he has established. Like the servants in the

Parable of the Talents, we will be called to give an account of how we have administered

everything we have been given, including our time, money, abilities, information, wisdom,

relationships, and authority.

V. The Principle of Reward

In Colossians 3:23-24, Paul writes, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as

working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from

the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” The Bible shows us in the parables

of the Kingdom that faithful stewards who do the master’s will with the master’s resources

can expect to be rewarded incompletely in this life, but fully in the next. We all should long

to hear the Master say what He exclaims in Matthew 25:21, “Well done, good and faithful

servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.

Come and share your master’s happiness!”

VI. Tithes and offerings

A. The importance of tithing

Honor God with the first fruits of your income. The tithe is 10% of your income, and it

should be given to God faithfully. Tithing honors the scriptural principles of generously

providing for religious leaders, giving to those in need and laying up treasures in heaven.

Throughout Scripture, we are encouraged to give the first part of our resources to God

as an expression of honor and gratitude. “Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with

the first fruits of all thine increase: so, shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy

presses shall burst out with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10).

B. Understanding the biblical basis for tithing

Tithing is mentioned throughout the Old Testament, particularly when God

commissioned the Israeli tribe of Levi to serve by caring for the tabernacle and providing

spiritual leadership for the nation of Israel. Since the tribe of Levi was given these two

unique responsibilities, God did not assign to them a portion of land (as He had assigned

portions of land to the other tribes of Israel), but He instructed the rest of the Israelites

to bring tithes of their increase to provide for the priests and Levites (Numbers 18).

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In the New Testament, Jesus affirmed the practice of tithing (Matthew 23:23), and the

Apostle Paul encouraged Christians to give to those in need and to those who were

ministering in the Gospel (2 Corinthians 9:6-15). When you tithe today, you enable

those whom God has called to serve as pastors, missionaries and ministry personnel to

faithfully build up the church and expand the kingdom of God. Tithing is one way to

worship God—to honor Him as your provider and remind yourself that all your

resources belong to Him and are provided through His grace. As you give that first 10%

of your income, you set your course to honor God in the way you handle the rest of your

finances.

C. When to give

Consider your pay schedule and establish a pattern of giving when your resources

increase. This habit allows you to regularly remind yourself of God’s faithfulness and to

express gratitude to Him by giving to meet the needs of others.

D. Where to give

Typically, the tithe should be given to the local church where you worship. These gifts

support your pastor and ministry staff members who are actively serving you, and they

help maintain the work of the church and the worldwide vision of HIM-U. As God

prospers you and directs you, additional gifts could be given to other ministries that are

advancing the Gospel.

E. What to give

The tithe is 10% of your income. In addition to giving 10% of your monetary income,

consider giving God the first fruits of other resources as well, such as your time (giving

Him the first part of your day in a quiet time and taking one day in seven to focus on

worship) and energies (investing your gifts and abilities in your church and community).

F. How to give

Your motives for giving are important to God. “Every man according as he purposes in his

heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And

God can make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all

things, may abound to every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:7-8). Give with the expectation

that God will faithfully supply whatever you need so that you can abound in good works!

The practice of tithing provides a regular reminder of your dependence on God. In good

times, tithing helps you remember that God is the source of all blessings, and it allows

you to demonstrate your gratitude for His care. In hard times, tithing motivates you to

remember God’s faithfulness, and it enables you to demonstrate trust in God to provide

for all of your needs. In Deuteronomy 14:22-23, God instructed the Israelites, “Thou

shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed ͙of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and

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the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy

God always.” Whatever your current situation, tithing is a key to learning to live in the

fear of God.

As Christians, we are challenged to set our hearts on what truly matters, not on the

frivolous things of the earth (Colossians 3:1-2). Jesus challenged His disciples, “Lay not up

for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where

thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where

neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19-21). Paying your

tithe is one of the ways you honor God and reach out to meet the needs of others. “Bring

ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove

me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven,

and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (Malachi

3:10).

VII. The importance of giving.

Giving requires two things of each of us, faith and faithfulness:

A. Faith

Giving is an expression of our faith that affirms God as our provider and His ability to

supply all that we need. We trust God by giving in faith. Our Lord promises to give every

obedient Christian an overflowing, joyous life regardless of his financial position.

B. Faithfulness

Faithful giving is not always easy and can come with everyday challenges (growing family

needs, fixed income for retirees, loss of a job, an unexpected major expense, saving for

retirement). Faithful giving, based foremost on faith, requires several things which

Christians must develop as they mature in Christ, including:

• Proper intent for giving: Giving is an act of worship to honor and glorify God (not

ourselves) and to show our love for God. To truly trust God with your finances,

you must also keep your heart and motives pure.

• Good stewardship of our finances: This requires having a budgeting and

operating therein (for those who have the resources).

• Giving at the beginning of the month instead of the end of the month: not

literally, but figuratively (we give from the bounty that God has provided not

from what is leftover).

• Caring nature for others: Follow Jesus’ command to “Love others as well as you

love yourself.”

• Asking God to supply our needs: Faith requires action.

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IV. The difference between tithes and offerings.

A. Tithes

Tithing Is Honoring God

Lev 27:30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of

the tree, is the LORD's: it is holy unto the LORD.

This passage in Leviticus is the first mention of the tithe as part of the Old Testament Law.

We should pay close attention to what it says about the tithe. Let’s look at some of the

words used.

The word “tithe” simply means one tenth. Under the Mosaic Law or economy, God

required that His people worship Him by bringing to the temple one tenth of all their

income. Now, He did not say they should bring “a” tithe. He said, “the” tithe. “The” is a

definite article that is used when you want to designate or specify a precise thing. So God

did not want just any tenth—He wanted a specific tenth, that which He had designated

as belonging to Him. What tenth is that? We all should know by now it was the first tenth!

Note also that the verse says the tithe “is” holy unto the Lord. The first tenth was not

going to be holy; it was already holy. To be holy means it is set apart for a special, sacred

purpose. This means God had set the first tenth of their income apart; He had declared it

sacred. He had determined it is to be used for worship only and not for anything else.

God always reserves something for himself to remind us He is God and that everything

we have came from Him. In the Garden of Eden God reserved the Tree of Knowledge for

Himself. In the wilderness God reserved the Sabbath Day for Himself. In the Promised

Land God reserved the city of Jericho for Himself.

The tithe was incorporated into the Mosaic Law, but the principle of tithing was practiced

by godly men long before the Law. Father Abraham practiced tithing long before the Law

was given and as the father of the faithful, he provided an example for all the faithful to

follow.

“ nd the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of

Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the

king's dale. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the

priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most

high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath

delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.” Genesis 14:17-20

KJV

HIM-U Discipleship Manual

So, our first encounter with tithing is one where the giver is not paying God to stir him

into action, but one where the giver is responding to God who has just fought for him and

given him victory and great blessing. That is a pattern we must not forget.

This is the first reference to the tithe in Scripture. One of the rules of biblical

interpretation is called the law of first mention.

The Law of First Mention is the principle that requires one to go to that portion of the

Scriptures where a doctrine is mentioned for the first time and to study the first

occurrence of the same in order to get the fundamental inherent meaning of that

doctrine. So that what is revealed there will serve as the guide for properly understanding

other passages where the word is used.

Observe that in this instance in Genesis 14, when we first see someone tithing in Scripture,

that person is Abraham. Who is he? The father of all those who are justified by faith, a

man living under grace. That by itself should tell us that tithing is consistent with the

covenant of grace.

We see him presenting one tenth of all his possessions to Melchizedek. Notice the first

time tithing is mentioned it is associated with blessings not curses, with Abraham, not

Moses, with grace not law.

But take note also of when he does this. It is after he has won a mighty victory over King

Kedorlaomer, rescued his nephew Lot, and recovered all of Lot's goods and possessions

from the defeated King. It is after he meets Melchizedek, and discovers he is the king of

righteousness, king of peace, and a priest of God Most High.

nd it is after Melchizedek blesses him saying, “Blessed be bram of God Most High,

Possessor of heaven and earth; And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your

enemies into your hand.”

Abraham offers his tithe, but notice he does this, not before, but after he is blessed. His

tithing is a response to God's goodness to him. It is an act of worship. An expression of

honor. Tithing was the way Abraham acknowledged God as the Source of all his blessings,

declared God to be great, and the way he worshipped and said thank you.

In Hebrews 7:4, we see one of the effects of tithing under grace. "Now consider how great

this man was to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils". Abraham's

tithe brought glory and honor to Melchizedek. Likewise, when we choose to tithe in the

New Covenant and to be generous in our giving, we honor Jesus and point to His

greatness.

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Now, we know Abraham did this five hundred years before the Mosaic Covenant was

established. So, he did not tithe because of the Law and the fear of judgment. No, he did

this because he desired to honor Melchizedek, being motivated by both love and faith.

Tithing today is still one of the primary ways we can honor God and declare our faith and

love for Him. Like Abraham, we are not forced to tithe because of any law that would

condemn us if we did not. We choose to do so freely, understanding its role in honoring

God. When we do so, we acknowledge He is the Most High God, Possessor of heaven and

earth, who delivers us and blesses us with favor, goodness, and unmerited blessings in

our lives. Tithing helps us to bring glory and honor to the Lord.

Tithing, therefore, is not about money, per se. It is about honor, faith and love—God’s

love for you and your love, faith and honor for Him.

You ask, “If I do not tithe will God love me less?” No, but that is the wrong question.

Rather, you might want to ask, “If I do not tithe, will I be honoring and trusting God less?”

God gives us the opportunity to tithe in the New Covenant, not because He wants what

we have, but because He wants us. Where our treasure is there will be our heart also.

Tithing also teaches us to be God-centered and generous givers. It works like training

wheels on a bicycle. Until you learn to ride well, you need the training wheel to protect

you from falling and hurting yourself.

When do you no longer need training wheels? When you can ride without falling and you

can go faster without them! So tithing trains us to be generous givers to God's work. It

challenges us to make ten percent the minimum we set aside each month. It is the floor,

not the ceiling, for our giving. When do we no longer need to focus on worshipping God

with one tenth of our income? When one tenth has become too small in our eyes and we

have gone way past that in our giving!

Now, tithing is also a good way to evaluate how well you are doing spiritually. How healthy

your faith is. How deep your love is. How well you are doing in setting your priorities and

managing your life.

Tithing shows up again in Genesis 28:22. Abraham's grandson, Jacob, had a dream at

Bethel in which God promised to be with him and give him a great land and many

descendants (Genesis 28:13-15). Jacob responds with a vow in verses 20-22., in which he

makes this promise: "And of all thou givest me I will give the tenth to thee." Notice well

that Jacob recognizes everything that he has disposal of as a gift from God.”

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Now here is the question that may still need to be answered? If tithing was practiced

before the Law and incorporated into the Law, should Christians who are no longer under

the Law practice tithing?

Well, let’s see what the New Testament has to say. Paul, the Apostle of Grace has a few

things to say that will prove helpful in answering this question.

1 Corinthians 9:13, 14: "Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of

the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?

Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the Gospel should live of the

Gospel."

True, the word "tithe" is not found in these two verses but it is most clearly implied. The

emphatic words there are, "Even so" in the beginning of the fourteenth verse. Verse 13

reminds the New Testament saints that under the Mosaic economy, God established

tithing to provide for the support of those who ministered in the temple. Then, verse 14

says, in this New Testament dispensation, "Even so" God has ordained that those who

preach the Gospel should live or be supported “of the Gospel.”

“Even so,” in this passage is clearly to be understood to mean that “by the same means

and the same method” God used to support the Levites, the preachers of the Gospel and

those in full time ministry are to be supported today. Even as God ordained the tithe to

be used for the support of the Levites and the affairs of the temple, Paul avers that in the

same way, God has ordained that the tithe be set apart for worship to ensure that His

servants and the church in the New Testament dispensation shall be in the same way

provided for.

Here is another relevant passage:

“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of

Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in

store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.”

1 Corinthians 16:1-2 KJV

Again, we find the word "tithe" does not actually occur, and yet once more it is plainly

implied. Paul indicates clearly God expects each believer to give as part of their worship

and that there is a standard the worshipper is to use as a guide. That standard was not

according to how he or she feels, but “as God hath prospered him.” Paul was so sure that

this is the will of God and His method for supporting His work on earth, that Paul actually

“orders” the saints to give according to this standard, every time they gathered for

Worship on the Lord’s Day.

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This is the principle of tithing being articulated without using the word. The tithe is not a

set amount, but an amount based on what a person has received or as God has prospered

him. The more one receives the greater should be the amount set aside for worship and

the support of God’s work on earth.

It is therefore right to instruct and expect that when it comes to giving under the New

Covenant, the saints will obey this apostolic order to give according to this standard, “as

the Lord had prospered” them.

Now, the book of Hebrews tells us plainly that the priesthood of Levi and the sacrifices

thereof have been abolished. And if so, then all tithing under the Law has also come to an

end. We do not need to be afraid that if we do not tithe as the people under the Law were

required to do, God's judgment will fall upon us.

But Hebrews also tells us that the priesthood that is after the order of Melchizedek is

Everlasting. Jesus is a priest forever. This means His priesthood is still active, His blood

sacrifice is still functional, and He is still, as a priest, receiving our tithes from us.

Let’s take one more look at Genesis 14, at the story of braham and Melchizedek, who is

a type of Christ. What did he give Abraham? Bread and wine. We know that bread and

wine are the primary symbols of the New Covenant, which are to cause us to remember

how Jesus shed His blood for us. We know that when we receive communion in the New

Covenant, we proclaim the Lord’s death on our behalf. Undoubtedly, this is a prophetic

prefiguring of the Lord’s Supper, which Jesus would institute and make a part of worship

in the New Testament Church.

Now, during this prophetic enactment of a New Covenant worship experience in which

Jesus as Melchizedek serves Abraham communion, he responds by worshipping Jesus

with his tithe. If the offering of the bread and wine are significant indicators of New

Testament worship being foreshadowed in Genesis, then the inclusion of braham’s

decision to respond in worship by offering his tithe is also an indicator of New Testament

worship being foreshadowed as well. And just as receiving communion in a worship

service proclaims Jesus died, so offering our tithes in a worship service today proclaim

Jesus lives!

Hebrews 7:8 “In the one case, the tenth is collected by people who die; but in the other

case, by him who is declared to be living.

Here are a few examples from some modern-day heroes of faith that can inspire us to be

faithful tithers and generous givers.

D.L. MOODY: "I can tell more about the spirituality of a man by looking at his checkbook

than I can by looking at his prayerbook."

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It’s true. We can sing, ΗI love You Lord, and I lift my voice . . .Η and, ΗI have decided to

follow Jesus . . .Η but if we don’t put our money where our mouth is, it’s all meaningless

words and cheap talk.”

MISSIONARY JIM ELLIOT: "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep, to gain what

he cannot lose."

TROPIC N OR NGE JUICE: “ minister tells the story of how when he was in Bible

College, a tractor trailer load of Tropicana Orange Juice was dropped off at the cafeteria

every week. I wondered how a low-cost Bible College could afford so much expensive O.J.

One morning in chapel, I found out how as an older Italian man in broken English, gave

his testimony. He said he had come to the US from Italy in the 20’s as a young teenager,

with nothing but the clothes on his back. A Christian couple befriended him and through

their love he came to know Christ as his Savior and Lord. One Sunday in church, he prayed:

"Lord, if you give me an idea for a business, I will be faithful to give a portion of everything

I make back to Your work." That very morning, the idea of "Fresh squeezed orange juice"

popped into his head - and the rest is history: Anthony Rossi founded the "Tropicana Co"

and has been faithful to give God - not 10% of his income, as many faithful believers do,

but 50% of his income, for the past 60 years! He also gave truckloads of FREE O.J. to

Christian colleges throughout the country!”

CORRIE TEN BOOM: “The measure of a life, after all, is not its duration, but its donation.”

In conclusion, believers are not under the Mosaic law that commanded the Old Testament

Jewish brethren to tithe to be blessed or else, be forced to live under a curse. God is not

glorified by compulsory giving. In the New Covenant, the decision to be faithful in tithing

and to be generous in giving should be motivated, not by fear, but by love, faith, gratitude

and a desire to honor God. We are not compelled to tithe, but we are free to choose to

tithe and to experience the benefits of tithing.

If a person still questions the role of tithing as part of New Testament worship, he or she

certainly cannot question that putting God first and honoring Him with our lives, including

our finances, is the goal of New Testament worship. The only way to remove “tithing”

from one’s worship and still remain obedient to apostolic instructions concerning giving

is to replace it with a generosity that exceeds the tithe.

“Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of

Macedonia; How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep

poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power, I bear record, yea,

and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; Praying us with much entreaty

that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the

saints.” 2 Corinthians 8:1-4 KJV

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Tithing, understood from a grace perspective, is not a burden, but a blessing. When done

in faith, it reduces financial stress and produces rest.

Bishop Darlingston Johnson, Presiding Prelate of HIM-U, in addressing whether one is

required to pay their tithe or if tithing is an Old Testament teaching or mandate explains

why he has chosen tithe:

1. I find it to be one of the best ways for me to honor the Lord, put Him first, and to

acknowledge the greatness of my God.

2. It is one way I choose to show my gratitude to God, express my faith in Him, and

demonstrate my love for Him.

3. Tithing helps me to resist the love of money and to give me a proper perspective

regarding money, keeps me from trusting in money and helps ensure that money will

never become an idol in my life.

4. Because Abraham, the father of the faithful, the one lifted-up in Scripture as an

example of grace, worshipped God with a tithe.

5. Because it provides me with a systematic plan by which I can support the work of God

on Earth.

6. Because that is one way, I choose to obey Jesus’ instructions to put the Kingdom of

God first.

7. Because I believe in the Law of Seedtime and Harvest and the promises God has made

to those who give generously.

8. Finally, because I want to and find it personally rewarding!

Do you have some other reasons of your own. If so, feel free to add them to this list.

May God be glorified by your giving and as you honor Him with your tithes and offerings,

He will surely fulfill the promise to increase the fruit of your righteousness and cause His

grace to abound even more towards you that you will always have everything you need

and an abundance for every good work.

B. Offerings

Offerings are gifts brought to God beyond the tithes. The tithe was always ten percent of

one’s increase, but with certain offerings, God gave His people some discretion as to the

amount or number of offerings to bring. Their financial situation in life and the depth of

their zeal for God was shown by their choices concerning offerings. Here are some of the

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offerings that God instituted in Israel for the people to bring to His servants. There was

the offering of "first fruits," which was a little offering taken from among the earliest of

one’s ripening crops. This offering was not in the form of money but the form of crops. It

was a required offering, but the amount of "first fruits" brought to God was never

specified. The people had some discretion as to the amount.

There was the offering of the first born of your female animals. "’All that opens the

matrix is mine,’ said the Lord” (Exodus34:19). If the newborn animal belonged in the

category of "unclean” animals, it was not offered on God’s altar, but it still was His. There

was the offering of the firstborn child in every family. The first born belonged to God,

whether animal or human. Instead of bringing to the Lord’s temple the firstborn child of

every Israelite mother, however, the Lord required Israel to offer a certain amount of

money instead of the first-born child. Every male was required to offer a small offering of

money with him whenever God commanded the leaders of Israel to take a census. The

poor could not offer less, and the rich could not offer more (Exodus 30:14-15).

A census was rarely taken in Israel, but when one was taken, each male had to make this

offering to the Lord. Three times each year, there was another small offering required of

all the males in Israel when they presented themselves before the Lord at His temple. At

times, there were offerings taken from the people for special occasions, such as the

erecting of the tabernacle (Exodus 25:1-9) or the restoration of the temple during the

days of Judah’s King Joash (2 Kings 12:4-12). On these occasions, God’s people always

responded with great generosity and joy; the children of God are the most generous

people on earth.

When Moses let the people of Israel know that God had told him to collect an offering of

materials for erecting a tabernacle, the people brought so much that Moses had to tell

them to stop (Exodus 36:5-7). Later, after the tabernacle was built and God required an

offering for the dedication of it, God specified how much of an offering was to be

brought by each tribe; otherwise, Moses may well have had another problem with too

much being brought to the Lord! For His children who were especially happy to belong to

God and have a part in His covenant, God provided a way to express their gratitude by

commanding His priests to receive a Thanksgiving offering for sacrifice if anyone among

His people wanted to offer it to God. These are the offerings mentioned in the Bible.

It must be mentioned that many (including believers) have questioned the paying of

tithes. Some have said that if we are not cursed for not paying our tithe, then we

probably should not. Others have claimed that in some churches there is a lack of

financial transparency and accountability therefore, one should not give. As valid as

some of the concerns being raised are, it is important to understand that giving is an

expression of our love for God and our desire to see the expansion of the harvest field.

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LESSON 6: SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE

“We can all see God in exceptional things, but it requires the culture of spiritual discipline to

see God in every detail.” -Oswald Chambers

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define spiritual discipline.

• List the types of spiritual disciplines.

• State the three levels of studying the Bible.

• Distinguish prayer and fasting.

• Give two benefits of meditation.

Introduction

It is very important as a growing disciple of Jesus Christ that you develop regular disciplines.

Just how a routine of physical exercise helps to strengthen your muscles, causes your blood

to pump effectively throughout the body, and helps to keep you healthy. Developing

spiritual habits go a long way in helping the believer in their spiritual growth and

development.

II.

Definition of spiritual disciplines

Spiritual disciplines are practices that we develop that are essential to our spiritual growth.

We are to develop these spiritual practices on such a consistent basis that they become

habits.

III.

Types of spiritual discipline

There are many different spiritual disciplines that can be developed. Let’s look at four of the

most crucial:

A. Personal devotions

It is very important that as believers we set aside a time to spend with God daily.

Regular devotional or quiet time as it is also called helps the believer to make spending

time with God a priority, helps him or her develop a close relationship with the Lord,

and receives strength and wisdom for daily situations and challenges. A productive

devotional time must have the following:

• A consistent time. Early morning hours are great for spending time in God's

presence, but there is no hard and fast rule. Some people are more alert at

night so if you are a night person, have your devotions then.

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• A quiet place free from distraction. It is very important to guard against

distractions: turn off the phone and computer if you have to, log off social

media and focus on the Lord.

• Tools. A Bible, pen, and journal to write down notes.

• Time spent in praise and worship. Read a passage of scripture and spend time

meditating in it. End with a time of prayer.

• The amount of time spent is not as important as the quality of time spent.

Even if you only have 15 minutes to spend with the Father, do so.

B. Studying the Bible

The Bible is God's word. Jesus says in John 6:63, "My words are spirit, and they are

life.” God speaks to us through His word, so it is of utmost importance that we make it

a priority to spend time in the word. There are three levels of study of God's word that

we as Christians should partake of:

•

Read. It is a good habit to spend time just reading the Bible to get a general

overview of it. Many Bible reading plans can be found online, through Bible apps or

you can develop your own plan. For example, you may decide to read through the

Gospels, the epistles, or the historical books of the Bible. Reading through the Bible

can also be done by listening to an audio bible.

•

Meditate. To meditate is to mutter- to say over and over again. It carries the idea

of a cow chewing its cud—the cow chews, swallows, regurgitates, and chews again.

In the same way, meditation involves reflecting on a portion of God's word,

thinking and processing it in the mind, saying it aloud until you understand it on a

deeper level and until the truth sinks into your heart. Think of the word of God as

an onion- you can peel away layer after layer of meaning and understanding as the

Holy Spirit reveals it. The word of God is called a seed- like a natural seed, the word

must be planted in your heart until it becomes rooted and grounded in you.

Through meditation, our thinking is changed into conformity to God's word--our

minds are renewed. Remember that the goal of meditation as well as all other

forms of Bible study is to become doers of the word rather than mere hearers

(James 1:21-22, Joshua 1:8).

Benefits of meditation (Proverbs 4: 20-24; Joshua 1:8; Mark 4):

• The word of God becomes rooted in one's heart.

• The word of God will bear fruit.

• The word of God will keep you from sin.

• The word of God is medicine.

• The word of God will produce success and prosperity.

• The word of God will cause transformation.

• The word of God will bring freedom.

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•

Study. Whereas reading gives you a precursory understanding of the Word of God,

studying the Word is more in-depth. Bible study seeks to answer the following

questions: who wrote it, to whom is the passage or book written, why was it

written, when was it written and where was it written, or the conditions of the one

writing and those receiving it. For an in-depth Bible study, it is essential to have a

Study Bible- at least one that gives a brief synopsis of each book Another good tool

that is beneficial to have for Bible study is a concordance. The languages of the

bible are Hebrews for the Old Testament and Greek for the New. A concordance is

used to locate passages in the bible. An exhaustive concordance will have every

word in the Bible and all passages where the word can be found. A good

concordance will also have the words of the Bible in the original languages,

Hebrews and Greek. You can look up the English word and find the meaning of the

word in the original language. Nowadays you can download Bible apps on your

phone and many of these apps have concordances included.

Other helpful tools for study include a biblical dictionary and commentaries. A Bible

dictionary helps us to understand the culture, language and peoples talked about

and commentaries are written by ministers and biblical scholars to help us

understand the meanings of passages and verses. Reading a commentary will help

you understand a passage or verse and get different perspectives. Whether we are

reading, meditating in or studying God’s Word, it is important that we rely on the

Holy Spirit to teach and guide us into the truth of the word. It says in 1 John 2:27

tells us, “But the anointing which ye have received of him abides in you, and ye

need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all

things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in

him.”

This does not mean that we cannot be taught God’s word by others—after all, He

set pastors, teachers, and the other five-fold gifts in the church to equip the saints

(Ephesians 4:11). However, the ability to truly understand the word of God comes

from the Holy Spirit. So always come to your study of God’s Word by first of all

asking the Holy Spirit to guide you into all truth.

C. Prayer

Prayer is communication with God. Through prayer we commune, that is, we have

fellowship with the Father. We were created in the image of God so that we could have

fellowship with Him. When mankind sinned, this fellowship with God was lost. Through

the sacrificial death of Jesus, we have been restored to a place of communion with the

Father. Now that we have been purged from sin through the blood of Jesus, we can

come boldly into the very presence of God (Hebrews 4:16). We can come boldly before

the throne of grace to find mercy and grace to help us in our times of need.

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Through prayer, we can bring the Father our requests, our questions, our concerns,

petitions on behalf of others as well as pour out our hearts in adoration and praise to

Him (Philippians 4:6). It is important to note that prayer is not a religious activity or a

mindless ritual. Jesus warned against making prayer a ritual or a vain work (Mathew

6:7). True prayer is a two-way conversation. When we come to pray, we must come

expecting God to speak to us when we pray. God may speak to us most likely through

His word, through a witness in our hearts, through other people, and less often, more

spectacularly through dreams, visions, prophecy, or other supernatural means.

There are many kinds of prayer (Ephesians 4:18, 1 Timothy 2:1):

• Praise and thanksgiving: When we bless and thank God for His goodness

towards us and exalt Him for who He is. (Hebrews 13:15)

• Petition: Bringing our requests to the Lord (Mark 11:24)

• United prayer: Joining with other believers in prayer (Acts 4:23-24)

• Intercession: This is when we come to God on behalf of other people and

situations. This includes our family and friends, the church, the nation, the

lost, and the world at large.

• Consecration: Prayer of surrender to God’s will (Matthew 26:39, 42).

• Binding and loosing: Prayer exercising authority over the works of the enemy

(Matthew 18:18).

In Matthew 6:13, after seeing him pray one day, Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach

them to pray. In response, Jesus gave them what is called today as the Lord’s Prayer.

The Lord’s Prayer is not a just a prayer, but a model of how to pray. Let’s go through

it as we glean insights on how to pray effectively.

The Lord’s Prayer:

Our Father, who art in Heaven: When we pray, we address our prayer to the Father

in the name of Jesus. Because we are in Christ, God has become our Father and it is

our joy to call Him Father.

Hallowed be Thy name: To hallow is to set apart as holy, to reverence and to

venerate. Therefore, to hallow the name of God speaks of the worship, praise, and

adoration we give to Him. Thus, we should start our times of prayer by reverencing,

praising and worshiping Him to hallow His name.

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on Earth: Jesus tells his disciples to pray for

God's Kingdom to come—what does this mean? God’s Kingdom speaks of the reign of

God. Jesus told his disciples that the kingdom was within them, so the Kingdom of

God speaks of the reign of God in the hearts of men. God desires that His will be done

on Earth.

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We know that when Jesus returns, this will happen as the kingdoms of this world

become the Kingdom of our God and His Christ. Through his sacrificial death and

resurrection, Jesus ushered in the Kingdom. When we pray for God’s Kingdom to

come and His will to be done on earth, we are praying for everything that is in

Heaven to be accomplished on Earth.

Is there harmony in Heaven? Then we can pray for harmony on Earth. Are there an

abundance of resources in Heaven? Then we can pray for an abundance of resources

on Earth. Are there lost people in Heaven? No. So we should pray that lost people on

earth will come to know Jesus. Is there sickness in Heaven? Then we can pray for

those who are sick on the Earth to be healed. nother way of saying this is that God’s

word is His will. Whenever we pray according to the word of God, we are praying the

will of God on Earth.

Give us this day our daily bread: In prayer we can also ask for our personal needs to

be met. God the Father loves us and is willing to meet our every need so we should

not be shy to ask. We should ask in faith believing that we will receive.

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive others: When Jesus taught His disciples to

pray this way, He had not yet gone to the cross to die for our sins. After the cross, we

are not forgiven because we forgive others. We are forgiven when we give our lives

to Christ. In Jesus, we have received the forgiveness of sin (Ephesians 1:7). Now we

should praise God that we have been forgiven in Christ.

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil: We are to pray for God’s

guidance and appropriate His protection against all of the wiles and schemes of the

evil one, the devil.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.: We started

with praise and adoration and we end the same way.

D. Fasting

“Moreover, when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance; for they

disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you. They

have their reward” (Matthew 6:16). In this passage, Jesus tells His disciples when you

fast, not if you fast. Fasting, then, is not optional for the believer.

In Acts 13:2 and 1 Corinthians 7:15, we see that fasting was a regular part of the

spiritual lives of the early Christians. In the Old Testament, people fasted as an act of

mourning and repentance for sin. However, in the New Testament, we do not fast to

get anything from God or to incur His favor. Fasting does not move God; it does not

convince Him to answer our prayers.

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Why, then, do we fast? We fast to bring the flesh unto control and help us become

sensitive to God. In addition to food, we can fast any other thing that feeds the flesh

and prevents us from hearing from God. It is a good practice to make fasting a regular

part of your life. It can be done weekly, bi-weekly, and/or as you feel led to do so.

Fasting should always be accompanied by prayer and meditation in God’s Word. There

are different kinds of fasting:

• Regular fast: Fasting until 6:00 p.m. every day for the period of the fast or

going 24 hours without food. It is encouraged that you drink water while on

this fast to avoid dehydration.

• Partial Fast: A fast for just for a certain portion of the day, for example, up

until noon, 3:00 p.m.

• Daniel’s Fast: Like Daniel fasted in the book of Daniel, a person will only eat

vegetables until the fast is over.

• Dry Fast: A person goes without food or water during the duration of the fast.

This fast is highly discouraged as it is not healthy. If you have medical issues,

please seek medical advice before going on a food fast.

Summary

1 Timothy 4:8 tells us that though physical exercise has some benefits; its benefit cannot be

compared to the benefit that we get from the exercise of godliness. “For physical training is of

some value (useful for a little), but godliness (spiritual training) is useful and of value in

everything and in every way, for it holds promise for the present life and also for the life which

is to come.”

As we have seen, spiritual disciplines help us to develop our spiritual muscles, to develop our

spiritual strength. By establishing these spiritual habits, we will grow in our knowledge of and

relationship with Jesus. It is extremely important that the believer spend time with God by

feeding on the word, spending time in prayer coupled sometimes with fasting so as to grow and

become strong.

Study questions:

• Why is setting aside a time for personal devotions important for a believer?

• What are the benefits of meditation in God’s word?

• When studying the Bible, which questions are we to answer?

• What is prayer? Why is it important that we pray?

• What are the benefits of fasting?

HIM-U Discipleship Manual

LESSON 7: BELIEVER’S UTHORITY

“We receive the authority when we are born again. s we are made new creatures in Christ

Jesus, we inherit the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and we can use it in prayer against the

enemy.”

-Kenneth E. Hagin, The Believer's Authority

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define believer’s authority.

• Explain how to grow in authority.

• Distinguish temptation from trials.

• Discuss three enemies of faith.

• Give two weapons of warfare.

Introduction

Spiritual warfare is not something that consists only of casting out devils. Moreover, it is all

about handling the challenges of life, dealing with the kingdom of darkness to maintain the

victory our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has acquired for us through His death, burial, and

resurrection. One of the key things in Christianity is to live a permanent victorious life. How

can we overcome it? We need to know our authority as believers, faith that overcomes in

tough times.

II.

Believer’s authority

Authority is from the Latin word “autoritas” which means the right, the power to command

to take decisions, and being obeyed.

A. The origin, loss and restoration of man’s authority

• The Origin: Genesis 1: 26-28 says that man’s authority comes from God. “ nd God

blessed them, and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the

earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over͙”

• The Loss: Man loses his authority when he falls into temptation (Genesis 3). He

handed over his right to the devil.

• The restoration of man’s authority is in Christ and through Jesus Christ (Matthew

28:18; Luke 10: 18-19; Matthew 18:18). That is why Jesus is the source of our spiritual

authority for He has overcome (Revelation 1:18; 3:21; John 16:33). The key to our

authority is our union with Christ that confers us a legal position: far above all

(Ephesians 1:15-23; 2:6).

B. The purpose of authority

• To destroy the works of the devil 1 John 3:8; Jeremiah 1:10 and set the captives free

(Luke 4:18-19; Acts 10:38, 26:17- 18; Matthew 16:18-19).

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• To re-establish the kingdom and righteousness of God on Earth (Luke 11:20; Matthew

6:10-33) and His will.

• Because God gave the Earth to mankind, He can act through mankind (Genesis 1:26-

28; Psalm 115:16). Though God is sovereign to do whatever He chooses, He has

chosen to work with mankind in accomplishing his purpose (Matthew 18:18; Romans

8: 19-22).

• As ambassadors of Christ, we have been established to continue the work that He has

started (2 Corinthians 5: 20; Luke 4:18 -19 1 John 3:8).

C. How to grow in exercising authority

• The Word is the source of the revelation of God and His power, it edifies us and

makes our faith to flow in God of impossibilities (Romans 10:17).

• You grow in authority by actively being involved in the work of God.

III.

Faith and the believer’s authority

A. Definitions

• Faith is an act that is performed based on total trust in God.

• Real faith in God is all about trusting in Him, believing, and acting on His Word,

regardless of the appearances, the physical situations, and circumstances (Hebrews

11:1). Faith is not something we already have, but it is that hand stretched out to

receive from God those we need.

• Ordinary faith is different from the “gift of faith” or “special faith” (1 Corinthians 12:

9).

B. It is very important to mention that:

• All believers have faith.

• Faith carries you beyond the five senses (2 Corinthians 5: 7).

• We are believers because we have faith. Since we have faith, then we are saved (2

Corinthians 4:13, Ephesians 2: 8, 9).

• We were born of God, and He gave us the faith that makes us triumph over the

world (1 John 5: 4).

• Without faith, it is impossible to please God, so faith is important (Hebrews 11: 6).

• Faith is of God and is planted in our minds when we are born again (Ephesians 2: 8).

• We all have a measure of faith (Romans 12: 3).

• The faith of the heart is not based on our wisdom (Proverbs 3: 5).

• Faith is a lifestyle: “The righteous shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11,

Hebrews 10:38).

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• You still believe in something all the time, whether it is good or bad. Doubt is the

opposite of faith or even negative faith (Matthew 14: 28-31).

C. How to grow in faith (2 Thessalonians 1:3)

• Faith comes from the Word: The more the Word of God is real and present in our

lives, the more our faith grows (Romans 10:17).

• Obedience to the word of God: The more you exercise your faith, the more it

grows. Start by exercising your faith in the simpler things and gradually you will be

able to exercise it on slightly more complicated things. We can use the example of a

baby learning to walk as an illustration.

• Trials of faith (1 Peter 1:6-7): There will be obstacles, but do not let that discourage

us. Let us have patience (Hebrews 10: 35-36, James 1: 3-4). When faith and

patience work together, the result is positive (Hebrews 6:12). When faith tends to

waver, it is patience that keeps it going.

• Faith works out of love (Galatians 5: 6). Our faith will not work if we do not walk in

love, word, and deed (1 Corinthians 13:2).

• We ought to practice forgiveness in order to free our faith (Mark 11:25).

D. The enemies of faith

•

Fight the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12). There would be no combat if there

were no enemies. The devil attacks us in our weakest areas and lets us know where

we need to work the hardest to develop our faith.

•

Doubt is not allowing the Word to rule one's life or not being persuaded by the

Word as was the case with the children of Israel in Hebrews 4:11. Obedience

remedies this type of unbelief. The stone (Peter) began to sink into the river when

he turned his eyes away from Jesus to look at the circumstances around him

(Matthew 14: 22-32; Mark 11:23).

•

Unbelief due to the lack of knowledge (Matthew 17:18). Knowledge remedies this

fear (Mark 4: 34-41). Believers are admonished to not let the spirit of fear rule over

them but to banish fear from our lives (2 Timothy 1: 7).

•

Guilt (2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:10)

•

God did not make new unworthy creatures. Believe what the Bible says, and don't

look at your weaknesses. Renew your mind; you are the righteousness of God in

Christ. God has made you His child (2 Corinthians 5: 21) and has no favorite children

(Acts 10:34).

•

Do not believe in circumstances more than the promises of God.

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Believer’s authority in overcoming trials, temptation, and persecution

Read John 16: 33; 1Peter 4: 1- 2; Isaiah 53:10; Romans 8:31-39.

These passages above show us that trials, temptations, or persecution will always occur

on our way. Jesus our master confirms it through the call He gives in Matthew 16:24.

Because the ways of God are contrary to the ways of the world, we will always face

tribulations in the world. But Jesus has overcome and with Him we are more than

conquerors.

1. Trials (James 1:1- 4; 1 Peter 4: 12-19; Matthew 3: 1)

There are tests, obstacles, or challenges God puts in our way (Isaiah 48: 10) to create

an opportunity for us to exercise and build our faith (James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 1:6-7).

2. Temptation (James 1:13)

It is the work of the devil: in fact, God allows him to tempt us for he has no power

over us, and he cannot harm us without God’s permission (Matthew 4:11, Job 2:6)

a. God allows Satan to tempt us to prove to him that he is a liar. In fact, for Satan,

we love God because He blesses and protects us (Job 1-2). God boasts of us to

prove that He loves us. He is our God and Creator. It is He who is worthy of our

praise and our worship (Matthew 4:10).

b. Temptation can appear in the form of seductions, fleshly attractions, or

aggressive behavior. Its purpose is to create desires in us that could lead us to sin

against God.

c. Three domains of temptation

• First temptation: Turning stone into bread (lust of the flesh). The devil will

tempt you when you stand in need (Genesis 25: 29-34). Propose trickery, or

other practices to alleviate or to bypass your suffering or your lack, hindering

you to stand on the promises of God (Matthew 4: 4).

• Second temptation: Throw yourself down (pride of life). The enemy leads you

to disrespect the authority of God and to take God as a toy, a puppet that you

manipulate as you want. But the word recommends that we fear God.

• Third temptation: Presentation of the entire kingdom of the Earth and all of

its glory (lust of the eye). Satan tempts us for several reasons. It could be to

divert us from the will of God, to lead us to rebel against the plan that God

has for us (Genesis 3:1), or to curse God (Job and his wife). Satan wants to

lead us into rebelliousness as he rebelled against God. Temptations are works

of Satan, to distract us from the will of God and to lead us to disobey Him. Be

aware of that! Resist the devil and he will flee from you (Matthew 4:10-11; 1

Peter 8:5-11).

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F. Overcoming the enemies (Matthew 11:12; Revelation 12: 9-11; Ephesians 6:10-18)

Our enemies

We are engaged in a battle and the Bible says that God is not the one who tempts us

(James 1:13). Who then are our spiritual enemies?

• Our flesh (Galatians 5:16-21; 1 Peter 2:11)

• The world (James 4:4; Romans 12:2)

• Satan with his agents and his kingdom (1 Peter 5:8; James 4:7)

We are victorious

• We are God’s temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). He has given us victory through

Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:57) and the Holy Spirit, the One who lives in us

and who is greater than Satan (1 John 4:4).

What are our weapons?

• The name of Jesus (Philippians 2:9-11; Mark 16:17; Ephesians 1: 19-23).

• The armors of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). We must be clothed with these tools

(also read Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 119:11).

• The blood of the Lamb (Revelation 12:11)

• The word of our testimony; the declaration of God’s word (Revelation 12:11)

• Selflessness or self-denial (Revelation 12:11; Proverbs 4:14-15; 2 Timothy 2:22)

• Praise and worship (2 Samuel 22:4; Psalm 18:3; 2 Chronicles 20:20-23)

• Prayer of faith (James 5:14-16; Matthew 26:41)

Study questions:

• How should we respond to the world, the flesh, Satan and other enemies of our faith?

• What is the believer’s authority?

• What position do we have as believers in Christ?

• What are two reasons for the authority we have as Christians?

• How do we grow in faith?

HIM-U Discipleship Manual

LESSON 8: SPIRITUAL GROWTH

“There is nothing more important to learn about Christian growth than this: Growing in grace

means becoming like Christ.” -Sinclair Ferguson, Grow in Grace

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• State the meaning of spiritual growth.

• Explain how to grow spiritually as a believer.

• Distinguish “knowing” from “being.”

• Discuss how a Christian can measure his or her growth.

• Give two examples that will help a believer to grow.

I. Introduction

Every Christian must work on growing; your spiritual growth as a Christian cannot be

overemphasized. It is important for a believer to be conscious of the need to grow and make

progress in their spiritual life. Growth is neither an accident nor a miracle, but it is attained

through the application of revealed principles and means.

There are indicators to show one is growing in your Christian life. In your physical body, for

example, you may not see actual growth take place, but you do see the results - for example, the

size of shoes and clothes you wear change overtime; these are indicators of your physical growth.

In the same way also, in the spirit there are indicators to show that you are growing. Let’s dive

deeper.

II. What is spiritual growth?

Spiritual growth is the process of developing and becoming more and more like Jesus. This

process begins when we first place our faith in Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and the Spirit of

God enters our life. Through belief and confession, we gain forgiveness, new birth, and a

new life. Jesus said, "I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly" (John

10:10). This new life we now have because we accepted Jesus as our Lord is poised to grow.

The Holy Spirit, God’s agent for growth, immediately begins the process of transforming us

into His image. This process is best described in 2 Peter 1:3-8, which says that by God’s

power, we have “everything we need” to live lives of godliness. The Holy Spirit enables us to

live that godly life because of “our knowledge of Him,” which comes through the Word of

God (the seed) that has been given to us for our edification and growth. When we receive

Jesus as our Lord and allow the Holy Spirit to use the planted Word, we start to grow

spiritually. The initial growth may initially be minuscule, but with time, that seed in the

hands of the Holy Spirit can grow big and bear fruits for the glory of God.

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III. Should every believer grow spiritually?

Yes. Spiritual growth is expected of every believer. The author of Hebrews reprimands his

readers for "no longer trying to understand" (Hebrews 5:11 NIV) and "being still as infant"

(Hebrews 5:13). The criticism leads to exhortation: "Therefore let us leave the elementary

doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity" (Hebrews 6:1). The Apostle Peter says, "Grow in

the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). This is

certainly a command given to all believers by the Apostle Peter.

IV. How can a believer grow spiritually?

Scripture offers valuable insights into how a Christian can grow spiritually. It is Christ's

power in the believer that gives us the ability to grow spiritually (2 Peter 1:3; Ephesians

3:20). As we rely on His power and follow His teachings, we can develop greater maturity.

The Apostle Peter points out, "Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and

virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with

steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection,

and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they

keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2

Peter 1:5-8).

Having a desire for spiritual growth is not enough in the Christian life. We must be on the

path; a path that leads to growth. The Apostle Paul writes of this path in his letter to the

Colossians: “For this reason also, since the day we heard this, we haven’t stopped praying

for you. We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom

and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him,

bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:9-

10).

Here are three things that mark the path of spiritual formation:

A. Knowing

Being filled with the knowledge of God’s will is a vital part of becoming a disciple of

Jesus and continuing to grow spiritually. We can desire to be more like Jesus but for

it to be actualized, we must know Him. To know Him, we must read the Bible and

commune with the Holy Spirit. The psalmist says to God, “Your word is a lamp for my

feet and a light on my path” (Psalm 119:105). The path to spiritual maturity is lit by

the Word. In fact, true spiritual depth is about understanding the Word of God and

living out its truths. And that should be the goal of every believer.

B. Being

We should desire to learn and know about God so we can live out of our new

identity; exchanging old desires for new ones and old ways of thinking for the mind of

Christ. There is a mysterious transfer of spiritual DNA that occurs when we become

believers. That “new nature” now needs to develop. This development takes place

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when you spend time with a mentor or pastor, read biblically sound books, listen to a

full gospel teacher or preacher, go out to evangelize, join in the harvest field and

participate in prayer meetings. The more we do so, the more we are “being” or

“becoming.” In Romans, Paul talks about being. He says, “Do not be conformed to

this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). We begin

to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord when we emulate His traits.

C. Doing

Just as our mindsets are formed by our beliefs and training, our actions flow from

who we are. Bearing fruit in every good work is an indicator of development. Just as

no one is saved by knowing more about God, no one is saved by doing good things for

God. But being a disciple will inevitably result in doing the work of a disciple—not just

doing good things but also bearing fruit for God. We do good works not so good

things are done, but as Jesus taught, “So that [people΁ may see your good works and

give glory to your Father in Heaven” (Matthew 5:16). That is what bearing fruit looks

like—it is God-centered obedience.

If being a disciple is about taking on Christ’s traits, producing fruit is about exhibiting

the presence of Jesus. We were designed to produce spiritually. He is the vine. We

are the branches. Paul tells the church at Ephesus, “For we are His creation, created

in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should

walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). The fruit is a sign a tree is maturing. Fruit in a

believer’s life is a sign that a disciple is growing. And it occurs as we get on the path

of discipleship with Jesus.

V. How can a Christian measure their spiritual growth?

There are several ways we can measure our spiritual growth.

A. In Galatians 5:19-23, we find two separate lists of what theologians called the "acts of

the flesh" and the "fruit of the Spirit."

The former is the list of things that identified our lives prior to us coming to Christ. These

are the things we confessed, repented of, and asked God's help to overcome. As we allow

the Holy Spirit to mold us more and more into the likeness of Jesus, fewer and fewer of

the "acts of the flesh" will be evident in our lives.

The second list which contains the "fruit of the Spirit" (verses 22-23) has the things that

should characterize the lives of Christians. Basically, a Christian should be able to

measure their spiritual growth by the increased manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit. In

other words, one of the ways we can evaluate our spiritual growth is to examine how the

"fruit of the Spirit" is being manifested in our lives. The Spirit desires to produce these

qualities in us: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,

self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23). Are we increasing in love? In joy? In patience? If so, we

are growing spiritually.

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B. We can also measure our growth by how we respond to trials and tribulations in our

lives.

The Bible points out that spiritual growth often comes through trials. Just as physical

strength is built through exertion and straining against resistance, spiritual strength is

developed in the hard times of life. The Apostle James writes encouragingly, "Count it all

joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of

your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may

be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:2-4).

Because growth comes through trials, Scripture also teaches we are not to grow weary in

the process. Much spiritual development is the result of persistence. "As for you,

brothers, do not grow weary in doing good" (2 Thessalonians 3:13). "And let us not grow

weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up" (Galatians 6:9).

C. We can measure our spiritual growth by how we give our time, talents, and resources

for the advancement of His kingdom on Earth.

Are we true harvesters? Do we love God more today than we did yesterday, a week, a

month or a year ago? Are we serving Him and His people more? Are we falling in love

with Him and his people more each day or are we dreading sharing our faith, interceding

for the lost or participating in the harvest?

It is God's will that we grow to be more like Jesus. We also have the promise that the Lord

Himself will oversee our growth and bring us to maturity. "He who began a good work in

you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6).

VI. What do we need to grow?

A. The Word of God (Hebrews 5:12-13)

If we are to grow spiritually, we need a daily diet of the Word of God. That is, we need to

read, study, meditate, memorize, and sing the Word of God. The Apostle Paul says, "Let

the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one

another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the

Lord" (Colossians 3:16).

B. pplication of God’s Word (Hebrews 5:14)

Exposure to God’s Word is necessary, but it is not enough. To live a healthy life

physically, we need to both eat and exercise. It is said that "practice makes perfect," but

spiritually, "Practice makes mature." Let’s look at three things that hinder us from

applying the Word of God to our lives:

1. Dull ears

"Dull ears" can be understood as one's spiritual perception not being up to par, slow

to hear and sluggish in the mind as well as the ears. "I have a lot more to say about

this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you’ve picked up this bad habit of not

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listening" (Hebrews 5:11 Message Bible). The fault did not lie with the writer of

Hebrews, but with the hearing of the listeners.

2. Hard heart

“God again set a certain day, calling it ‘today.’ A long time later He spoke through

David, as in the passage already quoted, "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden

your hearts" (Hebrews 4:7). The writer is not speaking of the blockage of an artery in

our physical heart. The term, "hard-hearted" describes stubbornness. It conveys the

idea of "being unmoved emotionally or being resistant to someone (God). A hard

heart can cause us not to apply God’s truth.

3. Traditional thinking

Read Matthew 15:1-6. The traditional teaching of scribes and Pharisees contradicted

the teachings of Scripture. It was their teaching that money set aside to provide for

the needs of parents could be declared a gift to God and they could avoid caring for

their parents. Traditional thinking can keep us from being doers of the Word. Jesus

calls a man who hears God’s word but does not do God’s Word “a foolish man who

builds his house on sand.” God did not give us His word to give us a bigger head but a

bigger heart. It is not what we know, it’s how we live that makes the difference!

C. Desire to partake of solid food and not remain on milk (Hebrews 5:13)

Milk is necessary for babies, but God did not intend for us to grow up with bottles in our

hands. Peter writes, "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may

grow thereby" (1 Peter 2:2). Milk is pre-digested food, which is what babies need. But we

cannot grow up if what the pastor has digested (studied) is our only source of

nourishment. If we are going to grow up, we must learn to prepare our meals (v. 12) -

get past the fundamentals, foundational truths, ABCs.

D. We must have a balanced diet

Matthew 4:4 says, “But he answered and said, it is written, man shall not live by bread

alone, but by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God.” 2 Timothy 3:16 says,

“ ll Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for

correction, for instruction in righteousness.” It is not healthy to eat only and always the

sweet things in life and never some of the more nutritious foods. You can survive on

sweets, but you cannot live a healthy life only on sweets.

E. Dependence upon the Holy Spirit

Galatians 3:3 says, “ re you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you

now trying to finish by means of the flesh?” The postle Paul is asking, “Do you think you

can continue the Christian life by the power of the flesh? Can you become mature on

your own? Do you think you can do this by yourself?” He makes it emphatically clear

that if we are to grow, we need to depend upon the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

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VII. Summary

God desires for us to grow spiritually, and He has given us all we need to experience

spiritual growth. When the transformation of salvation takes place, spiritual growth begins.

The Holy Spirit indwells us (John 14:16-17). We are new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians

5:17). The old, sinful nature begins to give way to the new, Christ-like nature (Romans 6-7).

Spiritual growth is a lifelong process that depends on our study and application of God’s

Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17) and our walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-26). As we seek spiritual

growth, we should pray to God and ask for wisdom concerning the areas He desires us to

grow in. We can ask God to increase our faith and knowledge of Him. With the Holy Spirit’s

help, we can overcome sin and steadily become more like our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Study questions:

• What is spiritual growth?

• What are the three things that mark the path of spiritual growth?

• Spiritual growth is measured by what?

• What are some of things we need to grow?

• Should every believer grow spiritually? Why or why not?

HIM-U Discipleship Manual

LESSON 9: UNDERSTANDING THE TRINITY

“We believe in one God who exists in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”

-Matthew 28:19; Luke 3:22; 1 John 5:7”⁴

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

•

Define the Trinity.

•

Explore the scriptural foundation of the doctrine of the Trinity.

•

Distinguish the persons within the Trinity.

•

Discuss some helpful and unhelpful illustrations of the Trinity.

•

State the significance of the Trinity to the Christian life.

Introduction

This lesson is geared toward revealing an understanding of the Christian doctrine of the

Trinity. The Doctrine of the Trinity means that there is one God who eternally exists as

three distinct persons—the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The overall goal of this lesson is

to look at scriptural foundation of the doctrine and its significance to Christianity or the

Christian life.

II.

Definitions

A. God

Probably the best definition of God ever penned by man is that given in the

Westminster Catechism: “God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His

being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.”⁵

B. Trinity

In Christian doctrine, “trinity” speaks of the unity of Father, Son, and Holy

Spirit three persons in one Godhead.⁶ The Father is the first person of the Trinity,

he Son is the second person of the Trinity and the Holy Spirit is the third person of

the Trinity.

III.

Oneness of God within the Trinity

The unity of the Godhead is made very clear in the Old and New Testaments:

• Genesis 1:26: Then God said, let Us make man in our image͙

• Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!”

⁴ Manual of Policies, Practices and Procedures, Harvest Intercontinental Ministries Unlimited, p.6.

⁵ Cited in Charles Hodge’s Systematic Theology.

⁶ “Trinity,” Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/topic/ Trinity-

Christianity accessed June 30, 2020.

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•

1 Kings 8:60: “͙so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God;

there is no one else.”

• Isaiah 44:6: “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of

hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me.’”

•

1 Corinthians 8:4: “͙ there is no God but one.”

The teaching of the Trinity is unquestionably one of the most perplexing aspects of

Christian theology and requires careful discussion. The Christian faith is this: that we

worship one God in trinity, and trinity in unity; neither confounding the persons nor

dividing the substance. For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and

another of the Holy Spirit; but the Godhead of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy

Spirit is all one. A well-known theologian once said, “Scripture does not contain a

doctrine of Trinity; rather, Scripture bears witness to a God who demands to be

understood in a Trinitarian manner.”⁷

IV. The scriptural foundation

The Scriptural Doctrine of the Holy Trinity rests upon this foundation: “The Lord

he is God; there is none else beside Him” (Deuteronomy 4.35). “I am the Lord,

and there is none else, there is no God beside me” (Isaiah 45:5). The New Testament

witness explicitly reveals the concept of the Trinity. The Trinity is revealed at both the

three persons of the Trinity are also described in 1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2

Corinthians 13:14; and 1 Peter 1:2. Matthew 28:19 reads, “Go therefore and make

disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and

of the Holy Spirit.” This is especially strong, in that it teaches both the unity and

plurality of God. In this verse, the three persons of the Trinity are emphatically

distinguished by the use of the definite article “the” in each case; yet there is one

singular “name.”

There is the closest of connections between the Father, Son, and Spirit in the New

Testament writings (1 Corinthians 12:4-6; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Galatians 4:6;

Ephesians 2:20-22; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; Titus 3:4-6; 1 Peter 1:2). Divine attributes

are credited to three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The incommunicable

attributes are infinity, eternality, immutability. By definition, these can’t be attributed

to anything created. That which possesses them is properly called “God.”⁸

A. The Father is God

God the Father is the first person of the Trinity. That the Father is God has not been

questioned much. God in Scripture is often spoken of in terms of “Father.” This term

communicates to us that God oversees His creation as a father does his household.

⁷ McGrath, 2001, p.321

⁸ Ibid

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He is Creator and the Sovereign head overall. He is specially the Spiritual Father only

of those redeemed (John 6:27; Titus 1:4).

John 6:27: “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to

eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set

his seal.”

Titus 1:4: “Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.”

The Son is God

Jesus Christ is God the Son clearly stated in Scripture both directly, and by having the

incommunicable attributes. He is the second person of the Trinity.

Isaiah 9:6,7: “͙unto us a son is given͙and His name shall be called, Wonderful,

Counselor, the Mighty God ͙” Isaiah clearly reveals that the Son is equally God by

describing him as such (Mighty God).”

John 1:1: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word

was God.” It is clear from the above scripture that the Word refers to the Son because

just a few verses later John tells us, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,

and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and

truth.”

John 20:28: Thomas said, “My Lord, and my God.” Thomas refers to Jesus here as God

revealing that the Son is equally God.

Colossians 1:16-17: “For by Him all things were created, both in the Heavens and on

Earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities- all

things have been created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him,

all things hold together.” This verse ascribes an activity of God to Jesus which is

creation clearly revealing Jesus’ God nature.

John 8:58: “͙before braham was born, I am.” Here, Jesus is ascribing God’s name to

him signifying that he is God.

Revelation 1:8 and 22:13: “I am the lpha and the Omega.”

The Holy Spirit is God

The third person of the Trinity is the Holy Spirit. Divine perfections and actions are

also attributed to the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 139:7: “Where can I go from thy Spirit͙”

1 Corinthians 2:11: “͙the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.”

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The Spirit’s divine nature can also be seen when we compare some passages of

Scripture:

Acts 28:25-26: And when they did not agree with one another, they began leaving

after Paul had spoken one parting word, “The Holy Spirit rightly spoke through Isaiah

the prophet to your fathers, saying, ‘Go to this people and say, you will keep on

hearing, but will not understand, And you will keep on seeing, but will not

perceive͙’”

Hebrews 10:15-16: “ nd the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, ‘This

is the covenant that I will make with them. After those days, says the Lord: I will put

My laws upon their heart, and upon their mind, I will write them.’”

Lying to the Holy Spirit is equated with lying to God in Acts 5:3-4. In Acts 5, Peter

confronts Ananias and Sapphira for their deceit. He asks, “ nanias, why has Satan

filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds

of the land? ͙ You have not lied to man but to God” ( cts 5:3-4). Notice that Peter

accuses Ananias of lying to the Holy Spirit and, at the same time, tells him that he lied

to God. That is to say, the Holy Spirit is God.

Together the three persons share in: creation, preservation, regeneration, judgment,

revelation, miracles, and the divine ministry to the saints. They all receive worship,

honor, and glory. Individually, they each communicate with one another and reveal

one another to man.

Essence and Persons

“Essence” and “persons” are two key words when it comes to the discussion of the

Trinity. When you read “essence,” think “God-ness.” ll three persons of the Trinity

share the same “God-ness.” One is not more God than another and one is more

essentially divine than the rest. When you read “persons,” think of “a particular

individual distinct from the others.” Theologians use these terms because they are

trying to find a way to express the relationship of three beings that are equally and

uniquely God, but not three Gods. That is why we get the tricky (but learnable)

language of essence and persons.

We want to be true to the biblical witness that there is an inseparable bond and unity

of God, even though Father, Son, and Holy Spirit can all be rightly called “God.” The

persons are not three gods; rather, they dwell in communion with each other as they

subsist (exist) in the divine nature without being compounded or confused.

VI.

Illustrating the Trinity

There are many illustrations which have been offered to help us understand the

Trinity. While there are some illustrations which are helpful, we should recognize

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that no illustration is perfect. Unfortunately, there are many illustrations which are

not simply imperfect, but in error.⁹

A helpful illustration.

One of such illustrations that is helpful in understanding the Trinity is the musical

analogy proposed by Jeremy Begbie:

A musical chord is essentially composed of three different notes (to be a chord all

three notes must be present), namely the first, third and fifth notes of a given

musical scale. For example, the chord of C major is composed of the notes C (the

root of the chord), E (the third from the root) and G (the fifth from the root). Each

individual note is a sound, and all three notes played together are likewise a sound.

Hence a chord is essentially three sounds in one sound, or one sound essentially

composed of three different sounds (each of which has an individual identity as well

as a corporate identity).

By analogy, God is three divine persons in one divine personal being, or one divine

personal being essentially composed of three divine persons. Moreover, when

middle C (the root of the chord) is played it fills the entire heard space. When the E

above middle C is played at the same time, that second note simultaneously fills the

whole of the heard space; yet one can still hear both notes distinctly. When the G

above middle C is added as well, a complete chord exists; one sound composed of

three distinct sounds.¹⁰

Some unhelpful illustrations to avoid.

Some unhelpful illustrations to avoid are as follows:

1. Egg

The Trinity is like an egg. In one egg you have the white, the yoke, and the shell

composing one full egg.

This analogy denies the unity of the Godhead. The problem with this analogy is that

an egg yolk is of a very different substance than a shell. Also, the egg is made up of

three distinct and unalike parts. This analogy actually teaches the heresy of

tritheism (Tritheism is a school of thought that teaches that the Father, Son, and

Holy Spirit as three independent divine beings; three separate gods who share the

same substance).

2. Water

The Trinity is like water. Water has three states: solid, liquid, and gas. Although the

water changes form it is still H2O.

⁹ Matt Perman, “What is the Doctrine of Trinity,” from www.desiringgod.org accessed November 3, 2020

¹⁰ Peter S. Williams, “Understanding the Trinity,” from www.bethinking.org accessed November 3, 2020

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Just as water changes forms, so too does the Trinity. This analogy denies the

distinction of the Godhead. The problem with this analogy is that no one molecule of

H2O can actually exist as solid, liquid, and gas at the same time. As a result, the water

molecule must change forms. A single molecule cannot simultaneously exist in three

different states. This analogy actually teaches about modalism. It’s a school of

thought that teaches that the three persons of the Trinity as different “modes” of the

Godhead.

3. Man (father, husband, and son)

The Trinity is like a man who is a father, husband and son. Although He is one, He

has different roles to different people. The Trinity is like this man. The problem with

this analogy is that it denies the distinction of persons in the Godhead. The analogy

breaks down because I can simultaneously be a father, husband, and son to any one

person. In reality, we change our roles depending on who we’re interacting with. As a

result, this analogy actually teaches modalism.

No analogy, of course, is perfect. A perfect analogy is an identity, and there is nothing

in this universe that will be an identity with God. However, it is hopefully an

illustration that can give people a beginning glimmer of how the Trinity can be

understood.

VII.

The significance of the doctrine to the Christian Life

Significance of the doctrine to the Christian life can be summarized by the following:

A. It is part of the Gospel.

The doctrine of the Trinity reveals significantly what the Gospel is all about and

how It was enacted or brought about. The Trinity and the Gospel have the same

shape. It demonstrates and manifests how God saves us—by sending His Son

and Spirit. without them, God would still be a Father, but He wouldn’t

be our Father. He would still have a Son, but He wouldn’t have many sons; it is

core to the Gospel message as revealed in John 3:16 (the Trinity in action by

demonstrating the gospel message).

B. It reveals who we worship and serve.

Without the Doctrine of the Trinity, we cannot, in any Christian sense, know

God. The Trinity is foundational to Christians knowing who they serve and

worship. To know God, to have fellowship with Him, to commune with Him, is to

converse with the three members of the Godhead in their proper order and role.

C. It demonstrates union with Christ.

The doctrine helps in understanding how we are in union with Christ, His life,

death, resurrection and ascension. In the incarnation, God has forever united

humanity to divinity. Therefore, by the incarnation, we participate as humans in

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the divine life by the Spirit through the humanity of Jesus Christ, our brother,

great High Priest and Living Head. Because He participated in our lives as a

human, we participate in His life as humans, and His life is a life that is lived

within the eternal relationship of the Triune God. Therefore, we are brought into

the Trinitarian relationship.¹¹ This is the essence of what it means to be a

Christian.

Therefore Paul said in Galatians 2:20, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in

me.” He is not saying his personality is erased, or his personhood swallowed up,

but rather that the Christian life is the life of Christ lived out by Christ, in and

through the people of Christ. And the life of Christ is at its very core a life of

perfect communion with the Father in the relationship of the Trinity from all

eternity. He allows us to participate in that communion with the Father.¹²

It is manifested in the Christian life through prayer

The Christian life is a life that participates in the life of the Trinity. That is, the

Christian has been invited into the very life of the Trinity, and thus, experiences

this life, being drawn into it. Thus, the Christian life is entirely Trinitarian and

cannot be truly understood in any other way.

Christians sometimes kneel to pray. In so doing, they are communicating with

God. But they also know that what is prompting them to pray is also God: God,

so to speak, inside them. But they also know that all their real knowledge of God

comes through Christ, the man who was and is God—that Christ is standing

beside them, helping them to pray, praying for them. God is the being to which

they are praying and the goal they are trying to reach. God is also the being

inside them which is pushing them on. He is the motivating power.

God is also the road or bridge along which we are being pushed to that goal, so

that the whole threefold life of the three-person being is actually going on in that

ordinary little bedroom where an ordinary person is saying their prayers. They

are being caught up into the higher kind of life—that is called “zoe” or spiritual

life: they are being pulled into God, by God, while still remaining themselves

(emphasis added).”¹³

VIII.

Summary and application

The basic feature of this doctrine is that there are three persons within the Godhead

-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-and that these are to be regarded as equally divine and

¹¹ Keith Fortenberry, The Trinity and the Christian Life, from www.calvarychapel/posts/the-trinity-and-the-

christian-life. Accessed December 1, 2020

¹² Keith Fortenberry, The Trinity and the Christian life, July 8, 2016

¹³ C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, p,162

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of equal status. The best way to understand the basis of this seemingly baffling

doctrine is to consider it as correct way of thinking about God which emerges from a

sustained engagement with the biblical witness to the words and works of God. Let

us quickly review what the lesson revealed.

A. There is only one God. This one God exists as three persons, Father, Son and

Holy Spirit.

B. The three persons are not each part of God but are each fully God and

equally God.

C. The Trinity is significant to Christianity. It helps us to understand who we

serve and worship. Further, we should allow the fact that God is triune to

deepen our worship. We exist to worship God. And God seeks people to

worship Him “in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Therefore, we must always

endeavor to deepen our worship of God—in truth, as well as in our hearts.

D. When you read “essence,” think “God-ness.” ll three persons of the Trinity

share the same “God-ness.” One is not more God than another. None is more

essentially divine than the rest. When you read “persons,” think of “a

particular individual distinct from the others.” Theologians use these terms

because they are trying to find a way to express the relationship of three

beings that are equally and uniquely God, but not three Gods.

Study questions:

• What is the doctrine of the Trinity?

• Can you consider the Son as God and why?

• What are two unhelpful illustrations of the Trinity to avoid?

• Why is the doctrine of the Trinity significant to the Christian life?

References

Alister E. McGrath, Christian Theology: An Introduction, (United Kingdom: Blackwell

Publishing, 2001), 159.

Fairbairn, Donald. Life in the Trinity: An Introduction to Theology with the Help of the Church

Fathers. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2009.

Henry C. Thiessen, Lectures in Systematic Theology, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B.

Eerdmans Publishing Company), p. 89.

Diogenes Allen and Eric O. Springsted, Philosophy for Understanding Theology, 2^nd Edition

(Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2007)

John Macquarrie, Principles of Christian Theology, (London: SCM Press LTS, 1966),

114-117.

Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House,

1985), 21.

Seamands, Stephen A. Ministry in the Image of God: The Trinitarian Shape of Christian Service.

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2005.

Torrance, James. Worship, Community & the Triune God of Grace. Downers Grove, IL:

InterVarsity Press, 1996.

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LESSON 10: DISCIPLESHIP

“Only a disciple can make a disciple.” -A. W. Tozer

Lesson objectives:

By the end of this lesson, the student should be able to:

• Define the role of a disciple.

• Discuss the importance of making disciples.

• State the characteristics of a disciple.

• Understand the scriptural foundation of discipleship.

I. Introduction

The Lord instructed the church at the end of His earthly ministry is to make disciples.

^“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven

and on earth.¹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the

name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all

things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the

age" (Matthew 28:18-20).

II. What does it mean to make disciples?

Making disciples is more complex than the conversion process; it’s deeper than just

leading a person to the Lord. It includes showing them how to become like the Lord,

becoming like Christ. The Greek word used for “making disciples” is “mathēteuō,” which

means, “to be a disciple of one; to follow His precept and instruction.” To make a disciple

means instructing or helping someone learn how to become. This is beyond the moment

of salvation, but a lifetime of sanctification (John 8:31). This word of instruction to Jesus

to make disciples at the end of His ministry, He first made a disciple out of His followers,

the one that continues with Him into the end (Matthew 28:16.) This instruction is not for

anyone, but for believers that are ready to lead and train others. Paul said, “Follow me,

as I follow Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1).

III.Why do we have to make disciples?

When God created all things, He gave a blessing, and all things give birth to its kind. Dogs

give birth to dogs, donkey give birth to donkeys, man gives birth to man and a believer

should give birth to believers. Jesus proved this by investing in the lives of His disciples,

He did not only heal them, (Luke 4: 38-41), He spent time with them, taught and

admonished them. He taught them how to pray, how to deal with the storms of life and

how to live by faith. He also explained the mystery of the kingdom, and the meaning of

parables. He did all this to show His disciples more about Himself so that they could pass

on the process and disciple others (John 14:9). Discipling did not start with the New

Testament; the Old Testament prophets also had disciples. Elisha was discipled by Elijah.

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We also read that the religious leaders at the time of Jesus also had disciples and John

the Baptist had disciples.

A. It is the mission of the church.

Matthew 28:18-20 reads:

^“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in

Heaven and on Earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing

them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them

to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even

to the end of the age." Amen.

The great commission of the Lord to the church is not only to teach, heal, baptize, or

sing. All the things we prioritize at the church today, the mission of the church is to

make disciples. The word disciple means “learner” which means, we need to make

people who are willing to learn more about Christ. Jesus says all power has been

given unto me, in view of this revelation, go therefore and make disciples. An

empowered church is a church that prioritize disciple making.

B. It is a command.

The Lord gave a commandment. This is not just a word of admonition, it is a

command. If we love the Lord, we will keep His words. The commandment that He

gave us was to love one another (John 13: 34-35). If we truly love our neighbor, we

will point them to Jesus and help them learn more about Jesus. God loves the world

and gave His son. Jesus loves the world and gave His life; the Holy Spirit loves the

world and abides with us; we show our love for the Lord by making disciples.

C. It brings joy and fulfillment.

When Jesus sent the disciples out, they came back rejoicing (Luke 9:10, 10:17). Joy is

always associated with accomplishment. When a job is done as expected, there is

always a sense of fulfillment and joy. When God created the Heavens and the Earth

and the Bible says it was good. He delights in the work of His hand. When we see

people growing in the knowledge of Christ, there is the joy of fulfillment.

D. It is rewarding.

Aside from the reward here on Earth, there is a crown of rejoicing that awaits a

believer at the time of resurrection (1 Thessalonians 2:19; Philippians 4:1). You will be

joined by myriads of angels rejoicing at the conversion of a believer, and now you

have done beyond the conversion in making a leader who can also make disciples of

others. You will be rewarded.

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IV. Christian or disciple?

As we can see in the Bible, the disciples of Jesus are the ones that are committed to the

teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. They hungered and thirsted to learn more and they

left everything to follow Jesus (Matthew 5:6). The Bible records that Paul trained and

raised many people including Timothy as a disciple, while Paul followed the teaching of

Christ. Timothy followed the footsteps of Paul and became a disciple of Jesus through

the leading of the Holy Spirit through Paul’s leadership.

1 Corinthians 11:1 (KJV)

^“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”

In the above passage, we can say that a disciple is simply someone who believes in Jesus

and seeks to follow Him in their daily lives. What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus?

It means first of all that we want to learn from Him—and we will, as we study God’s

Word (the Bible), and listen to others teach from it. We should make the Bible part of

our lives every day. The psalmist said, “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives

understanding to the simple” (Psalm 119:130).

But being a disciple also means we want to put God’s Word into action by seeking to live

the way Christ wants us to live—with God’s help. Thank God every day for His great love

for our lives and asking Him to help us make disciples of others. Christians on the other

hands are the people that are saved by accepting Jesus in their lives. These people have

confessed Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They are sealed in the promise of the Lord

according to the Word of God.

John 6:26

“Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because

ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.”

Some people come to the church or seek the Lord for one thing or the other, but the

disciples want more than coming for one need or another to be met. When we make

disciples, we are not necessarily saying that they should abandon everything to follow

us or move into our home. What we are saying is that there must be some commitment

from both sides to teach and to learn. We must be willing to counsel them and show

them the grace of Christ in a way to bring out the best in them to be more like Christ

and be able to replicate Christ, willing to spend time, teaching about the things of the

Lord. Also, answering questions that they may have, using our work of faith experience

to help them grow in the Lord, and most especially willing to model Christ to them (1

Corinthians 11:1).

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They would be trained to also replicate what was learned and make disciples as well.

They are trained to be sent, not trained to stay (Matthew 10). Please note that at the

time of Matthew 10, Jesus was under the Old Covenant and the Gentiles were not

included in the bounty of the Israelites (Matthew 15:26). But in our time and era, we

belong to the New Covenant and the Gentiles have been integrated into the fold. We do

not have any limitation on who to disciple; all the world needs the instruction of Jesus

(Matthew 28:18-19).

V. How to become a disciple

A. Reading the word

2 Timothy 2:15

^“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be

ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Paul advising his disciple Timothy, he urged him to study the word of God. It is

important to remember that we are to study the Scriptures to seek and know Jesus

as our source of strength and eternal life. The power of understanding what the

Scriptures say is not only for knowledge of Christ in the Bible but also the knowledge

of the call of God upon our lives. There is a call of God upon each individual and one

of the ways to bring out the call of God is through the Holy Spirit and by reading the

Scripture.

2 Timothy 3:15-17

“ nd that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make

thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.All scripture is given

by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for

instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly

furnished unto all good works.”

The word of God brings about wisdom and inspires us to be a good disciple and to

make disciples for the Lord. It is profitable; the time you spend on the Word, yields a

good return of investment. It teaches and helps us understand and brings clarity to

life. It reproves; shows us how we have sinned. It corrects; points us to the truth

when we are in error. It trains us; it shows us how to obey. God’s Word is fully

sufficient to prepare us for everything the Bible commands us to do. The Holy Spirit

uses the Word of God to transform us into Christ-likeness. It is fully enough for life

and truth transference.

B. Going to church

Hebrews 10:25

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but

exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”

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The end game of a disciple is to be like Jesus, to be the light of the world just as

Christ is the light of the world and to be the salt of the earth. The house of God is the

place we learn more about God and more about ourselves.

Ephesians 4:11-12 “And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some,

evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the

work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”

In his book, The Purpose Driven Life, Dr. Rick Warren emphasizes the purpose of a

Christ-driven church. He stressed that these purposes are worship, fellowship,

discipleship, ministry and mission, which are derived from the Great Commandment

(Matthew 22:37-40) and the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). The church

becomes a place where questions are asked, insight is built, and knowledge is

sharpened.

C. Under a mentor

Paul said to follow him as he followed Christ. One of the major ways of becoming a

disciple is to be under a mentor.

Titus 2:1-4 “But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged

men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged

women, likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers,

not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young

women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children.”

The role of spiritual leader is to teach or disciple others. Jesus demonstrated this

with the apostles and they that learned at His feet. Most of the Epistles of Paul were

written to his disciples all over what was then Asia Minor. The Holy Spirit does the

work of the Father, but the human touch brings out the best in us. God used Paul to

stir up the gifts in Timothy (2 Timothy 1:6), most great men and women of God have

a great man or woman who mentor them and help stir up the gifts of God from the

inside of them and attain the potential of God in each individual.

VI. Characteristics of a disciple

Romans 12:1-2 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you

present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable

service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of

your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of

God.”

Based on our definition of a disciple, we can say a disciple is a Christian that allows the

Holy Spirit to work in their life. The heart is the area where the Holy Ghost concentrates

on in a person’s life. When a person allows the Holy Spirit to work on the heart, the

following characteristics is developed:

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A. Humility and love: The focus is no longer on self, but the common goal of pleasing the

Lord and being kingdom-minded. This will bring about humility and love for one

another (Matthew 11:28-30, 18:1-4; John 13:35).

B. Holiness: Holiness rather than legalistic. There is a difference between trying to be

holy and having an element of holiness. A disciple does not have to struggle with sin,

he has overcome sin. Not that he is perfect, but has a mindset that pleases the Lord or

wants to please the Lord. There is an evidence of a change in the life of a disciple

(Galatians 5: 16-26).

C. Service: A disciple knows the urgency of the time and will try to be used by the Lord.

Knowing that not all will preach, all have been called to make disciples of others. A

disciple would discover the call of God upon their lives in a way to benefit others and

point others to the Lord.

D. Use our time, talents, and resources. Jesus spent three and a half years with His

disciples. We need to devote time and other resources to the process of discipling

others, because people need to be nurtured in order for them to grow. This takes

time, just like how a seed that is planted into the ground needs water and time to

grow into a full crop (Matthew 10:38; Luke 14: 26, 33).

E. Discover what we have and use it for God’s glory. When we discover our gifts, we can

use them to disciple others. Paul used his gifts during his missionary journeys to

disciple others (Acts 13-18).

VII. Summary

Christian discipleship is the process by which disciples grow in the Lord Jesus Christ. They

are equipped by the Holy Spirit, who resides in our hearts, to overcome the pressures and

trials of this present life and become more and more Christ-like. This process requires

believers to respond to the Holy Spirit’s prompting to examine their thoughts, words and

actions and compare them with the Word of God. This requires that we be in the Word daily

studying it, praying over it and obeying it.

Study questions:

• What is the difference between a disciple and a believer?

• What are the characteristics of a disciple?

• What is the mission of the church?

• Do you consider yourself to be a disciple and why?

• How do you become a disciple?

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LESSON 11: MARRIAGE

“The goal of every married couple, indeed, every Christian home, should be to make Christ the

Head, the Counselor and the Guide”- Paul Sadler.

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define what a Christ-centered home is.

• Know about how a Christ-centered home ought to be run.

• Know the different types of marriage.

• Know the biblical basis and purposes for marriage.

• Understand Paul’s teaching about being married or single.

Introduction

Family is a bedrock of the church. It is God who instituted marriage and the Bible also

teaches on the importance of being single. This lesson will explore marriage and

singlehood from a biblical perspective.

II.

Marriage and family

What is a Christ-centered home?

It is a place where family members live, speak, act and relate to one another in the

awareness that Jesus Himself is an intimately concerned participant in everything they

do. It is a household of which it can truly be said, “Christ is the Head of this house, the

Unseen Guest at every meal, the Silent Listener to every conversation.”

How does this “Christ-centeredness” play itself out in the practical details of

everyday life?

To a certain extent it expresses itself differently from situation to situation. Every

Christian family, like every Christian individual, is a poem (Greek poiema,

“workmanship”) written by God (Ephesians 2:10), and every poem is unique. But there

are some common features we can expect to find in every genuinely Christ-centered

home.

Here are a few things that should be a part of a Christian home:

1. Joy: Joy should be characteristic of a truly Christian home. It is important to

understand that joy and happiness are not necessarily the same thing. Happiness

is a result of what happens to us. Joy has deeper roots. Every marriage and every

family will experience trials and hardships of various kinds, but there is no

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circumstance that can rob us of our joy if we know that the key to our present

welfare and future destiny lies in Christ alone.

Orderliness: A Christian home should be orderly. s the apostle Paul says, “God is

not the author of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33). It is purposely not

in chaos. The tyranny and bedlam of the world are required to stay outside. The

members of the household regularly review everything that is allowed in. Should it

stay? Does it build up the family? Does it encourage people to value one another

over things?

Grace: A Christ-centered home should be marked by grace. It should be a safe

place to make mistakes and grow in the process. Family members need the

ointment of grace applied to the wounds of their hearts. They need to remember

that love, not perfection, is the goal. There is enough hostility, judgment, sarcasm,

biting humor and antagonism out in the world. Home should be a retreat where

the hurting can find comfort, rest and healing.

Service: A Christian home is a place of service. Its atmosphere is tempered and

flavored with acts of kindness, respect, humility and love. This is where husbands

and wives discover that serving each other in Christ is primary; that service to

others in the outside world is built upon an attitude of selflessness at home; and

that all of life, including the mundane duties of cooking, laundry, housekeeping,

and lawn-mowing, can be sacred.

Spiritual discipline: A Christ-centered home is a place where the spiritual

disciplines are practiced. It provides an environment where every member of the

family learns how to live by studying the Scriptures, praying, meditating on God’s

Word, and spending time alone in the presence of the Lord.

God’s purpose: Christian home is based on God’s purposes for every member of

the household. It is a place where the family’s goals are founded upon His values

and where the corporate vision of the future is consistent with His plan.

Developing a family mission statement can be a wonderful place to start in crafting

a genuinely Christ-centered home. The guiding principles embodied in this

document should be flexible but consistent. From beginning to end, they should

reflect your eternal focus and express your deep hope of seeing Jesus face to face

one day.

III. Types of Marriage

There are several different types of marriage. Before examining a few of them, let first

spell out in general terms, what a marriage is.

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A. Marriage

Marriage is a legal or customary status in which two people are joined in the eyes of the

law. It normally involves a couple obtaining a marriage license and then exchanging vows

in a ceremony performed by a sanctioned official. When a couple gets married, they gain

several rights, including certain favored tax statuses, the ability to make decisions if their

spouses are incapacitated and property rights.

1. Civil marriage

This type of marriage involves the civil laws of the land. In most countries, the

Marriage Ordinance prescribes that a certificate must be acquired from the local or

municipal authority, granting a period during which a couple must be married after

their names have been published at the City Council. If no one opposes the marriage

within the specified time, the marriage may take place. The legal registry is usually

signed by at least two witnesses.

Customary or traditional marriage

This type of marriage requires the involvement of external family members. Families

get together and traditionally hand over their daughter after customary rites are

performed. In a customary marriage, the rites vary depending on the family and

tribe. Some families consider this to be a full and proper marriage and expect the

couple to live together afterward while some families consider this as merely an

engagement, that is, an agreement to be married. Polygamous arrangement creates

a real challenge for customary marriage. In this arrangement, a man can marry as

many wives as he wants. Polygamous marriage is contrary to New Testament

teaching.

Christian or church marriage

A Christian marriage is a covenantal relationship entered into by two believers based

on promises and commitment. To speak of marriage as a covenant is to say that the

vows of the marriage must be honored by both partners. Every covenant

relationship includes the saying of vows, or pledges to do or not to so something

(Ecclesiastes 5:4-6).

The husband and wife recognize that the marriage covenant has united the two of

them as one. This means that there is a sharing of everything that they have, which

requires trust.

God’s desire is for marriage to be permanent; until death do you part. The marriage

covenant is a lifelong commitment. Every marriage experiences difficulties but the

Christian marriage covenant requires that a husband and wife always forgive and

remain steadfast in their devotion to each other.

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In the Christian or church marriage, the church or its representative officiates the

ceremony and ensures the appropriate legal documents are obtained and signed.

IV.

Biblical basis for marriage

Marriage is not man’s idea, neither was it initiated by man. It was God Himself who

realized man’s need for a companion and addressed it. Marriage is a divine ordained

relationship or union between one man and one woman. Therefore, marriage is the God-

giving of a woman to a man. dam said, “This is bone of my bones, and flesh of my

flesh,” signifying essential unity and responsibility. Since a man and a woman become

one flesh after marriage, a man leaves his father and mother and cleaves to his wife and

they become one flesh (Genesis 2:24). This “one flesh” relationship is known as the

mysterious “henosis” (union of becoming one), which is the ontological basis of marriage.

In this unique union, man and woman become one, yet do not lose their individuality.

Additionally, from HIM-U prospective, marriage is a covenant relationship, which is

witnessed by God and the congregation. This union is patterned after that of Christ and

the church in which husband and wife are encouraged to love, respect and submit to one

another even as Christ loves the church.

In HIM-U Churches, marriages are not performed between unbelievers or a believer to an

unbeliever in accordance with Scriptures. While it is true that in HIM-U churches,

traditional marriage is recognized, members who have gotten married or plan to get

married traditionally, are encouraged to have a ceremony involving the pastor in order to

invoke God’s blessing on their union.

V. What is the purpose of marriage?

God designed marriage to fulfill six important and vital functions. When we understand

them, we will be better able to honor marriage.

A. Companionship: True companionship grows out of a oneness of spirit. This occurs in

marriage when both the husband and wife can say, “My spouse is my best

friend.” “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3)

B. Enjoyment: The principle behind enjoyment is self-control. “Marriage is honorable

[precious] in all, and the bed [should be kept] undefiled: but whoremongers and

adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4).

C. Completeness: God designed Eve to complete that which was lacking in dam’s

life. “ nd Adam said, ͙ She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of

Man” (Genesis 2:23)

D. Fruitfulness: God’s first command in Scripture is this: “͙ Be fruitful [bear fruit], and

multiply [increase], and replenish [fill] the earth ͙” (Genesis 1:28).

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The very nature and character of God is to multiply life, whereas the nature and

character of Satan is to multiply death. Please note that the absence of children does

not nullify your marriage. Similarly, it is not the arrival of children that validates the

marriage.

E. Protection: A husband is to protect his wife by laying down his life for her

(Ephesians 5:25). A wife is to protect the interests of her home (Titus 2:4-5). Parents

are to protect their children to raise up a godly seed.

F. Typify Christ and the church: Marriage is to be a human object lesson of the divine

relationship between Christ and believers (Ephesians 5:31-33).

VI. Remaining single or getting married

Many time believers ask the question, “Should I remain single or should I get married?” Or

better still, “Isn’t it better to remain single according to the postle Paul?” Here is the

simple answer. None is better than the other. Every Christian should ask, “How can I best

seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33)?”

However, based on the postle Paul’s teaching in I Corinthians 7, we can say the

following:

A. If you can remain single and be devoted to the Lord in purity, stay single.

While marriage is God’s plan for most people, He has gifted some to remain single so

that they can serve Him without the encumbrances that necessarily go along with

marriage. When Paul says, “It is good for a man not to touch a woman” (1 Corinthians

7:1), he is using the word “touch” as a figure of speech that uses the physical

relationship in marriage to represent marriage as a whole. Thus, he means, “It is good to

remain single.”

He restates the same idea in verses 7-9 and discusses it at length in verses 25-40. He is

not commanding being single, since he recognizes the single state as a gift which God

only gives to some; but he is strongly commending it, since it was a gift he himself had,

and since it provides a number of advantages for serving the Lord that being married

precludes.

This probably needs to be said more often. Many Christians put pressure on singles,

especially older singles, to get married. Sometimes we convey an unbiblical attitude: “I

wonder what’s wrong with him (or her) that he’s not married? He seems like a nice

person.” But Paul teaches that being single is good if a person is gifted for it, since it

opens some opportunities for serving Christ that are closed to married people. To say

this is not to deprecate marriage, which both Paul and other biblical writers esteem as

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God’s good gift (1 Timothy 4:3; Hebrews 13:4). It is just a matter of how God has gifted a

person.

B. Advantages of being single.

There are at least four advantages for the person who is gifted to remain single:

Single people have more freedom in difficult times. Paul may have sensed an

impending time of persecution against the church (1 Corinthians 7:26). In such

times, it is easier to be single than married. Paul is quick to add (v. 28) that a

person who marries at such a time has not sinned. But the married person will

have more trouble (the Greek word means “pressure”), and Paul is trying to spare

him. It is one thing to be imprisoned or martyred for your faith as a single person.

But it is much more difficult, both for you and your family, if you are married. So,

in a situation where persecution is likely, being single means that you will have

more freedom than if you had a family. In the same vein͙

Single people have more flexibility to go to difficult places with the gospel. If

you sense God’s call to take the Gospel to a place where you may suffer

persecution or severe hardship, you may want to remain single. There are notable

exceptions and therefore this statement should not be taken as an iron-clad rule.

But it is easier to go to difficult places as a single person rather than taking your

family.

Single people have more freedom to devote themselves fully to God and His

service. In verses 32-35, Paul points out that the single person has more time to

devote to the things of the Lord than a married person does. Marriage carries

with it certain responsibilities that demand time and effort which otherwise could

have been devoted to the Lord. Of course, both married and single people can be

fully devoted to the Lord. But Paul’s point is that if a single person gives himself

fully to the Lord and His service, and a married person does the same, the single

person can do more, since he does not have the family obligations that the

married person has.

For over 15 years, Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, was away from his

family an average of ten months each year. In Marilee P. Dunker’s Days of Glory,

Seasons of Night, she writes that when he visited home, he often did not even

unpack his suitcase! He used to say, “I’ve made an agreement with God that I’ll

take care of His helpless little lambs overseas if He’ll take care of mine at home.”

But his marriage ended in divorce, one daughter committed suicide and the

daughter who wrote about their family had to struggle through a lot of emotional

trauma.

While God accomplished much good through these dedicated men and women, I

believe their witness was marred by neglecting their families. I think that if God is

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calling you to be a missionary, your first responsibility is still to your wife or

husband and children. Single people do not have to be concerned about those

responsibilities.

4. Singles have more freedom to give sacrificially to the Lord’s work͘ Raising a

family is expensive! While many married couples give generously to the Lord’s

work, they cannot give as much as an unencumbered single person who is

committed to the Great Commission. A single person does not have to worry

about buying a home large enough for a family; paying for all of the food, clothes,

medical bills, braces, college educations, and other stuff that rearing a family

requires. A single person only provides for him or herself. They are free to give

more to the Lord’s work.

If staying single has all these advantages, then why shouldn’t we all stay single?

Why get married? Paul says (v. 7) that remaining single is a special gift from God.

While he wishes that everyone had that gift, he recognizes that this is not so.

From this chapter and other Scriptures, we learn that ͙

C. Advantages of being married

Marriage provides a God-given outlet for sexual desires. Paul is very practical

and realistic when he says (v. 2), “But because of immoralities, each man is to

have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband.” He adds (v. 9),

“But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than

to burn.”

If you are single and find that fighting sexual temptation is a constant battle, then

you probably don’t have the gift of celibacy. You need to pursue marriage. Paul is

not saying that it is impossible for a single person to resist temptation, because

he says (1 Corinthians 10:13) that in every temptation, God provides the way of

escape. Every Christian can be pure in thought and deed. But if fighting the battle

for purity is all-consuming, the best solution is not more self-control, but a wife

(or husband). Of course, temptations do not end with marriage; you still need

self-control. But God has given marriage as a legitimate outlet for sexual desires.

Marriage provides companionship to relieve loneliness. Reflect on the fact that

in the book of Genesis, Adam was in a perfect environment, in unbroken

fellowship with his Creator, and yet God said (Genesis 2:18), “It is not good for the

man to be alone; I will make a helper suitable for him.” If as a single you can

reasonably control your loneliness through Christian fellowship, then you may be

able to remain single.

Marriage is the God-given context to raise up godly children. Children need the

influence and example of a godly, loving father and mother so that they will grow

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up to know, love, and serve the Lord.

4. Marriage and children provide opportunities for witness to those without

Christ. Of course, single people have opportunities for witness that married

couples don’t. But as we have seen, marriage is to be a picture of Christ and the

church. s the world sees a husband’s gentle, Christ-like love for his wife and the

kind, loving way they deal with their children, it is a witness for Christ.

Therefore, if you marry, it should not be for self-centered fulfillment. While

marriage and children are good gifts from God that bring great joy and happiness,

you should marry because you can better serve Christ in line with your spiritual

gifts as a married person. ll Christians are to seek first God’s kingdom and

righteousness. If you get married to seek first your own happiness, you will come

up empty (Matthew 6:33; 16:25).

D. What then should we do? Marry or remain single?

If you are not gifted for celibacy, pray and look for a godly spouse. Below are five

suggestions:

Focus on personal growth in godliness. You can use your time as a single person

to sit around feeling depressed and lonely or, you can fill all your time with being

around people. However, it would be wise to use some of your alone time to seek

the Lord in His Word and in prayer. If you use your time to read and study God’s

Word, to pray, to read good Christian books, and to serve the Lord in some

capacity, when God introduces you to your life partner, you will be mature

enough for the responsibilities of Christian marriage. If you want a godly mate,

you have got to become the kind of person you want to marry, namely, a godly

person!

Never consider marrying an unbeliever. It is never God’s will for a Christian to

become unequally yoked with a non-Christian in marriage (1 Corinthians 7:39; 2

Corinthians 6:14-18). For some reason, it is usually Christian women who get

tangled up with “nice” unbelieving men, rather than the other way around. It

does not matter how nice the person is. If he or she is not committed to Jesus

Christ, then you may be heading for trouble. Your children might suffer the

consequences. Your devotion to Christ could be hindered.

Guard your moral purity. s Paul writes (1 Corinthians 6:18), “Flee immorality.”

Your body belongs to God, whose Spirit dwells in you. Therefore, you are to

glorify God in your body (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Paul says (1 Corinthians 6:16)

that even if a man gets involved with a harlot, he becomes one flesh with her.

Having sex is more than just a physical union. Physical intimacy, even in a so-

called “one-night stand,” creates the illusion of personal intimacy. But it clouds

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and confuses the real issues that need to be the foundation of a Christian

marriage. It creates guilt. It carries the risk of STDs (sexually transmitted

diseases). It defiles you and your brother or sister in Christ. As Paul states (1

Corinthians 7:1-5), the sexual relationship is proper in marriage, but only in

marriage.

Study godly character qualities so that you will know what you are looking for.

Many Christian singles never give any thought to what qualities they should be

looking for in a godly mate! Some women end up married to abusive men

because they were looking for a macho, good-looking guy, not a man of God. If a

man does not treat you with respect, gentleness, self-sacrificing love, and other

godly traits, do not marry him. It is an illusion to think that you are going to

transform him! Study the deeds of the flesh so that you know which traits to

avoid. Study the fruit of the Spirit so that you know which qualities to look for

(Galatians 5:19-23). While no one is perfect, you want a person who is committed

to growing in godliness.

Be spiritual, wise and practical. God expects us to pray and wait on Him, but He

also expects us to use appropriate means in finding a mate. Sometimes we expect

that God is going to rain down manna from Heaven, when He expects us to “plow

our field and plant some seeds!” In finding a mate, we need to be spiritual, wise

and practical. There is nothing wrong with putting yourself in situations where

you may meet a godly mate (Read the story of how Ruth met Boaz in the Book of

Ruth). Meeting your mate could include involvement with a church, a Christian

group, a campus ministry, attending a conference for Christian singles, or

carefully using a Christian online dating service. Remember the word, “Carefully!”

Looking for a wife or husband should not be your only reason for going to a

church or being a part of a Christian group. But it can be one reason! Remember,

the first thing you need to do is to pray for God’s guidance. It is God who

provides your life-partner!

Also, even though godly character should be primary, it is not unspiritual to be

physically attracted to someone. Read the Song of Solomon; the lovers there are

not extolling the finer points of each other’s spirituality! In its proper place, there

is nothing wrong with physical attraction.

Do not be so super-spiritual to the point where you overlook liking the person.

You are looking for a companion, and a lot of companionship involves liking the

person’s personality. You should have some common interests and be able to

enjoy just being together without having to do things. You should be able to

accept the person as he or she is, without major remodeling. Also, seek the

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counsel of those who know you well, especially your parents. Any strong

opposition from parents should be weighed very carefully.

So, if you can remain single and be devoted to the Lord, do it. If you are not gifted

for celibacy, pray and look for a godly mate.

VII. Marriage is not the final solution to your problems; God is! Marriage is a wonderful gift

from God. As Proverbs 31:10-12 exclaims, “ n excellent wife, who can find? For her

worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no

lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.” men! Next to

Jesus, our spouse should be the best gift God has given us!

But at the same time, if God is not at the center of your life and your spouse’s life,

marriage will create more problems than it solves. Without the Lord at the center,

marriage brings together two self-centered people expecting the other person to meet

his or her needs. It will not work. Put God at the center of your life and trust Him to

keep the marriage alive.

Study questions:

• Why did God institute marriage?

• What are the purposes of marriage?

• Why shouldn’t a believer marry an unbeliever?

• What are some of the advantages of being single and being married?

• Why is marriage not the solution to our problems?

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LESSON 12: FUTURE EVENTS

“Redemptive history remains incomplete until Christ returns. It is for the final act in the great

drama of redemption that the church awaits with longing.” -Robert Mounce, Revelation

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define eschatology.

• Distinguish the tribulation from the great tribulation.

• Discuss the importance of the study of the end times.

• State the significance of the rapture for Christians.

• Give three signs of the end times.

Introduction

This study of future events is by no means intended to be an in-depth study, but rather

to give the believer a basic understanding of future events to come, which is referred to

as eschatology.

II. What is eschatology?

Simply stated, eschatology is the study of the end times according to the Bible.

III. Why is the study of the end times important?

Here are some reasons:

a. It helps us to know God's timeline of events.

b. It gives us a better understanding of end-time prophecies.

c. It motivates us to evangelize, share the gospel, and win souls for the kingdom of

God.

d. It reminds us that our labor for the Harvest is not in vain but will be rewarded.

e. It reminds us to live purposeful lives as we will one day give an account.

f. It reveals the promise of Christ's return to establish his Earthly Kingdom and

reign.

g. The fulfillment of end-time prophecies, given thousands of years ago, by various

servants of God, written generations apart, further proves a Divine Single Author

of the Bible, in the Person of the Holy Spirit, and further validates the

authenticity of the Bible as the Word of God.

IV. Prophesy of the kingdoms

Several books in the Bible give prophecies of end-time events. One of such books is the

Book of Daniel. In Daniel chapter 2:29-45, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of a statue

with a head of gold chest and arms of silver the belly and thighs of bronze, legs of iron,

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feet made of iron and clay and a rock that crushed the statue and became a mountain

that filled the whole Earth.

Daniel interprets the dream as the reign of the different kingdoms from King

Nebuchadnezzar up to the coming rule of Christ. He said the head of gold represented

King Nebuchadnezzar's Babylonian Kingdom then after him the chest and arms of silver

represented the Persian Kingdom that would come after him, the belly and thighs made

of bronze represented the Greek Empire. The legs of iron represented the Roman

Empire, the feet made of iron and clay represent the divided Roman Empire and the

rock that crushed the statue represented a kingdom that shall have no end. The

kingdom that shall have no end is Christ, as He comes to set up his rule and his kingdom

over the Earth.

Signs of the end times

As believers, we are all waiting and looking with anticipation for the second coming of

Christ to come and establish His kingdom, and reign over the nations of the earth. In

Matthew chapter 24, beginning at verse 1, Jesus' disciples showed him the beautiful

Temple. Jesus stated that the temple would be destroyed.

Later, his disciples came to Him privately and asked, “When will these things be? And

what will be the sign of your coming, and the end of the age?" Jesus then proceeds to

give them what is now commonly referred to as the signs of the end times. This

includes the emergence of many false Christ, the deception of many, which is also

known as the great apostasy, or the falling away, where many will be deceived. There

shall be wars and rumors of wars, famines, pestilence, earthquakes and false prophets

that will lead many astray. Jesus said that these are only the beginning of sorrows. He

said the Gospel will be preached throughout the world and then the end will come.

VI. What is the tribulation?

Some who have studied end-time prophecies have divided the tribulation into two parts:

A. The Tribulation (Matthew 24:9)

The tribulation is a period the Bible describes as a time when the earth will

experience various signs, calamities, disasters, and evil. It is a time when there will

be a lot of natural disasters and human wickedness. It is a time when the love of

many will become cold. Many will betray each other, Conditions on the earth will be

far worse than it is today. Wickedness will abound, lawlessness will increase and

there will be a lot of death.

B. The Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:15-26)

This period will commence at the time of the abomination of desolation spoken of in

Daniel 12: 9-11. The Antichrist will be the leader of a global government and will sign a

seven-year peace treaty with Israel. Halfway through the peace treaty, he will break it,

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and enter into Israel’s Holy Temple and desecrate the Temple (Daniel 9:26-27).

Jesus describes it as a time that has never before been experienced on the Earth nor

ever will be after that time. Believers and the Jews particularly will be sort and killed by

the Antichrist and those who support him. Jews living in Judea will have to flee for their

lives.

(Matthew 24:15-21). This is also a time when the wicked on the Earth will

experience God’s wrath. People will wish to die but death will be far from them.

(Revelation 9:6). This is also referred to as “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah

30:7).

VII. The Antichrist and the false prophet

The antichrist will rise and become a world leader with great power (Revelation 13:1-4).

It is believed he will rise from the revived Roman Empire (Daniel 7:17-24). He will desire

to be worshiped and blaspheme the name of God (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4; Revelation

13:6) A false prophet will also emerge that will cause people to worship the Antichrist as

God. He will show miraculous powers given him by the devil and many will be fooled

(Revelation 13: 1-18).

VIII. The mark of the beast

It is during these days that the Antichrist will issue a mark which the Bible calls the mark

of the beast that number is 666 (Revelation 13:16-18). He will demand that everyone

receives the mark on their forehead or their right hand. Anyone who does not receive

the mark will not be able to buy or sell. But the Bible also warns us, that anyone who

does receive this mark, will be lost for eternity in hell. There is no repentance or

forgiveness for anyone who receives the mark. Their fate is hell is sealed forever

(Revelation 14: 9-11). Today, it is believed by many that this mark could most possibly

be a computer chip the size of a grain of rice or even smaller. Nanotechnology has made

this possible.

IX.

The two witnesses

At this time God will send two witnesses for three and a half years who will minister to

the world to repent. God will give them great power and anyone who tries to harm

them, the Bible says fire comes from their mouth and consume them. This is God’s grace

and mercy in calling people to repentance before the culmination of this age (Revelation

11:3-13).

Even though great calamities are happening all around, and evil is dominant, a great

revival is simultaneously taking place. God is reaching out through believers for the

harvest. God preserves 144,000 Jews as witnesses; 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of

Israel. After three and a half years, they shall be killed, and their bodies left in the street.

Three days later, the Spirit of God will enter their bodies and a voice from Heaven will

call them up.

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X. The Rapture

The word “rapture” is not found in the Bible, in the same way as the word Trinity is not

found. The word rapture comes from the Greek word harpazo, which means “to be

caught up” or “a snatching away.” The Apostle Paul talks about the Rapture in 1

Thessalonians 4:13-18. The rapture is the time when millions of believers around the

world who have received Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior and have put their faith

and trust in Him will suddenly vanish off the face of the Earth as Jesus receives them in

the air during His second coming. Both the dead and living in Christ shall rise with

glorified bodies (1 Corinthians 15:51-58).

A. Pre-Tribulation, Mid-Tribulation, and Post-Tribulation

There have been various schools of thought regarding whether the church will go

through the tribulation or not.

1. What is the Pre-Tribulation?

Some believe and teach in a pre-tribulation. They believe that believers will not go

through the tribulation; but that God will rapture them before the tribulation of

those days. Some scriptures used to support a pre-tribulation rapture include the

following include Revelation 3:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:9and Luke 21:36.

2. What is the Mid-Tribulation?

This is the belief that believers will go through some of the Tribulation, and midway

through the tribulation, they will be raptured. Some of the scriptures used to support

a Mid-Tribulation Rapture include 1 Thessalonians 5:9, Revelation 3;10, Matthew

24:29-31 and 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

3. What is the Post-Tribulation?

This is the understanding that believers will go through the tribulation. And upon the

Second Coming, then He will rapture his saints as He returns to rule the Earth.

Some supporting scriptures for post-tribulation rapture are Matthew 24:29-31 and

Revelation 7:14.

XI.

The Judgment Seat of Christ

It is not known with certainty when the Judgment Seat of Christ takes place, but it is

believed that it will take place after the rapture of the church. This is where all believers

are judged for their work, not for their salvation. All are saved at this Judgement Seat. It

is here that we will give an account of our life, gifts, and calling. How we spent our time.

Our works will be tried and rewarded (1 Corinthians 3:11-15). That is why it is so

important for us to invest our gifts, talents, and treasure in the kingdom of God now.

XII. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

This is the wedding feast of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-10). This is where the believer

experiences the joy for which we live, to be one with Jesus.

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XIII. The Second Coming of Christ

While the antichrist is gathering nations to attack Israel, Heaven is about to announce

the return of our King. At that time heaven opens and our King of Kings and Lord of

Lords, with Heaven and the raptured saints behind him, descend from Heaven with a

loud trumpet sound of the angel. All eyes on Earth shall see Him (Revelation 1:7;

Matthew 24:26-27, 30; Acts 1:11; Matthew 25:31).

A. The Battle of Armageddon (read Revelation 19:11-12)

B. The Millennium

An angel shall bind the devil and he shall be thrown in a bottomless pit and sealed

for one thousand years. This is known as the millennial rule of Christ. Christ shall

rule the Earth and establish His government (Revelation 20:1-6).

C. The Battle of Gog and Magog

After the thousand years, the devil will be released from the bottomless pit. He will

tempt the nations again and gather an army against Christ. They shall surround

Jerusalem, but God shall send fire down from heaven and destroy the enemies of

Christ. The devil was then cast in the lake of fire where he will join the antichrist

and the false prophet (Revelation 20:7-10).

XIV. The Great White Throne Judgment

This is where all the unrighteous dead are judged according to their works. All the

unrighteous dead were resurrected and brought before the White Throne. This is also

referred to as the second resurrection. The Book of Life is opened and whosoever

name was not found in it, was judged according to their works, and cast in the lake of

fire. Death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death (Revelation

20:11-15).

XV. The New Heaven and New Earth

There shall be a new Heaven and a new Earth, a New Jerusalem, also called the

Tabernacle of God or the Holy City (Hebrews 11:10; Revelation 21). God Himself will

dwell with us and shall wipe away our tears.

God showed John the New Jerusalem coming down from Heaven. This is our eternal

home. John says the measurement of it is 1,400 miles long, wide and high; a perfect

cube with God’s glory is the light. It has 12 foundations which are the names of the 12

apostles. The streets are pure gold. Only the people of God will be in this beautiful city.

Child of God, that is why we live, that is why we serve our Lord, knowing that our labor

is not in vain. Serving God is not about amassing riches here on earth but building our

account in Heaven for that glorious day. Nothing on Earth can be compared to what

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awaits those who serve Him faithfully. May our hearts be to serve the king and harvest

in the souls for His kingdom. Even so, come Lord Jesus-Maranatha!

XVI. Summary

Future events or eschatology is the study of what Scripture teaches about the end

times. Eschatology helps remind Christians that this world is not our home and to look

beyond what is presently happening for Heaven, where they will be with Christ and His

people forever. It is worth noting also that irrespective of which school of thought one

chooses to believe, our HIM-U has not officially endorsed or is emphatically teaching

any of the views above as its dogma. Rather, HIM-U emphasizes the need for the

believer to be about the Lord's work, bringing in the harvest, and being ready to be

raptured when it does occur.

Study questions:

• Why is the study of the end times important?

• If someone accepts the mark of the beast, can they be forgiven?

• In light of the end times, what should the attitude of believers be regarding the harvest of

souls?

• What are the types of tribulation?

• What will happen at the Great White Throne Judgment?

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LESSON 13: EVANGELIZING AS A DISCIPLE

“The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If

they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are

simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose.” -C.S. Lewis

Lesson objectives:

At the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

• Define evangelism.

• Understand why evangelism is important.

• Discuss the biblical basis for evangelism.

• Know few short methods of evangelism.

I. Connection between evangelism and discipleship

Often, discipleship and evangelism are taught as two separate and unconnected aspects of

our lives in Christ. Even more harmful, we often consider discipleship necessary and

evangelism optional. Or we think evangelism is only for the most zealous and “spiritually

gifted” in our churches.

Every disciple should evangelize

The New Testament paints a picture in which every disciple of Christ should be normally

and naturally involved in evangelism as much as in Bible study, prayer, and corporate

worship. Sharing the gospel is necessary and integral to a growing life in Christ.

Many of us have heard and even preached sermons that rightly focused on the Great

Commission’s theme of “make disciples” (Matthew 28:18-20).

However, we should be disciple-makers ourselves. Making disciples involves helping

people who are not yet disciples to become disciples—that is, evangelism. Jesus

modeled it (Mark 1:14- 15; Matthew 9:35) and trained His apostles to do the same

(Mark 6:7-13; Luke 10:1-12). Only a few days later Jesus said that they would be His

“witnesses͙to the ends of the earth” ( cts 1:8).

Part of the apostles’ teaching that the newly Spirit-filled church devoted themselves to

(Acts 2:42) regularly sharing the Gospel with family, friends, and strangers. From those

very first weeks and months after the Pentecost, people were being saved every day

(Acts 2:47). Evangelism was immediately a part of their new life of discipleship to the

risen Lord Jesus.

Benefits of Evangelism

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Here are six ways that treating evangelism as a necessary part of discipleship helps to grow

mature disciples.

Evangelism helps keep the gospel central in our lives and churches.

The gospel creates the church (Colossians1:5-6), is its chief message (1

Corinthians 15:1-3) and powers our growth in Christ (Philemon 1:6). Therefore,

we ought to do everything in our power to keep it central. We know that the

world, our flesh, and the devil will do everything they can to move it out of view.

Evangelism deepens our understanding of the most fundamental truths of

Scripture.

One of the clearest verses on the discipleship benefits of evangelism is Philemon

1:6, “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full

understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.” Knowing something and

explaining it to someone who doesn’t understand it or believes it are two

different things. These treasured truths become clearer to us as we explain them

to others.

Properly motivated evangelism grows our love for God and neighbor.

All people are called to wholeheartedly love God and other people (Mark 12:28-

31). Sharing our faith because we love God and people stokes the fire of this love

all the more. Experiencing the privilege of leading someone to Christ reminds us

of how much more powerful, holy, and merciful God is than we often think Him

to be. When we share the message of Gospel hope with others, Christ says us that

sometimes they will reject it and perhaps reject us as well (John 15:18-20), but

that should not stop us from sharing the Gospel.

Evangelism prompts unexpected questions and objections from non-Christians,

which can deepen our faith.

Sharing our faith puts us in a position to hear objections from others who have

not had a personal encounter with Christ. It also helps us find answers to

questions that we never would have asked on our own. This deepens our faith

and appreciation for God and His Word.

Evangelism protects us from mistakenly assuming that those around us are

saved.

A great danger for the church today is assuming the salvation of people who

simply claim the label “Christian” or are involved in church activities. Not being

careful about who we consider to be “born again” often has its roots in unbiblical

views of conversion. Or sometimes fear of man dissuades us from taking the risk

of offending a professing believer by suggesting they may not be trusting in Christ

after all.

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The sower spread the seed liberally, seemingly without consideration for where it

landed (path, rocks, thorns, soil; Mark 4:2-8). We too should share the Gospel

broadly and without discrimination, allowing our sovereign God to use it however

He sees fit, to save the lost as well as encourage the saints.

6. Evangelism increases the likelihood of being persecuted for the gospel, which

leads to our growth.

Consider Romans 5:3-5. We are admonished to rejoice in our sufferings, knowing

that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and

character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love

has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

While we should not seek suffering for suffering’s sake, we should be prepared to

embrace suffering for the Gospel’s sake (2 Timothy 1:8; Romans 8:17).

In fact, suffering because of our participation in the harvest should be an

encouragement to us as it was to the early church (Acts 5:41). And sharing our

faith helps ensure that we will suffer because of the Gospel itself rather than

because of unwise decisions or giving needless offense. Suffering for our

proclamation of the gospel can deepen our faith as we look to our suffering

Savior.

How to share your faith

Here are some short versions of the Gospel message that could be used in sharing your

faith.

1. The G.O.S.P.E.L. Journey

• God created us to be with Him (Genesis 1-2)

• Our sins separate us from Him (Genesis 3)

• Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Isaiah 64:6)

• Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again (John 19:30)

• Everyone who trusts in Him alone has eternal life (1 John 5:11-13)

• Life with Jesus starts now and lasts forever (John 10:10)

The Romans Road

• Romans 3:23: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

• Romans 6:23: For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life

in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• Romans 5:8: But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we still

sinners Christ died for us.

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• Romans 10:9: If you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in

your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

• Romans 10:13: For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

The one minute gospel

“Here’s what I understand the good news to be: the good news is that the one and only

God, who is holy, made us in his image to know him. But we sinned and cut ourselves off

from him. In his great love, God became a man in Jesus, lived a perfect life, and died on

the cross, thus fulfilling the law Himself and taking on Himself the punishment for the

sins of all those who would ever turn and trust in him. He rose again from the dead,

showing that God accepted Christ’s sacrifice and that God’s wrath against us had been

exhausted. He now calls us to repent of our sins and to trust in Christ alone for our

forgiveness. If we repent of our sins and trust in Christ, we are born again into a new

life, an eternal life with God.”

The Four Spiritual Laws

1. God loves you (John 3:16; 10:10).

2. Man is sinful and separated from God (Romans 3:23; 6:23).

3. Jesus Christ is God’s only provision for man’s sin (Romans 5:8; 1 Corinthians 15:3-

6; John 14:6).

4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord (John 1:12; 3:1-8;

Ephesians 2:8-9; Revelation 3:20).

Steps to peace with God (Billy Graham Method)

• God’s plan: Peace and life. God loves you and wants you to experience His

peace and life. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one

and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal

life” (John 3:16).

• Our problem: Separation (Being at peace with God is not automatic. God gave

us free will to choose and we chose to disobey him. This is what separates us

from God.

• God’s remedy: The Cross. Jesus died on the cross and rose again. Paying the

penalty for our sins, Jesus bridged the gap between us and God.

• Our response: To receive Christ. We must trust and receive Christ as our Lord

and Savior (John 1:12).

The Five Finger Method

The five-finger method helps you remember 5 key components of the Gospel with just

the fingers on your hand. You can make the message as short or as long as you’d like

from these topics. Simple, right?

• Jesus’ birth

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• Jesus’ life

• Jesus’ death

• Jesus’ resurrection

• Jesus ascension

Walk through the Bible method

One of the favorite ways of going deep into the Gospel is by summarizing key points

from the Bible, from beginning to end.

• God’s creation

• Adam and Eve

• God’s love and purpose for humanity

• Man’s sin and separation from God

• Payment for sin

• Why our good works cannot save us

• God coming to Earth as a man, Jesus Christ

• Jesus’ life

• Jesus’ death

• Jesus’ resurrection

• It is finished ͙the price is paid

• The free gift of life and how to receive

From that point on, you handle any questions or objections that might come up and

address those as well. In the end, I always like to ask if they would like to receive Jesus

into their life.

Testimony Gospel Method

As you develop a relationship with people at work or in school, it is very normal for

them to ask about your life in a conversation. Questions such as, “Why don’t you drink

alcohol?” allow for an opportunity to share your testimony. It is important to note that

your personal testimony is not the Gospel itself, but it’s one of the best ways to

incorporate the Gospel into your story because it’s a part of your life.

Read Acts 26:1-23. Use these three elements to create your testimony:

• Talk about what your life was like before you received Christ (Acts 26:4-11)

• Describe how God spoke to your heart and opened your eyes to spiritual truth.

Include the basic facts of the gospel and your response of faith (Acts 26:12-18).

• Finally, share how your life has changed since receiving the forgiveness available

in Christ (Acts 26:19-23).

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One-Verse Evangelism Method

Find it difficult to remember multiple verses from the Bible? Try this one-verse method

from the Navigators. It uses Romans 6:23 and breaks it up into little pieces of what the

Gospel is about.

J. Three-Circle Method

The three-circle method is a three-step model of God’s perfect plan, our sin, and what

Jesus did for us. There are different variations of this model. It is a very effective

illustration that keeps people listening to find out what each circle is about.

K. Wordless Book / Bracelet Method

This method can be incorporated in just about anything, from bracelets to booklets, the

concept is illustrated through five colors set in order:

• Gold: God wants us to be in Heaven with Him.

• Black: Our sin separates us from God.

• Red: Christ died on the cross as the only payment for our sin.

• White: Accept God’s forgiveness and the free gift of eternal life.

• Green: Grow closer to God every day.

Summary

There are many more ways to evangelize to non-believers. The important thing is to act on

what we know and to be willing to step out. No matter how little experience you have in

evangelism, the Holy Spirit will use you to bring people to Christ if you are willing to step out

and speak. Remember to always share your faith and solicit a response.

Study questions:

• Why should every disciple evangelize?

• Why do many believers struggle to share their faith with others?

• What are some hindrances to sharing one’s faith?

• What are some methods one can use in sharing their faith?

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