Time is Changing! Are We????
VIDEO:
We are pausing to review and to change tactics of merely READING and TALKING about God’s Vision to actually BECOMING God’s Vision—Disciples making Disciples, seeking the lost and pointing to Jesus. How have we GROWN in Disciple Making?
This week we are going back and catching up on our reading (Crazy Love Chapters 1-6 and Transcend 1-6). The reading is very short, but please pray that we commit to being Transformed by the Renewing of our Minds in the Vision of God.
We are talking about the Sanctification Process:
Sanctification is the process of TRANSFORMING Christians (perfecting the saints) into the image of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a life-long process of submitting to the Will of God. It begins with being exposed to the Will of God and receiving the message, not just into our brains, but into our hearts. We respond by committing our heart, mind, soul, and strength to following in the footsteps of Jesus.
Our commitment and sacrificial service come from a heart of love and overwhelming joy. We value the mission God has given us. We organize and prioritize His mission in all that we do. For us to live is Christ! We become the representatives (ambassadors) of His Son.
Read through the lesson to gain a perspective on where you might need to further your growth in Christ. (Examine yourself) We begin with attending, paying attention to what the Scripture teaches.
CHANGING INTO the image of Christ
1. RECEIVING (ATTENDING, EXPOSING):
A. Awareness – Even though many sounds surround us day and night, the human mind pays heed to only a few of those sounds while ignoring others (dripping water, a bird’s song, a car engine roaring past). In our spiritual life, there are many Biblical messages we just don’t attend to. Learning to become more sensitive to the Will of God is something we continually need to strive for.
· I Tim 4:16 Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things; for as you do this you will insure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.
· Hebrews :2:1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.
· Consider, contemplate with earnest attention – Hebrews 3:1, 16 versus Harden hearts and fall away Hebrews 3:8-4:11, 7:51
· 2 Peter 1:19 And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.
STUDY: Romans 13:11; Ps 94:8
EXAMPLES: Your mother calls you to dinner while you are watching TV....do you even hear her?
The gospel is being preached over the entire earth...are most people paying attention? What message is God trying to give you...while you are not paying attention? Attending requires Meditation NOT just study --- Meditate on Ps. 23 - "The Lord IS my shepherd")
B. Willingness-- Hearing and willing to listen. "Ye have ears, but you do not hear," A willing heart is the beginning of understanding. Willing to admit there is a need to change. STUDY: 2 Timothy 4:2-4; Romans 11:8
C. Controlled or Selective Attention: The term “selective attention” is given to the filtering process we each use to screen out unwanted sounds and to attend to preferred sounds. Willing to selectively hear and concentrate on what God is revealing is a form of “selective attention”.
EXAMPLE: In church one person hears a baby cry, another hears the voice of God speaking to their heart through the singing. Controlled Attention means that you have focused long enough to get the message. You can receive the word. Selective Attention also means that you choose to listen or attend to a message.
When one chooses to attend to something on their own time, during leisure time, it is said that this person has developed a “taste” for that certain thing. What we do in our “down” time reflects more of who we are than what we do during our “busy” life.
2. RESPONDING, EMBRACING: (Exhibit a NEW behavior)
A. Acquiescence: Acquiescence occurs when one believes or is touched by a message that has been attended to and responds to it with feeling, emotion, and mental affirmation.
B. Willingness: One hears a message, believes it, and is willing to respond to it. Action follows the hearing, "Be ye doers of the word, not just hearers only". James 1:22
C. Satisfaction: When on responds to a message out of faith, the response brings satisfaction. Gladness results from the action taken. One is not embarrassed or demeaned by the action taken. The action generates an internal response which is typically sense of well-being and deep joy.
· Psalm 100:2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing.
· Psalm 32:11 Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous ones; And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart
· Acts 13:52 And the disciples were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
· Romans 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
· 2 Corinthians 8:2 that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.
· Hebrews 10:34 For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one
· James 1:2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials
3. VALUING, ENGAGING: (Exhibits actions that are characteristic of true INVOLVEMENT)
A. Acceptance: You accept the message, respond to the message, feel satisfaction from acting on the new value and now you accept this value as a part of your character.
· Matthew 13:46 and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
· Philippians 3:8 More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,
· 1 Peter 2:7 This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve," THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER stone,"
B. Preference: When faced with a new dilemma, you prefer to react in accordance with your new value system. You prefer the type of people who share your value system.
· Romans 12:10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;
C. Commitment: You are committed to the new value and will even publicly proclaim your commitment. People see that you have made choices that agree with the new value system.
4. PRIORITIZE, ORGANIZE, EQUIP: (Value Clarification )
A. Conceptualization: Your life is defined by the way you prioritize your affairs. You organize your life around the new value system. Example: All your friends know that you will be at church on Sunday instead of in a pub.
· Matthew 6:33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
B. Organization: You define your life, schedule, finances, spare time, and friendships around the activities that represent your new values.
5. CHARACTERIZE, EXTEND (Consistently acting in agreement with value)
· Romans 8:29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;
A. Generalized Set: You have a set of values (such as Disciple Making) that are predictable and holistic. There are no other values in the set that conflict with any other value in your "set". (i.e. being a racist would be in conflict with disciple making)
B. Value Complex: Your life is so ethically and completely aligned with the value set that you become the very representative of the set of values.
· 1 Peter 3:15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;
Example: Someone might say, "When I think of caring, I think of Irena. She is the very essence of caring."
GUIDED PRACTICE: Using the term “BENEVOLENT,” give examples of BEHAVIOR CHANGES you might see on each step of the pyramid as God’s Spirit molds you into the image of Christ.
CLICK on Pyramid for LARGER VIEW
HOMEWORK: Supply the behavior changes in someone who was allowing God’s Spirit to shape them into a Disciple Maker.
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It’s not so much that the church has a mission;
it’s that the mission of God has a church.
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Survey (for your eyes only):
You will probably have to give some of these your best guess….
1. How many times does Scripture say something similar to these words?
“have eyes but do not see”, or “he who has an ear let him hear ”
a. 1 time
b. 3 times
c. 5 times
d. 10 times
e. More than 15 times
2. What did Jesus mean when He said, “Visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction” or “do unto the least of these”
a. These could be programs for the deacons
a. These could be programs for the deacons
b. These might be a good idea for a Lady’s Bible Class
c. The elders and staff would take care of these
d. These command apply to me
3. Who does this command apply to? “Go into all the world, make disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things….”
a. To me
b. To paid staff
c. To the preacher
d. To the elders
e. To every Follower of Christ
4. Matthew 25: 31-46 gives us a vision of judgment day. Which one of these was the criteria for being pleasing to the Lord?
a. How many times we read the Bible
b. How much money we gave each Sunday
c. How we spent our time serving the needy
d. How many football game scores we could recite
e. Whether we gave our children dance, piano, cheer, or voice lessons
5. Where did Jesus spend 80% of his time?
a. Teaching in the Temple
b. Teaching in the Synagogue
c. On a lake
d. On a mountain top
e. In the Desert
f. Among the poor and broken.
6. If we love God with all our heart, mind, soul, and with all our strength, we will……
a. Trust Him by continually striving to make His Vision our priority
b. Make ourselves sick by worrying about pleasing Him
c. Feel guilty for not doing more
d. Continue with the status quo
7. How should you express the gospel to friends in darkness?
a. Give them 5 Scriptures and a chart
b. Take them a pie and a tract
c. Let them hear your testimony as you walk your walk
d. Praise God for the deep joy, peace, and grace that you see exposed in your daily life
e. Express your love for God and others moment by moment
f. Serve humbly and sacrificially while giving God the glory
8. God called us to be mission-minded
a. Only His sheep hear His voice
b. We can “send” the Light. We don’t need to “take” it.
c. We might not be gifted in the area of sharing the Gospel
9. What affects the Sunday assembly more than any other thing?
a. The songs chosen by the leader
b. The length of the sermon
c. Our daily walk in the mission of God
d. Being inspired by the number in attendance
10. How do help our children do not suffer the Narcissistic Plague?
a. Avoid using the words “I’m so proud of you” (1 John 2:16)
b. Start praising God for giving your children success and talents (Prov 3:6)
c. Teach them to be sacrificial servants of the King (2 Cor 6:4)
d. Help them to see the needs of others before their own “wants” (Phil 2:3)
e. Other:
11. If you can answer all the above questions correctly what does it profit us?
a. Nothing …if we call Him, “Lord” and do not the things that He says
b. Everything…if we EMBRACE His Words and make them our priority
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