Lesson 5: The Joy of My Salvation

“…it is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful.”

~David Steindl-Rast


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The definition of Hell is given to us in 2 Thessalonians 1:9:
"These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,"

Being in the presence of the Lord, then is the opposite of Hell! Being in His glorious power is the opposite of Hell! Who would not want to be in the presence of the Lord? Buy there are those who do not understand what is available to them when in the Lord's presence.

Because the Lord is all truth, all light, all knowledge, all wisdom, all patience, all kindness, all forgiving, all comforting, and all loving, to be away from those attributes would truly be Hell. Yet, we can be in the presence of God while we still live upon this earth! However, we often take that for granted or shun the devotional time to remind ourselves of the blessings of His presence.

Andrew Murray (Absolute Surrender, p 32):  "But, oh! we are far more occupied with our work than we are with prayer. We believe more in speaking to men than we believe in speaking to God....if in our ordinary Christian work there were more prayer, there would be more blessings in our own inner life. If we felt and proved and testified to the world that our only strength lay in keeping every minute in contact with Christ, every minute allowing God to work in us -- if that were our spirit, would not, by the grace of God, our lives be holier? Would not they be more abundantly fruitful?"
(p 33) "What a wonderful blessing comes when the Holy Spirit is allowed to lead and direct..." our lives.

How can we be led by the Spirit, if we do not "attend" to His voice?

LAST WEEK: We read a little about how to discipline ourselves so that we might grow spiritually in the Lord. Paul disciplined himself daily ( 1 Corinthians 9:27) If Paul had to discipline his body daily, how much more do we need this?

Growing spiritually allows us to appraise spiritual blessings. Being too busy to meditate, pray, journal, or study the Will of God takes us farther away from discerning His presence in our lives.

TIME: Every one who has ever lived has had the same amount of time in a day. Yet, somehow, we have been fooled in modern times into believing that our time is more precious and more valuable than in earlier centuries. We think we are "out of" time because we busy ourselves with activities that are not under the Lordship of Christ. What does Christ demand of my time each day? If I am a slave of Christ, then what schedule does He desire for my time?

LET's TAKE TIME for REFLECTION:

Psalm 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,And in His law he meditates day and night
Psalm 4:4 Tremble, and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
Psalm 27:4 One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek:That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,To behold the beauty of the LORDAnd to meditate in His temple.
Psalm 63:6 When I remember You on my bed,I meditate on You in the night watches,
Psalm 77:6 I will remember my song in the night;I will meditate with my heart,And my spirit ponders:
Psalm 77:12 I will meditate on all Your work And muse on Your deeds.
Psalm 119:15  I will meditate on Your precepts And regard Your ways.
Psalm 119:23 Even though princes sit and talk against me,Your servant meditates on Your statutes.
Psalm 119:148 My eyes anticipate the night watches,That I may meditate on Your word.
Psalm 143:5 I remember the days of old;I meditate on all Your doings; I muse on the work of Your hands.
Psalm 145:5 On the glorious splendor of Your majesty And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.

Meditation, Reflection, Examination require time, energy, and prioritizing our lives to "attend" to God's voice. Fasting is said to be naturally linked to mediatation and prayer. Discuss why you think this is or is not the case.

And what good comes from such meditations? These mediatations change our ability to not only grow in the Lord, but change our perspective on life and how we live it.

Have we lost the Joy of our Salvation? Let's examine ourselves.
Do I rejoice always? What does the lack of true thankfulness and true conversion look like?

Deut 28:47-50 “Because you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you. The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand, a fierce-looking nation without respect for the old or pity for the young.”

What does true conversion look like?


Ps 51:10-13; 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.

What does it take to "restore" the joy?
Having Joy in God's Salvation results in what action on our part?

Ps 13:5-6; 5 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the LORD’s praise, for he has been good to me.

Do you think this "singing" was done only in an assembly? How do we "sing" praises of those we
admire?

Are our songs of praises accompanied by our hearts?  Eph 5:19

Ps 9:14; that I may declare your praises in the gates of Daughter Zion, and there rejoice in your salvation.

Ps 35:9: Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD and delight in his salvation.

The result of true Joy in our Salvation through Jesus Christ is ongoing Praise and a williness to share our conviction.

Understanding the depth of His love will help us to understand the imperitiveness of our calling.

Our calling in a general and literal sense is to praise and glorify God in word, deed, and all that we do.

Will it be any different in Heaven? Revelations 19:1-9:

After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God; BECAUSE HIS JUDGMENTS ARE TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS; for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND-SERVANTS ON HER."
3And a second time they said, "Hallelujah! HER SMOKE RISES UP FOREVER AND EVER."
4And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, "Amen Hallelujah!"
5And a voice came from the throne, saying, "Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great."
6Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
Marriage of the Lamb
7"Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready."
8It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
9Then he said to me, "Write, 'Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb '" And he said to me, "These are true words of God."


Nobody Goes to Heaven who doesn't Want to!  How do you know if we want to go there? What relationship do we have with "praise" and "joy" and "honoring our God" now?


How do we love the Lord with all our STRENGTH, Mind, and Soul? Mark 12:30-33. Is this a part-time job?

Paul found a reason to Pray, Prioritize, and Praise:

Eph 3: 16-21"that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Paul demonstrates here that if we understand the love of Christ and make a priority of being filled up to all the fullness of God, the result is praise!


Reflect on: What has Christ done for me? What is Christ doing for me? What will Christ do for me?

Am I able to do anything for myself?

What Blessings do we have in Christ that we can mediate on to bring Joy back into our lives?

Let us consider Ephesians Chapter 1 GO TO:  http://joyofbiblelearning.blogspot.com/2010/08/spiritual-blessings-in-christ-ephesians.html

Lesson 4: Addendum to the Will of God

We begin our lesson with a Reflection: Discuss your thoughts on the Handout - "Evidence of Surrender" (Brokenness)

Meditate:
In 1 Corinthians 11:27-31, Paul tells us to examine ourselves, to judge ourselves, before we eat and drink of the Lord's Supper. How long do you think it takes to examine yourself in order to be ready to take the Lord's Supper? 30 seconds? 30 minutes?

Our Example: Before Jews partook of the Passover, they had a "Preparation Day". (Luke 22:7-9; Matthew 26:17-19; Mark 14:12-16; Exodus 12:15) Does the Lord's Supper represent a "better" covenant than the Passover meal? (Hebrews 7:22) If our promises are better, or covenant is better, or blessings are better, then should we not be more thankful, more prepared and more meditative about our relationship to our Lord than the children of Israel to their covenant?

Application: Should Saturday night be the night we decide to stay out late at the movies? Should our week be filled with over exertion and worldly activities so that we are too tired to worship on Sunday? Is worship really that important on Sunday? Should we listen to Rock & Roll music filled with suggestive lyrics on the way to worship? How long and in what manner should we "prepare" for the Lord's Supper? There is no law on this subject. There is only thoughtful contemplation for the spiritual Christian.

THOUGHTFUL CONTEMPLATION: Psalms 27:14; Psalms 33:20; Psalm 37:7-9; 37:34; Psalm 40:1; Psalm 130:5-6; Isa 25:9; Isa 40:31; Lamentations 3:25; Micah 7:7; Jude 1:21)

The opposite of "waiting on the Lord" is "having ears, but do not hear" and "eyes that do not see". (Psalm 135:17; Isa 42:20; Jeremiah 5:21; Ezekiel 12:2; Mark 8:18; Romans 11:8)

Question: How will you KNOW the Will of the Lord for your life?

Understanding the Will of the Lord: Read Ephesians 4:30-5:17


Question: What does it mean to be "led by the Spirit?"  (Romans 8:14 vs 2 Peter 3:17)

Homework: Read http://www.directionjournal.org/article/?502 (Christian Discipline Handout)
Write in your Journals something about this article that you will be willing to share in class next week.

Teaching Bible in the 21st Century

Visit: http://joyfullearning.org/Lessons/index.htm

Lesson 4: The WILL of GOD

POWERPOINT:  http://joyfullearning.org/Lessons/Lesson4/BeingFilled.ppt


In 1 Corinthians chapers 1 & 2, Paul describes three kinds of men: (1) Natural Man, (2) Spiritual Man, and (3) Carnal Man (1 Corinthians 2:14; 3:1, Galatians 6:1)

---Are all Christians spiritual? (1 Corinthians 3:1) What term is used to refer to non-spiritual Christians?
---Does going through spiritual activities make you spiritual? (1 Corinthians 10:1-5)
---What is the difference between Ritual and Relationship?
---What does it mean to be "spiritual"?  (2 Corinthians 4:18-5:1)

A Spiritual Person is shaped by their convictions, by that which is ETERNAL, (Eph 6: 10-12) and to that which they are ATTUNED to such as unseen realities. (I KNOW whom I have believed")

A Spiritual Person connects their material lives with their spiritual convictions. The hallmarks of a spiritual person are strength and knowledge (dunamis & epignosis) to rise above temptation and to act on their convictions.

As spiritul beings we must trust in the Power of God to fill us as we SURRENDER & SUBMIT to the WILL of GOD.

A metaphor for the spiritual heart is a two-chambered room.  One of those rooms is a throne room and one is a crucifixion chamber. You are either on the Cross and Christ is on the Throne OR You are on the Throne and Christ is on the Cross in your spiritual heart.

(*) Surrender and Submit: Take up your cross daily and follow Him. The mercy of the cross and the grace given us through Jesus Christ demands that we slay ourselves daily, to become SLAVES to the will of God.

What "rights" do SLAVES have?
Do Americans VALUE humility and/or independence? Watch excerp from The Last of the Mohicans.

WILL OF GOD

To be in the right relationship with God we must understand His WILL. As followers of Christ, we believe the Scriptures enlighten us through the Spirit, mediataion, and prayer. Revealed clearly in the Scriptures are explainations of the different aspects of the Will of God. Below are some examples for our considertation.

• God has a Sovereign Will (Ultimate Will): Rev 5:13, Dan 4:3; 7:14, and Ephesians 1:21 describe the Sovereign Will of God. The Ultimate Will of God will judge the world and all the Hosts of Heaven.
• God has a Cosmic Will, a will for the stars in the sky, man, and the birds of the air. Isaiah 34:4 This is the will that PROVIDES (Provisional Will) natural law, order, and holds the Universe in its place.
• God has a Universal Will, a will that delivered His Son into the hands of blasphemers to die so that all men might be saved. It is God's Universal Will that desires that all men come to know Him and be saved through His Son's sacrifice and resurrection.  Acts 17:30; Matthew 18:14; 2 Peter 3:9.
• God has a Permissive Will, a will that allows every soul to have a choice about who they will serve. God did not make us robots. He gave us ONE RIGHT, the right to choose.  Joshua 24:15
• God has an Active (Interactive) Will that intercedes, allows God to change His mind and answers prayers delivered in the name of His Son. Jonah 3:10; John 14:13

FOR OUR CONSIDERATION:
We often use the term "providencial" to describe the Will of God. But this term is only used one time in the New Testament and not in reference to God.

Under what circumstances is it used? (Acts 24:1-3) Is "providence" ever used in reference to the Will or Power of God? Then why do some use it to describe how God "works" in our lives?

--Why not use the phrase "provision or supply of the Spirit of Christ" (Philippians 1:19-21)? To acknowledge that the Spirit of Christ actively and continually provides for us according to the will of God.


FOR OUR MEDITATION: TRANSLATED, TRANSFORMED, &; TRANSCENDED

FOR OUR HOMEWORK: http://joyfullearning.org/Lessons/Lesson4/BROKENNESS.pdf  (Contributed by Ruth Ann Morgan)

The Evidence of Brokenness: Read and Reflect on these pages. They will help you determine APPLICATION for what we have been talking about.

Lesson 3: Definition of Sanctification

 Definition of Sanctification – Perfecting of the Saints


Antonym: 2 Timothy 3:7, “Ever learning never able to come to the knowledge (epinosis) of the truth.”

--gnosis: to know, the “act” of knowing (experiential)

--epignosis: fully acquainted – full relationship (strengthened or intensified form of knowledge) knowledge of the Devine.
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Number of reverences in NAS:
Romans -  3
Ephesians - 2
Philippians-1
Colossians-4
1 Timothy-1
2 Timothy-2
Titus -1
Philemon-1
Hebrews-1
2 Peter-4

Process: Renewing of the Mind - building a personal relationship with our Lord by relying on the Power of God (John 1:12) to fill us (Romans 15:13) , mold us, & refine us for His glory (1 Peter 1:7).

Process: involves meditation (1 Corinthians 11:28), reflection, sensitivity to God’s will, circumcision of the heart (Romans 2:29), a pealing away (Col 2:11) of the flesh (Phil 3:3), yearning to reshape our lives and attitudes (Phil 2 All), we will be productive (2 Peter 1:5) for Christ.

Process: Metamorphosis – Romans 12:1-2

MEDITATE This Week on the glorious implication of infinite grace (2Cor 8:9) multiplied by infinite peace (Php 4:7-note). The product surely includes eternal fullness of joy (Jn 15:11), abundant life (Jn 10:10) and an ever flowing river of "living water" (Jn 7:38).

CHALLENGE: What will you do differently this week because of who and what you KNOW about Sanctification and the Power of God?
Handouts: http://joyfullearning.org/

Sanctification Lesson 2

SANCTIFICATION: Lesson 2-3 (Praying for Reign)

RESOURCES: you might find extremely valuable for this class:

1. http://www.biblegateway.com/ Looking up Scripture by topic, keyword, and for contextual references
2. for Smart Phone: Free version of Touch Bible with Greek & Hebrew
3. Lesson Blog: http://joyofbiblelearning.blogspot.com/ All lessons, audio, video, handouts, and Power Points will be available from here. Your comments and questions are invited here as we study. Also refer to: http://joyfullearning.org/ for more resources.

Other Resources: RESOURCES for you to Take Advantage of:

1.  Thy Word is Truth: http://www.thywordistruth.com/
2.  Strong's Greek/Hebrew Lexicon: http://www.eliyah.com/lexicon.html
3.  ALSO: http://crosswalk.com/ AND http://bible.logos.com/
4. Bible Study Tools: http://www.biblestudytools.net/OtherResources/ AND http://wbsa.logos.com/ for Word Studies.
5. West Erwin's Search the Bible: http://www.westerwin.com/tp40/Application.asp?app=bible&id=50265
6. Fun Resource for Religious History & Charts: http://www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/History_n2/a.html
7. Pronunciation of Shekinah: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Shekinah - Let's all practice this one! ;-)

HANDOUTS:
Lesson 1: Reflective Outline, Sanctification Scriptures, Compilation of All New Testament Passages on the Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit Is…, Balloons Graphic Can be found at: http://joyfullearning.org/
Lesson 2: Power of God Handout, Verigated Verses Chart, CD on "Improving Your Serve 1&2", and "A Supernatural Invitation" Pamphlet

LESSON:

A. REVIEW: http://joyfullearning.org/Lessons/Lesson1/Sanctification%20Process.doc  HANDOUT from Last week.
--After reading Chapter One of "Absolute Surrender" what insights do you have?
Read:
--Romans 6:19, "SLAVES to righteousness, resulting in Sanctification"
--Romans 6:22: "by now having been freed from sin and ENSLAVED to God, you derive your benefit resulting in Sanctification and the OUTCOME, Eternal Life"

Is it not sad that the pulpit more often quotes verse 23, over verse 22?

Paul often started his letters: "Paul a slave of Jesus Christ". Have you ever started a letter like that?

B. Definitions: We are going to formulate a more "meaty" definition of "sanctification" this lesson using last week's handout. We will be looking a Paul's exhortations to "put off" and to "put on" certain characteristics and to "grow into the image of Christ". (Refer to the last row of the Sanctification Process Handout)

With these Scriptures in mind, interpret the parable of the "Cleaned House" (Luke 11:24-26; Matthew 12:43-45). How does this parable relate to Sanctification?

C. Learning to Read the Bible:
--2 Tim 3:7: Paul describes some Christians as "always learning but never able to come to the truth". This is a very harsh statement, but often describes what happens when we use a haphazard Bible study technique.

In this class we will learn many ways to study the Scriptures.

ONE METHOD of Bible Study is a WORD STUDY using the original language (Hebrew or Greek) assisted by a Lexicon (http://www.eliyah.com/lexicon.html)

We will be studying the word "Power" or as often translated "Miracle" or "Devine Strength" as translated in most New Testaments.

In Acts 2:22 & 2 Corinthians 12:12 we see 3 different types of abilities given to the Apostles. What were these 3? What are the differences between the 3 abilities? (see also Romans 15:19) 

"Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with ⁽¹⁾miracles and ⁽²⁾wonders and ⁽³⁾signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know

--If you look up these 3 words using Touch Bible on your Smart Phone, or in a Strong's Greek Lexicon, or online, http://www.eliyah.com/lexicon.html  you find the following 3 Greek words:   

(1) Teras (G5059) = "Wonders": Miracles to amaze those who needed to believe and who needed to give credence to God's new Will for man (Deut 6:22; John 4:48; Acts 5:12; Acts 14:3; Hebrews 2:4)

(2) Semeions = "Signs" (G4592): Miracles that fulfill and confirm God's promises. (Exodus 10:2; 1 Sam 10:7-9; Mark 16:20; John 2:11)

(3) Dunamis (G1411)= Supernatural, Devine Power, Strength or "Miracle": Still with us to this day but only "appraised" by those who are Spiritual (1 Corinthians 2:14-15 )

Why does the Greek text carefully identify 3 distinct types, of what we have often lumped into one word, "miracle?"

CLARIFICATION:

There is a difference between a "sign", a "wonder", and "miracle". See if you can understand the differences.

--Signs and Wonders were seen in the physical world and could even be seen by "natural" men. (Acts 6:8; 5:12; 4:30; Romans 15:19) Remember that there are 3 kinds of "men": (1) natural, (2) spiritual, and (3) carnal according 1 Corinthians chapters 2 & 3.

------Signs were to demonstrate the fulfillment or confirmation of prophecy or promises made by God (i.e.  as prophesied in Isaiah 66:19 OR signs as in Isaiah 35:5-6; Joel 2:28-32) These are just a few of the thousands of signs in your O.T. fulfilled in the N.T.

------You might think of Wonders as "red flags" to both believers and unbelievers. These red flags were to get the attention of man. To let them know that God was bringing about a New Covenant. Wonders were God's way of saying, "Pay Attention!" We saw Wonders with the Creation, with Noah's covenant with God, Abraham's covenant with God, Moses' covenant with God and we see it with Christ's covenant with believers. Wonders "started" the transition and proclamation of a new covenant and then natural order took over. (Acts 14:3-4)

Signs and Wonders were only to exist for a brief time and then they were to fade away when order was established.  In 1 Corinthians 13: 8-13, Paul calls the Signs and Wonders "childish" because they were only for the "beginning" or establishment of the church. The church would then move on to more "mature" characteristics such as "love".

In Romans1:11, Paul tells the Romans that he would "lay on hands" brethren to impart some special gifts so that the church might become "established". After the church was "established" there would no longer be a need for the "laying on of hands" for special gifts.

Remember that the early church did not have the complete Bible to utilize for teaching. When the perfect will of God was given through the Apostles (1 Corinthians 13:10f) and assembled together as our Scriptures are today, there would no longer be a need for prophets to miraculously have knowledge and understanding.

This next point is very important. NOWHERE in the Bible does it ever tell us that God's supernatural, miraculous power (dunamis) was going to go away. Quite the contrary, God promises us this "dunamis" in our inner man throughout the New Covenant.

Read:
---Romans 1:16, Romans 15:13; Ephesians 1:19-20; 2 Corinthians 10:3-4a; 1 Corinthians 2:4-5

IMPORTANT POINTS:

(1) We are "saved" by the power (dunamis) of God. Romans 1:16
(2) We can only live the life of a Christian through power (dunamis) of God. Romans 15:13
(3) God WANTS to give us his great and surpassing power! Ephesians 1:19-20
(4) Through God's power (dunamis) we have strength to war against the flesh. 2 Corinthians 10:3-4a
(5) We should only desire to preach the Gospel through the power of God because He is the only one who can bring the increase. 1 Corinthians 2:4-5
(6) The Holy Spirit "reveals" our Spiritual Blessing to us (1 Corinthians 2:10-15) through the power of God. We have as much "dunamis" as the amount of submission we give to the will of God. God's Spirit will only live in a SUBMISSIVE HEART. Those who are arrogant, self-willed, and full of themselves have no Power and no Life in themselves.

REFLECTION: What can you conclude from the above Scriptures?

More Scriptures for your consideration:

--1 Corinthians 4:19-20 Paul was coming to Corinth to "judge" the "power" of Christians who were "arrogant." Obviously, their power was weak because of their pride.

--What kind of people deny the "dunamis", miraculous working of God? 2 Timothy 3:1-5f

TAKE-AWAY from this lesson on 3 Greek Words

Often we hear ministers us the word "providence" so as to AVOID using words like "supernatural power of the living God". But after searching the Scriptures do you know how many times the word "providence" is used in Scripture? Do you know under what circumstances is it used?

In Acts 24:1-3, we find the only place "providence" is ever used in the New Testament and it is NOT in reference to the Will or Power of God! It is used to complement Felix, a man against God, for the work he had done for the nation of Israel (to "butter" him up so he would put Paul on trial).

Why not acknowledge that our blessings come from, "the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ" as in Philippians 1:19-21?



To acknowledge that the Spirit of Christ actively and continually provides for us according His power (dunamis) is a mark of one who is Spirit-led.

TRANSFER, TRANSFORM, & TRANSCEND

D.   Meditate on the      3 Ts

HOW CAN WE BE SURE THAT...
(1) We have been TRANSFERED from darkness into Light? How might you describe this process to someone who does not know or understand it?
(2) How are we being TRANSFORMED?
(3) How can we TRANSCEND, "Rise Above" the cares of this world?

(E) POWERPOINT: http://joyfullearning.org/  How can we present the Gospel with a FOCIS on God instead of a focus on man (i.e. man is to: HEAR, BELIEVE, CONFESS, REPENT & BE BAPTIZED)


VIDEO: Many people begin their Christian lives hoping to Reach Paradise Falls....a state of Spirituality, Holiness, and Enlightenment, but NEVER advance past the basic functions of just living a "natural" life.

Many Christians think of Heaven as a glorified retirement plan instead of thinking of this life as being full of Spiritual Blessings involving a daily rewarding walk and relationship with Christ.

QUESTIONS:

(1) What Christian Disciplines will help us avoid missing out on the Spiritual Blessings in THIS Life?

(2) Who reveals Spiritual Blessings to us? How do we know we have the Holy Spirit? 1 Corinthians 2:7-14

(3) In our Balloon graphic, which Balloon is represented by verse 14? Place this Scripture next to this Ballon.

(4) What are the 3 types of "men" spoken of in 1 Corinthians 2?

HOMEWORK:

Research the word: "POWER" (use Strong's Lexicon if you are able http://www.eliyah.com/lexicon.html )
Highlight or underline it in your Bible everytime you find it. Reflect on the passages where you find it. Write in your PEP journal any new epiphanies you have. Share those on the Blog if you can.

Read Chapter 2: "Absolute Surrender"  Reflect on how a TRANSFERED and TRANSFORMED Christian is to demonstrate Christ to the world.

Read the Blog section on Sanctification and Spiritual Blessings. Be ready to discuss in class.

Homework for 2nd Week of Class: Sanctification: The Spirit's Helium

HOMEWORK for LESSON 1
Review: Major Points made in class during Lesson 1
(1) Sancitification is a work done by the Holy Spirit
(2) Hebrews 12:14  "Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord."  Sanctification is important for Christians to pursue or they will not see the Lord
(3) Sanctification involves a "renewing", "growth", "submission", and our bodies as a "vessel"

Thought for Next Week: We have a choice as to whether we are filled with the Spirit or reject the Spirit.

Application for this week: Begin to pray for wisdom

Homework over the next 2 weeks (as we will not meet the Week of March 7th due to Spring Break)
(1) Read and Meditate on Chapter 1 of "Absolute Surrender" and make notes in your PEP Journal
**** PEP stands for: Prayer, Epiphany, and Praise - some evidence that Spirit is working in your life.
(2) Create a clear definition of "Sanctification Process" using the handouts at: http://joyfullearning.org/
(3) Begin to pray for wisdom every day so that the Spirit will grant you "epiphanies" during these lessons.
(4) Practice using http://www.biblegateway.com/ by looking up terms in both NIV and New American Standard searches. Do you see any differences in your search results?
(5) Download "Touch Bible" onto your SmartPhone, if you have one and practice using it.

My prayers are with you as you renew your mind in the Word.