Sunday School Lesson 2009 04 18

Brushy Creek Baptist Church 4999 Old Spartanburg Road, Taylors, SC

A Singular CallingA Singular Calling

Sunday School LessonApril 19th, 2009


The Spiritual LifeThe Spiritual Life

NewBeliever

MatureBeliever


What are the characteristics of a

new believer?


The New BelieverThe New Believer

•John 3:3

•1 Corinthians 3:1

•1 Peter 2:2


“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born

again.”John 3:3



“Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual,

but as worldly – mere infants in Christ”

1 Corinthians 3:1



“Like newborn babies, crave spiritual milk, so

that by it you may grow up in your salvation.”

1 Peter 2:2



The New The New BelieverBeliever•Infantile•Worldly perspective•Hungry


What are the characteristics of a mature believer?


The Mature The Mature BelieverBeliever•Galatians 5: 22 - 26

•1 Corinthians 13: 1 – 13

•James 1: 2 - 15


“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,

kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,

and self –control”Galatians 5: 22 - 26

The Mature The Mature BelieverBeliever


“1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have

not love, I am only a resounding gong or a

clanging symbol.”

1 Corinthians 13:1-13



“2If I have the gift of prophesy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and I if I

have faith that can move mountains, but I have not

love, I am nothing.




“3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not

love, I gain nothing.”




“4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not

boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps

no record of wrongs.”




“6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It

always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always

perseveres.”




“8Love never fails. But where there are prophesies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is

knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy

in part.”




“10but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11When I

was a child, I talked like a child. I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a

man, I put childish ways behind me.”




“12Now we see as but a poor reflection in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I

know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully

known.”




“13And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of

these is love.”




“2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face

trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of

your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance

must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete,

not lacking anything .”James 1:2-15



“5If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives

generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

6But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. .”

James 1:2-15



“7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8he is a double-

minded man, unstable in all he does. 9The brother in

humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high

position.”James 1:2-15



“10But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he

will pass away like a wild flower. 11For the sun rises with scorching

heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is

destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he

goes about his business.”James 1:2-15



“12Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial,

because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has

promised to those who love him.”

James 1:2-15



“13When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting

me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14but each one is tempted when, by his own

evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.”

James 1:2-15



“15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-

grown, gives birth to death.”

James 1:2-15




NewBeliever

MatureBeliever


The Mature The Mature BelieverBeliever•Character of love•Perseveres in trials•Prays amidst confusion•Eternal perspective•Doesn’t blame God


Why do people fail to grow spiritually from being a new believer to a mature believer?


Cultivating GrowthCultivating Growth

•Matthew 13: 1 - 8

•Matthew 13: 18 - 23


”1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the

people stood on the shore. 3Then he told them many things in

parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed.”

Matthew 13:1-8



“4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on

rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly,

because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered

because they had no root.”

Matthew 13:1-8



“7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a

crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Matthew 13:1-8



18"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19When

anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not

understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.

Matthew 13:18-23



20The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the

man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since he has no root, he lasts

only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.

Matthew 13:18-23



22The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who

hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23But the one who received the seed that

fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He

produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."

Matthew 13:18-23




Why do people fail to grow spiritually?



“There is no one righteous, not even

one.”

Romans 3:10


How do we make bad soil into good soil so

that the seeds of faith will take root and

flourish?


Cultivating the Cultivating the SoilSoil•Irrigate: Critical to the plant

becoming established & continued growth

•Fertilize: Compensate for deficiencies

•Remove the weeds: Prevent nutrient loss


What are the ingredients necessary

to achieve spiritual grounding for the

seeds of faith?


Spiritual Spiritual GroundingGrounding• Receiving assurance of salvation• Developing a consistent

devotional life• Understanding the basics of

abundant Christian living• Integrating into the life of a local

church• Learning to share his faith with

others


Spiritual Spiritual GroundingGrounding

How can the new believer achieve

spiritual grounding?


Spiritual Spiritual GroundingGrounding

GroupFellowship

PersonalStudy

PersonalFollow-upPersonalFollow-upPersonalFollow-upPersonalFollow-upPersonalFollow-up


Spiritual Spiritual GroundingGroundingWhy can’t we just rely upon

group fellowship and personal study to achieve spiritual maturity? Why do

WE need to engage in personal follow-up?John 21:15-17Matthew 28:19


19Therefore go and make converts of all nations, baptizing them in

the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything

I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to

the very end of the age."

Matthew 28:19-20

Cultivating GrowthCultivating Growthdisciples


• 15When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."

John 21:15-17

Christ’s Christ’s CommissionCommission


16Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love

me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord,

you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of

my sheep."

John 21:15-17



17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love

me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you

love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."

Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.”

John 21:15-17



Personal Follow-upPersonal Follow-up

Personal follow-up: Assuming of a one-to-one relationship by a mature believer with a

new Christian for the purpose of nurturing the new

Christian’s spiritual growth.


Why Personal?Why Personal?• The new Christian is vulnerable• The new Christian has a

tremendous potential for change• Disciples are produced most

effectively through personal follow-up

• Personal follow-up is the most effective way to achieve spiritual multiplication


VulnerabilityVulnerability

•Victory against Satan’s deceptions is only to be found in the truth of God’s word–Matthew 4:1-11–Luke 4:1-13







Potential for Potential for ChangeChange•The old has gone, the new has come (2 Cor 5:17)

•Putting off the old self–Ephesians 4–Colossians 3

•Avoiding developing wrong life patterns







Disciple DefinedDisciple Defined

A disciple is a Christian growing in conformity to

Christ, is achieving fruit in evangelism, and is

working in follow-up to conserve his fruit.


Christ’s ExampleChrist’s Example

“Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men”

Matthew 4:19


Paul’s ChallengePaul’s Challenge

“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”

1 Corinthians 11:1“Whatever you have learned or

received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into

practice…” Philippians 4:9







Spiritual Spiritual MultiplicationMultiplication

“And the things which you have heard from me in the

presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to

teach others also.”2 Timothy 2:2

(1)(2)

(3)


Spiritual Spiritual MultiplicationMultiplication

“The work of evangelism is never complete until the one evangelized becomes an evangelizer”

-Herschel Hobbs


Spiritual Spiritual MultiplicationMultiplicationYear Disciples Evangelism

First year 2 502 years 4 1004 years 16 4006 years 64 16008 years 256 640010 years 1024

27600



NewBeliever

MatureBeliever


Homework Homework QuestionsQuestions•Where am I on the spectrum of

spiritual growth?•Do I believe in the biblical

example of spiritual follow-up?•Am I willing to spend the time

to be discipled or disciple others and create a spiritual heritage?


Questions?