Lesson 7 GOD Wants Your GROWTH GOD Wants

Lesson 7: GOD Wants Your GROWTH

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 1. God Expects & Commands Christians to Grow a. “Grow up in all things into Christ” – Eph. 4: 15 b. “That you may grow” – 1 Pet. 2: 2 c. “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” – 2 Pet. 3: 18 d. Immature Christians are urged to grow – Eph. 4: 14; Heb. 5: 11 -6: 1

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 2. Focal Points for Christian Growth a. Grow in faith – 2 Pet. 1: 5; Luke 17: 5 b. Grow in moral courage to do right – 2 Pet. 1: 5; Mt. 5: 6 c. Grow in knowledge – 2 Pet. 1: 5; 3: 18 d. Grow in self-control – 2 Pet. 1: 6; Gal. 5: 23 e. Grow in perseverance – 2 Pet. 1: 6; 1 Cor. 15: 58 f. Grow in godliness – 2 Pet. 1: 6; Titus 2: 11 -12 g. Grow in brotherly kindness – 2 Pet. 1: 7; John 13: 34 -35 h. Grow in love – 2 Pet. 1: 7; 1 Thess. 3: 12 i. Grow in good works – Eph. 2: 10; 1 Cor. 15: 58; Tit. 2: 14

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 3. A Vital Link Exists Between Growing As a Christian & Growing in Knowledge a. Scriptures provide all things that pertain to life & godliness – 2 Pet. 1: 3 b. Scriptures thoroughly equip us for every good work – 2 Tim. 3: 16 -17 c. Scriptures (the milk & the meat) mature the Christian – Heb. 5: 11 -14 d. God tells Christians to hunger & thirst for it – Mt. 5: 6 e. God tells Christians to earnestly desire it – 1 Pet. 2: 2 f. God tells Christians to diligently grow in it – 2 Pet. 1: 5

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 4. Growth Requires Reading God’s Word a. “Give attention to reading” – 1 Tim. 4: 13 b. “Seek ye out the book of the Lord & read” – Isa. 34: 16 c. “You shall read this law before all…men and women and little ones” – Deut. 31: 10 -12 d. “When you read, you may understand” – Eph. 3: 3 -4 e. “Read to all the holy brethren” – 1 Thess. 5: 27 f. “Blessed is he who reads…” – Rev. 1: 3 g. As we expect our loved ones to read letters we write, God expects us who love Him to read His letter to us.

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 5. Growth Requires Meditating upon God’s Word a. “Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them” – 1 Tim. 4: 15 b. “His delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night” – Psa. 1: 2 c. “Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day” – Psa. 119: 97 d. “I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation” – Psa. 119: 99 e. “My eyes are awake through the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word” – Psa. 119: 148

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 6. Growth Requires Studying God’s Word a. “Be diligent (study-KJV) to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” – 2 Tim. 2: 15 b. “They…searched the Scriptures daily” – Acts 17: 11

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 7. Practical Suggestions for Studying God’s Word a. Designate a special place in your home to study b. Discipline yourself to get in the habit of regular study c. Set out to study it as “a love” rather than “a labor” d. In order to learn truth, one must have a love for truth – 2 Thess. 2: 10 -11 e. In order to find truth, one must seek it diligently, thoroughly and wholly – Matt. 7: 7; Acts 17: 11

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 7. Practical Suggestions for Studying God’s Word f. Approach Bible study: 1) Reverently – it is the Word of God – 2 Tim. 3: 16; Neh. 8: 5 2) Purposefully – study to know God’s will – Eph. 3: 3 -4; 5: 17 3) Humbly – realize the way of man is not in himself – Jer. 10: 23 4) Understandingly – it’s about man’s salvation through Christ to the glory of God – John 3: 16 5) Honestly – not to prove a doctrine but to find it – 2 Tim. 3: 16 6) Objectively – study in view of eternity – John 12: 48 7) Thoroughly – search the Scriptures daily – Acts 17: 11 8) Intently – study with the intent of obeying – Jas. 1: 22 -25 9) Absorbingly – with the aim of teaching others – 2 Tim. 2: 2 10)Synthetically – ensuring sound Biblical harmony by bringing

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 7. Practical Suggestions for Studying God’s Word a. Ask these questions to effectively study & understand: 1) Who is the speaker/author? 2) To whom is the passage/book addressed? 3) What is the background of the passage/book? 4) When was the passage/book written? 5) What is the nature of the book? (historical narrative, poetry, prophecy, instructional, symbolism, etc. ) 6) What is the purpose or design of the passage/book? 7) What is the context of the passage?

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 7. Practical Suggestions for Studying God’s Word a. Build a library of good books 1) Accurate translations of the Bible 2) Complete concordance 3) Bible dictionary/encyclopedia & expository dictionary 4) Bible atlas 5) Good, sound commentaries 6) Christian evidences 7) Answers to religious errors 8) Hermeneutics (interpreting the Bible) 9) Church history 10)Subscribe to good brotherhood periodicals

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 7. Practical Suggestions for Studying God’s Word a. Study from several different vantage points 1) Study book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse 2) Study topically – all the Bible has to say on a subject 3) Study biographically – explore the life of Bible characters 4) Study deeply – learn to do “word studies” 5) Study devotionally – finding comfort, strength & peace b. Listen to the Bible, gospel sermons, lectureship lessons, etc. while driving, running, walking, getting ready in the morning, etc.

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 8. Valuable Blessings from Studying God’s Word a. Find only source of valid knowledge to answer: 1) Where did I come from? 2) Why am I here? 3) Where am I going? 4) How am I supposed to live? b. Learn what’s right, learn what’s wrong, learn how to get right, learn how to stay right – 2 Tim. 3: 16 -17 c. Obtain spiritual nourishment – 1 Pe. 2: 1 -2; He. 5: 11 -14 d. Have the pathway of life illuminated – Psa. 119: 105 e. See yourself as God sees you – Jas. 1: 23 f. Better skilled in discerning good & evil – Heb. 5: 11 -14

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 8. Valuable Blessings from Studying God’s Word a. Know how to prepare for judgment – John 12: 48 b. Stabilize self doctrinally – Eph. 4: 14; 1 Tim. 4: 16 c. Protect yourself from falling away – 2 Pet. 1: 5 -11 d. Develop & strengthen faith – Rom. 10: 17; John 20: 31 e. Shield against fiery darts of evil one – Eph. 6: 15 f. Prepare to do the work God commands: 1) Preach the gospel – Mark 16: 15 2) Be ready to give an answer – 1 Pet. 3: 15 3) Defend the gospel – Jude 3; Phil. 1: 16 g. Build you up & give you a home in heaven – Acts 20: 32

GOD Wants Your GROWTH 9. Evidences of Christian Growth a. Growth is gradual b. Christian growth is continual and never ends c. Growing Christians act like men, not children – Ep. 4: 14 d. Growing Christians show their faith by works – Jas. 2 e. Growing Christians exercise what they learn – 1 Tm. 4: 7 f. Growing Christians are teachers of others – Heb. 5: 12 g. Growing Christians produce fruit – Matt. 13: 23 1) Are fruits of Christianity evident in our lives? 2) If so, we’re growing. 3) If not, we’ll be cut down by God’s axe – Matt. 3: 10; John 15: 2