Week 6 - FROM INFANCY TO MATURITY
CONNECT
What are you thankful for?
What challenge are you facing?
How has God been answering our prayers for you from last week?
How can we pray for you this week?
Pray for each other.
Did anything stand out to you from last week’s follow-up Bible readings?
How did your “I will …” statement from last week go?
How did your sharing goal from last week go?
How’s your memory work coming along?
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV-1984)
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he (she) is a new creation. The old has gone, the new has come!
DISCOVER
Let’s start with a review.
FROM ADAM TO CHRIST - Union with Christ
We were born into Adam. This means that whatever was true of Adam was true of us. But by grace through faith, we have been born again into Christ. This means that whatever is true of Jesus is now true of us. Therefore, we are no longer characterized by Adam’s sin and death but by Christ’s righteousness and life.
FROM DEATH TO LIFE - Regeneration
We were dead in Adam, but now we are alive in Christ. Because we share in Jesus’ resurrected life, we already have eternal life here and now. From our new birth, new heart and the presence of the Holy Spirit, we can stop living for ourselves and start living for Jesus.
FROM GUILTY TO INNOCENT - Justification
On our own, we are guilty sinners, who have rebelled against God’s authority and broken God’s law. We stand condemned and deserve death. Jesus, however, took personal responsibility for both our obedience to God’s law and our disobedience of God’s law. He did this by living the life we should have and dying the death we would have. Now through faith in Jesus' death and resurrection, when God looks at us He sees His Son. And because Jesus is righteous, God sees us as righteous. God has acquitted us of our guilt and declared us innocent in Christ.
FROM ENEMY TO FAMILY - Reconciliation and Adoption
Though we were God’s enemies because of our sinful rebellion, God has reconciled us to Himself as His friends and has adopted us as His very own children through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. He has also given us the Holy Spirit to assure us of His Fatherly love, especially when life is difficult.
FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM - Redemption or Ransoming
We were in bondage to sin, Satan and the fear of dying. Jesus, however, purchased our freedom with His own blood. He personally paid our ransom and we have been redeemed. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36).
And now …
FROM INFANCY TO MATURITY - Sanctification
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
1 John 2:12-14 (CEB)
12 Little children, I’m writing to you because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus’ name. 13 Parents, I’m writing to you because you have known the one who has existed from the beginning. Young people, I’m writing to you because you have conquered the evil one. 14 Little children, I write to you because you know the Father. Parents, I write to you because you have known the one who has existed from the beginning. Young people, I write to you because you are strong, the word of God remains in you, and you have conquered the evil one.
Read the passage again (perhaps in another version).
Have someone retell the passage in their own words.
What stands out to you in the passage?
Do you have any questions about the passage?
What does the passage say about God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)?
What does the passage say about people, including ourselves?
What does the passage say about the life God is calling us to live?
Dig Deeper
Is the Apostle John talking about chronological ages in 1 John 2:12-14 or stages of spiritual maturity?
The Infants
1 John 2:12, 14 (CEB)
12 Little children, I’m writing to you because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus’ name.
14 Little children, I write to you because you know the Father.
From these verses, what characterizes infants in the faith?
Do you know these?
Are there levels of knowing our sins are forgiven and God is our Father?
For example, it’s one thing to know that your sins are forgiven, it’s another thing to know that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).
Or, it’s one thing to know that God is your FATHER, it’s another thing to know your Father is GOD.
How could you grow in these truths?
Why do some believers experience “arrested development” and never mature past the basics of the faith?
When we first believe, we are mere infants in Christ. Having been born again, we know God is our Father and our sins are forgiven.
The Maturing
1 John 2:13-14 (CEB)
13 Young people, I’m writing to you because you have conquered the evil one.
14 Young people, I write to you because you are strong, the word of God remains in you, and you have conquered the evil one.
Building on the characteristics of the immature (knowing your sins are forgiven and that God is your Father), what characterizes the maturing in the faith?
How are you maturing in these characteristics? Where do you still need to mature?
From the following passages, what role does the Word of God play in our maturing?
2 Timothy 3:15-17 (NIV)
15 From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
1 Peter 2:2 (CSB)
Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow up into your salvation.
1 John 2:14 (CEB)
Young people, I write to you because you are strong, the word of God remains in you, and you have conquered the evil one.
As we grow from infancy to young adulthood, we begin to take responsibility for ourselves. Learning to be strong in God’s Word, we overcome our enemy.
The Mature
1 John 2:13-14 (CEB)
13 Parents, I’m writing to you because you have known the one who has existed from the beginning.
14 Parents, I write to you because you have known the one who has existed from the beginning.
Building on the characteristics of the immature (knowing your sins are forgiven and that God is your Father) and the characteristics of the maturing (learning to be strong in God’s Word and so overcome the enemy), what characterizes the mature in the faith?
From these other passages from John, who is the one who has existed from the beginning?
1 John 1:1-3 (CEB)
1 We announce to you what existed from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have seen and our hands handled, about the word of life. 2 The life was revealed, and we have seen, and we testify and announce to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us. 3 What we have seen and heard, we also announce it to you so that you can have fellowship with us. Our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
John 1:1-3, 14 (NIV)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 14 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 8:58 (NLT)
Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I Am!”
Once again, who is the one who has existed from the beginning?
In John’s gospel and letters, to know doesn’t mean to just know something about someone, but to personally and intimately know them. Why, then, is it so important to KNOW the one who has existed from the beginning? How did John get to know Jesus? How can we know Jesus?
Why are the mature not just called elders (as often is the case in the New Testament), but parents?
Parents don’t just take responsibility for themselves but for others. Because we personally know the Eternal Son of God, we seek to see new children born into God’s family and work hard to help these infants mature into young adulthood and parenthood.
Fully Mature
Colossians 1:28-29 (NIV)
28 [Christ] is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.
What is Paul’s goal for everyone?
Why does Paul put so much effort (depending on Christ’s help) into presenting everyone fully mature in Christ?
How much effort are you putting into becoming fully mature in Christ?
What does your level of effort reveal about how much you value this goal?
Hebrews 5:11-14 (CEB)
11 We have a great deal to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. 12 Although you should have been teachers by now, you need someone to teach you an introduction to the basics about God’s message. You have come to the place where you need milk instead of solid food. 13 Everyone who lives on milk is not used to the word of righteousness, because they are babies. 14 But solid food is for the mature, whose senses are trained by practice to distinguish between good and evil.
Why is there no room to be lazy when it comes to our spiritual maturity?
Why does teaching others the faith help us mature in the faith ourselves?
Everyone Discipled / Everyone Discipling
One of the goals of Follow The Way is to prepare you to disciple others. Are you in a discipling relationship with someone? How is it going?
Is God calling you into a discipling relationship with someone? Who? What’s your next step?
Foundational Truth
Here’s the FOUNDATIONAL TRUTH we discovered today:
When we come to Jesus Christ, we are just infants in the faith. From this beginning of knowing God as our Father and His forgiveness, we grow strong in the Word and so overcome Satan and eventually become parents of other believers. God uses His Word and His Spirit, along with our commitment to grow, to help us become more and more like Christ.
Theologically, this is called Sanctification. Not only are we declared righteous in Christ (our justification), we progressively become righteous like Christ (our sanctification). As God’s Word inspires us and His Spirit empowers us, we become holy as He is holy because God’s will is for you to be holy (1 Thessalonians 4:3).
LIVE
What truth is God highlighting for you from the passages?
What would keep you from believing or obeying this truth?
What blessing would you experience if you believed and obeyed this truth?
How will you live out this truth this week? (“I will…”)
Who needs to hear this truth? How will you share it?
Who will facilitate next time?
Pray for God’s help as you seek to follow Jesus this week.
FOLLOW-UP BIBLE READINGS
Here are the Bible passages you are encouraged to read this coming week:
BUDDY SYSTEM
Connect with your buddy this week and ask each other these questions:
How are your readings going?
How’s your “I will …” statement coming along?
How’s your sharing goal coming along?
How can I pray for you?