The Story
FOLLOW THE WAY
Map 2 - The Story
WEEK 1 - DAY 1
Creation
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the second Map of the Follow the Way Discipleship Journey called The Story. This is the Bible from the Garden to Glory or from Creation to Completion. Do you know this Story? Have you personally embraced this Story? Could you share this Story with someone else?
In Stay Salt, Rebecca Manley Pippert writes:
The poet Muriel Rukeyser once said, “The universe is made of stories, not of atoms” (Out of Silence, page 135). Stories are how we make sense of the world and our place in it. The question people want an answer to, whether or not they realize it, is: Is there a story that is big enough to build our lives upon—a story that gives our lives ultimate meaning and purpose? (p. 81)
There are a lot of stories out there vying for your consideration. There are secular stories such as Marxism or Darwinism. There are stories from an eastern religious and cultural background, such as Hinduism or Buddhism. Besides Christianity, there are other monotheistic stories, like Judaism or Islam. The point is all these stories claim to answer our ultimate questions like:
Where did we come from?
Where are we headed?
Who are we?
What’s wrong with the world/me?
Is there a solution?
The Christian church believes that The Story of the Bible and the Good News of Jesus Christ is The Story that ultimately answers these ultimate questions. Here’s how we breakdown that Story and what we will cover over the next six weeks:
Creation
Rebellion
Rescue
Partnership
Return
You?
This week we’ll start with Creation.
DAILY DIRECTIONS
If you worked through the first Map of Follow the Way, you were introduced to the Daily Directions. These Daily Directions are foundational to the whole Follow the Way Discipleship Journey. They’re all about how to connect with God through prayer and Bible reading. Those Daily Directions are:
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
IN - Take In God’s Word
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
GO - Go Through Your Day
The Story continues to use these Daily Directions. If you haven’t worked through the first map called Daily Directions yet, please consider spending two weeks doing that first before proceeding. Pausing for two weeks before starting The Story will ground you in these important practices or rhythms of staying close to God.
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATES
Genesis 1:1-2:3
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.
And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.
And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.
And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 1 - DAY 2
Creation
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
CREATED FOR RELATIONSHIPS
In today’s passage we will see that God created us to have a loving relationship with Himself and a caring relationship with the world. Can you imagine how wonderful it must have been when the world was perfect and all we knew was a loving relationship with God and caring relationship with the rest of the world, including each other? It must have been paradise.
Here’s a graphic of what things looked like in the Beginning.
Genesis 2:4-2
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush. The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”
That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 1 - DAY 3
Creation
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
WHO IS GOD?
The past two days we have read through Bible’s Story of the creation. That Story tells us a lot about God.
1. God Exists
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God …
Before there was anything else there was God. He is real. He exists. And He has always existed. The Bible just assumes God’s existence and everything else is created by Him.
2. God Creates
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
God is creative and our Creator. That means He is greater than creation. He rules over creation. He upholds creation. And He is distinct and different from creation.
3. God Speaks
Genesis 1:3
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
God speaks which means God is a Person. And His words have weight. When He speaks things happen—BIG things happen. God is not some impersonal force. God is a powerful Person.
4. God Relates
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
Did you notice that God said, “Let us make …”? Who’s the “us”? Some have suggested that this is like a “royal we”. Since God is King, He speaks as royalty. So when He says “we” or “us”, He’s just referring to Himself. Others suggest this is the heavenly court made up of God and the angels. The issue with that, however, is no where else in the Bible does it say that humans are made in the image of angels. Instead, this passage explicitly says we are made in God’s image. So does that mean that God is an Us, a We, a Community? Yes. Already in Genesis 1:2, mention is made of the Spirit of God. Then later in John 1:1-3, 14, John tells us that God created the world through the Word who is His Son, Jesus Christ. So as we keep reading through the Bible, we discover the Bible talks about Three Persons as One God—the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit—in other words, the Trinity (Tri-Unity). “Let us”, then, is the first indication that our Creator God is an Us, a We, a Community.
5. God is Like Us
Genesis 1:27
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.se
Actually, instead of saying that God is like us, it would be better to say that we are like God. But the point is, we can learn a lot about God by looking at ourselves. We think, we speak, we feel, we plan, we relate, we act, we create and so on. And so does God just more so and always and forever perfectly.
6. God Blesses and Commissions
Genesis 1:28
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Genesis 2:15
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
God blesses us and commissions us to rule the world on His behalf. He calls us to be stewards and caretakers of His creation. The world belongs to Him, of course, but He has given us the privilege and the responsibility to take care of it on His behalf.
7. God Enjoys and Rests
Genesis 1:31-2:3
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
After all the work of creation, God took a step back to enjoy it and to rest. He’s not a workaholic. God takes pleasure in His work.
8. God Commands and Holds Accountable
Genesis 2:15-17
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
As our Creator, God has the right to be our Lawgiver and Judge. He gives commands and He will hold us accountable for keeping His Law and following His will. If we don’t, He has the right to give out consequences.
As you can tell, this is longer introduction than normal. It is so important to know who God is to really understand The Story of the Bible. Maybe you already got all of that from your reading of Genesis 1 and 2. That’s great. But hopefully this summary will help you moving forward through The Story.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 1 - DAY 4
Creation
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
WHO AM I?
Yesterday we considered who God is. Today we will consider who we are? And once again, we’ll go into more detail on this.
From the Bible’s Creation Story we learn two main things about ourselves. First that we are creatures. Along with the rest of creation, God created us. So we are part of creation.
The second thing that we learn about ourselves from the Creation Story is that we are unique creatures. Yes, we are a part of creation, but we are unique part of creation. Just consider how unique we really are.
1. Our Unique Formation
Genesis 1:3
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness.”
Genesis 2:7
Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
We move from Let there be light to Let us make human beings. Creation is no longer just out there. God is more personally involved. And He doesn’t just use words. So to speak, He gets his hands dirty (like a potter with clay) and He breathes His very life into us. That’s how intimately God is involved in our formation. He takes humus (dirt) and forms humans, performing the first CPR. And this breath is different than the breath in animals. This breath is the very Spirit of God. When God breathed His Spirit into us not only did we become living beings, we became spiritual beings. The rest of the animal creation has bodies. But as humans, we uniquely have both bodies and spirits.
2. Our Unique Identity
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness.”
Genesis 1:27
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
As creatures made in the image and likeness of God, we are the spitting image of God. Certainly, we are not God. He is the Creator and we are His creatures, but nevertheless, we are very much like God. That’s why in Genesis 9:6 God forbids murder because murder takes the life of someone made in His image. Murder then is not only a crime against another human being, but a crime against God Himself in whose image we are created.
3. Our Unique Relationship
Because we are created in the image of God, human beings can relate to God in ways nothing else in creation can. We can love Him and willingly obey Him. Once again, that points to the fact that we have both a body and a spirit. God is spirit and we can relate to Him spiritually.
4. Our Unique Responsibility
Genesis 1:26
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
Genesis 2:15
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
Having been created in God’s image as human beings we were given a special task. We are agents of His reign on earth. We are the official caretakers of creation. God has given jurisdiction over the earth to us as His deputies. He has delegated leadership over His creation to us as His royal representatives.
5. Our Unique Authority
Genesis 2:19-20
Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
Along with this unique responsibility, God gave Adam unique authority over the rest of creation. That’s why God brought the animals to Adam so that Adam could name them. Though God is the Creator of the animals, He is not the Namer of the animals. He gives that authority to Adam, their earthly king.
6. Our Unique Accountability
A steward manages someone else’s property or money. That’s what we are—stewards of God’s creation. We don’t own the earth; He does. And as such, God will hold us accountable for our leadership of His creation. We all will have to give account to the Lord for our stewardship of His earth. Did we take good care of it or not? In addition, we are held accountable to God to keep His Law and fulfill His will. Whether we know it or not, we live before the Face of God who knows us and takes an account of our lives. Are we following God’s will when it comes to our relationship with our neighbor, the environment and the various spheres of life, such as, education, economics, politics, culture and so on?
WHICH STORY?
Let’s get back to the various stories that demand our attention. One key question to ask of any story is what kind of view does it have of humanity. Are humans part of creation, but also a unique part of creation? Are humans ultimately made in the image of God and held accountable by God? Look under the hood of the stories you are considering. Only one story holds humans in such high regard and to such strict standards. Stories that devalue humans end up devaluing human life. Humans become expendable. But if humans are created in the image of God, they are to be respectfully treated and compassionately cared for. Human life is sacred from conception to natural death. There is no greater honor than to be made in the image of our great, good and gracious God. What story gives humans both the highest dignity and accountability?
Psalm 8
Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
in the heavens.
Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?
You have made them a little lower than the angels
and crowned them with glory and honor.
You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
you put everything under their feet:
all flocks and herds,
and the animals of the wild,
the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Psalm 139:13-18For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
That’s Week 1 of Follow The Way on The Story. Now you will meet with your discipleship huddle to discuss your experience and share what you have learned from it and what God has been saying to you.
DISCIPLESHIP HUDDLE FORMAT
Look Back
How did your “I will” statement go this past week?
You will answer this question each week after you have met once.
Look In
Give a summary of each day.
What has God been saying to you?
What’s new for you?
Do you have any questions?
Etc.
Look Forward
What will your “I will” statement be for this coming week?
Look Up
How can we pray for you?
Spend time in prayer for each other.
BUDDY SYSTEM
It is recommended that you set up a buddy system for ongoing encouragement and accountability. Buddy people up and have them contact each other for a midweek check-in. Ask these questions of each other:
How are your daily readings going?
How is your “I will” statement coming along?
How can I pray for you?
WEEK 2 - DAY 1
Rebellion
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
REBELLION IN HEAVEN
Colossians 1:15-16
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
Through His Son, Jesus Christ, God created the universe. And according to this passage there is more to creation than what meets the eye. There are things on earth and in heaven. There is the visible and invisible, the natural and supernatural.
Part of this invisible creation are angels. There’s Michael and Gabriel. There’s Satan too who was created as an angel of light but rebelled against God’s authority. He wasn’t satisfied with being just a creature who had to submit to God’s authority. He wanted to have God’s authority. So he rebelled and led a rebellion against God.
Let’s pull the curtain of reality back a bit and take a peek at this part of The Story.
Revelation 12:7-9
Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Ephesians 6:10-13
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 2 - DAY 2
Rebellion
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
THE HEAVENLY REBELLION COMES TO EARTH
Last week we talked about how at Creation anything was perfect. We had a perfect loving relationship with God and we had a perfect caring relationship with the world, including each other. It was literally paradise.
Here’s how we pictured Creation.
Unfortunately, the rebellion that started in heaven with Satan comes to earth. Just as Satan tried to dethrone God, now he tempts our first parents to do the same. His temptation followed the typical track. You may recognize if from your own experience.
Doubt - “Did God really say?” Satan questions God’s Word.
Denial - “You won’t die!” Satan denies God’s Word.
Deception - “You’ll be like God.” Satan’s substitutes God’s Word, God’s Truth with a fatal lie.
Basically, Satan was tempting Eve to join him in attempting to be autonomous. The word autonomous comes from two Greek words—autos meaning “self” and nomos meaning “law”. To be autonomous, then, is to be a law unto yourself, which is the essence of rebellion. We no longer accept God’s authority to be our Lawgiver, but claim that right as our own.
We turn to that chapter of The Story today.
Genesis 3:1-13
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”
“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”
He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 2 - DAY 3
Rebellion
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
CONSEQUENCES
Adam and Eve’s rebellion has devastating and lasting consequences for the rest of creation and all of us. As you read today’s passage you will see the roots of all the world’s pain and problems.
Here’s a graphic of the second chapter of The Story. Our rebellion has ruined our loving relationship with God and our caring relationship with each other and the world.
Genesis 3:14-24
So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed are you above all livestock
and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust
all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”To the woman he said,
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.”To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.
It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.”Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.
The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
Genesis reveals to us the consequences at the beginning of The Story. The Apostle Paul reveals to us the consequences at the end of The Story.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 (NLT)
God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people—praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 2 - DAY 4
Rebellion
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
PAUL’S DESCRIPTION OF OUR REBELLION
The Apostle Paul knew about our sinful rebellion from the inside out. He actually persecuted the church and oversaw the deaths of early Christians. Through it all, he thought he was serving God, but he was just expressing the lies he had come to believe and the sinful rebellion of his own heart. Graciously, Jesus confronted Paul and revealed the Truth to him. Today we’ll look at Paul’s diagnosis and sobering description of our problem.
Ephesians 2:1-3 (NLT)
Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.
Romans 1:18-2:2 (NLT)
But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.
Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.
So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.
Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.
You may think you can condemn such people, but you are just as bad, and you have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others do these very same things. And we know that God, in his justice, will punish anyone who does such things.
Romans 3:23 (NLT)
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 3 - DAY 1
Rescue
NOTE
This week there will be five personal devotion exercises instead of four. Please work through all five before your discipleship huddle.
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
GOD PROMISES AND SENDS A RESCUER
You may be finding out that Bible isn’t just one book, but actually a collection of stories, histories, poems, prophecies and letters. It’s actually a library with two main sections: 1) The Old Testament (sometimes called the Hebrew Bible) and 2) The New Testament. These two sections can be summarized by two main words: 1) Promise and 2) Fulfillment. In the Old Testament God promises a Rescuer. And in the New Testament He fulfills that promise by sending Jesus, His Son.
Now we could consider Jesus’ Story by following the history of His life—His birth, baptism, teaching, miracles, death, resurrection and ascension. That’s how the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell Jesus’ Story. And it’s important to know these Gospels. So please read them. We’re going to take a different approach, however. We’re going to look at several Old Testament promises about the coming Rescuer and how Jesus fulfills them all.
THE SECOND ADAM
Last week we looked at Satan’s Temptation of Adam and Eve and how they fell for Satan’s lie and rebelled against God’s command and authority. Their Rebellion caused our separation from God and Satan’s enslavement of this world. God the Father, however, sent His One and Only Son Jesus Christ to redo that Temptation. If the book of Genesis gives us the First Great Temptation, the Gospels give us the Second Great Temptation.
Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”
Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
In the First Great Temptation, Adam failed the test, separating the human race from God and giving Satan authority over the world. In this, the Second Great Temptation, our Second Adam, Jesus Christ passed the test, taking the authority back and offering the human race a new relationship with God. As humanity’s Second Representative, Jesus is humanity’s Second Chance.
Romans 5:12-19
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—
To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.
But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!
Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
If The Rebellion came about through disobedience, The Rescue comes about through obedience. The Good News is that it’s not our obedience, but Jesus’—the Second Adam. Unlike Adam, Jesus perfectly obeyed His Father’s will in every circumstance and through every decision of His life. And through faith, that is, by trusting and depending on Jesus alone for salvation, His obedience and righteousness actually becomes our own.
EVE’S OFFSPRING
Not only is Jesus The Second Adam, He is also Eve’s Victorious Offspring. You may recall that this was the consequence given to the Serpent (Satan) after he tempted Adam and Eve:
Genesis 3:15
So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed are you above all livestock
and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust
all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
In the middle of the ongoing battle between Eve and her offspring (humans) and Satan and his offspring (demons), a HE, a specific Offspring of Eve would crush Satan’s head while being wounded by Satan’s strike at the same time.
Welcome to the Cross of Jesus Christ where Satan struck Jesus’ heel, but where Jesus crushed Satan’s head. On the Cross, Jesus bore the Father’s justified wrath against our sin (the ultimate consequence of our sin) and died in our place. Then rising from the dead three days later Jesus sealed Satan’s defeat. All those who believe in Jesus are now both forgiven and free. We all share in Christ’s victory.
Romans 16:20
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 3 - DAY 2
Rescue
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
CREATION
We were created in God’s image for relationship with Him and stewardship of the Earth.
REBELLION
The Rebellion that began in Heaven came to Earth as Satan tempts Adam and Eve to disobey God. This broke our relationship with God and ruined our relationship with the rest of creation and each other. As we read last week, in Ephesians 2 Paul outlines the consequences of our rebellion like this. As human beings we are …
Spiritually dead in our sins
Followers of the ways of the world
Controlled by Satan
Captive to our fleshly cravings
Deserving of God’s wrath
That’s the bad news. But, praise God, there’s Good News.
RESCUE
Instead of turning His back on His creation, in sacrificial love God turned toward it, setting out on the long journey of reclaiming the lost as His family and world as His Kingdom.
We can picture this Rescue in this graphic.
ABRAHAM’S BLESSING
God’s long journey of rescuing the world began when He chose just one man, Abraham. From this small beginning, though, came a worldwide blessing. Here’s God’s amazing promise to Abraham:
Genesis 12:1-4
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”So Abram went, as the Lord had told him.
Abraham and his wife Sarah had a son. Their son had a family. This family grew into the nation called the Israelites or the Jews. And eventually, from this nation came One who is Abraham’s Blessing to the whole world. I suspect you know who He is.
Matthew 1:1
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Acts 3:24-26
Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, “Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.” When God raised up his servant [referring to Jesus], he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.
Galatians 3:7-10,14
Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles [everyone who is not a Jew] by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
[Christ] redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Not only is Abraham the father of the Jews, he is the father of everyone who believes in Jesus. Just as Abraham originally believed God’s promise and his faith made him right with God, so too all who believe in Jesus, whether Jew or Gentile, are made right with God and become part of God’s Family. Jesus, then, isn’t just Abraham’s Blessing to the whole world, ultimately, He is God’s Blessing to the whole world.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 3 - DAY 3
Rescue
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
THE LAMB OF GOD
The Bible teaches that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23) and the person who sins is the one who should die (Ezekiel 18:20). This should come as no surprise to us since intuitively we already know this. Having been created in the image of God, God’s Law is actually written in our hearts, that is, at the level of our conscience (Romans 2:15). So deep down we know that God’s justice demands our deaths (Romans 1:32).
The Good News in the Old Testament is that through the sacrificial system, God graciously provided a substitute to die in the sinner’s place. This was typically a lamb that was sacrificed by a priest. This is called substitutionary atonement because a substitute would die to make sinners one with God again.
Leviticus 1:4 (NLT)
Lay your hand on the animal’s head, and the LORD will accept its death in your place to purify you, making you right with him.
Listen to this Old Testament prophecy of One who would come and be sacrificed for our sin.
Isaiah 53:5-6
He was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
You probably have caught the pattern and already guessed it. Jesus also fulfills the Old Testament sacrificial system and He’s One who died in our place. He is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.
John 1:29-36
The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”
Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”
The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
Romans 3:23-25 (NLT)
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.
1 John 4:10 (Author’s Translation)
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the wrath-removing-sacrifice for our sins.
OUR HIGH PRIEST
In addition to being the Lamb of God, Jesus is also our High Priest. By offering Himself as the sacrifice for our sin, Jesus personally fulfills both Old Testament roles.
It was the role of the priests to offer sacrifices for the sins fo the people. And once a year, the High Priest would offer one very solemn sacrifice for the collective sins of all the people. None of these sacrifices, however, permanently forgave the people so the sacrifices had to be repeated over and over again. As our High Priest, however, Jesus has offered Himself as the once for all sacrifice for the sins of the world.
Hebrews 10:10-14
We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest [referring to Jesus Christ] had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 3 - DAY 4
Rescue
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
KING DAVID’S HEIR
Maybe you have heard of King David. He was as a poet, a warrior and a king. Though far from perfect, God still called David a man after His own heart. And God made this amazing promise to David:
2 Samuel 7:16
Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.
God promised David that he would always have an heir on the throne. Unfortunately, David’s descendants had many ups and downs—make that, more downs than ups. And therefore, there was a need for a new type of Son of David. The Bible meets this need with a growing anticipation of a future heir who would be the Messiah—A Savior King (aka the Rescuer).
Isaiah 9:6-7
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
And now to the New Testament.
Matthew 1:1
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Acts 13:32-28
“We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
“‘You are my son;
today I have become your father.’God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
“‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’
So it is also stated elsewhere:
“‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’
“Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.
“Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.”
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
NOTE
This week there will be five personal devotion exercises instead of four. Please work through all five before your discipleship huddle.
WEEK 3 - DAY 5
Rescue
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
THE SON OF GOD
Jesus is Eve’s Offspring, the Second Adam, Abraham’s Blessing, the Lamb of God, our High Priest and King David’s Heir. Jesus fulfills all these Old Testament promises and many more. But do you get the sense that Jesus is no mere human? For Jesus to fulfill these promises He had to be perfect and He was. That’s because Jesus is also the eternal Son of God. From all eternity, the Father and the Son, along with the Holy Spirit, have lived together as One God in Three Persons in perfect unity, community and love. It is God’s eternal Son who became human at Christmas and came to fulfill all these promises.
Luke 1:26-38
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
C.S. Lewis
Enemy-occupied territory—that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage. God has landed on this enemy-occupied world in human form (Mere Christianity, p. 45 and 52).
Mark 1:1
The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.
Matthew 16:13-17
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.
John 20:26-28
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
THE WORD OF GOD
As the Son of God, Jesus is also the Word of God. When the Son speaks, God speaks. Jesus’ words are His Father’s words. For example, when God’s spoke creation into being, it was through the Word of His Son. And during His earthly ministry when Jesus taught He spoke God’s Truth. Jesus, then, isn’t just any prophet, He is The Prophet. Once again, in the Old Testament, Moses promised a prophet would come. Little did Moses know that this Prophet would actually be God’s One and Only Son who would not only speak FOR God, but speak AS God.
Deuteronomy 18:15
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me (Moses) from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.
John 1:1-3, 14
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Hebrews 1:1-3
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 4 - DAY 1
Partnership
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
RESCUED FOR A REASON
We have worked through Creation, Rebellion and Rescue. Which brings us to Partnership. Jesus doesn’t just save us FROM our sins, He saves us FOR a purpose—to join Him in being a blessing to the world.
John 20:21
Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
Ephesians 2:8-10
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Matthew 5:14-16
You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
1 Peter 2:12
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
Micah 6:8
What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Matthew 10:8
Freely you have received; freely give.
Once again, Jesus not only saves us, but He calls us to now partner with Him in being a blessing to the world. Through deeds of love, deeds of sacrifice, deed of mercy and deeds of justice we give testimony to God’s transforming grace in our lives. To put it most simply: We pass on the grace we have received from God to bless others. Freely you have received; freely give.
We could picture this calling and this partnership like this:
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 4 - DAY 2
Partnership
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
DON’T ATTEMPT THIS ALONE
As we just saw Jesus didn’t just save us FROM our sins, He saved us FOR a purpose—to join Him in being a blessing to the world. But before you run out there and try to save the world all on your own, slow down a bit. You won’t be able to do it. And God never intended for you to do it all alone. He saved you FROM sin FOR a purpose but only WITH His help and WITH others. Once again, it’s about a partnership.
Philippians 2:12-13 (ESV)
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
1 Corinthians 15:10
By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
Here’s a quote from Dallas Willard:
The true saint burns grace like a 747 burns fuel at takeoff. Become the kind of person who routinely does what Jesus did and said. You will consume more grace by leading a holy life than by sinning because every holy act you do will have to be upheld by the grace of God. And that upholding is totally the unmerited favor of God in action (The Great Omission, p. 62).
Not only are we saved by God’s grace, we are held and helped by God’s grace each and every day.
Mark 6:7
Calling the Twelve to him, Jesus began to send them out two by two.
Hebrews 10:24-25
Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Being a follower of Jesus is a team sport!
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 4 - DAY 3
Partnership
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
FRAGRANT AMBASSADORS
2 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NLT)
But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this?
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
God calls us to partner with Him in spreading the knowledge of Jesus and the message of His reconciliation everywhere we go. One way we do that is by simply being different. As new creations in Christ, we develop new perspectives on life and live by different priorities than the world. This makes us fragrant ambassadors of a God’s Kingdom and His way of life. By living and even “smelling" distinctly, we spread the truth that Jesus is King and that everyone can and must be reconciled to Him. To some we smell great and they will be attracted to Jesus in us. To others, unfortunately we stink and they will react negatively, and in some parts of the world, even violently to the Christ-like fragrance coming from our lives.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 4 - DAY 4
Partnership
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
DISCIPLE-MAKING DISCIPLES
Matthew 4:19
Jesus said, “Come, follow me.”
Matthew 28:16-20
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
The first words Jesus spoke to His disciples were, “Come, follow me.” And the last word Jesus spoke before ascending back to heaven were essentially, “Now go and make followers of me.” That’s what a disciple is. Someone who not only believes in Jesus, but also learns how to follow Jesus—how to live their life as if Jesus were in their shoes. Since, these are both the first and the last words Jesus spoke to His disciples, obviously, they had great significance for them and still do for us. We are to be followers of Jesus who make followers of Jesus who make followers of Jesus …. We are to be disciple-making disciples.
NOTE
The next Map of Follow the Way Discipleship Journey called The Mission will help you live out this Mission of partnering with Jesus in being a blessing to the world and making disciples who make disciples.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 5 - DAY 1
Return
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
RETURNING KING
In His first coming, Jesus the Messiah came as a humble servant and the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. In His second coming, however, Jesus the Messiah will come back as the Lion of Judah and the conquering King.
Revelation 19:11-16
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KIND AND LORD OF LORDS.
Most people didn’t notice Jesus’ First Coming, but no one will miss His Second:
Luke 17:23-24
People will tell you, “There he is!” or “Here he is!” Do not go running off after them. For the Son of Man [aka Jesus Christ] in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 5 - DAY 2
Return
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
RIGHTEOUS JUDGE
Not only will Jesus return as King, He will also return as the Judge to decisively and eternally deal with all of God’s enemies. Satan and unbelievers will be sentenced to hell. Believers will be acquitted because of their faith in Jesus and rewarded for their obedience to the King.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 (NLT)
God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people—praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.
Revelation 20:11-15
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SALVATION AND REWARDS
Let’s dive a little deeper into the previous thought that “Believers will be acquitted because of their faith in Jesus and rewarded for their obedience to the King.”
1 Corinthians 3:10-15
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.
Randy Alcorn
Let’s be sure this is perfectly clear: Salvation and rewards are different. Salvation is about God’s work for us. It’s a free gift, to which we can contribute absolutely nothing (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5). Rewards are about our work for God.
Salvation is dependent on God’s faithfulness to his promises, and on his mercy. Rewards are conditional, dependent on our faithfulness (2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 2:26-28; 3:21).
Belief determines our eternal destination...where we’ll be. Behavior determines our eternal rewards...what we’ll have.
Works do not affect our redemption. Works do affect our reward. Just as there are eternal consequences to our faith, so there are eternal consequences to our works (Eternal Perspective Ministries).
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 5 - DAY 3
Return
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
RENEWAL OF CREATION
Revelation 21:1-4 (NLT)
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”
Revelation 22:1-5 (NLT)
Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.
All the painful curses of the Rebellion are completely reversed. We come full circle to the Garden again. This time, however, it’s a Garden-City because there are many more people. But best of all, there won’t be any threat from Satan, sin or death. God is with us and we are with God. We will be permitted to eat from the Tree of Life and live forever. God is King and His Kingdom is completely restored. Hallelujah!
Here’s how the Return looks as a graphic. Jesus comes to wrap things up.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 5 - DAY 4
Return
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
READY FOR THE RETURN?
Luke 21:34-36 (NLT)
Watch out! Don’t let your hearts be dulled by carousing and drunkenness, and by the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.
1 John 3:1-3
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.
C.S. Lewis:
If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at Heaven you will get earth “thrown in’: aim at earth and you will get neither (Mere Christianity, p. 104).
We don’t know when Jesus will return. He has simply told us to be ready. And how do you get ready? You embrace Jesus and His Kingdom through faith and fully live each and every day of your life for Him. We don’t need to live in dread of that Day, but we do need to live in light of that Day. So we live purposefully for Jesus and His Kingdom knowing two things:
As we live for Jesus we bring something of Heaven to Earth here and now,
Though our lives are far from perfect, we have a perfect Savior who will return to welcome us into our eternal Home there and then.
Jude 24-25
To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 6 - DAY 1
You?
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
We’ve worked our way through the Bible’s Story:
Creation
Rebellion
Rescue
Partnership
Return
YOU?
Which brings us to a very important question: You? How are you going to respond to this Story? How can you make this Story part of your life’s story?
After sharing the heart of The Story in Acts 2:38 the audience asked Peter what they should do. Peter replied:
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
This verse spells out how we too are to respond to the Story. We’ll work through this verse this week.
MAKE IT PERSONAL
First, Peter says, repent. The excuses must stop and the truth must be personally accepted and admitted. In other words, you have to own your sinful rebellion and get honest with God.
In Old Testament Hebrew, repentance means to do a 180° turn with your life. In New Testament Greek, repentance means to change your mind. So if we put the two together—through repentance we change our mind and turn from trusting in ourselves for salvation to trusting only in Jesus. We admit our guilty rebellion and then through faith we embrace God’s full forgiveness, or better yet, are embraced by God’s amazing grace.
So how do you make it personal? You repent of your sin and you believe in Jesus Christ? And this is a personal thing. You can’t depend on your parent’s faith or your Christian community’s relationship with Jesus. It must become your faith and your relationship with Jesus. You must make it personal. Have you?
2 Peter 3:9
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
Romans 2:4
Do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 6 - DAY 2
You?
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
In Day 1 we focused on Making It Personal. Today we will look at Making It Public. This passage ties the two together.
Romans 10:9-10
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
So once again, you Make It Personal AND you Make It Public.
MAKE IT PUBLIC
Acts 2:38
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
After making it personal through repentance and faith in Jesus, Peter calls us to make it public through baptism. In effect Peter is saying, don’t keep it to yourself, let others know that you are now a disciple of Jesus.
Here are some typical questions asked at a baptism.
Do you believe that Jesus Christ is your Savior, the one who forgives your sins?
Do you renounce the work of Satan in your life and will you follow Jesus as your Lord?
Will you join God’s family in seeking Jesus passionately, loving each other sacrificially, living life Biblically and sharing the Gospel boldly?
Do you want to be baptized to publicly declare that you are a follower of Jesus?
If you have made it personal, are you ready to make it public? Are you ready to be baptized?
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Romans 6:3-4
Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Part of baptism is also joining God’s family, the church. Faith in Christ isn’t a solo adventure; it’s a group journey—a partnership. That’s why in Acts 2 after Peter called the people to be baptized we read …
Acts 2:41-47
Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Making it public, then, includes two things:
Being baptized
Joining the church
Once again, you ready to make it public? How can we make that happen for you?
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 6 - DAY 3
You?
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
FORGIVEN
Acts 2:38
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
After calling us to make it personal through repentance and faith in Jesus and to make it public through baptism and joining the church, Peter wants us to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that our sins are forgiven. Our rebellion has been pardon, we have been reconciled with God the Father and we are set free from our captivity to sin and Satan. This is the Good News!
Romans 5:9-11
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Romans 8:1-2
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
Colossians 1:13-14
For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
1 John 1:8-9
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
WEEK 6 - DAY 4
You?
DAILY DIRECTIONS JOURNAL
Use a sentence or bullet points to finish these statements.
UP - Lift Up Your Praise
Lord, I praise You for …
DOWN - Bow Down In Repentance
Lord, I repent of …
IN - Take In God’s Word
RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT
Acts 2:38
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
God doesn’t just forgive our sins, He actually comes to live in our hearts and to lead our lives through the gift of the Holy Spirit. Along with the gift of forgiveness through faith in Jesus, the Spirit is the greatest gift the Father has given us.
Everything about the Christian’s life is inspired by Spirit’s presence in our lives. For example, the Spirit …
Convicts us of sin and convinces us to believe in Jesus
Assures us of salvation and God the Father’s love and forgiveness
Helps us understand the Truth of God’s Word and apply it and obey it in our lives
Enables us to grow in Christlikeness
Empowers us to be bold in our witness of Christ
The Vineyard Statement of Faith gives a helpful summary of the work of the Holy Spirit.
THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
We believe that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Church at Pentecost in power, baptizing believers into the Body of Christ and releasing the gifts of the Spirit to them. The Spirit brings the permanent indwelling presence of God to us for spiritual worship, personal sanctification, building up the Church, gifting us for ministry, and driving back the kingdom of Satan by the evangelization of the world through proclaiming the word of Jesus and doing the works of Jesus.
We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells every believer in Jesus Christ and that He is our abiding Helper, Teacher, and Guide. We believe in the filling or empowering of the Holy Spirit, often a conscious experience, for ministry today. We believe in the present ministry of the Spirit and in the exercise of all of the biblical gifts of the Spirit. We practice the laying on of hands for the empowering of the Spirit, for healing, and for recognition and empowering of those whom God has ordained to lead and serve the Church.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
Acts 1:8
You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Romans 8:14-15
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
Galatians 5:22-25
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
Lord, I hear You saying to me …
Now, with Your help I will …
OUT - Pray Out Your Requests
Lord, I pray for …
STOP - Stop, Look and Listen
Lord, what do You want to show me or say to me?
GO - Go Through Your Day
Lord, I pray for Your help as I anticipate these events today …
That’s Follow The Way - Guide 2 - The Story. Enjoy your huddle meeting this week. And plan on starting Follow The Way - Guide 3 - The Mission, in which you will learn, among other things, how to share this Story using only a napkin. Here’s what it looks like. Stay tuned!
