Session 8: Leader's Guide

Session 8: Spiritual Maturity is a Process

Key point:  Spiritual Maturity is a process that results in love demonstrated for God and people.

• subpoint:  I become more mature by being faithful with what God’s given me.
• subpoint:  Identifying the  time, resources and relationships God’s given me helps me steward God’s gifts more effectively.  

*Leader Notes

• Have 1 student in each group share a recent spiritual marker, suggest they use an experience from their spiritual journal
• Spend some time talking about what students discovered about their spiritual gifts and personality

REVIEW

How would you describe how you interact with God to your friends using what you know from your memory verses?

What would you tell your friends about what it means to make Jesus the Lord of your life?

If someone asked you to give a reason why they should follow Jesus what would you tell them?

If someone tells you the bible is about a bunch of rules and things you can’t do otherwise you end you end up in hell what would you tell him?

The Greatest Command is to __________ God.  The second greatest command is to love your ____________ like _____________.  

What three questions do you ask yourself when God speaks to you?

___________ is He saying?

What does He __________?

__________ does this apply to me?

When you communicate with God what three things do you learn?

__________ things about the natural world.

New things about ___________.

_________ things about me.  

What are your top three Spiritual Gifts?

1.  

2.

3.  

What do your spiritual gifts mean?

How are you using your spiritual gifts to build up the body of Christ?

What is your personality preference?  (Myers Briggs)

How does your personality preference affect your relationships?   What are the strengths and weaknesses of your personality preferences?

How does Jesus say people will know if we’re His disciples?

Introduction:

In the past few sessions we’ve learned that God loves us and that He wants us to love Him back.  God wants us to be in relationship with Him.  We’ve also explored what it means to truly love God and how our love for Him is related to how we love others.  This week we will be studying what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and what the process of spiritual maturity looks like.  At the end of this session we should understand that the spiritual maturity and intimacy with Jesus is a process.  We don’t become mature followers of Jesus overnight.  Spiritual maturity requires intentionally allowing Jesus to transform us as we devote our lives to Him.

DEFINING DISCIPLESHIP

If we look at scripture and study the lives of the disciples what we will find is a relationship, ongoing and intentional, with the person of Jesus Christ.  What we find in studying the lives of the disciples through the gospels and into the book of Acts is a progressive process of transformation that comes about through the transforming power of Jesus Christ.  The disciples didn't become bold miracle workers and preachers upon meeting Jesus.  The Apostles that we find in the book of Acts and epistles of the New Testament are not the same ones we find at their first encounter with Jesus in the Gospels.  Something happened to these men that transformed them from the timid cowards we find at Jesus trial to bold champions of the faith we see in the early church.  These men were brought face to face with the risen Savior Jesus Christ.  Therefore, at the heart of discipleship must be a relationship with Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the true discipler who has the power to transform lives.  Before true discipleship begins we must have a clear understanding of the identity of Jesus.  We can’t follow after or submit our lives to someone we don’t know.  A relationship with Jesus is absolutely essential to have real life and Jesus is absolutely necessary to continue maturing in the life we receive from Him.  Our first two sessions explored this concept in how we show our Love for God and our Love for Others.

Read John 1:1-18

Read Colossians 1:15-23

            These two passages of scripture give us a great description and insight into the identity of Jesus.  Once we know who Jesus is and acknowledge Him as the boss of our lives, what comes next is a revelation of who we are.  Scripture tells us that we are made in God’s image.  We are also told in Scripture that our identities are found in Christ.  To know Christ is to know ourselves.  We can’t truly know ourselves outside of Christ.  Something else we must recognize in our relationship with Jesus is that He chose us before we chose Him.  Jesus loved us before we loved Him.  God has been at work in our lives drawing us to Him before we became alive in Christ.

Life Reflection Timeline

            God is always at work around us and we have to recognize that even before we were in relationship with God that He was pursuing us. The timeline exercise helps us gain perspective on what’s happened in our lives and how our experiences have shaped us into who we are.  As we look back we can see the fingerprints of God on our lives calling us to be in relationship with Him.  We also see how God’s hand has shaped and molded us into who we are and it gives us confidence to know God’s not done yet.  We are still being shaped and molded and know how God has done it in the past helps us to have a different perspective on what is going on in our lives right now.  

Activity:

Mark the line below with symbols that represent the events of your life telling your story.  Be creative and have fun creating the symbols that represent your life here are some example categories you might include in your timeline.

1.  Conversion experience

2.  Difficult/confusing moment

3.  Break through in your life

4.  Significant person/child

l-----------------------------------------------------------------l

Birth                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Today

Read 2 Peter 1:1-11

*Leader Notes

• Break the students into groups (Focus on studying v5-8)
• Remind the students to figure out what the text is saying by bulletizing
• Have the students come up with questions that will help people understand the text better
• Leave time to discuss v5-8 remember to make this the emphasis of the study

THE PROCESS OF SPIRITUAL MATURITY

            As we learned in our study of 2 Peter spiritual growth is only possible first through a relationship with Jesus Christ.  We can only grow in godliness through the divine power of Jesus Christ who calls us for his glory.  Spiritual Maturity isn’t something that happens overnight, true growth with Jesus comes in a process.  The starting point of this process is faith in Jesus Christ.  The outworking of true faith in Christ produces a transformed life exhibited by changed behavior.  As we continue to grow in our relationship with Jesus we grow in our knowledge of Him and His desires.  However, with knowledge comes responsibility and the need to exert self-control to keep us from doing things that destroy our relationship with Jesus.  At the same time we require perseverance to continue doing good and pursuing a more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.  This process leads us to godliness and ultimately what we’ve already been learning the past few weeks which is a love relationship with Jesus Christ.  However, we find in this study that the end result to this process of spiritual maturity is not godliness, but after godliness comes brotherly kindness which in turn is followed by the end result of love.  This last section reiterates what we learned the last two weeks in understanding that our love for God is intertwined in how we demonstrate our love for others; we can’t truly love God if we do not love others.  This passage illustrates the same concept in stating that the product of godliness should be demonstrated in how we treat other people.  As we grow in treating other people with kindness and love, true love is perfected and demonstrated in us.

STEWARDSHIP

God allows us to grow in our relationship with Him by progressively revealing more and more of Himself as we respond to and are faithful with what He has given us.  In the passage we just read we see how each of the things mentioned in the passage lead to another layer of responsibility.  The things God gives us are gifts but they are also responsibilities.  We have to be accountable for what we’ve been given but it’s difficult for us to be effective stewards if we don’t recognize what God’s given to us.  So we should spend some time reflecting on what we have so that we can make the most of what we’ve got.  God wants us to enjoy life and enjoy the gifts that He’s given us but again it’s hard to enjoy what you don’t know you have.  It’s like cleaning out your attic or garage.  When you clean the garage out you find all sorts of things you forgot about or didn’t know you had.  The forgotten and unknown things in our garage need to be identified so that we can make use of them.  Let say you love rollerblading and are thinking of buying a pair of rollerblades.  Look in your garage because you may discover that you already have rollerblades just waiting for you to use and enjoy.  In our spiritual lives clean out your life and figure out what God’s given you so you can enjoy everything He’s given you.

Activity:

Use the Yearly Evaluation Template to help you figure out how to be the best steward of the time, resources, and relationships you have at this time.  

Yearly Evaluation Template

LIFE ROLES

Our life roles are determined by our season of life(time) and  relationships. As you’ve been completing the SERVE profile and Life Reflection Timeline you’ve been able to identify significant experiences that have helped shape your life.  You’ve also been able to reflect on how the relationships you have with God and other people influenced how you lived.  Use that previous knowledge and experience to help you identify how your current relationships are influencing you and how you can best take advantage of your current life roles.   Here is a list of some potential life roles, however feel free to create your own life role that best describes where you are at this time.

Father	Disciple	Sibling	Student	Friend	Son
Mother	Teacher	Mentoree	Mentor	Servant	Daughter

Life/Relational Roles

Role	Long-term Goal	Projected Completion Date
	1.	1.
	1.	1.
	1.	1.

MINISTRY/WORK ROLES

Our ministry/work roles are determined by the resources God has given us.  These roles involve our spiritual gifts, personality, vocational skills, and physical resources.  The SERVE profile helped us discover some of these gifts.  Now use the information you have to help you determine how to best use these resources to live a focused, fulfilled, and effective life.  To help you identify some of these roles try reflecting on past work or ministry that you sensed God’s blessing and felt most fulfilled in.  Use the space below to write in some past work/ministry functions.  

Below is a sample list of specific ministry/work roles, feel free to create your own roles that best describe how God has equipped you to do ministry.

Writer	Entrepreneur	Inviter	Greeter	Team Leader	Publicist	Planner
Trainer	Fundraiser	Facilitator	Networker	Problem Solver	Encourager	Worker
Host	Coach	Administrator	Civic Leader	Artist	Caregiver	Organizer

Ministry/Work Roles

Role	Long-term Goal	Projected Completion Date
	1.	1.
	1.	1.
	1.	1.

LONG-TERM ACTION STEPS

Once you’ve identified your life and ministry/work roles and established some long term goals you need to figure out how to take the first step in achieving your goals.  These little steps(short term goals) will help you map out practical steps that you can begin doing to help you be faithful with the roles you’ve been given.  

LONG TERM ACTION STEPS FOR LIFE ROLES

(insert role)
1.	1.	1.	1.

LONG TERM ACTION STEPS FOR MINISTRY/WORK ROLES

		1.	1.

COMMITMENTS AND LIMITATIONS

To live focused fulfilled lives we need to accept that there are some things that we say yes to and some things we say no to.  To accomplish the goals we’ve set for ourselves there are certain habits and practices we need to commit to and other things we need to restrain ourselves from.  For example, if one of our life roles is Student and the goal is to graduate in May then some short term goals to accompany that would be to pass all required courses. To pass all my courses I would have to commit to attending all my classes.  I might also commit to studying 2hrs a day for each class.  By committing to attending class and studying 2hrs a day I may have to limit myself from staying up/out late at night.  Or limit myself to watching only 1 hour of T.V. instead of 4.  This little exercise can be very important for us to just be more aware of the types of decisions we are making with our time and resources.  Most people don’t give much thought to how saying yes to some things affects what they are saying no to.  A person may have all intention of doing well in their classes and graduating but fail to recognize that every time he/she decides to hang out with friends, go to a LAN party, or watch movies he/she is also saying no to spending time studying.  This exercise helps us be more aware of the decisions we are making and helps us to balance our commitments so that we get to enjoy life and fulfill be faithful in our roles.

Implications for Roles

(Commitments/Limitations)

Life Roles

Committed to:

Limit myself from:

Ministry Roles

Committed to:

Limit myself from:

Accountability Partners

Person	Areas of Accountability

LIFE CENTERING PRACTICES

All of us have a propensity towards working too much or playing too much.  To have focused lives that faithfully steward God’s gifts we need to find balance.  We also need to remember that each of the gifts God’s given us are His expressions of love that help us better know how to love Him.  If we don’t watch ourselves we may end up misusing or abusing the gifts God’s given us and neglect to thank Him or spend time with Him.  It would be like a wife buying her husband a lawn mower so that he can get the yard work done faster.   The husband puts the lawn mower to use right away and likes it so much that he uses it all the time.  He uses it to do his yard work and and everyone elses and now spends very little time with his wife.  We have to remember that the gifts God gives us are meant to help us develop our character so that we grow in our intimacy with God.  Our relationship with God must remain the number one priority of our lives.  Doing things with the gifts God’s given us or doing things for God don’t make up for time spent with God.  This is why it’s important for us to intentionally plan out time spent with God.  These times spent with God help readjust our desires align our priorities with God’s.  

Life Centering Practices

(Scheduled times)

Worship time

When have you carved out time in your week or day to just worship God.  Sometimes we need to set aside time to remember who God is so that we can thank Him, praise Him, and marvel at who God is.  

Retreats

The normal grind of day to day can make us weary and anxious.  It’s good for us to take some time away from our normal environment.  Getting above the din of the urban jungle and away from the stress of constantly being connected helps us regain perspective.  Going on retreats also give us time to reflect and adjust our priorities.  

Recreation

Life is about more than work.  There are other times when we should just have fun.  When and what do you like to do for fun?  Take some time to just goof off and be silly.

Solitude

Just like in a normal romantic relationship it’s good to get some alone time with your significant other.  We need to spend some alone time with God.  Spend good quality time just hearing from God through His Word and prayer.  Talk to God without people around telling this is what God is saying or wants you to do.  Spend times of solitude just seeking God and seek Him first before you go to others.  

Hobbies

What are some gifts or talents not listed in your roles?  You may have activities and skills that don’t get used often because of the focus and attention you spend on your roles.  Take on tasks and projects outside of your life roles that still allow you to use your gifts faithfully.   

Session Summary

Our identity is found in the person of Jesus Christ and as we come to understand and know Him more we begin to understand ourselves better.  God created us and chose us giving us specific gifts to help us bear fruit that draws us closer to Him and points others to Jesus.  Spiritual Growth is a process that takes time, faithfulness, and perseverance.  God entrusts us with more of Himself and more of His gifts as we faithfully and responsibly make use of what He’s given us to glorify Him.  

John 15:16(Memory Verse)

“You did not choose me but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit-fruit that will last.  Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.”

Before the next Session

Check when completed	Activity
	Identify the Life Roles God’s given you
	Develop long term  goals for each of your life roles
	Find 1 person to recite your verses to and try to explain what they mean
	Try maintaining a spiritual journal for 1 week
	Prepare to share 1 of your spiritual markers next week
	Work on memorizing John 15:16
	Review all of the previous week's memory verses
	Work on completing your Yearly Evaluation template
	Ask God to reveal 3 people He’s brought into your life to invest in
	Pray for Clan Group