!!!!! The Blueprint Bible Study Series!!!!

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1 The Blueprint Bible Study Series Volume 3 Knowledge and Self Control missionsurge.com

2 Copyright (c) 2014 Mission Surge Scripture quotations taken from the English Standard Version, (c) 2008 by Crossway Bibles Additional Copies of The Blueprint Bible Study Series as well as other publications may be ordered online at Published by Mission Surge

3 Introduction A Blueprint for Maturing and Making Disciples is a product of years of frustration, meditation, prayer, and study. The frustration was present because, though there seems to be a desire on the part of most professing Christians to evangelize and make disciples, there also seems to be little clarity on how to do so. I believe this is due in part to the fact that many of us have never really been discipled ourselves, therefore we personally struggle to live the Christian life. How can we disciple someone, when we aren t even sure what that looks like? And while there are numerous evangelism programs and strategies out there, what do you do with converts assuming they convert? In most cases, we simply invite them to church, never really expecting them to show up. If they do happen to show up, we try to filter them into a small group or Sunday school class and hope that they are able to gain from it what we didn t. It is frustrating that so many of us seem so clueless when it comes to maturing as disciples and making disciples Sure, we preach on making disciples, we write books on making disciples, we have conferences on making disciples but we never seem to make disciples Out of these frustrations, I was driven to meditation, prayer, and study, particularly a study of 2 Peter 1:5-11. It reads: For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self- control, and self- control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

4 When I saw this Scripture I was captivated. It seems to me that Peter is making a pretty bold promise here. He is instructing us to make every effort to supplement our faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self control, and self control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. Then he says, that if these qualities are ours and are increasing in our lives, they will keep us from being ineffective or unfruitful What a minute. It seems Peter is telling us that if we will pursue these qualities diligently we will be effective Christians; fruitful Christians. Isn t that what we want to be? Isn t this what we desire? Could it be that Peter is giving us a blueprint for disciple making? He goes on to say, if we practice these qualities we will never fall That is quite a big promise. If we pursue these qualities we will not be apostates. Is that what Peter is saying here? And then he goes so far as to say that in this way there will be provided for us an entrance into the eternal kingdom. Is this the narrow way? Is this the pathway to maturity? Could it be that Peter is giving us the blueprint for maturing as disciples and for making disciples? This book that you hold in your hand is part of a 10 week Bible study based on the pattern Peter outlines for us in this text. Each quality is covered. Each quality builds upon the one before. At the conclusion of the study it is our hope that each of these qualities will be yours and increasing It is our hope that as you reach the end of this study, that you will know how to pray, how to confess sin, how to study the word, discern God s will, worship, live a holy life, persevere in the faith, minister to the saved, reach out to the lost, and love as Christ loves. It is our hope that you will mature as a disciple through this study and that you will be guided to make disciples disciple makers. A lost world is waiting.

5 Note The Blueprint Bible Study is a 5 volume series. It is vitally important that you begin with volume 1 before continuing to volume 2 and so on. The series is meant to be worked through from vol. 1 to vol. 5 in order. Please ensure that you have completed the previous volumes in the series before continuing on.

6 Knowledge, Day 1 Introduction: Today we begin studying a new quality in Peter s blueprint for maturing and multiplying: knowledge. What is knowledge? The knowledge we are addressing here refers to the divine truth that serves as the foundation of spiritual discernment and wisdom. What is this divine truth that we are to know? What is this divine truth that produces spiritual discernment and wisdom? That will be our focus in this study. Text: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Understand: The Scripture is given by inspiration of God. In other words, it is God breathed. It is as though God breathed out His Word through the minds and pens of certain men. When we open the Bible, we are not just reading a book. We are not just reading the thoughts of highly religious men. We are reading the very Word of God. We are hearing the very voice of God. If we want to be discerning, wise, and knowledgeable individuals, we must believe, read, understand, apply, obey, and teach this Word The Scriptures are unlike any other religious book in the world. The Bible was written over a period of approximately 1500 years. It was written by the hands of over 40 different authors. These 40+ authors wrote in three different languages: Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic. These 40+ authors wrote on three entirely different continents: Africa, Asia, and Europe. In spite of all of this diversity, this book tells one story: the story of how God became man in order to redeem men from sin and give them eternal life. The Scripture is given by inspiration of God and we must know it. We must devote ourselves to know it because it is profitable. The Scriptures teach, convince, correct, and train or instruct us in righteousness. They make the man of God competent and equipped for every good work. What an amazing statement The Word of God is sufficient to teach us, convince us, correct us, and instruct us in righteousness so that we can be completely equipped for whatever God calls us to do Knowledge Day 1

7 The Bible is our handbook. It is our guidebook. It is our authority and it is our source of knowledge, wisdom, discernment and truth. If we do not root every belief and act in the Word of God, we are in danger of being deceived. We cannot rely on dreams, visions, feelings, impressions, or circumstances. All of these methods are subjective and potentially deceptive. We must go to God s Word which is objective and always true We must believe it, read it, understand it, apply it, obey it, and teach it What is this study going to help us to do? We are going to learn how to read the Bible. We are going to learn how to study the Bible. We are going to learn how to obey the Bible. We are going to learn how to discern God s will from the Bible. We are going to learn how to teach the Bible. And hopefully, we will love our Bibles and become knowledgeable, wise, discerning people of truth. As we seek knowledge and wisdom let us keep in mind that Proverbs 1:7 says, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Again in Proverbs 9:10 we read, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the Holy One insight. As we endeavor to increase in knowledge, wisdom, discernment, and insight, let us not forget that these things are rooted and grounded in a fear of and reverence for God. Out of that fear of and reverence for God, we are driven to know and apply His Word so that we can order our lives in a way that pleases Him. Let us make the Bible our priority Application: 1. What do you think of when you hear someone say the Bible is God s inspired Word? Knowledge Day 1

8 2. Have you ever read the Bible in its entirety? Have you ever really understood what you have read? 3. Do you really understand how to benefit from reading the Bible? Explain Prayer: Ask the Lord to give you a hunger for His Word. Ask Him to give you understanding, knowledge, insight, wisdom, and discernment. Ask Him to help you learn how to read, understand, apply, obey, and teach His Word. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17; 2 Timothy 3: The Scriptures for memorization are located in written form on the last pages of this manual for ease of use. Knowledge Day 1

9 Knowledge, Day 2 Introduction: If we are to gain knowledge, we must get it from the Word of God. How are we to get knowledge if we don t read the Bible? This is the first step in the process of growing in knowledge, wisdom, and discernment: reading the Bible. That may sound simple enough, but if you haven t noticed, the Bible is a pretty large book. It can sometimes be intimidating. Where do you start? In the Old Testament or the New Testament? Do you read it through from front to back like a normal book? Do you just pick a spot each day and read with no plan or system? What translation should I use? Should I use a study Bible or not? The questions are un-ending This week, I want to help you learn to read, understand, apply, obey, and teach the Bible. It doesn t have to be that complicated. It begins with opening the Bible and reading Text: Proverbs 2:1-6 Understand: We can gain some insight from Proverbs 2:1-6 about how to read the Bible. I want to spend the next few moments just briefly outlining some principles that I hope will help you. First, we must set aside a time. Provers 2:2 says, make your ear attentive to wisdom and incline your heart to understanding. We must make an effort to be attentive and inclined to hear from God s Word. It would serve us well to determine a time for reading the Word. I also find it beneficial to take opportunities to read that might be unique and abnormal. Maybe I am a little early for a meeting. Maybe I am in a waiting room. Maybe I am tempted to watch television and therefore waste time that could be devoted to listening to God s voice. Set aside a particular time and discipline yourself to make your ear attentive during those times each day. However, don t neglect those other times that pop-up throughout the day that you could incline your heart to hear from God. Knowledge Day 2

10 During those set times of Bible reading and study, begin with prayer. In verse 3 of Proverbs 2 we read, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding. The Bible is not just a normal book. It is a spiritual book breathed out by the infinite mind of God. Without His help, we will not understand what He is communicating. We must ask for His help. We must pray that God would open our spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear His Word. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says, The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The Psalmist said in Psalm 119:18, Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. We must begin with praying that God would help us to understand and comprehend what we read. Then, the obvious thing to do, after praying, is to open the Bible and read. There are times when you should read through the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation. There are a number of Bible reading plans that are available that can help you read through the Bible in a year. There are other times when you might want to intensively focus on the New Testament. Did you know that you can read through the entire New Testament in one month if you read 9 chapters a day. It is important to read the whole Bible and the whole New Testament, but it is also important to dig into sections of the Bible so that you can really understand and apply what you read. In Proverbs 2:4 he goes on, seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures. We must dig into the Word of God searching for knowledge like it is silver or hidden treasure. Find a short book or a portion of a book (4 to 7 chapters) and read them every day for 30 days. That may sound tedious, but that is when you will really begin to know the Bible. If you want knowledge and wisdom, you must read through the whole Bible, the whole New Testament, and you must especially devote yourself to immersing yourself in 4 to 7 chapters a month. You will be amazed at what you begin to discover by doing so. We will discuss how to dig deeper next time. Knowledge Day 2

11 Application: 1. You can read the entire bible in 71 hours the average person watches that much television in a week What do you think about this fact? How do you think God feels about this truth? 2. Read Ecclesiastes 12:11 Who do you think the shepherd that Solomon is alluding to is? What do you think the collected sayings might be? What are your thoughts on this verse? Prayer: Ask God to help you determine the best way to read the Bible at this time in your life. Should you read through the New Testament in a month? Should you begin reading through the whole Bible from Genesis to Revelation? Or, should you begin by reading a shorter section every day for 30 days in order to dig deeper. Ask Him to speak to you as you read. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Knowledge Day 2

12 Knowledge, Day 3 Introduction: As we progress in our pursuit of knowledge we continue to consider our approach to the Word of God; the Bible. The knowledge we are seeking is the divine truth that is the foundation of spiritual discernment and wisdom. True knowledge is found in God s Word. But, let us be careful here. We don t glean this knowledge from reading the Bible alone. Of course, reading the Bible is part of it. However, we don t glean this knowledge from reading alone. We must get past what the Bible says and find out what the Bible means. This means that we must dig deep. Text: Luke 6:46-49 Understand: Jesus begins this text by asking a question that could be asked of many professing Christians, especially in our 21st century western culture: Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do what I tell you? It is a contradiction to say that Jesus is Lord when you do not listen to what He says, understand what He requires, and obey what He commands We must hear what He says. And how are we going to hear what Jesus says if we do not open His Word? If we do not set aside a time, prepare our hearts and our spiritual ears, and then open up the Bible, how are we to hear what He says to us? And if we don t hear what He says, we can t begin to understand what He requires, or obey Him As we saw yesterday, it begins with reading the Bible. But there is more. We must not only read the Bible we must not only hear what Jesus says, we must understand what He requires if we are to obey what He commands. We must rightly divide the Word of God. We must hear what God says, but we also must understand what He means by what He says. In order to get past what God says and get to what He means, we must be willing to dig deep. That is exactly what Jesus said the wise builder did. In verse 18, Jesus said that the one who hears His words and does them is like, a man building a Knowledge Day 3

13 house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. We must dig deep and find out what God means by what He says, so that we can build our lives in obedience to His commands. How can we do that? There are a number of things to consider. The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible. There are many good commentaries out there. However, the best commentary on the Bible is the Bible When you encounter a verse that might be difficult, the best thing to do is weigh it, explain it, and interpret it in light of the rest of the Bible. If you can t explain and interpret your explanation of the text with other verses in the Bible, it is likely that you might be mis-understanding what God is saying in the text. The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible. One valuable resource to help you find what the Bible says about itself is called The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. You can find it at the bookstore, order it online, or use a free online version. This tool allows you to cross reference most of the words in the Bible so that you can see what the Bible says about itself. A good study Bible is also important for understanding what the Bible says. We would recommend an ESV Study Bible published by Crossway or the MacArthur Study Bible. A Strong s Exhaustive Concordance or a Bible with many cross references can also be utilized. There are numerous computer programs that help you cross reference particular words and texts. The most important thing is to utilize tools that can help you study the main words in the text. Interpret the Bible in light of Christian history. It is important to understand how the Bible was interpreted by the spiritual leaders of the past. We are not smarter than the church fathers or the reformers. We are not wiser. We have not discovered any doctrine that they were unaware of. If we think we have discovered something new we should beware As we encounter difficult passages of Scripture or challenging doctrines, we need to ask ourselves how the faithful men of Christian history have interpreted these things. By grounding our study of God s Word in the richness of Christian history, we protect ourselves from heresies and dangerous misunderstandings of God s Word. It is good to use a statement of faith to help guide your study of God s Word. Another very valuable resource is the Knowledge Day 3

14 Matthew Henry Commentary. You can purchase his commentary in one volume at almost any Christian book store, online, or you can use a free online version. Hear teaching and counsel from others. The Christian life is not meant to be lived alone. You need others in your life to sharpen you, edify you and encourage you as you read and understand God s Word. You also need a godly, Bible believing, wise pastor who can teach you things that you might not discover and understand on your own. You can read good, Bible saturated books and listen to good sermons online. All of these things will help you as you seek to not only read, but understand the Word of God. Dig deep Application: 1. In order to interpret the Bible with the Bible, try to secure a copy of The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, Strong s Exhaustive Concordance, or some other tool that will assist you in cross referencing difficult words in the Bible. If you are comfortable using online resources, The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge can be accessed online for free. Familiarize yourself with the resources available today. 2. In order to interpret the Bible in light of Christian history, try to secure a copy of a good statement of faith to reference (The Baptist Faith and Message, The Westminster Confession of Faith, the London Baptist Confession of Faith, or the Second London Baptist Confession of Faith, etc.) Also try to secure a copy of Matthew Henry s Commentary. If you are comfortable using online resources, Matthew Henry s Commentary can be accessed online for free as well as several other commentaries. Familiarize yourself with this resource today. 3. Finally, a good study Bible is beneficial. Some that I would recommend are The MacArthur Study Bible, the ESV Study Bible, or the Reformation Heritage Study Bible if you do not have one of your own already. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Knowledge Day 3

15 Prayer: Ask God to help you take advantage of the multitude of great resources available in this, the 21st century, to dig deeper into His Word. Pray that God would give you a hunger to know Him more through His Word. Day 3 Knowledge

16 Knowledge, Day 4 Introduction: Yesterday we learned that it is a contradiction to say that Jesus is Lord when you do not listen to what He says, understand what He requires, and obey what He commands We hear what Jesus says when we open His Word. However, we must not only hear what Jesus says, we must understand what He says We can better understand if we learn to interpret the Bible with the Bible and in light of Christian history. It is also vitally important to glean insights and understanding from those wiser than us. We must go on however. After all, what good does it do us if we hear and understand without obeying? We must be doers of the Word and not hearers only. Text: Matthew 7:24-27 Understand: The man described as wise in this text is not the hearer of the Word. Both men described heard the Word. The man described as wise was the one who heard the Word and then did it The wise man whose house is built on rock is a doer of the Word. We must hear the Word, understand the Word, and then we must do the Word We must apply the Word of God to our lives and the amazing thing we discover in the Bible is that it has an answer for all of our questions. As we hear, understand, apply, and obey we discover true knowledge and wisdom. Colossians 1:9 says, And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. We can be filled with the knowledge of his will We can know God s will for every situation in our lives as we learn to operate in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. This is one of the most misunderstood parts of the Christian life How can we know God s will for our day to day situations and decisions? It is a lot less complicated than you think. Let me give you some rules to follow as you seek to know God s will. Knowledge Day 4

17 Find out if the Bible directly addresses your situation. For example, one of the questions I have received quite often is, Is it okay if I marry an unbeliever? After all, we truly love one another and I know that I can bring them to Christ eventually if I marry them. If I don t marry them they may never become a believer So, is it okay if I marry an unbeliever? I have even prayed about it I have heard this question asked and the answer is very simple. 2 Corinthians 6:14 says, Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness. It doesn t matter if you have prayed about it and feel good about it and justify it. It doesn t matter if you know someone who has done it What matters is that the Bible says, do not There is no more debate. If the Bible speaks to your situation, and it does speak directly to many situations, you know exactly what God s will is. There are situations the Bible does not speak directly to however. For example, should you take job A or job B? Neither violate Scripture or hinder your walk with God. Which is the wiser choice? We can still discover God s will. But how? Read the Word Regularly If we want to understand God s will in these difficult decisions that are not directly addressed in the Bible, we must be regularly and consistently in the Bible. This is how we grow and increase in wisdom; by spending day in and day out consistently walking with God in His Word. Often it is only when people encounter a difficult decision in life, that they run to the Bible. They begin to devote themselves to God s Word and try to find His will. This doesn t usually work. We are able to walk in wisdom and understanding when we discipline ourselves day in and day out in the Word of God. As we discipline ourselves to spend time daily in God s Word we will learn to walk in wisdom and these decisions are easier to make because we can make them in light of months and years of Bible study. Knowledge Day 4

18 Pray Regularly If we want to know God s will and apply His Word to our lives and those difficult decisions that we sometimes have to make, we must be regularly and consistently in prayer. Again, often it is only when people encounter a difficult decision or situation that they run to God in prayer. They pray that God would show them His will for their lives. It is good to pray in difficult situations and over difficult decisions. We are able to walk in wisdom and understanding when we discipline ourselves day in and day out to pray. As we discipline ourselves to spend time daily in prayer we will learn to walk in wisdom and make such decisions with confidence because we can make them in light of months and years of spending time with God in prayer. Live Holy If we want to know God s will and apply His Word to the difficult decisions in life, we need to be sure we are living in obedience to the clear commands in God s Word. Why would God give us leadership, guidance, and direction concerning a higher paying job if we aren t using the money that we are now making in accordance with His will? Why would God give us wisdom and understanding in a matter if we are watching things on television that displease Him? Why would He speak to us if we aren t opening His Word? If we are to hear from God we must live lives of obedience to His commands. Get counsel from people who read the Word, pray, and live holy lives. When we are trying to apply God s Word to our lives and make difficult decisions it is vitally important to hear what other godly, Bible believing, prayerful men or women have to say. Sometimes it is difficult for us to see clearly when the decision is so personal. Sometimes our vision is cloudy due to how close we are to the situation. If we can gain counsel from people who are regularly in the Word, in prayer, and who are living holy lives of obedience, we can really benefit. The Bible tells us in Proverbs 11:14, Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety. Knowledge Day 4

19 Again in Proverbs 24:6, for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory. Find some people who can give you godly, biblical, wise counsel. In summary, if the Bible doesn t directly speak to your situation or answer your question here is what I encourage you to do. Be consistently and regularly in the Word of God. Be consistently and regularly in prayer. Live lives of holiness and obedience to the clear Word of God. Get counsel from holy individuals who are consistently in the Word and in prayer. Then, make your decision trusting the fact that God is sovereign over all situations and providentially working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Application: 1. What are some steps that you can take in order to become consistent and remain consistent in Bible study and prayer? Make notes below. 2. Who are some people that you can go to for wise counsel and direction? List their names below. If you do not have anyone, who are some people that you would like to build relationships with for this purpose? Knowledge Day 4

20 3. What are some things that you need to know God s will concerning? List them below. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Pray: Pray that God would give you wisdom, discernment, insight, and understanding as you seek to live according to His will each day in all things. Pray that He would give you a consistency in His Word and Prayer. Pray that He would surround You with godly men and women to counsel you. Pray that He would show you his will for those things that you are seeking His guidance for today. Pray that He would work out His will in your life even when you make mistakes. Thank Him for being sovereign. Knowledge Day 4

21 Knowledge, Day 5 Introduction: Today, we continue to flesh out our pursuit of knowledge. We are seeking to gain and increase our knowledge of the divine truth that is the foundation of spiritual discernment and wisdom. In other words, we are seeking to progress in our knowledge of God s Word. We must read and understand the Word. We must learn to apply it to every situation in life. We must also learn to memorize and meditate upon the Word as well. Memorizing the Word and meditating upon the Word are vital for us to increase in knowledge. That is what we will focus upon today. Text: Matthew 4:1-11 Understand: As you read this account of Jesus temptation in the wilderness, it is immediately clear that Jesus had memorized and meditated upon the Word of God. It is also immediately clear that this memorization and meditation upon the Word of God was extremely important to Him as He went head to head with Satan himself Each time the devil threw a temptation at Jesus, He defended Himself and counter attacked with the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. We don t have any indication that he took out His pocket Testament, turned to the concordance in the back, looked up, and read the text to Satan either. It was the Spirit prompted recollection of specific texts of Scripture that helped Jesus experience victory. If we are to live lives of virtue and knowledge, we must memorize and meditate upon the Word of God so that we will be able to refer to Scripture at a moments notice with the Spirit s help. If we are to apply Colossians 3:2 which states, Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, we must memorize and meditate on those things that are above. Knowledge Day 5

22 Memorize The Psalmist said in Psalm 119:11, I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. We should make it part of our routine to store up God s Word in our hearts. You should have already been doing so in this journey. It may seem tedious at first, but it becomes easier as you train your mind to remember and memorize. As you read Bible passages over and over and over again, you will find yourself inadvertently memorizing where verses are in the Bible. You will know which page, which side of the page, and where on the page particular points are made in the Bible. As you devote yourself to gaining knowledge through reading, understanding, and applying the Bible, you will find yourself memorizing God s Word. You might be thinking, I can t memorize the Bible. I just am not able to remember If I offered you $100 for every verse you memorized by next week, could you then memorize some verses? I have seldom encountered a person who could not memorize a verse for $100. What does this say about our value of God s Word? We aren t determined to devote ourselves to memorization until it pays The Psalmist viewed the Scriptures as payment in and of themselves. Psalm 119:72 says, The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces. If we truly value the Bible, we will practice memorizing it. Meditate Memorization is important, but meditation is vital to knowledge as well. We read in Psalm 119:97, Oh how I love your law It is my meditation all the day. When we say that meditation is important we are not talking about an Eastern form of pagan meditation. According to Webster s 1828 dictionary meditation is, the close or continued thought; the turning or revolving of a subject in the mind; serious contemplation. So, to meditate in our context, is to continually think through and contemplate the Word of God. It is helpful as we meditate to make resolutions as to how our lives must change. It is also helpful to keep a journal and record notes about what God is saying to us and doing in us through our meditation upon His Word. Throughout the day, as opportunities arise, we can also meditate. For example, if we see bread we can remember that Christ is the bread of life. We can then begin to Knowledge Day 5

23 think about spiritual truths related to this. Meditation is constantly thinking upon the things of God, and Scripture memorization is vital to this practice. Teach This is a step that is absolutely vital If we are to truly increase in knowledge, we must not only read, understand, apply, memorize and meditate. We must also teach. Maybe your first thought when we began this portion of the study was, I am not a teacher. Maybe you argue that you are not gifted in this area. Unfortunately, this is not an acceptable excuse in the eyes of God. While we may not be gifted in the area of teaching, we are all commanded to be teachers. Jesus commands us in Matthew 28:18-20, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. You see, if we are believers, we have a new master. His Name is Jesus and He has all authority in heaven and earth. This master has given us a mission; to make disciples of all nations. This master has given us a method to accomplish the mission; go, baptize, and teach. We are all commanded to teach. Teaching is vitally important because Christ commanded it. It is also important because this is how the Kingdom of God is expanded on the earth: through Christ s disciples going, making disciples, baptizing, and teaching. It is also important however, because it is when we are able to teach and communicate something from Scripture that we know we are really beginning to know and understand it. Teaching helps solidify, expand, and extend our knowledge. This is vitally important. Who will you teach the Word to? I am not encouraging you to try to be a pastor or a preacher. I am encouraging you to obey God s Word and make disciples by taking what you learn from the Word and sharing it with those you have influence with. It may be one person or a few people that you meet with individually or in a small group. Whatever the case may be, we are all commanded to teach God s Word. It will help us be obedient, productive, fruitful, and also increase in our knowledge Knowledge Day 5

24 Application: 1. What are some of the biggest fears that you have about memorizing Scripture? Are these fears legitimate issues or have you used them more as excuses not to memorize Scripture? 2. What do you think of when you hear the word meditate? Have your thoughts on meditation changed since you have studied this lesson? How do you think biblical meditation will change your time in God s Word and what will be the biggest challenges you foresee? 3. Make a list of 7 people that you know (family, friends, co-workers, neighbors etc.) that you will begin to pray for. Ask God to open the door for you to share with them. Ask God to open the door for you to begin to teach them what you are learning from God s Word. You can teach them what you have learned up to this point in this study. Write down their names below and commit them to prayer Knowledge Day 5

25 I would encourage you to utilize joshuaproject.net or operationworld.org to help you pray for unreached people around the world in a strategic way. I have the Joshua Project App on my phone which each day gives me a new people group, population, religion, challenges etc. of each group. I would encourage you to get it as well or make a practice of checking the website for the unreached people of the day to help guide you in prayer. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 Prayer: Ask God to give you a passion and desire for memorizing Scripture. Ask Him to help you memorize Scripture. Ask God to help you meditate on the Word of God each day as you study His Word and throughout the day. As we conclude week 1 of this volume, please review the questions throughout this first week and plan to meet with your mentor in order to discuss what you have learned. Knowledge Day 5

26 Self Control, Day 1 Introduction: Today we begin a new journey in our effort to grow to full maturity and fruitfulness in Christ. We will be seeking to add to our knowledge, self control. According to Macarthur, the term self-control literally means holding oneself in. It was used of athletes who sought self discipline and self restraint, even beating their bodies into submission. They would also abstain from rich foods, wine, and sexual activity in order to focus all their strength and attention on their training regimen. 2 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 echoes the importance of self-control. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self- control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. As we seek to progress in our Christian walk, may we take our spiritual exercises this seriously May we get our hearts, souls, minds, and bodies under control by God s grace. Obviously there is much to be said, learned, and applied concerning self control. However, for the purposes of our study, we will learn how to implement a very simple strategy of taking control of our mind, soul, and body. I refer to it as simply empty, guard, fill. We will flesh this out in its entirety this week, but today we will begin with what it means to empty ourselves. We are not referring to some new age concept when we say that we must empty ourselves. We are referring to something very biblical. You need to have your heart, mind, and soul purged from the filth of this world. You must be cleaned out and cleaned up; a spiritual detox so to speak. How do you do this? The first step is confession. Pray: Stop and pray that God would open your spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear the truth of His Word. Pray that you would comprehend what He is saying to you from what you read. John MacArthur, 2 Peter and Jude in The MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago: 2 Moody, 2005), 41. Self-Control Day 1

27 Read: 1 John 1:9-10 Understand: When is the last time that you really confessed your sin to God? When was the last time you sat down and allowed God to search you thoroughly, examine you, and break you over your sin. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 139:23-24, Search me, O God, and know my heart Try me and know my thoughts And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting When is the last time you set aside time for God to examine you so that you could confess your sins in detail to God? If we are to be self-controlled individuals we must make confession a priority in our lives. We must go to war with sin. We must see our sin as God sees our sin and promptly confess and forsake it. We must fight the good fight of faith and lay aside anything and everything that weighs us down spiritually. Allow God to show you what is keeping you from progressing spiritually. Confess it and forsake it. Lay it aside so that you can run this Christian race in a way that you might win Hebrews 12:1: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Read the study notes on these verses and take notes for yourself. Take time to cross reference the major words in the text in order to discover what the Bible says about them elsewhere. Take notes from what you learn. Read Matthew Henry s Commentary, or the commentary of your choosing, on these verses and take notes. Meditate upon what you have discovered. Turn it over in your mind for a while. What stands out the most to you from this text and your studies? Take notes. Self-Control Day 1

28 Apply: 1. What do you need to do in order to obey this text? Write it down below. 2. How will you obey that today? How will you obey what you learned regularly? What changes do you need to make in your life? 3. I would encourage you to make it a practice to periodically set aside a time to examine yourself, allow God to search you, confess your sins in detail, and forsake them. I would encourage you to do this in varying degrees. For example, at the end of each day take time to look back over your day and confess to God your shortcomings. At the end of each week, maybe on Sunday, take time to think through the previous week, allowing God to speak to you and examine you. Confess any sin He brings to mind. At least once a year, I encourage you to set aside an entire day of prayer and fasting to allow God to really search your heart, mind, and life. Write out your ensnaring sins. Write out those things that weigh you down. Allow God to search your mind, your mouth, your eyes, ears, time, hands, bank account, spending habits, motives etc. Deal with them one by one in light of God s Word, confess your sin, and forsake it. It will be a vital part of your spiritual walk to do this in varying degrees of detail daily, weekly, and yearly. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 1 Cor 9:24-27 Self-Control Day 1

29 Teach: 1. Pray for the 7 people you listed in the last study. 2. Pray for the unreached people of the day through the ministry of Joshua Project. Self-Control Day 1

30 Self Control, Day 2 Introduction: For the purposes of our study of self control, we are learning how to implement a very simple, straightforward strategy of taking control of our mind, soul, and body by God s grace. I refer to it as simply empty, guard, fill. Yesterday we began considering ways that we can empty ourselves. We saw yesterday that the first step is confession. Today, we are going to learn about another important strategy for emptying ourselves: fasting. The discipline of fasting is often ignored, misunderstood, and/or misused. However, fasting is biblical and important in our walk with God. Pray: Stop and pray that God would open your spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear the truth of His Word. Pray that you would comprehend what He is saying to you from what you read. Read: Matthew 6:16-18 Understand: Jesus does not condemn fasting in this text. Rather he condemns the fasting of the Pharisees. Fasting had become a ritual to try to earn God s favor and gain merit with God and attention before men. The Jewish religious leaders saw fasting as a source of great pride. However, we do not fast in order to earn God s favor, appear more pious, impress others, or as a means to get our way with God. So, why and how do we fast? Correct fasting is most often connected to food and/or drink. We refrain from eating, or eating certain foods, for a period of time. We might refrain from drinking certain drinks. We might fast from television, Facebook, or technology altogether. Abstaining from these types of things are beneficial for sure, but correct fasting is more than just abstaining from food or pleasure Fasting in the Bible is directly linked to prayer. Genuine fasting is nothing but intense concentrated prayer concerning God and his work You can pray without fasting, but you cannot fast without praying. Self-Control Day 2

31 When eating gets in the way of doing business with God, hearing from God, or doing the will of God, you will forsake it. Read the study notes on these verses and take notes for yourself. Take time to cross reference the major words in the text in order to discover what the Bible says about them elsewhere. Take notes from what you learn. Read Matthew Henry s Commentary, or the commentary of your choosing, on these verses and take notes. Meditate upon what you have discovered. Turn it over in your mind for a while. What stands out the most to you from this text and your studies? Take notes. Apply: 1. What do you need to do in order to obey this text? Write it down below. 2. How will you obey that today? How will you obey what you learned regularly? What changes do you need to make in your life? Self-Control Day 2

32 3. Take some time to consider fasting. a. Would you commit to fast from something periodically? Maybe one day a week? For example: no coffee on Wednesday, or no meat on Monday, or no lunch one day a week so that you can devote yourself to prayer and the Word. Write down what you will fast from and when. Plan to increase and progress in this discipline. b. Fasting can also be accomplished by fasting from technology. What good could it accomplish if we just set some things aside to seek God and spend time with him? Would you commit to a technology fast periodically? Maybe one day a week? Or maybe one week every quarter? For example: unplug the television, computer, and set the cell phone aside for a day. Focus on the Word of God and prayer. Write down what you will fast from, how, and when. Plan to increase and progress in this discipline. Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 1 Cor 9:24-27 Teach: 1. Pray for the 7 people you listed in the last study. 2. Pray for the unreached people of the day through the ministry of Joshua Project. Self-Control Day 2

33 Self Control, Day 3 Introduction: I am sure that you have noticed the structure of this week s study is slightly different than prior weeks. Each part of the blueprint will adjust so that you can apply what you are learning on a daily basis. Be ready for the structure to change Take careful note of the questions and the number of questions and thoughtfully answer them Don t rush through the study. Take it thoughtfully and consistently and watch God work in your life Already this week we have learned how to empty ourselves by confessing our sin and fasting from food, distractions, technology etc. Today, we will begin to learn one way of guarding ourselves: prayer. Pray: Stop and pray that God would open your spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear the truth of His Word. Pray that you would comprehend what He is saying to you from what you read. Read: Matthew 6:7-15 Understand: Jesus teaches his followers how to pray in this text. What better way to pray than the way Jesus instructs us to pray? We can outline this model prayer with 5 simple headings. Praise: We should begin our prayer with praise. He is our Father. He is in heaven. His name is to be hallowed. When we begin our prayers with praise, it puts everything else in perspective. Priority: We should pray God s priority when we pray. His priority is His Kingdom. He wants His Kingdom to come to earth in the hearts of individuals as they come to faith in Christ. He wants His Kingdom to be established in homes, towns, states, nations, and across the globe He wants His will to be done on earth as it is in Self-Control Day 3

34 heaven. When we pray we should pray prayers that reflect God s desire for His Kingdom and His will. Provision: We should pray for our daily bread. God wants us to acknowledge Him in all of our ways. He wants us to rely upon Him, cling to Him, and depend upon Him. He is our source and strength and provision. When we come to Him with our needs, we glorify Him as the great provider. Pardon: We must confess our sins as we have already learned this week. We must also pardon those who have sinned against us. We should pray asking God to help us forgive those who have wronged us and we should pray asking God to forgive us for the multitude of ways we wrong Him. Protection: We should pray that God would protect us from temptations, trials, and tests. We should ask him to put a hedge of protection around us and keep us from the world, the flesh, and the devil. We need His grace, mercy, and protection. We should pray for it Hopefully, this outline will help guide you in your prayers as you seek to pray prayers that please God. Begin with praise. Then pray God s priority. Then pray for God s provision, pardon and protection in your life. End with another word of praise, for His is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever Read the study notes on these verses and take notes for yourself. Take time to cross reference the major words in the text in order to discover what the Bible says about them elsewhere. Take notes from what you learn. Read Matthew Henry s Commentary, or the commentary of your choosing, on these verses and take notes. Meditate upon what you have discovered. Turn it over in your mind for a while. What stands out the most to you from this text and your studies? Take notes. Self-Control Day 3

35 Apply: 1. What do you need to do in order to obey this text? Write it down below. 2. How will you obey that today? How will you obey what you learned regularly? What changes do you need to make in your life? Memorize: Mark 12:30-31; Exodus 20:3-17, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 1 Cor 9:24-27 Teach: 1. Pray for the 7 people you listed in the last study. 2. Pray for the unreached people of the day through the ministry of Joshua Project. Self-Control Day 3

36 Self Control, Day 4 Introduction: If we are going to bring our minds, bodies, and souls under control, we must learn to empty, guard, and fill ourselves biblically. We have discussed how we can empty ourselves through confession and fasting. We have discussed how we can guard ourselves by being faithful in prayer. Today, we will learn another extremely important strategy for guarding our selves: making no provision for the flesh. Pray: Praise Him Pray His Priorities 1. Pray for the 7 people you are seeking to influence. 2. Take time to pray for the unreached people of the day through the ministry of Joshua Project. Pray for God s Provision in Your Life Pray for God s Pardon (Confess your sin) Pray for God s Protection Read: Romans 13:11-14 Understand: Romans 13:14 tells us, But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. No provision for the flesh.none is allowed. What is it that provides your flesh, the old man, with strength? What is it that you watch that feeds the flesh? What is it that you listen to that feeds the flesh? What is it that you read that feeds the flesh? Where is it that you go that feeds the flesh? Who is it that you spend time with that feeds the flesh? You must ask yourself these questions and make NO provision for the flesh if you are to win the battle of the mind. Self-Control Day 4