How to Use the CORE Group Discussions From the very beginning, we want to express our deepest thanks for being willing to engage in CORE. At the heart of these discussions is a desire to see you and those around you encounter the presence of an amazing God and grow deeper in your spiritual maturity as you follow Him daily. We want you to have a firm foundation in your Christian faith, and we long to see you help others develop that same confidence and assurance. To maximize these group discussions: Everyone will need a Bible, a copy of the discussion questions, and some kind of writing utensil to write down answers to the questions. Follow every question in sequential order rather than picking or choosing only a select number of questions. Every question is critical to the process. Read all the verses or passages related to a particular question. Delegate verses or passages to those in the group so that everyone is engaging the Word of God on some level. At different points during the discussion, you may be prompted to share elements of their own testimony in connection to the topic at hand. Our encouragement is to be as open and authentic as possible in an effort to personalize and internalize the heart of each discussion. You can never be sure when your story may make all the difference for someone else in your group. Complete the Personal Devotionals (typically 4 5 each week) directly related to the Group Discussions. What if I already know all this? GREAT! Grab a friend, family member, coworker, or neighbor and walk with them through the discussions and devotionals, facilitating their spiritual growth and helping them to experience the love and presence of God more. How to Use the CORE Personal Devotionals The simple fact that you are looking at these personal devotionals indicates that you, on some level, are hungry for more of God and desire to grow in your relationship with Him. These personal devotionals are designed to get you into the Word of God to discover the truth about God and how we are to live as His followers. The intent is to progressively establish a routine of spending time in God s presence, hearing from Him and responding to Him. To maximize the impact of these personal devotionals: Carve out a consistent time and place each day to work through the questions. Each devotional should take 20 30 minutes at the most. Approach each devotional with the right heart and frame of mind. This is not about completing the devotional for a sense of accomplishment; it is about encountering God, being with Him, hearing His voice, and responding. Ask the Lord before even beginning each day to prepare your heart and mind for what He may want to reveal to you through the devotional. Read and respond to every question in sequential order. There is a purposeful progression to the questions, and skipping a question may cause you to miss an important element of the devotional. Read all the verses or passages related to a particular question. Some verses are very clear cut in terms of the question, while others may require some deeper consideration.
Group Discussion The Holy Spirit reveals all that is true, teaching and reminding Christians of what Jesus said and did (John 14:26; 16:13). He is equal with God (and is indeed God) as the source of genuine life and freedom (2 Corinthians 3:6, 16 18; Romans 8:2; John 6:63). Through Him we are empowered to be witnesses of the gospel of Jesus to the entire world, walking in the spiritual gifts He provides and living in the Godly character that He refines (Galatians 5:22 23; 1 Corinthians 12:4 11; Ephesians 4:7 16). GO DEEPER 1. What do Acts 5:3 4, Ephesians 4:30, 1 Thessalonians 5:19, Acts 7:51, and Matthew 12:31 reveal about the personality of the Holy Spirit? 2. According to Acts 1:4 5, John 14:16 17, 24, 16:13 14, Titus 3:5 and Romans 8:26 27, how does the Holy Spirit help a believer in Jesus? 3. In Romans 12:6 8 and 1 Corinthians 12:4 11, the Spirit gives Christians specific spiritual gifts or abilities. From Ephesians 4:11 13, what are these gifts or abilities intended to accomplish? 4. In Galatians 5:22 23, what attributes of character are produced in a believer who is walking in step with the Holy Spirit? According to Galatians 5:19 21, what emerges in a person apart from the Spirit? LEADER TESTIMONY Give a short testimony to your group about how you have seen the Holy Spirit work powerfully to bring healing or transformation, either in you or in someone you know well. How are you, or the person you know, different because of what the Spirit accomplished? MAKE IT PERSONAL 1. What do you honestly think of the Holy Spirit, and how open are you to Him? What has shaped your view of Him the most? 2. What do you want the Holy Spirit to accomplish in you the most? What is your greatest need or desire of the Spirit, according to who He is and how He works? PRACTICE IT NOW As a group, in an attitude and atmosphere of prayer, take 7 10 minutes to ask God for more of His Holy Spirit. Ask the Spirit to come to teach, search, speak, convict, and guide each of you. Ask Him to intercede on your behalf, as scripture indicates in Romans 8:26. Declare to Him your desire to see Him work and move in power, for a stirring and release of your spiritual gifts. Then thank the Holy Spirit for the life and freedom that He brings. TAKE ACTION THIS WEEK The challenge this week is to intentionally seek the Holy Spirit. Take 5 7 minutes each day this week to invite the Spirit to reveal to you what is true and to remind you of all that Jesus said and did. Ask Him to be more a part of your day, give you an awareness of His nearness and His voice. Write down here what He speaks to you this week.
Day 1: Who is the Holy Spirit? O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams. Augustine At the Heart of It Often seen as some mystical force closely associated with Jedi mind tricks, many believers have an inaccurate view or understanding of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is a person, one who can be lied to, grieved, quenched, resisted, and blasphemed (Acts 5:3 4; Ephesians 4:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19; Acts 7:51; Mark 3:29). But He also is one who searches the deep things of God and desires to reveal these things to those who will listen (1 Corinthians 2:10). He longs to be close, to demonstrate His power as He points us towards Jesus (Acts 1:8; Ephesians 3:16 17). Go Deeper 1. In Acts 5:3 4, who else in addition to the Holy Spirit is lied to by Ananias, showing that Peter saw them as one and the same? Reading critically, what divine qualities does the Holy Spirit demonstrate in John 16:8 11, Titus 3:4 6, and Romans 8:11? 2. The Holy Spirit is present and active throughout the Word of God. How is the Spirit seen in Genesis 1:2, Ezekiel 2:2 5, Exodus 31:1 5, and Luke 1:26 35? 3. According to John 14:16 17 and 1 Corinthians 3:16, where does the Holy Spirit live or dwell? 4. In Acts 1:8, what will believers receive when the Holy Spirit comes on them? Make It Personal The Apostle Paul, in Romans 8:26, clearly writes that the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. What is the greatest area of weakness you are facing right now that you need the Holy Spirit to move and work in? Practice It Now Many Christians today give high value to God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. But when it comes to the Holy Spirit, there is an apprehensiveness and reluctance. In an attitude of prayer, take 5 7 minutes to boldly combat that kind of hesitant heart by worshiping and esteeming the Holy Spirit. He is the one who teaches, reminds, convicts, empowers, and indwells. He is God, the source of life who reveals of all truth!
Day 2: Receiving & Being Filled with the Holy Spirit At the Heart of It When we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and are born again, we also receive the Holy Spirit into our lives. This indwelling of the Spirit is to produce in the life of the believer the character and the mind of Christ, bringing us more and more into spiritual maturity and discipleship. Go Deeper 1. Both John 14:16 17 and 1 Corinthians 3:16 talk about the Holy Spirit living or dwelling in us. What does the Spirit in us accomplish according to Romans 8:9 11, Ephesians 2:19 22, and 1 Timothy 1:13 14? 2. The Word of God also speaks of the Holy Spirit coming upon us in power. What kinds of things happen in Judges 15:12 15, 1 Samuel 19:23 24, Luke 2:25 33, and Acts 1:8, when the Holy Spirit comes upon key individuals? 3. In Ephesians 5:18, the Apostle Paul gives instructions to the believers to be filled with the Spirit, believers who have already been marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit in Ephesians 1:13 14. From Exodus 31:2 5, Acts 2:1 4, Acts 4:31, and Ephesians 5:19 21, what kinds of things does being filled with Spirit produce? Make It Personal 1. If you are a believer, in what ways do you reflect that the Spirit lives in you, has come upon you, or that you are filled with Him? 2. According to Acts 1:8, we receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us. What does that power look like for you, and to what measure do you really want that power? Practice It Now Every person has some hesitancy or reluctance when it comes to the Holy Spirit. Take 5 7 minutes to write out your hesitancy or doubts, your questions or concerns about the Spirit of God. Then ask Him, in an attitude of prayer, to remove those doubts and concerns. Invite the Holy Spirit to make Himself real to you, to show you who He is and how He wants to work. Ask the Spirit to open your eyes to His movements and desires in you.
Day 3: The Fruit of the Spirit Fruit is always the miraculous, the created; it is never the result of willing, but always a growth. The fruit of the Spirit is a gift of God, and only He can produce it. They who bear it know as little about it as the tree knows of its fruit. They know only the power of Him on whom their life depends. Dietrich Bonhoeffer At the Heart of It The fruit of the Spirit is the living proof that the Holy Spirit dwells in us (Galatians 5:22 23). As we walk more closely to the Spirit of God and follow His leading, we will begin to reflect more of His character and nature (2 Corinthians 3:18). Keeping in step with the Spirit allows us to show the heart of Jesus, the fruit of the Spirit, to those around us (Galatians 5:25 6:2). Go Deeper 1. What is the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22 23 (notice all that is listed in these verses is considered one fruit)? What happens if we walk by the Spirit, according to Galatians 5:16, 5:25 6:2? 2. From Romans 5:1 5, what does suffering produce in a believer? Why can believers rejoice and find a hope that does not disappoint in their suffering? 3. According to Colossians 3:12 17, what similar attributes (as seen in Galatians 5:22 23) are believers to grow in because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Make It Personal 1. Which specific attributes of the fruit of the Spirit do you struggle with the most? Which ones come more naturally for you personally? 2. How well do you keep in step with the Spirit, being mindful or aware of His voice and leading (Galatians 5:25)? Practice It Now Take 5 7 minutes to look over the specific fruit of the Spirit that you ve written above, and ask God to increase and mature those attributes in you. Ask Him to bring you opportunities to demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit to those around you today. Especially for the attributes that seem most difficult for you, ask God to do a deep work in you so that you can begin to grow and show improvement in those specific areas.
Day 4: The Gifts of the Spirit Nevertheless, God the Holy Spirit gave them (gifts of the Spirit) to some within the Church, to be used for His glory. They must never be exploited for His glory. They must never be exploited for selfish reasons, nor must they ever become sources of either division or pride. Billy Graham At the Heart of It The power of the Holy Spirit most often comes and is seen when believers identify and exercise the spiritual gifts they have received from the Spirit. Exercising these gifts is to be done in a complete attitude of love (1 Corinthians 13:1 3). Every believer is encouraged to desire these gifts and use them for the sake of the church, to help facilitate its growth until we are fully like Jesus (1 Corinthians 12: 31, 14:1; Ephesians 4:12 13). Go Deeper 1. In 1 Corinthians 12:4 6, the Apostle Paul makes the same point three times in three succinct statements. What is the key idea he wants the reader to grasp? 2. According to 1 Corinthians 12:7, 11, to whom has the Spirit given gifts and abilities? 3. From Ephesians 4:11, 1 Corinthians 12:8 10, 28, and Romans 12:6 8, what are some of the key gifts or abilities that the Holy Spirit gives? 4. In Ephesians 4:12 13, why are believers to exercise their spiritual gifts? Make It Personal In 1 Corinthians 12:29 30, the Apostle Paul makes the point that not all believers have the same gifts. Then in verse 31 (as well as in 1 Corinthians 14:1), he gives the challenge to eagerly desire spiritual gifts. How much do you desire to identify and exercise your spiritual gifts and abilities? What keeps you from using your spiritual gifts more? Practice It Now In an attitude of expectant prayer, take 7 10 minutes to ask God to reveal the spiritual gifts that He has given you. You may know some already, but He may want to reveal others to you. Write down here what He reveals to you. Ask Him how you can better use those gifts to bless and serve others. Express to God your openness and willingness to exercise your spiritual gifts, denouncing any fear or doubt you may have in the name of Jesus.
4009 Beltway South Abilene, TX 79606 325.692.6540 beltway.org