transform Sooner youth camp 2015 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God s will is his good, pleasing and perfect will. ~ Romans 12:2 Aa Aa Aa
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 2 Monday Session 1 Theme: TRANSFORM And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. ~ 2 Corinthians 3: 18 Main Idea: God wants to transform us into who he wants us to be. Assemble If I were to ask you the question, What does God want in your life or What does God want you to do and be in your life how would you answer? (Take time for responses. The best thing here is to write the responses on a white board in order to keep track of what people have said.) When we make a list like this, it is easy to see that there is a lot of transformation that God is working on in our lives. In order to make the list more manageable, we could break up the list into several different categories. Maybe we could take all the character traits and group them together. God wants us to be kind, loving, patient, considerate, gentle, holy, faithful, or thankful. Maybe we would group the list into spiritual disciplines. God wants us to study the Bible, to worship, to pray, to be evangelistic, or to serve others. There are some feelings or assurances that God wants us to experience. God wants us to have joy, peace, trust in Him, assurance of our salvation, or grieving over sin. The problem with the lists that we have made is that there is so much on them. It would be impossible to carry around this list and try to check it every time we were faced with a decision or a situation that called for us to surrender to the growth God wants for us. So what we want to do is to try and crystallize these lists into a single picture that will help us grow. If you had to come up with one picture that would encompass everything we have listed, what would that picture be? (Guide the responses to Christ likeness, reflecting Jesus, or looking like Jesus). God s purpose in the life of His people and the life of His church is to transform us to look like Jesus. Let s take a look at a couple of passages from the Bible to get a clear sense of God s purpose in our lives. Equip Read Romans 8:28 29. In this passage, Paul clearly expresses that God has a purpose in mind for His people. (verse 28) Don t get caught by words like predestined and foreknew they simply mean that God knew from before the beginning of the world what we would need and how He would accomplish His work in our lives. Paul clearly states that God is conforming us into the image of His Son. (verse 29) God is changing our nature and character to look like Jesus. The idea that God calls us to conform to His nature and character is not limited in the Bible to just Romans 8. It is a theme that runs throughout Scripture. Here is a short list of passages where we find God calling us to look like Jesus. Each passage shows us how we are supposed to mirror the nature and character of Jesus in our lives.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 3 Matthew 5:48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 20:26 28 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Luke 6:36 Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. John 15:12 This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Romans 6:4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. Romans 15:7 Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God. Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. Colossians 3:13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 1 Thessalonians 1:6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit. 1 Peter 1:16 since it is written, You shall be holy, for I am holy. 1 Peter 2:21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 1 John 2:6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. 1 John 4:17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. Engage Read Romans 12:2 Walking with God is a spiritual and physical journey. Like any trip, if we don t want to get lost, we need to know where we are going, we must know the destination. God tells us His purpose in our lives. God s purpose in the lives of His people is to transform us to look like Jesus. Today begin the process of praying about looking like Jesus. Ask for God s direction, strength, and transforming power to be at work in your life.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 4 Tuesday Session 2 Theme: BECOME Main Idea: Before you can transform, you must become a follower of Christ. At the same time the phrase being transformed indicates a present tense action. Being a follower of Jesus isn t something that just happened to you in the past. Being a follower of Jesus isn t a one time decision. Following Jesus is a choice we make every day. Assemble Define salvation. Salvation is a reliance on the character of God. In salvation, we recognize that we have no power to redeem ourselves or protect our souls from the evil that surrounds us. All of our hope rests in God. His love provides the answer to our sin. His grace covers our guilt. His blood washes us clean and His power transforms us. His unchanging faithfulness allows our souls to rest in deep dependence in His hands. The cross stands as a marker to His eternal desire to draw us to Himself and save us from the power of evil. Note that salvation is not just a one time event. Salvation actually covers the whole range of our lives. Our past, present, and future are changed when God saves us. We must choose to live in salvation every day. Read Hebrews 10:14. Note the three ways that salvations works. Jesus has made perfect He has changed our past. We are no longer defined by what we once were. Forever salvation works in our futures and brings us hope for tomorrow. Those who are being made holy. Salvation is at work in us in this moment. Salvation is changing our nature and character today. Equip Read Ephesians 6:17. What piece of headwear does God command His soldiers to take up? Why do you think that the helmet is a good picture of salvation? Roman helmets were cast bronze bowls that had several distinctive features. Each helmet weighed approximately five pounds and was often lined with felt to help absorb some of the shock when an enemy struck the helmet. Roman helmets carried reinforced areas around the neck, brow, and cheek areas for extra protection. A unique feature of the Roman helmet was the design of the ear piece that allowed the soldier to clearly hear the commands of the centurion. The helmet is specially designed to protect the soldier s head while allowing him to listen to orders that could save his life. God calls His soldiers to take up the helmet of salvation. Like its Roman counterpart, it protects us from the fatal blow of sin and opens our ears to listen and obey the voice of the commander.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 5 Read I Thessalonians 5:8 9. As sons of light and of the day, what does Paul encourage us to put on? How does the hope of salvation allow us to walk with courage on the battlefield? The hope of salvation serves as a helmet for the sons of light. When we are buried with Christ in baptism, we put on an unshakeable hope. This amazing hope is cemented in the unchanging character of God Himself. He is the One who will bring it to fruition and He gives us this hope to aid us as we face the battle. It is a hope that transforms all that the helmet protects. Our minds. The hope of salvation has the power to transform our minds. Our hope in Christ begins to change the way we think. We resist the conforming pressures of this world and commit ourselves to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. God s will His good, pleasing, and perfect will becomes our greatest desire. We let go of seeking to please ourselves and our minds search for what will bring the Father pleasure. We take every thought captive and bring it into submission to Jesus. The hope we find in Him becomes the constant that points us like a compass to the arms of our heavenly Father. Our eyes. The hope of salvation trains our eyes. We look at the past and see that the mountain of guilt and shame that once looked so forbidding has been hurled into the depths of the sea. Our Christ shaped hope changes the way we see today. As we walk with Him, we begin to see the myriad of ways that His hand touches our days and His blessings flow into our lives. Our eyes can now look to the future in anticipation of the day when we will stand before the throne of our King. Our hope shapes our eyes today to follow His steps and imitate His movement. Our ears. As we rely on the salvation that brings us hope, our ears begin to hear differently. The sweet whispers of the world that once enticed us now sound grating and shallow. Instead we tune our ears to hear the richness of God s voice. We listen as He calls our name and we delight in the melody of His call. Even in the midst of the battle, we listen for the voice of our General. Above the din of clashing swords and war cries, we train our ears to listen for the One who gives us hope. Our mouths. Hope changes the way we speak. Our voices seek to imitate the One who bought our salvation with His own life. Our words are shaped by His word and our message is defined by the cross. As we let go of the language of the world, we embrace the language of salvation. Its vocabulary is defined by praise and its grammar is defined by surrender. Engage Read Titus 2:11 14. How does the hope of our salvation transform us as we wait for the glorious appearing of our Lord? How does this passage teach us to walk today in salvation as well as looking to the past or future?
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 6 Wednesday Session 3 Theme: RENEW Main Idea: In Romans it is clear that we transform by renewing our mind. Transformation has a lot to do with how we think and what we put into our mind what movies we watch, TV shows we like, music we listen too, and what we look at on the internet. As we begin to be the person God wants us to be, we must rid ourselves of unhealthy things, AND replace it with the things of Christ. Assemble How do you choose what to watch, listen to, read, or say? Who controls your choices? As Jesus withdraws to the lonely mountainside, He teaches us an important lesson. Transformation always begins when we turn our eyes away from our own desires and expectations and fix them fully on Jesus. It is impossible to see Jesus clearly until we remove the lenses of ambition, pride, and selfsatisfaction from our vision. We can t submit to His will if our will is constantly in the way. Equip The words of Jesus in Luke 9:23 provide a roadmap of what it means to walk with Jesus. What does it mean to deny yourself? A vital part of discipleship is stripping away self in order to fully submit to the lordship of Jesus. How often do we walk through life, surrounded by God s blessings and try to tell God how to be God? You see, we have this great idea If God would only work out these circumstances. If He would adjust His timing. If the Lord would just do it this way If I could make my own decisions, watch what I want to watch, listen to what I want to listen to, and do whatever I want to do then life would be better. We have this idea that we know what is best. The world can t hurt or influence us. Things are harmless. But that is just not the case. Every time we lay out our own plans rather than lay our hearts in His hands, every time we draw our own expectations rather than expecting to be drawn to Him, every time we plan, prod, and push rather than seek, submit, and surrender, we try to force God to bow to our wills. But the truth is, God calls us to surrender. To allow Him to make our choices. Walking with God means that we deny ourselves and let God take control. Control of our movies, TV shows, books, internet sites, conversations, relationships, music, and attitudes. Why is it hard to deny yourself? Surrender to God involves nothing less than laying our whole selves into His hands. We lay our agendas, ambitions, abilities, and attitudes at His feet and acknowledge our own powerlessness as we submit to His transforming work in our lives. Surrender means looking away from ourselves and seeing clearly who Jesus is. Instead of trying to force a crown of our own design on His head, we need to make room for Him on the thrones of our hearts. Read Luke 9:23.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 7 What does it mean to take up your cross? Jesus doesn t just call us to deny ourselves. He calls us to be reshaped in His image. The cross defined every moment of Jesus life. He asks you to take on the same focus. Let the shadow of the cross be your hiding place. Let the love of the cross drive you into His presence. Let the power of the cross shape who you are. Let the agony of the cross humble your heart. Let the victory of the cross define your hope. Write Galatians 2:20. Every day the cross stands before us as a symbol of death and life. As Jesus calls us to take up our cross daily, He is calling us to impress the shape of that cross onto every aspect of our lives. He calls us to let everything that defined Jesus define who we are. Surrender, love, humility, and service all become evidence that I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. Every moment is molded by the reality of who Jesus is and who He calls me to be in Him. When we deny ourselves, we make room for something different. Taking up the cross means we allow God to fill our lives. We allow Him to guide our steps and direct our choices. Why is taking up our cross something that we must experience daily? Taking up our cross has nothing to do with carrying an earthly burden. It is a call to see who Jesus is and set our hearts toward being like Him. Taking up our cross means that we take on the character of Jesus. And we are called to take on His image before the world daily. Every day is a choice to walk in His presence. Every moment is a moment of surrender to His power. Every encounter carries with it the opportunity for others to see Jesus living in us. To take up our cross daily is to recognize that the blood of Jesus transforms every minute, every thought, every emotion, every word, and every action of every day. How will taking up your cross daily change your priorities? Your relationships? Engage Read Luke 9:23. The call to deny self is a call to quiet the voices within us so that we may hear His voice. The call to take up a cross is a call to be shaped into the image of Jesus. We must reflect the light of Jesus. The call to follow Him is a call to set our eyes firmly on Him and place every priority into His care. But how do we judge what is best to go in our minds? One thing to do is to practice the Philippians 4 test. Read Philippians 4:8 9. This passage guides us to put the best things in our minds and hearts. It tells us what to look for before we watch a show or enter a conversation. Before making a choice about something, ask yourself some questions based on the passage. Is it true? Is it honorable? Is it pure? Following Jesus is about allowing Him to guide our choices.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 8 Thursday Session 4 Theme: REFLECT Main Idea: The concept of reflecting God s glory began with the story of Moses, who saw God and his face glowed. We too, figuratively, must reflect Christ s image to those around us. We may be the closest thing to Jesus that some of our unsaved friends might see. When others see us, are they getting an accurate reflection? Assemble What does it mean to be bold? (Take time for responses then follow up with a second question.) Describe a time when you were bold keep it appropriate. We often think of boldness as being out in front, loud, over the top, and maybe slightly obnoxious. But the Bible often shows us that boldness in not about being out front, it is about being distinct. It is about faithfully sticking to the will of God and the way of Jesus, no matter where you are. Out front, or serving quietly; in the big moments of life, or in the quiet moments of the everyday, Christians are called to be bold. In 2 Corinthians 3:12 13, Paul calls us to be bold. He uses the example of Moses to help us learn how to live bold lives. Equip Imagine the scene. Put yourself in the place of an Israelite. In the last few months you have gone from slavery to freedom. You have walked in the shadow of God Himself through the middle of the Red Sea. Seen armies defeated, the greatest empires that have inhabited the earth humbled by the very hand of God. You have drunk waters, eaten bread and tasted meat that you did not hunt or harvest. And now we stand at the very mountain of God. His presence thunders from the heavens. Lightning and earthquakes, fire and smoke announce His presence in this place. We have watched our leader, Moses, climb the face of the mountain to talk with God. But Moses has been gone a long time. And we begin to question. Where are we headed? What does our future hold? What will we eat and drink, where will we live? And so the Israelites begin to look for answers. They gaze back at a land that they have known since birth and seek guidance in the form of a Golden Calf. Their vision has become clouded. But God has made a promise. Read Exodus 33:1 3 What God speaks, God does. No matter the heart of this people, God has promised a land flowing with milk and honey. And God is ready to deliver. But because of the stiff necked people of Israel, God ready to stand back and let them try it on their own. He will clear the land but He will not walk with them on the way. But Moses knows what it is to walk with God and so he approaches the Lord and begs for more. Read Exodus 33:12 14 Moses knows that the promise of God without the presence of God is not enough. He knows that man fails when he sets out on his own. God s direction must be rooted in both the promise of God and the presence of God.
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 9 God knows the path that the Israelites must walk. Moses begs God to walk it with them. God knows the name of the Israelites, Moses wants to know the name of God. Moses has learned the lesson that to know God we must walk with God. God wants us to know His name. Our relationship with God is one of belonging. We are His. God has promised it. But Moses wants more, so he makes a bold request. Read Exodus 33:15 17 Moses requests to remain in the presence of God. Moses will live by no other standard than God s pleasure and how will people know that God is pleased unless God is present? Moses will be defined by nothing less than God s reflection in his life. And how will God be reflected if God is not shining in this place? Moses will not walk where God does not lead. Why? Because Moses knows that he needs God s protection. And so he makes another bold request. Read Exodus 33:18 23 Oh, how I wished we asked this more than we do. How often do we pray to be shown the glory of God? How much do we miss because we are afraid to ask? It seems like a strange jump but when Moses seeks the face of God, God seeks the protection of Moses. God knows what happens when we seek to walk closely with Him. He knows of the change that takes place in our lives and of the need for our protection as we walk with Him. And so God places Moses in the cleft of the rock and effects a marvelous change. When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord." (Exodus 34:29) The change was so pronounced that Moses had to cover his face with a veil. Because Moses would be led by God, walk with God, and rely on God, God transformed the face of Moses. God works the same transformation in our lives. Engage For a man who is proclaimed more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth" (Numbers 12:3) Moses makes a bold request. Paul tells us that we need to live more boldly than Moses. Read 2 Corinthians 3:12 18. Paul calls his readers back to the time when Moses stood in the presence of God and was changed. Moses shone with a light that comes from being in God s presence. Paul then goes on to say that we too live with unveiled faces. Faces that reflect the fact that we live in the presence of God. When we walk with God, we are being transformed into the same image the image of Jesus. God is working a wonderful act of transformation in His people. He is transforming us to look like Jesus. Today you will meet people who need to see Jesus. They need to see that Jesus wants to walk with us, wants to guide us, and wants to change our lives. How are you living out the life of Jesus today? What steps can you take to make a commitment to live out the life of Jesus boldly, in every moment?
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 10 Friday Session 5 Theme: CHANGE Main Idea: Making the changes God wants in our lives takes total surrender to Him. God doesn t want a piece of us, or even most of us. He wants everything. He wants us to fully surrender our lives to him. Jesus shows us the way. Will you do what it takes to change? Will you surrender? Will you transform? Assemble Define surrender. Too often we think about surrender as simply giving up. Losers, weaklings, and cowards surrender. But the Bible draws a different picture of surrender. Biblically, surrender means to put our entire selves into the hands of God. Equip Read Acts 10:1 8 Meet Cornelius, a man living in surrender to God. Cornelius is not a stranger to living under authority. He is a centurion and a leader of men. Military history has ingrained a sense of the chain of command into his life. When he says go, someone goes. When a superior says jump, Cornelius asks, how high? Leading and following are part of the natural rhythms of his days. We don t know how it happened or when it happened, but we know that one day Cornelius became aware of the authority of God. When we meet him in the Bible, he is a God fearer a Gentile who is living by God s law. The will of God is shaping the will of Cornelius. God s generosity is seen in Cornelius gifts to the poor. He stands out through his devotion. His prayer life is regular as he seeks direction from God. One day God comes to Cornelius in a very special way. With the visit of an angel, Cornelius receives specific instructions from God. Cornelius is ready to surrender. As soon as instruction comes, Cornelius obeys. Like Cornelius, we are people who live under authority. God tells us how to live and walk with Him. God tells us what our purpose is and how to live in His will. God gives specific guidance to His people. Obedience is a sign of our submission. It marks the surrender of our lives into His authority. Read Acts 10:9 48 Thirty miles south of Caesarea, Peter is on a rooftop praying. As the servants of Cornelius travel to Peter, he has a startling vision. A sheet unfolds from the sky. It is filled with animals which the Jews know to be unclean. These were animals which the Law of Moses had forbidden them to eat. In the trance that Peter is experiencing, God Himself is calling for Peter to kill and eat. Peter replies that he will not do it because the animals are unclean. Three times this happens, and three times God tells Peter not to call unclean what God calls clean. Then the vision is over. Just as the vision ends, there is a knock at the door. It is the men sent by Cornelius to find Peter. The presence of Gentiles at Peter s door may not cause us to think twice, but for Peter this a call to surrender. Peter himself explains to the visitors that as a Jew he is not supposed to have any associations with Gentiles. This includes having Gentiles into his home, or entering the home of Gentile. Peter has not ever walked with, associated with, or been connected with Gentiles. But at the will and
Sooner Youth Camp 2015 Teaching Guide Page 11 direction of God, all of that changes. Peter invites these men in, travels the road with them, and enters the home of Cornelius. His surrender teaches us how to surrender. When we surrender to God, He gives us new eyes. To see the world through the eyes of Jesus is to see something wonderful. Where I see shortcomings, Jesus sees possibilities. Where I see failure, Jesus sees opportunity for healing. Where I see people different from me, Jesus sees the paths that connect people to Himself and to each other. In my life, Jesus calls me over and over to shine as a light in this world. Shining with the light of Jesus means surrendering to His vision and seeing with His eyes. People that once went unnoticed now have a place in my vision. People that were once dismissed are now part of my priorities. Surrender changes how we see others. Surrender calls for obedience and changed vision. We learn these things from both Cornelius and Peter. As these two come together, we see that submission calls for something else. A changed direction. In submitting to God, Peter now has a chance to lift Jesus up to the household of Cornelius. I love Acts 10:33. As Cornelius invites Peter to share a word from God, Cornelius is totally open to what God wants. Cornelius says, we are all here to listen to everything the Lord has commanded Cornelius is not dictating the terms. He is not setting boundaries or conditions. Whatever God has to say to Cornelius, Cornelius is ready to hear. In his message to Cornelius, Peter talks about: The Life of Jesus Jesus came to earth with power and the Holy Spirit. Jesus went about doing good and healing. Jesus life is a call to surrender. He challenges us to surrender to God s power in our lives. He compels us to surrender as we live out His nature and character. We surrender to Jesus as the standard we live by because Jesus lived a life of submission to the Father. The Death of Jesus Peter talks about how Jesus was crucified. He was killed by being hung on a tree. The death of Jesus is a call to surrender. We are called to die to ourselves, to be crucified with Christ. We no longer live as we were, but live in surrender to the will of God. The Resurrection of Jesus Peter talks about the resurrection, the absolute certainty that Jesus is alive. He and the other apostles are witnesses to a living Jesus. The resurrection is a call to surrender. We are called to live as a new creation. We are clothed with Christ, and called to live in the likeness of Jesus. Peter talks about surrender. He highlights how Jesus has shown us the way to surrender our lives into the power of God s hands. Hearing the words of Peter, Cornelius is moved to give his life more fully to God. He and his household participate in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus through baptism. They surrender themselves to God s plan. Engage Becoming a disciple that surrenders is about choosing our identity. Will our action be shaped by our own desires and wisdom or will our movement be defined by the will of God. Cornelius allowed his life to be completely transformed by submitting to God s call, God s vision, God s direction, and God s plan. Peter shed a lifetime of custom and prejudice in order to embrace the full vision of God for all men. Surrender changes the substance of who we are. It allows Christ to more fully take shape in our lives and empowers us to shine more completely for Him as we deny ourselves and take on a Savior shaped identity.