Grace &peas: Tales of the dilatory JR High Blogger...

Beloved, How art thou? Sooo I won’t even mention how late this is. We all spill milk on the regular I’m guessing, and I think A lot of us are learning a thing or two about responsibility, faithfulness and diligence in this hectic season. I hope we can move forward from here. What we will do is briefly catch you up on where we have been thus far in our study with an overview, and (LORD WILLING) from here on out the Homework and teaching outline will be posted week to week for your benefit and enjoyment. Please note that a few of our weeks together in the class have been review on particular doctrines. So if the numbers don’t add up, it’s not your counting, it’s our erratic schedule of class indoctrination. So to catch all of you viewers up, this is what you have missed in JR HOPE class (Starting from the Sunday after our parent/teacher meeting)…

Lesson 7: Your life is hidden with Christ

Focus statement: Our fleeting lives have significance only when we die to self and live for GOD and His purposes.

Key Verse: “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in GOD.” Colossians 3:3

Main Ideas:

Mans existence is fleeting; God is eternal.
God sovereignly orchestrates HIS plan for the universe
We were born to live for God’s purposes and to glorify Him.
The Christian is dead to his own plans, will, and agenda, and lives for Christ; the Christian’s life is “hid” in Christ

Lesson 8: Obedience: The mark of a surrendered heart

Focus statement: God demands and delights in hearts that respond to His Grace in obedient surrender to Him and His Will.

Key Verse: “…If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23

Main Ideas:

Jesus is both Savior and King
Jesus demands obedience and Jesus loves obedience
Obedience is an evidence of a surrendered heart; a disciple has a surrendered obedient heart
God’s grace inclines His children’s hearts in submission to Him
God’s grace enables His children to fight their sin nature and sinful passions by denying themselves and taking up their crosses daily
Blessing comes to those who seek Jesus and walk in His ways

Lesson 9: Jesus our example

Focus statement: Jesus is our perfect example of a heart surrendered to the Father and a will submitted to God’s purpose.

Key Verse: “ For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of Him who sent me.” John 6:38

Main Ideas:

Jesus understood and submitted to the Father’s authority
Jesus had a loving, personal relationship with His Father
Jesus embraced the will of the Father with His mind, heart, will
Jesus’ perfect obedience is evidence of his surrendered heart and His submitted will
God is a loving heavenly Father, who strengthens His children who desire to follow Him.

Lesson 10: Teach me Your way

Focus statement: Because the believer operates in God’s kingdom, he must submit his mind, heart, and will to learn the ways of God

Key Verse: “ Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name.” Psalm 86:11

Main Ideas:

God’s ways are not our ways; God’s ways are higher than man’s ways
The Christian operates in God’s Kingdom
Christ helps believers put off the old self and put on the new self
We must learn the ways of God
Teaching the soul involves an informed mind, a heart desire, and a surrendered will
We should not be stubborn before the Lord, but teachable
And here begins our trek through the Beatitudes…

Lesson 11: The poor in Spirit

Focus statement: God’s Kingdom belongs to the poor in Spirit because they humbly recognize that they are undeserving of and desperate for God’s mercy.

Key Verse: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

Main ideas:

The Sermon on the Mount is a description of the character of the Christian.
The Kingdom of heaven is both present and future
The poor in spirit recognize their utter spiritual depravity; they are humble before GOD

Lesson 12: Those who mourn

Focus statement: God brings eternal comfort to the one who mourns over sin and repents.

Key Verse: “ Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Matthew 5:4

Main Ideas:

Those who mourn over their sin are blessed
Godly grief produces repentance
Mourning over sin drives a person to repentance, which results in comfort and forgiveness from God.
Those who are Christian’s will mourn over personal sin and over the sins of others

Lesson 13: The Meek

Focus statement: The meek humbly submit their wills to Jesus and trust God’s rule, which results in the inheritance of all things.

Key Verse: “ Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” Matthew 5:5

Main Ideas:

The meek are those who are submitting their wills to Jesus
The meek are marked by gentleness, humility, determination to follow Jesus, and self control/God control
The meek see their sinfulness, mourn over it, and have no expectation of mercy; the meek recognize that they do not deserve mercy.
The meek trust God
The meek are soft on the outside and strong on the inside
The meek will not only reign in the Kingdom to come, but also “posses everything” in the present; the meek are satisfied and content

Lesson 14: Those who hunger and thirst after Righteousness

Focus statement: Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness are those who desire that their lives and the lives of others reflect God’s Righteousness.

God will satisfy those who desire that their lives and the lives of others reflect God’s Righteousness.

Key Verse: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

Main Ideas:

An appetite for God and spiritual things is a gift
Hungering and thirsting for Righteousness, an inner righteousness that conforms to the Will of God and obeys the ways of God is the mark of a believer.
Those who know Christ have an intense desire, a hungering and thirsting, for both personal righteousness and the righteousness of others.
Underneath a desire for inner righteousness is a desire for God.
God continually satisfies the ongoing hunger and thirst for righteousness
For the believer, the Sermon on the Mount is a celebration of the identity of the Kingdom; for the unbeliever it is an invitation to surrender to Christ and become part of His Kingdom.