Church of the Living God
Bible Study Lesson
Presenter: Overseer
Ennis F. Tait
Date: Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Series: Spiritual Warfare
Reference Scripture: II
Corinthians 5:14-17
Focus Verses: II Corinthians 5:17
Today’s Discussion: “A
Change of Address”
We are anchored in God
through our relationship with the Lord, Jesus.
There are three very important spiritual actions we must execute to draw
on the power of God:
(I Corinthians 13:13 – “abideth” [men’-o] to stay (in a
given place, state relation or expectancy)
·
Faith
– [pis’-tis]; persuasion, i.e. credence; moral conviction (of religious truth,
or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher) a reliance upon Christ for
salvation
·
Hope
– [el-pece’] – to anticipate, usually with pleasure; expectation or confidence
·
Charity –
[ag-ah’-pay]; from the Greek word – agapao – to love, i.e. affection or
benevolence; a love-feast
The lesson aim is to encourage believers to check and
evaluate our place in God. More
importantly, we must conduct frequent “soul searching” evaluations. We must also monitor the condition of our
heart and mind. As believers we are in
the process of relocating to a permanent place in Christ Jesus.
The Apostle Paul’s opening statement in verse 14 reveals the
source of his commitment to “the work of the ministry”. He exclaims, “Christ’s love constraineth us”. (soon-ekh’-o:
to hold together; to compress; or arrest; to compel, perplex, afflict or
preoccupy) Paul’s testimony to the
church is significant and relevant. As
ambassadors for Christ we must draw from the purest source of strength known
to all mankind, the Love of Christ. Reference: John 3:16; Ephesians 5:25;
Galatians 2:20) Each of the
subsequent verses support Paul’s commitment to the ministry through his
understanding of the role of Christ in our lives.
Paul’s concern for the believer is that we present our new
address to others so they will know we’ve moved. Not in the physical sense of relocating, but
in the sense of spiritual transformation.
There must be evidence of our “new walk”. (Ref:
Romans 6:4; 8:1) We must be able to distinguish the difference between the
flesh and the spirit. We must understand
the three stages of the mind: natural (I
Corinthians 2:14), carnal
(I Corinthians 3:1-3;
Matthew 16:23; Colossians 1:21) or spiritual (Romans 12:2). As believers
we are expected to change how we view God, Christ, the Holy Spirit and
ourselves. According to Hebrews 11:6,
FAITH plays a huge role in the transformation process. FAITH, HOPE and CHARITY are essential to our
transformation. Each one of these
spiritual behaviors is designed to bring us closer to God through our
relationship with Jesus. Thus, Paul’s
statement in verse 17 serves as a starting point for those interested in going
further in their walk with Christ.
List three old habits that were part of your past life?
List three new habits that are reflection of your new life
in Christ?
