What is the relationship between your priorities and God’s provision? What shapes your priorities and how much are you focused on providing for you? What do you treasure most?

Chapter 12:13-34

13 Then someone called from the crowd, “Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.” 14 Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” 15 Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” 16 Then he told them a story:

• …”I will honor you if you help me get more stuff.”
• Jesus says; “Don’t look to me to justify your greed / coveting.”
• Christ’s Kingdom is not in any way concerned about earthly possessions
• Message to the crowd: ‘This life is not about what you have’

“A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. 17 He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ 18 Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. 19 And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

• Who made the farm produce such fine crops? Who made the soil fertile?
• His response to abundance is self focused (control)
• I can’t use everything I have, I will make room to have even more…
• He keeps talking to himself… calls himself: ‘My Friend’… self-satisfied

20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ 21“Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

• He stored up stuff based on a life he had no control over (God demonstrates)
• He wanted to have the stuff for himself ONLY…
• God defines foolishness as preoccupation with ‘earthly wealth’
• The opposite of that is a rich relationship with God (through Jesus Christ)

That part is directed at the crowd, the rest of this passage is for ‘Christ’s Disciples’. Christ’s Disciples defined by Scripture: By God’s grace they have surrendered their life to Christ’s Lordship and are indwelled with God’s Holy Spirit

22 Then, turning to his disciples, Jesus said, “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food to eat or enough clothes to wear. 23 For life is more than food, and your body more than clothing.

• Those who declare themselves to be Christ’s disciples are to live by this lesson
• Our discipleship is about learning to live a life that is not focused on STUFF
• Our lives, Christ given redeemed lives, are to be focused on ‘Rich Relationship’
• Disciples are not focused on playing the worlds stuff accumulation game!
• Even basic necessities are not to a focus of worry
• ‘Do your best, trust God for the rest’

24Look at the ravens. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for God feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than any birds! 25 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? 26 And if worry can’t accomplish a little thing like that, what’s the use of worrying over bigger things?

• The example is to show God’s intimate care in the smallest of creatures
• We are the apex of God’s creation! We bear HIS Image!
• Don’t forget He is talking to His chosen Disciples: Rich Relationship=Max Value
• The basis for that relationship is understanding God is ultimately in control
• We have illusions of control about small things, but it has to be all or nothing
• Biblical Theology: God consistently declares He is in control of EVERYTHING!
• If God is in control of anything than HE is in control of everything!

27 “Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 28 And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

• Examples from creation (God’s character is consistent throughout creation)
• Jesus is trying to explain how much God will care for you if surrender your life
• The repetition is driving home the point that God is fully invested in YOU
• He has chosen you to be His disciple, trust that God is invested in your care

29 “And don’t be concerned about what to eat and what to drink. Don’t worry about such things. 30 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs. 31 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. 32 “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.

• Christ’s disciples will not have an ‘overriding concern’ with life’s basic needs
• Don’t let such things bother you, God knows what you need to survive
• Concern for survival dominates the lives of those apart from God
• As Christ’s disciples we are to make His Kingdom our ‘Overriding Concern’
• As we work at doing that (discipleship) God will gives us everything we need
• We should enjoy our salvation as much as God does! Fear smothers joy
• If Christ has given you eternity with Him you can be free from fear!

33 “Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. 34 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

• Disconnect yourself from unnecessary stuff
• Do you own stuff or does stuff own you?
• Valuing people and relationships above things (things serve needs of people)
• Being an agent of God’s blessings rather than a storehouse of them
• By distributing God’s goodness we accumulate what has eternal value
• If you have stuff, you have to worry about it.
• If God is your treasure, no worries!
• What you invest your time, emotion and skill in is what you truly value

Summary:

Following Jesus is not about justifying your focus on stuff.

Blessings & resources are to be shared not hoarded.

A focus on accumulating earthly things is in opposition to relationship with God!

Storing up things is an expression of not trusting God to provide.

Christ will take care of His disciples who prioritize His Kingdom work.

Jesus’ disciples have nothing to fear when we put His Kingdom first.

As Christ’s disciples our focus is to be storing up what is of ‘Eternal Value’.

Your true spiritual allegiance is proven by what you use your life to store up.

Application:

Jesus says beware ‘every’ kind of greed; what kind of greed are you susceptible to?

What are a few ways you can shift your focus from earthly things to Kingdom things?

What are some ways you can tangibly express trust for God to provide in new ways?

How does worry & preoccupation with stuff hamper your relationship with God?

The use of God’s Word is a sacred responsibility for everyone, especially someone God has raised to Eldership. The leaders of God’s people must be constantly on guard for what has overtaken the Pharisees & Scribes that Jesus points out & condemns in our passage today. They have become corrupt; their position of leadership is meant to serve people, and instead they oppress and control those people using God’s Word to justify it!

There are honest mistakes, misinterpretations and misapplications of God’s Word that happen all the time as we pursue discipleship. Jesus is condemning religious leaders for abusing the power God’s Name in a willful, unrepentant manner

Leaders have a massive responsibility to handle God’s Word and to teach others how to handle it. (Context, Audience, Place in Scripture, Language @ both ends) Everyone one who is part of Jesus Christ’s body needs to always be growing in their knowledge of Scripture so they can be aware of misuse, misrepresentations and misinterpretations of God’s Word

Luke 11:43-54

43 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you walk in the marketplaces. 44 Yes, what sorrow awaits you! For you are like hidden graves in a field. People walk over them without knowing the corruption they are stepping on.”

• ‘What Sorrow’ is the ultimate sorrow: Eternity separated from God
• What they love (more than God) is the attention, approval & praise of people
• This is what is known as narcissism, a self focus that is incredibly corrupting
• It’s a preoccupation with image, & facade as well (a lifestyle of dishonesty)
• You can’t see the rot & filth with a casual observance, but the ‘Death’ is there

45 “Teacher,” said an expert in religious law, “you have insulted us, too, in what you just said.” 46 “Yes,” said Jesus, “what sorrow also awaits you experts in religious law! For you crush people with unbearable religious demands, and you never lift a finger to ease the burden.

• We are offended because we support the Pharisees, they have picked sides
• Jesus says, ‘Yeah you are in the same boat with them’ (Against God)
• The sorrow of being separated from God is born of misusing your expertise
• Justifying oppression by ‘God’s Word’ & exempting yourself from responsibility
• A lack of acting with compassion is a sign of religious misuse of God’s Word

47 What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago. 48 But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments!

• You act like you honor what God has revealed thru prophets / scripture
• The ‘Cult of The Temple’ at that time
• Their allegiance was to the structure they controlled rather than God
• God was a ‘Figure Head’ for how them rather than the leader
• We also support such evil if we do not oppose the wrong practices

49 This is what God in his wisdom said about you:‘I will send prophets and apostles to them, but they will kill some and persecute the others.’

• The rejection of God’s revelation & the manipulating of God’s Word will happen
• Misusing God’s Word is the same as persecuting & killing His representatives

50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world— 51 from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will certainly be charged against this generation.

• ‘This generation’ is everyone from this point forward (The revelation of Christ)
• With what they now knew and what we know (Christ) we are accountable
• We either honor God’s prophets / word or we are guilty of murder too

Old Testament Tie-In Time! Let’s take a look at what Jesus was referencing:

Chronicles 24:19-22

Although the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen. Then the Spirit of God came on Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.’”

But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple. 22 King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, “May the Lord see this and call you to account.”

• King Joash met with a bad end…

52 “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.”

• Their misuse of Scripture keeps them & others from eternity with God
• To willingly do such a thing, is blasphemy of The Holy Spirit / denial of God

53 As Jesus was leaving, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees became hostile and tried to provoke him with many questions. 54 They wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against him.

• Instead of hearing what Christ was saying they wanted to keep manipulating
• Their study of Scripture was not to understand it but to leverage for themselves
• The trap is using scripture to justify your desires in opposition to Christ
• Proper use of scriptures transforms your desires to match God’s (Psalm 37:4)

Summary:

A life of religious facade will corrupt and ultimately leads to the greatest sorrow.

The use of God’s Word as a pretext for oppression leads to the greatest sorrow.

Institutionalizing Scripture but not truly honoring His revelation contained in it, leads to the greatest sorrow.

We are responsible if we allow or tolerate what Christ has condemned, instead we must actively oppose it.

Expertise in Scripture that is not used for yours & others salvation leads to the greatest sorrow.

Using Scripture as a means to manipulate people & justify selfish actions is ‘Anti-Christ’.

Application:

What are some specific ways that scripture is misused in the world around you?

Why does Jesus focus so intently on the misuse of scripture by such a small group?

If you are not working against the misuse of scripture, are you supporting the misuse of scripture?

How can you intentionally keep yourself from misusing Scripture to justify selfish actions?

This Scripture exists to address a serious problem that happens in Jesus Christ’s Church. The problem at it’s root is we don’t understand things about Evil based on scripture. We can at times be confused about the spiritual world how it has only two sides. Jesus Christ wants to teach us about Evil, we need to listen and apply the biblical knowledge, not get sucked into emotional ideas about evil. Ideas about evil being less than intentional, less than diabolical, less than absolutely opposed to God and His Christ, less than divisive, less than opportunistic.

In this passage Jesus is going to specifically address some of the ways evil works. We need to pay attention, we need to build a culture that intentionally works against evil from a place of understanding and unity. We are all able to be infected with what is afflicting these people, Jesus is addressing. Whenever something is addressed in Scripture that means it pertains to you and me. Dear Christian, never tell yourself: ‘oh that can’t happen to me’. When something like that comes out of our mouth we give evil a place.

11:14-28

14 One day Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn’t speak, and when the demon was gone, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed…15 but some of them said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” 16 Others, trying to test Jesus, demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.

• Jesus does an amazing healing and for some it’s not ‘good enough’
• The result of a lack of grace & faith: cynical, jaded and demanding
• Who were the ‘some of them’ that questioned what side Jesus was on?
• On who’s side are the people questioning Jesus’ authority? Are they neutral?
• Because Jesus was not their tribe (The Temple) they labeled Him ‘Evil’

17 He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive?

• Since He knew what they were thinking He addressed the root issue
• Root issue for them & us is we don’t apply biblical knowledge of how evil works
• Evil is not haphazard. Evil is not obvious. Evil is subtle & intentionally deceptive
• Evil seeks to divide it’s opponents while banding together to survive

19 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you.

• Jesus tells them: ‘Your Bias is Showing’! If someone is in your tribe, they’re ok
• Jesus calls them out for using a double standard, not seeking objective truth
• Can we get this narrow minded about what is constitutes Kingdom work?
• They only see God’s work in a context they have deemed ‘appropriate’

21 For when a strong man is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe— 22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.

• This is a story to show there are different sides and you are on one or the other
• One side can appear to be the one in power until the greater power shows itself
• We can’t always see God working, it appears evil has the upper hand
• But eventually God will show Himself sovereign over evil
• Because HE is stronger He can render evils weapons useless
• And HE can take what evil has stolen: SOULS!

23 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

• This is the main point of the passage and other teaching of Christ: ‘Pick a Side’
• Everything that is not Good is Evil by definition…there is no 3^rd Kingdom
• The Myth of the 3^rd Kingdom Book: Kingdom matrix by Jeff Christopherson
• Exposition of the Biblical teaching that there is no ‘middle ground’

24 “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ 25 So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order.

(Move In Ready / Unoccupied Space)

• If ‘Spiritual House’ is Unoccupied, ie. Neutral, it is open to be inhabited by evil
• The unoccupied space is not neutral, it’s still evil’s territory until good replaces it
• What is not good, is evil…What is not evil is good

26 Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.”

• If you don’t replace evil with God you are still basically evil
• All that is not ruled by good / God’s Ways is open to become ruled by evil
• If your ‘House’ (Life / Soul) isn’t aligned with Good it is de-facto aligned with evil
• Don’t leave your ‘house’ available to ‘squatters’
• Once entrenched, evil get stronger; when given place evil becomes the ‘Owner’

27 As he was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, “God bless your mother—the womb from which you came, and the breasts that nursed you!” 28 Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”

• Your linage is not what determines your blessedness
• True Blessings: Our receptiveness to God’s Word & practice of God’s Word
• Practice means to with regularity and the goal of improving
• As disciples this is how we are to approach God’s Word: becoming a practitioner

SUMMARY:

Those on Christ’s side don’t create division by making false claims & accusations.

Division is a killer of kingdoms & families; on our side we fight it with God’s Grace!

Evil can appear to be in charge, God’s ways are always able to overcome it.

All Spiritual things are either of Christ or of the enemy, there is no spiritual neutrality!

Jesus says: ‘You are either with me or against me’, there is no 3^rd Kingdom!

When evil is expelled it must be replaced with good or evil will reclaim the territory.

There’s more blessings in practicing God’s Word than any heritage or tradition.

APPLICATION:

How can you avoid being demanding & instead be gracious towards God’s actions?

Understanding evil always seeks to divide, how do you proactively promote unity?

What things are considered ‘spiritually neutral’? How do you avoid treating them that way?

Have you ever recognized a place in your life you ‘swept clean’ but didn’t replace the evil?

What are some specific ways you can become more of a practitioner of God’s Word?

Luke 10:

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

²⁵ On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

²⁶ “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

²⁷ He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’^[c]; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[d]”

²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

²⁹ But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³² So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii^[e] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

³⁶ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

³⁷ The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

We all need to mature as disciples. Not only do we have that need, it should be an undisputed goal of Jesus Christ’s church: creating a culture seeking spiritual maturity. Spiritual, Emotional, & Relational health are the hallmarks of mature disciples of Christ.

Christ’s discipleship is a process that produces maturity. Maturity is the normal process of all creation: plants, animals & people. So if we are to move towards maturity as disciples of Christ, how do we measure that?

The Sermon on The Mount gives us standards for a relationally mature disciple of Christ, a vision of the goals of discipleship. Today’s passage gives us more standards in response to disciples being immature.

You can’t microwave Discipleship! It takes time, there is no other way God does it. Learning from mistakes and redoing lessons until it becomes lifestyle: Discipleship

Our passage today is a series of encounters between Jesus & His established disciples as well as those just becoming His disciples. In all these encounters Jesus points out their immaturity & leads them to maturity.

Here & now Christ uses His Body & Leaders to identify immaturity & to help the immature grow. This is how Jesus Christ’s church is supposed to work! Spiritual / Relational maturity is not a luxury for Christ’s Body, it is absolutely essential!

Ask God’s Spirit to open your eyes to your own immaturity, and for Him to change you!

Luke 9:37-62

37 The next day, after they had come down the mountain, a large crowd met Jesus. 38 A man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, my only child. 39 An evil spirit keeps seizing him, making him scream. It throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It batters him and hardly ever leaves him alone. 40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.”

• Always crowds! What a thing it must have been to see Him while incarnated
• Only Child (seems to be a theme)
• Dealing with Demonization / Possession is serious spiritual business
• This Guy had heard of Jesus’ disciples casting out demons

One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority

to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. (Luke 9:1) 3 weeks ago

• The 12 had experience, but could not do it! ‘dem knew it, but them can’t do it’ B.Boys

41 Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son here.”

• God calls us what we are: faithless & corrupt (be honest about who you are)
• They had cast out demons weeks ago at the most
• The disciples did not apply what they knew and had seen God do (Need Practice)
• How long until you are transformed? Some of that depends on you

42 As the boy came forward, the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and healed the boy. Then he gave him back to his father.

• The evil spirit gave everyone a display of his possession
• Jesus rebuked the demon, cast it out
• He healed the boy of the damage done by the demon
• Returned him to his previous state (reconciliation)

43 Awe gripped the people as they saw this majestic display of God’s power. While everyone was marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 “Listen to me and remember what I say. The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies.” 45 But they didn’t know what he meant. Its significance was hidden from them, so they couldn’t understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.

• No other explanation, so it has to be God
• While the display of power was still fresh in their minds, He taught them
• He had noticed how they forgot previous lessons (God knows we are not perfect)
• We all need repetitive schooling from Jesus! Get used to it and make it lifestyle
• We all need to take lessons from Jesus and wait for them to fully make sense

46 Then his disciples began arguing about which of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus knew their thoughts, so he brought a little child to his side. 48 Then he said to them, “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me also welcomes my Father who sent me. Whoever is the least among you is the greatest.”

• God has far less trouble noticing our pride than we do ourselves (false humility)
• This is a direct call to be humble, not act humble!
• True humility begins with how you approach God (we need outside evaluation)
• We are not to aspire to be greatest but rather to be the least…180 difference
• This sort of thing never happens in the church today, right? HA!

49 John said to Jesus, “Master, we saw someone using your name to cast out demons, but we told him to stop because he isn’t in our group.” 50 But Jesus said, “Don’t stop him! Anyone who is not against you is for you.”

• Our shared goal as Christ’s followers is more important than any group / sect
• The opposition will be clear; worry about them, no need to go looking for enemies
• Recognize we are on the same team
• The spiritually immature will see false enemies and judge other people’s callings
• I was regularly like this 15 years ago, can still be in my worst moments.

51 As the time drew near for him to ascend to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 He sent messengers ahead to a Samaritan village to prepare for his arrival. 53 But the people of the village did not welcome Jesus because he was on his way to Jerusalem.

• Luke lays the ground work for Jesus’ mission to be understood
• Samaritans only wanted Jesus if He was going to be on their side
• Competition and cultural differences used as excuses for disunity

54 When James and John saw this, they said to Jesus, “Lord, should we call down fire from heaven to burn them up?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56 So they went on to another village.

• Exercising power for personal reasons while ‘spiritualizing it’ = immaturity
• We learn as we mature that ‘Vengeance Belongs to The Lord’…Him alone
• I used to put a lot of energy into attempting to enact my idea of ‘Justice’
• Jesus will use others to rebuke the immature, these guys accepted it, will you?

57 As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.”

• Immature disciples over-promise; Jesus wants us deal with reality.
• The message: ‘Count the Cost’ Christ’s disciples are guaranteed NOTHING here
• A realistic view of discipleship as a long hard process is the start of maturity
• Making choices that involve sacrifice of comfort, acceptance &status = Maturity

59 He said to another person, “Come, follow me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 60 But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.”

• Meaning is: ‘let me inherit my father’s estate’
• Priority is worldly things 1^st, then heavenly things after. There never is an after…
• Same message as the third soil in the parable of the soils from Luke 8

“The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.” ~ Jesus @ Luke 8:14

61 Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” 62 But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

• Being Christ’s disciple is not about being detached from you old life but living the same life in a totally new way. Don’t look back, look forward.
• To be part of The Kingdom of God you must be ‘Undivided’ in your loyalties
• Mature disciples will prioritize The Kingdom over EVERYTHING else

Summary:

Mature Disciples recognize their flaws and need for Christ’s Spirit

Mature Disciples trust God even when things don’t make sense

Mature Disciples are humble having been humbled by God

Mature Disciples recognize how God calls us all to serve Him differently

Mature Disciples accept that Justice belongs to The Lord

Mature Disciples consistently prioritize The Kingdom over things in this world

Application Questions:

To grow in maturity, how can you allow God to stretch you spiritually / emotionally / relationally?

How well do you recognize your ‘Spiritual Pride’? How can you intentionally pursue greater humility?

How do you avoid judging other’s practices, callings and ministry practices?

What may be the costs you have to consider to go to the next phase of your discipleship?