Week 1 – Day 1/7
Theme of the week: Assurance of salvation
Important: Never do this course on your own. Many people try to do it on their own. But you will find less than 5% of the value of the course by doing it alone versus doing it in a small group. Do not think you will be an exception to the rule. An optimal group has four people. In such a group, deep discipling takes place. We strongly advise that you don’t do it in groups of less than three or more than five.
Memory Verse for the week: John 1:12 – But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.
Many people struggle with questions that centre around whether they can be sure that I am a child of God and if they can be sure that they will go to heaven: “How can I know I am saved? I do not think I am good enough to be saved – I have so much sin in my life! I don’t think I am doing enough to go to heaven. Will there be a day that God will say: That is enough – I don’t love you anymore? So many good Christians say that after many years of being a Christian, they are still unsure if they will go to heaven.”
Discovery Bible Study (± 90 minutes)
This week’s Discovery Bible Study is about assurance of salvation: “How can I be sure that I am saved? Scripture: John 1:1-13.
First Third of the meeting (30 minutes)
Important: Carefully watch your time. Groups always tend to spend too much time in this section, and then there is not enough time to deal with the new subject.
Everyone shares something that happened in the past week that they are glad about. Everyone shares something that was a challenge for them the past week. When you share, be short – only “a few sentences”. Take time to pray for one another.
Second Third of the meeting (35 minutes)
The passage that we will study: John 1:1-13
- Someone in the group read the passage.
- Someone else read it a second time.
In discussing this passage, we ask the following three questions:
- What do we learn about God from this passage?
- What do we learn about ourselves/other people from this passage?
- What is the Holy Spirit saying to you from this passage? What have you discovered?
Use this link for the rest of this devotion: https://tinyurl.com/mpupv33b (W1-1/7 – Assurance of Salvation)
The Third-Third of the meeting (25 minutes)
The focus of this section is: What must I practically do with what I have discovered from this passage? After studying this passage.
From information to obedience: We discovered several things during our study of the passage. That is information. How do we now move from information to obedience? Because it is God speaking here, what must we do in obedience to this passage? What is the Holy Spirit saying to me, and what must I do it? What must change in my life, or how can I be a blessing to someone or the people around me? Be very specific.
What am I going to do about what the Holy Spirit is saying to me?
I will statement: My act(s) of obedience must not be vague, must have a clear goal, and must be “measurable.” When we come together next week, we will give feedback on what we have done. This is called an “I will statement” – in the coming week, I will do the following… This is a personal commitment. You decide what you want to do, and next week all of us will share what happened with what we committed to do.
To-do list for the week:
- Over the next seven days: Do your I will statement. (For more information about I will statements below at the end of this day’ study.)
- Pray for the three other people in your group. (Their marriages, personal relationships, children, and challenges they may have.)
- Remember the Memory verse of the week: John 1:12
