Key Thought : Jesus proved victorious over evil in His life and at the cross. He also showed that Satan’s challenges to God’s government were based on lies.

  [Teaching plan for Growing in Christ October 29, 2012]

1. Have a volunteer read Romans 6:12-16.

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is. B. Since we are under grace that gives us freedom from sin’s dominion, how is grace understood here in relationship to sanctification and freedom from slavery to sin? Share. C. Personal Application: Is Christ’s victory a substitutionary victory for us, or is it an actuary victory in and through us so that it becomes our victory as well? Share your thoughts. D. Case Study: One of your relatives states, “What if you claim to be a Christian, a servant of Christ, but seem to be enslaved to sin that you just can’t seem to overcome? Can we be a servant of Christ and a slave to sin?” How would you respond to your relative?

2. Have a volunteer read Ephesians 6:12.

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is. B. What kind of principalities and powers do we wrestle with in this spiritual warfare? Are they political, religious, social, traditional, or ideological? C. Personal Application: Think of a difficult situation you have experienced or are experiencing. Have you considered it a situation of the flesh or as a spiritual battle? Share. D. Case Study: One of your friends states, “When a person does me wrong, speaks against me, or gets in my face; it isn’t a spirit I react to: it is a person I argue with, fight with, get angry with, and speak against. It may be that all this is part of the devil’s doing, but it is the flesh I have to contend with.” How is your friend correct and incorrect in his understanding of the new birth experience? How would you respond to your friend?

3. Have a volunteer read Galatians 4:5-11.

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is. B. What does it mean to be “under the law?” C. Personal Application: What is the difference in being a servant of God and a son of God? Does that change your obedience to Him? What influences does the devil bring to us to turn us away from our freedom in Christ? Share. D. Case Study: One of your neighbors states, “What are these days, and months, and times, and years that bring us back into bondage? Are these Jewish rituals and traditions or heathen festivals Paul is speaking of? Why do some people try to infer this is speaking of the Sabbath of the Ten Commandments?” How would you respond to your neighbor?

4. Have a volunteer read Hebrews 2:14-17.

A. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is. B. Why is it important for Paul to emphasize the fact that Jesus was flesh and blood and took on the seed of Abraham made like His brethren? C. Personal Application: Why do we fear death so much? How does that fear hold us in slavery? D. Case Study: Think of one person who needs to hear a message from this week’s lesson. Tell the class what you plan to do this week to share with them.

(Note: “Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.” MH p. 149)

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