The Recall
Overview
Key Elements
- Key Passage - Review
- Scripture Memory - For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come. 1 Timothy 4:8
- Catechism - Q: What is impacted by our faith in Christ? A: Living.
Conclusion
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kind- ness, love. For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Love to God is … the principal part of true godliness; for there is no better way of serving God than to love him.
The Christian life is a call to obedience. Emphasized throughout this study, genuine obedience is an outgrowth of authentic faith in Christ. As believers in Christ, we inherit eternal salvation through Jesus’ redemptive work on the cross. As followers of Christ, we live out our newfound freedom in submission to God’s will. Christ is our gracious Savior and sovereign Lord. His ways are our marching orders. His will governs our life purpose. His commands call us to virtuous character. His life on earth is our ultimate example and pattern for living. His word becomes our most important standard for faith and practice. A life of full and complete submission to Christ is nothing less than full fledged freedom. Although sinners can never attain salvation through their conduct, believers can enjoy God’s blessings through their obedient life. The freedom achieved through the gospel is experienced as we conform our lifestyle to God’s ways. Established and mature in the faith, Christian disciples ground their beliefs and shape their conduct after the truth of God’s revealed word.
The selected biblical passages in this study offer a brief outline of godly Christian living. In Ruth 1:1-4:22, we gain a broad picture of faithful living in the midst of hardship and suffering. Basic to the Christian life, we learn from Daniel 3:1-30 what it means to put God first in all of life through the courageous devotion of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The catastrophic blunder in Exodus 32:1-35 cautions us about the dangers of coming to God on our own terms. It highlights the importance of pure worship and genuine devotion to God, unobstructed by idols and images. In Leviticus 8:1-10:20, the fateful defiance of Nadab and Abihu is contrasted with the godly reverence of Aaron and the priests, urging us to not treat God in common and profane ways. The record of Israel’s entrance into the promised land is recorded in Joshua 3:1-6:27. In this narrative, we learn about a life of rest, work, and community worship. We are called to honor God-appointed authorities through the biblical account of David, Saul, Abigail, and Nabal given in 1 Samuel 24:1-26:25.
Believers understand the value of human life and learn our responsibility to our fellow humans through the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4:1-26. In Judges 13:1-16:31, we study about sexual purity through the repeated failures of Israel’s judge, Samson. The narrative of Naboth’s vineyard in 1 Kings 21:1-29 is a helpful story to instruct us in the dangers of theft. It also calls us to generosity, respect, and charity to one another. Nehemiah’s faithfulness and courage in Nehemiah 6:1-7:4 helps us understand the power of our words and calls us to godly speech. Israel’s unfaithfulness in Numbers 11:1-35 unveils the power of misplaced desires such as jealousy, covetousness, and greed. It calls us to a life of contentment and gratitude. Finally, the record of Queen Esther in Esther 1:1-10:3 helps us think about spiritual growth as a developmental journey.
God’s word is not only a record of his redemptive acts throughout history, it is also a guide for godly living. During the life of this Christian pilgrimage, we are called to reform our conduct after God’s ways. As we grow in godliness, we become reflections of God’s character to those around us. Such a transformation is not only evidence of a genuine faith; it is also a powerful witness to the watching world. Amazingly, our joy in God is connected to our faith, conduct, and witness. As genuine faith inevitably yields the fruit of godly living, so godly conduct exhibits God’s glory to others. Our joy—our experience of the best possible life—both in this life and in the life to come, is rooted a faithful, godly, and professing devotion to Christ.
Book Overview: Surveying the Landscape
Disciples mature as they get grounded in the essentials of the faith. In this section, summarize the main idea of this study, retell one of the biblical narratives from your Storycraft, and review the core biblical passages explored in this study.
Key Idea
After such an intensive study, it is important to sum up our learning. Think through the broad theme(s) of this study. Summarize the main idea in your own words in a way that broadly addresses all the main teachings.
Story Retell
We deepen our knowledge of those things that we can articulate in our own words (and it’s even better if we can recite from memory). Pick one of the biblical narratives from this study. Review and update your Storycraft and prepare to share your revised version with your faith community. Consider sharing it from memory.
Narrative Review
God wants us to become fluent in speaking his word to others. Summarize the twelve biblical narratives that were studied over the past weeks. Identify the basic narrative content and overarching theme that each passage addressed. Use the space below to record your overview (i.e., chart, diagram, drawing, storyboard).
Faith Foundation: Exploring the Terrain
God gifts us with Christian community as a critical environment for ongoing faith formation. In this section, interact with the discussion questions and record significant insights you have gleaned over the course of this study.
Discussion Questions
God grows our faith in the context of loving and committed community relationships. Explore the following discussion questions with your faith community in order to review the impact of this study in various domains of life.
1. What new beliefs and convictions have you developed as a result of this study?
2. How has God exposed sinful areas of your heart? How has God stirred you to great joy?
3. What new behaviors and habits is God calling you to develop?
4. In what ways have you already seen God change your relationships?
Significant Insights
It is important to keep track of insights and lessons God has taught us as we trek in our faith journey. Identify significant quotes, key verses, biblical principles, or community comments that you encountered throughout the course of this study. Record these in the space below and share a few in your group discussion.
Learning Plan: Charting the Course
The life of discipleship is a journey of lifelong learning. Use the list of selected passages and recommended reading as a starting place for ongoing development in this key area of the Christian faith.
Selected Passages
God’s word is the ultimate guide for life and godliness. Glance at the passages below. Identify one or two passages that you will study (or memorize) as a means of further development in this area.
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| Session 12 |
Recommended Reading
God wants you to continue growing in this area of your Christian life. Survey the books below and prayerfully consider one book to read in order to continue your growth in this area.
| Session | Topic | Recommended Reading |
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| Session 12 |
Core Project: Synthesizing the Faith
A mature faith integrates God’s truth into the reality of life. Use this section to synthesize your learning over the course of the past weeks by producing a confessional summary statement and writing a journal reflection.
Code of Conduct
God calls us to believe the truth revealed in his word. As a community or as an individual, write a code of conduct that serves as a condensed, memorable summary of the core biblical teachings on Christian living (consider a line, phrase, or short sentence for each topic/session in this study).
The code of conduct should be short (summarizes the key biblical teachings in a condensed and accessible format), memorable (articulates biblical principles in a way that is easily memorizable), usable (expresses the summary statement that can be affirmed and confessed together as a church community), accurate (makes correct, biblical affirmations), and comprehensive (addresses all major domains of this area of Christian teaching).
Journal Reflection
It is important to periodically reflect on how God is growing us in godliness. Write a reflection considering the ways in which your life has been changed as a result of this study.
Faith Practice: Following the Way
Following Jesus is a lifelong venture of continuous progress. In this final section, evaluate your growth in the outlined objectives, identify practical next steps, and commit fellow community members to God in a time of focused prayer.
Growth Evaluation
Mature disciples practice regular self-examination in which they keep track of their progress in the faith. Take time to reflect on your growth in the specific objectives of this study. Use the following guide to assess how well you developed in each area.
| Objective | Exemplary | Mature | Developing | Emerging | Unsound |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conviction: establish a mature Christian ____ | deep understanding of ____ | accurate understanding of ____, grounded in core biblical teaching as a countercultural worldview | growing but partial familiarity with ____, learning biblical foundations and perceiving cultural errors | general awareness of ____, willing to engage Bible as source of truth and realizing faults in wider culture | deficient views of ____, hesitant to trust biblical teaching and broad conformity to cultural norms |
| Commitment: cultivate a deepening commitment to ____ | exemplary devotion to ____ | clear and compelling commitment to ____, embracing ____ | eager pursuit of mature Christian ____, upholding the central importance of ____ | initial interest and attraction to Christian ____, open to being trained and instructed in biblical teaching | open resistance and opposition to ____, being reluctant and averse to ____ |
| Conduct: demonstrate ____ | sound and rich command of ____ | convincing maturity in ____, demonstrating biblical orientation and faith foundations in ____ | noticeable progress in ____, making ____ | early movement to ____, exerting effort and energy to ____ | disordered and dysfunctional ____, being ignorant of and inattentive to truth |
| Community: undertake ____ in family, church, and society | lasting contribution in ____ | active engagement in all ____, making personal investment ____ | expanding participation in ____, developing a sense of ____ | beginning involvement ____, seeking ____ | misplaced focus on one’s role ____, displaying ____ |
| Character: embody ____ | obvious appropriation of ____ | clear demonstration of core virtues that ____, showing the fruit of Christian character | promising signs of being reformed ____, practicing repentance ____ | first indications that one is reorienting life after biblical ____, possessing a desire to pursue ____ | obvious lack of Christian character, life gripped by destructive ____ |
Next Steps
God calls us to follow him in all spheres of life: individual, family, church, and world. Identify concrete decisions and measurable actions you can take to apply these principles in each life sphere. Record these goals below.
Individual
Family
Church
World
Community Prayer
We can only hope to grow in our faith by God’s divine help. In the context of your faith community, celebrate areas of growth and share upcoming goals. Then, spend time praying for each other as a community.