Key Bible Passage(s):

Is.61:10; Phil.3:7-9

This is a shorter teaching session designed to be used in the context of a Bring and Share meal. As such there are only two tiers to work from.

Tier 1:

The default spirituality of fallen humanity is ‘legalism’, the assumption that we have to be good enough, or sincere enough, or religious enough if we are to be able to be in relationship with God. This leads to a perennial insecurity that is pretty miserable, and that leaves us struggling with any conviction of sin, challenge or sense that we might not be doing well enough. Its hardly an appropriate way to think about the relationship between a Father and His children. Paul contrasts this ‘performance-based-spirituality’ with the Gospel of grace. The two ways of thinking have no common ground!

Tier 2:

The Gospel of Christ depends on His righteousness being given to us a gift. This can be quite tricky idea to get our heads around, and I give a couple of ways of thinking about it in the example script that might help people visualize what is going on. Our own growth in Christlikeness happens within the context of, and on the basis of, our receiving Christ’s righteousness. That is what gives Christian discipleship such a joyous sense of liberty!

To be justified means more than to be declared "not guilty." It actually means to be declared righteous before God. It means God has imputed or charged the guilt of our sin to His Son, Jesus Christ, and has imputed or credited Christ's righteousness to us.

Jerry Bridges

Group Discussion

Do you feel that this takes the urgency out of our pursuit of righteousness?

Has this term strengthened your sense of the importance of distinctive Christian living?

Read Phil.3:7-9 

What is Paul’s motivation for pursuing Christlikeness?

What is the ‘everything’ Paul counts as loss in v.7-8?  What about his own righteousness that comes from the Law?

Does Paul consider his pre-Christian life to have been ‘good’?  Can people do anything ‘good’ before they become Christians? 

What is it about becoming a Christian that means we can be and do things God would see as ‘good’?

Homework

As this is the last session of the term, there is no homework.