The End of the Age:

Rev.11:15 At the last trumpet, “...the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ...”

Rev.18:4 “...come out of her my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues...”

Rev.21:8 “...the cowardly and unbelieving ... their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death..."

Rev.22:14 “...Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life...”

Kingdom of this world: Debtor, slave. Ownership. Taker. Ends in being consumed.

Kingdom of our Lord: Heir, ambassador. Stewardship. Giver. End result is being blessed.

Ask yourself these questions:

Why am I alive?

For whom do I live?

JAN.1 - YIELD

Phil.1:20 “...with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death...”

Do we have an unstoppable determination for His holiness?

What does it mean to magnify Christ in your body?

What does it mean to yield to Christ the area of your life He is asking you to yield?

What keeps us from deciding for Jesus? How do we use others as excuses to not yield to the call of God? Does God know what our obedience will cost us and others?

Describe the tension between vertical (God) and horizontal (people) relationships.

Does God need to use crisis or will we respond to nudges?

When is a crisis a good thing? [crisis forces decisions]

Are we determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him?

JAN.2 - GO, NO KNOW

Heb.11:8 “...By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going...”

How safe is your walk with God? How much mystery is there?

“God is looking for people through whom He can do the impossible. What a pity that we plan only the things we can do by ourselves.” A.W.Tozer

Can we lay down the things that normally demand our focus to move into the unknown?

Are we more concerned with what He is doing or with who He is?

Is every day supposed to be a going out?

Abraham didn’t leave Ur every day, didn’t take a son to be sacrificed every day.

We should be willing every day.

Danger of repetition [ruts].

What does it mean to “go out of convictions, out of creeds, out of experiences, until there is nothing between yourself and God

Like an elephant, we become content to stand tethered, not even considering freedom an option.

Like the world, we define freedom from our flesh - what we want, what we can get, and what we can do, rather than from our potential - where God can take us, and what life awaits us if we’ll walk with him

When people want what people want, they never can be free

Not free from the flesh tether, not free to be what God intended.

JAN.3 - DARKNESS

Psalm 97:2 “...Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne...”

What is casual religion? Excessive informality?

What difference does it make when Bible words are illuminated by the Spirit in real life situations.

Explain Chambers’ claim that those not born of the Spirit of God consider Jesus’ teachings simple, but those baptized in the Holy Ghost find clouds and darkness?

Commonplace religious shoes don’t bring us into God’s presence.

What is the difference between “the words I speak to you are Spirit and life” and “the words I have spoken”? [leash on a tether vs.. walking in the cool of the day]

JAN 4 - WAIT

John 13:37 “...Peter said to Him, "Lord, why can I not follow You right now? I will lay down my life for You..."

What is the value of waiting vs busyness [getting to know oneself, and God].

What is the danger of acting impulsively? What is acting impulsively? [following but on our terms. Little, not big, picture]

Have you ever done something impulsively, feeling sure it’s God’s will, then had to pick up the pieces for a long time after that?

Describe the difference between natural devotion and discipleship.

Are we willing to lay down our lives for Jesus? [remember that laying down our business frees us to be about His]

Never run before God’s guidance. When in doubt, don’t. Good advice?

What do you think about the statement - when it is a question of the providential will of God - wait for God to move [Abraham and Ismael]

JAN 5 - FOLLOW

John 13:36 “...Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, where are You going?" Jesus answered, "Where I go, you cannot follow Me now; but you will follow later..."

Explain the difference between external and internal following. [when it gets difficult, external followers leave. Fascination will wane and following stops.]

What role does the Holy Spirit have in following? Why must this be an invasion?

Discuss Peter’s following. [left nets, denied Christ, reached the end of self, filled]

Follow but Wait? Sometimes we want desperately to be able to follow Jesus NOW, but because we are trying to follow in our own strength, we are unable. We do things incorrectly and we make a mess of things.

JAN.6 - WORSHIP

Gen.12:8 “...Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord...”

Bethel - symbol of communion with God. Ai - symbol of the world.

Abraham pitched his tent between the two

What do you think about this? Is this straddling the fence?

What happens if we retreat from the world into God? [Blessing of worship but no service]

What happens if we plunge into the world? [Work without significance]

Which side do you err on? Where do you pitch your tent?

How can a person insure that worship, waiting, and work exist together, not as separate entities? [integrated life]

JAN.7 - INTIMACY

John 14:9 “...Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?...”

What attracts you to Jesus?

What is the difference between knowing about Him and knowing Him?

What is intimacy? [abiding in thought, heart, and spirit]

Is receiving His blessings intimacy?

Is knowing His Word intimacy?

What are hindrances to intimacy? [Lack of time, Personal agendas]

How are intimacy with Jesus and fruit bearing related? [abiding, vine/branches, life]

The saint who is intimate with Jesus will never leave impressions of himself. What does this mean?

The Lord gives a strong calm sanity to those who are intimate with Him. Do you know people like that? Are you like that?

How does intimacy with Jesus provide stability, humility, and compassion?