LGC - Rooted & Fruitful Part 5

Rooted & Fruitful (Part 5)

Speaker: Serene Lim

INTRODUCTION

In Ephesians 1:1-14, Paul had written to the saints to remind them that they have not only been forgiven and redeemed but also have been chosen by God to be adopted as His sons and daughters. And upon adoption, they were sealed with the Holy Spirit, identifying them as belonging to Christ.

This week, we look more closely at verses 15-19, where Paul prayed for the saints to have the spirit of wisdom and revelation to know more of God and His gifts. May we pray for the same spirit as our discussion proceeds below.

DISCUSSION

Who is God to you?

a. How did you come to this understanding?

b. How does it colour your opinion of the world and the people around you?

c. How might you know if your understanding of God is wrong?
Read Ephesians 1:15-23. Paying attention to verses 18-19, what three things did Paul pray for the saints to know?

With regard to H___________ and Jesus’s Second Coming:

a. The ultimate hope for Christians is to be with our Lord and to spend eternity with Him, which should lead us to have a different view of death (see 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Do we fear death? How do we know if we do or do not?

b. Some of us, though, see the Second Coming as a way to escape the problems of the world. See Romans 14:10-13. Do we recognise that we will need to “give an account of ourselves to God”? How then should we hope?

With regard to seeing ourselves as God’s I___________:

c. Recall who we have become through Christ in Ephesians 1:3-14. Do you still struggle to see yourself as God sees you? How can we help each other towards seeing correctly?

With regard to the P___________ of God extended to us:

d. See Ephesians 3:16-21. What is the power granted to us for?

e. How can we ensure that we are relying on His power and not our own?

Given what has been discussed above, which of the three things do you need the most today? And why?

WHAT WILL YOU DO

Reflecting on what we have read in Ephesians thus far through the series, what might you be committed to praying for yourself and for the community around you?

Will we adopt the attitude that Paul has for the church, desiring that our brothers and sisters grow into knowing God more, and in so doing, take up our assigned roles in His unstoppable kingdom?

MEMORY VERSE

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” – 1 Peter 2:9-10 (ESV)