Welcome to Westside!
- Please fill out an In-touch card (paper or app)
- Guests—pick up your free gift at Guest Central!
- Stay for class, join a Life Group, or volunteer in a ministry.
Note: Tap here to view today’s sermon slides.
Recap: Living With Purpose
Our Mission: Loving People to Jesus (based Matthew 28:18-20).
Discipleship: How to become more like Jesus in 4 key areas:
- Connect in Community—Developing Christ-centered relationships
- Grow with God—Deepening your knowledge, developing a Christ-like character.
- Serve the City—Putting your talents and resources to work
- Share the Savior—Speaking fearlessly and giving generously to spread the Gospel
Today’s Main Idea: Grow With God.
God loves you just the way you are… but he doesn’t want you to stay that way.
1. God is in the Restoration Business… and He’s Starting with your Soul.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.” — Matthew 23:25-26
“22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” –Ephesians 4:22-24 (NIV)
“The revolution of Jesus is in the first place and continuously a revolution of the human heart or spirit…His is a revolution of character, which proceeds by changing people from the inside through ongoing personal relationship to God in Christ and to one another.” - Dallas Willard, Renovation of the Heart
The Transformation of Peter—From Fisherman to Fisher of Men. Peter’s story demonstrates the personal and spiritual growth that is possible through a lifetime of
“2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” –2 Peter 1:2-4 (NIV)
What Do These Verses Mean For Us?
1. Our knowledge of God unleashes the
2. The
Summary: The knowledge, power, and promises of God enable you to develop the
2. God Expects us to Make Spiritual Growth a Priority.
“5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.” –2 Peter 1:5-9 (NIV)
God loves you just the way you are… but he wants you to
Christians in Action: Grow with God
- Know—Study the Word, get to know Jesus through your own personal time with God.
- Show—Ask God and your close Christian friends to show you where you should focus.
- Grow—Commit to growing more like Jesus in your actions and attitudes.
Response
Tap here to Respond to today’s message
Let us know if you’d like to commit your life to Jesus, respond in baptism, or request prayers using the in touch card in our app.
Questions? Contact Bryan: (609) 356-3147 or bfojtasek@westsidelife.org.
Life Group / Reflection Questions
- Welcome everyone and invite everyone to share about how their week has been—highlights, lowlights, etc.
- In today’s message, the main point was that God loves us just the way we are… but he doesn’t want us to stay that way. What does that idea mean to you?
- Spiritual growth means developing the actions and attitudes of Jesus. In general terms, do you think we live in a culture that gives greater value to people’s actions or their attitudes (character)?
- When Jesus admonished the Pharisees to clean the inside of the cup first (see Matthew 23:25-26), what point was he making for all of his future followers?
- Have someone (or a few people) read Philippians 2:3-11. What are some of the attitudes or character traits Jesus had that God wants us to develop in our own lives?
- Have someone read Hebrews 5:11-6:3. How does this passage connect with the idea of personal and spiritual growth?
- Based on what you know about the lives of Peter and Paul, how do their stories show us the importance of ongoing spiritual growth? For example, how did their actions, attitudes, and priorities change over time because of their relationship with Jesus?
- Today’s faith challenges were Know, Show, and Grow. As a refresher, what did these words mean in the context of today’s message?
- A rubber band is flimsy and useless unless it stretches beyond its current state. What is the one area (action or attitude) where you feel God calling you to make a stretch and make a change in your life?
- Close your time praying for each other, especially the areas of growth that God is calling you to.