D ay !!!

Go o d

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 A seed germinates, & the
appearance of those two leaves
makes the gardener happy.
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Birth is a Moment of Joy.
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Baby’s first scream announces
to the world that here is a
new life to reckon with.
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 The mother forgets all her
pain & joins the rest of the
family in joy & celebration.
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A nation is born to be free, & an
entire people throng the streets
& fill the city squares, waving
symbols of their new found joy.
 BUT IMAGINE:
Those two leaves do not turn into
four but rather remain the same
or vanish away. Prepared by CLCadao
A year later the little baby neither
smiles nor takes a first step but
remains frozen in the simplicity of
its entrance to the world.
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 The newly freed nation for a
short while turns within, into
a prison house of fear, torture
& captivity.
 REMEMBER:
To grow is an inseparable
equation of life – both physical
& spiritual. Prepared by CLCadao
 In as much as physical growth
demands proper nourishment,
environment, nurture, exercise,

education, training, & purpose-

filled life, the same is true in
spiritual. Prepared by CLCadao
 How does life begin in Christian
life?
Life Begins With Death:
1. Death of Christ
2. Death to self.
3. As a result, we walk in newness
of life. Prepared by CLCadao
 1. Death of Christ
- First, the death of
Christ on the cross makes possible
our new life.
What Kind of Life?

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a. Life free from
the dominion
of Satan. (Col.
1: 13,14)

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He has delivered us from the
dominion of darkness and
transferred us to the
kingdom of his beloved Son,
in whom we have
redemption, the forgiveness
of sins. (Colossians 1: 13, 14)

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b. Life free from
condemnation of sin.
(Rom. 8: 1)

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“There is therefore now
no condemnation for
those who are in Christ
Jesus. ”
Romans 8: 1

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c. Life free from
death the penalty
of sin. (Rom 6: 23)

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 “For the wages of sin is
death, but the free gift of
God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord..”
Romans 6: 23

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d. And it brings
reconciliation with God
& humans.

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 “He disarmed the
principalities and
powers and made a
public example of
them, triumphing
over them in him.”
Colossians 2: 15
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The cross of Christ
has become an
instrument of
God’s victory over
evil.

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 2. DEATH TO
SELF
A second
important aspect
of Christian
newness and
growth is the
death to the old Prepared by CLCadao
“I have been crucified with Christ;
it is no longer I who live, but
Christ who lives in me; and the
life I now live in the flesh I live by
faith in the Son of God, who loved
me and gave himself for me.”
Galatians 2:20

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 “Therefore, if any one is in
Christ, he is a new creation;[a]
the old has passed away, behold,
the new has come. All this is
from God, who through Christ
reconciled us to himself and
gave us the ministry of
reconciliation.”
II Corinthians 5: 17
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 “Christian life, thus,
does not begin wit birth. It
begins with death. Until
self-dies, until self is
crucified, there is no
beginning at all.”
SDA Believe, p.154
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 EXAMPLES:
a. Simon the waver becomes Peter
the courageous.
b. Saul the persecutor
becomes Paul the proclaimer.
c. Thomas the doubter becomes the
missionary of the frontier.
d. John the hot tempered becomes
the apostles of Love.
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• Cowardice gives place to
courage.
• Unbelief gives way to a torch
of faith. Jealousy is swallowed
up by love.
• Self-interest vanishes into
brotherly concern.
• Sin has no room in the heart.
SDA Believe, p. 154
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III. LIVING A NEW
LIFE
A third aspect of
growing in Christ is
living the new life.

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“Growing in Christ, therefore
is a growth in maturity so that
day by day we reflect the will
of Christ & walk the way of
Christ.”
SDA believe, p.155

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Breakout Room Discussion Questions
1. What are the hallmarks (a distinguishing characteristic, trait, or feature) of a growing Christians?

2. Explain the role of the Holy Spirit

in Christian spiritual growth.
3. If someone else was objectively
examining your life, where would
they see the most growth over the
last year or two? (Would they notice
growth in godliness?) Explain
“HALLMARKS OF MATURE
LIFE & THE SIGNS OF
CONSTANT GROWTH”

1. A Life of Spirit.

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“Unless one is born of water and
spirit, he cannot enter the
kingdom of God.” Without the
regenerating power of the Holy
Spirit, Christian life cannot even
begin.

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It is through the spirit that Christ abides
in us.
I Jn. 3: 24
With the indwelling of the Spirit comes a
new life – new in that it rejects the old
ways of thought, action & relationship
that were against God’s will; new also in
that it makes of us a new creation,
reconciled & redeemed, freed from sin in
order to grow in righteousness & to
reflect the image of Jesus from glory to
glory.
Rom. 8: 1- 16, II Cor. 3: 17, 18
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 “When the spirit of Jesus takes
possession of the heart, it
transforms the life. Sinful thought
are put away, evil deeds are
renounced; love, humility, & peace
take the place of anger, envy &
stripe.”
SDA believe, p. 156
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 II. A life of love & unity
Christian life is a life of unity, a life
reconciled to God, on the one hand, &
reconciled to one’s fellow human beings, on
the other. Reconciliation is the healing of
the breach in relationships, & the primary
cause of this breach relationship is sin.
 III. A LIFE OF STUDY
 Food is a basic essential for
growth.
 The function of any living
organism requires adequate &
constant nutrition.
 So, it is in spiritual growth.

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“Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of
God”.
Matt. 4: 10

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 IV. A life of prayer
 If God’s word is the bread that
nourishes our soul, prayer is the
breath that keeps our soul alive.
 Prayer is speaking with God,
listening to His voice, kneeling
in surrender, & rising up in the
full empowerment of God’s
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 V. A LIFE OF FRUIT
BEARING
If you keep my
commandments, you will
abide in my love, just as I
have kept my Father’s
commandments and abide in
his love.
(John 15: 10)
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Thus you will know
them by their
fruits.
Mateo 7: 20

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 VI. A LIFE OF
SPIRITUAL
WARFARE.
EPHESIANS 6: 10 – 18

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 Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his

10 

mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of

God, so that you can take your stand
against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our
struggle is not against flesh and blood, but
against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the powers of this dark
world and against the spiritual forces of
evil in the heavenly realms.
 Ephesians 6:10-18

Therefore put on the full armor of

13 

God, so that when the day of evil comes,

you may be able to stand your ground,
and after you have done everything, to
stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of
truth buckled around your waist, with the
breastplate of righteousness in
place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the
readiness that comes from the gospel of
peace.
Ephesians 6:10-18
16 
In addition to all this, take up the shield
of faith, with which you can extinguish all
the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take
the helmet of salvation and the sword of
the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 
And pray in the Spirit on all
occasions with all kinds of prayers and
requests. With this in mind, be alert and
always keep on praying for all the Lord’s
people.
 VII. A LIFE OF WORSHIP,
WITNESS & HOPE.
Let us hold fast the confession of
our hope without wavering, for
he who promised is faithful; and
let us consider how to stir up
one another to love and good
works,
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 VII. A LIFE OF WORSHIP,
WITNESS & HOPE.
..not neglecting to meet together,
as is the habit of some, but
encouraging one another, and all
the more as you see the Day
drawing near..
Hebrews 10: 23-25
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