SELF-DISCOVERYgetting your own revelation and taking

responsibility for seeing it come to pass

3 P’s 1. PLAN what when and how you are going to do it

2. PRACTICE start right away to practice and then continue

practicing

3. PRAY and ask God to do in you what the practice represents

faith for.

3 QUESTIONS1. WHAT has God made known?

2. WHAT IF this was fully

happening?

3. TO DO what do I need to do about

it?

READ & READ

TELL’n’CHECK,

TELL’n’CHECK

MARK 2:18-22

Last week’s revelation

18 Now the disciples of John and the Pharisees used to observe days of fasting. So some people came to Jesus and asked, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast but your disciples do not fast?” 19 Jesus said to them, “Are the wedding guests able to fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as the bridegroom is with them they are not able to fast. 20 But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them and then they will fast.” 21

No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does the patch will tear away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear will be made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins because the new wine will burst the skins and the wine will be spilt and the skins destroyed. New wine is to be put into new wine skins.”

Mark 2 What God has said

• Religious activities are really relationship activities not stand alone religious rituals that earn some leverage with God.

• Fasting or not fasting has to do with the experience of the presence of Jesus

• We need to be careful lest we will only experience debased Old Testament practices rather than the life that flows from the gospel.

• New covenant experience needs new covenant structures

• We need to be able to discern between

• DEBASED OLD familiar and comfortable but not new

• REBADGED OLD posing as new but still based on old principles

• GENUINE NEW creating and operating out of relationship with Jesus

3 P’s

1. PLAN when and how you are going to do it

2. PRACTICE doing whatever it is that qualifies as

a response to what God has said.

3. PRAY and ask God to do in you what the

practice represents faith for.

PRACTICE

• There’s no substitute for it.

• It is the initial expression of faith.

• Seems boring and repetitious at first.

• Will enable you to get from no experience of God to experience of God.

• Will enable you to gain confidence in what God can do through you

HOW LONG IS IT SINCE GOD DID SOMETHING NEW

THROUGH YOU?

HEBREWS 5

you need someone to teach you again / the

basic principles of the oracles of God. / You

need milk, / not solid food, / 13 for everyone

who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of

righteousness, / since he is a child. / 14 But

solid food is for the mature, / for those who

have their powers of discernment trained by

constant practice / to distinguish good from

evil. /

11 About this / we have much

to say, / and it is hard to

explain, /since you have

become dull of hearing. / 12

For though by this time you

ought to be teachers, /

A

summary

of what God wants us to know

through Hebrews 5:11-14

1. We want to say much more about the

High Priesthood of Jesus and the

salvation he has accomplished for us

2. We can’t talk to you about it because

you are still students who just listen

rather than implementers who can train

others.

3. The reason for that is because you have

become slack about implementing the

revelation you have already received

though practice.

4. People who hear but don’t practice are like children – they never get beyond the listening stage and need to continually be being instructed in basics.

5. People remain spiritually immature because they never put into practice the revelation they have received they just keep on listening.

6. There is only one thing that separates childish from mature: that is PRACTICE.

7. Mature people experience the difference between what God wants and ANYTHING ELSE simply because they PRACTICE.

MARK 2:18-22

18 Now the disciples of John and the Pharisees used to observe days of fasting. So some people came to Jesus and asked, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast but your disciples do not fast?” 19 Jesus said to them, “Are the wedding guests able to fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as the bridegroom is with them they are not able to fast. 20 But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them and then they will fast.” 21

No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does the patch will tear away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear will be made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins because the new wine will burst the skins and the wine will be spilt and the skins destroyed. New wine is to be put into new wine skins.”

Mark 2 What God has said

• Religious activities are really relationship activities not stand alone religious rituals that earn some leverage with God.

• Fasting or not fasting has to do with the experience of the presence of Jesus

• We need to be careful lest we will only experience debased Old Testament practices rather than the life that flows from the gospel.

• New covenant experience needs new covenant structures

• We need to be able to discern between

• DEBASED OLD familiar and comfortable but not new

• REBADGED OLD posing as new but still based on old principles

• GENUINE NEW creating and operating out of relationship with Jesus

HOW and WHAT SHOULD I PRACTICE?

• Valuing and recognizing his PRESENCE and fasting

when I lose the experience of his presence.

• Building spiritual activities around relationship with

Jesus e.g. Bible study and prayer.

• If I find that my lifestyle does not reflect the gospel I

will make changes and practice what I am not doing

until it becomes a valued part of my lifestyle.

• Seeking transformation where I have been relying

on simply trying to do the right thing.

3 P’s

1. PLAN when and how you are going to do it

2. PRACTICE doing whatever it is that qualifies as

a response to what God has said.

3. PRAY and ask God to do in you what the

practice represents faith for.

PRACTICE

• There’s no substitute for it.

• It is the initial expression of faith.

• Seems boring and repetitious at first.

• Will enable you to get from no experience of God to experience of God.

• Will enable you to gain confidence in what God can do through you

HOW LONG IS IT SINCE GOD DID SOMETHING NEW

THROUGH YOU?

the

GOSPEL COVENANTmust have a

GOSPEL LIFESTYLE