Lesson 10: Investments

Review

Dominion: Watch & Protect

Four Domains: Flesh, Church, Home, Work

Gospel: Sin has enslaved you. God is pursuing you. Jesus came to redeem you. Salvation saves and restores you.

Identity: (Who Am I?) Servant, Son, Friend, Lover

Assignment: Identify, Prioritize, Embrace our God-given Assignment

be fully present, do what is in front of us, & embrace inadequacy

Authority: Passivity & It’s Subtle Assault

Kingdom Authority- Walking Under & In

Walking In Authority: Standing, Leading, & Protecting

The Right Weapons & Attitude

Character: Blamelessness, Self-Control, Courage

Doctrine: Deeply Rooted In God’s Word Letting Doctrine Shape Your Beliefs & Convictions.

Mission: Men Are Made To Be On Mission For The Kingdom.

Zeal: Like Christ; A head full of knowledge, a heart full of passion, and a life full of action.

Group Discussion

Question: What does it look like to invest in someone?

Proverbs 18:1 “One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound wisdom.”

“It all started by Jesus calling a few men to follow him. This revealed immediately the direction his evangelistic strategy would take. His concern was not with programs to teach the multitudes, but with men whom the multitudes would follow. Remarkable as it may seem, Jesus started to gather these men before he ever organized an evangelistic campaign or even preached a sermon in public. Men were to be his method of winning the world to God.” - Robert Coleman

Investment & Discipleship

Acts 9:26–30 “When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, since they did not believe he was a disciple. Barnabas, however, took him and brought him to the apostles and explained to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and that the Lord had talked to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus. Saul was coming and going with them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. He conversed and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. When the brothers found out, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.”

Question: How did Barnabas invest in Paul? Why was Barnabas’s investment in Paul so important?

2 Timothy 2:1–2 “You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Question: What was Paul’s method of discipleship? How do you see this in Paul’s life?

Disciples need to hear the truth declared & see the truth worked out in real life.

Question: Why are the kinds of investments Paul made in Timothy and Titus so important in the building of God’s men?

Generational Discipleship

Psalm 78:1–8 “My people, hear my instruction; listen to the words from my mouth. I will declare wise sayings; I will speak mysteries from the past— things we have heard and known and that our ancestors have passed down to us. We will not hide them from their children, but will tell a future generation the praiseworthy acts of the Lord, his might, and the wondrous works he has performed. He established a testimony in Jacob and set up a law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach to their children so that a future generation— children yet to be born—might know. They were to rise and tell their children so that they might put their confidence in God and not forget God’s works, but keep his commands. Then they would not be like their ancestors, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not loyal and whose spirit was not faithful to God.”

Titus 2:2 “Older men are to be self-controlled, worthy of respect, sensible, and sound in faith, love, and endurance.”

Titus 2:6–8 “In the same way, encourage the young men to be self-controlled in everything. Make yourself an example of good works with integrity and dignity in your teaching. Your message is to be sound beyond reproach, so that any opponent will be ashamed, because he doesn’t have anything bad to say about us.”

Question: Why do younger men need the investment of older men?

Inward Investment Alone

Judges 2:8–13 “Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of 110. They buried him in the territory of his inheritance, in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. That whole generation was also gathered to their ancestors. After them another generation rose up who did not know the Lord or the works he had done for Israel. The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. They worshiped the Baals and abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed other gods from the surrounding peoples and bowed down to them. They angered the Lord, for they abandoned him and worshiped Baal and the Ashtoreths.”

“Joshua’s generation, while having so much invested in them and enjoying so much of the fruit of that investment, failed to pass it on to the next generation.”

Question: What does the reading from Judges 2 teach us about the need to invest in others?

Question: Who has invested in you in this way? How could this type of intentional investing in others change your life or the church?

Question: Where do you feel like God is calling you to invest your time and energy for His kingdom? Who do you feel the Lord wants you to invest in? Start with those closest to you and move outward. Think about your domains.

Question: What keeps you from investing in others?