The course benefits from materials developed by World Harvest Mission, PA, USA and credit is here given to them.  

How this study is organized

Introduction

Living in Grace contains ten lessons that are grouped around three themes.

What is the gospel?

Lesson 1: The Gospel Grid

If the gospel is constantly “bearing fruit and growing” (Col. 1:6), then everything has to do with the gospel—God, humanity, salvation, worship, relationships, shopping, recreation, work, personality… everything! The objective in this lesson is to establish a framework for talking about the gospel. This framework will get worked out in greater detail over the next two sessions.

Lesson 2: Pretending and Performing

Each of us tends to “shrink the cross,” which is to say that something is lacking in our understanding, appreciation, or application of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sin. This manifests itself in two main ways: pretending and performing. Pretending minimizes sin by making ourselves out to be something we are not. Performing minimizes God’s holiness by reducing his   standard to something we can meet, thereby meriting his favor. Both are rooted in an inadequate view of God’s holiness and our identity.

Lesson 3: Believing the Gospel

We have been focusing on the ways we minimize the gospel—the negative. This lesson turns our attention to the positive: What remedies has God given in the gospel to keep us from shrinking the cross and depending on our own effort?

What does the gospel do in us?

Lesson 4: Law and Gospel

Continuing to think about how the gospel interacts with our lives, but we now turn to consider the gospel’s relationship to the law. What is the law? Does God expect me to obey it? What is the purpose of the law? How does the law help me to believe the gospel? How does the gospel help me to obey the law?

Lesson 5: Repentance

This lesson deals with repentance. In our culture, this usually sounds like a bad thing, but repentance is the norm for gospel-centered living. Becoming more aware of God’s holiness   and our sinfulness leads us to repent and believe the gospel of Jesus. Biblical repentance frees us from our own devices and makes a way for the power of the gospel to bear fruit in our   lives.

Lesson 6: Heart Idolatry

The Christian walk consists of two repeated steps: repentance and faith. Turning our attention to the topic of faith, we focus on how we grow through believing the gospel. This lesson’s  goal is to take “believing the gospel” out of the abstract and make it concrete.

How does the gospel work through us?

Lesson 7: Mission

The gospel is simultaneously at work in us and through us. Inwardly, our desires and motives are being changed as we repent and believe the gospel. As we experience Christ’s love in this way, we are compelled to engage those around us with the same kind of redemptive love.

God’s grace brings renewal everywhere, in us and through us.

Lesson 8: Forgiveness

The gospel that works in us always works through us. It shows its power in our relationships and actions. One key way this happens is when we forgive others biblically.

Lesson 9: Conflict

Conflict is something we all experience (regularly), but often handle in very fleshly ways. The gospel gives us a pattern and a means to healthy conflict resolution.

Lesson 10: Worship

Ultimately and always grace must focus on God and focusing on God implies worship.  Our discussion of living in grace isn’t complete until we explore the place of grace in worship.

What to expect

Expect to be challenged… most of us have reduced the gospel to something much less than it is. As you work through each lesson, expect your thinking about the gospel to be challenged and expanded.

Expect the Holy Spirit … to be the one ultimately responsible for the growth of your group, and for the change in each person’s life—including your own. Relax and trust him.

Expect your agenda to include … heart-searching, reflection, and times of prayer.

Expect struggle…and don’t be surprised to find yourself wading through a mixture of enthusiasm, hope, and honesty, that comes as your indifference, anxiety, skepticism, guilt, and covering up is weeded out by the Holy Spirit.

Expect a teacher…who desires to serve you, but who also needs Jesus as much as you do. No leader should be put on a pedestal, so expect that your teacher will have the freedom to share openly about his own weaknesses, struggles, and sins. Pray for him.