The S.O.S. Lesson Materials
 Discipleship Series

(Alternative to leaflet series `Now That I Am A Christian')

LESSON 1 - NOW THAT YOU HAVE RECEIVED CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOR!
Receiving Jesus Christ as your personal Savior is the greatest and wisest decision you have ever made. You'll realize this as you see the result of that decision.

  1. Let us review the GOSPEL:
    1. The Gospel is God's Power to save -------------------- ROM 1:16
    2. We are SINNERS, we can't save ourselves -------------- ROM 3:23
    3. The penalty for sin is DEATH ------------------------- ROM 6:23
    4. But God loves us, gave His SON TO DIE for us --------- ROM 5:8
    5. So NOW, salvation is a FREE gift --------------------- ROM 3:23
  2. What you did to receive this gift of salvation:
    1. REPENTED of all your sinfulness ---------------------- LUK 3:3
    2. CONFESSED your sins to God --------------------------- 1JO 1:9
    3. BELIEVED in the Lord Jesus Christ -------------------- ACT 16:31
    4. RECEIVED Jesus into your Life ------------------------ JOH 1:12
  3. What happened to you:
    1. Jesus has become your Savior ------------------------- 1TI 1:15-17
    2. He has TAKEN AWAY all your sins ---------------------- HEB 10:17
    3. You are now SAVED! ----------------------------------- EPH 2:8-9
    4. You have become a CHILD of God ----------------------- ROM 8:15,16
    5. You are a BRAND NEW CREATION ------------------------- 2CO 5:17
    6. Jesus begins to show you His Kingdom! ---------------- JOH 3:3
    7. You are born-again, you have new life in Christ. ----- EPH 2:1-5.
  4. Where you belong now:
    1. Not anymore in Satan's kingdom of darkness ----------- 1PE 2:9
    2. Not anymore of the world, but to God ----------------- JOH 15:18-21
    3. Therefore, the Devil is never your friend ------------ 1PE 5:8
    4. Stay in submission to God to resist the Devil -------- JAM 4:7
    5. Jesus in you is greater than the devil --------------- 1JO 4:4
    6. Believers are prepared for trials & tribulations ----- ACT 14:22

CONCLUSION: Because of all these that happened to you, don't be surprised if immediately, you will meet persecution and opposition. The devil is alerted that you don't anymore belong to his kingdom. But be of good courage, God is triumphant in your life!

PRAYER: Pray for God's protection and love over the new believer. Then ask him to join you in thanking God for the free gift of salvation, for forgiveness of sin, and for the new life.

LESSON 2 - BEING SURE
How can you as a new believer be sure you are really saved?

  1. GOD CANNOT LIE! ROM 3:4 Let God be true, and every man a liar. One of Satan's strategies to weaken you in your new life is to make you DOUBT your experience (MAT 13:18-23).
  2. GOD COMMANDS YOU TO MAKE YOUR SALVATION SURE. Make your calling and election sure (2PE 1:3-11). Believe God's testimony rather than the devil's or people's words that can cause you to doubt. Doubting God's testimony is accusing God of lying (1JO 5:9-12). God cannot lie!
  3. THREE SOURCES OF ASSURANCE
    1. God's Word is true, God does not lie -------------------------- TIT 1:2 HEB 6:18
    2. You have Christ, He is in your life Now ----------------------- JOH 3:36; 5:24
    3. The witness of God's Spirit in you ---------------------------- ROM 8:9, 16
  4. YOU NEED THE RIGHT FOUNDATION - Make the Word of God the foundation of your faith. Don't trust in feelings, nor be carried by man's words, but be established in the facts of God's Words.
    1. The Bible was Written to be Basis of Beliefs ------------------ JOH 20:31
      1. To communicate to us the fact of eternal life! ---------- 1JO 5:13
      2. To make you wise about salvation ------------------------ 2TI 3:15
    2. The Bible was Written to Test Belief & Practice --------------- MAT 22:29
      1. Written to scrutinize doctrines of preachers ------------ ACT 17:11
      2. Written to teach, rebuke, correct ----------------------- 2TI 3:16-17
      3. Written to supersede man-made traditions ---------------- MAR 7:79

CONCLUSION: We should never risk our eternal destiny in the counsel of man or religion, but have assurance from God and His Word.

PRAYER: Exalt God's faithfulness in His promise. Lead the person to verbalize his confidence in God and in his current experience of God's salvation .

LESSON 3 - YOU ARE READY TO GROW!
You are starting a new life. You are establishing new patterns and behavior. You will need help. I will help you do so through the subsequent lessons we will have.

When a baby is born in the natural, it will die unless its parents take care of it. This is also true about your new spiritual life. If you feed it, it will grow; if you neglect it, it will die. What God has already started something in your life, He wants to complete! PHI 1:6. YOU NEED TO GROW: it is the evidence of LIFE!

  1. Grow in your new life, like a new-born Baby - 1PE 2:2-3
  2. God's purpose for you: To become like Christ - ROM 8:28-29
    1. Christ is our pattern. Every believer should grow towards that goal. GAL 4:19
    2. It is good to have the attitude of fixing your eyes on Jesus, not on others. HEB 12:2
    3. We will eventually reach the full measure of Christ, we will no longer be children. EPH 4:13-15.
  3. God is doing this good work of maturing you. PHI 1:6.
  4. Be conscious of God's work in your life daily,TH 5:23.
  5. God has provided everything we need for growth, 2PE 1:3-5

LESSON 4 - PROVISIONS FOR GROWTH

  1. THE WORD OF GOD - SPIRITUAL FOOD
    1. Growth requires food.
    2. The Bible is our spiritual food for spiritual growth - MAT 4:4
    3. It is both milk for the new born & solid food for the mature 1PE 2:2; HEB 5:12-14
    4. Growth is in direct proportion to your increasing knowledge of God's Word, just as physical growth is in proportion to your intake of food COL 3:16; ACT 2:42
    5. Growth in God's Word depends on your listening heart and obedient responses MAT 13:19-22
    6. RESULTANT COMMITMENTS TO MAKE:
      1. As a believer you must be a disciple (learner) by continuing in the His Teachings, JOH 8:3-36
      2. As a learner, you must be willing to learn under a teacher in Scriptures, ACT 8:27-35.
      3. You also need to study the Bible on your own, 2TI 2:15. Start with the Book of Mark & the Book of Romans.
  2. COMMUNION WITH GOD (PRAYER)
    If the Bible is our spiritual food, prayer can be likened to our breathing. Breathing has 2 parts: breathing in and out - so is prayer a 2-way process: we talk to God, God talks to us.
    1. Christ's teaching on prayer - LUK 11:1-4 IMPORTANT: God is our Father, talk to Him freely!
    2. Pray at all times - 1TH 5:17
    3. Make requests known to God - PHI 4:6,7.
    4. Obedience and answer to prayer - Prayer is not only asking God to hear us, but being willing hear God and obey Him as well. The people that listen to God will have a God who listens to their prayers. (Read: PRO 1:24-31; ZEC 7:11-13.)
    3. CLOSING: Let us pray now for any request you have. (Model to new believer how to pray)

  3. THE HOLY SPIRIT TO HELP US
    God expects His children to live the Christlike life. But we can't live this on our own. God knows this. So He gives us His Holy Spirit to enable us to live the Christian life. The key to victorious Christian living is dependence and yielding to the Holy Spirit.
    1. The Holy Spirit is in us - EPH. 3:16, 17a
    2. The Holy Spirit is power for us - ACT 1:8
    3. He develops the Christlike characteristics in us, the fruits of the Holy Spirit - GAL 5:16-23.
  4. FELLOWSHIP
    1. FOR CONTINUED GROWTH
      1. Fellowship - means sharing or having things in common.
      2. With whom do we have fellowship? - We learned that we are not anymore of the world. In fact, the world will hate us. So you need contact with fellow believers. When we received Christ, we are born into God's family (JOH 1:12).
      3. The example of the early Christians - ACT 2:42-47
      4. Important principle - you cannot have fellowship with unbelievers study 2CO 6:14-18.
    2. THE CHURCH - GOD'S DESIGN FOR FELLOWSHIP
      1. What does `church' mean - the gathering of all who trust in Jesus as their Savior, have received forgiveness for their sins and eternal life. Church is not a building but `people'. Every time believers are gathered, they are a church (Matt. 18:20).
      2. Practical way of being part of a church - be a committed member of the local church. Christ's Church is composed of every believer all over the world and in all ages. But you can't fellowship with people all over the world. The Bible reveals that God designed each believer to be part of a local church where he lives.
        Example: Church at Thessalonica (1TH 1:6-10) and Church at Laodicea (REV 3:14-17)...and eventually... we will have a church here in (name of town/city) _________________

  5. SPIRITUAL EXERCISE: GO AND TELL OTHERS
    Our bodies in order to be strong need exercise. In our Christian life, we also need exercise. Telling others about Christ is our spiritual exercise.
    1. Why tell others - MAT 10:32
    2. He can start telling those who are sympathetic.
    3. How to witness: By a changed life; By witnessing ( see notes on personal evangelism)

    PROJECT: (Plan to have your contact/convert observe how to witness to somebody, most possibly one of his relatives or friends.

LESSON 5 - OBEDIENCE TO THE LORDSHIP OF JESUS CHRIST
THE NEED TO OBEY - The progress of our growth in the Christian life largely depends on our obedience to God's teachings. There are so many things to be changed in our lives, God's Word and His Spirit shows these things to us.

  1. Obedience is doing what God asks us to do and being what He wants us to be.
  2. It is a proof of our love to God, and it is the way to make our joy complete - JOH 15:9-12, 1JO 5:3.
  3. Because Jesus is Lord - you received Christ not only as Savior but also as Lord (Read ROM 6:23).
Illustration: Read Carefully: Luke 6:46-49 - many people today call themselves Christians but they do not obey God. The last days will reveal those who are truly God's children as the ones who obey His will.

CHALLENGE: Is there now a specific area in your life where the Lord Jesus is calling for your obedience?