WELCOME Welcome to The Crossing Church, Thank you for joining us today at The Crossing Church. We are in the midst of a series of messages which we base our values on as a church body. Today we are learning what the Bible says about maturity. For many of us it has different meanings. For God it boils down to something pretty simple: faith and trust. Do we trust God in every situation in our lives? Do we have the faith to react in a godly manner when we face trials? I pray that today you would learn something special from God’s word!
Pastor Greg & Tamara Dumas Lead Pastor
Your Pastor, Greg and Tamara Dumas, Lead Pastor
UPCOMING EVENTS First Wednesday Celebration Celebration You are cordially invited to a special event in your honor on Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 7pm at the Tampa Campus. Upon arrival, we will have a “Celebration, Celebration” where you will be greeted as new brothers and sisters in the joining of our churches. Two buses have been rented to take those interested at 5:30 pm. There is limited seating on the bus.
Please pick up your free tickets at the information center.
Giving Online If you would like to give securely online simply go to https://members.crossingonline.org/ and follow the links located on the left side of the page. For further information, call our church offices at 888.977.9910.
Celebration Campus Welcome Booklet Online Are you interested in hearing more about The Crossing Church – Celebration Campus? We now have the welcome booklet online at celebration.crossingonline.org.
When Calling The Crossing We are moving our church offices to a “virtual environment.” Although there will no longer be “office space,” you can still reach us at any time. As we become one church – The Crossing Church – we are consolidating many of our core functions which releases the rest of the staff to focus on ministry functions. In line with this philosophy, all phone calls to The Crossing Church will now be handled at the Tampa Campus. The toll free number is 888.977.9910.
Lifegroups LifeGroups are underway, and if you haven’t signed up yet, it’s never too late! Please e-mail your interest and information to Shayla Yancey at: syancey@crossingonline.org and we will make sure to get you connected!
Student Ministries (6th - 12th grade) The Youth Fall retreat will be on November 12-14 at The Crossing Church-Tampa campus. Cost is $75 per person, or $65 for the first 20 people who give a $35 deposit. Bus transportation will be provided. Please watch your mail for more information.
Men’s Breakfast Join the men of The Crossing Church – Celebration Campus for our next monthly breakfast which will be at 8:30am, on Saturday, Nov. 6 at at Market Street Café (701 Front Street, Celebration.) No advance registration required.
Fit Body Boot Camp at The Hub Want to lose weight, tone up FAST, and get in the best shape of your life ... all while having a blast doing it? Finally you can with JC & Stephanie Cuilty’s “Fit Body Boot Camp!” Guaranteed to build lean muscle and melt the fat off permanently. Take the Fat Loss Challenge every Saturday at 7am for FREE at The Hub (65 Riley Rd., Celebration.)
For more announcement details: www.crossingonline.org/announcements-celebration-campus
Sunday, October 31
WELCOME TO THE
CROSSING CHURCH
Is It In You? The Crossing Core Values: Maturity Ephesians 4:10 -14
Campus Pastor: Tim Ingram
SCRIPTURE Ephesians 4:10-14 (NIV) He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 10
1 John 2:12-14 (NASB77) I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake. 13 I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. 14 I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 12
OBSERVATION • • • • •
Abiding in Christ determines whether or not we will produce fruitful lives for Christ. Maturity in Christ determines how much fruit one will produce in Christ. Biblical maturity implies knowledge of the basics: Salvation through faith in Christ and relational view of God as Heavenly Father. Biblical maturity implies proficiency in training: Use of the Word of God to develop strength in the practice of life and use of the Word of God against the adversary. Biblical maturity implies surrendered strength and reproduction: Once a level of proficiency is gained in identity and strength it all has to be surrendered to the power of Christ. The more surrendered the life, the more fruit is produced. Reproduction takes place as godly men and women replicate in others what Christ has formed in them.
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APPLICATION 1. First Level - Infancy - “I am writing to you little children [Gk, teknia, infants] because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake 2. Second Level - Childhood - “I am writing to you children [Gk. paideia, children of tutoring age] because you know the Father.” 3. Third Level - Young Adult - “I am writing to you young men [Gk., neaniskoi, young men and (women) of responsible age] because you are strong, and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the Evil One.” 4. Fourth Level - Parent - “I am writing to you fathers [Gk., pater, one who surrenders himself], because you know him who is from the beginning” • • •
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Jeremiah 9:23-24 - Thus says the Lord, “… let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, …” John 17:3-0 -“This is eternal life, that they may know You,…” 2 Peter 1:5-8 - Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Col. 1:10 - …that you will walk … bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 2 Peter 3:17-18 - You therefore, beloved, … be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
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PRAYER Lord, thank you for encouraging all of us in your supernatural grace. I pray for those who are new to the faith, that they understand that their sins are forgiven and forever under the blood of Christ. I pray for those who have begun to relate to you as Father, and I pray that they draw near to you and learn to trust you. I pray they begin to understand what it means to be loved and accepted in your family of faith and that they take their place to serve in the body at The Crossing. I pray that they continue to grow in the grace of the Word of God and in prayer and in unity. I pray for those who have been training themselves diligently in the Word and in prayer; I pray you make them strong in might as they face the lies of the enemy. Grant them victory against our adversary and allow them to see their ability to win over the forces of darkness. I also pray for the mature believers among us – that they would remain steadfast, abiding in you and in your love and grace. Most of all, I pray that they would surrender all of their prior victories to you, knowing that in order to win greater victories, they have to relinquish their self-sufficiency, pride, and former victories in order for you, mighty God, to step in and fight for them. It’s not by strength and not by might, but by your spirit, oh Lord, that we accomplish great things.
LIFEGROUPS Use the following as a resource for your LifeGroup to go deeper with this week’s message. We hope this helps you as you “do life together”. Opener: When you were a child, didn’t it seem to take a long time to grow up? Share with your group of a certain event that you couldn’t wait for, but it seemed like it was never going to get here. Why are so many believers seemingly content to remain at their present level of Christian maturity? Perhaps, so few people have considered all the advantages available to being mature in Christ. Digging Deeper : When it comes to Maturity we learned this weekend that there are three different stages found in 1 John 2:12-14. Let’s look at them together in more detail. Infancy: When a little baby is born into the world it becomes aware of a new existence. Think about eating. You’ve got to eat properly as physical babies and spiritual babies alike. And that’s where the Bible comes in. Did you know the Bible talks about believers who are in the infancy stage and they’ve never grown beyond it? Let look at I Corinthians 3. Childhood: The second stage is revealed in verse 13 and 14. They are beginning to make some progress now in their lives as Christians. Share with your group one of the first steps you took in your journey with Christ after Salvation. How did that step feel? What was or is your secret to growth? How does a believer who is now making progress in his life develop that kind of spiritual growth? Well let’s look at what he says. “The Word of God abides in you.” The word abides there really means “to settle down and make its home in you.” What area of your live is God saying I don’t want to be a visit any longer I’m waiting for you to allow me to be a permanent resident? Young Adult: Do you know what the characteristics of spiritual maturity are? Do you know when you’ve really hit that stage of spiritual maturity in the Lord? You know that you’re in that stage of spiritual maturity when the serving the Lord is the most important thing in your life. Share with your group one or two areas where you are serving the Lord. It can in the church or outside the church as well. Application: When you get to the place in your life that you are more interested in the giver than you are in His gifts, when you are more interested in the Father than in what the Father can do for you, then you’re on your way to spiritual maturity. What stage of spiritual growth are you in? Whatever stage of life you find yourself at, whatever generation of believer you are, be encouraged, by the Lord and continue to ask for the strength to grow up in your salvation.