/MettleJan-Apr12 by CWR

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JANUARY–APRIL 2012

TO INSPIRE COURAGE SPIRIT CHARACTER

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Mettle Bible-reading notes are produced in association with British Youth for Christ. British Youth for Christ is part of Youth for Christ International, a movement of youth evangelism organisations in over 100 countries of the world. Please visit www.yfci.org for the country nearest you.

Series Editor: Simeon Whiting Contributors: Dennis Coburn, Sharron Coburn, Chris Kidd, Hannah Kidd, Steve Warner and Simeon Whiting The notes on The Trinity are adapted from those previously published in Mettle January–April 2008. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing of CWR. See back of book for list of National Distributors. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT), copyright © 1996, revised 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. Other quotations are marked: NIV: Scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2010 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton, a division of Hodder Headline Ltd. All rights reserved. Concept development by YFC and CWR. Editing, design and production by CWR. Printed in Wales by Stevens & George Print Group.

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CONTENTS

THE TRINITY PART 1

FRIENDSHIP PART 1

LIVING PART 1

OBEDIENCE PART 1

THE TRINITY PART 2

FRIENDSHIP PART 2

LIVING PART 2

OBEDIENCE PART 2

102

THE TRINITY PART 3

116

WELCOME TO

TER … IRIT CHARAC

COURAGE SP

WELCOME TO this new issue of Mettle. How can God be one and three at the same time? And why does this matter anyway? We hope our core readings on the Trinity will go some way to answering these questions. It’s both important and inspiring that we follow a triune God. We’ll explore why. Our ‘hot potatoes’ will investigate Friendship, Living and Obedience. We’ll unpack what true, godly friendship looks like, what this wonderful thing called ‘Life’ is all about and who we should obey, how and when. We pray that these notes will inspire you to get to know God better and live His way, every day. Enjoy! The Mettle Team

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WEEKEND 1 JAN

THE

HAPPY NEW YEAR! We hope this is going to be a brilliant year ahead for you and your relationship with God. The Holy Trinity – it’s a weird concept to get your head around isn’t it? It’s a mystery and will remain a mystery to humans this side of heaven. However, there are things about the Trinity that we can begin to look into, and that’s what we’ll be doing over the next few weeks. There are lots of poor examples of one entity having three appearances. Most of these examples go nowhere near explaining the Christian doctrine that is ‘the Trinity’. They don’t give equal power to all three members. Probably the best example we can use is

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0 v1

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‘… he saw the heavens splitting apart and the Holy Spirit descending on him like a dove.’

K R S E

the mathematical illustration of 1x1x1=1. Here, the value of each independent number is 1 and the value of the multiplied numbers is 1. All are of equal value, yet when all are multiplied they still add up to 1. The Bible is full of examples of this Triune (Three Person) God. Today’s passage visibly and audibly reveals the Trinity working in perfect harmony. The Son, in obedience to the Father, is baptised in the River Jordan. As He comes out of the water, the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus like a dove. He hears the voice of the Father in heaven saying, ‘You are my dearly loved Son, and you bring me great joy.’

WEEKEND 1 JAN

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READING: Mark 1:9–13

THINK The doctrine of the Trinity makes the Christian faith completely unique, as the Jesus we worship is much more than a good man. He is the God man – fully human and yet fully God. We worship a God who is one and yet three entities. Do you treat each member of the Trinity with equal value and respect? Is one Person of the Trinity easier to relate to than another?

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READING: Colossians 1:15–23

PRAY

Thank You, Jesus, that You are not remote from us as humans, but You became one of us. You understand the struggles of being human, even though You are God the Son. Thank You, Jesus, that when we study You we see a perfect human being and also one member of the Holy Trinity: this ‘three-in-one’ Triune God.

MON 2 JAN

‘Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created …’

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KEY

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How many times have you heard people cooing over babies saying things like: ‘Oh, isn’t he cute? He looks just like his dad.’ Or, ‘Hasn’t he got his dad’s eyes?’ Paul tells the Church in Colosse that Jesus is just like His Dad. If they want to know what God is like, they only need to look at Jesus. Jesus is more than a good man, a healer, a storyteller, a wise man, a prophet, a freedom fighter or a politician. Paul tells us that Jesus is the image of the invisible God. It is important for us to understand that Jesus isn’t similar to or just a little like God. He is the exact image of God. If we stand in front of a mirror, the reflection does not lie. The reflection is our image. Jesus is the exact image of God, but we're not talking here about His literal image – His physical appearance. Jesus is God, God is Jesus. Jesus is one member of a three-member (triune) Godhead, consisting of God in human form (Jesus), God as Spirit (Holy Spirit) and God as Father. Together they form the Holy Trinity.

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READING: 1 Corinthians 12:1–27 KEY

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‘It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.’

TUES 3 JAN 7

THINK

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It is easy to think that the Holy Spirit has lesser status as God than the Son or the Father. The Bible makes it so clear, however, that the Spirit is not a fluffy feeling or a Father Christmas figure, but that He is equally God. He reigns over the universe in equal partnership with Jesus and the Father.

Does your car, bike, guitar or piano have a name? Do you like to give your treasured possessions names? We, as humans, seem to like to name objects or call cars ‘she’ or ‘he’ – but why? They have no personality of themselves; they are purely objects to be used at our command or disposal. In Corinthians we see that the Spirit of God is completely different. The Spirit is not just a power source that makes us feel happy. He is not just an invisible thing that gives us certain gifts or talents. He is not a nameless entity. His name is the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit has His own identity. Paul is careful to point out that there is only one Holy Spirit, not many spirits of God. There is only one Spirit who gives to people all the gifts at His discretion. Paul refers to the Spirit as He, not because the Spirit looks or feels like a He, but because the Spirit of God is an entity; another equal member of the Trinity. Paul also tells us that the Spirit has intelligence, with a mind and will, and that He gives gifts to whoever He chooses.

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READING: 1 Corinthians 2:1–16

CHALLENGE

Have you been trying hard to convince your friends about the truth of Christianity, but without success? Maybe you should be praying that the Spirit will reveal the salvation of God to your friends through your conversations. Don’t rely on your own powers of persuasion!

WED 4 JAN

‘But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit.’

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Have you ever been told, ‘You must go to see this film’ or ‘You must download this track’? A lot of socialising is about sharing the latest gadgets, phones, games and fashion. Your friends reveal their lives to you – the things they enjoy – and, in turn, you do the same. In today’s passage we see the Holy Spirit as Revealer. Some of the wisest, cleverest people in the world cannot understand the wisdom of God or the nature of our free salvation in Jesus. Yet a five-year-old can completely understand that Jesus loves them and has died for them. It is not a matter of intelligence, but rather a matter of the Spirit revealing this truth to us. We didn’t work it out for ourselves – the Spirit revealed it to us, the Spirit of God. God speaks through His Spirit into the lives of humankind. He reveals the truth about Jesus’ death for our sins, His resurrection and His ascension. This Triune God is the Provider (Jesus), Revealer (Spirit) and Sustainer (Father) of our faith. All members of the Trinity are of equal importance because all are God.

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READING: Titus 3:4–8 KEY

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‘He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.’

THURS 5 JAN 9

CHALLENGE

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Jesus is the perfect example of the kindness of God. The challenge for us would be how our friends would describe us. Would they use the word ‘kind’?

Who is the kindest person you know – maybe a teacher at school or a youth leader at church? Is it possibly a parent, or grandparent, or even a good friend or a well-known celebrity? When Paul writes to Titus, he describes God as a ‘kind’ God. There are many words to describe God that spring to mind before the word ‘kind’. Kindness is described in the dictionary as a friendly, generous, helpful, considerate, humane, cordial, courteous, loving quality, act or behaviour. This definition can really help us to understand the different aspects of the Trinity. The quality of kindness can be linked to the Father who, even from before the foundation of the world, had prepared a rescue plan to save humankind from sin. This act of kindness saw the God of the universe shrink down by the Spirit’s power into a tiny embryo, being born as a helpless human baby in a smelly stable. We can have the same behaviour as Jesus through the Holy Spirit living in us, giving us the power to live as He lived, to be kind as He was kind.

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