Main Point: We grow as we put of our old identity and live into our new identity in Christ.

 Questions:

What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? Did you learn anything new about God or about yourself?

How has your life changed since you trusted in Christ? Were there any habits or patterns of life you had to give up? What things did you start doing as a result of following Christ? Are there any areas you are working on currently?

Read Ephesians 4:17-19. What command does Paul give in verse 17? What does it look like to live in the futility of non-Christian thinking?

How does Paul describe the mindset and lifestyle of those who do not know Jesus yet? Do any of these words stick out to you?

Rewrite verses 18-19 to communicate the truth of Paul’s description in your own words.

Read Ephesians 4:20-24. How does Paul describe coming to know Christ in these verses? What do we learn about this process from the different analogies he uses?

What does is mean to put off the old self? How do we do that? What does it mean to put on the new self? How do we do that?

What is the end goal of the process of putting of the old self and putting on the new self?

By God’s grace what is one thing you can do to apply what you have learned this week? How has your understanding of God’s love, grace, and salvation changed or deepened?

Main Point: We mature together as we serve each other in love and truth.

 Questions:

What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? Did you learn anything new about God or about yourself?

What is the key ingredient to spiritual maturity? What prevents people from maturing in their faith? What false teaching is most detrimental to Christian maturity?

Review - Read Ephesians 4:11-13. What is the task of Christian leaders in the church? What does it mean to “equip his people for works of service”?

What is the goal of building up the body of Christ? Why is unity and knowledge of the Son of God important to reach this goal? As Christians mature, who will they resemble?

Read Ephesians 4:14. In this verse, what does immaturity look like? What example does Paul give to describe immaturity?

What is the danger of being influenced by false teaching? How does Paul describe false teachers? How dangerous is false teaching to the Christian faith?

Read Ephesians 4:15. What is Paul’s solution to false teaching? What does it mean to speak the truth in love? What is the result of speaking the truth in love?

Read Ephesians 4:16. How does Paul’s use of ligaments help to better understand how God works to grow Christians? Every Christian’s unique gifts and personality is involved in growth. How are you a part of building up the body of Christ?

By God’s grace what is one thing you can do to apply what you have learned this week? How has your understanding of God’s love, grace, and salvation changed or deepened?

Main Point: God places us in community to grow us into maturity

 Questions:

What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? Did you learn anything new about God or about yourself?

Think of a time when you experienced growth in your faith. What was going on in your life at the time? Did any of your growth come from being a part of a community?

Read Ephesians 4:11-12 In these verses Paul lists different leadership gifts that are given to the church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. How would you define each of these roles? What is the purpose of Christ’s gift of leadership to the church?

What does the leadership of the church equip the people of the church to do? What is the goal of these works of service?

All followers of Christ are called to serve in different ways. Who is responsible for ministering in the church?

Read Ephesians 4:13. What does it mean to “reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature”? How does Paul define maturity?

Do we need other Christians to reach maturity in the faith? Do other people need us to reach maturity in the faith? How does this understanding of our need for each other influence your understanding of being a part of the church?

By God’s grace what is one thing you can do to apply what you have learned this week? How has your understanding of God’s love, grace, and salvation changed or deepened?

Verses: Ephesians 4:7-10

Main Point: Jesus’ victory is the source of change.

Questions:

What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? Did you learn anything new about God or about yourself?

What is the major thing that gets in the way of making changes in our lives? What is necessary to make true and lasting change?

 Read Ephesians 4:7. Paul’s use of the word “but” demonstrates a contrast between the previous verses and what he is now saying. What is the contrast? (See Eph 4:1-6 for reference.)

What kind of grace is Paul referring to in this verse? How does it compliment saving grace for those who have trusted Jesus?

Read Ephesians 4:8 Paul is referencing Psalm 68 in this verse. What is his main point? What does this verse tell us about Jesus and his ascension? What imagery does Paul draw upon to make his point?

What are the gifts that he gives to his people?

Read Ephesians 4:9-10. These two verses are a parenthetical explanation on the previous verse. What does it mean that Jesus descended? What was accomplished as a result of Jesus’ incarnation?

What does it mean that Jesus “ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe”? What does this suggest in terms of Jesus’ victory? What implications does this have for our lives?

By God’s grace what is one thing you can do to apply what you have learned this week? How has your understanding of God’s love, grace, and salvation changed or deepened?

Main Point: The more we understand our new identity in Christ, the more we will grow in Christ and

grow together in community.

Questions:

What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? Did you learn anything new about God or about yourself?

What words would you use to describe yourself? What things do you find you identity in? How does our understanding of our identity influence the way we live?

Read Ephesians 4-1. In this verse, Paul moves from describing who we are in Christ (chapters 1-3) to how we live in light of our new identity (chapters 4-6). What does it mean to “live a life worthy of the called you received”?

Why does Paul call himself “a prisoner for the Lord”? Beyond literally being in prison, what might Paul be communicating through this description?

Read Ephesians 4:2-3. What words does Paul use to describe the behavior that marks a Christian? What do these words mean, and what implications do they have for everyday life? Which one of these character qualities do you struggle with the most?

Why is unity such an important part of being a Christian? What is the source of Christian unity?

Read Ephesians 4:4-6. How many times is the word “one” used in these verses? What point is Paul making about Christian unity? What things keep Christians from being unified in the way God desires?

Take a look at each of the seven “ones” in these verses. What is the significance of the things Paul listed?

By God’s grace what is one thing you can do to apply what you have learned this week? How has your understanding of God’s love, grace, and salvation changed or deepened?