“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him.” – Acts 1:8-9.

Acts 1: 8-9 describes the momentous event when Jesus ascends to His Father. Jesus had prepared them that this day was coming. In fact, He said it was good.  In John 16:7, back at the Last Supper, He said, “I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” 

Imagine you are a disciple, and you are trying to wrap your head around the idea that it is good that Jesus goes away. I’m sure if we were in their shoes, we would struggle with any scenario of  Jesus not being there. Who could blame us? Jesus is eternal, omnipresent, omnipotent, and unchangeable. He is equal with God the Father. He demonstrates compassion in every interaction, advocates for a world where love and forgiveness prevail, and exemplifies humility in every aspect of His life. Who wouldn’t want more time with Him?

Jesus told the disciples He would leave beforehand to prepare them emotionally and mentally. But Jesus also had a way to prepare them spiritually. He left friends, family members, and loved ones. But He didn’t leave them or us orphaned. He gave them and gave us the Holy Spirit.

We need the Holy Spirit to understand and live out God’s will. He guides us in our daily lives, reveals truths about God, convicts us of sin, empowers us to live righteously, and provides the strength to resist temptation. He essentially acts as a constant presence of God within us to live a life dedicated to Him; without the Holy Spirit, we wouldn’t have the ability to truly comprehend God’s plan or live a life aligned with His teachings.

The Holy Spirit teaches us and reminds us of everything Jesus said. As we read God’s Word, we can trust the Holy Spirit to help us understand what we read. We can also expect the Holy Spirit to bring to our remembrance the truth about who God is, who we are, what God promises, what God has done, and what God will do. The Holy Spirit renews us. This renewing work begins the moment we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, but it also continues each day as we respond to the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives.

God did not leave us alone to fend for ourselves. He provided an amazing Helper in the person of the Holy Spirit who will do for us what we cannot do for ourselves—if we let Him.   

Discussion Questions:

1. Describe a time when you became aware of the Holy Spirit’s work in your life.

“Some journeys take us far from home. Some adventures lead us to our destiny.” – C. S. Lewis

The word “journey” is a helpful metaphor when considering Christianity. Christianity is a journey, not an event; it is the process of growing closer to God over time. The journey of faith is a lifelong adventure that includes learning, growth, and transformation. It has highs and lows. You will go through valleys and mountaintops. You will learn things in the valleys you will never learn on the mountaintops, and vice versa.

But like any journey, we need to focus on the process of getting there as well as the arrival. A journey implies changes, transitions, challenges, and adventures. Like any journey, we want to know the route and expect smooth travel without drama or anxiety. But the Christian life may be anything but smooth and we should be open to meeting God in the unexpected. When we look at our Christian walk as a journey, and as we learn to trust our navigator, we are less likely to resist change and challenge.

There are people who enjoy an adventure on their own, but most people like travel companions on their journey. Maybe they are flying with us to Los Angeles where they get off the plane as we continue on to Hawaii. They were a big help as you juggled all your luggage through the airport and helped pass the time on the flight to California. But they won’t be there to talk on the flight to Hawaii or help with the luggage when your plane lands. Regardless of where you are in life’s journey, God is always present in your life, including the good and challenging times, and by your side, supporting you throughout your entire path; signifying His constant presence and unwavering support in every situation.  “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you” (Deuteronomy 31:8).

Sometimes, when we travel, just like physical luggage, our emotional burdens can weigh us down, hindering our journey in life. However, through faith in God, we can release these burdens and find rest in Him. Matthew 11:28 says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest,” an invitation to surrender them to God for healing and release.

The biggest and most significant journey story in the Bible is Jesus leaving heaven and coming to earth for our sake, to live and die and be raised again so that we can live in Him. Jesus asks us to journey with Him. The Holy Spirit works in us so we can grow into Jesus’ image on the journey and so we can reach the journey’s end.

Turning to God is a journey and lifestyle, not an event. Being moldable, changeable, and influenceable each day helps us stay close to God along that journey.

Discussion Questions:

1. What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve encountered on your spiritual path?
2. How does your faith guide your daily decisions and actions?

 Summary: Any retelling of the life of Jesus Christ will fall far short of doing it justice. Learning the facts of Jesus’ life and ministry will whet your appetite to learn more. Understanding Christ is the foundation for understanding true Christianity, which is believing and living by Christ’s teachings and striving to imitate His perfect life.

As Christians, we are called to imitate Jesus in all aspects of our life. It has spurred an often-asked question of “What would Jesus do?” in any given situation. While being completely like Jesus is way above our pay grade, some specific traits of Jesus can help us imitate Him in our own lives. It is no different than learning the core competencies of our profession.  If you are a firefighter, you must learn how to fight fires. Accountants must master the bookkeeping skills involved with accounting, and teachers must master the skills to enable children to learn.

 When Jesus called His twelve disciples and began to train them to make more disciples, He trained them in specific areas, like a master training a group of apprentices, so they could carry on the work that He started. Then, as now, a disciple must develop the competencies of Jesus by becoming like Him on the outside. He knew he couldn’t teach them everything, so He focused on some key competencies that still apply to us today.

Jesus’ time with His disciples and on earth was short. He knew that He must invest His time wisely. He knew he must prepare His key followers for what lay ahead. He must reproduce His influence, teaching, and ministry. So He withdrew from the crowds to personally teach His closest and key followers. Jesus taught us to invest in others, who in turn would invest in others, who in turn… invested in us

From the beginning, Jesus told the disciples that He would make them into something different: “Come, follow me,…and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). Their occupation of catching fish changed into a mission of fishing for people. At each step along the way, Jesus taught them to share with others, connect people to God, and minister to those in need. Those competencies include a deep personal relationship with God through prayer and Bible study, actively sharing the Gospel with others, demonstrating love and compassion, living a life aligned with God’s teachings, serving others, and actively seeking to grow in their faith, essentially, embodying the character of Christ through daily actions and decisions.

It is not easy to model our lives after Jesus, but we can learn to make disciples as Jesus made. After all, if we obey everything Jesus commanded, we, too, will learn to replicate the process by which we became His disciples.  It is a natural process: we follow Jesus, Jesus changes us, and—as we follow the one who spent His time making disciples—we, too, commit to make disciples as He did. Loving people as Jesus loved people through service means that we want to see people come to faith in Jesus and live as He did.

Discussion Questions:

1. What is the most practical way of adopting Jesus’s lifestyle this week?
2. If we want more of God’s peace, we need to adopt Jesus’s lifestyle. Agree or disagree, and why?

“That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are[e] being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!  So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”  – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.

The idiom “seeing is believing” has been passed down from generation to generation. It is used in conversation when people are more likely to accept something as true if they can see it with their own eyes, essentially implying that visual evidence is necessary for belief. It makes sense because our society is based on proof, evidence, and verifiable research.

It can be hard for us to believe something we have not seen, felt, or witnessed for ourselves, especially when it seems unbelievable. Thomas is a good example. In John 20, Jesus appears to His disciples, except for Thomas, after His crucifixion and resurrection. When the disciples tell Thomas what they have seen, he does not believe them.  So the other disciples tell him, “…We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.” (John 20:25).  Thomas had a self-imposed criterion for believing in Jesus’ resurrection of not only seeing but also touching. In other words, Thomas needed that visual, tangible, observable physical proof.

Hebrews 11 1 says, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.” (Hebrews 11:1). By definition, faith is not talking about, thinking about, or even celebrating God’s truth. It is the process of adapting your behavior, your decisions and ultimately, your whole lifestyle to align with what God has asked you to do — without needing to see the evidence it will all work out.

Faith in things that cannot be seen is the belief that something is true even though the physical senses cannot perceive it. It is the conviction that what is hoped for is real, even if it is not visible.  After showing His wounds and scars to Thomas so that he would believe, Jesus stressed the importance of having faith. Jesus said to him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me” (John 20:29). This belief in things “not seen” is easier said than done, especially when it comes to the great unseen of God and His promises.

“And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness” (Colossians 2:6-7).

Faith increases through a genuine relationship with God.  Study what the Bible reveals about faith.

Discussion Questions:

1. Faith is the hope of things unseen. What are those unseen things and how does faith impact them?
2. Does God still reveal His will in specific ways or is He content to leave a lot of our choices up to us?

Summary: To be successful as a Christian means to live a life aligned with God’s will, prioritizing obedience to His teachings, actively demonstrating love for others, and using your gifts and talents to serve God and further His kingdom rather than focusing on worldly measures of success like wealth or fame; essentially, it’s about faithfully following Jesus and living a life that reflects His values.

What does success mean to you? Most people measure success in financial terms. Thus, most people believe that the most successful people are the 2,781 billionaires in the world. But is that all there is to success? From a Biblical perspective, attaining wealth isn’t the ultimate goal, though it’s not bad. Some of the most remarkable people from the Old Testament had great wealth. But how should Christians measure success?

The way God measures success is different than the way culture defines success. Based on what Jesus said,  success is measured by how well you love Him and love others. “The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:40).  He told His followers, “your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples” (John 13:35).  Romans 8:29 says, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son…” That means if you walk like, talk like, work like, live like, and love like Jesus, that’s success in His eyes.

Jesus is teaching us that our love for God and our love for others are deeply interconnected. This means that every other commandment extends or expresses these two foundational principles. Our ability to love others well stems from our relationship with God. The deeper our love for Him, the more naturally we will love others, because we begin to see them as He does.

Loving others also authenticates the genuineness of our love for God. The Apostle John writes, “If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar…” (1 John 4:20). This verse underscores that our love for God cannot be separated from our love for others. If we truly love God, it will show itself in how we treat those around us.

 To become like Jesus and to be successful as a Christian, you’ve got to become and stay connected. Connected to God and connected to others. If you want to grow deeper with God, get on mission with Jesus. Do more than go to Bible studies, read books, or listen to podcasts. Apply what you’re learning about God by loving people far from God. Your personal growth should always be for the sake of others and the cause of Christ.

 To love God and love others is only possible when we understand that He loved us first. We don’t naturally love God the most. We don’t naturally love others like we do ourselves. We’re all wrapped up in ourselves, our lives, our agendas, and our priorities, yet God keeps loving us. His love never changes.

0Discussion Questions:

1. What does it mean to love God?
2. What does it mean to you to reflect God’s love to others? What are some practical ways for you to give others a taste of what the love of God is like?

“Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.” – 1 John 2:6.

The goal of the believer is to become more like Jesus. But is being Christlike attainable? In our strength it is clearly not attainable, but God has given us his Holy Spirit to dwell within us, to change us from within. Jesus told us that His faithful disciples would imitate Him: “throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:22-24).

But a Christian learns early on that it is impossible to live like Jesus. Jesus was both fully human and fully God, and performed many acts that no one else has. Jesus is the incarnation of God in human flesh, the only one to live a sinless life and offered Himself as a sacrifice for all sin and evil. Jesus showed unconditional love and treated everyone with compassion and respect. He conquered death, rose again, and ascended to heaven to sit at the Father’s right hand. It is impossible to imitate all that.

Loving Jesus leads to obeying Him, allowing us to reflect Him in our lives, but it will never make us exactly like Him. But you can become the best version of yourself with God’s help and in a God-honoring way. The first step toward being the best version of you in 2025 is understanding that God’s vision for your life includes His desire that you become more and more like Christ. Jesus was not only your Savior but also your example in life.

Jesus’ whole life was an example we ought to follow, but to do so, we must soak it up. This is one reason that reading Scripture is so critical. It illuminates the path so we can follow in His footsteps. But some days, it is harder than others to act like Jesus. We get tired and irritable. The car breaks down at the most inopportune time. The baby doesn’t want to sleep. The good news is we don’t have to be perfect for people to see our Savior in us.

If we want to grow to be more like Jesus, we must understand Him. This necessitates learning about what God wants from us and allowing Jesus to be our teacher. We should know what sets Him apart. We need to grasp what motivated Him. We need to witness the ways He responded to people around Him. This requires that we become students of the New Testament.

What we need more of in the Christian life is a vision of Jesus Christ, of the One who was crucified on our behalf. As the eyes of our heart—our heart-seeing—remain on Him and are captivated by Him, we will become like Him. Here is the simple truth at the heart of God’s work of renewal: Continual, deepening, remarkable encounters with Jesus.

 Nothing compares with getting to know the God who knows us. He seeks to be known, for He has revealed Himself in nature and Scripture.

Discussion Questions:

1. Is being like Jesus feasible and what are some practical steps to being more like Him this week?

“Following Christ isn’t something that can be done halfheartedly or on the side. It is not a label we can display when it is useful. It must be central to everything we do and are.” ― Francis Chan, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God.

A pastor shared a story about how he was in front of his church working on landscaping when an elderly woman walked by and asked him, “Are you a follower of Jesus?” The pastor stopped what he was doing to engage the woman and said, “I am a Christian.” She paused and said, “I didn’t ask you that.” The pastor assumed she wanted his qualifications: “I go to and preach in church every week, I have a degree in theology which enables me to read scripture in the original Greek and Hebrew, my grandfather was a well-known preacher in these parts.” The woman listened intently and then said, “You may be a religious person, but that does not make you a follower of Jesus,” then she walked away.

So, what does it mean to follow Jesus? The word follower has changed over the years.  The word “follower” has evolved in our world. Nowadays, it implies a casual, social media-type relationship that doesn’t require much commitment. But when Jesus said “follow me” in Matthew 4:19, He meant something completely different. He wasn’t interested in likes and comments.

While following Jesus doesn’t mean physically following Him around, it does mean turning from living your own life and choosing to live a new life with Jesus in charge. Being a Christ follower goes far beyond saying “I’m a believer” or identifying as a Christian. It’s about having a personal relationship with Jesus that radically transforms your life: “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Following Jesus means loving Him with all your heart and reflecting His love and compassion toward others. It also means studying His Word and seeking opportunities to share Jesus in everyday conversations. It means to trust Him even when the road gets bumpy or uncertain. It means every choice you make mirrors His character, and when He stretches you by leading you outside your comfort zone, you understand that there is a purpose behind it.   

Following Jesus is more than a call to attend church on Easter or keep a Bible on a bookshelf. It’s a call to become like Him. To think how He thought, to live like He lived, and to treat others in light of His sacrifice for them. Following Jesus encompasses living your life according to Jesus’ teachings in every aspect, including your actions, thoughts, and interactions with others, not just participating in a weekly religious gathering.

“Jesus says, ‘I want you to follow me so fully, so intensely, so enduringly that all other attachments in your life look weak by comparison’” – Timothy Keller.

Discussion Questions:

1. What does following Jesus mean in practical life?
2. In what ways can we be better at following Jesus?