GTC CoMo - Grace & Truth Community Church

Elder and overseer of our church, Dean Niforatos, joins us to preach on chapters 1 & 2 of 1 Corinthians. He dives in to exploring how the Spirit of God is the only source of true revelation from God.

Principles of True Wisdom

• True Wisdom Focuses on Jesus (1 Cor. 1:10-15, Heb. 12:2, John 14:6-7)
• True Wisdom Focuses on the Cross (1 Corinthians 1:16-18)
• True Wisdom Focuses on God’s Power (1 Cor. 1:24-25)

Lead Out of Weakness and Vulnerability

• Humility: Alabaster is easily broken.
• Sacrificial: Alabaster is costly.
• Awareness: Alabaster is translucent.

Break the Power of the Past

1. Allow God to help you persist. (Gen. 32:22-33, 35:9-10)

Persistence through fellowship:

• Fellowship with God.
• Fellowship with believers.
• Fellowship with God's Word.
• Fellowship with your experiences.

2. Allow God to break us. (Psalms 51:17, Gen. 32:25)

3. Allow God to change your name. (Gen 35:9-10)

Make Love the Measure of Spiritual Maturity (1 Cor. 13:1-13)

• Love is based on the basics. (Matt. 22:32-40, 1 Cor. 13: 1-3, 7, 13)
• Love is based on our attitude. (1 Cor. 13:4-6)
• Love is based on Truth. (1 Cor. 13:6)

Discover the Treasures Hidden in Grief and Loss (John 15:1-8)

• Learn to feel pain. (Matthew 5:4)

• Learn to embrace pain while we wait. (2 Corinthians 12:7-9, Philippians 3:7-11)

• Learn to receive God’s blessing from the process of pain. (Psalm 119:71)

God's Gift of Limits (1 Corinthians 12:12-27)

• I am part of a larger structure. (1 Corinthians 12:12, 14-16)
• I am unique and created with gifts. (1 Corinthians 12:17-21)
• I am not loaded with unlimited energy. (1 Corinthians 12:21, Philippians 1:9, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

Follow the Crucified—not the “Americanized"—Jesus

James 1:2–4 (ESV)

Be Before You Do. (Luke 10:38–42) (ESV)

Three Ways Our Perceptions Can Be Off:

Three Things in our Spiritual Pastures:

Join us as our Elder Overseer, Dean Niforatos, speaks on 1 Peter Chapter 4.

Join us as Chaplain Laird Thompson exposits 1 Peter Chapter 3.

1 Peter 2:18-25 (ESV)

2 Timothy 3:12 Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

21 Forms of Christian Persecution

Three Ways to Suffer Well:

The Book of 1 Peter: Chapter 1: Three Ways to Live a Holy Life

1 Peter 1:13-18 (ESV)

• 1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

• V.A.C.U.U.M.

• Vocabulary — Isaiah 5:20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! (ESV)

• Associating with the wrong people — 1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” (ESV)

• Cares of this world — Mark 4:19 but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. (ESV)

• Unforgiveness — 2 Corinthians 2:11 …so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs. (ESV)

• Unrepentance — Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. (ESV)

• Man’s Word — Judge 17:6 In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (ESV)

• Psalms 1:1-3 (ESV)

2. Don’t conform to the World

• 1 Peter 1:14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance.” (ESV)

• Romans 12:1–2 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect (ESV)

3. Develop a fear of God

• 1 Peter 1:17-18 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold,” (ESV)

• Proverbs 1:17 For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird, (ESV)

• Deuteronomy 20:1-4 “When you go out to war against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them, for the Lord your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And when you draw near to the battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the people and shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them, for the Lord your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.’ (ESV)

• Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil. (ESV)