The Bridge Church
The Struggle is Real: Boundaries
May 1, 2022
Locations & Times
Englewood SKY Academy
871 S River Rd, Englewood, FL 34223, USA
Sunday 9:00 AM
Sunday 10:30 AM
Imitate God…as dearly loved children.
HEALTHY BOUNDARIES THAT HELP US IMITATE GOD:
1. Walk in love
1. Walk in love
2. Walk in the light
· Flee before you are tempted
3. Walk in wisdom
Walking in the Spirit empowers us to imitate God with our lives.
Be accountable with a loving, Christian friend.
Be accountable with a loving, Christian friend.
MY NEXT STEP TODAY IS:
I need to receive Jesus Christ as my personal Savior for the first time
I need to be baptized
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/baptism
I need to attend Starting Point
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/starting-point
I need to join a small group
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/small-groups
I need to join a serve team
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/serve
I need to receive Jesus Christ as my personal Savior for the first time
I need to be baptized
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/baptism
I need to attend Starting Point
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/starting-point
I need to join a small group
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/small-groups
I need to join a serve team
https://www.thebridgevenice.com/serve
Dig Deeper:
1. We learned that boundaries are biblical guidelines that help establish healthy relationships. What are some boundaries you have set in your life?
2. Read Ephesians 5:1-18. What stands out to you from the passage?
3. This passage begins with “therefore.” Look back to Ephesians 4 and reread what Paul wrote there as to why we should live out what is written in chapter 5.
4. What does an imitator do? What examples does this passage give us as to how we should imitate God?
5. What comes to mind when you think of yourself as God’s “dearly loved child” (v. 2)? Why is it important to view God as your heavenly father?
6. Describe a relationship between a parent and a child? What reasons cause a child to imitate his/her parent? How does being a child of God allow you to imitate Him?
7. Notice how walking in love aligns with “giving thanks” (v.4) How are these two connected?
8. Make a list of all the areas that Paul mentions that can happen when we aren’t walking in love. How do we “not become their partners” (v. 7)? Describe some tangible boundaries that might help with each area written out.
9. Read 1 Corinthians 6:18-20. We are called to flee, not flirt, with sexual immorality. Why? Because we are bought at a price. How do we flee, not flirt, when temptations arise?
10. Why do you think Paul says we are light in verses 8–13? How may our identity change from darkness to light?
11. Paul also asks us to “live as children of light” (v. 8). What does that mean for the way you live your life?
12. What does the fruit of the light exist of? (v. 9). How can light have fruit?
13. Read verse 11. Not only are we not to participate in these “fruitless works of darkness,” but we are to instead “expose them”? In what ways are we able to expose them?
14. Why is it important for us to pay “careful attention” to how we walk as wise people?
15. In verse 10, it says to test “what is pleasing to the Lord.” In verse 17, it says to “understand what the Lord’s will is.” How are these two connected? How can we do both?
16. Read verse 18. In light of verses 15-16, why would Paul compare God’s Spirit with wine in verse 18? What’s the connection?
17. How does being filled with the Spirit allow us to walk in wisdom? How do you allow the Spirit to lead you in wisdom?
18. Why is it so important to have boundaries as you walk out your faith? What boundaries are you ready to make to deepen your relationship with God and others?
Live It Out:
1. Pray: Ask God to wake you up to the opportunities of each day, praying as you go through your normal activities. Then, find a time during the day when you can specifically spend time with God.
2. Praise: Find a creative way to thank God. Fill your heart with praise and then offer it, as the Spirit leads. Allow yourself to be filled with the joy of Jesus. As Ephesians 4:19 shares, speak “to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord.”
3. Protection: What areas of your life are you walking in that are in the dark? How can you create specific boundaries in your life to allow the Spirit to empower you to “test what is pleasing to the Lord”?
4. People: Who in your life do you trust to hold you accountable in your life? Be vulnerable with others and allow them to be vulnerable with you. Ask a trusted person in your life to hold you accountable in specific ways that pertain to your current circumstances. If you don’t have those types of relationships in your life, consider getting more involved in a TBC small group.
Reading Plan:
Monday: Ephesians 5:1-18
Tuesday: 1 Corinthians 6
Wednesday: Psalm 112; 119:105-112
Thursday: Isaiah 60:1–3, John 1:4–5; 3:19–21
Friday: Philippians 4:4-9, 2 Corinthians 4:4–6
Saturday: Matthew 9:42-50, 1 John 1:5–7
Recommended Resources:
The Peacemaker by Ken Sande
Reading Ephesians with John Stott
Ephesians - Teen Bible Study Book: Your Identity In Christ by Tony Merida
Ephesians - Bible Study Book: Your Identity in Christ by Tony Merida
1. We learned that boundaries are biblical guidelines that help establish healthy relationships. What are some boundaries you have set in your life?
2. Read Ephesians 5:1-18. What stands out to you from the passage?
3. This passage begins with “therefore.” Look back to Ephesians 4 and reread what Paul wrote there as to why we should live out what is written in chapter 5.
4. What does an imitator do? What examples does this passage give us as to how we should imitate God?
5. What comes to mind when you think of yourself as God’s “dearly loved child” (v. 2)? Why is it important to view God as your heavenly father?
6. Describe a relationship between a parent and a child? What reasons cause a child to imitate his/her parent? How does being a child of God allow you to imitate Him?
7. Notice how walking in love aligns with “giving thanks” (v.4) How are these two connected?
8. Make a list of all the areas that Paul mentions that can happen when we aren’t walking in love. How do we “not become their partners” (v. 7)? Describe some tangible boundaries that might help with each area written out.
9. Read 1 Corinthians 6:18-20. We are called to flee, not flirt, with sexual immorality. Why? Because we are bought at a price. How do we flee, not flirt, when temptations arise?
10. Why do you think Paul says we are light in verses 8–13? How may our identity change from darkness to light?
11. Paul also asks us to “live as children of light” (v. 8). What does that mean for the way you live your life?
12. What does the fruit of the light exist of? (v. 9). How can light have fruit?
13. Read verse 11. Not only are we not to participate in these “fruitless works of darkness,” but we are to instead “expose them”? In what ways are we able to expose them?
14. Why is it important for us to pay “careful attention” to how we walk as wise people?
15. In verse 10, it says to test “what is pleasing to the Lord.” In verse 17, it says to “understand what the Lord’s will is.” How are these two connected? How can we do both?
16. Read verse 18. In light of verses 15-16, why would Paul compare God’s Spirit with wine in verse 18? What’s the connection?
17. How does being filled with the Spirit allow us to walk in wisdom? How do you allow the Spirit to lead you in wisdom?
18. Why is it so important to have boundaries as you walk out your faith? What boundaries are you ready to make to deepen your relationship with God and others?
Live It Out:
1. Pray: Ask God to wake you up to the opportunities of each day, praying as you go through your normal activities. Then, find a time during the day when you can specifically spend time with God.
2. Praise: Find a creative way to thank God. Fill your heart with praise and then offer it, as the Spirit leads. Allow yourself to be filled with the joy of Jesus. As Ephesians 4:19 shares, speak “to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord.”
3. Protection: What areas of your life are you walking in that are in the dark? How can you create specific boundaries in your life to allow the Spirit to empower you to “test what is pleasing to the Lord”?
4. People: Who in your life do you trust to hold you accountable in your life? Be vulnerable with others and allow them to be vulnerable with you. Ask a trusted person in your life to hold you accountable in specific ways that pertain to your current circumstances. If you don’t have those types of relationships in your life, consider getting more involved in a TBC small group.
Reading Plan:
Monday: Ephesians 5:1-18
Tuesday: 1 Corinthians 6
Wednesday: Psalm 112; 119:105-112
Thursday: Isaiah 60:1–3, John 1:4–5; 3:19–21
Friday: Philippians 4:4-9, 2 Corinthians 4:4–6
Saturday: Matthew 9:42-50, 1 John 1:5–7
Recommended Resources:
The Peacemaker by Ken Sande
Reading Ephesians with John Stott
Ephesians - Teen Bible Study Book: Your Identity In Christ by Tony Merida
Ephesians - Bible Study Book: Your Identity in Christ by Tony Merida
Leading "Ephesians" Bible Study Featuring J.D. Greear
Right Now Media
https://app.rightnowmedia.org/en/interactive-content/528913/details