NO EXCUSES RECAP - Stay Focused

SCRIPTURES
James 1:22 | But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

Philippians  3:12-14 | I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

2  Peter 1:3-10 | By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.


DICUSSION

1. What spiritual goals do you have? How are you being a doer and staying focused on them?
2. What does Paul tell us to forget the past and look forward? How can looking back at the past keep you from reaching a goal?
3. What is the ‘end of the race’ for followers of Jesus? How does staying focused on this impact how you live each day?
4. Doers focus on godly living, not just avoiding sinful living. How are these two things different?
5. What guidelines for godly living do you see in 1 Peter 1 that you can focus on? (Verses 5-7)
6. Why is staying on growing this way important? (Verses 8-9)