SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY: SONS & DAUGHTERS — TAKE THE PLUNGE: I’M ALL IN
Based on the message by Pastor Chad Everett
OVERVIEW
What does it really mean to be all in with Jesus?
It is possible to believe in Jesus, go to church, know the right answers, and still keep parts of your life under your own control.
In Spiritual Authority: Sons & Daughters | Take the Plunge: I’m All In, Pastor Chad Everett continues teaching from Galatians 3:26–27. Through faith in Jesus, we become sons and daughters of God. Then Paul says that those who have been baptized into Christ have also “put on Christ.”
The word baptizō carries the idea of being plunged, immersed, or completely covered. Jesus does not want one small part of our lives while we control the rest. He invites us to go all in.
“Baptizo is I take the plunge, I’m all in.”
Jesus also teaches in John 15 that He is the vine and we are the branches. Peace, wisdom, righteousness, spiritual fruit, and the strength to live differently come through staying connected to Him.
Galatians 3:27 also says that we have “put on Christ.” In Christ, we have been given a new identity. The old patterns, attitudes, labels, and behaviors that once defined us do not have to control us anymore.
This study will challenge you to think about whether you are truly all in with Jesus, what you are connected to, how your connection with Christ affects the people around you, and whether you are living from your new identity or still putting on things that no longer fit.
HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE
Read → Respond → Reflect → Pray → Live It
Read each passage carefully. Do not rush through it just to answer the questions. Pay attention to what the Bible actually says.
Respond to the questions from Scripture first.
Then reflect honestly on your own life. Think about where you may be holding something back from Jesus, trying to handle life through your own strength, or slipping back into ways of thinking and living that do not match who you are in Christ.
Pray about what the Holy Spirit shows you.
Finally, choose something practical to live out. The goal is not simply to understand the phrase “take the plunge.” The goal is to actually live all in with Jesus.
SECTION 1 — KNOW WHO YOU ARE: SONS AND DAUGHTERS THROUGH FAITH
FOCUS
Galatians 3:26 gives us the foundation for our identity: through faith in Jesus, we are sons and daughters of God.
Grades, appearance, sports, relationships, achievements, and other people’s opinions can all change. Our identity in Christ does not. We do not have to build our worth on something we can lose.
READ
Galatians 3:26–29
RESPOND
- According to Galatians 3:26, who are those who have faith in Christ Jesus?
- How do we become sons and daughters of God?
- According to verse 27, what has happened to those who were baptized into Christ?
- What distinctions does Paul say no longer determine our standing in Christ?
- According to verse 29, what is true of those who belong to Christ?
REFLECT
- Which things have the biggest effect on how you see yourself: grades, appearance, sports, relationships, popularity, social media, future plans, or something else?
- When you fail, get rejected, or disappoint someone, how quickly does that affect what you believe about yourself?
- What would change if being a son or daughter of God became the most important truth about your identity?
- Where are you tempted to earn your worth instead of receiving your identity through faith in Jesus?
Further Scripture Reading
Galatians 3:26–29
SECTION 2 — TAKE THE PLUNGE: BE FULLY IMMERSED IN CHRIST
FOCUS
Galatians 3:27 says believers are baptized into Christ. The word baptizō gives the picture of being completely immersed.
Jesus does not want only the parts of our lives we are comfortable giving Him. Following Him means more than a Sunday-only faith. It means taking the plunge and going all in.
READ
Galatians 3:26–27
RESPOND
- According to Galatians 3:27, into whom are believers baptized?
- What does verse 27 say those baptized into Christ have put on?
- According to verse 26, how are we connected to Christ in the first place?
- Does Paul describe believers as being baptized into an organization or into Christ Himself?
- What do verses 26–27 together teach about our relationship with Jesus?
REFLECT
- Are there parts of your life where you want Jesus involved and other parts where you would rather make your own decisions?
- Is your relationship with Jesus mostly connected to church, or does it affect the way you live the rest of the week?
- What part of going “all in” with Jesus feels hardest to you right now?
- If you stopped reserving part of your life for yourself, what might actually have to change?
Further Scripture Reading
Galatians 3:26–29
SECTION 3 — STAY CONNECTED AND LET JESUS SPILL OUT OF YOU
FOCUS
Jesus says in John 15:5 that He is the vine and we are the branches. A branch only has life and produces fruit by staying connected to the vine.
We do not have to manufacture peace, wisdom, or spiritual fruit on our own. As we stay connected to Jesus, His life grows in us and begins to spill out through the way we live.
READ
John 15:5; Galatians 3:27
RESPOND
- In John 15:5, who does Jesus say is the vine, and who are the branches?
- What does Jesus say happens when someone abides in Him?
- What does Jesus say we can do apart from Him?
- According to Galatians 3:27, into whom have believers been baptized?
- How do John 15:5 and Galatians 3:27 together describe our connection with Christ?
REFLECT
- Are you trying to produce peace, joy, wisdom, or spiritual fruit through your own strength instead of staying connected to Jesus?
- When you do not immediately see an answer to prayer, are you tempted to pull away from God?
- What actually helps you stay connected to Jesus during a normal week?
- When people spend time with you, what are they experiencing from what is spilling out of your life?
Further Scripture Reading
John 15:1–8
SECTION 4 — PUT ON CHRIST: YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN A NEW IDENTITY
FOCUS
Galatians 3:27 says we have “put on Christ.” Colossians 3 and 2 Corinthians 5:17 show that this means we have been made new.
The goal is not simply to become a better version of ourselves. Our minds are being renewed according to the image of Jesus, and our identity is now found in Him.
READ
Galatians 3:27; Colossians 3:9–11; 2 Corinthians 5:17
RESPOND
- According to Galatians 3:27, what have those baptized into Christ put on?
- According to Colossians 3:9–10, what has the believer put off and put on?
- According to Colossians 3:10, in what is the new man being renewed?
- Whose image is the new man being renewed according to?
- According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, what is true of anyone who is in Christ?
REFLECT
- Do you see yourself mainly through your past and failures, or through what Scripture says is true of you in Christ?
- Are you trying to become a “better version of yourself,” or are you learning to become more like Jesus?
- What old label do you still tend to carry even though Jesus has made you new?
- How would your choices change if you consistently remembered that you have put on Christ?
Further Scripture Reading
Colossians 3:9–11; 2 Corinthians 5:17
SECTION 5 — TAKE OFF WHAT NO LONGER FITS
FOCUS
Colossians 3 tells believers to put off old attitudes, words, and behaviors because we have already put off the old man and put on the new.
Old patterns may try to come back, but they no longer define us. When they show up, we can repent, take them off, and choose what fits our new identity in Christ.
READ
Colossians 3:8–11; 2 Corinthians 5:17
RESPOND
- What behaviors does Colossians 3:8 tell believers to put off?
- What additional behavior does verse 9 tell believers to stop?
- According to Colossians 3:9–10, what has the believer put off and put on?
- According to verse 10, how is the new man being renewed?
- According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, what is true of someone who is in Christ?
REFLECT
- What attitude, thought pattern, words, habit, or behavior keeps trying to come back into your life?
- When you fail, do you immediately start defining yourself by what you did?
- Is there something you need to repent of and take off instead of saying, “That is just who I am”?
- Where does your thinking need to change so that you live according to your new identity in Christ?
Further Scripture Reading
Colossians 3:8–11
FINAL ENCOURAGEMENT
Jesus is inviting you to take the plunge and go all in.
Through faith in Christ, you are a son or daughter of God. Stay connected to Jesus and let His life grow in you and spill out through you.
You have put on Christ and been made new. When old habits, labels, or ways of thinking try to come back, remember that they no longer fit who you are.
“Will you take the plunge? Will you go all in?”
Take the plunge. Stay connected. Live from your new identity.
Be all in with Jesus.