Lesson Seven
Claiming the Promises
A promise is only good if it is claimed. 应许若不抓住，就毫无作用。
Jesus' teachings are not suggestions but the blueprint for every disciple. Both builders heard; only one did. Obedience is the foundation that stands in the storm, and it begins in the heart. 耶稣的教导不是建议，而是每个门徒的蓝图。两人都听见，只有一人去行。顺服是能在风暴中站立的根基，且从心开始。
Memory verse: Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22)
The bridge, and the series close: Lesson 6 said obey what Jesus taught. But obeying is costly and the road is long. Where do we find the strength and courage to keep walking? Lesson 7 answers: in the promises of God. A disciple who obeys without claiming promises burns out; a disciple who claims promises without obeying deceives himself. This session joins faith to obedience and sends the youth out equipped for the whole road.
The Bible is a book of promises. A promise is only good if it is claimed.
圣经是一本应许之书。应许若不被抓住，就毫无作用。信心是伸出的手，去领受神已经赐下的。问题不是神是否守约，而是我们有没有信心去抓住。
The image to use: an uncashed cheque. God has signed it, dated it, drawn on the infinite Bank of God. The amount is the promise you need. But a cheque does nothing sitting in a drawer. Prayer is how you present it; faith is how you believe it will be honoured; obedience is how you prove you believe it. Set this image up before the passages.
Welcome & Check-in 欢迎与近况
- Have you ever made a promise to someone who did not believe you or take you seriously? How did it feel? 你可曾向一个不信你、不把你当真的人许下承诺？那感受如何？
- Now flip it: how do you think God feels when we claim to trust Him but live as though His word were not reliable? 反过来：当我们自称信靠神，却活得好像祂的话不可靠，你想神有何感受？
Scripture Exploration 查考经文
Two passages. The first shows what God's promises are for. The second shows where every promise is fulfilled.
Read first — what promises are for 先读 — 应许的用途His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. By these he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
- According to verse 4, what do God's promises let us participate in? What does it mean to "partake of the divine nature"? 第4节说，神的应许让我们有分于什么？「有分于神的性情」是什么意思？
- How do promises help us escape sinful desires? (Hint: they replace the false promise sin makes.) 应许如何帮助我们脱离罪恶的欲望？（提示：它们取代罪所作的虚假应许。）
Two anchors. First, God has already given us everything we need for life and godliness; the promises are how we access what is already ours. Second, "partakers of the divine nature" does not mean we become gods; it means we reflect God's character as we claim promises of purity, strength, and wisdom. This connects to Lesson 5 (the Spirit producing fruit) and Lesson 3 (escape from corruption). The series is one fabric.
For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God, for his glory.
- How many of God's promises find their Yes in Christ? What does that mean for us when we claim one? 神的应许有几成在基督里都是「是」？我们抓住应许时，这意味着什么？
- If our part is belief and God's part is fulfilment, what is Christ's role? 若我们的本分是信，神的本分是成全，基督的角色是什么？
This is the strongest verse on claiming promises. All of them are Yes in Christ. We do not claim on our own merit; we claim through His merit. "Amen" means "so be it": when we claim a promise, we are saying Amen through Jesus to God's glory. The chain is complete: God promises, Christ guarantees, we believe and say Amen, God fulfils for His glory.
Application — the Promise Hunt 应用 — 寻找应许
A disciple learns to hunt for promises. Here are three for common needs. Read each, personalise it in your own words, then claim it in prayer.
All the promises of God find their Yes in him.2 Corinthians 1:20 — Memory Verse
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God... will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)
Do not suppress anxiety; pray it up with thanks. His peace is a garrison over heart and mind. 不要压抑忧虑，要带着感谢祷告交托。祂的平安如卫兵守护心怀意念。
"And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19)
Note: needs, not greeds. The resource is His unlimited glory. 注意：是「需用」，不是「贪求」。资源是祂无尽的荣耀。
"But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." (Isaiah 40:31)
Strength is renewed by hoping in the Lord, not by willpower. Note the descent: soar, then run, then walk. Even when you cannot run, you can walk. 力量是借仰望主而更新，非靠意志。注意次序：飞、跑、走。即或不能跑，仍能走。
- Identify the need. Anxiety? Finance? Weakness? Loneliness? 认出需要。忧虑？财务？软弱？孤单？
- Search the Word. Use a concordance or Bible app on that theme. 查考主道。用经文汇编或圣经App按主题搜寻。
- Read carefully. Read the whole verse and its context; understand what God actually promises. 仔细阅读。读整节并其上下文；明白神真正应许的是什么。
- Write it in your own words. This sinks it into the heart. 用自己的话写下。这能把应许深植于心。
- Claim it in prayer. "Lord, You promised in [verse] that [promise]. I claim this by faith today. Help me to believe and obey." 凭信祷告抓住。「主啊，你在（经文）应许了（应许）。我今天凭信心抓住。帮助我信而顺服。」
Some promises are unconditional (God's love, salvation by grace). Many carry conditions. Use Joshua 1:8 ("meditate day and night... then you will have success") to show that claiming a promise often means ordering your obedience around it. A youth cannot claim peace while refusing to forgive, or provision while refusing to give. Tie this to Lesson 6: a promise is not truly claimed until it shapes obedience.
Prayer & Commitment 祷告与立志
Father, forgive me for living as though Your word were not reliable. I have read Your promises but doubted them; I have heard them but not claimed them. Today I choose to believe. I choose to take You at Your word. Lord, You promised [speak the specific promise you are claiming]. I claim this by faith. I know it is true, not because I feel it, but because You said it. Increase my faith. Help me to live as though Your promises are real. In Jesus' name, Amen.
父啊，求你赦免我活得好像你的话不可靠。我读过你的应许却怀疑，听过却未抓住。今天我选择相信，选择信你的话。主啊，你曾应许（说出你正抓住的具体应许）。我凭信心抓住。我知道这是真的，不是因为我的感觉，而是因为你说了。求你加增我的信心，帮助我活得好像你的应许是真实的。奉耶稣的名，阿们。
Hunt one promise for your most pressing need this week. Write it out in your own words, claim it daily in prayer, and let it shape at least one act of obedience. Come ready to share next week. 本周为你最迫切的需要寻找一个应许。用自己的话写下，每天祷告中抓住，并让它塑造至少一个顺服的行动。下周预备分享。
Takeaways — and the road ahead 要点回顾 — 与前路
- God's character is staked on His promises. He cannot lie; His word is more reliable than any contract. 神的性情系于祂的应许。祂不能说谎；祂的话比任何合约更可靠。
- A promise is only good if it is claimed. Belief is the hand that receives; prayer presents the cheque; faith believes it honoured. 应许若不被抓住就毫无作用。信心是领受的手；祷告把支票呈上；信心相信它必兑现。
- All promises are Yes in Christ. We claim through His merit, not ours. 所有应许在基督里都是「是」。我们靠祂的功劳抓住，不靠自己。
- Many promises carry conditions. Claiming means ordering your obedience around the promise. 许多应许带有条件。抓住应许意味着让顺服围绕它而排列。
This closes the series. Read the seven Big Ideas in order; they form the road itself:
- Salvation is a gift; discipleship is a walk. 救恩是礼物，门徒之路是行走。
- Faith saves; surrender shapes. 信心拯救，交托塑造。
- The chains are cut; victory is a choice. 锁链已断，得胜是选择。
- Grow on four pillars, not one. 靠四根支柱成长，而非一根。
- The Spirit is the fuel; surrender is the gateway. 圣灵是燃料，交托是门径。
- Jesus' teaching is the blueprint; obedience is the rock. 耶稣的教导是蓝图，顺服是磐石。
- The road is sustained by claimed promises. 道路靠抓住的应许维系。
Encourage the youth: this was never a course to finish but a road to walk. The lessons end here; the journey does not. Invite them to keep walking daily, in the power of the Spirit, on the foundation of obedience, sustained by the promises of God.