I Do What?

By Wayne Barber

Marriage begins with “I do” but “I do” what? The commitments spouses make to one another on their wedding day are the beginning of a lifelong process of spiritual and relational growth. Wayne Barber teaches 8 keys that unlock doors to marriage success. Each key opens one door, yet all 8 keys are on the same key ring. Together, these 8 keys open doors in the house that builds the marriage God desires. These 8 lessons can encourage your personal study, study with your spouse, or can be used in small groups.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John Ankerberg
• Release date: Oct 31, 2019
• ISBN: 9781941135600

Wayne Barber

For 18 years he was pastor of the huge Woodland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He was co-teacher with Kay Arthur for 14 years at Precept Ministries. He studied with Dr. Spiros Zodhiates and co-hosted with him the national radio and TV program, "New Testament Light" for 10 years. Wayne has taught the message of living grace, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory all around the world. He is President, founder and principle speaker of Living Grace Ministries. And in February of 2011 he returned to Woodland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee as senior pastor. Wayne has authored several books. The most recent one is entitled "Living Grace: Letting Jesus Be Jesus in You." And he has also co-authored the "Following God" series of studies published by AMG.

Book preview

I DO WHAT?

Teaching on Marriage

WORKBOOK

By Dr. Wayne Barber

Published by ATRI Publishing

Copyright 2019

ISBN 9781941135600

License Notes

No part of this publication, including the artwork, may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—except for brief quotations in printed reviews—without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. NIV ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Cover Design by Beth Lamberson, ATRI Publishing, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.

Table of Contents

Title page

Lesson #1—The Key of Believing

Lesson #2—The Key of Dying

Lesson #3—The Key of Growing

Lesson #4—The Key of Releasing

Lesson #5—The Key of Trusting

Lesson #6—The Key of Experiencing

Lesson #7—The Key of Giving

Lesson #8—The Key of Resting

Lesson #1—Turning The Key of Believing

Introduction

In this course, we will be using different keys that unlock the doors to the marriage that God has in mind for ALL of His children. The keys will be different because each one has a different door that it opens, but they are all on the same ring. Each door leads to another door. Diana and I have sat down and gone through the things that God has taught us over the last 40+ years to give us the relationship that we have that has no regrets and gets better day by day! We both pray that this course will be helpful and encouraging to all of you who choose to go through it with us, whether you are married or thinking about getting married. No marriage starts off perfect, and it is, at the very least, a journey. The relationship that we want in marriage doesn’t happen overnight. It doesn’t happen when you say I do. It only begins at that point!

If we are going to have the marriage that God wants us to have, then first and foremost we must understand the first key of BELIEVING. If the husband or the wife, in a marriage relationship, is not a believer, then the marriage has begun on the wrong foot. God can overcome any such situation but the relationship will be strained to its limits if both do not know Christ. Paul clearly says in 2 Corinthians 6:14, Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?

Diana and I both thought we were saved when we were married. We had done all that they told us to do, including being baptized, but we did not have a relationship with God through Christ His Son. We were professors of Christianity but not possessors of Christ in our hearts. In fact, this was the basis of all the struggles we had early in our marriage. Neither of us understood that marriage was a covenant with one another in which each lose their right to independent living. The reason we did not understand was because we were not in covenant with God through His Son.

This is the first key; the key of believing. When both Diana and I realized that we were not saved and we each bowed before Christ and received Him into our hearts, everything changed and we entered into a room of our marriage that we didn’t know could exist.

In this lesson, let’s make sure that we have all turned that key and entered into a relationship with Christ before we even think of moving on!

The passages I want us to look at are found in the gospel of John. They have to do with a religious man by the name of Nicodemus.

DAY 1

READ John 3:1-21

1. Turn to the book of John and begin reading in chapter 3:1. Read through verse 21.

2. Now, what did you observe in these verses? Write out the specific things or words that drew your attention in this story.

3. Who was Nicodemus according to what you read in God’s Word? Write out the verse or verses that tell you that.

READ John 7:45-53

4. Why do you think that he approached Jesus by night? Read chapter 7:45-53 and see if it helps you understand the reason he did this. Write out what you find.

5. How did Jesus immediately respond to him? Write out the verse that tells you this.

6. The term born again is literally born from above. How did Nicodemus respond to this statement in verse 4? Did his reply indicate that he understood this spiritual birth?

7. Do you understand this term? How is it different from physical birth?

8 There are not two births defined by Jesus in verse 5, but Jesus describes regeneration as being born from above, by mentioning two things. What are they?

9. Now, don’t get confused. He is not saying that there are two things needed for being born from above. Nicodemus was a teacher of the law; a Pharisee; a member of the Sanhedrin. He should have known what Jesus was talking about but didn’t. In fact, Jesus chastised Nicodemus for not understanding what He was saying in verse 10.

Now, let’s take this slow. First of all, there is no definite article, no word the before the word Spirit, so it should read of water and Spirit. The word of joins the two things together; of water and Spirit. Jesus is clarifying being born from above by using two terms that describe the new birth that this teacher of the Law should have understood.

There are several views of this difficult passage but the one