Grow in the Grace and Knowledge of Jesus

CHRIST we proclaim,
warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom,
so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.
Colossians 1:28
If you have never been through a focused discipleship and spiritual growth study, now is a great time to start! Beginning Monday February 3, 2025 we will be sharing our MilktoMeat discipleship curriculum through our blog. Each day, Monday through Thursday (a few Fridays), there will be a new reading, along with resources, designed to help you grow in the Grace and Knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who is This Study For?
We have designed this study around a simple idea: these are the truths that we wished someone had taught us as new believers, new followers of Jesus.
» If you are a new follower of Jesus, or
» If you have never been trained how to follow Jesus, or
» If you want to learn how to train others to follow Jesus…
then you are PERFECT for this study.
What is The Story Behind MilktoMeat?
Do you want to grow spiritually but aren’t sure where to start or what will work? For over thirty years we have been developing and refining MilktoMeat based upon what makes a difference in people’s lives. Many men and women, from various walks of life, ages, and backgrounds have been transformed while going through this study. This study is an invitation to experience how Father-God working in Jesus Christ through the power and presence of His Holy Spirit will transform You.
We believe that this is a powerful tool and resource for anyone who wants to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). We pray that this study will become a means for you to connect more deeply with Father-God’s love and purposes for you in Christ so that you make your life’s journey worthy of your destination!
Tom Murray, the founder of Truth Seekers Fellowship, began to follow Jesus in his late twenties. At that point, he was what all new followers of Jesus are: a blank sheet of paper. Although Tom was hungry and willing to pursue spiritual growth, he found that his early years as a student of Jesus were not as fulfilling and productive as they could have been. Tom got bits and pieces of important truth and practices, but he had no one to lead him and train him in a logical and sequential way with the goal of spiritual maturity in sight.
After many years of searching, learning, and growing through trial and error, Tom decided to put together a study that would, “teach others what I wish older, more mature Christians had taught me as a new believer.” This study and curriculum became MilktoMeat. The guiding principle behind all of MilktoMeat is simple: teaching the truth in the right order at the right time.
Our core commitments are three-fold:
» Bible Based | The Bible has been given to us by God to instruct us in His Ways and give us hope. This study is Bible Based because we are confident that the Message of the Bible (the Written Word) gives us hope by guiding us to Jesus Christ.
Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in former times was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and through encouragement of the Scriptures we may have hope. {NET}
2 Timothy 3:14–15 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed. You know those who taught you, and you know that from childhood you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
» Christ Focused | Jesus Christ is the Creator, Savior, and King of all creation and therefore the ONLY Way that leads us to the One True God. There- fore, this study is Christ Focused because we are confident that He is Creator, Savior, and King of all Creation and therefore central to all things:
Hebrews 12:1b–2 …Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, 12:2 keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.
» Life Transforming | Father-God Works in Christ His Son through the Holy Spirit to transform our lives. When anyone is presented with the truth and goodness of God in the glory of Jesus Christ, that person will be affected. The Lord-God has revealed Himself to us in His Written Word—The Bible—and this Word points us to the Living Word—Our Savior and Lord Jesus—so that we can see Him. We are confident that Father-God has given us His Word and is working in Christ through His Spirit to set free, heal, and transform anyone who is willing to turn from their old way of life and to trust and follow Jesus Christ who leads us in the way of true life.
2 Corinthians 3:16–18 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 3:18 We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.
What is the Larger Structure of MilktoMeat?
MilktoMeat is divided into three Phases: 1) Discovering the Way, 2) Walking in the Truth and 3) Living the Life. Each of these Phases consist of two 7 Session study units. These units are designed to lead you in the process of Spiritual Transformation that takes place as you grow in your relationship with Father-God in Christ.
» Phase 1 | DISCOVERING THE WAY
In this first phase, our goal is to build a frame of reference for life by recovering The Master Story of the Bible. This Master Story sets the context for understanding The Gospel—the Good News about Jesus and The Kingdom which enlightens our lives. We focus on the three core life questions: 1) Where have we come from? 2) Why are we here? And 3) How will our lives turn out? We then turn to explore the major Gospel Questions: 1) Why Did God Create Us? 2) What Went Wrong? 3) What Did God Do? 4) What is God Doing? 5) What will God Do? and 6) How Should We Respond? Our Father-God working in Christ through The Spirit has provided answers to these questions that give us the one thing that we need more than anything else: HOPE. This phase is divided into two seven- session workbooks: Recovering the Master Story and Enlightened by the Gospel
» Phase 2 | WALKING IN THE TRUTH
In our second phase, we explore what it means to trust and follow Jesus ALONE as our only Savior. We focus on our new identity and position in Christ and how this new reality fulfills our need for 1) Security, 2) Significance and 3) Fulfillment as people created in the image and likeness of God. We also explore issues related to The Great Spiritual War in which we find ourselves—broken and wounded by sin, but now being transformed to be like Christ Jesus. Our lives are journeys of FAITH; we are all trusting in someone to show us The Way. This phase is divided into two seven-session workbooks: Realizing Your New Identity in Christ and Rooted and Growing in Christ
» Phase 3 | LIVING THE LIFE
In our final phase, we consider what it means to be a life-long disciple/student/ apprentice of Jesus. We focus on the significant role everyone “in Christ” has. “In Christ” we are each gifted and empowered to serve as the Body of Christ (The Church) in the World where Jesus is leading His mission to seek and save those who are spiritually lost, dead, and enslaved in the Dominion of Darkness. God is love. As we come to know Jesus Christ truly, following Him wherever He may lead, we too become people characterized by His self-sacrificial LOVE. This phase is divided into two seven-session studies: Empowered by The Presence of the Spirit and Serving as The Body of Christ.
MilktoMeat provides a simple roadmap for spiritual growth in Christ. All that is required of you is to be a “hungry” and willing student!
We hope you join us, this year, for the journey of a lifetime – “to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).
Stacy
I am so excited about this opportunity to have the Bible study Milk to Meat .
I took it many years ago with Tom Murray as our teacher
iIt transformed my life and brought such joy , hope confidence in my understanding and knowing my savior God and Jesus .
Over the last several years I have read the chronological Bible and wanted to study something different . This will be the perfect study for me this year .
I know you have perfected the study since Tom teachings. I believe I studied under Tom for 4 years and to think I can study for 8 months under your leadership
will be an amazing feat !!
I look forward to journeying with you this year 2024.
Lord knows our country is in a crisis and only HE can make us whole and well.
Love to you God. Bless
Carole West