The Message Everyone Needs to Hear!

“The Paradigm Shift That Changes Everything” The Thief’s Story (and Ours) ✝️

Picture this: Jesus is hanging on the cross, beaten and bloodied. On each side of Him are criminals — guilty men getting the punishment they deserve.

At first, both of them are mocking Him (Matthew 27:44). But then something happens. One thief has a paradigm shift— a complete change in thinking.

• He realizes: “I deserve this. I’m guilty.”

• He recognizes: “But this Man doesn’t. He’s innocent.”

• And then he does the most important thing anyone can ever do:

“Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom.” – Luke 23:42

And Jesus replies with the promise:

“Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.” – Luke 23:43

That’s salvation in its rawest form.

Repentance: A Change of Mind or Attitude 🔄

Here’s where most preachers get it wrong!

Repentance isn’t about turning from your sin, yet this is taught from the pulpit in countless churches every Sunday!

You can’t turn from your sin without the Holy Spirit living inside you. It’s impossible! Repentance in the New Testament has always been about one central theme...

Repentance is a change of mind or attitude. It’s saying: “I used to see life one way, but now I see it through God’s eyes. I once trusted myself, but now I see I am in a sinful state. He is holy, and I need Him.”

That’s what happened to the thief. He didn’t climb off that cross and clean up his life. He couldn’t. But his mind and attitude changed concerning how he saw his eternal situation — and that’s when salvation came. He asked the Messiah to do all the work by remembering him.

What Does This Mean for Us? 📖

Like that thief, we all:

• Live in a sinful state: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23

• Can’t save ourselves: “The wages of sin is death…” – Romans 6:23a

• Are offered grace through Jesus: “…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” – Romans 6:23b

Salvation is simple: acknowledge your sinful state, recognize who Jesus is, and ask Him to save you.

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” – Romans 10:9

The Prayer That Saves (Not Magic Words, But a Sincere Heart):

🙏“Lord, I know I am in a sinful state. I know You are holy. I believe You died for me and rose again. I’m done trusting myself. I’m trusting You. Remember me.”

How to Share This With Others 🗣️

Want to lead your wife, kids, or co-workers to Jesus?

• Tell this story (the thief on the cross).

• Share these verses (Romans 3:23, 6:23, 10:9).

• Invite them to pray and trust Christ.

Challenge: 💪

“This week, share the thief’s story with one person you care about — and invite them to respond to Christ.” Focus: Salvation, repentance, and leadership through the Gospel

1. Have you ever experienced a “paradigm shift” like the thief on the cross? What changed

in your thinking?

2. Can you clearly explain the Gospel message to someone else? If not, what part do you

need to study or practice more?

3. What lies have you believed about repentance that this lesson corrected?

4. Who in your life needs to hear the Gospel from you this week?

5. What’s holding you back from boldly sharing your faith?

Zero Dark Thirty

💥 When most of the world is still asleep, soldiers move under the cover of darkness. Missions are launched in the early hours — because the enemy is not expecting it. Spiritually, your war is no different. The enemy attacks in the unseen hours, when your guard is down. This is the time to suit up, lock in, and go to war for your soul and the souls you’re called to protect.

1. Know Your Battlefield 🗺️

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” – Ephesians 6:12

Your fight isn’t against people. It’s against unseen forces of evil.

That means:

• Your wife isn’t the enemy.

• Your kids aren’t the enemy.

• Satan is.

If you don’t see the battlefield clearly, you’ll waste all your energy fighting the wrong targets.

Single Man Intel 🎯Your battlefield might look different, but the stakes are just as high. The enemy wants your purity, your purpose, and your focus before you ever get a wife or kids — so you’ll have nothing left to offer them when the time comes.

2. Suit Up Every Day 🛡️

“Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” – Ephesians 6:13

You wouldn’t go into combat in your underwear. So why do so many men try to fight spiritual battles unarmed?

Here’s your daily gear checklist (Ephesians 6:14–18):

• Belt of Truth – Ground yourself in God’s Word every morning.

• Breastplate of Righteousness – Guard your heart with holiness and integrity.

• Shoes of the Gospel of Peace – Be ready to bring peace into every room you enter.

• Shield of Faith – Trust God when fear and lies come at you like bullets.

• Helmet of Salvation – Protect your mind by remembering who you are in Christ.

• Sword of the Spirit – Use Scripture to fight back against the enemy’s attacks.

• Prayer – Stay on comms with your Commander at all times.

Single Man Intel 🎯This isn’t “pre-season.” This is game time. The habits you’re building now will determine if you’re a warrior later. Start suiting up every morning before your feet hit the floor.

3. Provide & Protect Like a Warrior ⚔️

“Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.” – Ephesians 5:25

As a husband and father, you’re called to provide and protect — not just financially, but spiritually and emotionally.

• Pray over your wife and kids daily (out loud, where they can hear you).

• Set boundaries in your home (what you allow in — media, influences, habits — shapes their souls).

• Stand between them and anything that threatens their faith or safety.

Single Man Intel 🎯You can still provide and protect — it just looks different.

• Provide for your own spiritual growth (Bible, prayer, accountability).

• Protect your heart from relationships, environments, and habits that pull you away from God.

• Be the kind of man now that a future wife and kids would thank God for later.

4. Train Like Your Life Depends On It 🏋️‍♂️

A soldier doesn’t train once and call it good — he trains every day.

Your Training Plan:

• Daily Scripture – 10–15 minutes in the Word (start with Ephesians 5–6).

• Daily Prayer – Start your day in God’s presence, end it thanking Him.

• Weekly Fellowship – Surround yourself with brothers who sharpen you (Proverbs 27:17).

• Fast & Worship – Build disciplines that starve the flesh and feed the Spirit.

Single Man Intel 🎯This is the season to go all in. No split loyalties, no excuses. Use your freedom from family obligations to build deep spiritual muscle.

5. Stand Your Ground 🪖

“Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth…” – Ephesians 6:14

When the attacks come — and they will — don’t run.Stand firm.Stand on God’s promises.Stand for the people God has entrusted to you.

When everything in you wants to quit, remember the Cross. Your Commander already won the war. You’re just holding the line until He calls you home.

Single Man Intel 🎯Stand for your brothers in the fight. Stand for your future. Stand for the call God’s put on your life — even if no one else is watching.

Practical Steps This Week:

• Read Ephesians 5–6 daily this week.

• Pray over your family, your brothers, and your future — out loud.

• Write down three areas where you’ve left a door open for the enemy — and slam them shut.

Prayer for Men 🙏

“Lord, train me for the battle. Help me put on Your armor every day, stand my ground against the enemy, and fight for my brothers, my wife, my children, or my future family. Make me a protector, a provider, and a warrior for Your Kingdom. Amen.”

Your Turn 👊

What’s one thing you need to do this week to start fighting for the people God’s entrusted to you?Write it. Pray it. Do it.

Discussion Questions:

1. Where have you been fighting the wrong enemy?

2. Which piece of the armor do you tend to neglect?

3. How would your week change if you prayed before reacting?

4. What’s one way you can “advance” in your faith this week?

5. Who do you know that needs you to help them gear up?

Single Man Intel 🎯 – The enemy doesn’t wait until you’re married to attack. He wants your purity, your purpose, and your future leadership potential right now.

The Brotherhood – Where No Man is Expected to Fight Alone 🪖🤝

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." – Hebrews 12:1–2 (KJV) 📖

💥 Introduction: Jesus’ Men’s Group

When Jesus began His ministry, He could have gone it alone — but He didn’t. He called twelve ordinary men to walk with Him, learn from Him, and stand beside Him in the greatest mission in history.

Fishermen 🎣, tax collectors 💰, political zealots ⚔️ — each from different walks of life, yet forged into a single unit under the Master’s command. Over three years, He turned them into a brotherhood that would carry the Gospel to the ends of the earth — often at the cost of their lives.

1️⃣ Training Under the Master

“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” – Matthew 4:19 🎯

The disciples didn’t just listen to sermons — they lived in the trenches with Jesus:

• Witnessing miracles together ✝️

• Facing hostility from the Pharisees 🛡️

• Enduring storms at sea 🌊

• Watching Jesus pray 🙏, serve 🥖, and lay down His life 🩸

They learned that real growth happens shoulder to shoulder in the mission field, not from the sidelines.

2️⃣ Their Brotherhood Became Their Battle Unit

After Jesus ascended into Heaven, they locked shields instead of scattering:

• Courage under fire – Acts 4:13 💪

• Boldness in the face of threats – Acts 5:29 🗣️

• Sacrificial generosity – Acts 2:44–45 ❤️

Their unity was a force multiplier.

3️⃣ How They Lived… and How They Died

This wasn’t a casual friendship — it was a covenant forged in blood and mission:

• Peter – crucified upside down.

• Andrew – crucified on an X-shaped cross.

• James (son of Zebedee) – executed by sword.

• John – exiled to Patmos after persecution.

• Thomas – speared in India.

• Matthew – killed by the sword.

They didn’t die alone — they fought knowing their brothers would carry on the mission.

4️⃣ The Brotherhood Blueprint

Supporting Verses:

• Proverbs 27:17 – Iron sharpeneth iron… 🪓

• Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 – Two are better than one… 🤝

• Galatians 6:2 – Bear ye one another’s burdens… 🛡️

• 1 Peter 5:9 – Your brethren face the same fight…

Core Truths:

1. Your Unit Matters – Isolation is spiritual suicide.

2. Train Like Lives Depend on It – Because they do.

3. Share the Load – Their burdens are your burdens.

4. Bleed Together, Win Together – Shared victory is stronger victory.

💪 Challenge for the Week

Find 2–3 men in this group you’ll treat as your battle brothers.

• Swap numbers 📱

• Share your current fight 🎯

• Pray daily for each other 🙏

• Commit to not letting any man go AWOL.

🙏 Prayer

"Lord, bind me to men who will fight with me, pray for me, and speak truth to me. Make me the kind of brother who will not run when the battle rages, but will lock shields until the day You call me home. Amen."

📌 Discussion Questions

For Married & Single Men Alike:

1. Who are your “foxhole brothers” right now — and do they know it?

2. How have you seen God work through the unity of other believers in your life?

3. Which disciple’s story challenges you the most — and why?

4. What’s one barrier that keeps you from opening up to other men?

5. How will you actively strengthen your bond with another man in the group this week?