Answer The Question Series

We have talked before about the importance of order and the Law of First Mention. First things, first fruits, first statements all matter. They are highly important and worth paying attention to. This should cause us to pay particular attention to the very first question God ever asked. This initial, primary question is recorded in . . .

Text: Genesis 3:9 (NIV)

But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”

I remind you that God is omniscient. In other words, He is all knowing. The question wasn't asked because Adam was the greatest, hall of fame, undisputed champion of all time hide and seek contestant and been able to find some God proof hiding place where even God couldn't locate Him. THE question WASN'T posed so that God could gain information He didn't already have. It was a question asked to force Adam to come to grips with information that Adam needed. He had gone from walking openly, transparently and shamelessly before gone to hiding from God's presence and the question forces him to evaluate his new condition and position. God asks Adam this question to force him to come face to face with Adam! God knew where Adam was. The question is did Adam? Haven’t we discovered that we can be oblivious to our own lack, fallen condition, location? They don’t call them blind spots for nothing! That is why this is THE question that we must answer as we begin this New Year. It is a question that we should continually be asking of ourselves. We must also know that this is THE question that God continues to ask us to force us to recognize, address and embrace our location and position as it relates to Him. Like Adam we can choose to hide but like Adam we soon discover that God knows where we are!

So, this is the question for us . . . Where are you?

Mrs. Smith had applied herself. Out of high school she attended the local university and then did her student teaching and finally not only graduates with her degree but is awarded her state teaching certificate. She lands her first job in an elementary school several counties over. Her first year is spent in burning the midnight oil, scratching out effective lesson plans and learning to juggle children and parents. The final day of school approaches and by all standards it was a successful first year with only a few hiccups here and there. Finally, summer break arrives and is enjoyed. As she enters her second year Mrs. Smith is in a rhythm and by following the same exact plans as year one the second year seems to go flawlessly. During her third year Mrs. Smith notices that the other teachers are trying new approaches and techniques but Mrs. Smith sticks to her guns and repeats her successful formula from the previous years to the letter. This approach is followed annually until at year 25, Mrs. Smith retires. The question then is did Mrs. Smith have 25 years of teaching experience or did she have one year of experience 25 times?

Sadly, this same question should and could be asked of most if not all of us spiritually. We had this moment where we came to grips with our need of Jesus for salvation. He altered our path from death to life. Then time goes by and too often, like Mrs. Smith, we turn the pages of the calendar and we age, but we don’t mature in our walk with Christ. Too often we simply have one year of relationship repeated 3 times, 5 times and in some cases 25 times.

We have made spiritual maturity a calendar issue. We begin to believe a false narrative that says, "How long I have been saved determines how spiritually mature I am". As the calendar turns without any intentionality or effort on my part, I assume that I also increase in spiritual maturity. Like cheese I become better with time. I don't have to do anything to become more mature except traverse time.

I believe this is why we have we have grown consistently more uncomfortable with preaching and discussions about spiritual maturity. I like it better when we just do church and never have to answer THE question. I believe we approach our relationship with Christ this way because if the need for growth and maturation is unaddressed, then we don't have to personally address it. The enemy who exposed Adam's nakedness which causes him to hide has changed his approach and now convinces us that we are fully clothed. So, we rubber stamp and approve of our own level of maturity as mature because we have no standard other than ourselves to compare to and we walk around naked thinking we are fully robed in maturity. That is why we have "mature" believers acting like, talking like and conducting their lives like people who have only known Jesus for one year and no one can correct them because they are "mature". We really don't want anyone to address the necessity of maturing in our faith because we then are forced, like Adam, to choose one of two options.