Attribute Seven | A Man Produces Growth Series

Well as promised, we’re just navigating our way through the 9 Attributes of a Man of God. Today we are on the topic of deliberately producing growth in our life. Attribute number 7. And as agreed, I promised that I was going to deliver a verse to you every time on one thing that Jesus did, and one thing that Jesus commanded us to do as the ultimate man of God himself.

Turning to Luke 2:52 – it reads – and Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man. Now, these words give us insight into some years of Jesus’s life that we’re not going to see. Course, these words appear soon after Jesus is found in the temple by his parents after they have – quote, unquote – lost him. And he is right there doing what we’d anticipate Jesus, God in the flesh is doing. He’s spending time with his father.

Now Jesus – from this moment on, about the age of 13 – till the age we see him next, as a fully grown adult. Is going to continue to grow, and this here – the writer perceives, and I believe his parents as well – perceive him to be growing in wisdom and stature. Both in his vertical relationship with God, but also his horizontal relationship with men.

Next John 15:8. These are some of the final words of Jesus to his disciples. It reads, “By this my father has glorified that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.” I love this challenge by Jesus. Because not only is he actually producing growth in his own life, he’s going to command us as men to do the same. Our responsibility is to bear fruit or produce growth in our life. Because of out of it, we prove to be followers of him. We prove to be followers of God.

This leads us to attribute 7, which is this. A man produces growth. Here’s how I define it. A man will never selfishly devour resources. But rather understands that resources flow from Christ through him. Therefore he perceives himself to be a conduit of resources, and does everything he can to remain connected to them through obedience – that is pure in motivation while holding to his identity in Christ. He will welcome the activities of pruning and connecting as central growth activities that benefit him and the kingdom.

This raises the obvious question, which is – do you feel in your life, like you are producing spiritual results? I mean do you feel that way? I think most of us on some days feel stronger than others. And if we were to run just simply on our feelings, we would never get to the fact of the situation – that Jesus Christ has called us to produce real results in life.

I think there’s a lot of issues that prohibit us from actually producing results. Maybe we were just far too busy? Busy – not just with bad things, but with many good things. Good activities that just take up too much of our time, and therefore get in our way of producing effective spiritual results. Maybe it’s fear? Maybe for you, fear is the thing that prohibits producing results in your life, and you just have too many anxieties and fears that keep you from really getting out of the boat.

Maybe it’s simply lack of discipline or failure to execute? Maybe we just don’t take the right next step that would really help us in our relationship with Jesus Christ to produce results? Maybe for too long, we have gone alone. We’ve gone life alone. And because of it we have this protective barrier around us, that prohibits us from being transparent and opening up and sharing our challenges with one another? Or maybe lastly, it’s just we have no sense of urgency to address the issues? Life as we know it is simple enough. We feel we’re effective enough, and we lack that sense of urgency that needs to be given to the spiritual life, in lieu of the brevity of life that we have.

I don’t know what it might be for you that prohibits you from producing results. But I can tell you this, Jesus Christ has called us to do it – and it was important to him. Let me read to you from John 15, verses 1 through 8. Profound words. They’re some of the greatest imagery that Jesus Christ ever gives us. It’s a picture of a vine. And a vinedresser, and some responsibility that we have in relationship to this vine. Powerful words here.

Now know that these words come at the – toward the very end of Jesus’ life. And when we see Jesus at the beginning, we see him concealing his identity. But here toward the close of his life, it’s as if he’s disclosing all of who he is, and all that he wants us to know – to his men, and he gives them wisdom that we don’t see him readily give at the beginning. Here are his words in John 15, verses 1 through 8.