If Christians Only Practiced What Shamu Does

I. As most of you know, we went to San Antonio this past week, and no trip to San Antonio is complete without a trip to Sea World.

A. Being a minister I am always thinking in terms of ministry and I learned that the people that work with killer whales know something that a lot of Christians have not learned.

B. In one of the shows that we went to they were talking about the killer whale that was born at Sea World, and they were talking about the how they worked with the whale.

C. And the thing that caught my attention is that they said that they were developing a relationship with the whale.

D. They have been spending time and deliberately developing a relationship with the whale, because that is what will allow them to work together.

E. If more Christians would see that their lives are about developing a relationship with God so they can work with God, and have access to the power that, that relationship brings, this world would be a better place.

F. I want to read you something. Some of you have heard it and some of you have not, because you are new here. The purpose of Christway Baptist Church is to praise and worship God as a family that fellowships together. We will lead people into a relationship with Jesus and teach them to be disciples and ministers of God’s word.

G. That is the purpose statement of our church and it is what we say that we are here for. It is the reason that we are here, what we are to accomplish with our efforts, and there is a reason for it.

H. As much as it is a guide for what we are to accomplish it is also a guideline for what God wants to accomplish in us.

II. The New Testament is very clear that God’s goal or will for every believer is spiritual maturity. When we are saved, the bible says that we are born again.

A. That means that we are babies in Christ, but God does not want us to stay babies in Christ he wants us to grow up. He wants us to become spiritually mature.

(Eph 4:11 - 15 NIV) It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.

(1 Pet 2:2 NIV) Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,

B. It is God’s purpose, that we grow up, or mature in our faith. The goal of the Christian life and the only way to find the fulfillment in life that we down deep inside want, is to become more like Jesus.

C. We were created to be God’s children, and Jesus is our example of what that is, so the goal in life is to grow up to be like him.

D. Last week I talked about our role as parents being to train our children, and we are able to train our children, because we are supposed to have matured ourselves.

E. We are supposed to have "grown up" and we grow up through the experiences that we have had in life.

F. In the same way we are to grow up spiritually because of the experiences that we have had with God.

G. Churches are full of people that have attended church for years and have never grown up in their faith.

H. Now I want you to let me finish before you tar and feather me. One of the reasons that a lot of people never grow up in their faith is that they are taught and believe that the only thing you have to do to grow up in your faith is study the bible.

I. That is not true! There are a lot of churches that teach the content and doctrine of the bible as if that is all that is needed to grow spiritually.

J. I am not saying that bible study is not important because it is important and even vital, but studying the bible and learning doctrine by itself will not produce a mature Christian.