Warnings, Exaltations, and Instructions: More Words to Philippi
Philippians 3:15 – 4:1
A group of three to eight year olds were recently asked their opinions on how you know you are grown up and mature. Here are some of their responses.
David, age 7 – When your clothes don’t fit anymore.
Eliot, age 7 - When you go to work, live by yourself, go hunting and fishing by yourself, and are big enough not to get in trouble.
Amanda, age 5 - When I can cross the street by myself and run my own bathwater.
Ronnie, age 8 - When you get scared at night and don’t have to run to mommy’s room.
Kenton, age 5 - When you can cook, work on cars, drive, and have big arms.
Lisa, age 7 - When you are like 30.
Sherri, age 6 - When you start getting old, go to work, and become a mom.
Angie, age 6 - When you can ride a bike with no training wheels and no one has to run beside you.
B.J., age 5 - When you can make little people behave or sit in the corner, or when you can call your friends over to play all by yourself.
Eric, age 5 - When you have wrinkles on your face and look in the mirror and say, “Oh, no!”
What answer do you have for this question? How do you know you are
mature? This morning though, I am not so much concerned about maturity
as these kids were talking about. I am more concerned with our spiritual maturity.
I became concerned recently by a study I was reading. In it, they studied Christians who were in their twenties and Christians in their sixties. After looking at the areas of Biblical knowledge, church involvement, study habits, personal conduct and the like, they concluded two things. Women, showed a slight improvement in maturity from age 20 to age 60, and men showed no growth whatsoever from the time they were 20 to the time they were 60. Do you understand the gravity of this situation? In forty years, men have not grown in their faith at all and women have only grown slightly. We’ve dropped the ball somewhere.
To put this into perspective, I want you to think back to when your kids were in the terrible twos. Now, imagine the nightmare that they acted like this until they were 42 before they grew up. I think you would agree that something was seriously wrong if this was the case, and you would not put up with this. So, why are we content in our faith when the vast majority of people show little to no growth in a 40 year period? It’s not normal, and it wreaks havoc on the church because it leaves a void where leadership once was.
Paul addresses this issue when he speaks to the Philippians in Philippians 3:15 – 4:1. Turn with me there this morning or follow along in your sermon notes.
All of us who are mature should take view of such things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only, let us live up to what we have already attained. Join with others in following my example, brother, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their God is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body. Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends.
So, I ask this morning, how mature are you? When I read this passage, I came up with three questions that we can ask ourselves with. Our answers to these questions will test our maturity. I pray that you open up your heart to the Holy Spirit this morning and allow Him to examine our lives and bring conviction in areas we are lacking in. Let’s ask Him to come at this time. Please repeat after me this prayer:
Holy Spirit, I open my heart, to hear, what you have to say. Amen.
Question #1: How do you handle disagreements?
I have a riddle for you this morning. What do you call it when you have 50 people with 50 different opinions? I call it church, and it becomes evident every time there is a congregational meeting. We know that we live in a land of vast colors, religious backgrounds, ancestry, social statuses, education, and the like. Everyone is different, and because of our democracy in the United States, you are entitled to speak your mind no matter what you opinion may be – except in the church. We forget about the fact that everyone comes from a different point of view. We forget that everyone is not a clone of ourselves. I want you to turn to your neighbor. Repeat after me. Praise the Lord – You’re not my clone. Since we are not the same, there are bound to be different points of view on every issue. This will eventually lead to disagreements. The question is not, “How do we avoid disagreements,” but “How should we handle ourselves when disagreements arise.” We should always ask, “How can we discuss this issue without things getting heated, explosive, or bloody.”
Think back with me to when you were a little kid. Can you remember how you handled disagreements? When I had a disagreement with my little brother, I usually slugged him a good one. After all, I was seven years older and much bigger, so this led to me getting my own way. Now, my brother as he got a little older, came up with a plan of his own to get what he wanted. After seeing how hitting me got me into trouble with mom and dad, he resorted to framing me. One time, when I had a toy he wanted, he took a wiffleball bat and started hitting himself with it. When he had a red mark, he turned, hit the bat against the wall and started screaming, “Mom, Dougie hit me with the bat.” I got the whooping of my life because it was hard to sell the story that my 7 year old brother came up with this elaborate hoax. And, he got the toy. Both of these ways were effective in resolving the disagreement, but they were very childish. We were kids, so we didn’t know any better. However, some adults who should know better resort to these same kinds of tactics.
If you don’t believe me, all you have to do is go to a sporting event for kids. When I was in high school and college, I served as a coach and referee for the youth soccer program. I started with kids as young as 6 years old. It would never fail that some parents were always upset at something I did. If I played everyone equally, I pleased the parent of lesser skilled kids and ticked off the parents of those who were more skilled that they felt should always play. If I played the better kids more in order to win an important game, I would catch flack with the parents of kids whose playing time suffered. Some parents were very well mannered, but more often than not, parents would use a harsh tone of voice, yelling, or screaming at me to get their point across. This was not the way for an adult to act, but it happened more than a few times. One time, as I was refereeing a game, I even had a parent come and threaten me physically because he felt I was not calling a fair game. I kindly reminded him that the kids were eleven and there was no elaborate scheme to fix the game so the bookies in Vegas would be appeased. His son had been playing dirty, so as long as he did it, I would call him for a foul. His way to fix the solution was to use force – sounds an awful lot like the way we did things as kids.
The church is not much better sometimes. A person does not think another in the church should hold a leadership office because of something they did 10 years ago that they disagreed with, so they tell all their friends about it and spread lies and half-truths about the person. Two board members have a disagreement about what color the new church carpet should be so they stop talking to each other and scramble to win church members to their respective sides. A person comes into the church that does not fit the status quo, so we turn a cold shoulder and search for a way to hurt them so they stop coming. A person prefers to sing hymns instead of praise choruses so they rally people around them to try to convince them of the evilness of this new music. They then start a petition to stop that music from being played in the church. Sounds childish, doesn’t it? Well, I have heard each one of these situations told to me by a pastor where it was happening in their church – and so-called seasoned Christians have been in the middle of it all. This shows me that there is a lack of maturity among believers.
In our passage, Paul tells us that is we are mature we should take view of such things. What things is he talking about? He is talking about all of the information that he has passed on through the book to the Philippians. These are things such as being unified, putting Christ first, and having the same attitude as Jesus. These are things we are to agree upon. Then, he tells us that if we think differently from another in the church on anything else, we are not to sweat it. In time, God will make it clear which is the right approach to take. When we have a disagreement with someone, the mature way to handle it is not to dwell on the differences. We need to dwell on the things we already have in common. We all agree that we need to win people to Christ. We all agree that we need to worship God. We all believe Jesus is the Son of God and that He died on the cross to forgive us of our sins. We need to focus on these important things, and the rest will fall into place. God will make clear who is right and what the right course of action is between two believers who disagree in due time. That means that if we are truly expressing an opinion that is what God desires, you will not have to sway people to your side. You will not have to resort to childish tactics to get your point across and your way. God will work it out for you. So, if you have to do these things, you are not being mature and you are may not be pursuing what God wants. What it boils down to is this: Agree to disagree until God works it out. We must be willing to be mature in all of this and allow God to mold us into His image, and that may involve us having to change our opinions and views in the end; however, it will all work out in the end for good for those who love Christ.
Question #2: What example of Christianity are you following?
Who did you want to be when you grew up? Most kids look up to someone as his or her hero. It might be a parent, grandparent, athlete, musician, politician or so on. I had several ranging from the Dukes of Hazard to Mario Lemieux to New Kids on the Block. I am more proud of some than others. But, take New Kids for example. I can remember buying their merchandise. I wore the same kind of clothes they did – does anyone remember jam pants by the way? I hat the laser lines shaved into my head like they did. I even practiced my singing and dancing to try to be like they were. I looked up to them and tried to emulate their every move.
Being mature involves an aspect of finding a role model. We are not looking for an athlete or singing group, but we look for a mature believer who we can emulate. How many of you came to Christ because of the testimony or the help of another individual? It could have been a preacher, friend, or family member, but chances are, someone helped to lead you to the Lord. Now, if we needed help to become a Christian, doesn’t it make sense that we need help to grow up as a Christian. We need someone that we can study and ask questions to that will help us along the way. When we see the need for this and take action on it, that is a great sign of maturity. The problem with most of us is that we get to a certain point in our walk and think we do not need to strive to be like anyone else anymore.
The apostle Paul states in our passage for those in the church to follow his example. I don’t think anyone in here would put themselves on the same plain as Paul when it comes to spiritual maturity, so we can still follow his example. One of our problems is that we don’t aim high enough when we compare our walk with others. We often compare our faith with others in the church, and as long as I am doing something better than so and so, I must be doing OK. You know what I am talking about. We know we have work to do to become more mature in the faith, but we justify ourselves by thinking, “At least I am not as bad as so and so.” There are a number of problems with this type of thinking. First of all, if you look hard enough, you will always be able to find someone who is less mature than you are. And as long as there is someone that fills that role, you will stay right where you are in your faith. Secondly, you are looking back instead of looking ahead to set your goals. Did you ever try to walk backward for an extended period of time without looking forward? It takes much more time. As long as we keep looking back at those who are not as mature as we are, we will never grow at a fast pace. We must keep our eyes focused ahead.
Ephesians 5:1 says it best about this situation when it tells us to be imitators of God. As Christians, our measuring stick is the life of Jesus Christ ad others who have lived that lifestyle. Remember, God is the one we have to give an account to anyway. The main reason for my rise to become a pastor has been because of the people who I have modeled. In my study times, I have read many books on leadership by great leaders of the faith such as John McArthur, John Maxwell, Bill Hybels, and Henry Blackaby. To grow in the area of leading worship, I like to stay fresh by listening to successful and Godly worship leaders such as Darrell Evans, Chris Tomlin, David Crowder and the like. I have members and pastors of former churches that I still stay in contact with who are models so I can pick their brains about how I can mature in certain areas of my faith. They are Godly people, so I can use them as Godly models.
If you want to be mature, you have to find a truly mature Christian to model yourself after and to lead you down the road to maturity. You need to find someone who is totally committed to the faith and not just involved in church. What is the difference you might ask? Well, think about a breakfast meal involving bacon and eggs. The hen was involved in the breakfast process, but the pig was committed. You want people that sacrifice time, energy, money, abilities, and the like to be the ones you look up to. Then, you also have to sacrifice these things by making it a priority to read the Bible, read other Christian books and articles, and spend time doing ministry. By finding a person to model your life after, you are giving yourself something to aim for. You all know that if you aim for nothing, you hit it every time – but, you are getting nothing in return. Last week, we talked about working out our salvation. This is exactly what Paul was talking about. Go and find someone to model your life after and make the necessary changes to line up with their Godly example.
Question #3: Where do your priorities lie?
I want to read you a little poem I recently found entitled “Reasons”.
Some go to church to take a walk
Some go there to laugh and talk
Some go there to meet a friend
Some go there their time to spend
Some go there to meet a lover
Some go there a fault to cover
Some go there for speculation
Some go there for observation
Some go there to doze and nod
But the wise go there to worship God
Sometimes, it seems like our priorities are out of whack. I’m not just talking about coming to church although that is a good place to start. Think about all the reasons you have used during your lifetime for not coming to church. I’m too tired to go this morning. I’ve got too much to do to come this Sunday. Well, I’ve been there for a few weeks in a row so it won’t hurt to miss one week. I know these are all excuses that people use because I have used all of them at least once. But, when I look at all of these excuses, I see they have one thing in common. They are all about me, myself and I when going to church should be all about God. We shouldn’t go to church for our own benefit, although God usually blesses those who are faithful. We need to make going to church a priority because God deserves our worship and He deserves to take priority over the things of this world.
Paul talks about a group of people in this passage that he calls ‘enemies of the cross’. He says that their mind is on earthly things. All of the reasons I just gave you are examples of your mind being on earthly things. If you sit in the pews on Sunday and all you can think about is the Steeler’s game or lunch in the over or what so and so is wearing, your mind is one earthly things. These may not sound like gross sins, but they are a sign of spiritual immaturity. When you are in church, your mind and thoughts should be focused on the things of God. Even in our daily life, we need to be focused on God if we have any hope of maturity. Paul says that heaven is our goal. If that is the case, we need to treat every day like it is a rung on the ladder to heaven. Our focus on that day should be to make it to the next step. If you do this, Paul calls it being able to stand firm. That is a sure sign of maturity.
I want you to think about something. When Jonas Sulk came out with the Polio Vaccine, there were many doubters. After all, he took some of the Poliovirus and incorporated it into the vaccine. After you were inoculated with this small dose, it kept you from catching the real disease. The trouble with some of us is that we have been inoculated with small doses of Christianity, which keeps us from catching the real thing. And, we’ve been too content for too long about only having a little bit of Christianity. It’s time to grow up together in the Lord. It is the natural and normal thing to do in life. Just as we physically grow older and mature in our thoughts, actions, words, and appearance, we also must make sure we grow spiritually. If not, the church will die because there will be no one qualified to lead. There will be no one qualified to teach and disciple. To steal a phrase, it will be like letting the inmates run the asylum. We must take a look at our lives this morning. Do we handle disagreements with maturity? Do we have a quality model to follow? Do our priorities lie in the things of God and not in the things of man? Church, it’s time we make the effort to wean ourselves off of the spiritual milk we have become accustomed to so we can move onto the real food that God desires to give us. When that happens, true nourishment and strength will come from the Lord to our church. Join with me in prayer and feel free to use the altar as we close.
