Passivity
John 12:12-14
Part two of Spiritual Warfare
A little boy fell out of the bed in his sleep. His father picked him up and put him back in bed. He asked him, Son, what happened?” The little boy responded, “I fell asleep too close to where I got in.”
I believe that describes too many Christians today… they have fallen asleep too close to where they got in.
They are not in danger of falling out of salvation… but they have made no spiritual progress since they were saved.
So many Christians are content to fill up on knowledge… but then to do so little with it.
Christians today have come to see sitting in a comfortable padded pew for 60 minutes as their spiritual duty… as the fulfillment of that duty.
Most Christians judge themselves and others by how faithfully they do that.
When they leave the sanctuary on Sunday after the sermon, THEY ARE DONE. They will not pick up the bible or take 10 minutes to engage in any Spiritual activity… until next Sunday.
The average Christian spends more time brushing their teeth each day than in spiritual activity.
Imagine a football team that spent NO time in practice, no time learning plays, no time in training… they show up for the game and are prepared to sit on the bench.
We have replaced service with sitting through a service.
>> It is like farmer who has replace farming with watching programs about farming. Now the
>> Fields are overgrown,
>> Barn is falling down,
>> Fences are down and
>> Cows are in the road.
Such is the condition of most Christian lives… the fences are down, the weed have choked out the fruit and the enemy is running amuck.
Just having knowledge… sitting and listening… is not the end of the process. It is only the beginning.
The abundant life God calls us to… requires so much more…
We are told to…
Study the Word
(2 Tim. 2:15 KJV - “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”),
Meditate on the Word (Psa. 119:97 “O how I love Thy law! It is my all the day.” NAS),
Work out the Word daily in our lives. (Phil. 2:12-13 “… work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”
Few Christians are making the time to daily study their Bible and then meditating on what they have read.
It is not enough to do your duty and read a bit of scripture each day. Have you noticed how little of it you retain?
God wants us to desire His Word like food, and chew on it and digest it with the enlightenment that the Holy Spirit provides.
Only when we hunger and thirst for the riches of the Word, will it be opened up to us.
A superficial reading of the Word will not cut it, as far as spiritual growth is concerned.
There are reasons why passivity has crept into the lives of Christians.
One has to do with “wrong priorities.” We live in a fast paced society where there are many demands upon ourselves and our family members. There will be little time for our spiritual lives unless they are given a place high on the list of our priorities. If we just hope to find time after we have taken care of other responsibilities, we will never have a consistent time with God, His Word, His people or for His service.
Trying to squeeze everything in to a given day does not work either. We have to take inventory of our lives and start pruning away the non-essentials.
Setting right priorities is often painful at first, but in the end it is liberating. The enemy will provide you with many reasons why you should continue to hang on to some things in your life.
Another reason is our… ENTERTAINMENT ADDICTION.
We demand to be entertained every moment of every day and there are MANY ways to do it… TV, internet, video games, movies, texting, telephone.
Spiritual warfare… praying, reading bible, meditating on the Word just isn’t as fun.
Another reason is the SQUEAKY WHEEL PRINCIPLE… there are so many things you HAVE TO DO… home work, chores, school, work, maintaining the stuff… things that have immediate and harsh consequences that they force us to do them.
Spiritual warfare does not get high on the list because you don’t see any immediate negative consequences.
Plus... the Fear Factor…we are afraid to engage Satan because we fear it will require too much of us.
Most of us want to cut down on the things in our life that require more of us.
Another reason is WORLD VIEW. World view is a set of beliefs about life and the universe that serves as a lens through which one sees, interprets and values everything.
Think of it like glasses… the color of the lens affects what we see.
Many people have a SELF world view… everything is viewed and valued according to WHAT IS IN IT FOR ME? All that matters is how it affects them. Right and wrong are determined by their benefit.
Some have a MONEY world view. Good or bad is filtered by the cost or the return… in money. If it will give me more… it is good… if it causes me to lose… it is bad.
There is one other reason for the passivity among believers… THE FAILURE OF THE CHURCH.
The church, in its attempt to be USER FRIENDLY and modern and attractive… and out of fear of seeming fanatical and archaic, has failed to teach believers about the truth and necessity of SPIRITUAL WARFARE.
In fact, the church has shied away from teaching anything that would smack of requirements and work.
In our modern, no patience world… we think we should never have to wait for anything…
If we pull up to a drive-thru window and order food... it had better be ready by the time we get to the window… or we get upset.
We may click on an icon on the internet… and no matter what we are looking for… it better not take two seconds
As a matter of fact… some of you are stressing out right now because the progress bar is not moving. You are left clicking your imaginary mouse… hurry… hurry!
SPIRITUAL WARFARE DOES NOT HAPPEN THAT WAY!!
Growing in Christ-likeness, dying to self, fasting, extended prayer, meditating on and digging deeper in the Word of God, overcoming Satan’s strongholds in your life…
THESE THINGS TAKE TIME… LOTS OF TIME!
I’m not going to do like the TV ads that offer you
flat abs in 2 minutes a day, 3 days a week
or a diet where you can lose 2 pounds a day and eat whatever you want
or The Obama debt plan where you get out of debt by spending more money
or that you can buy a mansion for no money down and make a million dollars this year
Those things don’t happen… and neither does instant Christ-likeness.
BUT… You can be closer to God, feel his power in your life, see your prayers answered, be delivered from the bondage of sins, walk with God daily, die to your old self and become a new creature in Christ.
First John 2:12-14 lists three basic levels of spiritual growth. John used an analogy of physical human growth. In verse 12 John said, “I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.” At first, John referred to all Christians with one term, “dear children,” which simply means “offspring.” It has nothing to do with age and could refer to someone who is eighty-five years old.
However, in verses 13-14 John uses different terms, dividing the children of God into three categories, signifying three levels of spiritual growth: children, young men, and fathers.
The first level of spiritual growth is as children. In verse 13 John said, “I write to you, dear children [literally, “babies,”], because you have known the Father.”
What is the first thing a child recognizes? His parents. A brand-new Christian realizes that he is a child of God—and not much else.
The next level of spiritual growth is as young men. John then said, “I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one” (v. 13). Satan is the evil one.
How do you overcome Satan?
Verse 14: “Because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”
Spiritual children do not have the word of God abiding in them strongly—they know only the basics. Consequently, they can be “blown here and there by every wind of teaching” (Ephesians 4:14). That is why when you lead someone to Christ, the first thing you need to do is get him grounded in the word of God so he doesn’t get confused by false teaching.
A spiritual young man is strong in the word of God and has overcome the evil one. Because Satan is a liar (John 8:44) and appears as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), he is the master of false teaching. But a spiritual young man understands biblical teaching and is not victimized by false teaching.
The last level of spiritual growth is as fathers. John describes an even deeper level of spiritual growth in verse 13: “I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning.” It is one thing to know that you belong to the family of God and to know the word of God, but it’s another thing to know God intimately.
Spiritual fathers not only know the Bible, but they also deeply know the God who wrote it.
Spiritual growth progresses from knowing you are a Christian to knowing the word of God to knowing God himself deeply.
The way to know God deeply is growing strong in the Word and overcoming Satan in more and more areas.
Sources:
Introducing the Keys to Spiritual Growth, Freddy Fritz Tampa Bay Presbyterian Church, www.sermoncentral.com
What is Spiritual Warfare, Don Rogers, www.sermoncentral.com
My Powerpoint is available for the asking… rhpendleton57@gmail.com
