Preached 1/5/25
I do want to say Happy New Year to all of you welcome to 2025, and as a church, we are so glad that you are here with us kicking off this new year being a part of God's family here in Riverton.
You know personally I think I've always kind of been a little confused about why people love celebrating the New Year so much and it's probably because you know I'm such a party animal, But at the same time I also do kind of get it because people are celebrating that turning of a page into a new year for various reasons maybe it's because they're excited for the future or they're just happy they survived another year. and one of the things that I actually admire a lot that comes with the new year is when people make New Year's resolutions.
sometimes I wonder why it takes people the change from a Tuesday to a Wednesday with a different number at the end of the date to do something they want to do in their lives, but no matter what the catalyst is like a a new year changing the idea of resolving to do something or change something in the new year is really powerful to me.
because every time that somebody makes a New Year's resolution, they are making a goal for growth in their life, In other words in this new year they want to be better.
You see this in the type of resolutions that people make, Nobody makes resolutions for the next year like they want to start drinking more, or they want to work up to smoking a pack a day, or lose a bunch of money, and gain weight…. But instead, they sent goals to grow as a person they want to stop drinking and stop smoking, make better investment,ss, and lose weight… and see it's those resolutions to become better that I really admire, To me it doesn't matter if it takes the change of a calendar year or not… whatever you do consistently to grow and be better is worth it. so I actually really like celebrating the New Year especially if it causes you to make a resolution to be better, to set goals and to grow.
And a lot of people use the new year as an opportunity to focus on the value of growth in their life.
but something that I am consistently coming across that makes me very sad is the fact that people can see the value of goals and growth in their life from a worldly standpoint but yet when it comes to our Christianity to our faith and to our churches it's almost like we have an aversion to the idea of goals and growth.
And when I say that I totally mean to step on your toes Church.
Because false teaching doesn't always come in the form of words it can also come in the form of actions and when we are living out the action of a lack of growth, a lack of goals to be a better Christian we are falsely teaching exactly what Satan wants us to. And in saying that this faith I have doesn't continually change me, doesn't make me more like Jesus every day, I have arrived at Salvation and I have no need to grow.
A false teaching that is often taught by our attitudes and actions.
And so the call and the challenge that I want to give us today as Christians and as the church is the call that we have to be better to grow to set goals. And this is not a call that I just came up with to give a New Year's sermon, but rather it's one that is found throughout the entirety of the existence of the church and the New Testament.
Peter wrote to Christians and he challenged them to grow in Grace and knowledge of Jesus.
2Pe 3:17-18
You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
See here Peter is challenging the church to the call of growth he says to grow in Grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, meaning what meaning you have not arrived at knowing all that Jesus has taught you have not arrived at having the full knowledge of scripture, you have not arrived at perfecting and living out the greatest, you have growth to do as a Christian Church, and in fact that is our Glory as we live until the day of Christ's return and our life in eternity.
but see what I really like about these two verses the Peter is writing is that he shows the other side of the coin too if we neglect growth, and if you thought what I said about it being a false teaching that is impacting our our churches today was a little unhinged… just see what Peter calls the other side of the coin what happens if you don't focus on growth in Jesus Christ.
he says the reason we need to do this is to take care that we are not carried away with the air of Lawless people and lose our own stability, in other words we have to watch out and make sure we focus on growing as a Christian so that we are not deceived by the false teaching of the Lawless and that we are no longer stable in our salvation and our faith. boldly Peter is declaring that we must grow or we might be carried away into a place where we lose our salvation.
That's why this idea of arrival and a lack of a desire for growth is not something that we can let just fly under the radar because it may cost people their souls.
And so the challenge we are given if we are going to declare Christ is that we are to grow, the Hebrew author paints a really powerful picture of what we need to be doing if we are in Christ
Heb 5:11-6:1a
About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity
In other words what the Hebrew author is saying is let us set the goal to grow as we practice Christianity because it is so disappointing when you come across Christians who should be teachers who should be leaders, but instead, they're the ones that need taught and led.
So I think it's really important for us to remind ourselves that no matter how old we are in the faith or where we think we have been, even if we are a “successful” Christian, we still have the opportunity to grow.
Right where we're at in our Sunday morning Bible study 1st Timothy, Paul writes to Timothy. Timothy who we would all stand by and say is a strong man in the face doing the hard work to preach the truth, Paul still challenges him with growth.
1Ti 4:14-15
Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
Paul says yo Timothy, you're awesome but don't neglect the gift you have but rather keep practicing and growing and immersing yourself in learning so that not only you will see how much better you've become in Christ but that everyone may see the growth.
This little snippet from Paul to Timothy is powerful, it's especially powerful to me.
Because for me you know I've been in some form of Ministry for about 9 years now, and through that time I have been looked at as a Timothy. And it was stupid because I wrestled with the fact that I was a Timothy and I don't like it, and over the five years that I've been here a lot of people have shared their perspective about how much I've grown. and JD even tells it to me and he's like I know you don't like hearing this, it's like saying bless your heart but just look at how much you've grown.
And it's absolutely ridiculous that I ever struggled with that disliked the idea of being told look how much you've grown because that's exactly what Paul is saying to Timothy to keep on doing, practice, grow so that all may see your progress.
In fact, I have flip flopped so much on this idea now that I know I have grown, and I have expressed doubt to Courtney in our own home that I'm like man when I started here at Riverton did I water down the message of the word, because I was trying to be gentle and likable… no I'm just starting to realize and looking back at how God has grown me.
because everyone who follows Christ has the opportunity to grow, even Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man.
Luk 2:52
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.
JD, And I were really on the same wavelength the past couple of weeks even though he probably didn't know that because in his sermon last week talking about the action of Grace he used the conversion of Paul in Acts chapter 9 to show the calling the God gave him through his grace.
and today I want to look at Paul as well because I think he is a great example of someone who is dedicated is life to the gospel message still acknowledging the opportunity for his goal of growth as a servant of God.
if you open your Bible to Philippians chapter 3 with me we're going to be hanging out there for a few verses.
Php 3:13-15
Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.
Now you might notice that in this scripture I'm kind of Shifting gears from just talking about how we are called to grow to looking at the goal that comes with growing. see Paul is one of the people that we would probably consider one of the greatest workers in God's kingdom in the New Testament, yet he himself understands that as a follower of Christ he cannot dwell on what he's already achieved or whatever but instead he focus on what lies ahead, in other words he's focusing on how he's going to grow and the way that he is going to grow is he is going to focus on and press on the goal for the prize of the upward call of God.
See I think the human in many of us would say that Paul had no reason to grow anymore he was already a great servant of God but he doesn't feel that way about himself because he's going to press on he's going to grow why because he is focused on the goal of Eternity in heaven, and when we are focused on the goal of Eternity in heaven we have never arrived until we are in eternity of Heaven, and so the arrival mindset is completely tossed out and replaced with the growth mindset.
not only does Paul Express this is the way that he lives his life he also shares that it is the right way and pretty strongly, challenges the Healer that this is the mature way and if you think otherwise may God teach you more perfectly.
I have to wonder how boldly Paul would call us out as Christians when he saw our lack of desire to grow, our lack of Desire to strive for a more perfect life for Christ.
he would challenge the church in Corinth with this example of himself pressing on towards the goal in 1st Corinthians chapter 9.
1Cor 9:24-27
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
Paul using the example of athletes and yet again himself to say that athletes do not run just for the fun of it but rather they run to receive the prize, every athlete exercises self-control. and they do it just to receive something Earthly but yet we are running to receive something imperishable eternal, and so it uses his own life as an example I don't run aimlessly I don't just box against the air but I discipline myself. so that I am not disqualified.
in other words Paul again is talking about how he has a growth mindset so that he can more effectively preach the gospel, so that other people cannot call him into question it's the same challenge he gave Timothy and 1 Timothy 4.
even Paul has not arrived at a perfect faith he still has growth himself.
just a few chapters later in 1st Corinthians he would continue with this challenge of growth talking about the gifts that we have in our faith versus the gifts we can continue to grow in.
1Cor 12:29-31
Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
Paul threw this entire letter to the Corinthians is speaking to the church to Christians and he goes through this list of incredible gifts, but the challenge that he gives us is Christians is desire the higher gifts, in other words continue to grow and how you serve Christ, and it will be revealed that it is a more excellent way.
See I think there's a lot of power when Paul is riding to the church the church in Philippi the church in Corinth because he's talking about his own life a few verses before where we just were in Philippians chapter 3, in verse 12 Paul says I have not already perfected this.
Php 3:12
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Like I said Paul who we would consider one of the most accomplished missionaries for the gospel message he himself admits I have not obtained this I have not perfected it but I press on. I continue to grow.
Paul because of the Salvation he has received through Jesus Christ is not content with where he is or where he has been but rather he focuses and presses on to more giftedness and more growth, in fact he counts everything that he had achieved before as nothing compared to what he continues to grow in.
Php 3:7-8
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
Paul continually wants to gain to press on to grow to be better for Jesus Christ.
Shouldn't we as followers of Christ as Christians as the church desire the same thing that Paul desires, the same thing that Timothy is challenged with the same thing that Peter is striving for. shouldn't we desire to grow to focus on the goal of being more like Jesus and to be better Christians.
Or should we stay complacent with where we're at thinking we cannot overcome anything more than we already have, thinking we cannot grow and we can't set goals because we might fail at them.
I plead with us as Christians that we never have that mindset but rather we have the mindset of growing focusing on the goals ahead and being better in our walk with Christ.
so that is the challenge I want to lay on each of our hearts today if we claim to be followers of Christ that we cannot sit complacent with where we are at in our walk, we must always grow… we must always be better, And I think it should go without saying that that will require some change. just like a New Year's resolution if your goal is to stop drinking you will have to change and no longer go to the bar, if your goal is to stop smoking you have to change and not buy the cigarettes, if your goal is to lose weight you will have to change what you eat.
in our goal is to grow and be better in Christ so we will also have to change aspects of Our Lives, because we do not desire to stay stagnant.
and believe me when I say this as your preacher I want you to know that I will not stand idly by and let this church be a retirement home , But I will continue to challenge us to not sit idly but to press on towards the upward call of Christ Jesus.
so not just today not just this week or the New Year if we profess to be followers of Christ let us grow let us set goals and let us be better.
