"Growing in Grace"
II Peter 3:18
Pastor Bob Hunter
Intro:
As many of you know our newborn baby is 10 days old now. And it’s really quit amazing, because we can already see some growth taking place. When a newborn baby arrives, a small amount of initial weight loss occurs. In the course of a week, almost all of that weight is regained and then some. Growth is normal. We should expect growth. But funny how it is, that we act so surprised when it happens. We say things like "Wow, He’s getting so big…!" or "Look at you, your growing up so fast." Or "Oh boy, your potty trained already !" "You mean I don’t have to change your diaper forever" Wow!
Growth and development is normal. You and I are like a planted seed that needs to be nurtured, watered and given the right conditions to GROW. Under the right conditions we should expect growth and growth should be normal.
I suppose our surprise reactions to growth have a lot more to do with the newness and excitement that growth brings than it anything else. Growth is fun to watch isn’t it? But it’s not always fun to go through, growth can be difficult and painful. When a child is going through a growth spurt, there is a tendency to sleep longer, eat more and be a little more on edge. That’s because their bodies are developing so fast, it literally takes all the energy they have to keep up with it.
Well today I want to talk to you about something that is equally as exciting and challenging: SPIRITUAL GROWTH IN GOD. We are commanded in scripture to, "Grow in the Grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." II Peter 3:18 Growth and development for the Christian is normal. We should expect it, and do what we can to encourage it.
I pointed out a couple a weeks ago, the necessity of growth. We’re either growing or we’re dying. We don’t have much of an opportunity to stand still. God want’s to move us off the mark, and grow us up to become more like Jesus. I regret to say, however, that in today’s church we have too many people standing still. We have far too many people that don’t understand what Growth has to offer. And when you consistently miss out on growth opportunities, you risk going downhill. Halting the forward movement of Growth is like disengaging a power train from the transmission. We call that coasting. You get to a certain level spiritually and then you just start going along for a ride. Unfortunately, there is really only one direction in which to coast, and that’s downhill!
You see, your relationship with God never stays the same, your either growing closer or drifting away. You just don’t become a Christian, and that’s it! Your relationship with God has to be maintained and worked on in order to cultivate the development and growth that enables you reach your full potential. Growth for the Christian is NORMAL! We were once spiritual babes, newborn creatures; surviving on milk and spiritual baby food. Thankfully, we don’t stay that way. By the Grace of God we become something else. We’re creatures destined to change.
Now a lot of people are confused about how growth takes place. So I’m going to take some time tis morning to clarify what growth is and what it isn’t. We need to get a better picture of what it means to grow, and how we can grow as followers of Christ. So lets identify three things that growth is not:
THREE THINGS THAT GROWTH IS NOT:
1. Learning more information.
Don’t get me wrong, more information can be helpful, but it doesn’t guarantee that growth is going to take place. You can’t equate information with growth. And for that reason, the smartest and most informed individuals are not always the most mature among us. There’s a big difference between information and application. You can know a lot about God, and even have verses of the Bible memorized. But with out the heartfelt application of truth your sunk. Information is helpful, but it is not everything.
But this is what people do when the need for growth becomes apparent. Their first inclination is to run down to the local Christian bookstore and buy a Christian book or Bible study materials. Now that’s not altogether a bad thing. But sadly all that really amounts to is a spiritual cram session with no lasting results. What we really to be awaken to is the truth we already know. Jesus said in Matthew 7:24 "He who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built His house on the rock." I guess you could say Jesus was pro-application in his approach to growth. It’s not how much you know, it’s how much you practice what you know. There is a reason why the more educated among us are not always the most mature. Without application, we grow no more closer to God than someone who has all the answers. You see, information alone can’t save you. It can help you along and give you insight; but unless you apply it and internalize it your just spinning your wheels. So growth is more than just a cognitive learning exercise, it’s a daily journey of practical application. Secondly, growth is not changing overnight.
2. Changing overnight.
Don’t we all wish we could change overnight? But change never happens that way. God’s not interested in making quick fixes. Sometimes we have to wait on the Lord and let a painful season of growth run it’s course. Some of the changes that God brings about in our life happen slowly. Especially changes of the heart and mind. God works over a period of time. Growth is a process. You and I have to cooperate with it.
I love what II Peter says about this, "Do not forget this one thing, dear friends: with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." II Peter 3:8,9 What is Peter trying to say? He’s trying to say, wait it out, be patient, don’t expect God to do everything at once.
We live in society of rapid change. Things are changing very fast; politically, socially, culturally, economically. The information age has ushered in lightening fast changes. But remember, things tend to change a whole lot faster than people do! I wish it were not that way, I wish it possible to change people in a twinkling of an eye. We all know somebody we would like to make an overnight change for the better. Unfortunately, that’s probably not going to happen. God’s not in the business of zapping people! Just be glad that by the Grace of God people can change. It may not happen very fast, but it is possible. Things tend to change a whole lot faster than people do. That includes yourself. Be patient with yourself and with God. He’s not slow to keep His promises, your going to make it, it’s just going to take some time. I have to keep reminding myself, I’m not going to become Billy Graham overnight.
Illustration { For example, Tanner is our third child, we’re in diaper changing mode again. I’ve had enough practice over the last four years to get pretty good at it. In fact, I could probably set a record for diaper changing quickness. I know all the short cuts… I can change a diaper anytime anywhere; on the hood of a car, under an umbrella, standing up, sitting down, it doesn’t matter, I’m a seasoned expert. I can do it in lightening fast speed. Disposable diapers were designed for this purpose; for fast and convenient change.}
People, on the other hand, are much harder to change. They don’t change in a twinkling of the eye. Sometimes I wish I could change them as fast as a diaper! By design, however, people change slowly over the course of time. For some it’s a slower process than others. But that’s the nature of growth. Growth is a process, not a one time event or a single crisis, but a process. Things in life, tend to change faster than we do. Overnight change is for the most part unrealistic.
3. Keeping more rules.
Growth is also not achieved by keeping more of the rules. Hebrews 13:9 says, "Your hearts should be strengthened by God’s Grace, not by obeying the rules." The writer is trying to emphasis grace before law. Because rule keeping alone does not please God. Merely keeping the law does not produce growth. Our hearts are strengthened and empowered by grace, nothing else. Yes we need rules and yes guidelines are helpful. But when the focus is on more doing instead of being, then something is amiss.
Jesus got very angry at the Pharisees for this reason. He called them hypocrites and whited sephlecures because they looked good on the outside but were rotten on the inside. They were keeping all the rules, but that was about it. There was no compassion, no mercy, no kindness. It just wasn’t there. They were good law keepers, but internally they were terrible people. Their righteousness was derived from law keeping and maintaining a good appearance. And sadly deep inside their hearts they were far, far away from God.
It doesn’t have to be this way. When Jesus came to earth, he came full of grace and truth. He said, "You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free."John 8:32 Rule keeping produces bondage. Whereas the truth produces freedom. Big difference. You’ll never see consistent growth in your life until you are liberated and set free by God’s grace. Growth is not a rigid set list of does and don’ts. It’s a privilege we exercise in Grace.
Transitional paragraph:
So we’ve talked about three things that growth is not. It’s not about learning or doing more, or seeing overnight change. It’s not any of the above. Let’s talk about what it is. What is Christian growth, what does it look like? How do we know that we are growing in Christ?
Explaination of idea: Growth is realizing how far you’ve come. It’s being further along than you were a year ago, two years ago, five years ago. Growth is seeing progress over the course of time. It’s seeing how much I’ve change, by God’s grace. It’s looking back over the course of the last few years and saying, "Wow, look how far I’ve come!" I love my wife and kids more, I’m committed more to Church, I’m maturing in ways I never thought possible. That’s what Growth is. It’s seeing all that God does in us and through us to make us more mature Christlike individuals. II Cor. 3:18 speaks to this reality. It says, "We with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, and are being transformed into His likeness with ever increasing glory which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." What’s Paul talking about here? He’s talking about growth. The kind of growth that comes from God. He’s describing an ongoing change that takes place our lives to make us more and more like Jesus. Growth is realizing how much better off you are now than you were just a year ago, or a few years ago. That’s growth!
So what I’m going to do tis morning is take some time to tell you how to get there. If you want to know how to get from point A to point B then you need to know how, and where to start. I’d like to offer you four very practical –growth producing steps, that if taken, each one can stimulate spiritual growth. I believe, if you put these into practice you’ll see the potential for growth in your life sky rocket. So here they are..
FOUR GROWTH PRODUCING STEPS:
I. Submit to discipline.
Now for a lot of people, discipline is a dirty word!
Allow me to describe to you what discipline is and isn’t. Discipline is not punishment. Discipline is not bondage. It’s not rule keeping. It’s not brow beating. Let me describe it to you: It’s doing the right thing even though you don’t feel like it. It’s refusing to back down from a challenge. It’s hearing a strong word from the Lord and not shying away from it. It’s a willingness to stretch beyond the limits. Discipline is tough, and it produces tough people. And most importantly, discipline comes from God and it’s for our good.
Hebrews 12 says everything about discipline that needs to be said. In verse 5 it says, "My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines; the child he embraces, he also corrects."
Let me just say this, Godly discipline is the path to freedom. It’s the key to spiritual success. Without it your just spinning your wheels.
Personal Illust: I’ve got these disciplines that I keep as a Pastor to make sure I keep a steady pattern of growth in my life. For those of you in leadership, you’ve seen my personal growth plan that details the disciplines I keep. And I have to tell you, it’s very painful at times. I regularly go on retreats and attend conferences. In fact, I’m going to one tomorrow morning at 8:00 am. Keeping up with this discipline is tough. Monday is my day off, I’d much rather sleep in, get up and eat a big breakfast, and read the paper. But I choose to stick to the plan, regardless of how inconvenient it is. Because I know it will produce growth in my life. And I need to make sure I have ample opportunity to grow by receiving further training and instruction. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve left the comforts of home to go on a retreat or attend a training conference. Submitting to a discipline is must if I’m going to see any growth at all take place. And you want your pastor to grow don’t you? You want the sermons to get better? Right? I am growing by the way, I’m a better pastor than I was a year ago, and five years before that. Someone of you are saying ‘Amen.’ By the grace of God I’m growing, things are getting better and improving. God uses discipline in our lives to open the floodgates of opportunity. In the end discipline produces a great harvest of growth and opportunity. I’m the person I am today because of the deposits of discipline that have come to me through other people . In a curious way, God uses other people to help implement discipline in our lives. Discipline (both noun and verb meanings): is not very pleasant at the time, but in the end it produces a great harvest of growth. Submit yourself to discipline. Secondly,
II. Start making sacrifices.
In other words...You have to be willing to pay the price. I promise, Growth will cost you something. And your going to have to make whatever sacrifices it takes to grow. You can’t put a price tag on it. You have to be willing to do whatever it takes to spiritually survive...
How does this translate into everyday life? Quit working so much overtime, so you can make it to a growth group and learn God’s Word. Quit balancing the check according the values of this world. Start paying the price for times of refreshing and renewal. Get into Christian counseling and grow your marriage instead of taking that extra vacation. Do you get the picture? Growth is that important. You have to be willing to do whatever it takes to spiritually survive.
One more suggestion: Start serving others. Get the focus off of yourself. People tend to grow, when they are serving other people. Spiritual growth best takes place in the context of community. So ask yourself this question: What can I do to help? Who can I serve? When we start giving of our time, talent and treasure to meet the needs of other people; we grow. Most of the growth we experience in life is the context of relationships. Spiritual growth is most likely to occur in the company of other Christ-followers. And that makes total sense, because God is into relationships. Remember the role that Jesus took on. He was a ‘suffering servant.’ His passion for others led Him to make the greatest sacrifice of all on Calvary. Jesus was a servant, He laid down his life for the sake of others. And He calls us to do the same. If you want to grow in Grace, then plug yourself into servant ministry. You won’t miss growth opportunities when your serving others. Learning to get along and serve other people is the greatest of all growth opportunities. You’ll find yourself driven to your knees over and over again seeking God’s grace. Because serving other people requires Grace. A lot of it!
III. Seek wise counsel.
When I get spiritually stuck and I feel like I’m going nowhere fast, I find great value in seeking the counsel of the wise. In fact, the Bible teaches us to do this. Proverbs 13:20 says, "He who walks with the wise, will grow wise." That’s a promise. Just as "Iron sharpens Iron, so one man sharpens another" (Prov. 27:17). God want’s us to get advice and help from other people. That is from other Godly and wise people. Never take advice from anyone that’s more messed up than you are, because you’ll become just like them!
Folks, God wants us to soar with the eagles, not the turkeys. The apostle Paul clearly said, "Bad company corrupts good morals." I Cor. 15:33. I challenge all of you to find somebody wiser and more mature than yourself and learn from them. That’s why I like to hang around other pastors that have been in the ministry longer than I have. Especially ones that have a good track record of working with people. God uses other people to help us grow. I have learned so much over the years from other pastors. And now I’m the giving end. It’s a humbling thought, "He who walks with the wise, will grow wise." Once in a while there is a pastor or another individual who learns from me. That’s the iron that sharpens iron. If we want to grow then we must not be shy away or back down from the counsel of the wise. Seek always the counsel of the wise, not the wicked .
IV. Stay committed to Grace.
The final word on growing in Grace is G.R.A.C.E. I started this message series 9 weeks ago defining what Grace is. Grace teaches us a lot about dependence; dependence on God that is. That’s what Grace is all about. Depending on God and not on ourselves. Grace is something God does for us that we cannot do for ourselves. We have to depend on Him. My word to you today is this: Depend on God’s Grace! Stay committed to it!
A lot of people claimed to be saved by Grace, but live by works. Or, it’s O.K. for me to live by Grace, but not everybody else. Everybody else has to make it some other way and prove themselves by measure up to some unrealistic religious standard. That’s what we call being selfish with Grace or perverting Grace. God is grieved with that nonsense. If there is Grace for you, then there’s Grace for everyone. The Grace of God is no respecter of persons. The question is: Are you committed to Grace? To both receiving it and offering it?
The early Christians in the book of Acts were described 3 times as ones who were committed to Grace. The apostle Paul in His farewell address to the Ephesians said, "I commit you to God and to the word of His Grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified." Acts 20:32 So how about you? Are you committed to Grace?
Communion transition:
In part, that’s what coming to the table is all about. When we receive the emblems of His broken body and shed blood, we receive an outward sign of an inward Grace. These elements represent something that God did on our behalf that we could not do for ourselves. The broken bread and wine are tangible signs that point to something. They are outward signs of Grace. They point to the bigger picture of God’s Gracious plan for our lives. God had a plan from the beginning to rescue us and save us, that’s why He sent Jesus. And we’re so glad to have Him, and the benefits of His substitutionary atoning death. Let’s pray…
Prayer of consecration and dedication…
Gracious God, You are so rich in mercy and Grace. Where would we be without you? Thank you most of all, for Jesus, who came full of Grace of truth. Without His sacrificial death, we would still be dead in our trespasses and sins. We’re so glad tis morning, that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. For me, and for all us! And we depend on Him tis morning and the finished work of the Cross. We surrender our lives to it, and we dedicate these next few moments to remembering it and receiving the Grace that made it all possible. Amen and Amen.
