Grow Up!
Grow Up!
Most people like babies including baby animals, like kittens, puppies, baby lambs, goats and even baby cows. There is just something about them that’s adorable and cute. But something would not be right if babies stayed babies, if puppies stayed puppies, and if baby cows just stayed calves. All living things are meant to grow and mature into something God meant them to be as they grow older.
The same is true for each of us spiritually. After we are born again, after we exit the waters of Baptism we are referred to as a babe in Christ. Not only is our slate wiped clean of all past sin, we know little about being a Christian. Something is expected to happen as time goes on, it is only natural for us to grow and mature into something very special, something God designed us to be.
As I thought about this, I thought about my role here as a teacher and preacher. What is my job here? Is it my job to entertain you each week with a good sermon and Bible study? Is it my job to intrigue you or tickle your ears with something you do not know or have not heard before? Am I just a point man, someone to lead the pack or in this case this congregation? As I thought about it I realized it, it’s not my job to entertain you or tickle your ears with new trivia, or intrigue you, and I am definitely not the leader or kingpin of this church; that’s Jesus’ role.
So what’s my job here? Yes it is to preach, yes it is to teach, but not to entertain you or tickle your ears, but rather to feed you up to a point, and to encourage you grow and mature and do that which our Lord has so designed you to do as an individual in His Kingdom..
Just like there comes a point in it life where a berry bush brings forth berries and an apple tree bears apples, and a cows produces milk, Christians are meant to grow and mature to a point where they bear some kind of fruit.
Napoleon once pointed to a map of China and said, “There lies a sleeping giant. If it ever wakes up, it will be unstoppable.” Likewise I could say, “The church in the United States is a sleeping giant. If it ever wakes up, it will be unstoppable.” Million attend their different churches each Sunday, and that is about as far as their faith takes them. There is simply no doubt that if all church members were as active as Christ calls them to be, the church could reshape our world and our culture. Oh how wonderful it would be!
According to a Gallup survey only 10% of American church members are active in any kind of ministry. That’s why I consider the church a sleeping giant. World-wide too many members are sitting on their hands.
Even sadder is the fact that the Gallup survey said that 50% of church members have no interest in serving in any ministry at all. Think about that! Half of all church members say that they simply want to remain spectators. When asked to serve in a ministry, they say, “I just don’t feel led to get involved.”
After I heard those statistics I could not help but consider or think of a couple of possible reasons why this is so – a couple of reasons why Christians don’t want get involved in any way or form. Here is a couple of thoughts I came up with…
#1. These members simply don’t know and love Jesus enough. They want Him as a personal savior, but do not act like He is their Lord. They want what He is willing give, but aren’t moved serve Him and give back in return.
#2. Another reason why Christians may not want to get involved is because many preachers, teachers, and elders or shepherds aren’t doing a good job at what they should be doing. In other words these members aren’t being fed what they need in order to grow and mature in the faith. And even if members are being properly taught, maybe church leaders aren’t encourage their more mature members enough to get out there and do something!! Like a mama bird pushes it’s baby out of it’s nest to encourages it to fly on its own, over and over the New Testament instructs members to get out and get involved in some kind of ministry.
Read 1 Peter 4:7-11 “7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”
Peter tells these early Christians to pray, Love each other deeply, offer hospitality. He said, use whatever gift you have to serve others. In doing so you administer God’s grace to others. In other words, God uses members of the church to personally bless others when we use the abilities He gave us.
Each of us have God given abilities. You may not be able to teach or preach, but maybe you can cook, maybe you can make or fix things, maybe you entertain, or visit, or maybe you like to talk on the phone, or maybe you are good at listening. Everybody can’t do what you can do. God gave you those abilities for a reason. And not only that, God gave us the ability to learn new talents. Many of those talent and abilities were given to you not only for your own benefit, but also for the benefit of others, and to glorify our God.
Now I want to read to you from Romans 12:3-11 “3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us] 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. 6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. 9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. 11 Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.”
Strong word here from Paul! Don’t get a big head because we are all part of the body, the church, and we belong to one another. Just like a family should depend on one another when in need, so too we have a responsibility to help one another if the need arises. Like Peter, Paul said we are to use our abilities, or talents or gifts to serve others. If it is teaching, teach, if it is encouraging, encourage, if it is leading, lead etc.. He ends this sections by saying what? That we should not be lazy but work hard and serve our self and make lots of money? No! He told Christians to work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. God has so ordained that each Christian should us those talent He has give us to His glory Special note: Don’t judge others because they can’t do something as well as you ro what you consider easy. That just may be your gift and not theirs.
I would like to read to you another verse from Ephesians 4:11-16 “11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors(or shepherds) and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 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. 14 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 people in their deceitful scheming.
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
So from this verse do you see what my job, and what our responsibility as Elders are? Very specifically, to equip you for works of service.
The Amplified Bible puts it this way: “11 And His gifts were [varied; He Himself appointed and gave men to us] some to be apostles (special messengers), some prophets (inspired preachers and expounders), some evangelists (preachers of the Gospel, traveling missionaries), some pastors (shepherds of His flock) and teachers. 12 His intention was the perfecting and the full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ’s body (the church),”
I believe that beyond God’s intention to save us by the blood of His one and only Son, He wanted to bring us into a nurturing body of believers to be trained and equipped so that we could in turn grow up and mature. Then as Peter puts it in chapter 2 of his first letter, we are then to become a “holy priesthood, offering up spiritual sacrifices and service acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (Each of us are to become one of His ministers.)
I feel like I’ve done my best over the years to teach what I feel is some of the most important things I’ve learned in scripture in addition to the Saving work of Jesus. And that is to trust in our Lord with all your heart, to trust in His love for you, and to believe that God has promised that He will work all things out for our best interest. And also the fact that we have no need to be afraid, because God is so near to us, watching over us, ready to guide us. He wants to commune with us. The Christian religion is not just about feeling like you have to go to church and do this or that, rather, the Christian religion is all about the close relationship you can have and enjoy with our God, as we walk together and serve one another.
So my challenge for you this day as a teacher and preacher of God’s word, and as an elder, is to look at yourself and consider how God has blessed you. Consider what talent or abilities you have and then consider how you can start serving Him. Don’t be part of that 90% who choose not to get involved and serve in any way or form. I guarantee, if you look for the open doors of opportunity God will show them to you. I just hope that you love Him enough to serve Him. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to jump out of the nest little bird and see what it is like to fly and soar with Him.
For more lessons click on the following link: http://granvillenychurchofchrist.org/?page_id=566
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