Ephesians 4:14-16
Deacon Brown was a farmer. He frequently described his Christian experience by saying, "Well, I’m not making much progress, but I’m established!" One spring when he was hauling some logs, his truck sank down to the axles in mud. Try as he would, he couldn’t get the truck out. Defeated, he sat atop the logs, viewing the dismal situation. Soon a neighbor came along and greeted him, "Well, Brother Brown, I see you’re not making much progress, but you must be content because you’re well-established!”
There is a difference between being spiritually mature and just being set in your ways. For example, some have the idea that the pastor has to do all the ministry of the church. He has to preach the sermons, lead the church, administrate, visit, marry, bury and counsel. Ephesians 4:12 makes it very clear that a pastor’s main role is to equip and prepare God’s people to do the work of the ministry. My primary job is to help you to grow spiritually so you will become willing and able to do the ministry of the church.
I. DISCERNMENT-
God’s desire is that we be mature, stable in the faith and not prone to waver
Colossians 2:7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
We have to be able to recognize the truth from a lie and stick with the truth
We live in a society that seems to change its mind every time something new is presented
And there are people who do nothing but follow religious fads without seeking truth
Paul describes them as being like children who have a different best friend every minute
Children need protection from harmful influences because children are impressionable
They are likely to believe what they are told when it comes from an authority figure
God doesn’t want us to be gullible but to be able to distinguish reality from fiction
There are deceitful people in the world who have charisma and charm and use religion
We can’t be suckered, we can’t be snowed by appearances
For instance, today’s theme is that there is no absolute truth but isn’t that an absolute?
If you can say unequivocally that no one’s truth is exclusive of the truth of others…
But Truth is not relative. It is Definite. It is Distinct. Truth is Dependable.
Only Truth is stable enough to sustain us through turbulent times of crisis.
II. DEVELOPMENT-
Though the truth is definite, God doesn’t want us to become critical and judgmental
We need to speak truth lovingly, out of a heart of compassion and consideration
That doesn’t mean to compromise the truth; it just means we should be caring
Truth stings and is difficult to handle but it is like a foul tasting medicine
It may be unpleasant and hard to swallow but it will help us to heal and be better
Galatians: Who bewitched you? I’m afraid I’ve wasted my time. Bite and devour.
Galatians 4:16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?
Don’t shoot the messenger when you don’t like the message- It isn’t mine
The truth is much easier to speak lovingly when we are living it faithfully
By embracing the truth, we will grow up and be more like Jesus
That is the goal to grow up into Christ Jesus in all things- Become more like Him
We can’t grow up until first we are born and we can’t be spiritually mature until saved
He is the standard, He is the pattern or model we are to be comparing ourselves to
Did you ever play dress up in your parents’ clothes? May have looked silly
Wow, thinking about growing up to fit into Jesus’ sandals!
How long have you been saved? Got that number? Are you that spiritually mature?
Ephesians 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
We aren’t there yet, but we should be farther along than we used to be
Some people behave in ways at church that they wouldn’t dare at school or work!
Don’t have to go from crawling to marathon running, but need to take a step and another
III. DESIGN-
God wants us to work well together and be helpful and beneficial to one another
As a church we should be a working functioning body with Jesus as the Head
He is the One in charge and all the parts of the body are obeying His commands
Interestingly enough, the words fitly joined together come from the word harmony
Literal meaning is to lay together in harmony or to organize in an orderly fashion
The idea of compacted by that which every joint supplieth is unity in contribution
What if every cell of your body detached itself and turned against your body?
What if certain of your organs ceased to function or malfunctioned? Sick, unhealthy
But God wants His people to work together and pull together each helping to support
Every part is pulling its weight and none are lagging behind work for mutual good
Not every part CAN do the same amount of work- Imagine walking on your hands!
The body is reproducing itself, dying cells being replaced
The body is growing and maturing and building itself up in love for each part
Imagine every person in this room was saved and giving their all for the cause of Christ!
Conclusion- Being set in your ways doesn’t make you mature in Christ. Can you honestly say you are where Jesus wants you to be spiritually? If not, why not? God wants what’s best for us.