With the many challenges that we face in the world today, we desperately need God’s support now more than ever. Because of the darkness and evil that are embedded in the earth, we are living in the days where the luxury of a prolonged preparation for the enemy’s attacks is no longer a viable option. "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light." (Romans 13: 11-12) We must do all that we are capable of to permit ourselves to continually grow in God so that we may execute His will with the spiritual expertise and effectiveness that should come naturally with age. And we do this by getting out of the way and letting God have His way. Matthew 5: 15-16 instructs us to allow His light to shine through us and not do anything to obstruct it. “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” Again, don’t do anything to get in the way of the process.
Many times we have heard it said, and in many cases it has been proven to be true, that certain actions can lead to undesirable effects on our physical and mental development. Phrases such as “smoking will stunt your growth” are common cliches. And though the media presentation of this information can be a bit theatrical, in a general sense it does properly illustrate and warn us against destructive behavior that would hinder the physical, mental and even spiritual growth process that should naturally take place in all of us. Unfortunately, there may be times that we do hinder that growth process. And when that happens, our necessary development begins “slowing up” at a time when we should be “growing up.”
As far as the most important growth process of all is concerned, our spiritual growth, this periodic tendency to languish in immaturity is unacceptable. Those of us who trust in the power of almighty God realize that we are fearfully and wonderfully made and He has given us everything we need to grow steadily by renewing our inward man day by day. And we desperately need this daily renewal because without it we fall prey to the wicked and oppressive spiritual aggression that comes from our enemy. “And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” (Job 1: 7) Therefore God tells us to, “Be sober, be vigilant: because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5: 8) A good example would be a natural lion on the plains of the Serengeti in Tanzania, Africa, stalking a baby antelope. This baby has no time for a long or hindered growth process. It must get up and be ready to run as soon as possible, or it will be lunch for the many lurking predators that wait in the shadows for unsuspecting victims. The same is true with us. We sometimes become prey because our “spirit man” is weak, inattentive or immature, rendering us incapable of escaping the jaws of death.
Amazingly and ironically, we ourselves can actually be directly responsible for our own immaturity which ultimately results in our own difficulties or demise. To illustrate this point, get your Bible and read the 5th chapter of Hebrews, Verses 8 through 11. Done? No? I’ll wait. Ready? Okay, let’s go! In this treasure-laden and enlightening scripture, the author wants to disclose some magnificent revelations concerning the Messiah, however he was having difficulty because his audience was, as stated, “dull of hearing.” They were just not ready to comprehend what He was saying. Even Jesus Himself had a similar problem with His own disciples when He told them, “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.” (John 16: 12) Can you imagine that? Our beloved Savior wanting to tell us something but we’re not in position to hear. What if God said, “…prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” (Malachi 3: 10) Well, God did say it and you’d think we’d be doing everything we could to position ourselves under those windows where He promised that He would pour out those blessings.
We who are also disciples of Christ must not be unwilling or unprepared to hear what is being said to us because the Lord may attempt to converse with us at any time or in many different ways. For instance, He may use His written Word or He may use another vessel of His choosing. He may speak to our spirits directly or He may even communicate to us in a song or a situation. Our God is so spectacularly awesome, He’ll use an object of His own creation, like a bush, to talk to us if He so desires. “Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.” (Exodus 3: 1-4) And God doesn't have to stop there. He will even use a burro to get His point across if He wants to. “And when the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the donkey with a staff. And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times? ….. Then the angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way is perverse before me. But the donkey saw Me and turned away from Me these three times. If she had not turned away from Me, I certainly would have killed you just now, and let her live.” (Numbers 22: 27-28 & 32-33) WOW!
Now these astonishing examples don’t mean we have to believe everything we hear from anybody who tries to tell us something, nor should we. Just because someone says it doesn’t mean that it’s true. It must be thoroughly assessed and reliably certified to be from God. And since we all know that God is good, we must make sure that the information we receive is good. As the Bible says, “Prove (scrutinize, examine) all things, hold fast that which is good.” (1Thessalonians 5: 21) In other words, put everything that comes at you to the test to determine its goodness.
But how do we test it? Make no mistake, I’m sure we can all agree that the objective is to only hear and accept the voice of Jesus and the direction of God. Jesus Himself said, “Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22: 29) Well, bless His Holy Name because with this statement He just revealed the formula that we need to test what we hear. In other words, Jesus said that everything we are told must be according to the Word and validated by the Spirit. By God’s Word - “Search the scriptures to see if it is so.” (Acts 17: 11) By God’s Spirit - “Don’t believe every spirit, but try them to see if they are of God because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4: 1) This is why intimacy with God and growth in God is so important.
Remember the old adage, “Everything that glitters ain’t gold.” Just because it looks good and sounds good doesn’t mean that it is good. “And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11: 14) This test will flush out any and all misinformation and disinformation. But needless to say, in order for this formula to be effective we must keep ourselves in close contact and good standing with the Lord by humility, submission, sanctification and service because true revelation and understanding does not come from any human capacity, but by the grace of God.
Then, once we’ve verified the information, we now have to be open and willing to accept what the Lord is saying. Here are Old and New Testament examples of purposefully refusing to listen and the consequences thereof:
Zechariah 7: 11 to 13 - “But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in His Spirit by the former prophets; therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts. Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts.”
Matthew 13: 15 - “For this people’s heart is waxed gross (callous), and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
Now back to Hebrews 5, verse 12, where it says, “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God.” In other words, something has happened which prevents us from being able to teach, instruct or be good examples as God intended. We find ourselves in the unfortunate and uncomfortable position where it’s time for some remedial training. Translating the text from the original Greek we understand that the word for “principles” is “stoicheion” which means basic, orderly elementary truths or principles. Further, the Greek word for “oracles” is “logion” which means words or sayings. Since, according to Hebrews, these are the things we must be retaught, we have to ask the question, “What were the first words or sayings that embodied the orderly, basic elementary truths or principles from God?” Looking back we find those to be contained in the Ten Commandments.
The Ten Commandments were part of what was known as “The Law”. The law consisted not only of these commandments but other directions contained in the Old Testament (specifically the writings of Moses and the prophets.) These were necessary because God wanted to instill in His people the principles which would bring them back to the type of relationship He intended us to have with Him from the garden paradise. Galatians 3: 24 & 25 tells us that “the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” God’s Law was purposefully and specifically designed to point us and lead us to Jesus. And since Jesus came, we are no longer under the law but under grace and truth. “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (John 1: 17)
So is that the end of the law? No! Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” (Matthew 5: 17) The Apostle Paul reemphasized this when he wrote, “do we then make void the law through faith? No! “God forbid. Yea, we establish the law.” (Romans 3: 31) Therefore, we who are the children of God do not ignore the law but should automatically comply with the “principles” of the law. Not rules, but principles. And what’s the difference? Simply speaking, with rules there will always come a situation that is not covered by a rule so you won’t know what to do. But principles embody the intent of the rule and they cover every situation so you’ll always know what to do. We’ll learn some really awesome things about principles later.
Romans 2: 14 and 15 says, “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these having not the law, are a law unto themselves. This shows the work of the law written in their hearts…” This is supported by Psalm 40: 8 - "I delight to do Thy will, O my God: yea, Thy law is within my heart”, Jeremiah 31: 33 - “…After those days, saith the LORD, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts” and finally Hebrews 10: 16 - “I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them.” These scriptures tell us that we must have the “principles” of the law embedded in our hearts. When this happens we become “doers of the word, and not hearers only…” (James 1: 22) “For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.” (Romans 2: 13) Then, and only then can we fully comply with what God calls “the whole duty of man” and that is to “Fear God, and keep His commandments.” (Ecclesiastes 12: 13) So again, we don’t throw out the law, but we comply with the law. And that compliance is found in and through Jesus Christ, and Him alone. Not the mindless repetition of written rituals that have no power to produce and perpetuate life.
With that we will pause and, Lord willing, next week get into the “meat” of this teaching and hopefully begin to connect some dots. I pray that your spiritual appetite has been sufficiently stimulated to anxiously anticipate the conclusion to this sermon entitled “Time to Grow Up.”
Comments