“The Seven Marks of Spiritual Maturity"
Romans 15:14-21
1.
What does it mean to be a “mature Christian?”
What does that look like?
a.
Been a Christian for a long time?
b.
Someone who can recite the bible?
c.
Never missed a Sunday service?
d.
What marks do we look for?
2.
The word carries the meaning of being ripe,
fully developed,
a.
In psychology, maturity is the ability to
respond to the environment in an appropriate manner.
A mature person understands who they are, what they’re supposed to do,
why they’re supposed to do it, how they’re supposed to do it, and then they do it!
3.
As we come to the middle of chapter 15, it’s
like we’ve been sitting in a classroom, the Apostle Paul teaching us,
encouraging us, sharing not only his heart, but his knowledge and wisdom,
a.
And most of all the timeless truth of God’s word
4.
But now the class is over, and as the case in a
lecture, some of the students have fled the room, busy with their agenda,
a.
While the more diligent students, those wanting
more, have gathered around the teacher, and the teacher is giving some final
words of encouragement.
b.
and the encouragement seems to center around the
theme of being spiritually mature…
c.
Today we’re going to look at Seven Marks of
Spiritual Maturity
14 Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren,
that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to
admonish one another. 15 Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to
you on some points, as reminding you,
#1 The Mature Christian has their heart in the
right place - they were full of all goodness
5.
Paul could sense that the Spirit of love and
truth and goodness was at work among them, which is to say the fruit of the
Spirit was evident
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Galatians 5:22-23
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#2 The Mature
Christian has their head in the right place, they were "filled with all
knowledge”
6.
Paul isn’t saying that they knew everything,
but, rather, that they acted from knowledge.
a.
They weren't, as he wrote to the church in
Ephesus
"tossed about by every wind of
doctrine" Ephesians 4:14
b.
No, they were solid in the truth, therefore they
acted out of an intelligent comprehension of what God wanted them to know,
c.
They acted intentionally, purposefully, they
took the knowledge of Gods word and personalized it.
Spiritual knowledge of Christ will be a personal
knowledge. I cannot know Jesus through another person's acquaintance with Him.
No, I must know Him myself; I must know Him on my own account. It will be an
intelligent knowledge—I must know Him, not as the visionary dreams of Him, but
as the Word reveals Him. CH Spurgeon
7.
It’s sad that so many Christians seem to muddle
through life without any real direction or purpose,
a.
and it’s mostly because they have no real
relationship with the word of God, and no responsiveness to the Holy Spirit of
God
b.
And the result of this muddled life is a
fruitless life, in other words they have no impact on another human being.
#3 The Mature
Christian is able to instruct another
8.
“Admonish” to instruct, to exert pressure to
choose God’s best.
a.
This is a significant indicator of spiritual
maturity, when you're able to go beyond knowing Christ, and you're able to help
someone else grow in their faith.
9.
People sometimes joke that men of our culture
never grow up, they just get more expensive toys.
a.
It may seem funny, but at the same time it's
kind of depressing, in that it affects all of society...
b.
Unfortunately we see it in the church as well
10. If
we take an honest look at the state of the church today, one of the things we
would find is that there is a lack of spiritual maturity
a.
and it’s not just men; both men and women
suffering from what has been described as "prolonged spiritual adolescence."
b.
In other words...
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you
need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and
you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes
only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14
But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by
reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
Hebrews 5:12-14
11. Can
you picture a grown man wearing a diaper and drinking from a bottle
a.
Stanley Thornton Jr., The California man who
lives part of his life as an “adult baby” and he actually collects Social
Security disability payments
b.
We see that and say “that’s just not normal”
c.
But Paul is making the point that some
Christians are in this state spiritually.
12. See
it’s normal for a man to be a baby, but then you mature and grow up
a.
And its normal for a new Christian to be a babe,
but they should mature, and grow up beyond spiritual infancy
b.
And an indicator is then they've come to the
place where they can genuinely help another person grow in the Lord.
c.
Not just teach them facts, but to strengthen
them, to help them move forward in their walk with Christ
d.
To open the bible and help them see something
that they’ve never seen before.
13. One
of the great admonitions the apostle continually makes is that Christians begin
to grow up into Christ so that they're "able to instruct one
another."
And the things that you have heard from me among many
witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others
also. 2 Timothy 2:2
14. I'm
very encouraged by the number of people who attended our Disciple-U - willing
to invest in another... twenty-two saints attended the class,
a.
These are people that have said “I’m willing to
help another person grow in their walk with Christ”
b.
Not only is it a mark of spiritual maturity, it
goes to the “WHY” of what we do as a church
#4 The Mature
Christian knows WHY they do what they do...
because of the grace given to me by God, 16 that I might be
a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that
the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy
Spirit.
15. Why
do we do what we do? Or can we just "be Christians" ?
a.
Andy Stanley talks about the importance of
having clarity on why we do what we do.
b.
Think about it this way; I’m a front door
greeter… if in my mind, the most important thing about my role is to hold the
door open so people can go in and out a little faster, well one word: BORING! That's no consequential.
c.
But if I understand that I’m playing a crucial
part in a bigger plan, to welcome people into God’s house with joy, and the
help them feel comfortable and loved, so that their heart is open to the gospel
message,
d.
Suddenly I have a great motivation for what I
do, because I understand that what I do matters.
16. When
Paul talks about “sanctified by the Holy Spirit,” it goes to our PURPOSE.
a.
“Sanctification” means to devote something to
the intended purpose for which it was made.
b.
When I play a guitar I’m using that instrument
for its intended purpose.
c.
I could use it to chop down a tree, but it
wouldn’t be very effective.
d.
That guitar was designed with intention, and it
was built with purpose, to create music!
e.
And when you couple it with an outside force, a
musician, it’s able to accomplish it’s intended purpose.
17. That’s
what Paul is telling us; You and I were designed with intent, and we were built
for a purpose
a.
In order to accomplish that purpose, we need an
outside force, the Holy Spirit, to empower us to accomplish the purpose and the
will that God has set before us.
b.
We were not brought out of darkness into the
light of Christ just to hang out and sing songs, or to bumble through life and
just get by
c.
You were redeemed for a purpose - to fulfill the
will of God.
18. Sanctified
service is to present yourself to be used for the fulfillment of His plan, to say, "Lord, here am I. Send me,"
(Isaiah 6:8) and
a.
You've created me, you've redeemed my, you've
given me gifts, your anointed me, you've appointed me...
b.
I'm yours - use me!
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the
Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit,
which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19. We
continually need this reminder because the philosophy of the world, is that we
can do all things ourselves -- that we don't need God.
a.
Man has become so proud and arrogant that we
believe we can erase every vestige of God from our culture, and handle our
problems on our own.
b.
Yet what we’re seeing today, is that,
apparently, we cannot,
c.
a recent news poll revealed that 60% of the
population believe the world is going to hell in a handbasket!
d.
It’s as if mankind is on the bridge of a large
ship, and the wind and the seas have kicked up, and we suddenly realize that we
don’t know how to sail the ship, much less in a storm, and we no longer have a
compass - we’ve torn it out and tossed it overboard!
20. We
find this philosophy underlying almost all the activity of the world today, and
sadly even many churches.
a.
Working to do the work of the ministry without
the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
b.
If the Holy Spirit were to abandon this earth,
withdraw completely, how many churches would continue on as if nothing
happened?
c.
How many Christians could continue on as if
nothing happened?
#5 The Mature
Christian understands HOW to do what they do
17 Therefore I have reason to glory in Christ Jesus in the
things which pertain to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of any of those
things which Christ has not accomplished through me, in word and deed, to make
the Gentiles obedient— 19 in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the
Spirit of God,
21. Paul
speaks of three aspects of his ministry:
a.
Word: Preaching and teaching the word of God
b.
Deed: Conducting himself in a manner as to not
disqualify himself from the ministry
c.
Signs and wonders: The miraculous work of the
Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.
22. Sometimes
we think of being “in the Spirit” as some trance-like state, where we’re
floating, angels are singing, smoke is filling the air...
a.
While that might be the experience of some, the
reality is that “walking by the Spirit” simply means that God is working in and
through us.
b.
If we look at the description of the working of
the Holy Spirit in 1 Cor 12 and Romans 11, we can clearly see that the intent
is to empower the believer for ministry.
23. Want
to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit? Then abide in His word, conduct
yourself in a manner worthy of your calling (Eph 4:1), and be focused on
telling people about Christ.
a.
And Jesus promised us that we would be empowered
by the Holy Spirit for that purpose:
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea
and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8
24. And
so a mark of a mature Christian would be God working His will in your life by
the power of the Holy Spirit, drawing people to Him,
#6 The Mature
Christian knows what to do: share the gospel...
so that from Jerusalem and round about to Illyricum I have
fully preached the gospel of Christ.
25. Paul
knew his purpose: Preach the gospel...
26. We
might look at Paul , or we look at people like Greg Laurie, or Billy Graham, or
some other great present day church pioneer,
a.
And we think “they’re great evangelists…”
b.
I wonder if they would agree, or would they
simply say was that they were simply being obedient to God?
27. What
about you? “I’m just a Christian, living my inconsequential life, trying to
make it all work...”
a.
But should we see our lives as minor,
unimportant, inconsequential…
b.
OR - should we consider that perhaps God has a
will for your life, a purpose, for your life, and it’s not inconsequential,
c.
Matter of fact, it may well be VERY
consequential,
28. Do
you know wht God’s call is for your life? That’s the $1M question,
29. Look
at what we KNOW
a.
We’re called to share the gospel, tell people
about Jesus Christ
b.
We’re called to love God, and love our neighbor,
which gives us open doors to share the gospel!
c.
We’re called to honor God with our lives, which
gives us the credibility to share the gospel!
d.
In other words, its all about the gospel!
30. Some
might say “I don’t know how, I’ve never been trained.”
a.
Let me dispel a myth: You don’t have to go to a
class to share your faith!
31. Do
you have a story? Everyone has a story.
a.
What happened?
b.
What’s is like now?
c.
Have you heard me say the sinners prayer at the
end of the service?
d.
Then you’re golden!
32. “OK,
so I get it, but where do I go?”
#7 The Mature
Christian knows Where to minister...
20 And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not
where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation, 21 but
as it is written: “To whom He was not announced, they shall see; and those who
have not heard shall understand.”
33. Paul
traveled around the world to reach untouched places.
a.
Most places have been touched, at a high level.
Most countries have missionaries.
b.
But that doesn’t mean we call it a day, because
now we start drilling down.
34. Here’s
where you go: Find some area that has
not been touched by the glorious grace of God, and fill that space!
a.
In other words, yes our town has 170 churches,
but not every person in Wilmington knows Christ.
b.
There are people that are in your class at
school, people you work with, people in your neighborhood, that may be open to
the gospel.
“The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few;
therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest." Luke 10:2
c.
Where is your harvest? Will you go?
35. The
Seven Marks of Maturity
a.
They have thier HEART in the right place
b.
They have their HEAD in the right place
c.
They know how to INSTRUCT another
d.
They know WHY they do what they do
e.
They know HOW to do what they do
f.
They know WHAT to do: Share the GOSPEL
g.
They know WHERE to minister
Copyright © 2014 Clay Ritter.
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