THE CHOICES OF MATURITY
Greeting in Jesus:
We have been talking this week about that deeper understanding and walk that is needed with God in order to have any kind of transformation in our heart and mind. In the last blog I used a number of scriptures that talked about the need for us to take a further step with Christ in our act of baptism through the proclamation of our death burial and resurrection with Christ. Really the only way that we can deal with something like this is to list the kinds of choices that mature Christians make as compared to those we see non mature Christians making.
Mature choices and non-mature choices are listed below with the need for you to determine which category your life falls in:
1. Teaching other or being taught by others
2.Developing a depth of understanding or struggling with the basics
3. Self elevation rather than self criticism
4. Seeking unity rather than promoting disunity
5. Desiring spiritual challenges rather than being entertained
6. Careful study and observation rather than opinions and halfhearted efforts
7. Active faith rather than cautious apathy and doubt
8. Confidence rather than fear
9. Feeling and experiences evaluated in the light of God's word rather than experiences evaluated according to your feelings
One of the basic ways to evaluate our maturity is by looking at the choices that we make because they change the way we approach our personal growth in Christ. We cannot get around our personal need to take responsibility for those choices we make. It does not matter how much God's Spirit speaks to us or tries to guide us unless we are willing to lay down self before God as a living sacrifice we will not grow in the Spirit of God nor will we begin to see any transformation in our lives into a new person. All of this is to say that unless we are changed from who we are as a person of this world in our minds and in our hearts we will never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. In the end all of the begging and pleading we can muster will be of no avail without our having had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Ultimately the choice will be ours to make about that relationship as well as the results we have in our lives. Like any other relationship we have it can be trusting and open or closed and strained. God has already given us the guidelines forthat as well and how we seek to develop it is on us. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
We have been talking this week about that deeper understanding and walk that is needed with God in order to have any kind of transformation in our heart and mind. In the last blog I used a number of scriptures that talked about the need for us to take a further step with Christ in our act of baptism through the proclamation of our death burial and resurrection with Christ. Really the only way that we can deal with something like this is to list the kinds of choices that mature Christians make as compared to those we see non mature Christians making.
Mature choices and non-mature choices are listed below with the need for you to determine which category your life falls in:
1. Teaching other or being taught by others
2.Developing a depth of understanding or struggling with the basics
3. Self elevation rather than self criticism
4. Seeking unity rather than promoting disunity
5. Desiring spiritual challenges rather than being entertained
6. Careful study and observation rather than opinions and halfhearted efforts
7. Active faith rather than cautious apathy and doubt
8. Confidence rather than fear
9. Feeling and experiences evaluated in the light of God's word rather than experiences evaluated according to your feelings
One of the basic ways to evaluate our maturity is by looking at the choices that we make because they change the way we approach our personal growth in Christ. We cannot get around our personal need to take responsibility for those choices we make. It does not matter how much God's Spirit speaks to us or tries to guide us unless we are willing to lay down self before God as a living sacrifice we will not grow in the Spirit of God nor will we begin to see any transformation in our lives into a new person. All of this is to say that unless we are changed from who we are as a person of this world in our minds and in our hearts we will never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. In the end all of the begging and pleading we can muster will be of no avail without our having had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Ultimately the choice will be ours to make about that relationship as well as the results we have in our lives. Like any other relationship we have it can be trusting and open or closed and strained. God has already given us the guidelines forthat as well and how we seek to develop it is on us. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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