How We Grow! (In Christ)

"Let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God - what is good and is pleasing to Him and is perfect." Romans 12:2

"God wants us to grow up... like Christ in everything." Ephesians 4:15

"We are not meant to remain as children." Ephesians 4:14

.....God wants each and everyone of us to grow up. His goal is for us to mature and develop the characteristics of Jesus Christ. Sadly today, a lot of us are growing older, but are not growing up. Many are stuck in perpetual infancy, remaining in diapers, still needing to be bottle fed on spiritual milk, never converting over to eating the spiritual meat. The reason is that they never intended to grow.

.....Spiritual growth is not automatic. It takes an intentional commitment. A true want and desire. To grow, a person must make a decision, and a persistent effort towards that decision. Discipleship - the process of becoming like Christ - always begins with a decision. Jesus calls us, and we must respond, as the disciples did back then when they were called by Him.

.....When the first disciples chose to follow Jesus, they didn't understand all the implications of their decision. They simply responded to Jesus' invitation. That is all you need to get started also. Just decide to become a disciple.

.....Nothing shapes or defines your life more than the commitments you choose to make in your life today. Your commitments can develop you or they can destroy you, but either way they will define you. You will become whatever you are committed to.

.....It is at this point of commitment that many people miss God's purpose for their lives. They are for the most part, afraid to commit to anything, and just drift through life. Others make only half-hearted commitments and give in to competing values in their lives, which often lead to frustration and mediocrity. And then, some even make full commitments to worldly goals, such as becoming wealthy or famous, and end up disappointed and bitter. Every choice we make has eternal consequences, so take my advice, choose wisely.

God's Part and Your Part:

.....Christ likeness is the result of making Christ like choices and depending on the Holy Spirit to help you fulfill those choices. Once you decide to to get serious about becoming like Christ, you must begin to act in new ways. You will need to let go of some old routines, and develop new habits, intentionally changing the way you think. This can be done through the study of the Bible, which is the truth, and then the application of it.

.....The bible says, "Continue to work out your salvation, (or victory), with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose."

Notice the two key elements in this verse for spiritual growth. "Work Out," and "Work In."

....The "work out" is your responsibility, and the "work in" is God's role. Spiritual growth is always a collaborative effort between you and the Holy Spirit. God's Spirit works with us, not just in us.

.....The "With fear and trembling" part means to take you spiritual growth seriously, because of the eternal implications.

To change your life, you must change the way you think.

.....Behind everything you do today is a thought or reasoning. Every behavior is motivated by a belief, every action is prompted by an attitude. God revealed this thousands of years ago, before Psychologists, when He said, "Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts."

.....This verse was written to believers, and is not about how to be saved, but how to grow. It does not say "work for" your salvation, because you can not add anything to what Jesus did, and the "Finished Work"of the Cross.

.....Willpower alone can produce short-term change, but it will always create a constant internal stress because root causes of the behavior have not been dealt with. So the change never feels natural, causing you to eventually give up, like in diet, and exercising. Hence, you quickly revert back into your old patterns, not a complete lifestyle change.

.....That is why real spiritual growth starts by changing the way you think. The Bible says, "Let God transform you into a new person the renewing of your mind, through the washing of the water of the word of God." You must develop the "Mind Of Christ" that is within you.

.....This mental shift is called "Repentance," which literally means to change your mind. Technically, you repent whenever you change the way you think by adopting how God thinks- about yourself, sin, God, other people, life, your future, and everything else. You take on Christ's outlook and perspective. This begins when we stop thinking immature thoughts, which are always self-centered, and self-seeking. The Bible says that this selfish thinking is the source of all sinful behavior.

.....Paul worded this perfectly when he said, "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, and I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put my childish ways behind me."

.....Today, many assume that spiritual maturity is measured by the amount of biblical information and doctrine one knows. While knowledge is one measurement of maturity, it is not the whole story concerning this. The Christian life is far more than creeds and convictions, it includes conduct and most of all, character. Our deeds must be consistent with our creeds, and our beliefs must be backed up with Christ like behavior. Christianity embodies a relationship, and a lifestyle. We must seek His Face and not His Hand for true spiritual growth, and God has given us His Spirit to help us and guide us, no longer thinking like the world thinks.
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