Sustainable maturity
TEACHER
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Lesson 11
BASIC BIBLICAL TEXT
Romans 12.1-5
Colossians 1.9
BASIC BIBLE TEXT
Philippians 1.3-6, 9-11
3 I thank my God every time I remember you.
4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy
5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now,
6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,
11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.
BASIC BIBLE TEXT
Philippians 4.8
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
GOLDEN TEXT
Psalms 128.1
Blessed are all who fear the LORD,
who walk in obedience to him.
AIMS
* Know the attitudes that need to be adopted by the Christian in order to reach maturity;
*Understand that the achievement of maturity must be a daily exercise;
*Confirm with works what you have learned from the Word of God.
INTRODUCTION
In this lesson, three attitudes will be addressed that need to be adopted as a lifestyle by those who wish to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18), such as: honor, humility and faith.
1. 1. Honor to God and men
"Honor" should not be interpreted as a random, outdated entry, devoid of (deep) meaning, to be casually repeated in Sunday services by the believer.
Honor is, above all, the glory, the good reputation or fame that is offered to God and to different people, for different reasons.
1.1.1. Honor God
When we honor God, we become one spirit with the Eternal (1 Cor 6:17).
The figure of the Tabernacle, the tent of revelation where God manifested his presence, illustrates the three dimensions of the human being, in the three stages of spiritual growth until maturity:
*the body, in the Atrium;
*the soul, in the Sanctuary and;
*the spirit, in the Most Holy. (Hebrew 10.19,20)
1.1.2. Honor men
To honor someone, it is necessary to look at that person with the eyes of God, who scrutinizes the heart and is not moved by what is apparent (1 Sam 16.7). The mature Christian, therefore, gives honor to those who deserve honor because he sees the other superior to himself (Phil. 2:3). In other words: the mature Christian has already dealt with his pride, vanity and presumptions of superiority, understanding that we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousness, like filthy rags; and we all fall like a leaf, and our sins, like the wind, blow us away (Is 64:6).
2. Humility
Likewise, much is said in our churches about humility. But, after all, what does this word indicate? What does it imply?
Do nothing out of strife or vainglory, but out of humility; let each consider others better than himself (Phil 2:3). Kindly love one another with brotherly love, giving preference to one another in honor (Rom 12:10).
2.1. The greatest example of humility
The greatest example of humility is portrayed in the blessed person of the Lord Jesus, our Master and Lord:
*He showed himself to be humble when he washed the disciples' feet (including those of Judas, the traitor) and then immediately wiped them with his towel (John 13:5);
2.1. The gratest example of humility
*on all occasions when he performed great miracles, always helping the needy, the crowds sought to acclaim him, to praise him; but Jesus always rejected glory, applause, honors and all kinds of homage (John 6:15).
The Lord Jesus invites us to come to Him to learn that it is possible to be meek and humble in heart and character (Mt 11:28-30).
2.2. The lessons of King Uzziah
When we study the life of King Uzziah, we learn precious lessons that show us how to act when we achieve power, glory, greatness and prosperity (2 Chronicles 26:3-21).
When he was exalted, Uzziah became arrogant and very quickly became corrupt. The king sinned in public, touching God's sovereignty, transgressing his orders (2 Chronicles 26:16-18). Uzziah became intoxicated with power, trading humility for personal exaltation.
2.2. The lessons of King Uzziah
Uzziah allowed himself to be corrupted by pride (haughty eyes), which is the first of the six things that hate the Lord (Prov. 6:1.-19; 2 Chron. 26:16a). This is the fundamental sin, for it leads the individual to the practice of others. From the most remote period of the primitive Church, pride was seen as the most dangerous offense to God (James 4.6) (Malafaia, S. Central Gospel, 2014).
2.2.1. sustainable maturity
From the experience of Uzziah, what humble attitudes, in the face of human glory, should the Christian adopt so that maturity is a continuous act in his life?
* never seek personal recognition or appreciation (Rom 12:3; 1 Thess 2:6);
* value simple, humble and discreet things (Pr 15:33; 16:8; Zep 2:3);
* overcome anxiety and restlessness by exercising contentment (Phil 4:11,12).
3. FAITH
Faith is the ingredient for stabilizing and sustaining Christian maturity. Exercising it (Rom 10:17), living it (Heb 10:38) and keeping it (2 Tim 4:7) are the movements that can guarantee the maintenance of our hope.
In contrast to the set of beliefs, which are built throughout a lifetime, it is not possible to manufacture faith, as it is a (free) gift from God (Eph 2.8). Genuine faith is supra-circumstantial, that is, independent of circumstances.
3. FAITH
It means to say that it is only established in the soul when our reasons, visible and temporary, stop fighting what is apparent and measurable to surrender to the absurdity of "not knowing". Our great challenge, therefore, is this: to want to surrender to the certainties of what is not seen (Heb 11.1).
3.1. Lives marked by faith
Throughout the Bible, we find men and women, families, groups of people, and entire nations making covenants and covenants of faith with the Lord.
3.1.1. The Samaritan woman
The Samaritan woman, on the same day she met Jesus, after being instructed in true worship, went to her town and told all the people that she had found the Messiah (John 4:5-30). Due to the important, convincing and valuable testimony of that woman, many Samaritans and residents of the region believed in the blessed person of the Lord (John 4:39).
3.1.2. The heroes of faith
The classic text of Hebrews (11.1-34) lists some biblical characters who, despite all the afflictions, tribulations and persecutions they suffered, remained firm until the end and, for this reason, reached the promise (Heb 11.39), among they : Abel (v.4); Enoch (v.5); Noah (v.7); Abraham (v.8); Isaac and Jacob (v.9); and Sarah (v.11). All these died in faith, without having received the promises, but seeing them afar off, and believing them, and embracing them, confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on earth (v.13).
3.2. The intensity of faith
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2), in the course of His earthly ministry, has let us know that faith can be great or small. In Matthew 8 (emphasis by the author), this opposition of ideas becomes clear:
* in verse 10, to the centurion of Capernaum who believed in the healing of his servant, Jesus said: Truly I say to you, not even in Israel have I found so much faith;
3.2. The intensity of faith
* in verse 26, Jesus asks Peter, who feared the storm: Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?
It is not uncommon for us to alternate, during the Christian journey, moments of great faith and/or small faith. Small faith, in general, reveals itself in the face of fear caused by an imminent evil, against which there is nothing we, personally, can do to reverse it. Great faith, in turn, is the one that permeates the awareness that we walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5.7).
3.3. Faith validates itself in the bad day
When the fiery darts of the enemy are hurled at the Christian, that is, when life manifests itself as it is, many find great difficulty in wielding the invisible shield of faith (Eph. 6:13).
The faith given to us, however, boasts in its own afflictions, for it knows that tribulation produces patience (Rom. 5:3). Genuine faith, therefore, does not manifest itself only on the good day; she finds validation, almost always, on the bad day. James brings us an even more challenging perspective in this regard.
3.3. Faith validates itself in the bad day
James brings us an even more challenging perspective in this regard. He said, “My brethren, rejoice when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience” (James 1:2,3; emphasis added).
Tribulation forges our character. Therefore, let us rejoice, as the Lord's brother said, when the evil day knocks at our door. Let's take the opportunity to mature.
CONCLUSION
The God of hope and of all comfort is the God of covenant, promises and blessings. The growth we achieve and the maturity we enjoy will remain sustainable in the strength of the covenant of faith signed with the Most High (2 Cor 1.20).
God bless you!
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