Once upon a time, in the not-too-distant past, my husband and I lived for two years in Lagos, Nigeria. Some people pray, “Lord, I will do anything for You, but please don’t send me to Africa.” Being sent to Africa was one of the best things in my life. I needed to be there. God sent me there to learn some important spiritual lessons that I could only have learned from being there! I also met some lovely life-long friends during the process.
One of them was our driver Lucky. Like many people in Nigeria, two jobs are a reality. Lucky worked for us at a secular job as our driver, but his “REAL” job was that of a minister. Some people believe that pastors must have higher education. I agree that education is an excellent plus for pastors, but in some situations and some countries, that is not realistic. Lucky is a self-taught minister of the gospel, and he is good at it. Theologian A.W. Tozer sums it up when he says, “The thing that must really be understood is that our knowledge of God cannot be acquired simply through academic processes. What we really know about God is what He has faithfully revealed to us.” ¹
Lucky occasionally sends me his Sunday sermon messages. I devour them! God is using this man to preach the gospel in Lagos. Below is a recent sermon he sent me. Yes, I edited his “speech” a little—with his permission—to make it more readable to my blog followers. I hope you enjoy it, and as you read it, look for the main point. The main point is the essence of our walk with our triune God.
Patti Greene
Lucky’s Sermon Context
And so, the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their heavenly lights. By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven. Now no shrub of the field was yet on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.But a mist used to rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground. Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living person (Genesis 2:1-7 NASB).
Management
God has a beautiful planet, and He did not allow anything to grow on it because there was no one to manage it. Nothing was prospering in the garden because there was no manager. God needed a manager.
Six things I learned from the verses I just read!
God will never allow spiritual growth if we do not manage our lives correctly. So instead of praying for something from God, we should pray for the spirit to handle our sin, guide us into His truth, and be responsible for what He has given us. God will not allow you to have something you have prayed for if you cannot manage them.
God created men and women to worship Him—as God. He required a manager to manage what He made. Note that whatever you mismanage, God will not allow that area of your life to grow—until you can handle it.
If we ask people why God created man, they usually say, “It is to worship God.” Correct, but we must worship Him with the right motives, the right desire, and glorify Him because He is God.
Whatever you mismanage, you will most likely lose. Whatever is under your care, work diligently to protect and care for it. God cannot give you what you pray for if you do not manage what He has already given to you well. He can only provide you what you can handle. You pray for a new house. But God looks down on the apartment you have and sees it is not well-kept or clean. So, He says, “No! You have not managed the apartment I gave you, so you may not have a house.” He only gives you what you proved you could manage.
Some people might get jealous of your ministry. They may not understand what is going on behind the scenes and making your ministry grow and flourish. If you do not manage your church or church assignments correctly, you may lose them, just like if you mangle your body, you might lose part of your arm, leg, or health. If you mess up your relationships, you might lose them. If you mishandle your children, it is possible to lose them. If you blow your money or bungle your business, you could lose them.
To my pastor friends, I say, “So stop crying, Pastor. Don’t say, ‘I don’t know what’s happening to me. Life does not give you what you deserve but for what you fight for. Start reading Philippians 4:6.”
Ask. Seek, Find
My dear friends, the only way we can defeat the enemy we face is to pray. We must appreciate and tell the people that God has blessed us in one way or another.
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7 NASB).
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6 NASB).
GOD BLESS YOU, MY BELOVED MADAM,
I hope you liked my sermon and have extracted something from this message.
In God’s Grace,
Lucky
Bible Verse:
Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord and not for people, knowing that it is from the Lord that you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve (Colossians 3:23-24).
Prayer:
Dear Lord, I come to You today lifting my heart to You. I desire to work and serve You diligently. Please take away all my ungodly motives, my wicked spirit, and any desire to be “seen” for my works. Make me desire to live a life pleasing to You in grace, love, and humility. Remind me that my purpose in life is to understand the revealed truths You give me through Your Word. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
¹ Tozer, A.W. Delighting in God: True and Absolute Freedom is Found only in the Presence of God. New Delhi: General Press, 2020.
Verses are taken from The New American Standard Bible (NASB).
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I’ve been thinking about that dreaded feeling I experienced when I realized a painter had painted over all the markings on our “kid’s growth chart.”
Before the days of professionally-made wooden and personalized growth charts, I used to mark our kid’s height/growth on the inside pantry door in our home.
This reminded me of our spiritual growth!
– How is our spiritual growth chart?
– Is it short, tall, healthy, on track?
– Are you in a season of mighty growth?
– Or is it no longer there–just like our kid’s pencil and pen written growth chart?
We all grow at various times and through various means.
However, sometimes our growth chart patterns can signal a spiritual problem.
If you are concerned about your spiritual growth or lack thereof, talk to the Lord about it—just like a parent would talk to their child’s doctor if they weren’t growing.
“Complacency is easy and a deadly foe of spiritual growth.”
-A.W. Tozer
Spiritual maturity and spiritual growth manifest in a Christ-follower’s heart from the moment a person accepts God’s gift of salvation through faith in Christ until they meet Jesus face to face.
Are you becoming more spiritually mature? Does delight break out within your soul when witnessing to a maturing Christian? Does sadness surface when spotting a stagnant Christ-follower choosing the wrong path?
Believers come in all ranks, from those just saved to those who are glorifying God right up until their final days.
In the Army, the rank one holds decides their pay grade and how much responsibility he is given. While a corporal may be responsible for a small group of soldiers, a major might command 10,000—15,000 soldiers. In all branches of the military, one can fast-track their career by taking advantage of added training and educational opportunities.
This same pattern arises once a person follows Christ as his or her Savior. Upon salvation, Christ-followers are automatically enrolled in a fictitious class titled “Spiritual Maturity.” Individuals decide how far they choose to progress with this never-ending course. Barely passing the class or excelling to a high degree of competency is a personal choice.
Line Segments, Lines, Rays and Angles
In Home School Math, the lesson Lines, Rays and Angles gives four geometric definitions. 1
Spiritual Maturity and Geometry
1. A line segment occurs when two points are connected with a straight line.
2. A line has no beginning point or end point. It continues indefinitely in both directions.
3. A ray starts out at a point and continues off to infinity. We can show that by drawing an arrow at one end of the ray.
4. An angle is made up of two rays that have the same beginning point.
But, how does that relate to spiritual maturity?
Line Segment: When a person is born physically, they embark upon their life journey. Their journey starts when they are physically born and ends when they physically die. Their lifeline is from Point A to Point B.
Line: Many religions live on a line; their beliefs imagine there is no true beginning and when they physically die they are either morphed into an animal/insect or are physically born again, i.e. phrases like “in my next life I’m coming back as a cat, a dragon, a New York Rockette, an anesthesiologist, etc.” may be heard.
Ray: When a person accepts Christ, their spiritual journey begins, and they are automatically enrolled in the Spiritual Maturity course. This class begins at one’s spiritual birth and continues forever.
Angle: vertex point X – represents Christ for both types of believers. Christ-followers have a choice in which ray they want to follow: the easy laid-back Christian life or a more progressive path. It’s interesting to note that the angled center (called a vertex) represents Christ for both types of believers.
One ray strives for a life filled with the fruits of the Spirit, growing in love for Jesus Christ and with the anticipation of living an eternal life in Heaven with the Christ-follower’s first love: Jesus. This person’s love for Jesus becomes stronger and stronger as he anticipates reaching Heaven one day and spending an eternity with Him.
The other ray represents a choice to either stagnate or lean towards a sinful lifestyle—always fighting the flesh. Unfortunately, some of these souls may believe they are Christ-followers but have never received the gift of grace God has offered them.
So, in “mathematically” defining a progressive spiritually-maturing believer, they are rays striving to start at the vertex, where the two paths diverge and follow the Godly ray.
As a student in the Spiritual Maturity class, your spiritual timeline may include peaks and valleys. However, to be moving in the right direction, the ray should be resting on an inclined line always progressing to a higher level until it reaches Jesus in Heaven.
When I look at my own spiritual ray, I have many peaks and valleys. The peaks are times of extended growth, heightened dependence on the Holy Spirit, glorious worship and Biblical promises all coming to life. The valleys include breakups, fears, disappointments, spiritual attacks, confusion, and pain.
But, when my mind has stayed on Christ during the valleys, God always comes to my rescue in time. Sometimes I can look back and see how God orchestrated that valley to increase the slope of my incline to be closer to Him. Even when I cannot humanly see any good coming out of a trial or temptation, Biblical principles have taught me to trust Him even if He never shows me His purpose until Glory.
Missing Out: On a Level Plane
I don’t understand why some believers are content to sit back, believing they’ve done all they need to do for God. My inability to understand it is because when I accepted Christ, I hit the road running. I’m not saying I didn’t fall back, down, and twirl around some, but fortunately, I was able to pick myself up quickly. It was like two steps forward, one step back; okay, to be honest, maybe sometimes there were four or five steps backward!
But over the years in my Christian walk, I have seen church members who attend church every Sunday, sing in the choir, take their children to every church activity available, and still remain stunted in their spiritual growth. I ask myself why all the time!
I hate to use the word lazy and Christian in the same sentence, but I wonder if it isn’t laziness on their behalf.
They sit in church Sunday after Sunday just to feel good about going to the House of God. Or maybe they are there to make a work connection. Some don’t seem to grasp the principles they hear at church or Bible study—rarely applying them to their lives. I don’t understand how, in a 168-hour week, they can’t find time to open God’s Word. How can they disregard daily (or even weekly) prayer? Why do theyonly pray in a crisis? Why do they ask others to pray for them over and over when theydon’t take the time to pray for themselves?
I frequently wonder what people miss when they are not desirous of God’s presence. Lookers-on may be identified by many “ranks” of spiritual maturity they hold using Army terminology—a golf course private, a pew-sitting specialist, a Bible teaching corporal, or a “fanatical” Major.
Sometimes I am awed by their lack of personal commitment. But at the same time, I am so cognizant that one day even I might fit into one of these categories. I could easily become a “they.” With all sincerity, humility, and prayer, I pray that never happens, but nobody in this life has reached the point of perfection and that includes me, your parents and even your pastor. All who have accepted Christ occasionally experience cold hearts, judgmentalism, prayerlessness, or selfishness in themselves.
Making people feel bad by approaching this subject is not my style, but I do believe addressing these facts openly and honestly encourage a dormant disciple to become a vibrant follower on the way to a deep spiritual maturity.
Tips to Mature in Your Faith
Be Still Before God.
By praying, reading, meditating on His Word, and being quiet before God, we are filling ourselves with His presence. We are making time and room for God to speak to us, share His wisdom with us, and grow each of us into the person He intended for us to become from the start.
Allow God to Work Through Your Sufferings and Trials.
Too many believers avoid God because they blame God for their ordeals. Many nominal believers don’t want to undergo suffering; they believe by avoiding God that troubles will evade them. Their understanding is faulty because sufferings prepare us to be used by Him and our trials can draw us into a deeper relationship with our heavenly Father. Through our pain and affliction, we are directed to His principles, which allow us to see glimpses or outright directions for His purposes.
Pray for a Deeper Faith.
By praying for a deeper walk, one learns more about the One who cares for us more than anyone else in this world. It’s easy to sit back and listen to the undertakings others have achieved for Christ when you aren’t interested in asking God what you can do for Him. Many don’t want to serve Christ; they believe they already have His promise for eternal life and that is enough. But O dear soul, if you only knew what you are missing!
Two Character Traits to “Hold at Bay” while Deepening Your Faith
We must not think more highly of ourselves than we ought. We must remember that it is God who decides the measure of faith each person possesses at each interval of spiritual growth. Let us pray for humility by praying fervently, not boasting, realizing how weak we are, count others as more significant than ourselves, and help others succeed.
Do not be afraid to allow God to fill you with His presence to the point where others will notice a change in you.
Ten Powerful Characteristics of Spiritual Maturity
According to Frank Powell, the author of “10 [sic] Marks of a Mature Christian”, there are indicators we can use to gauge our maturity as a Christian:
The highs and lows of life don’t impact your relationship with God.
You find value in the “daily-ness” and trivial seasons of life.
You are at peace with situations beyond your control.
You don’t allow disciplines to take a back seat.
You maintain a childlike sense of wonder and awe.
You do not compare yourself to others.
You listen to others who have a different viewpoint … with the goal of growing and not correcting.
Your heart breaks for the poor and marginalized.
You understand Christianity doesn’t have an on/off switch.
You have a sustainable rhythm to your life.
Adding a #11, Powell also mentions that spiritual maturity is not about age, achievements or appearances. ²
Benefits Available to a Follower Fully Committed to Christ
As a fully committed Christ-follower, we have [the]:
Ability to become so closely aligned with God that He becomes our entire reason for living
Ability to develop the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control
Access to God, His guidance, and His Holy Spirit through prayer and Bible study
Capability to see and feel His presence in both the mundane and the exciting times
Capability to know His will
Joy seeing God move in the lives of our friends and family
Power to effectively communicate with Him (in total honesty)
Protection from the “evil one” when we “put on” the full armor of God: Belt of Truth, Breastplate of Righteousness, Shoes of the Gospel of Peace, Shield of Faith, Helmet of Salvation, and Sword of the Spirit (Read Ephesians 6:10-24)
And, the list could go on and on.
At the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson won the 100-meter sprint finals to great fanfare (and no small amount of boasting!) defeating what was easily the most competitive field in the sports’ Olympic history. Unfortunately, he was stripped of his gold medal one day later when drug tests showed he had used performance-enhancing steroids. Five years later, Johnson was caught doping a second time and banned automatically from competition for life by the International Amateur Athletic Association.
While we don’t like hearing stories like this, it is a reminder to us to consistently model Jesus Christ and to follow His principles because, one day at the end of our lives, we will be accountable for the path (the ray) we have chosen in this life.
Reaping Spiritual Gold
When we enter God’s presence on that day, let us hear as the faithful servants heard in The Parable of the Bags of Gold. (Matthew 25:14-30)
In that parable, a master entrusts several of his servants with various amounts of gold. The servants who received five talents and two talents each used the gold they were given to reap commensurate returns, but the servant who received only one talent hid it in the ground.
When the master returned, he was quite angry with the servant who buried his talent. “You wicked, lazy servant.”
By contrast, he said to those who generated a return on the master’s gold, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”
The master then took the one talent from the servant who buried his and gave it to the one who had received five gold pieces.
Like the servants in the parable, and using the geometric analogy we developed earlier, we find ourselves continually at an “angle vertex” decision point at every moment of our lives.
Let us do as the servant did who delighted his master, and “invest” the time, talents and treasures we have been given in this life to reap “spiritual gold” in return. This can include coming alongside others in kindness and fellowship, praying deeply for others without recognition, or even leading others to salvation through Jesus Christ!
God Bless and please share this message as an encouragement to others.
greenepastures.org
Christian Women’s Speaker, Member Inspirational Writers Alive #IWA; Bible Gateway Blogger Grid Member #bgbg2
Bible Verses:
Therefore, leaving the teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. (Hebrews 6:1)
Brethren do not be children in your thinking; yet in evil be infants, but in your thinking be mature. (1 Corinthians 14:20)
And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ. (Philippians 1:9-10)
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, I know so many people who are inactive in their faith. My prayer is for them to have a change of heart and a desire to serve and love You with his or her entire heart. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Works Cited
1“Lines, Rays, and Angles.” Home School Math. Web 23 May 2018.
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