A Key to Spiritual Growth

Something simple James Edwin Orr said in a sermon about spiritual growth always stuck with me:  "If you don't obey, you don't grow."  Spiritual maturity comes through obedience to God in what we already know rather than learning something new.  New things have their allure, but often new things are not necessary.  Take golf clubs, for example.  I have played with people who constantly tinker with their equipment instead of taking lessons to learn how to hit the ball properly.  They hope buying a new driver or new shafts will help their game instead of focusing on developing a game with the decent clubs they already have.  They always seem to have a new club in the bag but perpetually shoot the same old score.  A new club does not eliminate the need for practice, and reading a new Christian book or listening to a sermon will not grant instant maturity.

As believers, we can imagine spiritual growth is facilitated by the discovery of new truth, experience, or gift of the Holy Spirit.  Of writing books there is no end, and there is no shortage of people happy to put a new spin on scripture.  There is more information readily accessible today than ever before.  At our church years ago we had a "Tape Lending Library" where the pastor's sermon was copied onto a cassette tape, was checked out for the week, erased, and the following week a new copy was made.  Today there are hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of new sermons and podcasts available online every week.  Does it mean people are growing?  Listening to more sermons isn't the key to growth, but putting into practice even one thing God showed you through His Word today.

We mature and grow most spiritually when we commit to doing fundamental things better.  Professional athletes illustrate this well.  A quality cricketer enlists the help of coaches to play cricket at the highest possible level – not to switch from cricket to chess or powerlifting.  It is phenomenally rare (based on my observation) for an athlete to reach elite professional status without coaching along the way.  Even the very best rely on coaches who know their game to scrutinise their form, put them through drills, assist with diet, all to elevate their game.  There are some quality multi-sport athletes, but if an athlete were to abandon the fundamentals of a sport under the guise of advancement, their skills would ultimately erode.  During seasons of slumps and struggles, going back to the basics is key to becoming the best player possible.

For Christians, the good-old Gospel saves us as truly now as it ever did before, and maturity comes when we actually start believing and trusting it more.  To grow we do not need more books or sermons (useful and good as these things are) but to read the Bible ourselves and obey what God says, to do the things we already know are true.  We do not move beyond prayer because it is basic but should pray more faithfully.  Jesus gave the command we are to love one another as He has loved us, and notice the disciples did not immediately say, “And?  What next?”  Love is the fulfiment of the entire Law.  Learning new things is amazing, for God has given us the joy of discovery and the capacity to grow.  The key to spiritual growth is obeying God in what you already know.  Be faithful in the basics and who knows what God will teach you!  He undoubtedly will.

God and Evil Spirits

It is mind-blowing the things God does and the way He chooses to do them.  Though God has made Himself known to men, He is past finding out and His ways are higher than ours.  The Almighty God is infinitely greater in power and wisdom than any created being.  God's wisdom is revealed to us through the Bible and Jesus Christ, wisdom no spirits or men have known.  Paul expressed in 1 Corinthians 2:8 if the rulers of darkness realised God's plan of salvation would come through Christ's death on Calvary, they would not have sought to kill Him!

God's people in scripture were often baffled by the ways God used in chastening them.  They could not believe God would use the Assyrians or Babylonians to lay waste to Israel, destroy the Temple, and to take captive God's own people.  How could a righteous God employ such wicked nations to accomplish His will?  The truth is, God's people had adopted the wicked practices of the surrounding nations in violation of His law and the covenant they made with God.  They had departed from God, and so He delivered them into the hands of their enemies.  God allowed His own people to fall prey to the nations who practised these abominations, knowing He would judge all transgressors according to their works.  There would be a redemptive aspect of captivity, painful and brutal though it was:  He would see them purified, established, and restored as a nation loyal to God once more.

The dealings of God with nations and individuals can have striking similarities.  King Saul was a man chosen out of all the people of Israel to be anointed as king.  He was a man to whom God gave a new heart, the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and prophesied with the prophets.  Tragically it was not long until king Saul was lifted up with pride, rebelled against the word of the LORD, and refused to obey.  God spoke through the prophet Samuel:  because Saul had rejected Him, He had rejected Saul as king.  God would choose a man after His own heart, David the son of Jesse.  When David was anointed the Holy Spirit came upon him, and an evil spirit from God came upon Saul - quite a contrast!  1 Samuel 16:14 makes this clear:  "But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and a distressing spirit from the LORD troubled him."  You might think, wait a minute!  How can a holy God send an evil spirit?  However He wants to.

Saul had been rejected as king, but God never said He rejected him as a descendent of Israel or a partaker of the covenant of God.  Saul rejected the word of the LORD, so God stopped speaking to him.  He sent an evil spirit to chasten him, to reveal the desperate state he was in.  By the way, this is not a unique incident.  There are other times when God employed an evil spirit to trouble or confound those who did wickedly.  Judges 9:23 tells us, "God sent a spirit of ill will between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech..."  Also God sent a lying spirit to speak through the mouths of Ahab's false prophets (1 Kings 22:23; 2 Chron. 18:22).  There is a principle which is true in both in the natural and spiritual realms:  you reap what you sow.  In all these cases wicked men were visited with wicked spirits intent on their destruction.  I believe this can be true today - even concerning God's people.  If we give heed to lies of the devil, we should not be surprised if we find ourselves troubled by him.

Amazingly, the servants of Saul were perceptive of the problem.  They recognised straight away Saul was troubled by an evil spirit sent by God!  Unfortunately they did not urge Saul to repent or seek the LORD, but suggested they find a skilled musician to calm him.  Would you believe it was David they chose, a man filled with the Spirit of God?  It turned out to be an effective treatment in the short term, yet this began the downward spiral of Saul's life which was profound and disastrous.  He tried to pin David to the wall with a spear, became increasingly surly and suspicious, killed all the priests of God in Nob he deemed disloyal to him, sought the counsel of a medium, and fearfully took his own life on Mt. Gilboa.  Saul had opened himself up to satanic assault through pride and rebellion against God, and without the Holy Spirit he was without defence or help in time of need.

Let all those redeemed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ take note and do not do wickedly as Saul did in departing from the Almighty God.  Jesus will never leave or forsake us, but we can surely leave and forsake Him.  If we are stubborn in this rebellious choice, we open ourselves up to spiritual bondage and captivity - just like king Saul or the children of Israel.  God is willing the temple of our bodies be destroyed so our souls can be saved (1 Cor. 5:5).  Praise the LORD we have more than a musician in God, more than soothing sounds for our ears, but deliverance, redemption, and salvation through Jesus Christ when we humbly repent and trust Him.  All glory to God, whose ways are higher than ours!

Heaven, A Liquid Asset

The assurance Christians have of eternal life through the Gospel ought to impact the way we live now.  Since God has made provision for our future, it stands to reason He will preserve us today.  For followers of Jesus Christ eternal life has already begun, and we can be rid of the cares and worries of this life which potentially plague us with fear.

Eternal life in heaven for some believers could be compared to life savings which remain untouched, an expensive insurance policy which has never been claimed on, or a immense financial investment which currently is a non-liquid asset.  Eternal life is typically (speaking from my own experience a bit) can be seen as something afar off and not quite useful for our experience of daily life.  More and more I am learning that eternal life is altogether relevant for today, a liquid asset we can draw upon to help our perspective remain fixed upon Christ.

Life was not intended by God to be theoretical or philosophical but real and abundant.  The life we have through Jesus Christ is one to be lived boldly today, not only in a heavenly land in the unknown or distant future.  Today we can draw upon the fact God knows us and we know Him; that God loves us and we love Him.  This knowledge should be the framework of our decisions.  We do not need to worry about what we are going to eat or what clothes we should wear because God has us covered for eternity.  He has provided for the birds of the air and beasts of the field, and He will continue providing for us today, tomorrow and forever - though our faith is small.

Do you know you have eternal life?  Have you receive the assurance God offers through His Word of a secure future with Him forever?  Are you drawing upon this reality as days trickle into weeks, months, and years?  Let us be sure we do not glory in our security or heavenly future, for God is the only One deserving of our confidence and trust.  Take the words of Jeremiah 9:23-24 to heart:  "Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches;²⁴ but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the LORD."  This is eternal truth we can walk in today!

Pleasing Our Saviour

People are notoriously difficult to please.  Give someone what they want, and they can still end up dissatisfied.  Whilst it is true some are easier to please than others, we all tend to be upset when our expectations are not met.  When we don't receive what we expect - be it service or quality we believe we have paid for - it leads to ungrateful, bitter attitudes.

The children of Israel provide an example of this after they demanded Samuel anoint them a king to rule over them like the other nations.  1 Samuel 10:24-27 reads, "And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen, that there is no one like him among all the people?" So all the people shouted and said, "Long live the king!" ²⁵ Then Samuel explained to the people the behaviour of royalty, and wrote it in a book and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. ²⁶ And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched. ²⁷ But some rebels said, "How can this man save us?" So they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace."  After it was revealed Saul of the tribe of Benjamin was chosen, a man who stood a head taller than all others, not everyone was pleased.  They were granted their wish of having a king, but they weren't pleased with the king God had given them.  Maybe they had hoped to be king (or at least a man from their tribe) and were a bit sour about it!  This shows the desire for a king was not so much about God's selection of king but a symptom of hearts which had departed from trusting God.

The LORD graciously touched the hearts of valiant men to accompany their king, who served and honoured him.  King Saul was pleased to have valiant men who respected and offered themselves to help him.  Wicked men spoke against the king and questioned his ability to save them.  This brings us back to the reason the people asked for a king:  they wanted someone to fight for them, to lead them in and out of battle.  These men wanted a saviour; they were not interested to serve a ruler.  This perspective relates well to our day.  I would say most people are happy to be saved, glad to go to heaven if it exists, interested to be blessed, but are skeptical to lay down their lives to serve Jesus Christ.  They are fine with a Saviour but are not interested to sacrifice themselves in obedience to Him.

The rebels refused to give Saul gifts, yet Saul held his peace.  Later in his reign he would have taken severe and immediate action!  Jesus is the King of Kings and He holds His peace, patiently and graciously waiting for people to repent of their sins and follow Him as Saviour and LORD.  A day will come when Jesus will take vengeance on His enemies, but those whose hearts have been touched and transformed to follow Him will be preserved and protected.  Some wonder how Jesus can save sinners, but He has proved His love and power through His death on the cross and subsequent resurrection.  As He rose from the dead so we will be raised with Him and enter into the joy of the LORD.  Let us give Him the gift of our faithful service, for He is the valiant one.  In all who love the Son the Father is well-pleased.