Discipleship- Growing Up in Jesus

Discipleship- Growing Up in Jesus

Acts 2:42-47

    This morning I am struck by the fact that six years ago when we first moved here our oldest son was 13 almost 14. Jared was 12 and Jinger was 10. John is now almost 20. Jared graduates in a few short weeks and will soon be leaving us. Jinger also gets her driver's license next month. Someone said to me the other day- "the empty nest is coming- I guess that makes you sad that your children are growing up?" Misty eyed- yes. Going to miss them, you better believe it. But sad? No way- because this is what is supposed to happen. Growing up is part of life. Babies are cute but if a baby never grows up that's a tragedy. Because all living things grow. We are meant to grow. Physically, emotionally, spiritually. A couple of years ago there was a movie out that called "Failure to Launch." It traced the all-too-common pattern of a man who lived with his parents even after he was 40 years old. Its supposed to be a comedy. Tragically, this happens all too often- not just in the home, but even where its more tragic is when it happens in the church. Whether it's physical growth or emotional growth or spiritual growth, if you don't grow that's a tragedy. One of the purposes of a family is to help little babies that God places in them to grow to maturity. And one of the purposes of the church is to help baby Christians to grow to maturity Now, having a grown up son or daughter who is experiencing failure to launch in your home might be difficult to deal with- but having a whole bunch of people who chronologically are mature, but spiritually are immature is one of the paramount tragedies that faces the church today. And as your parents raised you so that you would one day get out on your own Jesus saved you so that one day you would grow up and be like Him. He wants fully grown-mature- men and women of God.

I. What? Grow.
⁴²They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching You read this passage we read earlier and we see the fantastic growth of the church taking place after Pentecost. I know that you have read it and heard it preached many times. It's a great passage because it describes an idyllic time in the life of the church. A model. And did you notice that, somewhere along the line, the original disciples of Jesus became known as apostles- that is, they became leaders. It didn't really take very long for this to happen. But it marks out the steady growth of these men whom Jesus chose, who gave them an expectation. Jesus told us in the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20) that we were to go and make disciples. Not just converts- but disciples. The word that we use for that maturing process in the church is called Discipleship. Its one of the five important ships of the fleet that we began looking at a couple of weeks ago. In the first century, a disciple was a student who was a follower of a teacher- usually a rabbi. A disciple was to a rabbi what an apprentice is to a Master trademan. Those of you who are farmers can probably understand this idea as much if not better than anyone. Its plowing up the soil, treating it, fertilizing it, sowing the seed, cultivating it and harvesting it. It's a long, difficult process. It is tedious and painstaking. But most of the time it is worth it. But it operates on the assumption that when you put something in the soil, its going to grow. Mothers understand this of their babies, that is why I Peter says As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word that
you
may
grow
thereby.--1 Peter 2:2. Growing is natural. Growing is healthy. Growing means that you are alive. If you have a baby and that baby is not growing, you would have that baby into see the pediatrician the first appointment you can get. They talk about growth percentiles and all this sort of thing.

    Not long ago I read about a little girl in India who was not growing up. The article said that although she was five years old, she only weighed nineteen pounds. The problem was malnutrition. The shocking part of this article was it was a very common problem. In fact, in India it says that forty-six percent of Indian children are under nourished and under weight. Forty-six percent – that's nearly half. And thirty-eight percent of children in India have been permanently stunted in their growth. Permanently stunted! The thing that caught my eye was this: "Poverty is preventing a generation from growing up."

    I could be wrong but I suspect that this is what is happening to our churches as well as individual believers. We're pretty good at getting a sinner to pray the sinner's prayer and maybe even get him to be baptized. But after that, we kind of leave them alone. Yes I know that its hard to encourage a full grown man that he needs to grow in Christ- to set down with you and go over Scripture together, teaching him how to pray how to read his Bible, helping him understand the necessity of it. But if he can see it in your life- it's a whole lot easier. But we are so conditioned instead of growing, learning, becoming more and more like Jesus. We want and come expecting to be entertained. I think somehow we have gotten caught up in the idea that we got to do what the world does and bring in the world in order to entertain one another. Come and see the show. Come listen to the choir sing, come hear the pretty music- give us a reason to get out of this warm bed on Sunday morning. Come watch the preacher knock himself out up there preaching and strutting around- couldn't tell you what he said as soon as you get to your car but oh how good he looked up there saying it. People come expecting to be entertained, and we feel the pressure to have to keep up with all the other churches are doing just to keep our doors open. Entertain us, but don't expect me to do anything about it, and for sure don't require me to go any deeper than where I am. That attitude reminds me of what Paul taught in 2 Timothy 4:3. He was telling Timothy to preach the Word, to be instant in season and out of season- why? "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; ⁴ and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables." Now friends, doesn't that sound like our generation today? Listen dear ones- those who complain about the present generation of people forget who raised them! Why do you come to church anyway?

    Sort of reminds me of the family who came to church got out of there just as fast as they could as soon as the service was over. As soon as they got in the car to head to the Golden Corral they all began to complain about the service. Mama spoke up first and said, "Did you ever in your life hear so many sour notes our organist was playing. She did nothing but mess up the whole way through." Sister said, "Yea and the choir sounded so bad all I wanted to do was to cover my ears!" Daddy said, "Well the reason we're having to take off out of here so fast is because Pastor Jeff just goes on and on and on. I couldn't tell you what he said, because I feel asleep three times!" But then brother said, "Well you know, Daddy, for what I saw you put in when the offering plate came around, I thought it was a pretty good show for a dollar!"

II. Why Grow? ⁴⁴All the believers were together and had everything in common. The fact is that story would be really funny if it were not so true. And it points to the heart of what is happening to so many Christians and Christian families today. It's the reason why so many churches are closing their doors and why we have to prop up so many others is because we Christians are not wanting to grow. Probably its because they never took the time to ask why? This is what we have in common with each other- the need to grow as disciples of Jesus Christ. Look with me over into Ephesians 4 for a moment, beginning at verse 11:

    And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, ¹² for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³ till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴ that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵ but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— ¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:11-16).
I know that was a lengthy passage but bear with me. Did you catch on to what Paul was saying here? At least three times Paul mentions the word growing or maturing- in fact in several different ways he expresses the same idea. Notice he says till we all come …to a perfect man. Does he mean perfect like you think he means perfect? Not at all- that word perfect means mature- growing, maturing in Christ. Doesn't mean sinless, but growing, learning- not just stuffing his head full of factual knowledge, but his character is being transformed. He is a changed man- he's different than he was when he got saved. In fact he is different than he was a month ago. That's what discipleship is all about- change. Changing. Transforming yourself with the Holy Spirit's power to be more and more like Christ. That's why we grow. I know a lot of people in the Baptist denomination don't like change. You can see that in our architecture. You can see that in the way we run our worship services, the songs we sing. We haven't changed a thing in years, preacher- and they are proud of it. Dr. Elmer Towns, my church growth professors up at Liberty says "we are so stuck in the past that if the year 1957 rolled around again, we'd be ready for it!" If we are not maturing, growing, learning, you know what we would be? (tell the story of the 85 year old widow who went out with a 95 year old man. Daughter worried, "Did you have a good time?" Mother said No- in fact I had to slap that old boy three times!" Daughter- "O I was afraid of that, he didn't try to get too frisky did he?" Mama said, "No." Well why did you slap him three times?" Mama: "Because each of those three times I thought he was dead!" If you are not growing, being a disciple, examine your heart. Paul said we should no longer be children…but grown up

III. How to Grow? (v.47) And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved In other words, how do we know when we get to the point of maturity? .When we have children ourselves. When we start bearing fruit. Jesus said in John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.But many of us are afraid we're going to be like the nursery rhyme about the old woman who lived in the shoe, she had so many children, she didn't know what to do! And so they start practicing spiritual birth control, and never produce because new Christians are too much bother. Friends new Christians don't cause problems (in churches). They just reveal the problems that already exist."--With so much to know and so much to learn- its kind of overwhelming, isn't it? How do you know when you ever get to that mark of being a disciple? I would have to say, you know when you are mature when you start winning and helping others to grow in Christ?

    I think back to my own life- when did I start becoming a mature person, and start thinking seriously about life and growing up? Its when our children came along. And our children came along a lot later than most people's did we were married 7 years before our first child came. A lot of our friends are grandparents now. My wife's sister who is 5 years younger is a grandmother. But that's ok. We were so busy in college and seminary days and then we birthed a new church before we ever started birthing babies. In three years God graced our home with three children. Ha! Be careful what you pray for. You'll get three kids in pampers all the same time. I Cor 13 but then I became a man, I put away childish things.

    Look over in Hebrews 5:12-13, the writer of Hebrews tells us this as well: For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. ¹³ For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. ¹⁴ But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

    Do you need milk? Its time for solid food. It's time to open up your mouth for the meat of the word of God. We had some friends over to have dinner with us. They said- "We want to have you folks over next time," Then he said "Do you like T bone steaks!" We exclaimed- "Yes!" Then he said, "Well, bring 'em!" We here at Salem serve up we serve up the equivalent of a two inch thick T bone steak, spiritual food that's going to help you to grow- and us to grow as a body of believers. Making disciples. That's what we're about. That's why we grow. And how is by producing and nurturing other believers to be mature in their faith and that makes us mature ourselves.