Category: Level: Intermediate

child

The Danger Of False Expectations Of God

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We are children of God (Romans 8:16), so when we talk with Him we can say “Our Father in heaven” (Mt. 6:9 ESV). Isn’t it amazing that our Father is the God of all creation? He is the infinite One. He knows all things and sees all things. He is all-powerful. He is the good One. He is so infinitely loving that Scripture says “God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8 ESV). He is the One who takes care of us and gives us power to become like Christ so that no matter what comes our way “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37 ESV). But these truths can lead to false expectations of God. We must be careful about comparing God too closely to our earthly father. Many people did not have such good fathers. In that case, God is not like your earthly father; rather, Continue Reading →

maturity

Do You Passionately Pursue Maturity?

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Jesus and his Apostles clearly taught us that we should pursue maturity. But why? In this post, we want to focus mostly on the motivation of becoming what God made us to be. If your teenage child stopped growing intellectually and emotionally, would you not consider this a cause for great concern and make an exhaustive search for an answer to the problem? Wouldn’t you realize that unless your child resumes their development, they will not become what they should become? Wouldn’t you make every effort to help them pursue maturity and reach adulthood, along with its benefits? Likewise, if we allow ourselves to become complacent about our growth just because we have reached “teenage” maturity, then are we not choosing to fall far short of what we are meant to be? Are we not making our Father sad? Are we not sabotaging Christ’s efforts to join with us and Continue Reading →

close friends

Spiritual Friends Fulfill Our Hearts – Part Four

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So far in this series we have looked at several ways for developing close spiritual friends. This week we look at accountability and healing. Many of us have a love/hate relationship with accountability. We know it is good for us, but we rarely, if ever, seek it out. And if someone tries to hold us accountable without our asking, our usual impulse is to resist it. Moreover, the idea of us holding others accountable makes us cringe because we don’t feel qualified or, we fear the disturbance in our relationship. But if we want deep spiritual friends, then we will welcome accountability. In the New Testament accountability is mentioned in the form of warning each other. Colossians 3:16 instructs us to be “admonishing one another”. The Greek word for admonish means gently warn or caution. I prefer the word warn because “admonish” is vague to many of us. Warning each Continue Reading →

Friends people meeting laugh

Spiritual Friends Fulfill Our Hearts – Part Three

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So far in this series we have looked at four ways for developing close spiritual friends: bearing burdens, using spiritual gifts, building one another up, and encouragement. Today, we look at two more: comfort and intentionality. 2 Corinthians 11:4 teaches us: “[God] comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” (ESV)  It is interesting that the Greek word for comfort is the same word used to describe the Holy Spirit as a comforter, paraklētos. Thus, believers have a role similar to the work of the Holy Spirit for each other. All comfort comes from God, and we are to be the channels. Paraklētos can also mean exhort or urge, and this is how it is used in other passages. Thus, we are to comfort, exhort, and urge one another as spiritual friends. Consider Continue Reading →

Friends people meeting laugh

Spiritual Friends Fulfill Our Hearts – Part Two

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Last week we looked at two principles for developing close spiritual friends: bearing each other’s burdens and using spiritual gifts. This post looks at two more. Remember, these principles apply one-on-one or in a group. The next principle is intentionally building one another up to be more like Christ. I Cor. 14:26 states: “Let all things be done to build each other up.” Eph. 4:12-13 explains that God gave different types of people to the church “for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain . . .  to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” Think about how helpful it would be to have spiritual friends who consistently encouraged you to become more like Christ. How much strength would it give you to have someone speak words to help you be more like Christ in specific situations in your life? Those who Continue Reading →