Category: Spiritual Theology

The theology of spiritual growth & sanctification

Are We Fully Accepted By God Regardless Of Our Good Works?

Are We Fully Accepted By God Regardless Of Our Good Works?

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Boy do I feel some fear and trepidation writing this post! I wonder if Martin Luther would pick a fight with me if he read this. And I’m concerned that some hard-core Calvinists will consider this heresy. But I trust that readers believe in the supremacy of scripture, so here goes. It is very popular with some to talk only about how important it is to rest in God’s love and grace for us. It is said that there is nothing more we need to do to be accepted by God. Certainly these things are true in the sense that salvation is by faith only, not works. But if these ideas are the whole message or sermon then are they truly biblical? Colossians 1:9-10 states: “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that Continue Reading →

cross suffering

Christlikeness requires “Cross-likeness”

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In Philippians Paul ties our spiritual growth in with essential spiritual truths. Last week we looked at the way in which Jesus’ resurrection was the beginning of new creation. This week we look at closer union with Jesus’ cross and resurrection. In Phil. 2:1 Paul instructs the Philippians: “if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ” then please be one with each other. Paul considers Christians to be united with Christ. Then in Phil. 3:10-11 Paul talks about his spiritual growth: “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.” (NIV) Notice that Paul is expanding on his union with Christ. He wants to experience more union with Christ. Specifically, he wants to experience Jesus’ “resurrection from the dead” for himself, which has not Continue Reading →

spiritual growth food

How To Feed Each Other With Jesus’ Food

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“Speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. Eph. 4:15-16 ” NIV It is an amazing truth that we are actually part of the body of Jesus Christ, the Saviour. He is the head, the one who is in charge, and we are all parts of him, people who he is coordinating all around the world as one whole. But the main point today is that it is from Jesus that our spiritual growth comes. Our connection to Christ is the channel of our spiritual growth. And, dare we say, if our connection is weak our spiritual growth will be weak. And Jesus is causing us to Continue Reading →

rewards

Should We Be Motivated By Heavenly Rewards?

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When we think about our blessings in heaven we usually think about the immense pleasure of just being in God’s presence and enjoying his love. We may not think so much about the rewards God will give because that seems too self-focused. Moreover, how much good is a reward compared to being directly in God’s presence with Jesus? In Bernard of Clairvaux’s (b. 1090 – d. 1153) famous work On Loving God he says that “God is not loved without reward, although he should be loved without regard for one” (Sec. 6.17). Bernard rates loving God for the rewards as only the second of four levels of loving God. And yet scripture repeatedly uses rewards to motivate us to be Christlike. God assures us in Ephesians 6:7-8 that we should do “service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, Continue Reading →

christlike creed

The Christlike Creed

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When the church wanted to clarify its doctrines in the early centuries it developed the Apostle’s Creed. It would also be helpful to have a creed that summarizes the practice of the faith. That is why I wrote the Christlike Creed. It contains 9 stanzas of 3 lines each and summarizes the important attitudes and practices of the Christian life, including identity and destiny. It describes what a Christlike person looks like. In other words, it describes spiritual growth and discipleship. Consider how important it is to have a description of what a disciple of Jesus looks like. How can a church or ministry make disciples if the leaders or the people don’t know what a disciple looks like? Don’t we need to know what we are aiming for? This creed describes what a disciple of Christ looks like so we know what is important and what is less important. Continue Reading →