Reading: Ephesians 4:1-16
It has been very special today for us as a church family, to share with Ange and Pete and their families in giving thanks to God for their beautiful little boy, Noah. He will bring them great joy I know. I know Ange & Pete will delight in teaching him new things and giving him new exciting experiences, and just seeing him develop and grow. And for the next few years Noah will just soak up all this learning and look to you with absolute admiration and adoration, really proud that you are his parents.
And then he will become a teenager! Like many teenagers Noah may seem to realize overnight just how much more he knows than his parents. He will find his friends and even their parents do too. He may seem to be on another planet when you try to tell him something, so whatever you say may still not seem to make any impression on him. And for most parents there comes a point when we feel we just have to let our children try things themselves, and learn that way. They will make mistakes so we have to always be there for them. However I encourage parents that there is a way. You have an awesome opportunity and privilege to influence your children's life for good - throughout their life, whatever the circumstances.
It came as a great surprise for Bronwyn & me to discover later on just how much our children had still learned from us through that period, and they had learned - perhaps unwittingly - or even unconsciously, from how we lived our lives. Now we only remember the good things they learned of course - no doubt there were things we could have done better. But it just emphasizes how important it is for our lives to be consistent in living out the values we believe in, so our lives convey the right values to others. A verse in Proverbs (20:7) says this is living with integrity.
Integrity - Rollo May, a psychologist, said "integrity is being the same on the outside as we are on the inside." That is quite a challenge isn't it? It is a challenge that can only have a positive outcome if it is love that is inside us - God's love - because love will then determine our values, and how they impact on others.
Of course there are various ways we learn - by being told, by reading, and so on. But for me how much knowledge I retain increases by being shown - in discussion with others - and ultimately by putting into practice what we have been taught - by doing it.
This is exactly the method Jesus used to teach his disciples.
He explained things;
He showed them how he did the things he was teaching them;
He had many discussions with them;
And he sent them out to do what he had taught and showed them.
Now I am sure I didn't listen to all of my father's advice either, but it is really interesting how much I do remember of my parent's values even many years later, and what I do remember is mainly HOW they lived their lives.
Paul's letter to the church at Ephesus was to remind individuals of how they should live their lives and to explain the purpose of the church in helping them do that. In the passage that Phil read, Paul urges us to a life worthy - being humble, gentle, patient, loving, and peaceful.
That isn't always natural or easy is it? Some people really do push us to the limit at times.
Well the church should be able to help us (just like a parent) - by teaching, showing, and encouraging us to try things. In that same passage Paul also explained how the church can help us. He said that God prepares certain people in the church for this purpose - to prepare us for works of service so that together we may be built up, become mature in our faith, and grow to be more like Christ.
At CPAC we have those people. We have a pastor; we have evangelists, apostles, prophets, and teachers to encourage us in our growth too. That's great. But they can't do it all.
At some point we have to take individual responsibility for our own growth and development - to stop needing to be spoon fed - to feed ourselves so we grow up to maturity.
As parents we enjoy seeing our children develop and mature.
In the same way God longs for us to grow up to maturity - to be more like Christ.
I heard this comment recently - "Impression without expression is repression"
To me that means being taught something but not doing anything with it can actually make knowledge a burden rather than being useful. We often say that if we don't move forward, we won't just stand still, we will move backwards. Use it, or lose it! As Paul wrote to Timothy - "………I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God that is within you……" We need to use the good that has been placed in us, however it has been placed, and use it for the good of others.
And James reminds us (ch.2:14-17) - Just having the knowledge, even a genuine faith in God, is not much use ……………….unless we act on it, and put our beliefs into practice.
Last Sunday Bronwyn & I went to Arohata Prison to take a Bible study with the women. The study was about the time Jesus taught his disciples about serving …….when he washed their feet. One of the women there made the comment that when you do make the effort to help someone else you are often also helped yourself. A verse in Proverbs (11:24) agrees. This is pretty much what Dr Karl Menninger, a psychiatrist, said about people continually seeking help. He said something like "Those people need to lock up their house, go across the road, find someone in need, and do something to help that person."
And the results of a survey conducted by the Willow Creek Church in the USA recently give a similar perspective. They have for years produced many programs and courses and they undertook a thorough professional survey of many churches over a period of 4 years. The results surprised them. They discovered that their programs were not nearly as effective as they thought. They found that…………………..
1. The key to an individual's growth was their personal relationship with Jesus - and how close that relationship was.
2. That rather than people wanting to be spoon fed to grow in this relationship, they wanted to know how to take personal responsibility for it.
3. That serving others is an important aspect of a close relationship with Jesus. This follows the example of Jesus who said "I came not to be served, but to serve."
4. The church's most influential role is often in the formative years of a Christian.
5. The church's role then is to provide support and opportunities for people to serve.
6. As Christians mature they need to be serving more and more (and particularly outside the church) in order for them to have life and vitality in their faith, rather than to plateau or even slip back.
I know there are people here today who can testify to the reality of that aspect of serving. Those who have been on short term missions to Fiji to help the people there in various ways, have come home feeling quite the reverse has happened ……that they are the ones who have been richly blessed.
Bronwyn & I experience it time and again when we go to the Prison to minister to the women, and come away absolutely uplifted and feeling that it is we who have been ministered to.
Many others have similar experiences, and I think of others here involved in community service.
But it doesn't need to be special events. I have seen a person from CPAC in her work situation displaying those qualities listed in our Bible reading. And I have seen her grow in her faith since being in that role. I know of someone else who quietly serves in behind the scenes roles at CPAC, and I have witnessed the growth in his faith.
It is their willing serving attitude that is the difference.
Many of us serve, for sure. But it is how we serve that is important.
The key to a willing serving attitude is love. Christ's love for us - our love for him shown in our love for others. Paul reminds us of this in our reading (Ephesians 4:15).
Another version puts it this way - "If we live with integrity and love we will grow to be like Christ." Remember that verse from Proverbs about parents living with integrity, and the on flow effect that has on their children? It is worth it. It has a positive affect on others, and on us.
And if love is the motivation, it takes away any feeling of compulsion.
Whatever we do then, let us do it with the right motivation.
Paul again writes in Col.3:17 - when we do anything, whether it is setting up for church services here ……………in our home ….going about our daily work ….on a mission ….in our community …………..whatever it is …………..let us do it with the attitude of doing it for Christ, in a way that will bring honor and glory to him.
In closing there is only one point I am trying to make. That is - putting into practice what we have been taught and modeled, especially by lovingly serving others, is an essential element of our growth to maturity.
No matter how you may try to remember this, whether it is:
Integrity;
Using it or losing it;
Fanning into flames;
Faith without works is dead;
However it is …………for us to learn for real life requires action …………our action!
When we do act we will find that not only will we grow to be more like Christ, but:
We will empower and bless others;
And we will bring worship and delight to God.
I encourage you to pray the Prayer for the Week as a personal prayer of commitment - to love and serve the Lord.
Lord Jesus Christ,
I acknowledge you as my Saviour and Lord who, when you came to earth, showed us you were our servant leader too. Please help me to follow your example - to love as you loved, and to serve as you served. In doing this may I be a blessing to others, and bring worship and glory to you. Amen
