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Category: Traditional Worship
The Core 4: Grow in Christ
Dr. Ron Scates
10/25/2009
Scripture: II Corinthians 3: 12-18
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© Dr. Ronald W. Scates
One of my grandfathers, my mom’s dad, was short. Now I’m talking really, really short. He was acutely vertically challenged. All of his life he smoked cigarettes—Camel’s non-filtered. And throughout my life as a kid, he was always saying to me, “Ron, don’t you ever smoke. It’s going to stunt your growth.” And that’s all I needed to hear and he was all I needed to see to convince me never to touch cigarettes.
You know, growth is a rather positive virtue in our culture today, isn’t it? We want our companies to grow. We want our children to grow up. We want our bank accounts to grow. We want our grass to grow. Christians want the kingdom of God to grow or at least they should.
But growth isn’t always a good thing, is it? When cells in your bodies and mine lose what is called contact inhibition, they grow wildly uncontrollably. That’s called cancer. You and I don’t want the crime rate to grow. We don’t want the pollution index to grow. We don’t want the national debt, well, forget about that!
Currently spiritual growth is a hot, hot trend and topic. That can be good or not. Witness three deaths just last week from folks that died in some kind of New Age sweat lodge ritual. You know, any faith, folks, any spirituality that takes you and me away from or beyond a faith that is centered in Christ and anchored in the Scriptures as the infallible Word of God is always something you and I need to beware of.
Occasionally somebody comes to me and tells me how they’ve grown past the confines of biblical orthodoxy and I always think to myself, “Uh oh, spiritual cancer strikes again.” And I begin to pray for those people’s spiritual healing.
Today is Reformation Sunday and we here at Highland Park Presbyterian Church are really about our own reformation as we seek to become an evermore intentional disciple-making, kingdom-growing congregation in a 21st Century world. In fact, we want everyone here at Highland Park Presbyterian Church to form or reform their lives as disciples along what we’re calling the Core 4—4 essentials, 4 parameters, 4 markers that we believe as a church lay out a healthy faithful balanced playing field for discipleship.
Last week, we looked at the first essential—worship God and today we look at the second essential which involves spiritual growth. But not some kind of generic spiritual growth! No! Specifically to grow in Christ!
And to get a handle on that, let’s take a look at the Apostle Paul and a bone he has to pick with Moses. We find that happening this morning in 2 Corinthians, chapter 3, verses 12 through 18. I encourage you to open your bibles to that text and keep it open during this sermon. But let’s pray together before we read.
Holy Spirit, open our hearts and minds now to Your Word that we might clearly understand it, that we might gratefully receive it and that we might faithfully apply it to our lives. For Jesus’ sake! Amen.
And now, if you’re able, please stand for the reading of our New Testament lesson this morning, beginning to read at verse 12, of 2 Corinthians, chapter 3. This is the Word of God.
Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
Please pray with me again. And now Father, as my words are true to Your Word may they be taken to heart but as my words should stray from Your Word, may they be quickly forgotten. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Please be seated.
Back in August, during our sermon series on TULIP, you know, the 5 points of Calvinism, I mentioned that my mentor in seminary at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia was Dr. John Leith. And Dr. Leith, after we graduated, he would oftentimes irregularly make a late Saturday night phone call to some of his former students around the country. And it would go like this: “Scates, are you going to pussyfoot around tomorrow or are you going to boldly preach the gospel of Jesus Christ?”
You see, Dr. Leith knew what Paul knows in verse 12 of our text that every sermon preached in every Christian pulpit anywhere at anytime and every Christian life ought to have a boldness about it. You might say every Christian ought to live with a sanctified reckless abandon because you and me, of all people, as followers of Jesus Christ, have literally all of the hope in the world. We know who God is. We know what God has done for us through the life, death and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. We know that God has promised wonderful things for us in the sure and certain return of Christ one day and when He ushers in the fulfillment of His kingdom when time gives way to eternity because God is sovereign, because all of our sins have been paid for, because we can know God personally. Because our eternal destiny is secure, Christians ought to live with what I call a humble boldness, unlike Moses, according to Paul in verse 13 of our text.
Now wait a minute. I thought Moses was a hero. Well, he is. But every hero, except for Jesus, also has a dark side. And Moses’ dark side involved wearing a veil.
Now track with me. When Moses was leading the children of Israel through the wilderness, heading for the Promised Land, there came a time when the Lord summoned Moses up to the top of Mt. Sinai. Now this was a literal mountaintop experience for Moses. It was there on Mt. Sinai that Moses actually heard the voice of God—saw His unveiled glory. It was there that God presented Moses with the Ten Commandments and it was there that the face of Moses, just like the face on my watch—this face on my watch, if I leave it in a bright light for any period of time, it then glows in the dark. Moses came down from that mountain with his face literally radiating the Shekinah glory of Almighty God. But then Moses stunts his growth and the spiritual growth of the entire nation of Israel by putting a veil over his face.
Some Christians consciously do not want to grow in their faith because well, they want to blend in. They want to be liked. They want to be respected. They want to be accepted by their friends and their family and their coworkers, especially if those people are not Christians. They don’t want to stand out. They don’t want to appear odd.
Moses stood out like a lit-up light bulb.
So, sometimes Christians want to veil that glory that might be trying to shine through their lives. Unfortunately the 21st Century North American church seems to prefer Moses to Paul. Study after study after study by the Barna research group shows that American Christians, well, when it comes to divorce, abortion, sexual morality, business ethics, no longer look any different than non-Christians.
My friends, that should not be; well, that’s a travesty against the gospel. Is it any wonder then that 80+% of American churches are either stagnant or in decline? They’re not growing. Did you know that only 1% of American churches are actually doing kingdom growth, actually growing by making disciples, making new Christians rather than shuffling or stealing sheep from other churches? Only 1% of American churches! Highland Park Presbyterian Church, one of our goals is to be one of those 1% churches.
Now some Christians consciously don’t want to grow in their faith because well, they kind of think they’ve arrived. “I’ve accepted Christ. I’ve been there, done that, now I’ll get on with my life. Nothing else I need to do, right?”
Paul tells us, in verse 13, that Moses veils his face because actually there came a point where the Shekinah glory began to fade away and he doesn’t want the Israelites to know that.
You see, there on Mt. Sinai, what God gave to Moses was the old covenant; a covenant that God never designed to be the final destination in terms of biblical faith. The old covenant, which we find in the Old Testament, that was meant to give way some day. That was meant to merely foreshadow the coming of the new covenant—a covenant based on grace, not upon law; a covenant that was always to point beyond itself to the coming of a Messiah. A Messiah who would heal the sin, not only of the nation of Israel, but of all people of every tribe, tongue and nation who would turn to that Messiah, who would bow to that Messiah.
I guess it was spiritual pride that was getting to Moses. I guess he didn’t quite like the fact that this covenant he had been given was a penultimate covenant—a covenant that was meant to fade and so he puts the veil over his face to actually deceive the children of Israel so that they won’t see that this covenant is passing away. And the problem is that the children of Israel are left with the idea that this covenant is the final destination; that every thing that they ever need, they have, that they don’t need to go any further on the spiritual journey. And that’s why, when Jesus does come, the majority of the Jews don’t accept Him. They already thought they had all they needed. Paul says down to his very day and it’s true in our day as well, even when they read the old covenant, when they read the books of Moses, they are unable to see Jesus in there and their own need for a Savior because the veil of Moses still lies over their hearts.
That’s why it must boldly be said—stagnant and stunted just do not cut it with God. God wants every Christian to grow and to grow in Christ.
Well, what might that look like?
Well, first of all, to grow in Christ is to remember that God hates veils. If you look at verse 16 of your text, you’ll see that Paul lays out here how anyone becomes a Christian. It only happens when the veil is removed by the Holy Spirit, from our eyes, and for the first time we are really able to see God for who He really is. When Jesus died on the cross, we’re told that the veil—the veil in the temple—you remember that veil that separated the people from the presence of God and the Holy of Holies? That veil is torn in two. God now is all about being up close and personal. He’s a God that actually invites you and me on past religion and into a vital growing personal relationship with Him.
You know, the St. Augustine grass in my front yard has recently died, because it’s got a veil over it. We’ve got this beautiful pin oak tree but the canopy has gotten so thick that the shade is now actually killing the grass.
My friends, when it comes to faith, a veil always at best leads to spiritual apathy, at worst even to spiritual death.
Secondly, to grow in Christ means to come to grips with the fact that to do that, you and I are going to look different. We ought to look different. You and I are called to live by a different standard, in terms of how we treat people, how we raise our kids, what we watch, how we speak, how we spend our money—a different standard than the world. We need to stand out. The world wants us to stand out. Part of the reason people don’t join churches or come to Christ is that they don’t see any difference in you and me and we’re all guilty of this to one extent or another.
You know, a good question to ask yourself as you go through this coming week is this: If I were to be put on trial next Sunday for being a Christian, a trial by my peers who I work with, that I live with, would they have enough evidence to convict me?
Thirdly, to grow in Christ means that you and I understand what it really means to be free. A lot of people think being free means freedom to do anything, anytime, wherever you want and whenever you want. Freedom from God even!
Jesus says throughout Scripture that you’re going to be a slave to somebody or something. You can think you’re not but everybody is a slave. In fact, I remember a professor of mine in seminary saying you only have two choices; you’re going to be a slave to Christ or a slave to something else. But what happens when you and I become a slave of Christ? Jesus says, “I no longer call you a slave but my friend.” And He sets us free.
In verse 17, Paul says to grow in Christ is all about freedom—freedom from sin and its condemnation and guilt. Freedom from the fear of death! Freedom! Freedom from whatever it is that’s keeping you and me from becoming what God wants us to be and His plan for us.
You know, when it comes to what it really means to be free in Christ, I love this quote. I use it all the time. I carry it around in my head all the time. It’s by St. Augustine, this time the theologian, not the grass. Listen to this. When I was a youth minister, I used to say this to junior highs and I learned the hard way, I really needed to explain what it meant to them and you’ll see why. Here’s Augustine’s quote: “Make it the way you live your life—love Christ and do as you please.” Think about that! Love Christ and do as you please.
To grow in Christ also means that you and I, well, we become transformed. We become transformed!
One of the problems you and I often have as Presbyterian-type Christians is that we believe that growing in Christ is about accumulating information or knowledge. That’s good but you can be a PhD in theology and bible, you can understand what it means to live a good moral life in Christ and still be on the road to hell. Growing in Christ is not about information, it’s everything about transformation.
In our text, in verse 18, Paul uses the phrase, “transformed into the likeness of Christ.” God’s goal for every Christian is this that you and I begin to look like Jesus in the way we act, the way we talk and the way we think. It’s not just becoming knowledgeable about the bible or becoming a good theologian or about leading a good moral life. It’s actually becoming like Christ. That’s what it really means to grow in Christ. And in verse 18, Paul uses the word, “metamorpha.” Remember when you were in school and you studied the word, “metamorphosis,” and what that meant? That was the process by which a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. That’s exactly what’s going on when you and I grow in Christ. We are changed. We become unlike what we were and we become, well, the Christian faith, I always say it’s all about relationship, not ritual and religion. When you and I spend a lot of time with someone, we start becoming like them. And so, to grow in Christ, to be transformed means that you and I begin to look like who it is we spend time with. And if that’s Christ, then we begin to look and act and think like Jesus.
Transformation! And I’m going to be bold here in saying, because the text tells me to, I just don’t see any earthly way to do that, folks, unless we avail ourselves of some things. In my own personal experience, that just doesn’t happen unless I’m daily connecting my heart with Christ through prayer and getting into the word. Call it a daily quiet time, devotions, name it whatever you want but I just don’t think you grow in Christ without that and you don’t grow in Christ unless you’re gathering as the body of Christ at least weekly with other Christians ‘cause God does something in here with us on beyond what He does with you and me on a daily basis. And in my own experience, on past that, there’s a third thing that I think is crucial if you’re serious about growing in Christ. And that’s to connect your life intimately, to invest in two or three other brothers- and sisters-in-Christ. Call it a Small Group. At Highland Park Presbyterian Church we’re calling them Life-Transformational groups. They’re not chiefly about bible study, though that may be the heart of when you get together. It’s not just to study a good Christian book together, although that might be what you do but the real purpose of it is to invest, to connect your life on a regular basis with some other Christians who when challenge you and encourage you and hold you accountable and ask you how you’re doing with your relationship with Christ.
Those life-transformational groups, our staff, we’re requiring all our staff to be in those. We’re strongly encouraging our elders to be in those. And I’m here this morning to strongly encourage you, if you’re really serious about it; that is going to be a key to growing in Christ.
Let me finish by just saying another thing to remember though is this is not about you.
G.K. Chesterton once said a lot of people are not Christians, not because they tried the Christian life and found it wanting; they tried the Christian life and they found it difficult and so they quit. It is difficult. To stand apart from the culture, to swim against the tide, to go against the grain is hard. Dr. Leith used to say to us, this world has a purpose to it. Apparently God cannot or will not snap His fingers and produce mature Christians. Instead He places you and me into the crucible of this world where wonderful things and simply horrendous things shape, hone, grind you and me hopefully toward the likeness of Christ. But it’s hard. Difficult!
You may say, “I can’t do this!” Guess what! You can’t! The caterpillar doesn’t transform himself. Transformation is something that happens to us and our text reminds us, in the last verse, that it’s the Holy Spirit, the power of the Holy Spirit that does the transformation. We are to pursue Christ above everything else but we can’t make it happen.
It’s a gift, a gift of sheer, sheer grace. But like any gift, we are to ask for it, to pray for it, to plead for it and then to cooperate with the Holy Spirit when He does give it to us. And I really don’t think the Holy Spirit denies the gift to anyone who really, really wants it but you can’t do it by your own power and ability.
There was a guy from out of town who got lost on the countryside and he attempted to turn his car around on a country road and he wound up backing the thing into a pretty steep ditch and he got stuck. Couldn’t get out! Not long after that, a farmer came walking by leading his big horse. The horse’s name was Benny.
And the driver said, “Sir, can you help get my car out of the ditch?”
The farmer said, “No problem. This is Benny. He can pull your car out of the ditch.” And so the farmer backed the horse up to the car and hitched him to the car’s frame and then said, “Nelly, pull.”
And Benny just stood there. Then the farmer said, “Come on Ranger, pull.”
And Benny, again, just stood there.
A third time, this time really loudly, the farmer said, “Fred, pull!” And Benny just stood there. Then nonchalantly, the farmer said, “Benny, pull!”
Benny pulled that car right out of the ditch. The driver was extremely grateful and not just a little bit curious. He said, “I just have to ask you, first of all, thank you for getting my car out of the ditch but you told me the horse’s name was Benny. Is that right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I heard you call him, Nelly and Ranger and Fred. What’s going on?” The farmer chuckled and he said, “Benny’s old and he’s blind. If he thought he had to pull that car out of the ditch by himself, he would’ve never tried.”
My friends, growing in Christ, transformation is not up to you; you can’t do it apart from the Holy Spirit. The good news is when we take our veils off and want the glory of Christ to be reflected in and through our lives then others get on that journey with us where the Holy Spirit transforms us to look like Jesus.
Join me as we pray.
Lord God, thank You that You have not left us to ourselves, that we’re not completely responsible for our own salvation nor our growth in Christ but we do have responsibility of loving You and pursuing Christ and asking for the gift. And so I ask, on behalf of all of us here this morning that Your Holy Spirit would come into every heart and transform us into men and women, boys and girls of grace, men and women, boys and girls that throughout our lives look more and more like Jesus. And we ask this in His Name and for His Sake. Amen.