The Pathway to Spiritual maturity Proposition: if we understand spiritual gifts and spiritual character we can develop a culture as a church that helps people to continually grow spiritually. One of the greatest privileges of being a pastor is that I get to be a part of the eldership team as they meet and give oversight to the health and direction of the RBC family. The leaders love this family and possibly one of the most common phrases you will hear at an eldership meeting is how can we help that person or that group mature in the things of the Lord. They are constantly talking about spiritual maturity and helping people along the path to spiritual maturity. At the church family meeting this August Graeme Stewart is taking a break from eldership to spend more time with his family. That brother has had a valuable input to the eldership over the last 4 years; he has real authority in prayer and always talks about helping people mature. I have really felt as I have prepared this teaching that these are Graeme s words coming through my mouth. This morning with the children present I want to talk about the pathway to maturity. And my prayer is this, that at RBC we will develop a culture where everyone is encouraged to grow both in their ministries through supernatural gifts and in their character as a person. Whether we are at a small group, a prayer meeting, in a community service ministry, we will be a people that are open to the function of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and to helping people walk down the path to maturity in their faith. I want to draw for you both in words and diagrammatically what the pathway to maturity to looks like. Please assess where you are at as I do this and determine to be one who will help others along the path. Firstly what are the foundations, the basic beliefs of the Christian walk? What kind of things do you need to understand initially as you walk down the path to maturity? The apostle Paul describes these teachings as the Milk, the baby stuff of Christianity. THE MILK/ BASICS OF FAITH Hebrews 6 6 We must try to become mature and start thinking about more than just the basic things we were taught about Christ. We shouldn t need to keep talking about why we ought to turn from deeds that bring death and why we ought to have faith in God. 2 And we shouldn t need to keep teaching about baptisms or about the laying on of hands or about people being raised from death and the future judgment. 3 Let s grow up, if God is willing. So repentance, faith, water and Holy Spirit baptisms, and the impartation of Spiritual gifts and life after death are the basic teachings of Christianity. This is the baby stuff that you 1
need to get under your belt as you begin the walk of faith. We are not to stay there, or keep going back to these foundational truths we are to mature and grow up. THE ANOINTING FOR MINISTRY The prophet Isaiah would say in Isaiah 61 The Spirit of the sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me for... and he lists ministries, or supernatural acts of service. When you first believed and people laid hands on you to receive the Holy Spirit on you, you were anointed with particular spiritual gifts and passions for ministry. The Spiritual gifts that God gave you through the laying on of hands indicate to you how are to minister to others and the passion he put in your heart is an indication of where you are to minister. You will have some spiritual gifts immediately and you will have a dream, an inner desire to help people understand truth or to help the poor or to organise ministries or to support the fatherless etc. As you minister in your anointing, power will go out of you just as it did when the woman touched the hem of Jesus robe and was healed. You maintain your anointing by daily going back to the source of that anointing Jesus and spending time with Him. You can increase the spiritual gifts that you use to help others by earnestly desiring more gifts, by receiving personal revelation from God and by exercising the ministry you have faithfully. Everyone who has received the laying on of hands and an initial anointing has in that gift and passion mix the ability (to speak in a new prayer language, to cast out demons and to heal the sick). Mark 16: 16-18 16 Anyone who believes me and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe me will be condemned. 17 Everyone who believes me will be able to do wonderful things. By using my name they will force out demons, and they will speak new languages. 18 They will handle snakes and will drink poison and not be hurt. They will also heal sick people by placing their hands on them. Everyone has an anointing from Jesus for ministry including those gifts and they will have one or more motivational gifts. THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFTS Romans 12:6-8 6 God has also given each of us different gifts to use. If we can prophesy, we should do it according to the amount of faith we have. 7 If we can serve others, we 2
should serve. If we can teach, we should teach. 8 If we can encourage others, we should encourage them. If we can give, we should be generous. If we are leaders, we should do our best. If we are good to others, we should do it cheerfully. 1. Prophecy The motivation to reveal the heart and mind of God in a given situation. Encouraging, comforting and good for building character. 2. Serving The desire to invest time and effort in meeting the practical needs of others. 3. Teaching The desire to communicate God s truth in order to give understanding and direction. 4. Encouraging The desire to encourage and motivate others in their walk with God. 5. Giving the desire to sacrificially give to meet the needs of others. 6. Leading The desire to coordinate the efforts of others to accomplish a God-given vision. 7. Mercy The desire to express the compassion of Jesus towards the hurting and the wounded. The truth is that any one of us can function in any one of these areas from the moment we received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (all of these motivational gifts were part of the character and ministry of Jesus) however with that initial anointing, that empowering for service that you first receive you will have been given at least one of these motivational gifts. THE MINISTRY GIFTS Now in addition to the spiritual gifts and passion and motivational gift that God gave you when you were anointed for ministry God has also given ministry gifts. Not everyone has a ministry gift but as you mature in faith it is very likely that God will give you one. Ministry gifts are not just for private or one on one use like praying in tongues or prophesying over someone in the street. Ministry gifts are primarily used when believers gather together for a prayer meeting or a bible study or a church service. They are public gifts primarily. 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 8 Some of us can speak with wisdom, while others can speak with knowledge, but these gifts come from the same Spirit. 9 To others the Spirit has given great faith or the power to heal the sick 10 or the power to work mighty miracles. Some of us are prophets, and some of us recognize when God s Spirit is present. Others can speak different kinds of languages, and still others can tell what these languages mean. Let me just clarify how ministry gifts work. You received some spiritual gifts, a passion and at least one motivational gift when you received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You were supernaturally anointed for serviced. If you are faithful in using your gifts for God that will usually evolve into you having a recognised ministry, which is usually a ministry you will use when the church comes together. Now can all people speak in tongues? Jesus said yes, but do all speak in tongues at church? No, I know of only six people who speak in tongues and interpret tongues in church. Can all prophesy individually over others? I think they can but can all prophesy to the church? I don t think so, only a few can do that and the number of 3
prophesies in church should only be three or four per service. Can every believer pray for the sick to be healed? Yes. But does every believer find that they move in that gift often and in public. No some but not all have a ministry in healing. Does that make sense? 1. Word of Wisdom The ability to solve problems skilfully, often with divine and instant insights. 2. Word of knowledge The ability to know facts about a person or situation which were not learned through the efforts of the natural mind. 3. Faith To discern with extraordinary confidence the will and purposes of God for the future. You know what God wants to do and will do no matter what the odds. 4. Healing The ability to intervene in a supernatural way as an instrument for the curing of illness and the restoration of health. There are a variety of healing gifts given by God. 5. Prophecy The ability to communicate an immediate message from God to the church. 6. Distinguishing Spirits The ability to know what is happening in the spiritual realm (good or evil). 7. Tongues The ability to hear a message for the church in an unknown language. 8. Interpretation of tongues The divine ability to know what the message in tongues means. Often someone with this gift will hear actual words in English as the tongue is being given or simply get a sense of what is being said. Now as a person matures in their walk of faith not only are their spiritual gifts and ministries being given by God to them, there needs to be a transformation of their minds and hearts taking place in them. GODLY CHARACTER DEVELOPS INTERNALLY A Christian faces many challenges (especially in the first couple of months after their conversion) and many testing s in life. If through it all they respond with a humble heart and obey the Holy Spirit s promptings they will develop Godly Character and Godly fruit. They find that they would rather serve than be served. They find that they no longer take offence and they forgive easily. They resist Satan s temptations and turn from sin out of their love for God. They don t want or need to be thanked. They just want God to get all the glory. The FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT will begin to be produced as we maintain our walk with Jesus. EVIDENCE OF THE DEVIL IN US Galatians 5 19 People s desires make them give in to immoral ways, filthy thoughts, and shameful deeds. 20 They worship idols, practice witchcraft, hate others, and are hard to get along with. People become jealous, angry, and selfish. They not only argue and cause trouble, but they are 21 envious. They get drunk, carry on at wild parties, and do other evil things as well. I told you before, and I am telling you again: No one who does these things will share in the blessings of God s kingdom. 4
EVIDENCE OF GOD IN US 22 God s Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, 23 gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways. 24 And because we belong to Christ Jesus, we have killed our selfish feelings and desires. 25 God s Spirit has given us life, and so we should follow the Spirit. 26 But don t be conceited or make others jealous by claiming to be better than they are. Growth to maturity involves growth in spiritual gifts and growth in spiritual character. Let me illustrate this for you. 3 Children A) Stands on one leg (sign around neck The fruit of the Spirit) B) Stands on the other leg (sign around their neck Spiritual gifts) A person who has Godly Character but not spiritual gifts is a dangerous person because they may mean well and love genuinely but they are very likely to rely on their own efforts, programs and the natural skills that they have rather than God to do His work. People will feel loved maybe but their lives will not be transformed. A person with spiritual gifts but not Godly Character can prophecy accurately, can see healing miracles, can bring words of knowledge but they may make decisions and bring teachings based on their pride or their lust or their greed. They may speak in tongues publically but have anger issues and swear privately. Both groups of Christians are not mature or safe in leadership roles. C) As a person matures in their walk of faith there has to be growth in the gifts externally and in their character internally. As a Christian matures internally and externally the body of Christ then will recognise Godly Character and appoint those people at deacons or Ministry Team leaders as we call them, or elders. THE LEADERSHIP OFFICES If a person matures internally and externally in their gifts and ministries the church, not the person or an individual, but the church or a movement of churches will recognise in them a leadership office. If someone tells me that they are a prophet or an evangelist or a pastor and there is no church or collection of churches to verify that I won t recognise them in that office. Ephesians 4:11-13 11 Christ chose some of us to be apostles, prophets, missionaries, pastors, and teachers, 12 so that his people would learn to serve and his body would grow strong. 13 This will continue until we are united by our faith and by our understanding of the Son of God. Then we will be mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him 5
1. Apostles set the church in order so that all the gifts can function properly. They usually move in all the gifts. Train up leaders. Plant churches and have oversight over more than one congregation. 2. Prophets receives and handles revelation wisely. They give guidance and direction to the church. They usually see things in black and white and (unlike normal Christians who prophecy) they will make the church and individuals aware of sin. 3. Evangelists/ missionaries Not only help people become disciples but encourage and train up others to effectively draw men and woman to Jesus. Evangelists often move in the power gifts such as faith, healing and miracles. 4. Pastors He/ she gives personal care to the members of the church family. They will have a broad overview of the condition of the flock and a vision from God about where the church should be going. 5. Teachers Give the church and its members stability through providing a strong foundation of truth from the Word or revelation. Personally I do not believe that a church is a church unless that group of people are influenced directly by the fivefold leadership ministries. It is unlikely that a home group is ever a church. Also some gatherings of thousands of people under one roof where these ministries are not evident, in my opinion is not a church either. It s worth noting that all these gifts and these leadership offices are part of the growth process and so a person can be a pastor in the making or an apostle in the making. Friends I want to encourage you as a family to cultivate the culture within you wherever you go to, and where you encourage yourself and others to move in spiritual gifts and maturity. At church we can only accommodate 3-4 prophecies or messages in tongues but come expecting God to use you, come making yourself available to bring a word of knowledge or a prophecy. In your small groups, in your prayer meetings or ministry team meetings go there expecting to use your gifts and to encourage others to use their gifts. Let s be a church, a family that are like our elders who just desire to see ourselves and the people around us grow up to maturity in Jesus Christ. 6