STUDY OF PHILIPPIANS (part-7)

Study of Philippians (part 7)

LESSON TITLE: Growing Spiritually

Question:
When determining spiritual maturity,
what, or whom, do most people compare themselves to?
    – Other Christians?
    Question:
    Where should we look to assess our spiritual maturity?

TRUE or FALSE:
    – After salvation, a Christian never sins.
      (FALSE)
      Unfortunately, we are not immune to committing
      sins and we still fail at times.

    – A Christian usually becomes spiritually mature after five years.
      (FALSE)
      Spiritual maturity is a lifelong effort. Thankfully we begin a
      transformation where God sanctifies us (purging unrighteousness
      and increasing righteousness).

    – A Christian should forget past sins.
      (TRUE)
      If we focus too much on past sins, we are more susceptible to repeating
      them. Remembering the consequences of our sins is not a bad thing, but
      remembering the pleasure of them will cause us to gravitate toward
      repeating them.

    – It is good for a Christian to focus on past achievements.
      (FALSE)
      We need to focus on finding what the Lord has for us to do next.
      Focusing on our successes could:
          – Cause us to be prideful.
          – Cause us to feel less of a need to depend on the Lord.
          – Cause us to miss out on additional opportunities to serve
             the Lord using the spiritual gift He has given us.
          – Cause us to become lazy about serving the Lord in the future.

    – God reveals all we can know about Him when we are saved.
      (FALSE)
      We will never know all there is to know about God during our earthly life.

    – The idea of Christian role models is false teaching.
      (FALSE)
      Our lives are a testimony of our faith to others, and since we are
      God’s disciples, we are role models for others even if we don’t
      want to be.

    – Since a Christian is saved, he or she can do anything they want to.
      (FALSE)
      We can do whatever we want to do, but we will suffer the consequences
      of any bad choices. Additionally, since we belong to God, we won’t have
      the same level of desire to commit sin.

    – When Jesus returns, our bodies will be transformed.
      (TRUE)
      It’s going to be a glorious day for all who are in the family of God.

    – A mature Christian’s testimony changes daily.
      (TRUE)
      Each day we can learn new things about the Lord and His desires
      for us. With the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, we will
      always have new discoveries which will result in making changes
      to our priorities, focus, and the way we live our lives.

    – We will never be completely spiritually mature in this life.
      (TRUE)
      When we are saved, God begins to sanctification process in us
      which will increase our spiritual maturity. However, we are a
      work in progress and He continues to sanctify us daily until
      we go to Him. That is when our sanctification will culminate
      and we will be spiritually mature.

Question:
How would you define the word “strive”?

Today we take a closer look at ‘spiritual maturity’.

PHILIPPIANS 3:
Paul addresses two groups of believers in the church at Philippi:
    1. One group misunderstood and miss-applied the doctrine of salvation
        by grace; they felt they had achieved perfection and did not need to
        grow as Christians. (Paul addresses them in verses 12-16).

    2. One group concluded that since salvation is a free gift, they could
         accept Christ as their Savior, and then follow a self-indulgent life
         style. (Paul addresses them in verses 17-21).

VERSE 12:
Paul realized:
    – His experience on the Damascus road marked
       the “start” of his Christian life, not its culmination.

    – He had not yet reached complete spiritual maturity,
       nor was he perfect.

    – His life on Earth would be one of striving to become spiritually
       mature, which means his life (habits, attitudes, priorities. etc.)
       would be changing constantly.
       Note:
           In verses 8-11, he expresses his desire to change,
           and refers to things he has already left behind.

    – Lastly, Paul realized that the Lord had a goal for his life,
       and he would spend his life striving toward that goal.
       Question:
       Do you think the Lord has a purpose and goal for each of us?
           Question:
           If so, how does that make you feel?
           Have you discovered His plan for your life?
           Have you discovered the spiritual gift God gave you when
           He saved you? (the Bible is truth and we are told that we
           will receive at least one spiritual gift)

VERSE 13:
“one thing I do”
    – Paul was brief and to the point; he had re-ordered his
       priorities, he had a new focus, and he felt it was important
       for him to concentrate on this new direction for his life.

“forgetting what is behind”
    – Paul knew he could not devote all of his attention toward
       satisfying the Lord’s purpose for his life, if he continued
       looking back at previous mistakes.
       Note:
       Paul probably had a lot more to forget than most Christians:
           – Not only did he have to leave his sins behind, but…
                 – He was also responsible for the persecution and death
                    of Christians (including the stoning of Stephen).
                    Question:
                    What is the message to Christians?
                         – We should forget our past sins and failures
                            (once we have confessed them)?

    – He could have also been referring to forgetting past achievements.
          – Although he had established churches throughout the
             Mediterranean world (which he could have gloried in
             and rested on his laurels), he knew the Lord was interested
             in what he was currently doing for Him.
             Note:
                 Some Christians have a tendency to say,
                 “I’ve done enough, it’s someone else’s turn”

                 Others like to talk about “the good old days”
                 and neglect God’s challenges for the present.

                 Still others have never accepted ‘any’
                 of the challenges God has given them.

VERSE 14:
Paul again emphasizes his desire to achieve the Lord’s goal for his life.

VERSE 15:
Paul defined mature Christians as those who know
they are not mature, and keep growing toward maturity.

In this verse, he challenges the perfectionists
at Philippi to embrace his view of maturity.

He was also convinced that God would give them
a proper understanding if they had a different view.
Note:
    As we apply what God reveals to us, He will give us
    a new level of understanding that will enable us to
    become stronger and more mature Christians.

Look at Paul’s maturing process:
Galatians 1:1, 17-24
    He bragged about his apostleship and defended it vigorously.

1 Corinthians 15:9
    He referred to himself as the least of apostles
    who was not worthy to be called an apostle.

Ephesians 3:8
    He viewed himself as the least of all saints
    (he felt he was just an ordinary believer).

1 Timothy 1:15
    He saw himself as one of the worst sinners.

Question:
How could he view himself this way?
    – As he got closer to the Lord, he became
      much more aware of the faults in his life?
      Question:
      Isn’t it the same with us? The closer we are to the Lord,
      the more we become aware of areas in our lives that may
      not have seemed sinful to us in the past. We gain a new
      sensitivity to the dirtiness of sin and our guiltiness.

VERSE 16:
Paul asked the Philippians to remain faithful
to the instructions they had received thus far.
Question:
Why?
    – So they would be prepared to receive new instructions.

VERSE 17:
Paul encouraged immature believers to
follow the example of mature Christians.

Note:
    It almost sounds like Paul is egotistical, but….
        – The world he lived in was in a state of moral confusion.

        – Those converted to Christianity required more
          than teaching, they needed role models.

        – Paul had already admitted he was not a perfect example;
          he just wanted them to know they could follow him without
          being led astray.

        – He also encouraged them to follow others
          who lived according to Christ’s pattern.

VERSES 18-19:
Paul had warned them of false teachers in the past
and now was moved to tears when he mentioned them.
Question:
    Wonder why this brought tears to his eyes?

Apparently there were three groups of false teachers:
    1. Those who preached the message of Christ,
        but had wrong motives. (Ref. Philippians 1:15-17)

    2. The Judaizers were Jewish Christians who demanded
         circumcision and other ritual acts as requirements for
         salvation. (Ref. Philippians 3:2)

    3. The libertines were those who distorted the freedom
        of the gospel and used it as a license to sin.
        (Ref. Philippians 3:18-19)
            – They insisted that since the body didn’t matter,
               they were free to do with it as they pleased.

            – They felt that drunkenness, gluttony, and free sexual
               expression made no difference in a person’s spiritual life.

Paul described false teachers as:
    “enemies of the cross”
        The cross was a symbol of death to self and sin; the
        libertines, under the guise of religion, had made a
        mockery of the Lord’s sacrificial death by the way
        they lived.

    “destiny is destruction”
        Paul may have meant,
            – They were ruining their lives and destroying their witness.
            – They would be eternally separated from God.
            – Both of the above.

    “their god is their stomach”
        They were consumed by their fleshly appetites.
        “Eat, drink, and be merry” was their creed.
        Note:
            Today, it would be,
                “It’s my life and I’ll do with it as I please”,
              and
                “If it feels good, do it”
                 (later reduced to “Just do it”).

    “their glory is in their shame”
        They felt no guilt or remorse about their
        immorality; instead, they glorified in it.

    “their mind is on earthly things”
        They focused on the material world and
        neglected the things of a spiritual nature.

VERSE 20:
Paul’s point is,
    – No matter where we live, as Christians, our citizenship
       is in heaven and should be reflected in our lives.

    – We should live as though Jesus Christ will return at any
       moment (Ref. Matthew 24:36-44).

    – As faithful servants, we will be prepared for His return
       (Ref. Matthew 24:45-50).

VERSE 21:
We can sense the excitement in Paul’s anticipation of the
transformation he and all faithful Christians will experience.

    The aging former president, John Quincy Adams, had been sick
    all winter. One spring morning he was out for a walk with a cane
    in each hand. A friend greeted him,
        “Good morning. How is John Adams today?”
    The grand old Christian replied with a feeble voice,
        “Well, sir, if you’re asking about the house John Adams
           lives in, the house is not in very good shape. The window
           lights are broken out, the old roof is tumbling in, and the
           foundation is so tottery that every wind causes it to tremble.
           Sir, I expect the tenant will be moving out soon”.
    Then, straightening himself on his canes, he threw back his head
    and almost shouted,
        “But, sir, if you are asking about John Adams himself,
           John Adams is all right. And John Adams will be all
           right a thousand years from now”
    Note:
        John Adams was someone who understood and looked forward
        to the transformation all Christians would experience.

SUMMARY
– Some questions we should ask ourselves:
      – Am I growing as a Christian?

      – Do I know more about God’s Word than I did last week?

      – How am I handling the sins of the flesh?

      – Am I controlling things in my life
         like anger, envy, pride, lust, greed, etc.?

     – Does my life reflect the fruits of the Spirit,
        “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
          faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”?

    – How are my relationships with members of my family?

    – Am I practicing Christian principles at home?

    – Do I share my faith with others at every opportunity?

    – Do I feel I am getting closer to God, or farther away?
       Note:
           If we are not getting closer, we are drifting
           away; we are unable to maintain status-quo.

    – What were my expectations when I was saved?

    – Am I trying to do what the Lord wants (and equipped) me to do?

    – Am I glad that He wants me to serve in His Earthly ministry?

    – What goals am I pressing toward?

    – What is different about me, now that I am a Christian?

    – How am I different now than I was a year ago?
       a month ago? last week?

    – Do I scrutinize what I am taught about the scriptures,
       or do I just accept everything as it is presented?
       (2 Timothy 4:2-5, James 3:1)
       Note:
           As a teacher, I like to encourage everyone to scrutinize
           everything I present, and to feel free to let me know when
           you think I am “off base”.

    – Am I making a conscious effort to develop
      a closer relationship with the Lord? If so,
      what am I doing?

    – Am I making a conscious effort to develop
      Christ-like attitudes? If so, what am I doing?

    – Am I changing from a selfish to a selfless person?
      If so, what changes can I see in myself?
      What changes can others see in me

    – Am I looking forward to the Lord’s return?
         If so, why? If not, why?

    – Do I have a Christian role model?
       If so, what makes him or her a good role model for me?

    – Am I a good Christian role model?
       If so, why? If not, why not?

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