Spiritual Growth!

Spiritual growth both an opportunity and an invitation!

No better time of year to talk about spiritual growth or growing spiritually then right around easter season.-Spiritual growth is a transformational process that involves allowing Christ to increasingly express himself through believers, leading to a deeper experience of God's power and presence.

Growing Spiritual or growing closer to God is not automatic but requires active participation from the believer!

Spiritual growth is something that every follower of Jesus can be a part of. It is both an invitation and an opportunity! lets read what the bible tells us about spiritual growth.—2nd peter 3 verse 18—but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen

Look also at Colossians ch 1 verse 9-10—For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

As i stated earlier growing spiritual is not automatic. you have to be hungry for God and the things of God! you have to ultimately make the decision that you personally want to grow closer to GOD and you have to want do his will and do the call he has placed on your life.

ME personally i have grown closer to God this year than i have ever been before but does that mean im done? NO by no means! Its like the stair master at the gym you just have to keep going and going and going toward God and you will get closer and closer and closer but the hunger starts in you! the bible says draw near to God and he will draw near to you!

Let us look at one last parable lets open up to Matthew 13:1-9.

Ask: What do you think Jesus was trying to say? (get a few responses)

——I want you to notice there was a large crowd of people there.

So many people were there that He had to get in a boat so that everyone could see Him.

Then, He told a parable.

Jesus knows the audience He is speaking to, and there were a lot of people present who had to grow their own food to live.

They had to farm, and he was teaching them in a way that they could understand.

This parable was challenging to understand, and so Jesus had to explain what it meant to them. lets read Matthew 13:18-23.

Jesus uses the example of growth in comparing it to our relationship with God.

In verse 19, Jesus says if the seed is thrown on the path or if you listen to the message and the evil one, there is no lasting spiritual growth that takes place because the evil one snatches it away.

In verse 20, Jesus says the next seed is thrown onto the rocky ground.

In this instance, Jesus says it’s like a person who hears the Word of God and is excited, but since they didn’t root themselves in the word of God, they fall away.

The plant only lasted a short time and withered away in the rocks with no soil to take root.

This would be like a person who hears God’s Word and says that’s great, but then eventually, they turn away from it.

There is no lasting spiritual growth in that.

In verse 22, it talks about seeds that were thrown among the thorns.

The plant would grow, but eventually, the thorns would steal nutrients away from the plant that is supposed to produce fruit, and the plant would die.

In this instance, the person let the difficulty of life and distractions around them to overtake any spiritual growth that would have taken place.

They might have grown a little, but eventually, they stop, and no new growth takes place.

In verse 23, it finally talks about the person that is spiritually growing.

If you genuinely take God’s message to heart, desire to grow in your relationship with Him, and back up that desire with action… then you GROW!

IN closing lets talk about this strawberry plant

If you want to take a strawberry seed to make more strawberries, you need to plant it in the proper place.

You have to water the soil and remove anything that might try to steal its nutrients.

You have to give it the opportunity to grow.

When it grows, it will produce more strawberries.

The same thing is true in your life.

One way spiritual growth happens is by creating a healthy environment around you. Like planting seeds in good soil.

Community: Spending time with other Christians can help you grow spiritually and deepen your relationship with God.

Sometimes you will need to remove toxic people from your life so that they don’t choke out your faith.(I cant tell you have many friends ive lost)

A couple other ways to grow spiritually include:

Faith: Spiritual growth is rooted in faith, both in receiving Christ and in growing toward spiritual maturity. 

Prayer: Regular prayer allows for communication with God, seeking guidance and strength for spiritual growth. 

Living Like Jesus: Spiritual growth shows by living a life that reflects the character and values of Jesus. living like jesus is what we are called to do as christians

so in closing i want every one in here to close their eyes and bow your heads i want you to evaluate your walk with jesus evaluate your life…..

have you just been playing church or just warming a pew or chair? have you been giving jesus your all ? is there any improvements you can make ? if there is im going to ask you to come down with a sincere heart and truly ask God to light a fire in your heart ! ask him to fan your spiritual flame! he is in this place tonight hes just waiting on you to make the decision to whole heartedly follow him and grow in him.