It's Time To Grow Up

Time To Make A Change

Introduction: Michael Jackson sang a song that says, “Its time to make a change . . . I’m talking about the man in the mirror.

Transition: When you look in the mirror of life who do you see? Peter is calling each Christian believer to a moment of self examination and reconciliation with God.

Christian growth is about change. In fact every thing that grows changes. Peter advises in this letter that one of the steps to growth is to:

Change your Walk ()

1 Peter 2:1 ESV

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.

Open sins - Malice

Secret sins - deceit

Hypocrisy- phoniness

Envy - jealousy

Slander -

(Strip it off - you got to cut it!!!)

Application: When are you going to change? Have you changed? Do the same things have influence over you? Are the same people in your circle?

Change Your Desires ( )

1 Peter 2:2 ESV

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

Every believer all the time should be wanting the word of God. Craving is a yearning.

Illustration: Went to eat sometime ago and was hungry. Drove around looking for a place where I could eat a balanced meal. (McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s could not do the trick)

Junk food will not fix it!

Application: What do you desire? God’s Word must be our desire. Get in Bible Study. Come to Sunday School.

Pursue your Growth ()

1 Peter 2:2c ESV

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

Illustration: Gardening can be tedious not because of the labor involved alone but because of what sometimes grows along side of the stuff we plant. Wild flowers and weeds will grow in the garden and choke the life out of the things we plant.

Transition: so it is even in this life there are things and people in our lives that just don’t belong.

Sometimes it means cutting some things loose.

-

Sometimes it means cutting some people loose

boyfriends

Application: Are you growing?