Imitating Maturity

If you have been with us this summer you probably have noticed that I have been using a lot of visual aids along a summertime theme. The first couple of weeks I had a mailbox up here, and then my new grill in the box and then assembled together, and then a baseball mit and glove on all-star week and my muskie pole and lures last week. I do things like this not so much to entertain you as to engage you in what the Bible has to say from a new angle or perspective.

Some people are down on this kind of thing, saying that all you need is the text and anything else is just fluff. I don’t buy that. Mostly because I see Jesus using all kinds of illustrations and stories in his teaching. He was a master story teller and while we don’t have any “video” evidence that he pointed to particular things as he taught, it does seem to be very likely.

Following in Jesus’ example was the Apostle Paul. Throughout the many New Testament books that we understand that he wrote there are many different illustrations and word pictures used to explain the principles that God had given him to write down for us.

???????Something that many in the Christian Church are beginning to caution us on is what I will call and over reliance on something called “The sinners prayer”. Do you know what I mean when I say the sinners prayer? The sinners prayer is tool that evangelists sometime use to help someone to begin their journey of trusting in Jesus. Typically the evangelist will lead someone in a prayer that goes something like this…

Dear God,

I need you. I am humbly calling out to you. I’m tired of doing things my way. Help me to start doing things your way. i invite you into my life to be my Lord and Savior. Fill the emptiness in me with your Holy Spirit and make me whole. Thank you Lord. Amen.

I am not saying that there is anything morally wrong about using this tool. Many of us... have begun our relationship with Jesus through saying a prayer similar to this one. The problem is not that this prayer has marked the beginning of so many relationships with Jesus, but that it has also marked the end. As if the prayer itself was the finish line instead of the starting block. Somehow the message came across that after praying a prayer where you commit your life to Jesus, you could then leave and continue to live your life for yourself.

When you truly understand the “surpassing worth of knowing Jesus” then you are never satisfied with anything less than all of Jesus. Paul is saying that he doesn’t have enough. He wants to know Jesus more and more. He is willing to sacrifice anything in this life in order to know and become more like Jesus.