Spiritual Progress

I heard a story about a 98 year old man who had been a Christian for years and years. He was 98 years old and someone asked him, "Is it easier to live the Christian life NOW, than when you were younger?" And this old Christian gentleman thought for a moment and then replied, "Well, there is a whole lot less peer pressure"

The Christian life…we looked last week at how we’re supposed to live in a worthy manner of our calling…our being a Christian. Today we’re going to continue with this theme and dig a little deeper…because there are some key things we need to look at concerning our spiritual progress as Christians. We’ve established the truth that a Christian should be making progress in the Christian life – and not being dormant or stagnant or regressing.

Paul deals with this in Colossians 2:6-7…read…

Colossians 2:6–7 NASB95

Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

Here Paul builds this concluding exhortation on what he’s said in 2:2-5…he says as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord…have opened your hearts to Him, put your faith and trust in Him and received Him into your lives = so walk in Him. Here again we find this favorite metaphor Paul uses to refer to the day-to-day life of the Christian.

And then Paul uses 4 metaphors to paint a picture of what should be happening in the Christian life – they speak to us about the spiritual progress we should be making. These 4 metaphors picture: 1) A tree 2) A Building 3) A School 4) A River. Let’s look at the 1st one…

1. A TREE - “having been firmly rooted”

- The word rooted is an agricultural word that relates how a tree’s roots become firmly planted– the tense of the verb points to an action that happened in the past that continues into the present.

- It refers to the moment when you were saved (became a Christian) and continues into the present!

- As Warren Wiersbe says: “Christians are not to be tumbleweeds that have no roots and are blown about by ‘every wind of doctrine.’” We are trees – with roots!

- And just as a tree draws nourishment from the soil through its roots…So you have now been rooted in Christ…and you are to draw nourishment from Him!

- And as you draw nourishment from Him, you will grow stronger in your spiritual life.

- But what happens when you stop drawing nourishment from the Lord? Your roots will have no depth and be weak – you become weak and easy prey to the devil and his wiles!

TS – The 2ndone…

2. A Building – “and now being built up in Him”

- Built up is an architectural term and it’s used here in the present tense which indicates that this is supposed to be a continual process.

- It’s the idea that your foundation has been laid now – on the Lord – and your building that is being erected (constructed) is in a continual process of being built higher and higher and stronger and stronger.

- It’s the idea that you are becoming a towering skyscraper for Him!

- You see, God wants you to continue to grow in the knowledge of Him and His Word.

TS – The 3rdone…

3. A School – “and established in your faith, just as you were instructed”

- Paul emphasizes in 1:7 that Epaphras had faithfully declared God’s truth to the Colossian Christians.

- Through Godly teaching these Christians had become established in their faith.

- In the Christian life there is the great need to be established in the faith = to know God’s Word and its teachings.

- The word established is used in the present tense as well indicating this should be a continual process!

- The more your learn – the more you grow – the more established you become in the faith = and when this happens you won’t be tripped up by so much of the false teaching that is out there!

TS – The 4thone…

4. A River “overflowing with gratitude”

- The word Paul uses here is one he uses often in his writings and it suggests the picture of a river overflowing its banks.

- Paul says the Christian should be overflowing with thanksgiving.

- And again the tense is present indicating a Christian’s thanksgiving should be a continual expression from his or her heart for all God has done!

- It is really a response to the first 3. The Christian that is firmly rooted in Christ, being built up in Him and established in the faith = will overflow with gratitude to God!

Conclusion

Don’t be like the little girl who fell out of bed one night. When she to cry, her mother rushed in and said, “Honey, how come you fell out of bed?” The little girl replied, “I think I stayed to close to the place where I got in.”

This is the problem of too many Christian today. They stumble and falter and fail because they are staying to close to the place where they got in. They not growing in their faith.

God wants you to grow– to make spiritual progress – once you become a Christian! He wants you to become a great tree – to become a strong and tall building – firmly established in the faith – overflowing with gratitude to Him.

Where are you in your spiritual progress? Do you need to make some changes?