Personal Desires and Opinions [Spiritual Maturity 3]

In the next section, we are going to focus on our effort in spiritual growth, and the desires of our heart.  

Numbered List Taken from Life Application Study Bible

5. Desiring spiritual challenges vs. desiring entertainment
 James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
2 Tim. 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

What is your motive for going to church? To learn and then apply truths to your life? Or just be spoon fed small tidbits of truth that make you feel good through the week? Do you make it a point to study the Word of God on your own? Has the Lord laid a ministry or person to be involved with on your heart that you're too fearful to do? 

So many times church attendance is based on the fact that it's a ritual we do in the South and so we don't really engage in the church, we just show up and make an appearance. Let me tell you we're hurting no one but ourselves. When we go to church out of habit, we get bored with one kind of church so we start seeking another kind of church based on the type of music they use or because all the church members are our age. While everybody has to find a church where they feel like they can truly grow, sometimes we forget about focusing on our personal part. If we never make an effort to learn from our teachers and preachers, or get involved with being discipled or being a discipleship leader, of course we're going to be dissatisfied with any church. It's like anything- if you don't have a personal desire to pursue it, you're not going to spend time and money on it. I could care less about football, so I'm not going to watch games, and I'm not going to buy tickets to a game. A true football fan learns stats about their favorite players, spends money on tickets and team gear for them to wear, and carves out a time to make sure they can watch every game. We should seek the Lord's help to purify us, and then help us make His desires for us our desires.
"Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. . . The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way." Ps. 37:4, 23

I saw a quote and it speaks volumes here: "God does not call the equipped, he equips the called." It's the Lord that gives your spiritual gifts, and only He knows how He will use them. This means that you are going to be called out of your comfort zone. Moses was out of his comfort zone when God called him to free His people- he didn't feel like he was a talented enough speaker. Abraham was out of his comfort zone when God told him to leave everything he knew to pursue a land that was promised to him with no heir as of yet. The Lord's will is going to be accomplished- the question is, are you going to choose to be a part of it? "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:" Phil. 1:6

6. Careful study and observation vs. opinions and halfhearted efforts
 Do we simply follow church culture to fit in without personal study to see if our actions are right? Do we take verses out of the Bible without studying the culture and context surrounding it? Do we read in to what the Bible states to support personal opinions? Do we believe that the Bible contradicts itself?  

Repeat 2 Tim. 2:15: A growing Christian is one that is always learning and studying new things about the Lord. He bases his opinion and actions on solid Biblical truth and knows when he needs to seek more mature help when he doesn't understand. An immature Christian is led by their personal opinions and seeks justification for their opinions from the Bible without putting a good effort into really understanding the context of the Scripture he's reading. So many act like the Old Testament either contradicts the New Testament or is irrelevant to Christian living today, and neither is the case. The Old Testament depicts the Israelites whom God chose to show His glory to a fallen world through. Sacrifices were a foreshadowing of the final sacrifice of the Lord to come. Their laws were so strict because they were to be separate, but didn't have the Holy Spirit yet. God never condoned polygamy or slavery, but both were present because of the culture of that time. The Old Testament does not contradict the new in any way, and is very applicable to us! Without the law, like Paul says, we would not understand that we are sinners in need of a Savior! "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith." Gal. 3:24 Yes, we live differently now because we live in the church age, but the Old Testament can reveal so much to us if we study and meditate upon it- not just read a verse that says a slave should obey his master and then start questioning the love of God and inerrancy of the Bible. 

Bringing it all back together, let's focus again on the discerning, mature Christian. His natural desire is spiritual challenges- he doesn't relish suffering, but He realizes that the purpose of it is to make him/her equipped for God's glory in their life. They don't fight it, but depend on God's strength to bring them through and accomplish the good work He has for them. He is not comfortable sitting in the pew, and he isn't constantly moving from church to church for superficial reasons. He can discern when his opinion is right or wrong in light of Scripture. He makes sure he knows what he believes and why based on the Scripture. He studies the Bible carefully so he understands the full context of what he's learning before he draws conclusions. He knows he has to depend on the Lord's revelation to understand, and that he may need to ask for help from a more mature Christian. Are we examining ourselves to see if our desire is to grow in the Lord? Do we carve out time to study the Scriptures, and is it the first source of knowledge we turn to when we face a dilemma?