Quote from Forum Archives on March 20, 2009, 2:34 pm

Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

 

MATURITY #5/7

 

 

THE MIRACLE OF CHRISTIAN MATURITY

March 15, 2009

 

 

TEXT:  Matthew 20:20-28

 

I’m going to begin with two true stories this morning.  All of us who knew Donald Dean Wood are aware of his love for Jesus Christ.  In spite of everything he went through, Don never passed up an opportunity to be a Christian witness.  Don had several health issues that sometimes required that he spend time in rehab at facilities away from Bunker Hill.  When he was in those places, I – like many others in our congregation – would pay him a visit.  Sometimes, before I left, Don would ask me to bring his dirty laundry back to Bunker Hill for Kay to wash.  So I would grab his laundry bag, put his dirty clothes into it if there were still any out, and bring it back with me.

 

I didn’t have any problem doing Don this favor, and I know others helped him out, too.  But I want you to think how you would feel if I did have a problem doing Don this favor.  What if, instead of saying yes, your pastor said, in a very self-important manner, “Wait a minute, Don.  I’m the pastor of our church.  I have an undergraduate college degree and a post-graduate degree on top of that.  I have taken Biblical and theological studies from extremely qualified teachers.  I prepare and preach sermons, and I lead Bible studies.  I am an influence in our community for Christ and our church.  Taking your dirty laundry is a bit beneath me.  Someone else can do it.”  If word got back to you that this was your Pastor’s attitude, what would you think and feel about your Pastor?  Seriously.  How would you feel?  OK, hold on to that.  We’ll come back to it.

 

Second story.  One of the students at the bus stop is Andrew, a senior this year at Maconaquah.  He lives right across the street from the church along West Street.  Andrew works at McDonalds, and I knew from conversation that he was saving and hoping to buy his own car.  He described the one he was going to get when he got the money.  It took awhile, but one day a different car showed up along our sidewalk outside, and I guessed that it might be his.  I asked him about it the next time I saw him at the bus stop, by the way which is at our church.  Sure enough, that was his car.  Sadly, though, after he and his Dad got it here and stopped it, it had a problem.  It wouldn’t move forward.  It would go in reverse, but no forward gear worked.  Andrew talked about his Grandfather or some other family members helping fix it when they had a chance.  In the meantime, there it sat.

 

Awhile later, I noticed that his car had been moved into their yard.  When I next saw Andrew, I asked him if he got it working.  “No,” he replied.  “The town Marshall stopped by yesterday and told my Dad that it had to be moved off the street.  Dad said someone in the church complained about it, so he went out and pushed it into the yard.”  At this point, go back and grab what you thought and how you felt about your Pastor who would not do Don Wood the favor of bringing his dirty laundry to be washed.  Grab hold of that, because that is how I felt when Andrew told me what had happened.  What a poor witness of Christian charity.

 

Now, actually, I do not know if a complaint was made by someone from the church.  I do know that a written complaint was submitted by someone in the community.  We might be mistakenly accused, I don’t know.  It wouldn’t be the first time.  Nevertheless, we are dealing with the important topic of Christian spiritual maturity, and the Gospel lesson from Matthew 20 teaches what that maturity is; and a situation like this illustrates how that maturity can be implemented.

 

We have heard God’s Word this morning from Matthew 20:20-28.  It was not the first time this issue had come up.  The disciples were not immune from power struggles.  There were some in the group who felt like they should be top dog – well, after Jesus, anyway.  In this particular instance, the mother of a couple of the disciples sought for her sons to be the number two and three guys: “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”  Quite a bold request, don’t you think?  I think it is.  But I have known – and know – people who would ask it.  After all, you don’t get ahead in this world by playing second fiddle.

 

As we have progressed on our study of Christian maturity, though, we have learned that in large part, moving from milk to solid food means becoming more like Christ.  Recall that Paul celebrated that “whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.” (Philippians 3:7)  In Matthew 20, we learn from the Master himself what it takes to become like Christ.  “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.  Not so with you.  Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

 

This level of humility, a very vital spiritual discipline and mark of maturity, is extremely difficult to attain.  We learned early in childhood how to hang on to what is ours.  In fact, we even learned how to try to grab what wasn’t ours.  It came naturally.  Without the intervention of the Holy Spirit, it still does.  In fact, this is why I use the word miracle in the title of this sermon; without the miraculous intervention of God, none of us can attain this level of spiritual maturity.  It goes against our human makeup.  Become great by being the servant?  Be first by being the slave?  What kind of nonsense is that?  Well, it is not nonsense; it is Christian maturity.

 

When I introduced this sermon series on Christian maturity, I revealed that I was using an outline from another dear friend and colleague in ministry, Pastor Buddy Schofield.  I share from his notes the marks of Christian maturity related to humility.  First, we are to be able to unconditionally love others, even those we may not like.  Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount, “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.  He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:44-45)  When asked about the greatest commandment in the Law, Jesus first replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”  Then he said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37 & 39)

 

Second, we are to be able to rejoice when right prevails no matter who gets the credit.  Just before pronouncing the seven woes upon the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, Jesus said, “The greatest among you will be your servant.  For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:11-12)  That has a certain familiar ring.  Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:6 that “love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth.”  And James tells his readers plainly, “Don’t grumble against each other, brother, or you will be judged.  The Judge is standing at the door!” (James 5:9)

 

Third, the mature Christian is to be humble enough to say, “I was wrong,” and to avoid the satisfaction of saying, “I told you so.”  God declares how we are to be: “He has showed you, O man, what is good.  And what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)  James 5:16 gives us a quick lesson in Christian relationship: “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

 

Fourth, the mature Christian is to live at peace with others and endeavor to be a peacemaker.  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9)  Following this lesson from Jesus, Paul instructs us to “bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.  Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.  Live in harmony with one another.  Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low esteem.  Do not be conceited.  Do not repay evil for evil.  Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (Romans 12:14-18)

 

To be able to follow these instructions on humility is certainly a miracle of Christian maturity, because it is not our natural human tendency.  It is difficult to impossible to practice these disciplines on our own.  It really does take divine intervention.  The secret to success is that we have to allow the God to mold us into His image.  We have to allow the Holy Spirit to guide and direct us in our interactions with others.  We need to remember our motivations: (1) we seek to live in accordance with the will of God; (2) we seek to grow in spiritual maturity; and (3) like Paul, “I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.”  Isn’t creating and providing opportunities for others to receive the Gospel and be saved an important component of the Christian life?

 

With this in mind, what are some ways that interactions with our church’s neighbor can be different?  First, make every effort to be friendly, open, and inviting.  This involves getting to know some of their needs.  Granted, this is not always easy, because some people don’t want to be known.  But we can do what we can.  Second, if some issue is developing, make an effort to try to work it out with the neighbor.  Think of ways that we can be of assistance.  In this instance, the car was going to have to be moved.  Had we thought about it, we could have offered to help get it off the street.  Hopefully, that would have been less threatening than having the town Marshall show up with an order.  In the end, we are seeking to serve others, not rule over them.  This applies both inside and outside the church fellowship.  It may not always result in the outcome we intend, but it is the mark of Christian maturity to which we need to progress and grow.  It is, after all, the living example of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.  “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.  Not so with you.  Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

 

 

 

Rev. Charles A. Layne

First Baptist Church

PO Box 515

179 W. Broadway

Bunker Hill, IN 46914

765-689-7987

bhfbc@bhfirstbaptist.com

www.bhfirstbaptist.com

 

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