Reaching Real Maturity
Pastor John Fredericksen
Spiritually speaking, Paul considered Timothy his “son in the
faith” (I Tim. 1:2). And, like any parent, he had noble aspirations for
his loved one. In the Book of II Timothy, he is very specific about
four things he wants Timothy to become for the Lord.
First, he wanted him to be a good servant of the Lord (1:6). God
had given him a temporary spiritual gift that was not to be wasted,
but consistently used in the local church, where he would have
opportunities and the obligation to use this divine enablement.
Paul also wanted Timothy to become a good soul-winner (1:8).
Apparently, there were real dangers in doing so for Timothy, and
there was a danger he might shrink away from this essential task. He
might allow the fear of men, and their reactions, to prevent him from
sharing the gospel. If Timothy did not grow beyond such a fear, his lack
of action would essentially be saying he was “ashamed of the
testimony of our Lord.” What a reminder for us today as well!
Next, Paul wanted Timothy to be a good student of the Word
(2:15). Specifically, he wanted him to diligently apply himself to the
study of the Scriptures so that he would be able to rightly divide the
Word.
Finally, Paul wanted Timothy to faithfully hold fast to the
distinctive doctrines taught only by the Apostle Paul (1:13,14), to
continue in them without wavering (3:14), and then teach them to faithful
men who would stand with him in dispensational truth (2:2). In Paul’s
eyes, it would only be as Timothy achieved these four goals that he would
be a spiritually-mature saint.
In a practical sense, each of us today can gauge our own
spiritual maturity by measuring ourselves against these four goals that
Paul had for Timothy. If we are consistently using our God-given
capabilities for the Lord in our local church, then we’ve taken a step
toward spiritual maturity. If we are bold and faithful in giving out the
gospel to lost souls, we have taken another step toward maturity in
Christ. If we are willing to endure hardship in ministry for Christ,
without stopping our service, we have taken yet another step in maturity.
If we are unwavering in our loyalty to the distinctive
dispensational truths of God’s Word, as taught exclusively by Paul, we
have taken still another important step toward spiritual maturity.
When young children begin to walk, they take one wobbly step at a time.
Sometimes they fall down. The important thing in their development toward
physical maturity is the process of getting back up when they fall,
undeterred, and continuing to walk on toward greater stability. Dear
saint, if you’ve fallen down in one of these four areas of growing in
Christ toward spiritual maturity, get back up and start walking again in
the right direction. Your Heavenly Father is watching and waiting to be
pleased of what you choose to do next.
Ho
God Saves Men
Believing
Christ DIED, that’s HISTORY.
Believing
Christ DIED for YOU SINS and Rose again that’s SALVATION.
ead
Acts 16L31 Romans 1:16, and 1. Corinthians 15:1-4
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