Bible Study - Spiritual Growth - Connect - 1 Corinthioans 12 and Psalm 133 - September 4, 2011

Bible Study – Spiritual Growth – Connect – September 4, 2011

This is a new series of study entitled “Balanced Spiritual Growth.”
Our scripture is 1 Corinthians 12:12-18; 21-26 and Psalm 133:1-3.

This is a four (4) week study:

Our lesson this week is “connect” which focuses on the importance of Christian community connecting to one another. Christian community provides fellowship, nurturing, nourishing, training, teaching, building each other up, encouraging one another, comforting and caring to name a few attributes of community. The common connection is the indwelling Holy Spirit through the miracle of rebirth through faith in CHRIST.

Our next four (4) lessons are connect, grow, serve and go focus on Spiritual growth. What does Spiritual growth mean? How do we grow Spiritually?

How did we grow physically from a baby to whatever age we are now? We all had a beginning. When the sperm united with the egg, a miracle occurred. We were conceived and growth began. We were born physically. What was important? We had to receive the proper nourishment and care. When we were born, we breathed and life became self-sustaining as long as someone took care of us in this stage of our existence. In the formative years, someone took care of us. Growth had been genetically engineered into our system but we needed proper nourishment, exercise, care, love, training, encouragement and the list goes on. Our desire was to grow physically. Most, if not all of us, periodically measured to see how tall we had grown. Many homes still show the marks on the wall or door frame where we grew up that show our physical growth. Although we wanted to grow, we did not have to worry each day whether or not we were growing. It was important that we ate right, exercised and used our brain. Growth was automatic for most. I know some folks have growth problems and need certain medicines.

So how does this relate to Spiritual growth? It is much the same. When a person believes that CHRIST died for his/her sins, accepts HIM as his/her Savior, he/she is conceived Spiritually. He/she is born into the family of GOD. The Spiritual growth process begins as a Christian.

Christians need nourishment which is reading and studying the Bible, praying to GOD and exercising by putting their faith into action as led by the Holy Spirit. New Christians are first fed the milk of GOD’S Word and as they grow and mature Spiritually they are fed the meat of GOD’S Word. Every Christian is at various stages of Spiritual growth. Chronological age is immaterial in relating to Spiritual growth and maturity. There are many of us who have been Christians for many years and still babies in CHRIST and have to be fed with milk.

What are some of the things that stunt our Spiritually growth? Many allow the flesh to rule their bodies. The rule of the flesh in our lives feeds our body’s junk food and causes us to be Spiritually lazy. Thus, we do not develop Spiritually. We may have gotten upset or mad at a pastor or fellow Christian and concluded that Christianity was not for us and stopped our Spiritual nourishment.

The Holy Spirit, within, prompts us to do better but it is like a diet. Most of us start out doing great but it soon gets old, boring and dull. It is because we have decided to live the Christian life in our own strength and we will fail. So what is the solution?

You likely guessed it. It is yielding your will to GOD. You need to allow GOD through the Holy Spirit to control your life. It is getting to know GOD by building and maintaining an intimate, loving relationship with CHRIST. You cannot know GOD unless you first know CHRIST. When you have the right relationship with CHRIST, you do not struggle to grow Spiritually. You allow HIM to live through you. Your part is to be available – LORD here I am use me as YOU see fit. Then don’t fret if HE does not use you immediately. Continue to focus on your relationship. When the moment is right HE will use you.

When you focus upon building and maintaining the relationship, your Spiritual growth comes naturally. Spiritual growth is balanced and strong when the Holy Spirit leads and guides you. GOD equips HIS children to obediently serve HIM by giving them HIS power, as manifested through Spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are given to minister to the living body and to others as led by the Holy Spirit.

The Apostle Paul gives us examples of some of these gifts in our background scripture.

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 12:1-11: (Background)
Diversity of Spiritual Gifts
1 About matters of the spirit:[1] brothers, I do not want you to be unaware. 2 You know how, when you were pagans, you were led to dumb idols—being led astray. 3 Therefore I am informing you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit. 4 Now there are different gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are different activities, but the same God is active in everyone and everything.[2] 7 A manifestation of the Spirit is given to each person to produce what is beneficial: 8 to one is given a message of wisdom through the Spirit, to another, a message of knowledge by the same Spirit, 9 to another, faith by the same Spirit, to another, gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another, the performing of miracles, to another, prophecy, to another, distinguishing between spirits (Discernment), to another, different kinds of languages (Tongues), to another, interpretation of languages (Tongues). 11 But one and the same Spirit is active in all these, distributing to each one as He wills.

Verse 11 is very clear. GOD gives to whom HE chooses. Christians can desire certain gifts but it is GOD’S decision who receives a gift or gifts. It is HIS power or gift that is manifested through Christians for the purpose of ministry, as HE directs. Gifts are used in unity with the living body. Each part (A Christian who has a gift) is dependent upon all the other parts (Other Christians who are gifted) and all these parts depend upon the one part (The Christian who has a gift) – quid pro quo. Let’s explore this a little deeper.

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 12:12-18:
Unity Yet Diversity in the Body
12 For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 14 So the body is not one part but many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But now God has placed the parts, each one of them, in the body just as He wanted.

At the moment of salvation, a Christian is not only born into the family of GOD but he/she becomes a vital part of the living body of believers, the true church. Each Christian receives one or more Spiritual gifts at the moment of salvation. I have found that some gifts are temporary. They are available at the point of need. Other gifts are available for longer periods of time. It is vital that those through whom GOD manifests HIS gifts be obedient to HIS commands. Take Moses as an example. GOD told him to strike the rock with his staff for water. Later, GOD told him to speak to the rock for water but Moses disobeyed and struck the rock with his staff. Water came out of the rock but Moses lost out because of his disobedience.

Paul used the human body to help the Roman Christians better understand how the living body functions. In essence, he said, take a look at your own human body. It is the same regardless of your race, nationality or whether you are a slave or free.

The body has many parts but they all work in harmony and unity with each other for the good of the body. Each part has a specific function that is vital and important to the body. You have parts that are visible but you also have parts that are not readily visible. These invisible parts are vital and necessary for the function of the body.

What are these invisible parts? Some say Paul was referring to our private parts but I believe it was more than that. The human body has the stomach, heart, lungs, liver, gallbladder, kidneys, nerves, blood vessels, arteries, muscles, glands and the list goes on, which are not visible but are vital and necessary to the body. You don’t see these parts but you sure need them for the body to function. He then used the visible parts to make his point.

Dr. Henry Blackaby has a wonderful illustration about the necessity for unity in his book “Experiencing God” published by LifeWay Press, One LifeWay Plaza, Nashville, TN 37234-0175. He has a drawing of a person walking down a railroad track. As far as the eye could see there was no train. But the feet tell the person that they feel a vibration that feels much like a train is coming. The eyes say there is No train because I can see all the way down the track and I do not see a train. Then the ears say to the person, I hear the sound of a train coming. But the eyes say again, I can see far ahead and I cannot see a train. The problem was that the train was coming from behind the person. Unity is vital and trusting one another is also vital to function as a living body.

This is a wonderful example of a dysfunctional body of believers. Those who are gifted alert the body of a potential problem. A strong person in that body cannot see the potential problem and chooses to ignore what others are telling him/her. The living body must function in unity and pay attention to others who are telling it what they are sensing. This is where those who have the gift of discernment can evaluate what has been brought to light and determine whether or not the matter needs to be explored further.

In the living body all Christians are gifted such that the body functions in unity and harmony to accomplish GOD’S plan. Every Christian is gifted by GOD to minister. This is regardless of what others think of the gift a person has been given. There is no such thing as bickering over whose gift is more important because they are all vital to the implementation of GOD’S plan for that living body.

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 12: 21-26:
21 So the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” nor again the head to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, all the more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those parts of the body that we think to be less honorable, we clothe these with greater honor, and our unpresentable parts have a better presentation. 24 But our presentable parts have no need [of clothing]* . Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, 25 so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. 26 So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

So how does this scripture relate to the living body of believers? GOD equips each Christian with at least one (1) Spiritual gift for the purpose of ministering to the living body. You, as a Christian, may be visible or hidden in the living body. Whatever gift or gifts you have been equipped with are vital to the efficient function of the living body.

Are you using your gift or gifts? Are you ministering within the living body? My guess most will say, no. This is why America is losing Spiritual ground. Most brick and mortar churches have failed to be led by the Holy Spirit. Why? Many church leaders are set in their own way. Tradition is a plague in many churches. Church leaders want to run things like they want or fear bucking tradition. It is sad to say that many church leaders do not know what being led by the Holy Spirit means. Are they Christians? Yes! Many are afraid of the living body being led by the Holy Spirit for fear that a radical event will occur within the body e.g. people will begin speaking in tongues or prophesying or many other reasons. They might lose their control and power.

To allow the Holy Spirit to lead a church is risky because some can get caught up in the emotion and the desire to seek the manifestation of the Holy Spirit rather than quietly serving. In the true living body, all serve whether or not they have a visible or invisible gift. The goal is to obediently serve GOD to accomplish HIS plan naturally as led by the Holy Spirit. It is not being ostentatious. Power can corrupt and lead Christians away from the mission. It is important for Christians to be Spiritually mature in order to stay focused on GOD’S mission and plan.

There is an excellent book “Natural Church Development” written by Charles A. Schwartz, which focuses on the Spiritual health of the body of believers, the church. A Spiritually healthy body of believers, the church, will be a Spiritually healthy growing, both physically and Spiritually, body of believers.
Paul referred to various parts of the human body to show diversity, yet they are in unity and harmony because they are members of the body. This is GOD’S desire for the true church. The true living church is filled with Spiritually diverse Christians functioning in unity and harmony with each other to serve GOD. The parts are diverse but in harmony and unity because they are all being directed by the head of the body, who is CHRIST. All the diverse parts, visible or hidden, noble or not, work together in unity and harmony as led by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Such a radical change in a church must come from a desire of the living body to be led by and function according to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Such a change needs to occur naturally beginning with the leadership of the body. Some leadership may need to step aside and allow new leadership, as directed by the Holy Spirit, to take their place in order to implement change.

Let’s read Psalm 133:1-3:
Living in Harmony
A Davidic • song of ascents.
1 How good and pleasant it is when brothers can live together! 2 It is like fine oil on the head, running down on the beard, running down Aaron’s beard, on his robes.[1]3 It is like the dew of Hermon[2]falling on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD has appointed the blessing— life forevermore.

This was a Psalm written by David. He expressed the joy of unity and harmony. He describes harmony as fine oil running from the head to the beard and dripping onto Aaron’s robe. Oil was used in anointing kings, high priests or to honor a special person. Spiritually speaking, oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit. Dew is water and JESUS is the living water. Water refreshes and nourishes living things. Water came from Mount Hermon was the primary source of water for the Jordon River. The water flowed to Jerusalem to quench thirst. JESUS came to quench Spiritual thirst and to anoint believers with the Holy Spirit.

David was expressing the absolute peace that flows over those who are filled with the presence of the LORD when they are in complete unity and harmony with GOD through CHRIST and with those who share faith in GOD. Have you ever experienced the presence of GOD in your life? Is CHRIST real to you? Do you live in unity and harmony with your brothers and sister in CHRIST?

The Holy Spirit connects the family of GOD to each other through the miracle of rebirth. Are you connected to fellow Christians in unity and harmony? If not, why not? Ask CHRIST to reveal why. Blessings.