GROW TOGETHER
Whether it’s human life, animal life, or plant life, God intended that we physically grow and mature. It is no different for a believer’s spiritual walk or relationship with God. We are meant to grow and mature. We call this journey with God our spiritual life, but it’s not a compartment in life because God is life. We need to be honest and humble enough to acknowledge that we’re all imperfect followers of Christ, who are works in progress, and that there’s always room to mature in our faith, relationships, speech, and conduct.
Thankfully, I often hear people say they want to grow spiritually. There’s no doubt that we grow through private fellowship with God, but God provided Biblical community to help us grow in greater measure than if we were alone. Overall, God grows our faith, character, and conduct through fellowship with Him and fellowship with other believers. So I want to guide us in this truth today. Next week, I’ll teach on how God also utilizes Biblical community for opportunities to grow in the grace of Christ.
The theologian JI Packer said, “We should not think of our fellowship with other Christians as a spiritual luxury, an optional addition to the exercises of private devotion. We should recognize rather that such fellowship is a spiritual necessity, for God has made us in such a way that our fellowship with himself is fed by our fellowship with fellow Christians, and requires to be so fed constantly for its own deepening and enrichment.” -JI Packer
Grow In Christ
Grow in our knowledge of Christ
Colossians 2:6-10 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. 8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. 10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.
Our goal and focus for growth is to become more like Jesus. The Bible doesn't instruct us to be more like our flawed or imperfect selves, but it instructs us to grow in Christ because he is Holy and righteous.
Grow in the character and conduct of Christ
Colossians 3:10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.
Ephesians 4:17-32 NLT
Growing in our knowledge and understanding of Christ helps us grow in our trust and faith in Him. This knowledge and trust help us see, believe, and take off the foolishness of our sinful nature, and begin to accept and put on the likeness of Christ.
Grow in Christ, Together
Four activities to intentionally help each other grow spiritually:
We must first live in personal fellowship with God.
Colossians 3:16a Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives.
Spiritual fellowship with one another comes when we have spiritual fellowship with God. If we are not in fellowship with God and learning from Him, we will be lacking like-mindedness and holy encouragement to share with others. Your personal growth in the life of Christ is priority number 1. When we grow in our knowledge, grace, or conduct of Christ…our worship, our obedience, and our faith grow deeper and stronger. When we grow, we are healthier, more attentive, capable, and ready for others around us. What grows in us determines what we give away. Will our life be like a fruit-bearing tree that gives the fruit, character, wisdom, and counsel of Christ? Or will it not bear anything, or will it bear rotten fruit that is not life-giving…
Teach and counsel one another with the Word of God
Colossians 3:16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. ESV: Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
We want to be careful what we encourage and what counsel we give. We want to be careful not to give human philosophy and counsel that condones or enables sinful or destructive behavior. We want to give divine counsel, Godly wisdom, words of truth that will guide, help, heal, correct, and fuel our spirit into every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
When you get together, share what God has been teaching you through your reading of the Word. A way to be prepared is to write down in a journal what you are taking away and what questions you may have. Then, when you meet, you can share your thoughts, no matter how profound or simple they are; they can and will encourage the others in your circle. Sharing like this helps you see things in scripture from a different angle. Someone may ask questions about a verse or paragraph that you never thought to ask. Some of us have experience and have lived out what the scripture is saying, which brings a fresh perspective to the fellowship.
Mutual commitment and accountability to one another.
Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. NIV: As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
When iron is rubbed against another piece of iron it shapes and sharpens it. The file, versus a whetstone, is more the image here. A piece of iron against a file can sharpen it, and they are both useful.
Similarly, people can help each other improve and grow sharper through their mutual edification in discussions, motivation, inspiration, and intentional accountability. criticisms, suggestions, and ideas.
In an iron sharpens iron friendship, both individuals are growing, and both are humbly helping each other grow. It is important to have this commitment and attitude.
Proverbs 13:20 Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.
2 Timothy 2:22 NIV: Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. NLT: Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.
Hebrews 3:12-14 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.
“Spiritual fellowship means that we 'watch out' for one another, feeling a mutual responsibility for each other's welfare. This does not mean that we transfer the responsibility of our Christian walk to another person.” -Jerry Bridges. Growing Your Faith: How to Mature in Christ
Faithful followers of Christ who inspire, encourage, and sharpen our knowledge, faith, and conduct ought to be treasured and celebrated. We are stronger, wiser, and closer to God because of this mutual pursuit of godliness.
Pray with faith for one another
James 5:13-16 NIV Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
Don’t settle or rely only on human therapy. Prayer invites God to deal with God-sized situations and bring Godly solutions.
Applying to our circles of community
Seek out an Iron Sharpens Iron friendship.
Church, please, find other believers who see the value of this type of fellowship and begin to get together.
Spouses, sharpen one another. Couples, get with other couples. Men get with a few men. Women, get with a few women. Students, practice this now.
Marriages
These activities are best applied in gender specific discipleship relationships and friendships. Marriages may take different approaches to this. It's healthy for godly men to meet with other godly men who can relate and be a safe person to seek wisdom and counsel on marriage, parenting, etc. Likewise for women.
Married couples don't always apply this in the same way as mentors would. Some couples are very intentional at doing all of this together and daily, but most do this alone and make part of their natural rhythms of life weekly. My wife and I enjoy our private devotional life and then share what we are learning or what is speaking to us as we go about our week. We'll both share what God's Word taught us and the wisdom that was needed. We'll also sharpen each other by watching over one another in our daily walk. We pray for each other in our prayer life.
Suppose you're a couple that wants to apply this. In that case, you need to keep in mind that it can be uncomfortable at first because of the vulnerability and insecurities we have about our lack of knowledge and understanding of God and the Bible. Both must agree to grow through that anxiety and keep their focus on growing in Christ, not knowing more than one another. If couples intentionally pursue this type of Iron Sharpens Iron relationship, the key is consistency and incorporating it into their love and care throughout the week. You could also pick a time each week to come together and process the Word and wisdom you have received and counsel one another in how it could be applied in whatever context needed, and then pray together.
Recap:
Be faithful to your walk with God so you bring Godliness to the community.
Share what God is teaching and changing in you through His Word
Hold each other accountable to following the Word of God and becoming more like Christ in every area of your life.
Bear one another’s needs and pray with faith for one another.
Resource: The Five B’s of Biblical Community
Discussion
What is one thing from the message that resonated with you?
Do you treat fellowship with other believers as essential or optional?
How has your personal relationship with God been impacted by fellowship with other Christians?
Why is it important to be in fellowship with God before seeking spiritual fellowship with others?
Why is it important to choose your community wisely, and what are the risks of isolation in the Christian life?
What additional notes did you make during the sermon?
What can we pray for regarding the sermon? Do you have any prayer needs?
The most important decision you will ever make!
If you’re ready to trust in Jesus for salvation and eternal life, we encourage you to process this decision with a strong believer and when you’re ready, say a simple prayer like this from your heart: Dear God, I acknowledge and admit I have sinned. I see my need for Jesus Christ. I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I believe I am forgiven and cleansed of my sin by His death. I also believe I have eternal life because of His resurrection from the dead. I repent, I turn away from my old ways and I choose to live my life to worship you and follow Jesus, Amen!
We would love to know if you decided to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Let us know here.
Pray Together
We hope you found this AFTER THE SERMON discussion helpful for your walk with Jesus. We pray you can find ways to apply it this week!