I Choose Hope - Pursuing Hope, Part 1

What is the pathway to true spiritual maturity.

Is it a special experience that once you have become mature or is it reading the Bible and praying longer than anyone else, what if it's something completely different than all that's today Living on the Edge stay with thanks for joining us for this Thursday edition of living on the shipping chip serves as our Bible teacher on this daily international discipleship program today. Chip continues his series I choose hope by asking, are you growing in biblical maturity.

You have hope through whatever you're pursuing spiritually chips teaching for the book of Philippians Bible open chapter 3 let's join him for his message pursuing, hope we been talking about finding hope, experiencing hope now to talk about pursuing up open your Bibles to Philippians chapter 3 you look at verses 12 through 16 in just a minute, but at the heart of finding hope is a spiritual pathway to God some way of spiritual development or spiritual maturity that is what's going to give us lasting deep hope and so there's a pursuit and what I want to do in our time here is I want to give you four examples because this gets tricky. This pursuit of hope through a spiritual pathway, even among Christians. Some real potholes here and there that I watch believers go down this direction or that direction, and often get very disillusioned with God because either they think he's expecting something of them. That is not or they're expecting something to happen that's not realistic and so they say. I've pursued a lasting deep hope in a relationship with Christ."

It doesn't work, let me share for I think their rather sad stories, but I want to give you a spectrum.

The first one is a young gal that I knew many years ago. She was a coed engineering major, very bright, went to one of the finest academic institutions in all of America.

I she came home after six or eight months and told me that she was kinda dissatisfied with her church. She was dissatisfied with her parents. She had met a group there on campus that really understood the deeper things and she begin to talk to me about the shortcomings of our church and most Christians everywhere, and this new group and she said I've learned the deeper teaching and then she looked me right in the eye and she said I have learned the secret of the deeper teaching is I don't sin anymore and I'm going, none so I mean you you don't have a bad thought.

You don't have a bad attitude.

Nothing comes out of your mouth. You never do anything wrong. You are sinless like your perfect now.

She said very calmly and in sort of this kinda weird stupor, as it yes and she went on to share a Christian cult. By God's grace I remember years later, she was delivered out of it. The second example is about a teammate that I had many years ago were playing basketball together traveling throughout South America and great guy, great friends that he was another point guard, so we hung out room together on the road were in all these different countries and a detox ignited unit two young guys and a member. One night, I think he felt really open and he bring it to really share his heart because chip I really like you and and you know were really good friends and you know what you're just missing out possible while what you mean and he said I have an experience and you can have this experience and I have six airtight passages from Scripture. And when you do exactly what I say. According to the six passages you will experience a power like never before and they talk about all the things would happen my life and he cared about me and this is the experience and if you don't have. It's his parents. Second rate Christians never amount to anything. The third spiritual pathway that was to give lasting hope was I had an elderly friend who had a daughter that was grown she was literally a musical genius.

She went to that most prestigious musical school on the East Coast in the entire world or lease they think so. I she was finishing up her PhD, but she'd recently gone to work with her husband who work for a spiritual organization and if she came home on break and met with me being a pastor and her parents being involved in the church. She was telling me about the vast untapped untapped spiritual potential that I could have if I would go to this weekend seminar that had some scientific tests and that they could help me for a mere $550 at the time spending this weekend that would transform my spiritual life.

So number one there some deeper teaching that I can be perfect. Number two. There's an experience I need to have number three. There's a seminar with sort of science mixed in about tapping into the spiritual potential that's in all of us and then the fourth was it was bizarre. I still remember reading it in the paper actually it was the story of a semi uncapped unsophisticated woman who happened to be with research. Later, a high school dropout.

She exercised a mind-boggling control if you will over in the Dallas area at the time of professors, doctors, lawyers, she was a spiritual guide as she took them into various experiences. She actually had sometimes in ways where she told them future things were going to happen to them. She assigned a spiritual guide to them and then the police in investigating the entire web of manipulation connected this woman to a series of suicides of high-level professionals that were all her clients who all happen to leave in their will.

Their money to her and his all I want to say what all four of these stories have in common is each one of them is linked. All four had a pursuit of hope. They had a pursuit of hope. They wanted to look at a promising future. They wanted to have a sense that progress is certain, they wanted to know that life is good and even in the midst of their struggles and their ups and the downs they were looking for hope and they were looking for or most people are at the end of the day is through a spiritual relationship where you become growing and become spiritually mature.

So here's what I will address what is it mean to be spiritually mature because if you're not clear on that. If not clear on exactly what it means to be spiritually mature and what does it mean to be spiritually mature and if you're not on the right spiritual path. Your pursuit of hope can take you down some very, very bad ass. The apostle Paul is actually going to answer this question, he's going to define spiritual authenticity for us and as he does that. Notice the context here.

The context is he's found hope, but what he knows is as he shares that that there is some bad teaching and are some paths that even in what he said people can go the wrong direction. So here's what is going to do versus 12 through 16.

He's going to explain to them what spiritual maturity is and what spiritual maturity is not notice what he says is is not that I've already obtained all of this, or of already been made perfect circle the word perfect if you will, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me when you underline take hold of and take hold of me can be very very important notice in the Brothers I don't consider myself as having taken hold of it yet is the idea, but this one thing I do circle one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind reaching forward to what lies ahead literally straining forward, I press on toward the goal for the prize for God which he is called me heavenward. Straining forward he wants to know Christ personally. He says I'm on a journey now in your notes.

I want you to write the word disclaimer what is really saying is look.

I want to know Christ.

I'm as passionate or more passionate today, 30 years after I met Jesus on the Damascus road and we learned that he wanted to know. In his daily life, not just that someday, some way he's going to be resurrected. He wanted to know. In his daily life. The power of the resurrection. We talk about experiencing God's strength and weakness, overcoming temptation, overcoming the flesh, overcoming difficult have difficulty seeing God's power actually work through us in everyday life, giving us patience for people that make us crazy giving us a generous heart. That doesn't come naturally in any sense. Now, I don't experience the power of his resurrection. I also want to know I'm one of the Fellowship of the suffering, but in the ups and downs and difficulties of life in the pain that you can have and I'm going to have. We are human we will have pain in relationships. We will have pain as our physical bodies. We will have disappointments. We will be betrayed, we will suffer and what Paul said is I want to share in our experience the presence of Christ.

When I suffer and whether that suffering is external and people do to me whether I experience it internally in the anguish of my heart, or whether I suffer because I'm a follower of Christ. I want to experience the intimacy and the power and the love and the comfort that Jesus promised in the notice that last line as I am being conformed progressively transformed into the very likeness of Christ in his death. So that's is prayer but here's the misunderstanding party have it all together, Paul, have you become perfect so I want you to write the word disclaimer. Not that I already have this. In other words, I haven't arrived no sinless perfection. I haven't been made perfect. The word means mature. It's a picture of something that fulfills its design it.

It is not perfection as in without fault or sinless. It's the same word in James chapter 1, two, three, four, where he says consider it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing the testing of your faith produces endurance, and let endurance have its perfect finger prefer perfect result that you grow and become mature, lacking nothing. In other words, because I don't have it all together. I haven't been made seamlessly perfect, but I press on. In other words, it's a hunting term. It's like a hunter who is who is waiting and then stalking and then waiting and then stalking I press on. In other words, there's a very clear-cut goal. I don't have it all together but get it. I'm progressively on a journey and here's his passion. Notice what he says.

He says I want to take hold of it means to reach out to grasp to obtain to actually experience.

I want to take hold of that for which God is taken hold of me and so his disclaimer is in my perfect no in my pressing ahead, do I have a goal to am I seeking with all my heart to know Christ absolutely brothers. I don't consider myself as taking hold of it yet.

Okay, I haven't met Christ. I have been transformed. I still have issues.

I still have times where I get angry. I still have times when lustful thoughts come to my mind. I still have times when I get discouraged. I haven't taken hold of it yet but here's the one thing I do get this. Here's his explanation. I'm not there yet, but I have a focus. I have a priority.

I have an intentionality and I have an intensity. This is after 30 years and intentionality and intensity that I want to press on to know him. I'm going to eliminate distractions and he tells us how I'm going to forgetting what lies behind will develop this in a minute, he's going to forget all of his past failures. He's going to forget that he was a persecutor.

He's gonna not think that God's down on and that the things he did in his past are still held up against him, but is also going to forget his past accomplishments. He's been an apostle for 30 years. He planted churches.

He's already written New Testament books he had amazing amazing experiences. He goes on needed am I gonna rest on my laurels. He said I'm not gonna live under condemnation of my past, but there's no way there can be any complacency like all you know you I love the Lord and I served when I was young and I did a lot of things.

Now you know this or the McDonald's philosophy of life.

I deserve a break today, there is none of that.

The apostle Paul and so his disclaimer is I'm not perfect and I haven't arrived. His explanation is that I press on toward the goal for the prize of which God called me heavenly that that phrase God called me heavenward every time it's used throughout the New Testament save once it's about the calling of God for salvation. He saying God has a calling on my life. I've turned for my sin. I received Christ that calling it one day. Someday when I die or what were to find out he's not quite sure when Christ returns. I'm gonna be with and he says I he repeats, I press on. That's my goal. That's the prize that God has called me heavenward, and then he has sort of a bit of an admonition because he's got problems. Notice this whole book underlying there's some problems we had some disunity problem that some persecution problems. We had some false teacher problems, and so he knows are some stuff going on because he's getting reports from a path for Titus and says all of us who are mature. That's our word telling us again all of us who have come to a standard of progressive maturity in Christ. Not perfect but mature should have this attitude. The new American Standard says.

And if on any point you think differently, that to God will make clear in other words, this idea that it is no sinless perfection over here and this idea that it requires a passionate pursuit of following God. Anybody that has a different idea. God revealed to but the notice is final admonition only let us live up to what we've already attained in other words, wherever you're at in the truth that you received in the spiritual growth where you're at in your life right now in your life right now wherever you're at, he goes you need to respond to the truth. The fact that I haven't already arrived or no one's already arrived can become an excuse is what he saying you can't say what you know everyone struggles me that most men have a pornography issue. So I mean God understands. I mean, most people understand that you know this is this is how we live in. This is what's going on now know is that whatever truth you received.

You need to respond to what the apostle Paul is doing is he's addressing two extremes. There were two extremes about what it meant to be spiritually mature and in very subtle ways. He's addressed both of them on the one hand, spiritual maturity is not compulsive perfectionism.

When the Judaizers and legalistic people came in, you gotta live up you gotta live up you gotta live up you live up gonna live up about whether some of us and there's some of you, but maybe it's not even conscious but you live with this who you are and where you're at on your journey that never measures up you live with this low-grade guilt that messes with your life all the time and as a result, some of you parents you are passing that on to your kids no matter what they do, however, much progress they make it's never enough. There's this perfectionism and what he saying is, is that that's not spiritual maturity. Reading your Bible every day, praying every day having all your ducks in a row. It's about a relationship. The test of spiritual maturity is loving God and loving people and a transformed life is not these external perfectionism, but there is another extreme and he addressed that on the very last verse.

Spiritual maturity is not complacent passivity on the one hand, these Judaizers were coming in and giving people a list of rules you gotta do all this but there was another group.

The other group.

It's a big word, anti-know me and asked, learn to be word today. Anti-against no meet the law and what they would say as you know this stuff about Jesus. It's even better than we thought. This is what Christ means you pray and you receive Jesus into your heart, you are forgiven.

God loves you unconditionally there are no rules there. You can live however you want. There is no morality. It's just Christ grace grace. Some people call it cheap grace, so you can keep you can keep living in sin" because God understands he's a gracious God, you're already forgiven and this is where he says you need to live up to the standard okay thank you Chip, we have now learned a great deal about the apostle Paul and what was going on in the life of the church help me a little bit on what's this really got to do with me on shuttling back what you really think I want to summarize some things because God wants to give you hope.

You need to find it. You need to experience it, but you need to pursue it, but you need to pursue it in such a way that no matter what you do you never measure up is not an option and on the other hand, that there's not just this laxity that you know. I guess God just winks that everything genuine. Spiritual maturity is a passionate pursuit of knowing and becoming like Jesus. When you get in this life will I now but it's a passionate pursuit some additional thoughts about his teaching today. If you're just joining us, you're listening to living on the judge with Chip Ingram chips message today is from a series I choose hope how to phrase your future with confidence. If you long to choose. Hope this is a series you may want to listen to from time to time because none of us Masters this kind of maturity after just one hearing it's a lifelong pursuit in order to make it easier for you to get the series for yourself or someone you love. We've temporarily discovered the CDs and right now the MP3s are absolutely free to order just give us a call at 1-888-333-6003 or visit us online at http://livingontheedge.org. I'll be right back in just a minute to share some practical application to today's message but I want you to think about something with me. Can you imagine not feeling safe to share who Jesus is, to even not even say his name or to feel afraid to go into a church, or even to admit that your Christian what you might be thinking I'm talking about one of my trips to China or the Middle East. But I'm not I'm talking about what's happening in America those of the kind of responses I get from some university students there living in secular academic worlds where saying that you are a follower of Christ is like putting a sign on that says I'm narrow I'm bigoted I'm prejudiced. Were seeing our young people leave the church were seeing them not have the ability to answer questions from the Bible but here's what I can tell you the average mom and dad a grandparent doesn't know how to teach their kids that an average pastor is asking me. Could you give me some help. I spent most of my life teaching God's word in very progressive areas of the country. What I want you to know is that we want to help the next generation and we need your help.

And right now is probably the best time ever the you could help us number one yes we really need you to pray because God answers prayer, and number two were doing our midyear match and that means every gift that you give during this season up to July 7 is doubled. So we you pray would you think about the next generation and the challenges of today and just pray and say Lord, what would you want me to give and if you pray and do whatever God chose you to do.

I'm confident that will be positioned together to impact the next generation.

Thanks so much. Thanks to send a gift that will have twice the impact just go to LivingontheEdge.org and click the donate button on our homepage or give us a call at 1-888-333-6003. That's 1-888-333-6003. On behalf of all of us here. Thank you in advance for your generosity will melt her strip with a final thought as we close today's program. We joined the apostle Paul telling us that he's learned that the being religious and of tithing fasting twice a week being the greatest intellect of the day knowing all about God is no substitute for really knowing him and pressing in, and I love his disclaimer he says not that I've laid hold of it yet, so he's not saying that I've got it all together but what he saying is that our struggles don't define us and I wish you had the notes you know some of you follow along all the time. Others you catch this on a podcast or on the app or on radio, but this is one of the times were. I wish you would go to the Living on the Edge website and download the notes because I have a picture here is the real issue here is spiritual maturity and how do you become spiritually mature, and I have a little schematic.

I have a little picture on my notes on the far left. It says spiritual maturity is not compulsive perfectionism. In other words, is not legalism. It's not just all you do is not external, and then on the far side I say spiritual maturity is not complacent passivity. In other words, it's just all God is just all grace I can live. However I want and you know God's gonna make it all happen and there's no responsibility on my part. In fact, in the middle.

Then I say spiritual maturity is a passionate pursuit of knowing and becoming like Christ and that really means that the test of your spiritual maturity is and how often you go to church, not how many wonderful experiences you've had or not had spiritual maturity is measured very, very simply, it's how much do you and I love God and love people, because see the spirit of God entered our life when we trusted Christ as our Savior theologically were taken out of the kingdom of darkness and placed in the kingdom of light of his beloved son, in the spirit of God takes up residence in us and so we have all the power we ever need to be all that God wants us to be in and that's his part in the spirit lives within us longing to produce the life of Christ and what Paul is is clear to say here is that it requires a passionate pursuit on our part, but it also requires that we forget what lies behind you know there's some of you that are just stock in the abortion, the divorce, the separation, the addiction, the prescription drug saying that you just I mean it still haunts you the bad decisions, you're living in the rearview mirror, know what I want you to know is that God has forgiven and taken care of those things and the apostle Paul says forgetting what lies behind reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on and so I'm going to encourage you not to be passive and not to think that just reading the Bible more or going to church more will make you more like Christ. It's important, but it's about relationship.

Could you pause wherever you're at right now and sit quietly and say Lord, is there anything in my life or my attitude or my belief system that's keeping me from drawing near to you and you having your way to produce the life of Christ in me right now, right where you're at and he'll whisper and let me encourage you then ask for help. It's a relationship. It's a loving relationship from your heavenly father lean him and walk with him. If you've been blessed by the ministry of Living on the Edge and would like to bless others. There's never been a better time because thanks to some very generous friends of the ministry.

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This month it will be matched dollar for dollar to send a gift. Just give us a call at 1-888-333-6003 or visit us@livingontheedge.org and click the donate button on our homepage on behalf of Chip and all of us here. Thank you in advance for your generosity will until tomorrow. This is Dave Drury saying thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge