Spiritual Maturity

Praise the Lord ! Today instead of the usual verse for the day, would like to share a little more in detail of what the Lord has taught me over the weekend. Lets start with a prayer “Father thank you Lord that you have blessed us to see this day … Thank you Father that you have blessed us with technology that can be used for Your glory… Thank You Father for choosing us to be vessels for Your glory. We are nothing Father. But when You carry us in Your hands then are we transformed by Your grace. Father open our eyes Lord to understand Your wondrous law… Touch our hearts Lord and continue to grow us in You . We submit this time into Your hands Father…We lift it to You Lord, Bless it for Your glory . In the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ we ask, we believe and we receive . Amen”


We have all heard this phrase being used , ‘Spiritual Maturity’. What does that mean ? Does it mean that we have become so strong that now we are better than others ? NO. It just means this “We have become more sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit”. Its as simple as that. See the more sensitive we are to the Holy Spirit the more we yield ourselves in obedience to our Lord and we let Him have His way in us ,rather than being stubborn and egoistic and try doing things on our own strength and then fail and then eventually turn to God. As we grow more and more in the Lord , ‘self’ decreases and ‘He’ increases. As we grow more and more in the Lord we become familiar to the things of God. We learn to discern between the things of Him and the things not of Him. As we grow more and more in Him we realize its not our life… Life by Biblical definition is Jesus Christ. So then there is no question of what I want to do with my life. Its become 100% Lord use me for Your glory for Your purposes as per Your Holy will. We learn to obey and desire for things of Him. In short we learn to abide completely in Him. We learn not to lean on our own understanding but lean totally and completely on Him and Him only.

Lets turn our Bibles to Matthew 20 : 1-16. For those who don’t have their Bibles with you , you can access this site http://www.biblegateway.com/ . This passage talks about the parable of the workers in the vineyard. In fact lets read it together , ““For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. "Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. "And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, "and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. "Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. "And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ "They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.’“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ "And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. "And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, "saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ "But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 'Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 'Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’ "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”” How are we walking ? Are we walking based on comparisons with others ? Or are we working hard for one reason and one reason alone – Because the Master called us !

Sometimes a sense of spiritual pride creeps up within and we say ‘who is this person to tell me what I should do’ or we might say ‘I have been doing this for so many years and now this person who is a new believer comes along …God You need to bless me more than him !!!” What has become our definition of Spiritual growth ? Spiritual Maturity ? God does not need us… we need Him !! Its an honor to be used of God. We are not doing God any favors. But by His grace and His mercy He has chosen us and called us His own !! WOW ! It doesn’t matter at which point you are right now in your spiritual life – the point remains – Its by His grace and His grace only that we exist . And its by His grace that we can do anything at all. If God were to remove His hand of favour from us, none of us would survive even for a fraction of a second. It does not matter how many years we are a believer or how much we have been graciously used for God’s glory. This should be engraved in our hearts “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit’ Says the LORD of hosts”.

We are alive - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We worship Him - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
We are used for His glory - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we are - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit
Everything that we will be - Not by might nor by power, but by His Spirit

His grace His grace His grace……….My brothers and sisters in Christ we are enveloped by His grace… We cant even kneel down and pray but not for His grace. The Lord is calling us to completely surrender ourselves… not by our might or by our power… no no no .. but to yield ourselves knowing that that comes only by His Spirit.

Psalm 23 is a Psalm which most of us have learnt as kids… let it be our prayer this morning .Lets say the words Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit prayerfully. Because there is nothing nothing nothing absolutely nothing that we can do on our own.

The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit

He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

Not by might nor by power, but by HIS Spirit


God Bless