Presented, March 13, 2005 am
THE CHRISTIAN AND SELF-RENEWAL (11)
Going On To Perfection
We are finally bringing this study to its conclusion. Over the past several weeks we have studied in detail the Christian and self-renewal. At times things have seemed redundant and this study has taken considerable time, but it is my sincere hope that it has been helpful. I firmly believe these are things we need to consider from time to time. I know that this study has provoked me to begin reevaluating my life and thinking about what I can do to make myself better. It is my hope and prayer that it has done the same for each of us. What I hope has NOT happened is that anyone has complacently listened and said, “Great thoughts – Too bad it doesn’t apply to me!” In this final lesson we will first briefly summarize what we have discussed and then conclude with a text I believe summarizes what we have been studying - 2 Peter 1:5-10.
I. Putting It All Together
a.
What is Self-renewal?
The word renew is defined as, “to make new again; to restore to freshness,
perfection or vigor; to give new life to; to rejuvenate; to reestablish, to
recreate, to rebuild” (Webster)
The definition of the Biblical word is, “to renew qualitatively. Therefore, a
renewing or a renovation which makes a person different than in the past”
(Complete Word Study Dictionary)
With these definitions, we established the use of the term in this study to mean
two things:
1) returning to that state you were in when you first became a Christian
2) putting measures in place within our lives and within the church to ensure
continued growth as we press toward the goal.
Our focus has been primarily on the second description.
b.
God’s word addresses renewal
Romans 12:2- speaks of being transformed “by the renewing of your mind”
2 Corinthians 4:16 says, “Even though our outward man is perishing, the inward
man is being renewed day by day.”
Colossians 3:10 says that since we have put off the old man we ought to, “put on
the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who
created” (us)…
c. The need for renewal is seen in the fact that:
i. We are expected not merely to grow, but to thrive in our service to God. John 10:10 speaks of the abundant life Jesus came so that we might have
ii. The failure to grow is rebuked in passages like Hebrews 5:12-14
iii. When we don’t take measures to move forward, we begin to wither away because of disuse.
d. Renewing the mind – we spent 5 weeks examining the importance of the mind where renewal is concerned.
i. Any renewal BEGINS with the mind. Romans 12:2 – it is HOW we are transformed.
ii. Needed change will NOT develop in our lives until we deep down give consideration to it. There are many things we ought to consider to help move us toward renewal –
1) The realization that Satan wants our minds as well
2) What we USED to be – 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
3) A proper perspective of life – we often limit our vision by thinking in terms
of this world instead of heaven. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 speaks of the inward man
being renewed day by day as we don’t look at “the things which are seen, but at
the things which are NOT seen…” We ought to be “otherworldly”, setting our
minds on things above – Colossians 3:2
4) We also need to give due consideration to our future – IF we don’t grow, our
souls are in danger as well as whatever spiritual work we might have
accomplished in the past.
5) We also need to consider the future of others – our failure to grow will have
an impact on others. We noted our moral responsibility to a lost and dying
world.
iii.
Optimism - We spent considerable time addressing the importance of
optimism and showed that God expects us to be that way – but NOT a false
optimism based on ignorance and arrogance.
We noted optimism is to be seen in our faith, our assurance and the confidence
we ought to have as Christians.
Pessimism is the attitude of defeat before we even try. We noted the fruits of
pessimism by examining numerous examples such as Israel in the face of Goliath
and the Philistines (and the optimism of a youth named David), Israel’s refusal
to enter Canaan and even the disciples of Jesus were pessimistic at times.
iv. To thrive spiritually we also need to let go of our past and be willing to accept forgiveness from God and maybe even forgive ourselves
v. We also noted that there are ways NOT to think – including worry, dwelling on that which you cannot do, being complacent, and filling our minds with garbage.
e. Self-Renewal – When the mind is as it ought to be, we next turn to the life of the Christian. Some of the things we noted include:
i. An understanding of the expectation to grow – 2 Peter 3:18 & James 2:18
ii. The need for honest self-examination – 2 Corinthians 13:5
iii. Based upon what we find we need to make plans to change what needs to be changed. Goals without plans usually go unaccomplished.
iv. We also need to remove anything that hinders our growth – this is covered in the idea of being transformed in Romans 12:2. We need to control the environment that influences us to the greatest degree possible.
v. Finally, we need to GET TO WORK! Where do we start? RIGHT WHERE WE ARE AT RIGHT NOW! Build on what you already have and resolve to do your best. When you fall down, just get back up and keep going.
vi. We also talked about getting to work. Some things we discussed that will promote self-renewal included 1)Regular and consistent Bible study, 2)Prayer, 3)Giving, 4)Worshipping God and 5)Attendance.
f. The Church and Renewal – the last few lessons turned from individual growth to growth of the body of Christ.
i. IT was first noted that church growth is a product of individual growth because the church is the Christians who make up that body.
ii. We noted in God’s word there are times when churches need renewal or revival and we have noted some things that might promote that.
iii. We noted that growth, whether individuals or the church requires planning. Planning requires:
iv. FIRST that we understand what our purpose is – which we noted – 1)To worship God, 2)To evangelize, 3)To build up the body (edification) and 4)Limited benevolence
v. Understanding our purpose we need to examine where we are at. Are we fulfilling our purpose in a manner that God is pleased?
vi. Next we need to set goals – Noting where we NEED to be.
vii. We need to formulate a plan to get from where we are to where we need to be
viii. We need to implement that plan – all the planning in the world is useless if we don’t do something about it
ix. In this plan, let us NEVER forget God. A plan that compromises our purpose is no plan at all. We also need to pray for His wisdom and help in fulfilling our purpose.
x. From time to time, we need to evaluate the plans we have implemented.
In summary, that is what we have noted in this study. Having said that, I wish to conclude by examining a passage of scripture that summarizes our need for renewal.
II. Going On to Perfection
a. 2 Peter 1:5-11 refers to a list that we sometimes call “the Christian graces”. Having mentioned the great and precious promises we have received from him, Peter then exhorts growth among these brethren.
b.
“Giving all diligence”- Considering the blessings we have in Him, we
ought to put forth diligent effort to grow. As you examine this text you will
note that progress is expected.
The word diligence means which implies the idea of immediate action.
The Word Study Dictionary of the New Testament defines the word as, “to
speed, urge, hasten, press… earnestness, diligence, zeal.” The idea is putting
forth genuine effort to accomplish what needs to be accomplished.
Peter uses the word, “add” which indicates the idea of moving forward (KJV, NKJV)
or building upon that which already exists. The NAS says here, “In your faith
supply virtue…” The point is this is a building process which is what
self-renewal is all about.
c. “Add to …” – the characteristics Peter is about to describe actually complement one another. They work together to accomplish the goals mentioned in verses 8-11. While they are described in sort of a stair step fashion as we develop in each of these, it will promote growth and renewal in the others. One preacher described these as a symphonic orchestra in which the various instruments are added until you have the full orchestra piece developed.
d. What are we to build? (5-7)
i. We begin with faith – the very foundation of all we do is faith. There is a firm persuasion and trust in God that He is there and that He is our only hope. Without faith, we can NEVER please God (Heb. 11:6). We have talked about faith in this study – we need to honestly ask ourselves if our faith is as it ought to be.
ii. Virtue – within that faith we need virtue. The word means, moral excellence. I think of the word integrity. Meaningful renewal will never happen if we don’t have integrity in our lives. If we are not honest and true with ourselves (and others) our foundation is weak and susceptible to collapse.
iii. Knowledge – Much of what we have said in this study addresses a proper knowledge both of what is expected of us and where we really are. God’s word HAS to be the standard we use to measure ourselves by. James 1:25 says we need to look into the perfect law of liberty AND continue in it. With God’s word we can know about everything we need (2 Peter 1:3, 2 Timothy 3:16-17) to know including who our enemy is, how to deal with him, what we need to do to please God, to grow and everything else we have addressed.
iv.
Self-control – In this study we have noted not only the need to know, but
also the need to IMPLEMENT what we have learned about ourselves and what God
expects. Knowledge without restraint or discipline is weak.
Self-control is disciplining our bodies to NOT do that which damages our
spirituality and to do what we NEED to do when we need to do it.
v. Perseverance – IT has been noted and is worthy of repetition that Satan wants to stop any efforts we make to become more of what God would have us to be. He will do all that he can to cause us to stumble or put obstacles in our way. When the “going gets tough” it is easy to become discouraged and give up. But we CAN’T do that! We have to keep going. Achieving spiritual self-renewal will not be accomplished without tackling difficult obstacles. Galatians 6:9 tells us to never give up.
vi. Godliness is the disposition of being God like. We are not and never will be God, but we can strive to live as much like Him as possible. In this study, we have noted more than once the need to maintain the integrity of God’s word as we determine where we need renewal. In all we do, we must NEVER compromise His will. Colossians 3:17. This is key to meaningful renewal.
vii. Brotherly Kindness – also referred to as brotherly love. This is the love of brothers. Louw & Nida describe this word as “affection for one’s fellow believer in Christ.” To grow as we ought to we need the church. While the world is competing for our time and lives, they do not have our spiritual best interest in mind. Our brethren in the church do (if they are what they ought to be). Brethren will build us up (edify) in those things we need to be built up in. This is a key to renewal both individually as well as the church. And don’t forget that this is reciprocal meaning we need to be there for our brethren as well.
viii. Love – sometimes referred to as the characteristic word of Christianity it appeals to the proper motive behind all that we do – we CARE! We care about what God thinks. We care about our own spiritual well being. We care about our brethren. We care about the lost. Remember that without love, no matter what we do is not satisfactory to God (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
ix. Thus in all these characteristics we can see renewal.
e. The results of a life filled with these graces (8-11)
i. Note first Peter says, “If these things are yours AND ABOUND” – that has been our goal in this entire study. It is a word that means “to have or cause to have much, or more than enough” (WS Dictionary). Thayer says of the word, “to superabound, … to make to increase”
ii. We will NOT be barren nor unfruitful – remember our goal is to produce, and even to thrive. God does not desire us to be barren. In fact it displeases Him (consider the one talent man of Matthew 25, etc.)
iii. We will NOT “lack” resulting in blindness and forgetting our past. Peter notes that if we are NOT developing in these traits we clearly are not considering our former state or all that God has blessed us with. The reason many don’t grow or renew is because they HAVE FORGOTTEN where they came from.
iv. If we do these things we will never stumble. The word stumble means, “to fall into misery, become wretched” (Thayer). The idea being one who is lost. Notice that this is a conditional statement based upon us developing. IF we are growing and abounding as we ought to, we are not going to sin so as to be lost. This does not mean that from time to time we will not sin, but because our life is what it ought to be, we will correct that which is wrong. However, I do contend that if we sin, chances are it is because we have fully developed the graces mentioned in this text.
v. Ultimately, an entrance into the kingdom will await us. This is our ultimate goal – heaven. Not only will a life of growth make our time here more meaningful and rich, we have assurance of a place where there will be nothing corrupt or defiled allowed in there – not a single lie or disappointment (Revelation 21:7). There will be no sickness, death, ailments, not even a tear (Revelation 21:4). It is the goal Paul pressed toward (Philippians 3:14) and the promise Jesus offered (Mark 9:41). Friends, as a preacher once said, “If you miss heaven, you’ve missed everything!”
In all of this we can that implementing a process of self-renewal in our lives is well worth it. In this life we will be thriving in that which is worthwhile – not only to ourselves but also helping others, and in the life to come – “an entrance ...supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom.” Isn’t that worth the extra effort? Think about it!