LifeWay Family Bible Series for Aug. 15: Christians need to follow God’s word and grow_80904

Posted: 8/06/04

LifeWay Family Bible Series for Aug. 15

Christians need to follow God's word and grow

1 Peter 13-16, 22-25; 2:1-3,

11-12

By Rodney McGlothlin

First Baptist Church, College Station

Children use the expression, “When I grow up, I will … .” Adults are more likely to say, “If I grow up, I will … .”

I must confess that when “Calvin and Hobbes” and “The Far Side” were no longer in the paper, I had little reason to want to read one. “Geech” is a poor substitute. There was one episode I found amusing. The mechanic begins a line with, “When I grow up, I want to be … .” His friend points out he is grown up, at which point he looks down at his ragged self and says: “Dang! This is not what I wanted to be.” He apparently took a side road on the path to self-actualization.

What should a grown-up Christian look like? What sort of character traits should he or she have?

I suppose the simple answer to that question would be to say that when a Christian grows up, he should look a lot like Jesus. That seems to be the point of Paul in Romans 8:29 when he says, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son.”

Peter gives some good guidelines for what it means to be “conformed to the likeness of his Son.”

If you want to be like Jesus, be holy. “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: 'Be holy, because I am holy'” (1 Peter 1:15-16).

What does it mean to be “holy”? Before it is a character word, it is a positional word. “Holy” means to be set apart for a purpose. Jerusalem was a holy city because it was set apart from other cities for the purposes of God. The temple was a holy place because it was set apart from other buildings for the purposes of God. Christians are to be holy in that sense. You were set apart by God for his glory. You were set apart to serve him. Be holy!

The word also expresses character. Peter quoted Leviticus in verse 16. The basis for the Old Testament command to holiness is found in the holiness of God. We are to be holy because God is holy. Jesus expressed it similarly with these words, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

Christians should be holy. We are set apart for God's service, and his service requires us to mirror his character. “Mirror” is a good word. The moon generates no light of its own. It gloriously reflects the light of the sun. Be holy!

If you want to be like Jesus, be loving. “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart” (1 Peter 1:22).

The word “purified” is the same root word as the word “holy.” Holiness always should lead to a greater love for others. It never should distance us from others. It should bring us closer to them. The byproduct of holiness is a deep love for others, not a judgmental spirit that divides us.

How did Jesus love? He loved enough to serve others rather than self. He loved enough to forgive. He loved enough to give himself for others. He then called us to follow him by taking up our cross. He invited us to love one another.

If you want to be like Jesus, be honorable. “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12).

Even the enemies of Jesus acknowledged he was honorable. They had to pay false witnesses to bear testimony against him at his trial. It was said of him in the gospels that he “went about doing good.”

Christians should be honorable. The result of their honorable behavior will be that those who are lost will see the good and honorable deeds of believers and also will glorify God.

If you want to be like Jesus, keep growing. “Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation (1 Peter 2:1-2).

We have some things to put aside. Words like “malice,” “deceit,” “hypocrisy,” “envy” and “slander” tend to suggest problems in our relationships. These words describe sinful actions we might have toward others. We must make a conscious decision to put aside these characteristics. In their place, we are to long for the word of God. God's word will help us to grow up in our salvation. The idea is that we will become what God saved us to be. Keep growing. Make good choices. Most of all, choose God's word.

What do you want to be when you grow up? It is time for us to grow up and become what God saved us to be. He wants us to be like Jesus. Be holy! Be loving! Be honorable! Keep growing! We all have a long way to go.

Questions for discussion

Are you still maturing spiritually or has your growth stopped? Have you grown to be what you wanted to be?

What traits of a mature Christian do you see in yourself? Which ones still need to be cultivated?