Growing in Christ
October 28, 2009

Here's a few notes, the fill-ins & reflections from this weeks teaching at New Community.

Philippians 3:15-16

15-All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16-Only let us live up to what we have already attained. (Philippians 3:15-16)  

1.  Growth is for All of Us.
   
   
2. Growth is not Automatic.
   
   
3. Growth is both an individual & community endeavor.
   
   Let us live up to / By that same rule let us walk
   

Paul means simply this that, having come thus far, the thing to do is to go “in the same path” in which we have been traveling so far.^[1]

It speaks of progress along a road to a certain point. Paul is thinking of the Philippian’s progress along the Christian path. His idea is, “so far as we have come.” The word “walk” means “to proceed in a row,” and refers to literal walking.^[2]

Life is like a race. Some are running. Some are walking. Some may only be a few miles into it, but we each are on it…

Reflection #1:

Based on your walk with God up to this point, what are some prominent traits and characteristics of God that you’ve discovered?

C.S. Lewis

Why else were individuals created, but that God,
loving all infinitely, should love each differently?
…if all experienced God in the same way and
returned Him an identical worship,
the song of the Church triumphant would have no symphony,
it would be like an orchestra in which
all the instruments played the same note.

         Reflection #2:

Think about a season in your life when you felt like you were growing the most spiritually. What contributed to that?

(A great exercise in reflection sometime would be to develop a timeline of your life and where you’ve come from. Identifying the key shapers (influences) via people, situations, experiences, lessons, etc…)

         Our spiritual journey is just that – a journey.  It’s on-going, progressive, moving, growing, expanding, enlarging and increasing…

         One of my favorite quotes and personal motto in life is,
“The Journey is the Destination.” 

4. Growth is a byproduct of grace, effort, and discernment.                   

^[1]Robertson, A. (1997). Word Pictures in the New Testament (Php 3:16). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems.

^[2]Wuest, K. S. (1997, c1984). Wuest's word studies from the Greek New Testament  : For the English reader (Php 3:16). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.