Grow Deep Part 3: You and Me
Grow Deep Part 3: You and Me
Grow Deep, Grow Up, Grow Fruit, that’s the task of
a follower of Christ. Grow Deep is what we are currently considering. Grow
Deep, spread spiritual roots, so far and wide that you can withstand the storms
of life. Growing Deep is all about your relationship with Jesus, it’s about
being rooted deep in the Spirit.
In Part 1, the Flame of Experience we learned that
growing deep requires more than just an intellectual pursuit of God, book
knowledge is good, but it is not sufficient in setting down deep roots, you
need experiential knowledge for that. Growing Deep requires that you have
encounters with God so what you know in your head becomes what you feel in your
heart.
In Part 2, Looking Up we learned that in order to
grow deep we must look up, we must make the choice get rid of the attractions
and desires of worldly concerns, what we can call an earthly gaze and set our
minds on the things that matter in the Kingdom. We likened the old habits,
attachments, addictions and value system in the old way of life like filthy
rags that are to be ripped off and burned. Then we can wear God’s designer
wardrobe of love.
In Part 3, we are going to consider the importance
of what the bible calls fellowship. If we are going to grow deep we really do
need each other. What Benjamin Franklin said years ago applies today as much as
in Ben’s time:
“We must, indeed, all hang together or, most
assuredly, we shall all hang separately. Creating fellowship takes time, it’s
also one of the 7 habits of a disciple.
Before moving to California, I had heard of the
mighty Redwoods, the Sequoias, but I had never actually encountered one. So I
took the family and we went camping in Kings Canyon National Park. The trees
are massive, and you don’t encounter just one, the Sequoias grow in groves. The
tree has no tap root. The taproot is the dominant root that grows deep in the
soil and acts as an anchor for the tree. The Sequoias roots go down only 12 to
14 feet but can grow over 200 feet in length. The reason you find Sequoias in
groves is that each tree needs another to keep it rooted in the ground. One
mature tree can spread its roots over an acre of land and those roots
intertwine with other Redwoods, creating a huge base, a foundation, that can
support up to 2 million pounds per tree. It’s a fellowship that keeps these
trees standing. They only survive together.
Even though the roots of the Sequoias don’t grow
deep, that root system is an illustration of what you need as a follower of
Christ, you need fellowship to grow spiritually deep. It’s the trees standing
together. This idea of solidarity is the concept that informs fellowship. The New Testament translators transformed the
Greek word koinonia into our English
word “fellowship.” To define what is meant we have to open our Greek
dictionaries and when you do you will read that fellowship means “being
together of mutual benefit.” Describing fellowship words like unity,
partnership, community, and participation are used. A second definition is “to
share in common.” The concept is one of deep intimacy, a relationship in which
we engage in each other’s lives, a relationship of encouragement, trust, and
love. Interdependence means I need you and you need me to survive. It’s this
sort of relationship that you need to grow deep
Here’s a spiritual reality, everyone who has
acknowledged that they need a savior, believed that Jesus is the savior they
need, committed themselves to continue following Christ when God answers their heart’s
desire, such an individual becomes part of the body of Christ. No, don’t think
of the body like the body you happen to be in right now. The body of Christ is
a picture of how we are interrelated to one another because of our faith.
1 Corinthians 12:27 (MSG)
You are Christ's body—that's who you are! You must
never forget this.
You are not physically Christ’s body, this is a
word picture of the incredibly intimate relationship you share with every other
believer, even if they don’t totally agree with you doctrinally. You can’t survive
on your own outside of the body. You can’t grow deep without a vital connection
to other believers, without fellowship.
1 Corinthians 12:25-26 (MSG)
The way God designed our bodies is a model for
understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every
other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and
the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the
hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the
exuberance.
The spiritual reality is that God has willed that
believers are to do life in unity. Being one with each other as He is one with
we who believe in genuine personal relationships and mutual interdependence in
which we authentically share the life of Christ.
John 17:22-23 (NIV)
I have given them the glory that you gave me, that
they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to
complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even
as you have loved me.
We are spiritually in this together. Why don’t we
cultivate the spiritual relationships that we have? Lack of time, lack of
priority, lack of motivation; you need fellowship with those who are one with
Christ in order to grow deep, but it just doesn’t seem important enough to make
the effort.
Who’s your best friend? In whose hand is your
heart safe? Who do you trust completely to be for you? Who is the one who
encourages you when you are down? Who do you call when you are hurt? Who do you
want to go on vacation with? Who do you like being with? Who do you want to
spend your time with? Who cheers you on? Who do you want to succeed? Who picks
you up? Who makes your life worth living for? I’ll take it up a notch. Who
would you sacrifice for, go out of your way for, allow your schedule to be
interrupted for, meet their need even if it cost you plenty? Who would you die
for? Got a picture in your mind of that person?
Here’s what blew me away as I studied how
fellowship helps you grow deep; how fellowship helps you survive. Recall that
person you thought, that best friend. That person is an example of the type of
relationship we are empowered to have with every believer. That blew my mind.
We are empowered to create, maintain, develop that kind of relationship with
each person who is in the Body with us. I can hardly wrap my head around this
concept. When we have even one such intimate relationship I think it’s a taste
of what all our relationships will be like at the restoration of all things.
Here is some American folk wisdom: “You can’t soar
like an eagle when you surround yourself with turkeys.” There are numerous
variants like: “If you play with turkeys you’ll never soar with the eagles” or,
“If you want to fly with the eagles, then stop hanging around the turkeys.” I
know we’re talking about growing deep but you get the picture. Who you spend
your time with will have a direct bearing on how deep you Grow in Christ. The
people you hang with just might determine if you stay faithful or fall away.
1 Corinthians 15:33 (NIV)
Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good
character."
That’s why mama wanted you hanging out with the
nice kids in the neighborhood.
If you’re having difficulty growing deep ask
yourself who do you spend your time with. The company you keep makes a
difference. If you choose wisely, you will get the encouragement you need, the
support you need to grow deep. The company you keep influences the direction of
your life. Keeping the wrong company, you will find you are encouraged to give
up the struggle and instead seek a life of pleasure and self-satisfaction. If
you associate with those who share your values, then those values will be
reinforced. When you associate with those who are also involved in this
struggle to grow deep, to grow up, to grow fruit, their experiences will give
you knowledge, strength, and hope. You will profit from their experience. Since
they are also spiritual aspirants like you, they will inspire you, strengthen
your resolve, elevate your aim, and enable you to progress more surely on this
difficult path of discipleship.
(http://www.stgeorgegreenville.org/our-faith/tenpointprogram/spiritual-fellowship)
Ecclesiastes 4:12 (MSG)
By yourself you're unprotected. With a friend you
can face the worst. Can you round up a third? A three-stranded rope isn't
easily snapped.
Who do you spend time with?
Time for a little meddling in your affairs.
Do you spend more time with-- I’m going to recite some
names, do you spend more time with this person than you do creating, developing
and growing relationships characterized by fellowship, than you spend time
practicing this 3rd habit of a disciple.
Do you spend more time with Sheldon; Ellen; Hoda; Drew; “Ray
Holt, Rosa Diaz, and Sophia Perez;” Captain Matthew Casey--Truck Company 81, “Bonnie,
Christy, Jill and Adam;” Dr. Murphy, Dr Glassman, Dr. Browne, and Dr Melendez;”
“Homer, Marge and Brat” -- Do you spend more time with them than you do
creating, developing and growing relationships characterized by fellowship.
Who do we spend our time with? Who you spend time with
influences your thinking. I don’t know about you but I don’t want to think like
the Housewives of Orange County, or Saul Goodman or Claire Hale Underwood or
Cersei Lannister. Or worse I don’t want to think like some of the people you
work with. Are you going to find what you need to spiritually grow deep in
their company?
Jesus said: “…when two or three of you are together because
of me, you can be sure that I'll be
there." Matthew 18:20 (MSG)
Can I prove that objectively, that Jesus is there with us?
Not at all. But I can sense His presence, feel His presence, recognize His
presence subjectively. It’s through encounters with Jesus that you grow deep.
Hebrews 10: 24,25 Let us consider how to stimulate one
another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as
is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see
the day drawing near.
The day drawing near is the day of the restoration, the
renewal. Before that day of the Lord arrives things are going to become
extremely difficult for believers. I think we will need each other to survive,
we will desperately need each other.
There really is only one way to for you to create this kind
of fellowship with other believers. Our original faith family demonstrates how
for us.
Acts 2:42 (MSG)
They committed themselves to the teaching of the
apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.
Then we jump down to verse 46
Acts 2:46-47 (NIV )
Every day they continued to meet together in the
temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and
sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.
Our faith ancestors spent time with each other. They
made the effort to be with each other as often as possible, disciplined
themselves to be available, inconvenienced themselves to gather together. The
only way I know how to create a fellowship is to be together.
We skipped a couple of verses: 43-45. The reason
is I wanted to is so a point can be driven home about how connected our faith
ancestors were to one another, one-way fellowship looks:
Acts 2:43-45 (NIV)
Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and
miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and
had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to
anyone as he had need.
If a loved one, that person who came to mind when
I asked you about your best friend, what would you withhold from them if they
needed it? That’s the kind of fellowship we have been empowered to thrive in.
You can enjoy fellowship, you can create fellowship, it's within your grasp. All
it takes is a willing heart to commit yourself to spending the time to do so.
Grow deep with one another.
Faithful Friend
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