Measuring Your Level of Maturity, Part 1

If you got your Bible, turn with me to 1 Peter chapter 3. 1 Peter chapter 3. And our objective this evening is to measure your level of maturity, to see where you stand in your walk with the Lord. You know, after we're saved, God leaves us here for two reasons. One is to be his witness, two is to be his workmanship. One is to speak for God, the other is to grow in our walk with God. In Acts chapter 1, verse number 8, Christ said that the Spirit of God will come upon you, and ye shall be my witnesses.

You're going to be my martyrs. You're going to be my representatives to a lost world. Christ leaves us here to witness for Him, to speak for Him. But the Bible says in Ephesians chapter 2 verse number 10 that we are his workmanship having been created in Christ Jesus unto good works That God is doing something in our lives to make us like Him, to shape us and to mold us into His great and glorious image.

We are the masterpiece. And as God works in us, He can more effectively work through us. And Peter addresses the fact that we are to be growing in our walk with the Lord and gives us some. Some standards by which we can measure our lives by. I guess one of the most pathetic things in all the world is to see someone who is a Christian. For a number of years, and yet has yet to really take off in their walk with the Lord. I was thinking about this today and thinking about, you know, when you tell your children, you try to grow your children, you try to help your children understand what they can and cannot do, and after Months and after years, they keep doing the same things.

It gets a little frustrating after a while. Well, think about the Christian. Who comes to church and hears the word of the Lord, and they still are doing the same things they've been doing for the last five or six or seven years, and they don't seem to be growing very much. They grow old, but they don't grow up. It's kind of sad, isn't it? If we had a child, then that child. Was born, and as cute as they are, and as cuddly as they are, if that child, after five years, was still the same size, eating the same food.

Wearing the same diapers, there'd be a problem with that child, right? Well, the same thing is true spiritually. And we have to look at our lives in light of what the Word of the Lord says.

And we have to ask ourselves: are we growing? Is my walk with the Lord? Better today than it was a year ago or six months ago? Am I closer to the heart of God now than I was two years ago, three years ago? Where am I in conjunction to when I was saved? I've been saved for 32 years. That's a long time. Well, you know, after 32 years, you'd think you'd see a change, right? You'd hope so. And so I think that when we look at our lives, we have to say, okay.

Where am I in my walk with the Lord? Am I growing? Am I closer to Him? Do I know more of Him? Am I trusting Him more and more today than I did yesterday? Unfortunately, we tend to look at ourselves in light of other Christians instead of Christ.

I shared with you a verse on Sunday. It's 2 Corinthians 10, verse number 12. Paul says, For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves. But when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understand. It's very easy for us to look at somebody else and say, well, they're really walking with the Lord.

And then look at that person over there and say, well, wow, they're really not walking with the Lord.

I'm better than they are. You know, at least I'm here four times a month. They're only here twice a month. At least I carry my Bible to church. They don't even carry one. So, they can't even open one. And we tend to measure ourselves by ourselves, don't we? And we tend to look at somebody else and say, well, you know, their marriage isn't so good.

Mine's not that bad. Instead of comparing it to what the word of the Lord says, our marriages should be like, or what our Christian walk should be like. It's easy for us to compare ourselves to one another because it makes us feel better about ourselves. There's always somebody worse off than you, right? There's always somebody that's in dire straits and a lot further from the Lord than you are. Just got to find those people. And then think, well, you know, I'm not that bad. But the Bible says we need to look at what Christ says concerning our level of maturity and are we growing in our walk with the Lord 1 Peter chapter 3, verse number 8.

This is what Peter says. To sum up, or finally. Let me draw to a conclusion for you. What's Peter summing up? He's summing up what he began way back in verses 11 and 12 of chapter 2. the very fact that we're aliens and strangers in a in a foreign land and there are fleshly lusts which wage war against our soul but we're to keep our behavior excellent among the gentiles and he goes into this long dissertation concerning submission How we are to submit to those in society, those in leadership, in government.

How we are to submit to our employer at work, and how we are to submit to one another in our homes as husbands and wives. He says, now I want to sum all that up for you. I want to help you understand that by looking at just a couple of things Peter's saying. He wants you to be able to understand what that submission entails and what it actually looks like practically. Peter is so practical, he's so down to earth. He says this: to sum up, let's all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kind-hearted, and humble in spirit.

Not returning evil for evil or insult for insult. But giving a blessing instead, for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. For let him who means to love life and see good days refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile. And let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears attend to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those Who do evil? Peter emphasizes eight aspects that will help us measure our level of maturity.

And then he gives us three motivations that will keep us keeping on as we pursue Christ's likeness. We have two points this evening. There they are. Number one, he says, sum it all up.

Let all of you be harmonious. Let all of you be like-minded. You need to all be in agreement here. You need to understand the whole aspect of submission. That's the context. Let me sum it up for you.

Let's all be harmonious. Let's all think the same thing about what submission entails. Let's all be on the same page. Husbands, wives, because that was right before there in verses 1 to 7. Do you understand your responsibility? In your marriage, to be submissive to your wife and to be submissive to your husband. You understand that? Let's all think the same thing about this. Let's all be on the same page. Let's all approach it from the same direction. Let's all be. Harmonious. And that's important.

Because you see, one of the ways you understand how you're growing in your walk with the Lord is that you're like-minded. You're like-minded, number one, in your doctrine, number two, in your disposition, and number three, in your dec.

You're like-minded, number one, in your doctrine. It's important that the body of Christ be like-minded about what they believe, right? I like what the Bible says over in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse number 10.

Paul says, Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree. Do you all agree? And that there be no division among you, but you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. Paul says you need to agree and be of the same mind when it comes to things concerning Christ. You need to be like-minded. Number one, in your doctrine.

Well, if you're like-minded, listen, if you're like-minded in your doctrine, That is, if you're like-minded in the decrees of God, if you're like-minded in what God says is the truth, now you can be like-minded in your disposition.

That is the way your attitude is portrayed. Listen to what Paul says over in the book of Philippians, chapter 1, verse number 27. Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I may hear of you. Of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel. Oneness in doctrine leads to oneness in disposition. Oneness about the decrees of God leads to a oneness in how I portray God.

You see, we forget that in our relationships, the key element is what I believe about God and how committed I am to God and being in agreement with what God says about who He is, what He wants me to do.

That then translates itself into my disposition on how I behave with those who are closest to me. Unity in doctrine leads to unity in disposition, which leads to unity in declaration. Romans chapter 15 says this, verse 5. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another, according to Christ Jesus. That with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ How is it that with one voice and with one mind God is glorified?

It's because those who are coming together are like-minded. That is, those who are coming together had the same doctrine and had the same disposition. So, therefore, when they speak forth for God, that That when they declare the glory of God, they do it with one voice. Peter says, The way you know you're growing is if, number one, You're like-minded.

Specifically, in the context about what God says concerning your relationship with one another, in the family, and in the government, and in your work.

That's what God said is true, and you believe that, and you want to follow that. That's why Paul would say over in Ephesians chapter 4, verses 1 to 3, that we need to endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We need to work at keeping that like-mindedness. We need to work at keeping that unity among ourselves. Because Satan does all he can to destroy that un. Number two.

Compassionate. Peter says, to sum it all up, you need to be not only harmonious, but sympathetic. Or comp. How do you know you're growing spiritually? How do you know you're walking closer to the Lord? Well, number one, you're like-minded with those.

In the body of Christ. Number two, you're compassionate and sympathetic with those in the body of Christ.

Now, this word sympathetic is a word that means fellow feel. That is, you feel your fellows' feel. You understand their situation. So, when they rejoice, you rejoice. When they hurt, you hurt. When they cry, you cry. Because you feel with them, you empathize with them, you are sympathetic with them, you are compassionate with them. It connotes the absence, listen, the absence of comp. And the absence of jealousy and envy. Think about it this way. You've been waiting to have a baby for years. Friend of yours gets married, bam, they have a baby.

Do you rejoice with that one having a baby? Or do you become jealous and envious of that one having a baby? Do you rejoice because they rejoice? Or are you becoming angry because they have what you don't have? And inside there becomes this. This green with envy spirit dwelling up. That's how you know you're growing spiritually. You find it the great competition within the family unit. Sibling rivalry, some people like to call it. And one child will say, Well, you know, you're mom's favorite. That's why you get this.

I don't ever get that. And that competitive spirit begins to well up, and they begin to jockey for a position to get mom or dad's attention. Well, that's one thing when they're young, but it's kind of nasty when they're like in their 20s and 30s and they're still doing the same thing. You know what I'm saying? Some people are in their 40s and 50s and 60s and still doing the same thing. But it shows a great immaturity on their part. Well, in the body of Christ, it's the same way. You need to look at it from that standpoint.

You know, when we teach our children, it's a great opportunity to teach our children. I remember growing up that, you know, every year I had to try out for the ball team, you know, football, baseball, and had to make it. You know, and my dad used to always tell me, you know, son, You know, God's got a plan. Either you're going to make it or you're not. You're either going to start or you're not. God's in charge here. You've got to go out, you got to do all you can. You got to try, you to play your hardest.

But somebody might get the starting position over you. And that's okay. The question is, when they do, how will you respond? Out of jealousy? Envy? Become angry? Or will you rejoice with your teammate who starts over you or not? And so, my father used that as an opportunity to teach me and to train me. And we can do that with our children to help them understand if your son or daughter gets a part in the play. And another one doesn't. See? How do they respond? How do you respond? The mature person is sympathetic.

1 Corinthians 12, 26, When one member suffers, all the members suffer with it. Or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice. Do you rejoice when your brother gets a new home? Do you rejoice because he's got a new home even though you live in a shack? You're excited for him? Are you envious? Are you sympathetic? Do you feel what he or she feels? Over in Romans chapter 12, verse number 15, it says, Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another.

Do not be haughty in mind. But associate with the lowly. Be like-minded. Don't be haughty in your mind. Don't be arrogant in your mind. Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those. Who weep. That's what it means to be sympathetic. Number three.

Brotherly or brotherly love, a kind affection toward a friend. That's how you know you're growing spiritually. That's how you know you're walking with the Lord and your relationship with the Lord is growing. There's a kindness that's expressed in that brotherly love toward one another. You love your brother. You're concerned about your br. You offer them shelter and shade. You offer them rest and relief. You offer them encouragement when it's needed. Over in Rom chapter 15, verse number 2, Paul says, Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to his edification.

That's brotherly love. Let each of us please his neighbor for his own good, for his own edification. Over in Romans chapter 14, verse number 19, it says, So then let us pursue the things which make for peace and for the building up of one another. Paul says, if you want to pursue something, pursue those things that make for peace and pursue those things that will build up another brother, that will lift him up, that will encourage him, that will set them up on stage. Give yourself. To that brother.

Over in Philippians chapter 4, it was Paul who said in verse number 14 these words: Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction. And you yourselves also know, Philippians, that at my first preaching of the gospel, after I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me in the manner of giving and receiving, but you alone.

For even in Thessalonic, you sent a gift more than once for my needs. Not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek for the profit which increases to your acc. There was a great increase in those in Philippi because they were willing to give to Paul during a time of need. That's the kind affection of brotherly love that's being shown. That's a level of measurement. That's how we understand that we're growing spiritually in our walk with the Lord. Next. Peter says this: Not only are you harmonious, sympathetic, and brotherly, but you're kind-hearted or tender-hearted.

This is the word used of Christ very often in the Gospels to speak of the p inside of him. And this is really good because you see, when Christ would see a hurt. He would help he the hurt. That 's what it means to be tender. That's what it means to be kind-hearted. Ephesians 4.3, the Bible says, be kind to one another, tender.

Forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Be tender toward one another, kind-hearted. Feel the hurt of someone else. One author defined it this way that when you hurt you put your hurts on the back burner so that someone else who's hurting can be helped. That's what it means to be tender. It means to take your hurts and put them on the back burner. Treat them as if they're not there. So that you can hurt or help the hurt of those around you. That's the compassionate feeling that Christ gave.

It says over in the book of Matthew, the ninth chapter, verse number 35, it says this. And Jesus was going about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. And seeing the multitudes, he felt compassion for them because they were distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd. Christ felt comp for people. Because they were like a sheep without a shepherd. They had no direction.

They had no one to protect them. No one to care for them. And he was the chief shepherd. He came to offer his life as the good shepherd. Yet they rejected him as their protector and provider. And in his inmost being, he felt great pain for them. Remember in Luke chapter 19, where it talks about that That great triumphal entry when Christ would leave Bethpage and Bethany and ascend the Mount of Olives. If you've been to Israel, you know that when you ascend the Mount of Olives for the very first time.

Having never been there before, and get your first glimpse of Jerusalem, it just takes your breath away.

It's the most amazing scene in all the world. There's nothing that can compare to it. It's the city of God. It's Mount Zion. And so here was our Lord ascending up the mount called Olave. And as he gets to the top of the hill and oversees the city of Jerusalem. He says, Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem. And he wept, the Bible says.

He wept because. He wanted to offer himself to them. He wanted to be their guide and protector. He wanted to gather them together as a mother hand would gather her chicks, but they refused. They didn't want him. But his tender heart, his kind heart, his sympathetic heart broke for those who rejected him. You know, we have to ask ourselves the question: are we broken over the things that Christ has broken over? Are we broken over the lost? That people are without Christ. Headed for a Christeless eternity, separated forever from their God.

Does that break our hearts? I would imagine to say that for the most part we go through life without even thinking about that. We get up, eat breakfast, kiss our wife, kiss the kids. Pat the dog on the head, get in the car, go to work, make some money, come home, eat dinner, go to church, hear a sermon, go home, go to bed with ever thinking about the lost. And yet Christ came to seek and save that which is lost. And it broke his heart that people were in an unconverted state. It should break our hearts as well.

It should break our hearts when people rebel against the truth, right? It should break our hearts when people don't want to respond to the word of God and they want to live in sin. That should tear us up on the inside. That should cause us great pain. For the sake of Christ and the gospel. Because we don't want our brother to turn away from the Lord. We don want our brother to rebel from the truth. We don't want our brother to begin to stiffen his neck or harden his heart. We want them to love the Lord their God.

It should have a great effect upon us. That's how you know you're growing spiritually. If you see your brother in sin, Listen, if you see your brother in sin and do nothing about it, you're not growing spiritually. You're stagnating. You're drying up. You're going to shrivel up. Because your heart is not concerned about his spiritual condition. And it needs to be. Because you need to be tender-hearted. That's so important. Next, Peter says this: He says, humble in spirit. Humble in sp. He talks about the inner attitude of He's not talking about an external appearance of humility.

He's talking about the inner heart. It's a word that means to bow down inwardly, to lay low. On the ins. You know, we live in a day where we like to spotlight celebrities and we like to magnify the flesh. We like to be on display. How do you know you're growing spiritually? Let me tell you something.

You know you're growing spiritually when you really don't care if anybody sees or recognizes you ever at all. That's how you know you're growing spiritually. Humble in spirit, lowly in mind, quiet in heart, and just doing it because God said so.