Growth And Change
Sermon Review
10 February 2002
(Heb 5:7-10)Introduction:
I wonder what changes this year is going to bring? Change is a fact of life. I read somewhere during the week that 'even nostalgia isn't what it used to be'! One recent writer wrote that 'the world seems to be changing so fast nowadays that you couldn't stay wrong all of the time even if you tried'. It seems to me that change is a normal and necessary part of life and of growing as persons, Christians, and as a Church.
Growth Requires Change:
In the natural environment we see that growth and change is normal eg. plants, animals, human beings. Church growth is no exception. Imagine an influx of new people coming amongst us? What effect would that have on us? It would certainly put pressure on each of us to relate, to adjust to things like different dress, thinking, lifestyles, perhaps ethnicity. We would have to listen to other viewpoints, think through our own more carefully, and carefully defend our own faith and beliefs non-defensively. It would probably mean having to deal with wrong attitudes, prejudices, and expectations. It may mean not getting the seat we want, or the songs we like, or the attention that we are used, or our own way at different times; or having to do things differently, arrange our lives and ministries differently etc.
Growth of any description requires changes in all those involved. Even simple changes we will have to implement in this church as a result of new Privacy Legislation and Risk Management procedures for insurance reasons will require adjustment. Volunteer screening procedures, accident reporting and response and abuse allegation procedures, Youth activities guidelines reflecting OHS and Duty of Care, Christian leaders accountability guidelines etc. - all these will require change and adjustment on our part. Even to keep up with the times we have to change and grow! But we are not alone in this - even Jesus had to change and grow!
Consider Jesus:
In Lk.6:52, we are confronted with Jesus having to grow in physical stature, in knowledge, and in favour with God and with man.
Jesus had to experience growing physically - growing pains, types of food, dependence to independence, puberty, breaking voice, beard, strength etc. In knowledge - Biblical, cultural, religious, political, personal etc. With regard to people,
Jesus had to learn how to relate to all types of people from all walks of life, and deal with love adoration, betrayal, anger, envy etc. Spiritually, Jesus had to develop his relationship with the Father, resist temptation, trust unswervingly, pray, fast etc.
Jesus knew what it was to be stretched, to step beyond what was comfortable - to allow the surge of anger, the agitation of empathy with its tears, sighs and grief, the torment of anticipated pain, and the struggle of bending ones emotions and will to doing the unpalatable. He knew what it was like to deal with the unexpected eg. request by mother to supply wine, surprise at parent's wonder at him being anywhere else than in the Temple, disciples inability to cast out a demon after the Transfiguration etc., and adjust to and handle the twists and turns that confronted him while here on this earth e.g.: being led into 40 days of fasting, challenges by the Gadarene demoniacs etc. The Scriptures go on to say that Jesus had to grow and change in order to be equipped to be our High Priest, one who understands our weakness and will help us in our time of need Heb. 4:15,16, 5:7-10.
The fact is that Jesus was not always comfortable and serene while on this earth, for he was here to 'grow & change' so he could be equipped to provide full salvation for all mankind. God already had an academic knowledge and an observer's view of the human condition. What Jesus needed was the challenge and the experience of change and growth as a human being so as to be fully equipped to be our high priest - to understand and empathise with us in our struggles to change, adjust, obey, and grow. Like Jesus, so are we. We need to be willing to embrace change to grow - to be flexible and adjust as necessary, as he did.
Questions:
Do you want to grow?
Then you must first ask yourself am I willing to change? to adjust? to be flexible? You and this church, as well as I, cannot grow if we are not willing to change as we journey along together. If we will not, then any growth God inspires in us will die very quickly.
Do you find change daunting?
Welcome to the club. Change is almost always threatening, even when welcome. I don't imagine all the changes that Jesus faced were entirely welcome. Most certainly, all the changes his disciples had to face were hardly welcome! Yet you can be certain that any changes that God wants of us have his mighty power underwriting them. Think of Timothy, who was to endure suffering in the power of God 2Tim.1:8, or Paul who labored with the energy which God mightily inspired within him Col.1:29, and who taught that we are to be letters carved by the Holy Spirit 2Cor.3:3, changed from one degree of glory to another by the Holy Spirit 2Cor.3:18, and are empowered by the immeasurable greatness of his power Eph.19. As I said last week, the fruit of the holy Spirit is intended to be a 'Theo-gauge' - to measure how deeply and effectively we are letting the Holy Spirit work in our lives. God can provide the marvel of grace to enable any and every change that we may need to make, as a church or as an individual. You and I need to be willing to come to him for marvels of grace so that we can change as and when we need it.
However, Here's The Rub:
Jesus example is an encouragement to continue a journey of change ourselves, but it also highlights something else that is obvious and important. Christ being equipped through normal life as well as difficult and demanding circumstance means that the value of change is only found in experiencing it. Descriptions of it, knowledge about it, information concerning it, or a wealth of good intentions to change, are all inadequate. They are about as far from what will advantage you and I and others as a recipe is from tasting the cake it directs to cook. The power and value of change is only found when one experiences change. That is, it is only when we change our thinking, when we change our attitudes, when we change our behaviour, that we experience growth and the benefit of that growth. As faith without works is dead, so is the intention to change without changing as dead as a doornail. To put it succinctly, changing in experience is what 'grows us'. What we need to be doing to grow both personally and as a church is to keep asking yourself, ourselves, God, and others - what do I need to change?
Conclusion:
The Scriptures demonstrate that God is not particularly pleased with people not willing to change eg. Jer.18:1-6; Acts.19:51; Heb.3:7-9. God calls his people to be willing to grow and change in their thinking Rom.12:1,2; their attitudes 2Pet.1:5-11; and of course their behaviour Eph.5:25ff. Our western culture promotes goals of security and comfort. These are not God's goals. God is concerned about the Kingdom growing Matt.28:19,20; Acts.1:8 etc., and about his people growing and changing. Unfortunately comfort, convenience and security as this world counts it, come a rather poor second. God promises He will provide all we need, and that even the seeking of life's staples is to be subordinate to seeking his kingdom first Matt.6:33. He calls us to seek his kingdom first in our personal lives, our relationships, as a church together. He calls us to change and grow, to be flexible and adaptable so this can happen, even as he called his own son to be flexible and adaptable and to change and grow. Much joy comes our way when we change and adapt to suit God rather than when we want life and others and God to adapt to us, to change to suit us - blessed are the changeable!
The power of familiarity:
Many changes asked for are threatening and intimidating at first. They can be confusing and overwhelming, yet in time become familiar, natural, warm and appealing. Be assured that the willingness to travel through the unfamiliar territory of change will lead to new familiarities and experiences you will enjoy eg. old and new shoes. Growths as a person and as a Christian and as a church are God's goals. So don't flee from asking the hard question first - what do I/we need to change? You will find much joy in embracing change as a familiar friend, and not as an unwelcome enemy.
Blessings