"Growing The Tree of Faith"

God's gift to us of everything we need for life and godliness and his gift of great and precious promises are made complete when we add his qualities of our lives.

Growing The Tree of Faith

(2 Pet. 1:5-11)

Intro:

A.  About 18 years ago Kerri and I planted a tree.  It was taken from a branch of tree belonging to one of the members of the church.  It was nothing more than stick about 2 feet tall and we allowed it to grow some roots in a gallon milk jug.  It was fun and exciting.  We lived in WV for about another year.  It made it through the winter and we left, thinking little about the tree.  While we have stopped over the years to see the old place and talk with the preacher we are always amazed at the tree.  In August when we took the kids to OVU we worshiped back at that church where they were born.  We looked at the tree that was planted 18 years ago.  What started as a two-foot twig had turned into 30 foot tree.  If you would have asked me what I thought about that twig 18 years ago, I would not have thought it would have grown like it did, or even survive.  But that tree today stands tall and strong.

B.  Here is my point.  A tree doesn’t just happen and doesn’t grow overnight from a twig to huge tree.  As much as I like that tree, I will to say it is not a pretty tree.  No one took the time to trim it and shape it and help it grow into a better tree.  We are kind of like a tree.  We all need time to grow and during that time need someone to prune us and shape us so that the outcome of our growth will show the value of what has been poured into us over the years.

C.  I have met very few Christians who honestly say to me, “I want to be a mediocre Christian.  But how many mediocre Christians have you met?  Do you plan on being mediocre?  If you answer, no, then what are you doing to plan otherwise?  That is the challenge.  Christianity is active and alive.  It is not meant to be passive and something that you do on Sunday.  Jesus came to take over, to be the Lord of your life.  He wants to be king, ruler, master.  When you start letting God get that much control over you, then watch out, for a change is happening.  Your spiritual tree becomes pruned and shaped.  Peter gives us practical advice on how to grow.  This lesson is not difficult to understand, but is difficult to implement.  So how can you and I grow into all that God had desired us to be?  Let’s get started thinking about each of these words.

I.  Faith

A.  Peter starts with a correct assumption.  You already have faith.  I agree we might all say that we could increase in faith, and I believe that walking through the rest of this list we will do that.  Faith is what brought you here today.  Faith is what keeps you coming back week after week.  Faith is the first step any person makes to have a relationship with God.

B.  The Hebrew writer makes it clear in Heb. 11:6.  He also helps us to understand what faith is in verse 1.  Then he spends the chapter giving examples of what faith means in the lives of people.  How it transforms them into the people God desired them to be.

C.  Peter says to us, “for this very reason.”  What reason?  What I shared with you last week.  For all that God has done for you.  He gave us everything we need for Christian life and gave us promises that help us escape the corruption in this world.  Based upon what God is doing, Peter now calls on me and you to do some “doing” ourselves.  Make every effort to add to your faith!  It takes some work to be Christian.  Eph 2:10  Saved by Grace and called to work by God.  Things he had planned in advance for us to do.

II.  The End Result

A.  Before I simply walk through this list I want us to see the reason.  One of the things that inspired me in music was my mentors encouraged me to see and listen to music that was played exceptionally well.  It was so exciting for me.  It was what I wanted for myself and that was the point they had in sharing those experiences with me.  If I could see the results then I might be willing to put for the effort to gain some of those results in my life.

B.  Look with me at what God through Peter tells us the results will be in our own lives if we add these things to our faith.  Read verse 8.  I can be effective and productive if I keep these things working and growing in my life.  Just like that tree we planted 18 years ago, if I would have pruned it and shaped it, it could have been a great tree, so much more than what it is right now.  I want to be more spiritually than what I am right now.  So think about these things we need to add to our faith.  They are not rocket science.  They are work, and it will take commitment (two things many of us have trouble doing).  But they are part of the precious promises.

III.  God’s Qualities for Christians

A.  This list of virtues, qualities, or spiritual gifts are open to every Christian.  Peter is not the only or the first to give such a list.  The idea is that when God keeps working in us and we keep receiving and acting upon His gifts we mature in the way He desires.  When that happens our lives take on greater meaning.  So why wouldn’t anyone want to possess these qualities in increasing measure?  This is God’s email to you, God’s letter, His way to open our eyes to change us as a church and mature us as Christians.

B.  Make every effort to add to your faith goodness.   Different translations have defined this word as:  virtue, integrity, moral excellence, good character and Christian energy.  So maybe the word can be translated several ways.  The idea of the word is not difficult to understand.  Since you have a relationship with God, then be a person of character.  Are you a person of moral character?  If not, then start by adding real, genuine goodness to your faith.

C.  But don’t stop there.  It’s too easy to stop with the first step and get complacent.  Add to that goodness, knowledge.    There are levels of this word.  You have general intelligence, general knowledge of the Bible, and deeper knowledge or understanding of Christianity and the moral wisdom which is seen in right living.  Add them all!  What it most important is that this idea is not simply to know, but to act upon what you know.  So when you add knowledge it implies that you are acting upon the goodness and faith that you already posses along with the other qualities we examine.  Learn, that is great, act on what you know is even more important.

D.  Our next Christian required quality is self-control.  Some of you may “temperance” in your translation.  The teaching here is that you and I master by God’s help our desires and passions.  We have for too long bought Satan’s lie that God wants us to be happy.  God doesn’t care if you are happy according to standards that are not his.  He understands happiness according to righteousness.  When Paul talks about “sin no longer having mastery over you” he is talking about the idea of self-control through the Holy Spirit.  Add this to your knowledge and you know your life will change.  The advertisement world would fall apart if we all practiced self-control.  Can you refuse what your body desires?  Can you restrain yourself in areas that are unhealthy to your Christian walk?  Add this viritue.

E.  I love our next word.  Perseverance.  If I am going to increase in my areas of faith, goodness, knowledge and self-control then I will need perseverance.  What I learned from this word is a calling to trust in God in the most difficult times in my life.  That is what Peter seems to call us to.  Trust in trials, to not quit, but to reach out and hold on to our Father-who-art-in-heaven’s hand.  Will you add that to your walk?

F.  It leads us to godliness.  This word is the easiest to define, but maybe the most difficult to put into action.  It simply means to have a spirit of reverence and respect to God in all matters.  To appreciate and live out his holiness.  Not an outward compliance to rules, but an inward purity of heart.

G.  Brotherly Kindness and Love are the last two.  They are inter-related.  We love one another because he first loved us.  It is about learning to love as God loves.  These two we fight about.  How much do I have to love you in order to have God love me and take away my sins?  I can’t minimize love – brotherly or otherwise.

Conclusion:

A.  We have already seen what happens when we possess these qualities in increasing measure.  We become productive and effective in our Christian life.  But sadly, the opposite is also true.  If I don’t add these things, but try to fly by the seat of my pants, or my own way, then I am nearsighted and have forgot all that Jesus has done for me.  I care more about me than I do about God.

B.  Will you help me grow?  I want to be better than that tree I planted  18 years ago.  I want to become all that God has called me to be.  Let’s do this together.  If you need to respond to God’s message today, then come as we stand and sing.