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2 Cor. 1-:15, 16
Please accept our invitation to join us Sunday mornings at 9:30 for worship. All are invited and we know you will feel welcomed. Since January, we studied that the NT teaches us to focus on seeking God righteousness and His Kingdom-Matt. 6:33. We have learned it is the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit that is to be demonstrated daily in our lives. That power is the visible witness of life and lifestyle changes because of our salvation. In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians we see his heart’s desire for all Christians was to have a dynamic philosophy that continued to grow. Let’s consider three points of growth in these verses.
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- FAITH MUST CONTINUE TO GROW! Ever wonder what Paul means by his statement in verse 15 “…as your faith continues to grow?” Do you ever think of your faith as a “growing thing?” Everywhere in God’s creation some parts of every living thing grows until the thing dies. If something isn’t or doesn’t grow it is dying or dead! Read Matt. 17:14-21; Luke 17:1-6; 13:18-19; Jas. 2:14-26 and 1Co. 3:1-9. Notice in the Matt. 17 passage the disciples asked Jesus why they failed. Note first, they didn’t just give up, sulk, or walk away. They wanted to know why they failed. Is that the attitude you have about your faith? Second, the disciples asked Jesus to increase their faith. Jesus told them to start with whatever amount of faith they had and build on that! No matter how small our faith, God can grow it beyond all we can imagine. Notice that in order to grow your “seed faith” it must be planted. How? James says “DO” something. Instead of just sitting by and complaining about how you can’t do things for the Lord, do what you can and let GOD grow your faith by HIS power. As we learn to trust Him, our faith increases.
- MINISTRY MUST CONTINUE TO GROW. Like all other living things the ministry of a NT local church is either growing or dying. The ministry of the church to the community is proportional to the depth and strength of the faith of the people in that church. The faith of the people is what they know and believe in their hearts about Scripture. The ministry of those people is how they show what they believe to those around them. Faith is private, ministry is public. The two are vitally joined to one another. The greater one’s faith, the greater one’s ministry. The NT teaches that every part of a person and a church must continue to grow.
- AREA OF IMPACT MUST CONTINUE TO GROW! Read verse 16. Notice that as personal faith grows, ministry grows. As ministry grows, the area of impact grows. The converse is also true, if one is dying, they are all dying. As we continue to reach out to those in our personal circles of influence and lead those folks to Christ – we disciple them and through them the area of impact continues to expand. Someone might ask, “if that really happens doesn’t a super-church result?” Only if self-centeredness overshadows the church. The NT teaches that new churches are established as numbers increase. The only “super-church” is the True Church the Universal Body of Christ. All other churches are local churches that are able to minister to ALL its people. The NT is very clear in its approach to discipleship and ministry. Growth from a NT perspective isn’t just numbers. The far more important growth is the spiritual growth of individual members who continue to grow until Christ calls them home or comes to get them.
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