공동체와 양육

Is it Worth it (Phil 1:12-26)

2008.10.26고든 맥도날드

Being converted once is not enough, because the first storm of life will expose a faith that only looks good. We must keep growing every day in Christ, rooted, built up, strengthened, and overflowing with thanksgiving.

A faith that only looks good can sink in the first storm

Like the Vasa, a Swedish warship that sank twenty minutes after its launch in Stockholm harbor because it was top-heavy, a faith built on appearance will fail under pressure. Some Christians gather information, attend the right meetings, know the right songs, and look strong. But when a stressful wave or wind comes, they collapse, and we are left asking what happened. The question is what our lives are built on when the first wind arrives.

Paul calls us to grow deeper in Christ

Paul urges us, who have received Christ as Lord, to keep living in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith, and overflowing with thanksgiving. Each word carries its own image: roots that draw nourishment from the soil, a foundation that holds under pressure, strength for battle and for the race, and a heart that gives thanks. Together they describe the strong Christian life, and Paul repeats them the way a rabbi does to drive the point home.

We are squeezed between false teaching and a pagan world

New believers are squeezed between two bookends. The first is false teaching, hollow and deceptive ideas from attractive and persuasive people, so we must test every voice against Scripture as the Bereans searched the Scriptures daily. The second is the pagan world around us, with sexual immorality, greed, anger, slander, and lies. We must not become overly negative or suspicious, but in such a tough world, a Christian who is not strong cannot survive spiritually.

We must choose Christ again every day

Being converted once is not enough; we must renew our decision to follow Christ every day. Like a marriage that grows deeper when each morning we choose our partner again in love, our walk with Christ is renewed daily. Set the GPS of your heart on things above, where Christ is, and measure your life against His character, holiness, and beauty. What He is, we become; what He does, we do.

Thankfulness is a sign of a growing faith

A thankful heart is one of the clearest evidences that a person is truly converted and growing. Saying thank you admits that we need others and depend on God, and we cannot live the Christian life alone. Real thankfulness is more than a polite word learned by rote; it overflows into gratitude toward people and toward the Lord. The Laodicean church said it was rich and needed nothing, yet it became lukewarm, and that is a warning to us not to let our faith fall over.

Apply to Life

  • Let us examine whether our lives are rooted and built up in Christ, and not only in outward appearance.
  • Let us test every teaching and every voice we hear against the word of God.
  • Let us renew our commitment to follow Christ today and every day.
  • Let us give thanks to God and to the people who walk with us in faith.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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