Christians cannot get all they need for spiritual maturity in a once a week meeting. Believing that they can creates spiritual anemia. The acceptance of this unBiblical idea has produced an undernourished and ill equipped body.
Unfortunately this model was first demonstrated by the Catholic church, creating the priest/laity divide. It was reinforced by the industrialized education model in the early 1900s where efficiency in spreading information trumped organic relationships. It was propagated further by a celebrity preacher model. That model made people think they were being discipled by one guy in a pulpit one day a week.
If our model of imparting truth continues to differ from the example we see in Christ Himself and the new …show more content…
Without specific, customized input from others who know us well and give us specific teaching and correction, our weak areas and blind spots act like cancer in our spiritual lives. They diminish effectiveness in all areas. Often times this pattern leads to pride, causing us to think we have all there is to have in the Christian life. Like a sprinter on crutches for too long, we become accustomed to this hobbling, not realizing the excelling that Christ means for us to experience.
As believers, we are not hobblers. Although we are weak on our own, and need to see it, the point of that knowledge is always to move to Christ's strength. If we don't find Him strong, we get accustomed to walking in weakness and begin believing that's the norm. We miss the amazing power He promised and begin dumbing down the victory He gives. No athlete can thrive on survival rations.
When we experience a more regular diet of truth and fellowship throughout the week, we begin to thrive. When we expose ourselves to others in the body who are filled with the Spirit and interested in our growth, we can become much more rounded and mature
Unfortunately this model was first demonstrated by the Catholic church, creating the priest/laity divide. It was reinforced by the industrialized education model in the early 1900s where efficiency in spreading information trumped organic relationships. It was propagated further by a celebrity preacher model. That model made people think they were being discipled by one guy in a pulpit one day a week.
If our model of imparting truth continues to differ from the example we see in Christ Himself and the new …show more content…
Without specific, customized input from others who know us well and give us specific teaching and correction, our weak areas and blind spots act like cancer in our spiritual lives. They diminish effectiveness in all areas. Often times this pattern leads to pride, causing us to think we have all there is to have in the Christian life. Like a sprinter on crutches for too long, we become accustomed to this hobbling, not realizing the excelling that Christ means for us to experience.
As believers, we are not hobblers. Although we are weak on our own, and need to see it, the point of that knowledge is always to move to Christ's strength. If we don't find Him strong, we get accustomed to walking in weakness and begin believing that's the norm. We miss the amazing power He promised and begin dumbing down the victory He gives. No athlete can thrive on survival rations.
When we experience a more regular diet of truth and fellowship throughout the week, we begin to thrive. When we expose ourselves to others in the body who are filled with the Spirit and interested in our growth, we can become much more rounded and mature