Sheryl Brady - Strategies for Spiritual Growth

On your way down, touch your neighbor and say, «Let’s grow together.» Don’t touch them, don’t touch them, don’t touch them, just say, «Let’s grow together.» Let’s grow together, let’s grow together. Thank you, Ben, thank you, praise team. The evidence of life is growth! I said that the evidence of life is growth. I remember when I was carrying my children. In all of my pregnancies, I remember that they would periodically check and measure just to make sure that the child— in my case, the child and the children I was carrying—was growing. That was always the best sign: the fact that they were growing, that they would gain ounces, and that they were moving. All of that was a sign of life. Once they were born, we would take them to the pediatrician, and I kind of relived all of this with my grandchildren, so it feels like it’s still fresh and new to me. You take them to the pediatrician, and they would start to measure your child just to make sure that they were falling within certain parameters. They do that to this day—certain percentiles and certain developmental guidelines, certain stages of development. The reason that people do this is because when a child stops growing, it is a sign that we need to look a little closer, because there is— you know, I would say that as adults, when we don’t stop growing, we need to look a little closer. But as children, they need to be growing; that is a sign of life. The reason that I say we need to look a little closer is that growth is the evidence of life. Can you say that? Growth is the evidence of life. One more time, say it: Growth is the evidence of life. Whenever a child is not growing, it is a sign that something is concerning or that something possibly could be going wrong. I want to take that just a step further today and talk about when a believer isn’t growing. When a believer is not growing, there is something that is possibly wrong or something that we need to explore, because God is expecting us to grow. Amen?

Ephesians 4:14 says that we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine and by the slight and cunning craftiness of men who lie in wait to deceive. But speaking the truth in love, we grow up into Him in all things. That scripture right there lets me know that God is intentional about our growth. God is telling us right here—Ephesians 4:14—that He wants us to grow up in every way, in every area. He’s telling us that the perfect example of maturity is Jesus Christ Himself. So, the goal of every believer is to become like Christ. It is to walk like Christ, to think like Christ, to act like Christ, to talk like Christ, and to respond as if Christ would respond. The reason that the Bible is telling us this is that Jesus was the model; He was the model of perfect humanity. Make no mistake about it: He was God, but He was also human, and He was the perfect model because He came not just to deliver us from our sins—though He did come to do that—but He also came to show us how to live our lives. One of the signs that you and I are living is that you are growing up in Christ. Notice I did not say that one of the signs that you are spiritually maturing is the fact that you attend church regularly, because I’ve seen a lot of people attend church regularly who have never grown up in God. I’ve seen people come faithfully to the house of the Lord and still be filled with hatred, ungratefulness, attitude, bitterness, and judgmentalism—proving that it’s going to take more than just having a perfect attendance record at church to grow spiritually.

As your pastor, I feel like it is my job, because I have to give an account one day to God for the things that I’ve given you to grow by. It’s important that I make sure I give you what it takes for you to grow. First Peter 5:2 says, «Shepherd and nurture, guard and guide the flock of God that He has entrusted to your responsibility.» I take my job very seriously, and while I’m happy to see numerical growth—especially on this side of the pandemic—I cannot allow that to overshadow spiritual growth. Spiritual growth is vital, because as a shepherd, I’m not simply called to build attendance; I am called to build an army. I said I’m called to build an army! It’s not just about the size; it’s about the strength. I said it’s not just about the size; it’s about the strength. It’s about maturity. It’s about taking spectators and turning them into participants. It’s about building people—not just building buildings. It’s about building people, and not just marketing to people. However, I have learned firsthand that if you build the people, God will build everything else. If you’ll feed the people of God…