Spiritual Maturity is Never an End in Itself

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES What On Earth Am I Here For?

Spiritual Maturity is Never an End in Itself By Rick Warren — Oct 6, 2015 “Your attitude must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28 TLB) We are commanded to serve God. Jesus was unmistakable: “Your attitude must be like my own, for I, the Messiah, did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many”(Matthew 20:28 TLB). For Christians, service is not something to be tacked onto our schedules if we can spare the time. It is the heart of the Christian life. Jesus came “to serve” and “to give” — and those two verbs should define your life on Earth, too. Jesus taught that spiritual maturity is never an end in itself. Maturity is for ministry! We grow up in order to give out. It is not enough to keep learning more and more. We must act on what we know and practice what we claim to believe. Impression without expression causes depression. Study without service leads to spiritual stagnation. The old comparison between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea is still true. Galilee is a lake full of life because it takes in water but also gives it out. In contrast, nothing lives in the Dead Sea because, with no outflow, the lake has stagnated. The last thing many believers need is to go to another Bible study. They already know far more than they are putting into practice. What they need is serving experiences in which they can exercise their spiritual muscles. Serving is the opposite of our natural inclination. Most of the time we’re more interested in “serve us” than service. We say, “I’m looking for a church that meets my needs and blesses me,” not “I’m looking for a place to serve and be a blessing.” We expect others to serve us, not vice versa. But as we mature in Christ, the focus of our lives should increasingly shift to living a life of service. The mature follower of Jesus stops asking, “Who’s going to meet my needs?” and starts asking, “Whose needs can I meet?” PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over What has God been teaching you lately? How have you expressed it through ministry? What do you think: are you more interested in being served by or serving in your church? Why? How does service make believers stand out in the world? Today’s Scripture “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me...” (Psalm 23:4, NKJV) SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS Walk Through Have you ever gone through something that felt like the valley of the shadow of death? It’s easy to get discouraged during the tough times. But I love what it says in today’s verse, “though I walk through.” No matter what you are facing today, know this: you are not alone, and you are just walking through. You don’t have to stop and live in the tough times! They are only temporary. Don’t allow fear to paralyze you in the middle of “the valley of the shadow of death.” God is with you. He is walking beside you. He is strengthening you. He is making a way of escape for you. He is lining up people and situations to bring you out of that tough place into a place of strength and victory! Why don’t you get a vision of your life on the other side of that trial. See yourself more loving, more faithful, stronger and more blessed than before. Keep moving forward and keep walking through. Press forward into the victory God has prepared for you! A Prayer for Today “Father, thank You for Your faithfulness in my life. Thank You for walking with me even in the hard times. I trust that You are taking me through my circumstances to a place of victory and strength in Jesus’ name. Amen.”