Welcome to Waymaker Church! We are so excited to have you join us today! We exist to Encounter, Live for, and Advance the Kingdom of God!

Over the past few weeks, we have talked about the excellence of Christ, and how Jesus is worthy of our total devotion. Last week, I shared that our chief aim is to know Christ, and make Him known. Today, I want to take some time to dig a little deeper into how we do that.
Last week, I shared from Hebrews 4:11-16 how the Word of God discovers our condition by revealing the inner man. Let’s refresh our memory.

Hebrews 4:11–16 says, “Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Knowing Christ begins with the word. The word, living and powerful, opens our eyes to see spiritually. It is intended to help us gain and live from an eternal perspective, to aid us in overcoming our weaknesses through sin, and discover the divine enablement of heaven, which is the grace of God.

Now, with this in mind, we look ahead to what the writer of Hebrews says as they continue in chapter 5. In Hebrews 5:12-14 the writer conveys that the word should bring us to a place of spiritual maturity.

Let’s break this down:
• The general consensus is that after a period of time, we should all be able to teach the things of God, but the audience addressed is in need of being taught the basic principles of God again and again.
• The idea of being unskilled relates to something that is not being mastered due to a lack of use.
• The picture of solid food vs. Milk brings to mind the example of human development. Babies need milk processed through the mother because they lack the capacity to digest and care for themselves. Yet as they develop and mature, they begin to shift to soft foods, and then solid food. In each stage, the child takes on greater responsibility by learning to feed themselves.
• The kingdom of God works in a similar fashion. As a babe in Christ, we have need of someone breaking down the fundamentals of the gospel for us. We receive nourishment (spiritual milk) through the knowledge of others. *Note we are not intended to stay here.
• As we begin to grow in our relationship with Christ, we should progress towards maturity. The way we do this is by putting into practice the things that we are learning in the word. This step for a season will be similar to the highchair phase of eating. Some of it makes it where it’s supposed to go, but we will make some messes. During this time, we still need someone of maturity to make sure we are getting enough nourishment.
• Becoming consistent in this process teaches us to discern good and evil, eventually bringing us to spiritual maturity. This is when we begin to feed ourselves. This doesn’t mean we eat in isolation. We begin to dine with others. We share back and forth what we are learning, and it increases the overall growth.
• An important principle to understand: Spiritual maturity is not defined or limited by earthly age. Wisdom and spiritual fruit come through the application of the word. The only prerequisite is spiritual hunger and thirst.
• If I choose not to eat, I will become malnourished spiritually, and my spirit man will atrophy.

If we are to become mature in Christ, we must orient and position ourselves to do so.
A general observation I have made about the pace and intensity of our individual pursuit of Christ and personal growth is that it is limited by our view and understanding of who Christ is. Let me explain. Turn with me to Psalm 95:1–11 “A Call to Worship and Obedience”.

The command: This Psalm begins by telling the reader to sing to the Lord, to shout joyfully, and come before His presence with thanksgiving. Let us worship, bow down, and kneel before the Lord our maker.

The Perspective: He is the Rock of our salvation. The great God and King above all. His hands hold the deep places of the earth, the heights are his, the sea because he made it, and the dry land. He is our God, and we are the people (sheep) of His pasture.

I want you to see this morning that the depth of your pursuit will be largely determined by our view and awareness of Christ. If you read to check the box or don’t read at all, the command to sing to the Lord, to shout joyfully, to worship, bow down, and kneel will seem strange.

Yet, when you slow down with intentionality and seek to know Him through the word. You will find Him. He will reveal himself to you and it will change everything.

You won’t have to be told to worship. You will worship because you begin to see that He is worthy of your worship. He is your rock, your creator, and you belong to Him. The sense of gratitude and awe that follows makes you desire to worship Him even more.

The word helps to shape our perspective of who Christ is. And if we choose the way of maturity from milk to solid food, we will see him clearly. If we choose not to pursue, then worship will continue to feel like Christian Karaoke, prayer will be a chore, serving a dread, and generosity a source of frustration.

But If we see Him, everything will change! The songs we sing will no longer feel like karaoke. They will become a declaration of who he is to you. Prayer will become the avenue by which you commune and deepen your relationship, serving will express your gratitude for what He has done in your life, and generosity becomes your normal because you desire above all to become like Him.

If you desire to go deeper, consume the word until it consumes you. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal Jesus to you and get ready for growth like never before.