![\"Coffee](\"https:\/\/faith-blog-assets.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/20170523133749\/Coffee-Cup3.jpg\" "\\"Coffee-Cup\\"")
<\/p>\nIf you were going to focus on changing just one area of your life, which area do you think would produce the greatest degree of spiritual growth?<\/p>\n
How you would answer that question after looking at this?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Looks like a pretty nice mug doesn\u2019t it?\u00a0 Most of us would probably be willing to have a sip of our favorite beverage from this mug.\u00a0 But take a look inside.<\/p>\n
Thirsty now?<\/p>\n But\u00a0what does this mug have to do with your spiritual growth?\u00a0 Jesus actually talked about this very thing when he spoke to a group of religious leaders.\u00a0 He said…<\/p>\n Matthew 23:25-26 Jesus’ point\u2014it\u2019s not what\u2019s on the outside that matters, it\u2019s what\u2019s on the inside that truly makes a difference.<\/p>\n Many of the scribes and the Pharisees liked to put on a big show that made it appear as though they really loved God.\u00a0 And if you didn\u2019t know them very well\u2014if you just looked at their outward behavior\u2014you would think that they really did love the Lord.<\/p>\n They said all the right things.\u00a0 They did all the right things.\u00a0 They hung out with all the right people.\u00a0 But as it turned out, their love for God wasn’t as genuine as they would have had others believe.<\/p>\n I’m painting with a broad brush, of course.\u00a0 There were probably a number of scribes and Pharisees who really did love the Lord.\u00a0 But on the whole, the religious piety of these religious leaders was largely for show.<\/p>\n And in responding to their behavior, Jesus explained that if you want to see real spiritual change, don\u2019t try to change a bunch of things on the outside that make you look like you love God.\u00a0 Instead, change what\u2019s on the inside, and outward changes will happen automatically.<\/p>\n Now, before we get too critical of the scribes and Pharisees, I think we need to consider whether we could be guilty of the same sin.\u00a0 That kind of religious exhibition wasn’t restricted to those who lived during Jesus’ day.\u00a0 It’s just as much of a danger for our generation.<\/p>\n I’m sure we can all think of ways that people pretend to be more spiritual than they really are.\u00a0 And perhaps we can even identify these contradictions in ourselves.\u00a0 When was the last time you went to church with Bible in hand knowing that you hadn’t cracked it open once that week?\u00a0 Do you pray with your family–over a meal or at bedtime–without spending any personal time with the Lord?\u00a0 How often do you tell others that you’ll pray for them without any real intention of following through?<\/p>\n It can be so easy to come to church, to put on our Sunday best, to say all the \u201cchurchy\u201d things we think other people want to hear without doing the things we need to do to make our faith real.\u00a0 That’s what we commonly refer to as “talking the talk without walking the walk.”\u00a0 Jesus had a different term for it.\u00a0 He called it hypocrisy.<\/p>\n When our public presentation doesn’t match our personal practice, then we’ve become just like the scribes and Pharisees.\u00a0 We’ve become clean-looking cups that you can’t drink from.<\/p>\n If we’re going get serious about our relationship with God, about growing in our faith, then we have to put an end to hypocrisy.\u00a0 We need to wash the inside of the cup and not just the outside.\u00a0 And this year is the perfect year to do just that.<\/p>\n This year, as part of our church’s annual theme, we’re striving to live life together (1 Thessalonians 2:7).\u00a0 Living life together requires a willingness to be honest with one another.\u00a0 You could think of this year as the year of religious authenticity, as the year of spiritual transparency, as the year of walking in the light.\u00a0 Whatever you want to call it, if you need to do any work in this area, I urge you to use this year to make your faith real.<\/p>\n Let’s go back to the question we asked at the outset.\u00a0 If you were to focus on changing just one area of your life, which area do you think would produce the greatest degree of spiritual growth?<\/p>\n And though there might be a number of legitimate responses to that question, I want to suggest that the single most effective aspect of your life to address is your thinking.<\/p>\n Proverbs 23:7 According to this verse, our thinking affects everything we do.\u00a0 It impacts how we handle trials, how respond to authority, how we treat other people, and certainly how we view God and His Word.\u00a0 Because of the pervasive effects of our thinking upon our lives, we need to make sure that our minds are helping us to grow spiritually.<\/p>\n This spring, we’re taking our 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders through a series called Thinking Like Christ.\u00a0 Based on John Vandegriff’shelpful book In the Arena of the Mind, we\u2019re encouraging students to recognize the sinful patterns of thinking that exist in their lives and to replace those patterns with the forms of thinking outlined in Philippians 4:8.\u00a0 The goal of this study is to help kids use their minds in ways that will produce godly habits of living.<\/p>\n But this study isn’t just for the kids.\u00a0 One of the great things about God’s Word is its applicability to people of all ages.\u00a0 We all need to work at bringing our thinking into conformity with the mind of Christ.\u00a0 So, from time to time, I’ll post about the topics were covering with the kids to encourage us “big kids”\u00a0 in thinking more like Jesus.<\/p>\n And based on the authority of Scripture, if you’ll do the hard work of changing your thinking to become more like Jesus, I believe I can promise you that you’ll see some dramatic spiritual growth.<\/p>\n If you were going to focus on changing just one area of your life, which area do you think would produce the greatest degree of spiritual growth? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[97],"tags":[4185,135,130,4184],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Coffee](\"https:\/\/faith-blog-assets.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/20170523133749\/Coffee-Cup-Stained1.jpg\" "\\"Coffee-Cup---Stained\\"")
<\/span><\/p>\n
\nWoe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! \u00a0For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.\u00a0 You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nThose Hypocrites<\/h2>\n
Are You One?<\/h2>\n
Get Real<\/h2>\n
Where Do You Start?<\/h2>\n
\nAs a man thinks in his heart, so he is.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nWorth the Effort<\/h2>\n
For Further Consideration<\/h2>\n
\n