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Bible Study “Unto Full Growth”

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netchaplain

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After rebirth the primary issue for the saint is growth, for it not only causes us to “draw close to God” (Jam 4:8) but also increases the efficiency of our witness! NC

“Unto Full Growth”

By the Lord Jesus and to Him where He sits at the Father’s right hand in glory we are called. Old things, not evil things only, are passed away. We are by faith associated with the glorified Lord Jesus—we have a heavenly calling. The danger of the Christian therefore, and especially for the Hebrew Christian, was a lapse into earthly things; which was more easily done as the Old Testament was no less divinely inspired than the New, and hence might plausibly be pleaded to justify such a return.

Those that are Christ’s are cleansed once for all (Heb 9:12, 10:10), not only sanctified through the offering of the Savior, but “perfected forever” as Hebrews 10:14 tells us unhesitatingly. The Holy Spirit, instead of keeping our guilt continually before us, “testifies” (10:15) that through the Lord Jesus’ work the Father “will remember our sins and iniquities no more” (v 17). Thus for the believer, with full “remission there is no more offering for sins” (v 18); and hence he has boldness to enter into the Holiest by the Blood of the Lord Jesus. By faith in Him Who died and rose we receive the adoption of sons (Gal 4:5), and through His Spirit cry, “Abba, Father.” So we draw nigh.

It was here the Hebrew Christians were slow to hear and learn of the Father. They did not doubt that Jesus was the Christ; but they were dull to own both the full glory of His person and the full present eternal efficacy of His work on the Cross. This Failure in faith kept them babes, and for this they were blamed, for God could not reveal more distinctly the dignity of His Son, nor could Father, Son and Holy Spirit add to the fullness of what the Cross is to God as well as to the believer.

It is really going back from heavenly glory and mature growth on the part of all who refused to go forward into the full privileges of the Gospel, content to know no more than what the disciples had before the Cross. All they had then did not give them peace with God, for it did not cleanse their consciences. There was no access for them into the Holiest, nor had they the Spirit of adoption. Neither the sting of death was gone, not the power of sin annulled. Full growth implies on the contrary all this blessedness, and more; and to this the Hebrew Christians were exhorted to go on. It is not attainment, but simply, faith in the Word of truth, the Gospel of our salvation—in a word, Christianity.

Alas, how many who call themselves Christians, as sincere believers as the Hebrews were, are no less than they looking behind, instead of moving on to the enjoyment of faith in the ascended Lord Jesus Christ, and of their nearness to His God and Father and our God and Father (John 20:17). “Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection from the dead, and of eternal judgment” (Heb 6:1, 2). To ignore this is in fact to stop short of full and proper Christianity, to remain infants, when the Lord would have His own to reach maturity in their son-ship. “Thou art no more a servant, but a son” (Gal 4:7).

“Wherefore, leaving the word of the beginning of the Christ, let us pass on unto full growth.” The new status of the saint depends on the Lord Jesus’s death, resurrection and glorification at the Father’s right hand. The infinite sacrifice is already offered and accepted; and only so has He taken His seat on the right hand of the Majesty on high. We cannot therefore go to elements before the Cross for that which forms and fashions the Christian. We need the corn of the land (progressing from the manna – Josh 5:12 NC), now that it is no longer a question of raining manna in the wilderness.

- Wm Kelly


Today’s Devotional (April 28) by MJS: http://www.abideabove.com/hungry-heart/

For those who are unfamiliar with link-dragging to add to the desktop, downsize the window (not minimize), then left-hold the mouse on the far left icon in the top address bar and drag it to any area on the desktop outside of the site’s window and release the mouse. I strongly recommend this daily devotional above if you like the materials I share because it is centric of the doctrines contained within them.

God bless and blessed be God!
 
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Thank you Chaplain for that wonderful devotion and reminder.
Thank you too for the nice compliment on the author's material. That devotional is a prime source of growth truths from the last 400 years in the spiritual growth category. It has all the elements of mature doctrine!
 
If we are not moving forward then we are always sliding backwards. Growth only comes by application of Gods word that we walk in all truth never seeking that of this wicked world any longer.
 
If we are not moving forward then we are always sliding backwards. Growth only comes by application of Gods word that we walk in all truth never seeking that of this wicked world any longer.
Hi FHG - Thanks for your reply. I understand your comment, and the common conception about backsliding is that it can be corrected, but it can't, because it relates to an apostate (one departing from a false profession) in every use of the Scripture. Not sharing this with you to refute you but just trying to be instructional. View some of the passages below and see what you think.

Prov 14:14; Jer 2:19; 8:5; Hos 4:16

The term designs the intention of one departing from an insincere pursuit of God, which is what apostatize means. This is falling from a false pursuit of grace, in "departing from the living God," who were not in God. Same as those
"who draw back unto perdition," instead of being "of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Heb 10:39).
 
Hi FHG - Thanks for your reply. I understand your comment, and the common conception about backsliding is that it can be corrected, but it can't, because it relates to an apostate (one departing from a false profession) in every use of the Scripture. Not sharing this with you to refute you but just trying to be instructional. View some of the passages below and see what you think.

Prov 14:14; Jer 2:19; 8:5; Hos 4:16

The term designs the intention of one departing from an insincere pursuit of God, which is what apostatize means. This is falling from a false pursuit of grace, in "departing from the living God," who were not in God. Same as those
"who draw back unto perdition," instead of being "of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Heb 10:39).

I hope you were not thinking that Glory Girl was backsliding. She is always pressing forward to the prize of her calling. Thanks for the information on backsliding though, it's very accurate.
 
I hope you were not thinking that Glory Girl was backsliding. She is always pressing forward to the prize of her calling. Thanks for the information on backsliding though, it's very accurate.

Good looking out for our sister brother! No, I knew she was not referring to herself. I see her as I see you and many on this and other sites--wholehearted!
 
Hi FHG - Thanks for your reply. I understand your comment, and the common conception about backsliding is that it can be corrected, but it can't, because it relates to an apostate (one departing from a false profession) in every use of the Scripture. Not sharing this with you to refute you but just trying to be instructional. View some of the passages below and see what you think.

Prov 14:14; Jer 2:19; 8:5; Hos 4:16

The term designs the intention of one departing from an insincere pursuit of God, which is what apostatize means. This is falling from a false pursuit of grace, in "departing from the living God," who were not in God. Same as those
"who draw back unto perdition," instead of being "of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Heb 10:39).

Your title is "Unto Full Growth" and until that time of maturity in the word of God one can backslide many times as even I have done so many times in the past where I ran from the throne of God, but could never run from His grace for no one can run from His grace no matter if they are born-again or not for His grace is always there whether we accept it or not. Gods grace is patient and longsuffering that He would that none should perish, 2Peter 3:9, but not everyone will come to it.

I professed my faith in Christ when I was 17, but never gain the maturity of His word until I was 43 and that was eighteen years ago as I am now 61. I allowed life circumstances to stand in my way even doubting there even was a God at times. I allowed the flesh to take over the spirit for I had very little understanding all those years until I was beat down so bad that all I had left in me was to ask myself why am I being so tormented. I even sought advise from a Pastor who only patted me on the back and told me I was a strong person and could handle my own problems and sent me out of his office. A lot of good that did me for I was very suicidal at the time, but truly did not want to die in this condition. I needed answers and it wasn't until I literally hit the dirt that I finally for the first time totally opened myself up to the Lord as I cried out for His help and that day began a new hunger in me to seek out that full growth in Gods word as it was the first time I ever felt the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit that has filled me to overflowing wanting to know that truth that only comes by the Holy Spirit teaching me all things God wants me to know. I have now reach that full growth and will always continue to grow in His knowledge and truth as even I will never exhaust the teachings of the words of God.
 
one can backslide many times as even I have done so many times in the past
I believe what you are describing Sis is a prodigal condition which most if not all believers encounter during their maturity. The Scriptural use of backslide is always related to one who never returns, evincing a false pursuit.

All who are Christ's are His even before we accept Him because God foreknows who will be His, and if we all think back we can remember all the times from our youth unto adulthood that our thoughts were often on Him but more in wonder than in direction, band He used everything in our lives to bring us to Him--without fail--because we were His "from everlasting to everlasting" (Psa 90:2).
 
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There are two types of backsliding as found in Proverbs 14:14. One is that person of an evil heart of unbelief that rejects Gods grace as they live for the evil desires of their heart as they love the world and the pleasures thereof. Then you have the backslider that has a good heart, but allows the infirmity of the flesh and that of temptations temporarily draw them away from the grace of God even though it is still there. These are the ones that God can recover and heal their infirmities like God did for me. I never willingly decided to backslide, but was caught up in my own infirmities for awhile unlike those of an evil heart that will never turn back to the Lord.

The parable of the prodigal son is the same as one having a good heart, but backslide for awhile until he realized he need his fathers forgiveness. When all was lost he came back to his father repenting and his fathered favored him greatly for his father never gave up on him and loved him unconditionally like our Father in heaven that we repent to and turn back to His mercy and grace.
 
Then you have the backslider that has a good heart
I think I see where you might say this because of the following sentence "and a good man shall be satisfied from himself" which describes one who is not what the preceding sentence describes. Proverbs often uses what I call a converse-comparison passage. If we notice nearly all of proverbs describes both types of people among mankind.
 
Also, to me the prodigal parable describes the impossibility of breaking union with God once established, but it references a pause in the fellowship with Him which He always eventually returns us to! Same for Israel whom God has "not cast away" (Rom 11:1, 2), but rather has "blinded" (11:7) until later.
 
Of-course the issue of disagreement between saints concerning a subject is never as important as how we disagree--is it lovingly or not.
 
Your title is "Unto Full Growth" and until that time of maturity in the word of God one can backslide many times as even I have done so many times in the past where I ran from the throne of God, but could never run from His grace for no one can run from His grace no matter if they are born-again or not for His grace is always there whether we accept it or not. Gods grace is patient and longsuffering that He would that none should perish, 2Peter 3:9, but not everyone will come to it.

I professed my faith in Christ when I was 17, but never gain the maturity of His word until I was 43 and that was eighteen years ago as I am now 61. I allowed life circumstances to stand in my way even doubting there even was a God at times. I allowed the flesh to take over the spirit for I had very little understanding all those years until I was beat down so bad that all I had left in me was to ask myself why am I being so tormented. I even sought advise from a Pastor who only patted me on the back and told me I was a strong person and could handle my own problems and sent me out of his office. A lot of good that did me for I was very suicidal at the time, but truly did not want to die in this condition. I needed answers and it wasn't until I literally hit the dirt that I finally for the first time totally opened myself up to the Lord as I cried out for His help and that day began a new hunger in me to seek out that full growth in Gods word as it was the first time I ever felt the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit that has filled me to overflowing wanting to know that truth that only comes by the Holy Spirit teaching me all things God wants me to know. I have now reach that full growth and will always continue to grow in His knowledge and truth as even I will never exhaust the teachings of the words of God.

Hey Glory Girl, I wondered why you are so spiritual and full of the knowledge of God, now I know!
 
Chopper, it was a long road getting there, but now I know God always had my back and allowed my life to go that way in order to really seek His face. All glory and honor to His name, amen.
 
Chopper, it was a long road getting there, but now I know God always had my back and allowed my life to go that way in order to really seek His face. All glory and honor to His name, amen.

I'm so glad that you posted such a struggle of your faith. I hope others who are experiencing similar struggles will read your post and gain hope that there is victory just waiting for them if they take your good spiritual instruction....O my, I'm so blessed that you, thru the efforts of the Holy Spirit, OVERCAME such a war for your soul.

I always knew that there is something very special about you. You are a hero of the faith in my book. I love you very much!!
 
I'm so glad that you posted such a struggle of your faith. I hope others who are experiencing similar struggles will read your post and gain hope that there is victory just waiting for them if they take your good spiritual instruction....O my, I'm so blessed that you, thru the efforts of the Holy Spirit, OVERCAME such a war for your soul.

I always knew that there is something very special about you. You are a hero of the faith in my book. I love you very much!!

:blush
 
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