Questions for Spiritual Decline

"To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—  to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen." Jude 24-25

One of the main indicators of legalism is when a pastor or church leader asks questions that focus on what you are doing for God rather than on what Jesus Christ has done for you. The following five groups of questions were written by a pastor and presented to his congregation prior to his message this morning. The title of the paper was "Questions for Spiritual Growth." Question #1: How are you actively learning about who God is? What are some ways you can practically know Him better this year? Question #2: Think back on God's faithfulness over the last year. Write down some of "the wondrous works He has done." Question #3: How well do you know God's promises for the future? Which promises can you meditate on to fuel your faith in God this year? Question #4: In what areas has your forgetfulness led to a lack of thankfulness? Write down five things you are thankful for. Question #5: In what ways are you remembering the wrong things? What hurts, disappointments, failures, self-efforts, etc. are you holding on to? What promises of God can you focus on instead? While some of the questions are okay, the general theme in them is one where the individual is operating from a position of lack in their relationship with the Lord. To "actively" learn about who God is, you have to remove the barriers you believe separates you from Him; namely the forgiveness of sins. If you don't believe you are forgiven, you will struggle to get to know God, if at all. You will always have to focus on getting right, clean, in good standing, or whatever you want to call it, before approaching God. With the focus on you then God's faithfulness will be seen in relation to the positive events of your life you believe God rewarded you with for your works. Just the fact that you are asked to fuel your faith by focusing on God's promises for the future means there are things you don't have from God and must find a way to somehow obtain. What five things will you be thankful for when your life as a Christian is based on promises not yet yours? The last question is the logical byproduct of a life consumed with your behavior and not knowing what you already have been given by God through your faith in Jesus Christ. Remembering the "wrong things" is why you are holding on to "hurts, disappointments, failures, self-efforts, etc." It will only lead to your spiritual decline as your life in Christ is defined by you trying to fill the emptiness you are experiencing in your walk with Jesus.

In the book of Jude, we are clearly reminded that God, in Christ, is the one who "keeps us from stumbling" and presents us "before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy." In other words, it is all about Jesus and not about us. This truth allows you to focus on all the promises of God you have already received; namely that you are completely forgiven, unconditionally loved, totally accepted, holy, righteous, sanctified, justified, assured of your salvation, and more. The byproduct of all this is that you can rest from your works and be thankful for His. When you understand your identity in Christ the "Questions for Spiritual Growth" will change significantly. Question #1: What is preventing you from knowing about who God is if He is not counting your sins against you? How does knowing you are forgiven allow you to know Him better? Question #2: How do you define God's faithfulness? Write down some of the wondrous things you have in Christ. Question #3: How well do you know your inheritance in Christ? How does knowing that fuel your faith moving forward for the rest of your life? Question #4: How can you give thanks in all circumstances knowing your identity in Christ? Question #5: In what ways are you believing things that aren't true? How are these false beliefs preventing you from resting in the promises of God? I hope you can see the difference in these questions. You can't grow spiritually without a firm foundation of what you already have in Christ; the promised inheritance of God you already possess. Knowing all of this is the difference between faith and works. It is the difference between grace and legalism. It is the difference between operating from a position of lack and operating from a position of abundance. The challenge is to ask yourself, "Do you know who you are in Christ?" If you do, the next question becomes, "What are you believing that has you living like a "foolish Galatian"? "You foolish Galatians! ... Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh (Galatians 3:1,3)?" Legalism forces you to "finish by means of the flesh." The Spirit of God will have no bearing on your life because you will only have eyes on yourself. Which questions are you answering? Your relationship with Jesus Christ is riding on how you answer. You can grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord or you can spend the rest of your life in spiritual decline as you try to obtain those things you have already received from Him. The choice is yours.