post Posted January 17, 2016 Group: Diamond Member Followers: 2 Topic Count: 23 Topics Per Day: 0.01 Content Count: 1,045 Content Per Day: 0.34 Reputation: 615 Days Won: 2 Joined: 12/09/2015 Status: Offline Birthday: 12/03/1976 Share Posted January 17, 2016 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.(2 Peter 1:3-9) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
post Posted January 17, 2016 Group: Diamond Member Followers: 2 Topic Count: 23 Topics Per Day: 0.01 Content Count: 1,045 Content Per Day: 0.34 Reputation: 615 Days Won: 2 Joined: 12/09/2015 Status: Offline Birthday: 12/03/1976 Author Share Posted January 17, 2016 the scripture above is one answer to the question - 'what does growth look like for us as believers?' what more can you add? when we examine ourselves to see if we are in the faith, what should we see as positive examples of growing in the faith? how can we foster it - or prevent it? what should we do, and what should we be seeing in ourselves as becoming mature and complete in Christ? i would like to get many perspectives from all of you, because i believe that the gifts of God for us are for our mutual edification - so i know that you all have things in you from God to help build us up. i think this question is a good one for us to have in mind, even if you don't have a reply to post. thanks for sharing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamelasv Posted January 17, 2016 Group: Senior Member Followers: 2 Topic Count: 132 Topics Per Day: 0.04 Content Count: 582 Content Per Day: 0.16 Reputation: 448 Days Won: 0 Joined: 04/24/2014 Status: Offline Birthday: 06/21/1969 Share Posted January 17, 2016 Well I know that staying in the Word is the biggest thing we can do, and practicing it of course. The fruits of the Spirit increasing in us I believe I have heard recentely, since 'we are being transformed into His image from glory to glory.' I think that is great to hear you are searching for growth. You will see growth only when it happens, as a hindsight. So then it should look like greater love ,joy, peace ,patience, kidness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamelasv Posted January 17, 2016 Group: Senior Member Followers: 2 Topic Count: 132 Topics Per Day: 0.04 Content Count: 582 Content Per Day: 0.16 Reputation: 448 Days Won: 0 Joined: 04/24/2014 Status: Offline Birthday: 06/21/1969 Share Posted January 17, 2016 Which also brings to mind the scriptures in 1 Chorinthians 13. 'If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging symbol. If I have the gift of prophesy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ezra Posted January 17, 2016 Group: Royal Member Followers: 16 Topic Count: 134 Topics Per Day: 0.04 Content Count: 8,142 Content Per Day: 2.35 Reputation: 6,612 Days Won: 20 Joined: 11/02/2014 Status: Offline Share Posted January 17, 2016 GROWTH = MATURITY = CHRIST-LIKENESS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
other one Posted January 18, 2016 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 29 Topic Count: 596 Topics Per Day: 0.08 Content Count: 56,063 Content Per Day: 7.55 Reputation: 27,812 Days Won: 271 Joined: 12/29/2003 Status: Offline Share Posted January 18, 2016 to a believer it will look like a person growing in love to be more Christ like..... to a non believer it would look like warts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enoob57 Posted January 18, 2016 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 35 Topic Count: 99 Topics Per Day: 0.02 Content Count: 41,137 Content Per Day: 7.98 Reputation: 21,435 Days Won: 76 Joined: 03/13/2010 Status: Offline Birthday: 07/27/1957 Share Posted January 18, 2016 And to the worldly religious compound w the cure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thereselittleflower Posted January 18, 2016 Group: Royal Member Followers: 6 Topic Count: 58 Topics Per Day: 0.02 Content Count: 5,457 Content Per Day: 1.70 Reputation: 4,220 Days Won: 37 Joined: 07/01/2015 Status: Offline Share Posted January 18, 2016 What does growth look like in a believer? Becoming more and more conformed to the image of Christ, becoming more and more conformed to his suffering on the cross, to become more and more conformed to his words "Not my will, but Thy will be done." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walla299 Posted January 18, 2016 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 9 Topic Count: 92 Topics Per Day: 0.03 Content Count: 2,164 Content Per Day: 0.66 Reputation: 1,727 Days Won: 0 Joined: 05/19/2015 Status: Offline Birthday: 11/10/1961 Share Posted January 18, 2016 What does spiritual growth look like in a believer? Becoming more like Christ in our thoughts and actions. In practical terms: My tastes change drastically from the things I used to enjoy before salvation. I want to spend more time with other believers, in worship, and service than I once did. I didn't always want to read the Bible, now its part of spending time with my Lord, as well as prayer. There was a time when you'd have needed a gun to get me to go to church . . . and that has changed as well. Old habits fall away in time and we get new ones that glorify the Lord rather than ourselves. Someone already mentioned 1 Cor 13 and that's a good example, as is Gal 5:32-33 for the fruits of the Spirit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjp34652 Posted January 19, 2016 Group: Advanced Member Followers: 1 Topic Count: 17 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 448 Content Per Day: 0.10 Reputation: 156 Days Won: 0 Joined: 05/19/2012 Status: Offline Share Posted January 19, 2016 On January 17, 2016 at 5:12 AM, post said: His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.(2 Peter 1:3-9) Growth is a secular word. When used to describe the process of divine sanctification it causes confusion and misunderstanding. There is no 'growth' in spiritual terms. Growth ends with the termination of puberty. Growth is a physical term. In Christianity one is TRANSFORMED into the likeness or image of Christ. The process is entirely spiritual in nature. There are indeed times when the physical body is affected by the transformation, but as a whole there isn't any growth in physical terms. It is spiritual and of a right ought to be referred to in Biblical terms - sanctification "separation unto Christ". Separation is not growth. It is death. One dies to the self, to the mind and to the lusts of the body. One puts an end to worldly things for the glory of Christ. The worldly minded man cannot separate unto Christ, but he CAN grow in licentiousness and sin. Sanctification conforms the spirit to Christ even as the body dies. This is not growth by any definition of the word. Sanctification is separation - a living sacrifice to Christ. It divides like a knife in the life of the believer. The follower of Jesus should separate himself from the things of the world, especially those that attempt to redefine spiritual values and matters. and that's me, hollering from the choir loft.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.jpg.41a872a56add3e6e0209ebd652a26fd7.thumb.jpg.f075035903aaa00bc04ba182a1e771ea.jpg)
Recommended Posts